Page 18 of Pack Favero

He’s completely awake and alert when he answers the caller, “Hello?”

A grin bursts over his face in an instant, his shoulders dropping as his eyes come to mine with a confirming nod that tells me it’s Zira on the other end.

“Not at all, you’re not disturbing us in the slightest,” he says, pausing a moment before he chuckles. “Are you this sassy with everyone, or just your mom?”

“Everyone,” Lazarus answers, lips twitching as he finally locks the phone and hands it over to me. “All set.”

“Amazing,” I breathe, clicking the unlock button and smiling when I find a selfie of him as her wallpaper. “Oh, that’s going to go down well.”

“That’s the idea,” Laz winks before standing and headingto the kitchen. I hear the click of the kettle a moment later and roll my eyes fondly at his ever need for tea. It could be a sweltering day and the man would still opt for a piping-hot Earl Grey instead of something cold and refreshing.

“Yeah, we can do that. I’ll only take us ten minutes to get there, so we’ll leave now,” I overhear my brother say, and I turn to watch him nod to himself, enraptured by whatever it is Zira is saying. His grin widens and he flashes me an amused look before he says, “I’m sure my car is more comfortable than the bus, pretty girl. Don’t sweat it. We’ll be there in ten. Yeah, okay. See you.”

Then he hangs up, points his cell at me, and demands, “Roll out, Autobot.”

Rolling my eyes but making the stupid sound all Transformers make when they turn from sentient robots to funky vehicles, I stand and head over to the shoe rack, smiling down at my sneakers as Ford laughs at my goofy antics that match his.

He does the same, donning sneakers before reaching for his car keys, calling over his shoulder, “We’re heading out. Laters.”

“Woah, hold your damned horses. Where are you guys going?” Alek asks, suddenly appearing like a fucking ghoul behind me and scaring at least five years off my life.

“Would you quit doing that?” I breathe, clapping a hand to my black-shirt-covered chest while glaring at the douche over my shoulder before reaching for the flowers I bought for Zira but forgot to give her before she left the car.

“I’ll stop when it becomes less funny. It’s not my fault you’re oblivious to your surroundings,” he snickers, crossing his meaty arms over his chest as his gaze flickers between Ford and me. “So, what adventures are you two heading on now?”

Ford flashes a grin, and I chew my inner cheek to keepmine under wraps as my brother declares, “There’s a sweet omega awaiting her chariot, and Mac and I are the chauffeurs.”

All amusement falls away from Alek, and his eyes widen comically. “You’re seeing Zira? Can I come?”

I snort. “What are you, ten?”

He ignores me, which is valid, and focuses on the man with the keys to the car we’ll be driving in. When Ford smiles and shakes his head, I’m convinced Alek is going to pout, until Ford says, “Hell no. You had your time with her when she braided your damned hair.”

Alek rolls his eyes, but he wanders off, apparently taking his answer as final. “Whatever. You’re just jealous I had her hands on me before you did.”

Then he disappears right out of the house, likely heading to the gym to burn off some energy, leaving my brother and me staring after him with flickers of envy burning our chests. This is madness. We barely know the woman, and we’re already acting out of sorts.

Leaning against the kitchen counter, a tea cupped between his hands, Laz salutes us with the mug as he says, “Onwards, noble steeds. Our princess awaits.”

Flashing us a rare smile, he meanders back to his armchair and picks up a book he’s halfway through, apparently making the most of his weekend off. As soon as the book opens, he’s lost to the world inside that book, everything around him forgotten for the time he’ll spend with his nose stuck between the pages.

Ford shucks me in the shoulder, and I nod, silently agreeing to leave. Without uttering another word, waving at Barnes as he walks down the stairs with a curious frown, we leave the house and practically dive into Ford’s car.

With Zira’s new phone tucked in my pocket and her flowers resting on my lap, a funny sense of excitement bubblesin my chest at the prospect of seeing her again. A niggle of worry worms through that, and I hope things don’t get weird once she sees the phone and realizes it’s the newest model on the market right now. I simply couldn’t bring myself to buy anything older. She deserves better than that, even if she refuses to accept it just yet.

“Thinking hard over there,” Ford notes, posing it as a statement instead of a question.

I nod. “Just hoping she doesn’t ice us out for buying her the newest model of phones.”

My brother cringes, but nods. “Tell you what, how about we warm her up to the idea? Maybe invite her to dinner and then give her the phone?”

I purse my lips before nodding slowly. “I’m good with that. Butter her up with carbs before revealing that we didn’t listen and went all out with her new phone instead.”

“Now you’re catching on,” my brother snickers, and I smile over at him before we both fall into silence.

Zira is already waiting at the end of the facility’s gates driveaway, and a stunning smile breaks out over her face when she spies us rolling up to the curb. Climbing out of the car with her flowers in hand, I smile bashfully back, suddenly nervous all over again as I hold the back door open for her. “Hi.”

“Hi. Thank you for coming to get me. I told Ford I could have caught the bus, but I was refused,” she sweetly confesses, biting her lip before sliding into the back seat.

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