Page 36 of Alpha Reid

“Ooh, I’d love to do a sleepover!” Brooke squeals, big blue eyes blinking behind the lenses of her glasses. “I haven’t had a sleepover with girlfriends since high school!”

Fallon’s jaw goes slack as she turns to look at her sister like she’s offended, but Brooke just laughs, elbowing her. “Oh, c’mon, Fal, you don’t count.”

Fallon looks around at the rest of us like she’s wounded, mouthing ‘ouch’. We all giggle.

“What do you think, Serena?” Brooke asks as I swallow down a spoonful of soup. “Would you be in for a sleepover?”

I hate being put on the spot amongst these girls, afraid to do or say the wrong thing. They all look to me and I shuffle uncomfortably, dipping the spoon back into my soup bowl. “Yeah, that sounds fun,” I smile.

That’s not exactly true- being around Astrid makes me nervous, given her ability to peek into people’s heads, and I’ve been treading carefully around Fallon ever since she caught me stepping out of bounds the other day. While I appreciate the girls’ efforts, a sleepover with them sounds like it could be a recipe for disaster.

“It’s settled then,” Quinn says with a resolute nod of her head. “How about tonight?”

“Works for me!” Brooke chirps.

“Same here,” I add as I bring another spoonful of soup to my lips, my mind spinning as I try to push down the anxiety rising in my gut.

“I’ll have to sit this one out, unfortunately,” Astrid sighs, tucking a wild curl of light brown hair behind her ear. “Brock and I were planning a little date night tonight.”

It takes a great deal of effort for me to conceal the wave of relief that washes over when she says that. Don’t get me wrong, Astrid seems like a lovely person- but she’s also the one person who is the most dangerous to me right now.

“Ooh!” Quinn teases, waggling her eyebrows. “What kinda date?”

Astrid smiles brightly, a light blush staining her cheeks. “We’re cooking dinner together and watching a movie. I know it sounds lame, but…”

“It doesn’t,” I say quietly, without even meaning to. I look up from my soup bowl to see all four girls looking in my direction again. “I just… I think it sounds really nice,” I add with a shrug. “Just like, normal couple stuff. It’s sweet.”

Have I grown a second head or something? Because they’re all still staring at me as I munch on the crust of my sandwich.

“You and Reid will get there,” Astrid says sympathetically, offering me a warm smile.

Ah, there it is. The pity train has left the station.

“For sure,” Fallon agrees. “Reid’s the sweetest. You’ve got a good one.”

So I’ve been told. Repeatedly.

“Yeah,” I agree, forcing a smile. Because I know it’s true, and it only makes me feel like an even shittier person for what I have to do. He deserves better.

Brooke turns to Astrid, setting a hand on her shoulder. “Well, I’m with Serena, I think your date night sounds perfect. You two are adorable.”

Astrid blushes, tucking her hair behind her ears again. There’s just something about Astrid that’s so damn endearing and likeable. She’s this cute, bubbly little thing, totally in contrast to her big hulking mate who always seems to be wearing a frown. So different, yet they fit.

“What about you, Fal?” Brooke asks, swinging her gaze over to her sister seated on her other side.

“Sure, tonight works. Where are we doing this at?” She looks from Brooke to Quinn. “Do one of you want to kick your guy out for the night? I’d offer, but Gray has been stressed lately with all this shadow pack drama and I don’t want to spring something else on him.”

Brooke nods eagerly. “Yeah, let’s do it here! Theo was gonna head to Summervale tonight anyways to help his dad out with some stuff with the pack, so that works perfectly.”

“Unless you’d rather do it at your place, Serena?” Quinn asks, arching a brow. “I know you’re still getting settled in, so…”

“No,” I blurt, cutting her off. She looks a bit taken aback by my abrupt interruption, but I quickly recover, playing it cool. “I mean, I could use a night away. Things have been getting pretty intense at the packhouse lately.”

Quinn’s lips spread into a grin. “Ooh,” she waggles her eyebrows. “Get it, girl.”

“Those alphas are definitely intense,” Fallon winks.

I’m sure they assume that I’m already sleeping with Reid, but I don’t bother correcting them and opening a conversation about my love life. Instead, I just finish my lunch as the girls continue to make plans for the evening, then we all go our separate ways- Fallon back to her packhouse, and Quinn, Brooke, and Astrid to the IT hub.

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