Page 22 of Pack Favero

I hear her sigh before Zira confesses, “Nothing’s wrong, no, but I wanted to come by to apologize.”

I almost drop the spoon in my hand, her tea forgotten as I turn and peer at her from where I stand at the counter. “Apologise? What the hell for?”

Cringing, Zira, crosses her arms over her chest and explains, “Well, for one, I’m sorry for stopping by so early. I have a class in a couple of hours, and I know I would be too tired afterward to provide my apology. Second, I’m sorry for how I’ve treated you both since Mom’s surgery.”

Silence follows, and I’m sure a mouse fart would shake the house with its volume with how quiet it grows. Barnes is the first to recover, thankfully, and states, “You don’t have to apologise, Freckles. We understand we overstepped but—”

“You were trying to do something nice for me, something thoughtful and meaningful, and I took it the wrong way and ostracised you for it,” Zira interrupts, smiling knowingly at Barnes as he shakes his head, pauses, and shakes his head again. “Look, I’m sorry. You didn’t deserve the way I acted, and I’m grown and aware enough to accept the responsibility for my actions. I realise now that I was out of order and acting on thoughts and feelings of the past. The only reason I can offer is that money and I have a not so great history, and knowing how much those surgeries cost and the aftercare that came with it set my teeth on edge. Finding out you paid for it behind my back wasn’t great, but I should have realized it wasn’t donemaliciously or to gain something, and I’m sorry for not giving you both the credit you deserved from me.”

Hell, I'm sure you could push me over with a single finger nudge with how shocked I am, and I can do nothing but stare at the rare beauty sitting on the edge of the couch, twisting her fingers together nervously. Barnes is no better, blinking at her like a bloody owl, and it’s the only thing to shake me out of my shock.

Finishing up with her tea, I carry it over to her and take a seat beside her, safe knowing that I might not get lynched now. Zira smiles softly as she accepts her drink, the pink stain in her pale skin an appealing shade that I’d love to trace, but I withhold knowing that we’re all skating on thin ice at the moment.

Instead, I gently question, “How did this change of heart come about, if you don’t mind me asking? Not that I don’t accept your apology. I do. You didn’t have to give one at all, in all honesty. We realize we should have discussed everything with you before we acted, so perhaps we owe you an apology, too.”

Zira huffs out a laugh before blowing on her tea and taking a sip, her eyelashes fluttering closed for a brief moment before she lowers her mug and cradles it in her lap as she explains, “I spoke to Mom and she helped me see the error of my ways. I’d decided I was going to apologise when Ford and Mac collided with me, and I told them as much when I realized who they were.”

“Those gits,” I mutter, shaking my head when it dawns on me that Cormac knew damned well that I wasn’t in the doghouse any longer and the prat let me believe it anyway.

A grin made by angels sparks over her mouth briefly before she continues. “I see now that I overreacted, and I wanted to extend a peace offering to say sorry and thank you for what you’ve done for Mom. And… and for me.”

Barnes, finally coming to, shakes his head once more andsays, “You don’t need to give us anything, Zira. I’ve already told you, we don’t want payment. Which reminds me.”

He’s out of his seat the next moment, heading toward the bookcase that frames the oversized television, tugging several envelopes from between the books before returning.

Raising an eyebrow, Zira eyes the envelopes with a deepening blush and mutters, “You still have it in envelopes.”

“Yes, because we’re not taking it. We didn’t pay your mom’s bills so you owed us. I don’t know if you’re already aware or not, but we’re not exactly hard up for cash, Freckles. We have enough to spare, and we wanted to make your life easier. The money means nothing to us. Making sure you're taken care of means the world. Do you understand now?” he pushes, an urgency to his voice that has Zira’s eyes snapping up from the envelopes and to his dark sapphire eyes.

They stare at one another for a long while, almost communicating without uttering a single word, and my lips twitch as I watch with rapt attention as understanding finally sinks into that pretty head of the omega we’ve not been able to stop thinking about. “I get it. I’m sorry.”

“Stop, darling. No more apologies needed. You were forgiven long before now, though we certainly wouldn’t have faulted you for remaining mad a little longer,” I jest, winking at her when she laughs, living for the redness that seeps into her cheeks once more. Seeing how easily she blushes has grown into quite the addiction over the weeks, one I won’t be giving up any time soon or ever.

Zira chews the inside of her cheek for only a moment before nodding and declaring, “Then here’s my olive branch.”

She places her mug on the coffee table, using a coaster like a civilised being, and reaches for the tote bag she came with. It’s stuffed full, and I managed to spy bread rolls at the top before she stands. She steps past Barnes and me, headingdirectly to the kitchen, and she begins unloading the tote with several food items and spreading them over the marble counter.

“As a thank you, I’d like to make you all breakfast this morning. I won’t be able to stay and enjoy it with you, because I have to go to the gym for my classes, but I wanted to do something nice for you to start showing you that I appreciate what you did and it means a lot to me that you took care of my mom when I couldn’t,” she finishes, her smile warbling slightly before steeling.

The urge to rush over and comfort her hits me harder than a well-executed swing of a sledge hammer, and I have to actively fight to stay where I’m seated. Barnes seems to suffer with the same struggles, his fists tightening as his jaw clenches at the brief slip of vulnerability Zira displays before it’s gone just as quickly.

Standing from my seat then, I walk over to her and say, “You don’t have thanks by cooking for us, darling. A smile would have sufficed.”

She flashes one then, and I’d take those as currency for the remainder of my life if she kept paying me with them. A smile from Zira could quite possibly cure the world, and I won’t be convinced otherwise.

“I’m making breakfast sandwiches for you all, and I won’t be talked out of it. This is my thanks and sorry, so let me do this,” she pleads softly, and I nod slowly, caving like the sucker I’ve become. Hell, she could ask me to kneel at her feet so she could use me as a footrest and I’d drop to all fours without so much as a hint of hesitation.

How has she managed to wield such power over me in such little time? It’s as maddening as it is fascinating.

Taking a seat at the kitchen bar, Barnes joining me a moment later, we both sit back and settle in to watch Zira for the next half an hour as she goes about making up mountains offood fit for a village. Of course, it will all be devoured, because this is a house of ravenous alphas. We’re hungry, all the time, and there’s no doubt in my mind how aware Zira is of that fact.

By the time she’s done, several more strands of her fiery hair have come loose and there are five plates stacked with two breakfast sandwiches each, and three hefty bowls of sides served to us ready for consumption.

Like the smell of cooked breakfast and delicious omega was enough to lure the others out of bed, Mac, Ford, and Alek come stumbling down the stairs single file, each one in varying degrees of undress and sleep.

“What smells so good?” Alek slurs, rubbing his eyes as he walks into the kitchen, completely oblivious to the omega washing her hands in the sink after clearing up all the dishes she used to make us breakfast.

“Zira?” Mac blurts directly after.

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