Page 15 of Last Pack Standing
“People always go for the strongest competition.” Leo grinned. Jace nodded at him then looked over at me.
“So Ash kissed you, huh?” Jace asked, casually.
Leo sat up straighter. “Wait. What? That explains his scent spike after the challenge!” He was right. Ash had let out a small blastof his perfume, an intoxicatingly sweet blend that made me want to scoop him up and make him mine.
“He didn’t just kiss me,” I said, voice low. “He pulled me in like he wanted it. Almost like it surprised him how much he wanted it.” Even now, thinking about it, my chest ached in that particular way it hadn’t in years. It felt like something coming alive in a place that had long been dormant.
Leo let out a low whistle. “So it’s like that! I have to admit, the casting directors couldn’t have picked a better pair of omegas!”
Jace set the schedule down. “Do you think there’s anything else behind it?” He asked.
“Maybe,” I said. “I’m sure part of it was just for the cameras. But another part of it, well, it felt real.”
“It looked real,” Jace said simply. “He’s into you.”
“Cassie’s the same,” I added, looking at Jace. “I know there was something to resolve between you two, but she seems to have thawed a bit.” He smiled, almost to himself, then looked down.
“I really, really like her. She’s just a hard shell to crack.” He admitted. And he was right, she was very prickly on the outside. But Cassie was special. It was clear that she was trying hard to take care of herself, but if she didn’t let us in, we couldn’t help her with whatever was burdening her. “She’s playing the game hard because she doesn’t know how to do anything halfway. But she doesn’t trust us. Not yet.” Jace said, his face dropping.
“She shouldn’t,” I said. “Not right away. Trust isn’t owed, it’s earned. But we’ll get there.” I said with confidence.
“How does it come so easy for you? Connecting with omegas, I mean. You just seem to have such a way with them.” Jace said, leaning in as he turned to me.
Well, I suppose it was time for me to open up as well. I looked at them both. “I was almost bonded once.” I admitted, and saw their eyebrows raise. “I’m the oldest one on the team, so I guess it’s no surprise that I lived quite a life before coming here. I had a group of alphas who almost became my pack. And we had an omega, one who I cherished deeply. But I was always too busy, on to the next adventure, the next mountain, the next country.” I said, reflecting back on one of the big regrets of my life. “I didn’t put anyone else first. Least of all the omega who waited for me to come around. And after a while, she stopped waiting.” I felt the old pain in my chest, much more like an echo now that all these years had passed.
“I didn’t put them first, and they chose to go on without me. And that’s on me.” I admitted. I’d been a stereotypical alpha before, putting my needs and dominance above others. “It took me years of healing and understanding what I did wrong before I dared to try again. I learned how to ground myself, listen more to omegas, understand their needs better. And after a lot of time and effort, I understand much more. Relationships can’t be one sided. Also, people deserve forgiveness, and they aren’t perfect. But now, I want to make sure I never repeat the same mistake.”
Jace was the first to speak, his voice quieter than usual. “That sounds like something a lot of people never do. The hard work, I mean. Especially not here on this show.”
I looked down, rubbing my thumb along the edge of the couch. “Yeah, well. I’ve already lived through the worst part of heartbreak and regret. Admitting I’m wrong, that there’s always work to do - well, it doesn’t scare me like it used to.”
Leo shifted closer on the floor pillow, his legs criss crossed, expression soft with something that almost looked like sadness. “I’m sorry, Rys. People get swept up in stuff - life, work, proving themselves. Doesn’t mean you were a bad person.”
I smiled faintly, glancing between them. “Maybe not bad. Just selfish.”
“Or scared,” Jace added, surprising me. “I’ve been that guy. I was so scared to admit my feelings that I almost lost out on something amazing. I’m trying to do better.”
I smiled, knowing he was closer than he realized to getting Cassie. I could smell how good they were for each other. I could also sense how good they were with Ash, Leo, and even me. I didn’t believe in fate, but I also couldn’t have picked a better team to work with. A random pairing like this was almost certain to be more drama than romance, but somehow it was all working out.
“Rys, we’re lucky to have you on our team. I need more of your wisdom.” Leo said in a teasing manner. But I could tell he meant it.
“And I have a lot to learn from you, too. Our team needs your humor, otherwise we’d all be too quiet, anxious and stoic to function.” I remarked, thinking on how much Leo balanced out the rest of our personalities. Now that I thought about it, we all brought a perfect blend to this team. And I was starting to think about what it would be like to have these two alphas by my side long term.
The truth was, I’d told myself for years that I’d moved past the need for a pack. That I’d learned and grown and evolved - but sitting here now, in the glow of dim lights and laughter, I realized how hungry I still was to be chosen. Not because I’d won someone’s trust through winning a game, or alpha posturing, but because I’d been real.
“I think this time,” I said, “I just want people who see me and choose me anyway.”
Jace leaned forward, resting his forearms on his knees. “That’s all any of us want.”
Leo reached out and, without asking, wrapped an arm around my shoulders, warm and grounding. “Then let’s make that pact now,” he said. “No hierarchy, just honesty. If we’re going to do this, we do it right.”
I thought about our team, and how close we’d become already. “We could be something,” I said quietly, the thought falling from my mouth before I could catch it.
“Something more. A real pack.” Neither alpha laughed or brushed it off. I could tell we were all thinking it.
Jace looked at me fully then. “You think they’d let us in? The omegas?”
“They already have,” I said. “They just don’t realize it yet.”
