Page 21 of This Pack of Ours

“Don’t be an ass, Vander,” muttered Adrian.

“Me!?” Vander gave a little laugh. “You’re the ones just sitting and staring at him while she’s left wondering what the fuck’s going on. Here, sweetheart, let me put you out of your misery. He’s?—”

Kit sprang up from his chair, knocking into the table and causing his coffee to spill all over Vander, who was sitting opposite him. Kit’s face went as pink as his hair as he scrambled to pick up the cup.

“Oh, shit, I’m so sorry,” he said to Vander.

“I’ll get another.” Ez practically fled the table, and I swear Adrian looked wistfully after him.

Vander shook coffee out of his sleeve and snarled—snarled—at Kit, who had stepped toward him.

Nowthat,I knew how to deal with.

A growl left my throat, and I flew to my feet, putting myself between Kit and Vander. Kit grabbed my arm for support. Adrian groaned and put his head on the table, covering it with his arms. Jhin appeared to have broken, because he was still staring at the flowers on the table.

“Okay, you’re right, I don’t know what the fuck is going on here, but you donottreat him like that,” I snapped. “It was an accident, asshole, and Kit’s probably the nicest person on the planet?—”

I cut off as I heard a sniff behind me. I turned around to see Kit’s eyes brimming with tears, and he flung his arm around me before burying his head into my shoulder.

“N—no I’m n—not," he sobbed. “I’m a—awful, Juni. T—they’re my s—scent match.”

A scent match.Mates.

I jerked back, because with those words, my soul shattered into tiny pieces. Just like the third coffee mug I knocked right out of Ez’s hands.

FOUR

ADRIAN

Well, this was an absolute, unprecedented disaster, and quite possibly the most painfully awkward thing I’d seen in my entire life.

And I’d seen a drunken Jhin trying to flirt.

Juniper was just standing there in her ridiculously cute outfit with sweet, chocolatey coffee dripping from her hair onto the ground.

The barista was staring at us, hand frozen in the middle of restocking the pastry display.

Kit was still crying next to her, and Ez looked like he was having a seizure as he tried to decide if he should comfort Kit, help Juniper, or clean up the coffee. Eventually, he chose the safe option, diving to the floor with handfuls of napkins.

Jhin had finally—finally—risen to his feet, and he reached the omegas in two strides. He fished his handkerchief out of his pocket and offered it to Kit, then grabbed a fistful of napkins from Ez and started to squeeze out the coffee from Juniper’s hair.

Her eyes flicked around the room, and when they met mine, I gave her an apologetic grimace.

Her face went bright red, and I expected that angry scowl to appear on her face again, but instead she looked panicked, which was way worse.

“Are you alright, Juniper?” Jhin asked, catching her eye.

“Fine," she practically spat. Kit’s hand brushed her shoulder, and she jerked back again, breathing hard. He squeezed his eyes shut, looking like she’d slapped him.

“You didn’t get burned?” Jhin’s gaze was still fixed on her, and she trembled. Jhin could be really intense.

“Juniper?” Kit sniffed, getting her attention, sidling toward her. His eyes were wide, and he was pale, gaze nervously darting in our direction.

“I’m fine," she said again, as if the word was a magic spell. “Fine. Just surprised. Obviously.”

She twitched away from Kit’s reaching hand, backing into the wall. He flinched and tried again.

“Juni," he pleaded, his voice quieter, and her eyes met his. He tugged her further back into the coffee shop, away from us. The pained energy crackling between them, back and forth, was almost tangible.

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