Page 22 of My Possessive Alpha

With a nod, I followed his lead and climbed out. We were immediately met by fresh air and warmth as the sun beat down on us.

“As you could probably guess, mostly everything we need is in one spot,” Sebastian explained as he guided me down the street, letting me take in the sights around us. “We’ve been working hard recently to come up with new small business initiatives to boost our local economy. So far, it’s been coming along nicely.”

As we walked by a group of storefronts, all containing various shops and a few empty ones, it was easy to see what he was talking about.

“It looks like you know exactly what you’re doing,” I commented, noting how neat and pristine everything looked.

Sebastian gave me an appreciative smile. “That means a lot to hear. I like to think the same thing.”

The tour continued through the main part of town as he pointed out local attractions and ensured I was somewhat familiar with the place. I listened intently as Sebastian explained certain things, enjoying the genuine pride and excitement in his voice.

From what I could tell, he found his stride and was doing far better than I would have expected. Although, knowing him, it shouldn’t have been a surprise.

Just down the street, a bell rang as the door to a coffee shop opened, and my heart lodged in my throat when I spotted her.

Sebastian brightened. “Zoe, hey, wait a minute!”

As I shrank slightly in my place, caught off-guard by the sudden sighting, I couldn’t miss how optimistic he seemed at the prospect of reuniting us after those years apart. It made me pull back even more, aware that the situation would be far from simple.

Even if I felt embarrassed and sheepish about it, I took that brief chance to look at her. It felt so long since I last saw her that it was almost like meeting someone completely new, even if her appearance hadn’t changed much.

Her raven-black hair was longer than before and sleek as it was up in a high ponytail, and those brown eyes that closely resembled her brother’s gleamed a little less with optimism. Overall, she looked so mature compared to the last time I saw her, and it brought such a strange sensation to me.

But the longer she looked at me and made that silent connection, the more hardened that stare became. She visibly bristled and shook her head before walking off with a coffee in hand, not even giving me a second look before disappearing.

My heart dropped at that, clenched by the pain of her rejection.

As much as it hurt to know she wasn’t interested in seeing me, I couldn’t blame her.

She still didn’t know what I had recently discovered about my parents or how I was starting to disentangle myself from their lies. She likely assumed I hated her. But that was far from the truth.

“Jesus Christ, Zoe,” Sebastian murmured under his breath, somewhat irritated by his sister’s reaction.

Seemingly realizing my reaction as I stood there dejectedly, he glanced at me, and his expression softened. He put a reassuring hand against my shoulder. “I’m sure she was just surprised and didn’t know what to do. When you left, it was hard on her, but she’ll come around with time.”

“It’s not her fault,” I returned in a mumble, trying my hardest to keep a brave face despite how that guilt pulsed in my chest.

I left her behind without any kind of explanation, and while I couldn’t control what my parents planned for us, I went along with it. I never even tried to reach out, especially not after everything they did to keep me away from her and Sebastian.

His voice reached me in a gentle tone, pulling me from my quiet contemplation. “It’s not yours either. Everything will work out eventually.”

Meeting his gaze, I pulled a slight smile despite feeling far from reassured at that moment and knew that no matter howhard either of us tried to avoid each other, it would all come to a head at some point.

If I was going to stay with Sebastian’s pack, then seeing Zoe was a simple fact I had to accept.

Overall, I had to accept the transition. I couldn’t go back home after fleeing, and as difficult as it was, I told myself to get comfortable.

My life had changed entirely, at least for the time being, and it would only continue to change.

Chapter 13 - Sebastian

Having Lydia on my pack grounds was certainly an adjustment, almost like two worlds colliding, but it felt right. It brought me a new kind of comfort to have her in my home and to know that she now had the chance to see something outside of the world her parents curated for her. Something beyond that stifling normalcy she was used to.

Knowing that she was safe with me, surrounded by the people I trusted the most, made the biggest difference, granting me the chance to breathe easier. Even if I was injecting myself into the complications surrounding her life, it didn’t seem as burdensome the moment I noticed just how relaxed she was.

While I wasn’t impressed with how Zoe completely blew her off, I also knew it would take much more than an initial sighting to mend things between them. Given how important Zoe and Lydia both were to me, I hoped to help them get back on the same page at least. But that required patience and willingness from both sides. It wasn’t something I could force.

Even if there was some strain between them, I thought getting Lydia acquainted with some pack members would be a good idea since they made up most of the locals.

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