Page 78 of Break The Ice

Suck it up, come on, Ryann. They don’t know you’re fucking their kid. It will be fine. Just smile, say hello, and run away.

I put a smile on my face and lift my chin. When we join the group, they smile warmly at Kit.

“Kit, we’ve been so looking forward to meetingyou in person!”

Kit inclines his head and shakes hands with the two alphas. Their scent, a strange floral disinfectant, is not at all similar to Wren’s, and they look nothing like him.

They turn their eyes on me, as I expected they would, and I open my mouth to introduce myself.

“Why, hello, Ryann, isn’t it? Oh, Wren, she is lovely.”

My eyes widen, and I lose all ability to talk.

“Dad,” Wren practically whines.

“I’m Elmer, and this is my pack mate Gunther.” The tall alpha is thin with brown hair and an easy smile. Elmer looks like someone you’d want to sit on a porch with a glass of lemonade and discuss the weather with. While Gunther is shorter with black hair and watchful eyes, I think earning his friendship would be difficult but lifelong.

I think, in another life, I could like them, but not my life. I don’t do friends. I don’t have families. This is all too much. I’m drowning in hope and fear; one brings painful memories while the other plays out painful futures. I can’t do this.

Why did Wren tell them about me? We discussed this.

“Hey, son, could I have a word?” Gunther grips Wren’s arm and jerks his head to the side. “Have you had any strange phone calls lately?”

Wren snaps his head to face him. “She called you, too?”

“Would you excuse me?” Gunther says politely, giving me a small smile. “Sorry, Ryann. This won’t take a minute.”

“Give me a second,” Wren says to his dad.

I turn to go, but Wren stays with me.

“Ryann?”

I ignore him, smiling at people as I head for the exit.

“Ryann, don’t be mad. I’m sorry. No, I’m not sorry, whether you intend it or not, I want you to be pack, you’re important, and if you choose not to stay with us, I won’t regret this time we spent together.”

We’re outside, so I turn to him, letting him see the panic in my eyes.

“Why?”

“Why?” Wren scoffs. “Because you belong with us. Because the moment I met you, all of the things that were holding me back from committing faded away. You are part of Pack Mogel, Ryann. You will always be a part of this pack, even if you choose not to have anything to do with us. I’ve been running this whole time, and it took meeting you to realise I couldn’t run anymore.”

The words terrify me.

They tempt me to stay; they twist my intentions and ability to be clear. His words anchor me to a place and give me fear because now I have something to lose.

Now I might feel again how I felt when I lost my parents.

I don’t want that.

It’s too late.

Wren grabs the back of my neck and presses a hard kiss to my lips. I cling to him, feeling like everything is swirling out of my control.

I want this. And them.

Fine.

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