Page 29 of Pack Favero

It’s my turn to wink, and Alek’s mouth falls open in shock before his lips turn up in a dirty smile that has my core clenching while I perfume suddenly. I don’t stick around for whatever he’s about to say, though, grinning as I head out to the back porch for some much-needed fresh air.

The moment I’m outside, I inhale deeply, taking in the fresh air and chill from the wind that blows through the loose strands of hair that frame my face.

“Hey,” Mac greets from where he stands near the railing, peering across the large, well-kept yard surrounded by trees. I’m pretty sure there’s a whole other building tucked away at the back of the yard, steppingstones trailing through the mowed lawn that leads to the back door.

As soon as I’m near, Mac smiles shyly over at me, and I smile back.

“Hi. Didn’t I just see Ford out here, too?” I wonder, sure I saw them both. Unless I really am tipsy. Oh, god, how much have I had to drink?

Thankfully, Mac nods. “He’s just gone to get more beers to put in the cooler. We figured we’d sit outside for a little while, give Alek a break from all the losing.”

Humming with amusement, I step up beside him and hang my hands over the edge of the railing, clutching my beer securely. “He took it like a champ, though.”

“Title of your sex tape,” the man in question calls from the open door, and Mac and I share a look before we start laughing.

Shaking my head slowly, I take a sip of my drink andlower my voice so I can’t be overheard before breathing, “He’s something else.”

Mac snorts, nudging his shoulder against mine, the wind floating his scent directly under my nose. I breathe in his patchouli and musk scent, only slightly different to Ford’s oud and musk, when he jokes, “You’re telling me. I’ve lived with that man since Ford and I were eighteen and just starting out in North U. Alek took us under his wing, showing us the ropes, since he’s a year older and had been there a year already. He’s been that way since I’ve known him.”

“Must have made for a good college experience,” I tease, feeling a pang of envy that I squash instantly. I might not have been able to attend university, but I’m here now, doing what I love. So what if I didn’t make a ton of forever friends like I always wanted. I didn’t need it back then, but that’s not to say I can’t do that now, right?

Mac grins, his cheeks growing pink when he finds me watching him. “There was never a dull moment, that’s for sure.”

I smile before turning to face the wide expanse of greenery sprinkled with moonlight, finding the view breathtaking. Stars glitter the navy sea that spans the sky, the sun long tucked away for the evening, and I take a moment to appreciate where I am, who I’m with, and how different things are to when I first started at North Five. I never anticipated Mom getting ill, nor did I expect the coworker I’d been crushing on since the first moment we met to appear at the hospital, offering me company and taking care of me in ways I never expected. I certainly didn’t anticipate spending time with his pack, having the time of my life, and learning how wrong I was about them. Man, I have never been so happy to be wrong about people. Because every wealthy or somewhat well-off person that has stepped into my life have all left bitter tastes in my mouth when they leave. They’ve all been shitty people, some caringmore about money than people, and others using that money as a form of control. Either way, where there was money, I always connected bad people to it.

Barnes, Lazarus, Alek, Ford, and Mac? They’re so far past the horizon of being bad that it’s laughable that I ever dared lump them with the cruddy people I’ve endured over the years.

“You seem very lost in thought, there. What’s on your mind?” Mac whispers, and my lips twitch as I continue to peer at the stars.

“Just thinking about how being wrong isn’t always a bad thing. I’m starting to appreciate it,” I mutter quietly, turning my head to face him with a soft smile, my gaze roaming over his face lit by the reflection of the moon.

“What have you been wrong about?” he pushes, eyeing me just as thoroughly.

“A lot of things, apparently. Mainly, if I’d pulled my head out of my ass much sooner, we could have been beating Alek at games, eating pizza, and drinking beer long before now,” I confess. “I’ve had a lot of fun tonight. I don’t get that a lot, so this was special to me.”

Mac smiles slowly. “Same for us, starlight. What do you say to doing it again tomorrow?”

“What are we doing tomorrow?” Ford asks when he steps onto the porch with a fresh beer, leaning on the railing close enough to me that I feel the heat of his body brush against me.

Mac winks, even as he blushes, and informs, “Zira is gracing us with her presence again tomorrow.”

“Oh yeah?” Ford asks, nudging me with his shoulder much like his brother did before.

Swallowing some of my beer, I nod slowly before confirming. “I suppose I could sacrifice another night to hang out with you guys.”

The twins laugh, and it’s one of the best sounds in theworld. I store it in my mind to save for rainy days and, for the remainder of the night, we all gather around a lavish firepit on the balcony section of the porch that has been built on the right side of the large house.

Bundled under a blanket with Barnes, with Lazarus seated close beside me, we all talk and get to know one another, relaxing with more beers and great company while the stars wink down at us. Not for the first time do I think that this is the life I want to be living. This is the dream. And, at the risk of revealing my hopes and desires, I think I’ve found the pack I want it with.

Chapter 10

Zira

For the rest of the week, I spend every day at Barnes’s house with him and his pack, growing quickly addicted to their company. The weekend comes and goes far too quickly, visiting Mom and teaching little girlypops to flip and tumble before I spent it cooking, playing more games that Alek loses, and quickly realizing that these men aren’t the rich snobs who throw their money around without a care in the world that I might have briefly thought they were. It didn’t even take a week for me to see it clearly.

Though the house they live in is beautiful and spacious, it’s nothing like the house Alek showed me that, apparently, belongs to Silver and her pack. Where her house looks more contemporary and minimalistic, the guy’s house is full of life and comfort. They’ve made the space their own, and I love seeing all the ways they’ve added their own characters to each room.

I’ve also seen how hard they work over the week, Barnes and Laz spending a great deal of time on the phone or at their computers when they’re not entertaining me, while Alek spends a great chunk of his time on his tablet working on the newest project he’s working on; a beautiful home for a pack with two omegas. The twins are just as busy with their phone conferences, building an empire with tech stores all the way in Japan. It’s evident that the money they have has been well earned, invested, and spent modestly. What massive chunks they do spend is often done for charity or helpless omegas whose insurance wouldn’t cover her mom’s surgeries and aftercare.

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