Page 43 of How to Lose a Pack in 10 Dates

“Youdolook like you’ve been worshipped,” Zara mutters. “I’m honestly a little jealous.”

“Same,” Lex nods. “So: did he knot you?”

I shoot her a look. “Do you think I’d be walking straight if he had?”

“Fair point,” she laughs, while Zara grins and shakes her head. “I feel congratulations are in order for this.”

“Me too. I am no longer a born-again virgin, and I amthrilled,” I laugh, raising my glass. “Praise be to alpha-stacked delinquents with filthy mouths and surprisingly polite aftercare.”

The girls both clink their glasses against mine. “To finally getting laid,” Lex beams.

I smirk and take another bite of pasta. “There was also the date with Cam.”

“Richardson?” Zara perks up. “He’s the high school History teacher, right?”

“Mmhm. He took me to a fancy restaurant in the city. He wore a button-down and everything. He smelled incredible, and was super sweet. He was even a little nervous. He’d clearly rehearsed half the night—and then accidentally started quoting Wes like it was a TED Talk.”

Lex leans in, fork frozen mid-air. “Wait. Isn’t he Wes’sbrother?”

“Technically, they’re stepbrothers,” I explain. “But they’ve been in each other’s lives since they were, like, seven. Their parents split after a couple of years, but they still say they’re brothers. Pack loyalty or trauma bonding—maybe both.”

Zara raises a brow. “Step brothers? Is that, like, the same dad?”

“No,” I laugh, rolling my eyes. “They’re not actually related. Cam’s dad passed away when he was tiny, though, which leaves the infamous Knight Senior. Alpha of the Year—at least, if the category isBonding With No Intention of Following Through.”

Lex practically chokes on her drink. “No.”

“Oh yeah,” I nod. “He bonded with Wes’s mom first, got her pregnant, then dumped her. There was another straight after her, andthenhe bonded Cam’s mom. He dumped her too, obviously. Had a few more omegas in betweenandafter—honestly, by the sounds of it, he was on some kind of personal World Tour. No respect, and no stability for his son, either. Just pheromones and paperwork, apparently.”

“That’s so fucked,” Zara mutters.

“Right?” I say. “Once you know who raised him, it’s suddenly no real surprise that Wes has a superiority complex the size of Manhattan and Cam has a snack drawer organized by emotional category.”

Lex hums thoughtfully. “Honestly, that really does explain a lot.”

“Anyway,” I continue, gesturing with my fork, “Cam brought up a chinchilla I never owned, and also said I like cult documentaries and hate coriander. Which,yes, accurate; but it’s like I could literallyfeelWes whispering in his ear through a shadowy earpiece like some deranged pack puppet master.”

“Oh, he’s spiraling,” Lex wheezes. “I hope he’s throwing things.”

“Jace told me he’s been extra snappy the last few days,” I say smugly. “Cam set up a group chat between the four of us, and that apparently tipped him over the edge, too. I’m talking visible-vein-in-forehead energy.”

“You’re in apack chat?!” Lex drops her fork. “That’s full infiltration, babe. You’ve breached the inner sanctum. You’re basically the fourth roommate now.”

Zara’s watching me warily. “That’s... kind of intense, Aims.”

“It gets better,” I grin. “Cam invited me to the pack house tonight. He said they’re making dinner and wanted me to come hang out.”

Lex makes an unholy noise.

“Wait,” Zara says. “Are you—are you actually going?”

“Of course not,” I say, all faux-innocence. “Wealready had dinner plans, buttheydidn’t know that. I said I was busy.”

“I’m obsessed with this,” Lex beams. “You should always leave them wondering.”

“Well, Wes made some sort of snarky comment in the group chat—you know, the whole ‘not every omega needs to be the center of attention’ thing that some alphas do—and I just hit them with a sad little‘ouch’and went quiet for an hour. Now the other two are all guilt-ridden and sending me ‘thinking of you’ gifs.”

Lex full-on snorts. “You’re diabolical.I love it.You should sleep with all of them and then ghost them like a haunted omega apparition.”

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