Page 33 of My Brutal Alpha

I managed to catch Zoe's faint smile before she turned and kept going, and while it wasn't the biggest, most exciting gesture, it was enough to make me hopeful.

Fortunately, that was the start of a big improvement, and as we continued through the store, Zoe seemed more willing to have a good time.

Rather than retreating within herself, she asked me for more opinions, and thankfully, she took them into consideration. Rather than me simply following her around, it was like we were participating in the planning together.

After wrapping things up at the craft store, we perused around the plaza, eventually making our way to a baby store.

"Since we're here, we might as well look for gifts, right?" Zoe suggested, seeming pretty excited about the idea.

I huffed out a chuckle, then nodded. "Right, you are. Lead the way."

With a faint smile, she took the lead and began through the store, eyes lighting up at all the baby things.

Once again, I was mostly out of my element but tried not to let it show. Instead, I let her have her moment as she got lost in the excitement of it all.

Before long, she was cooing over all the small, delicate items and handing whatever she wanted to me. It didn't take walking through very many aisles for my arms to be almost full.

"Don't they have most of these things from the first baby?" I asked once the pile was so high I had to peer around it to see her.

Zoe gave me a dismissive wave, sounding more than confident despite not having any of her own yet. "Nonsense. Most of these things wouldn't survive after the first baby. Plus, new baby, new things. That's my motto when spoiling my nieces and or nephews."

I couldn't help but chuckle at the thought, and unwilling to argue with her on that, I returned, "Fair enough."

She hummed her amusement. "I waited long enough for my brother to have kids, so I'm not holding back."

Even if it seemed somewhat out of hand, I wouldn't question her thinking given how I was a few items away from fumbling it all.

After managing to get everything to the counter accident-free, I found myself lost in that comfortable headspace.

The change of pace was nice. Neither of us was bickering or butting heads; instead, we were actually getting along.

Despite our bond, it was easy for us to slip into old habits, but because we were both in good moods and focused on the baby shower rather than ourselves, that wasn't the case.

For a moment, as we waited for the seemingly endless items to be scanned and bagged, I had half the mind thinking we were getting those things for a little one of our own.

When I realized this wasn't the case, a slightly alarmed sensation moved through my system, along with the stirring of our bond—almost like a silent suggestion from my inner wolf itself.

A flicker of embarrassment and irritation hit me as I internally scolded it for putting that thought in my head. I wasn't ready to be a father yet, especially not while every aspect of my personal life seemed far too messy to bring a kid into.

Still, there was no avoiding how strange it was to find my mind wandering like that and how, regardless of how short, it felt...good.

Pushing it down as the bags were handed to us, I took most of them and tried to forget that almost affectionate feeling that sat heavily in my chest.

As we walked out of the store, I noticed Zoe's pleased smile, and seeing that gentle expression made more of those feelings pulse within me.

There was no denying how beautiful she looked, especially while she was perfectly at ease and taking charge of something. It was difficult for me to pull my eyes away from her.

"Any other stores you want to hit up before we head out?" I asked her, embarrassed to admit to even myself that I was somewhat reluctant for the afternoon to end.

Zoe considered it for a moment before she shook her head. She smiled faintly. "No, I think we should be fine for now. If we think of anything else, I'll add it to the list."

"That's probably a good thing...if we tried adding any more, I'm sure there wouldn't be any room left in the truck,"I mused, chuckling to myself as we made our way through the parking lot.

Glancing between the many bags on my arms and the ones already in the truck waiting for us, Zoe giggled to herself. "I think you're right."

There was something about the sound, whether it was simply because that laugh belonged to her or because it meant she was in a good mood, and it made me want to hear it again. It made me want to entertain her all day and night, even if I only managed to get one more laugh out of her.

It was a beautiful sound, and I just wanted to hear it again.

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