Page 71 of This Pack of Ours

I sighed.

“What is that, a food place?” I asked, taking another bite of cereal. Both his hands slammed down on the table, making me jump.

“What?” His eyes were wide. “You’ve never been to Polo’s Bowling?! It’s like one of the only fun things to do around here!”

I fixed him with a cool stare.

“I don’t know if you’reaware,” I said. “But it’s not really fun going out places when you have to always be watching your back.”

My grumpy glares seemed to be losing their effectiveness because he just cocked his head, confused.

“But you surely can’t face a kidnapping attempteverytime you go out.”

“Oh, you’re right. Ineverthought about that. Wow, Ez, you’ve changed my life.”

He’d caught enough of my sarcasm that he hesitated. I sighed.

“Look, I’d rather stay home. Every other time I go to the grocery store, I have people thinking they’re being subtle creeping around after me, trying to get close enough to smell me better. Thinking they have a right totalk to me ortouchme.”

“You could go out with Kit?" he suggested.

I leaned in closer. “Imagine, Ez, that you’re out with Kit. You’re not an alpha, so people aren’t intimidated by you. Now some creep comes along and starts following Kit, keeps grabbing items off the shelf rightnext to him,accidentallybrushing past him each time? Would you shrug that off and try and enjoy yourself?”

“No, I’d fucking punch them,” he said seriously.

“Exactly. Not really a fun day out after that, is it?”

“There are scent dampers," he said.

“They cost money,” I threw back. “It’s easier and cheaper to stay home.”

“But you’ve got us now, Juniper!” he said, his expression brightening. “Like you said, we’re alphas, so we intimidate people. We could goanywhereand you wouldn’t have to worry. Come on, what’s one place you really want to go?”

“The New Oxford Aquarium,” Kit interrupted, sitting down beside me on a stool. I glared at him for giving away my secret.Traitor.

“Oh shit, that’s perfect then!” Ez sat back, as though it was decided.

“Well, tickets are kind of expensive. Plus, it’s closed today,” I said nervously. “It’s always closed on Tuesdays. I mean, that’s a weird day to be closed, right?”

“We’d love to take you though,” Adrian called from the couch. “For imposing on you here and all the stress we’re causing you.”

“Are you talking about the toilet seat?” Ez asked, looking guilty. I hadn't been paying attention when I went to the bathroom this morning, and had almost fallen in. “I swear, that was just cuz I was half asleep.”

I stared at my mug, thinking. My dad had taken me to the aquarium once when I was a kid. I’d loved it. Honestly, most of my nest preferences were based on the cosiness of the dimly lit rooms, the large, illuminated tanks with flashes of bright colors as the fishes swam about in their own quiet world. It was all the way on the other side of New Oxford, though, and I’d never been able to justify the price of the entrance fee. But if they were offering…

“Fine,” I said, trying to remain neutral.

“Jhin!” Ez called, and Jhin poked his head out of the bathroom; he was in the middle of brushing his teeth.

“We’re taking them to the aquarium,” Ez told him proudly.

Jhin ducked back and I heard him spit. He didn’t look impressed as his head appeared again.

“Right now?” he asked.

“No, like, sometime this week?” Ez said.

“And you interrupted me to tell me because…?”

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