Page 16 of Patiently Yours
“Tell me again why we entrusted you with this,” my normally-optimistic pack mate says in my ear. I reposition my phone while I stroll along the dewy green of the quad. I was only a couple seconds out the door before Kendall was calling me to go over the plan. As if they all hadn’t asked me multiple times in the past week.
I sigh. “Like we’ve talked about before, I’ve already met her. It just seems like the best idea if I’m the one that initiates more interaction. Plus, she and I hit it off.” I pause for a moment. “Before she ghosted me.”
Shit… maybe she won’t want to see me.
“That wasn’t because of you, though, Ci,” he reassures me.
“Right.” I hesitate. “Anyway. I’ll also be able to keep my head on straight around her. You know, being a beta and all.”
“Keep your head on straight?You?” he jokes. “Not only is thestraightpart inaccurate, but you’re as crooked as they come, man.”
“Shut it,” I laugh, the statement putting me back in good spirits. “I normally agree that being well-balanced is boring as fuck, but this is different. You would all go crazy smelling her forthe first time and you might freak her out. She’s going through a lot right now, we can’t run her off.”
A beam of pride shoots through me when I think about Stacia standing up for herself. Sam told us about how she came over the day after the party to break up with Derek. He also told us about the unstable tantrum Derek had after she left.
It’s been a few weeks since that weekend and Derek’s been an even bigger pain than usual. Well, that’s putting it lightly. The break-up has made himunbearable. He’s constantly making ignorant remarks and constantly trying to bait other alphas into fighting. I’m not an alpha, but trying to find some kind of control through violence doesn’t seem like the smartest solution. It’s exhausting being around someone that volatile all the time, so we’ve been keeping our distance as a pack ever since.
“She may not want to meet you guys right away, so we have to treat this delicately.” I make my way down the beaten path to the English department. “But really, I just want to see how she is. Please tell your alpha to be patient.”
Kendall scoffs. “Please. I’ll be fine. I don’t want to scare her off anymore than you do. I just want to meet her…” He pouts before sighing. “Fine, I see your point.”
“I’m almost to the building now, so I’ll call you later.”
“Okay. Be your normal charming self! I believe in you!” He blows a patronizing kiss through the speaker. “Call me after class!”
I shake my head and laugh before hanging up. I make my way through the doors of the English building, which is where my noon lecture resides. I’m positive she has a class at the same time because I see her every time I walk through these doors.
I’m desperate to talk to her, but I’ve been biding my time. She just broke up with her boyfriend, yes, but that’s not the only reason. She has no idea that this possibility even exists. She maynot have smelled me the same way I did her the night we met, either from being high or just not feeling that way about me.
The latter is what frightens me the most.
I’m a beta, and I may have had a magical meeting with her, but there’s a chance that my ability to smell her is just a fluke. I have to be prepared for the outcome of that.
I shake the thought away right before I spot her in my peripheral. My breath hitches. She’s the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen. Her hair is shiny and bouncing; she’s wearing these light green dungarees and a pair of Mary Jane’s. Our aesthetics may differ like night and day, but the fashion sense is much appreciated.
Focus, Ciro.
She’s standing at a bulletin in the hallway, which gives me the perfect opportunity to talk to her. That same wonderful scent from the night we met hits my nose, beckoning me forward. I stop behind her and swallow hard.
“Hey, Stacia.”
She turns around swiftly and meets my eyes. I’m not sure what kind of disappointment I’m expecting, but I start to breathe easier when her eyes go wide and joyful.
And I’m not an expert on scents, but did hers just get slightly more sweet?
“Oh, wow, hi!” she says, “You did say you were majoring in communications.”
“Reluctantly,” I laugh. “Anything interesting on the board today?” I ask, pointing at the bulletin.
She looks back at the board for a moment, a slight blush on her cheeks. “Nothing really. Just a poetry contest, but I’m not very good. I enjoy it, but I’m better at fiction writing.”
“If it brings you joy, that’s all that really matters, right?”
She thinks about that for a moment before taking her phone out of her pocket. I feel another rejection coming.
Oh, you’ve done it now, Ciro.
But then she turns and takes a picture of the poster before putting her phone away. “I’ll consider doing it. A lot of my stuff is rather depressing these days, though.”
