Page 78 of Patiently Yours
My face turns bright red. Ciro sneaks a peek and bellows a laugh. “Of course you two like that one.” He looks at Stacia. “I’ve discovered I’m more privy to alien romances, but those two have always loved a good period piece.”
Her eyes widen as she looks at all of us, her mouth slightly agape. “Have youallbeen reading romance?”
“Of course we have. It’s been a group effort. Started by our prime, of course.” Ciro’s excitement blooms. “We all thought it would be beneficial. And of course, these alphas needed a bit of extra help.” He playfully rolls his eyes. “Damn biology.”
A laugh rolls through me. “Ciro was the most enthusiastic about it, don’t let him fool you.”
She looks at each of us, a light shining in her. She plays with Uriah’s hair. “Do you enjoy them, Uri?”
He grumbles, already half asleep in her embrace. He nods and mutters incoherently before saying, “Lots of hockey players.”
She giggles softly. “Yes, those are some of my favorites.”
His tired smile pokes out. “Kismet.”
I continue reading, all of us tangled up. We relax into one another, and one by one, each of us finds our eyes shutting. It’s the greatest sleep I’ve had in a long time.
FORTY
It’s always bittersweet when we visit the Alpha Xi house. The dark mahogany wood, the library that opens up into a living space, the deodorizers that make the house smell the same no matter what set of alphas roll in and out.
Atlas and I met our pack mates here. We lived here together for an entire year before declaring officially, so these halls have many memories; all amazing, including the night I got to punch the fuck out of Derek.
It’s always a pleasure to come back here, especially when it means helping out Sam.
He’s the youngest president of Alpha Xi to date, and I’m also pretty sure he’s the best one this fraternity has ever had. The frat was disorganized when we joined. It was night after night of rowdy chaos. Sam has really reined in the alpha energy, and has taught all of Alpha Xi’s members what it means to be a true alpha; how we can harness our inner beasts to do better in the world. It’s made a world of a difference since he was selected.
We sit around with him now, lounging in one of the living spaces. Atlas is sitting on the loveseat he used to always occupy. It probably has his smell embedded in it.
My mind sputters as I remember how Stacia could smell Atlas here before breaking up with Derek. The realization hits me hard.
Whoa. Trippy.
“The event’s still a few weeks away, you didn’t have to come by to help.” The coffee table is muddled with loose sheets. Sam sorts through them calmly, just like he always does.
“We know that, but we want to,” Atlas says. “We’re also here for another reason.”
Sam quirks an eyebrow. I take a deep breath before explaining. “Derek’s been harassing Stacia. She’s filed for a restraining order. We wanted you to be the first to know.”
It’s been a difficult week. We’ve spent the last few days helping Stacia compile every correspondence she’s ever received from Derek. She wanted a lot of these texts to just disappear, but we all knew the more evidence the better. Atlas found a local lawyer that handles similar cases and has a high success rate when it comes to her omega clients. Atlas feels he can trust her, so we finally handed over everything so she can help Stacia get this dickwad out of her life.
We can only hope it’ll be granted as soon as possible, but for now, it’s all a waiting game.
Sam’s jaw clenches slightly, the angry expression looking foreign on his normally jovial face. “He’s beenharassingher?”
“Sending her texts, mostly.” Atlas looks like he’s remembering what he read, trying to will the anger back down. “They were repulsive.”
“Fuck.” Sam rubs his head, the papers abandoned in front of him as he leans back. “I always knew he was a dick, but that’s a whole other level of messed up.”
Our prime heaves out a dark chuckle. “You’re telling me.”
Sam looks at each of us, seriousness taking over his face. “Well, okay. I’ll let you know if he comes back with good or badnews. And if your lawyer can’t get it granted, let me know. I know some people who might be able to push it through again.”
A surprised grin appears on my face. “I forgot you’re studying law.”
“Yeah.” He nods. “I feel like I have to. It’s a crazy fucking world.”
Ciro finally speaks up, his hands in his pockets as he sits up taller on his seat. “Is this event for our philanthropy?”
