Page 56 of The Gamma's Second Chance

I’m not sure it is a possibility. As flawlessly as she’s slid into life here in Crescent Lake, she’ll still be returning home to the island once Haven’s aura settles after the pup is born. This intense, comfortable intimacy between us is temporary.

But the pull to her is powerful and undeniable. And I would be a fool to ignore it or claim otherwise.

I swallow and press my forehead to hers, our eyes both closing as we breathe and hold each other. I cup the back of her neck, my thumb pressing into her jaw as I lean closer to her. “Cassandra, I—”

Wesley’s front door opens with a whoosh, and Cassandra jumps, her heart racing as the light from inside illuminates us in our intimate embrace on the front deck.

“So nice of you to join us,” Sebastian says from behind me, and I curl my hand into a fist, pounding it on the post I have Cassandra pinned against.

I groan in exasperation, but Cassandra chuckles and peeks around me, giving Seb a smile and a wave. “Don’t encourage him,” I scold, frowning at her.

“I don’t think he needs any encouragement,” she mutters, stroking up and down my chest. “‘Smug’ is his middle name.”

“It’s actually Henry,” Sebastian says.

I glare at him over my shoulder. He stands framed in the doorway, a beer in one hand and his other in his pocket, and his usual cocky smirk on his face.

Fucking dickhead. Interrupting our moment and postponing any deeper conversation I was prepared to have with her.

Although, it’s probably for the best. Game night with our friends isn’t the place for such discussions. I’ll have to hold off until later.

I exhale through my nose and push off the railing, Cassandra’s hand sliding into mine as we cross to the front door. Sebastian sips his beer, waiting for us to reach him. Cassandra squeezes my hand, and when I glance at her, she nods at Sebastian, an eyebrow raised as she nudges me towards him.

I clench my jaw and close my eyes to hide their rolling. “I’m sorry I punched you,” I say through my teeth.

Sebastian laughs and shakes his head. “No, you’re not.”

Cassandra snickers behind me, her dainty, graceful piano player fingers hiding her lips. Her eyes sparkle, and I sigh as I shove past Sebastian and lead her into the house. “Dickhead,” I say under my breath as he shuts the door and follows us.

“Okay, can someone please explain the ‘dickhead’ thing to me?” Cassandra asks, her hand on my elbow and a curious smile on her face as she looks between the two of us.

“It’s a running joke from our childhood,” I say as we enter the crowded kitchen and dining room. “Sebastian drew a dick on Reid’s forehead”—I gesture at Reid where he stands on the other side of the kitchen counter from me—“while he was sleeping onAlpha Harrison’s couch, and when Reid woke up, Seb called him a dickhead.”

“Hey!” Sebastian says, leaning his elbows on the counter next to Reid and pointing at me, his head tilting towards Reid. “You left out the part where Reid called me a dickhead first at training!”

“I only called you a dickhead because you did something dickheaded,” Reid says as he gives Sebastian a gentle punch on the shoulder.

“Which you yourself admitted you don’t actually remember what that was,” Taryn adds from Reid’s other side, a smiling Savvy held in her arms.

Reid covers his chest with his hand, a dramatic gasp echoing around the kitchen. “I told you that in confidence, Cadet!”

“Fault aside,” I say over Taryn’s laughter and Reid’s sputtering, “the nickname has stuck, and it is now our go-to insult or term of affection for each other.”

Cassandra’s smile grows, and I squeeze her hand as Wes and Haven join the five of us in the kitchen. “Beer?” Wesley asks in greeting, nodding at me from the fridge.

“Please.”

He nods again and opens the fridge, grabbing two bottles out. “Cassandra?” he asks, holding the door propped open.

She nods at him. “A beer would be great, thanks.”

Wes grabs a third and then closes the fridge with his foot, crossing the kitchen to us and handing Cassandra and me our beverages. “Food will be ready soon. Mateo and Mason are making burgers. They’re having a contest to see whose grilling skills are better, so I hope you brought your appetites.”

“Come and meet everyone else,” Haven says, linking her arm through Cassandra’s once Cassandra’s opened her beer and leading her towards the large dining room and the spacious living room.

“I’ll join you,” Taryn says, perking up and darting around the kitchen island as fast as her pregnant belly and the baby held in her arms allow her. “Maya still needs to show me the dress she designed for Haven for the ball next weekend.”

As our luna and our beta female introduce Cassandra to the rest of our friends, I push my sleeves up to my elbows and sit on a barstool. Reid’s eyes latch on to Cassandra’s name written on my forearm.

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