Page 32 of My Brutal Alpha

Knowing Sebastian was right, I kept that thought in mind, reminding myself that even if it meant spending extra time withEzra, I wanted her to have the best baby shower possible. I wasn't prepared to let my best friend down.

Even if it meant sucking it up and dealing with the uncertainty between the two of us.

We both nodded, doing our best to ignore the lingering tension between us and the unspoken words that surely needed to emerge eventually.

As much as I wanted to ignore it, the situation would eventually spill over.

Chapter 15 - Ezra

Even though the baby shower planning would likely have its own problems, I couldn't deny feeling at least somewhat smug about it.

Over the last few days, I have tried to gauge Zoe's thoughts on what is happening between us, but from what I could tell, she was trying to keep some distance.

I couldn't tell if that was her trying to resist me or if she still hated me, but either way, I felt I was more willing to accept our bond than she was.

Because of that, I didn't mind the idea of spending more time together. In a way, it seemed like it would work in my favor.

With the afternoon ahead of us, I had my hand on the steering wheel, driving out of town and closer to the city. Given the kind of things Sebastian wanted us to get, we figured going bigger would be better, and there would be more options if we left town.

I didn't mind at all, but there was obvious tension in the truck, and from what I could tell, most of it was coming from her side.

Zoe stayed relatively quiet in the passenger seat, looking out the window while the radio played.

As much as I wanted to talk, I recalled what happened the last time I tried to make small talk and decided I wouldn't risk starting our afternoon on a poor note.

Knowing she found it difficult to both come to terms with the bond and speak to me as candidly as she once did made my inner wolf feel restless. The bond within me was longing to reach out and connect, but my pride was getting in the way.

As we made our way to the shopping plaza, I couldn't help but think about how my parents demanded that I call off the fake engagement with Zoe. Even if it wasn't real, I still hated the ideafor multiple reasons. I hated the thought of pushing her aside just to comply with my parents' wishes.

That was all I needed to know to convince me I wouldn't do it. I couldn't.

Even if Zoe still wasn't sure about me, I wanted to change that. I wanted her to want me and to be able to admit that to even herself.

Regardless of the time or effort it might take to get there, I was determined to show her I wasn't a monster.

"And we're here," I said finally as I pulled up to a parking spot and turned the truck off. I glanced over at Zoe, seeing the list in her hand. "Where did you want to go first?"

Zoe let go of a breath as if bracing herself. "Decorations are the biggest thing on the list...so we should probably start there."

Seeing the logic behind it and wanting to seem agreeable to keep the peace, I nodded. "Decorations it is. Since you're probably more familiar with this kind of thing, I'll let you lead the way."

Zoe simply nodded before getting out of the truck. I did the same, letting go of a steadying breath as I closed the door behind me.

It was either going to be surprisingly nice or incredibly agonizing. At that point, I hadn't decided yet.

Together, we made our way into a ridiculously huge craft store that had copious amounts of decorations. I elected myself as the cart driver while Zoe walked ahead, deciding I'd better not get in her way.

So, I followed her around instead and felt slightly out of place, but at least Zoe seemed to be completely in her element.

I watched closely as Zoe went wild on the decorations. With the chosen theme in mind, she grabbed everything andanything that seemed to mostly fit under that umbrella and placed it all in the cart.

In the beginning, she was still quite tense, keeping to herself as she picked items and put them in the cart frivolously. But once we reached the section full of celebration signs, she sifted through different variations of baby-related ones, seemingly stumped. Eventually, she held two up and lifted a brow at me. "Which one?"

Looking between both options, and immediately felt completely lost. Taking a moment, I murmured to myself before shrugging with a sheepish expression. "Why not both?"

Her brows knit together at first as she looked between them again, and then Zoe shrugged as well. "I guess you're right...both it is."

"Excellent choice, as always," I said light-heartedly.

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