Page 66 of For the First Time
Still, the fear lingered.
It didn’t help that Atlas had refused to let me put on my descenter this morning.Hannah has never had to endure my natural scent before and I was worried she’d be bothered by it, especially considering how my anxiety was making my scent taint the air around me like bitter chocolate.The more I tried to calm my scent, the more it seemed to grow in spite of myself.
“Just up ahead,” I told Everett.I recognized Koda’s car.Or technically I think it was her alpha’s car since Koda once mentioned the dangers of driving and how the multi-ton vehicles didn’t get the respect they deserved on the road considering how deadly they were.To be fair, it had been one of the times that Koda and Hannah were drinking, so that might’ve been a drunk thought.
Suddenly, I gasped, staring wide eyed at Everett.“I forgot the dessert!We have to go back.”It would make us nearly two hours late to drive back to the house, but the trifle would be worth it.
“Uh, pet?I got the trifle back here, remember?”
I whipped around, taking in Atlas with the large, glass bowl in his lap.
Right.Of course.My heart was racing so hard that I was starting to feel lightheaded.
“Hey, darlin, eyes on me, huh.”Oaks pushed his body between the seats until he was leaning so far forward, I barely had to turn my head to meet his gaze.“This is all going to be fine.You picked good friends, yeah?Just like you picked a good pack.”
A smile twitched at my lips that I tried to hide.
“Nope, I saw that.”Oaks awkwardly shuffled his body, reaching out a hand to cup my face.“You don’t get to choose your blood, but you can choose who you have in your life.If these friends aren’t true ones to you, then we’ll find you new ones.”
“Oh, just like that?”
“Just like that.I don’t think it’s going to be a problem, though.You have good instincts.”
My eyebrows furrowed.“I don’t have any instincts.”
“Pretty sure you protected Hannah before you even truly knew her.Isn’t that the reason for this whole mess with the OC?”
“And what about your need to provide?”Atlas asked.“Isn’t that why you took a job with us?You wanted to care for people?”
Even Everett added, “It was your protective instincts that had you worried about packing with us.You didn’t see us as a shield against the shit in your life.You wanted to ensure that the shit would never touch us.”
I shook my head.“You all build me up too high.”
“Impossible.We love you, Babygirl.If I could put you up in the clouds, let the sun shine on you all day, every day, I would.”
I didn’t know what to say to that.Mercifully, they didn’t need any response from me.The moment lingered between us before it broke with a knock on the glass.
“Stop making out.”Hannah’s words are warped slightly through the glass.“You’ve been out here for so long that I was starting to wonder if you were just going to drive away.Come inside.”
Hannah glared at me as her hand came to the door handle pulling on it like she was going to drag me out.
I laughed, unlocking the door.As soon as I did, Hannah’s whole face transformed.She smiled, backing up a step to let me out as she bounced on her toes.Just a few feet behind her was Jackson, watching over her even this close to the house.Behind him, and in the open door, was Koda, her pack, and most likely the rest of Hannah’s, too.
Jackson pulled Hannah back into his body as my pack got out of the truck.I was grateful that the truck wasn’t ridiculously tall, or it would look very out of place on this street.
“Oh, good, you brought a dessert,” Hannah squealed.I would have brought an actual dinner dish but with all the cooks in a gathering like this, it was actually easier to just order in.
“Chocolate coffee trifle,” I told her.
Atlas came to stand on one side of me, Oaks the other, while Everett came around my back, wrapping a hand around my stomach.He and Jackson shared a silent alpha dominance inflection before Everett made the quick introduction.
“Okay, enough posturing,” Hannah said.“Let’s go inside.I don’t like being out here for long.Everyone’s always trying to take a picture when they drive by.”
We followed her in, Everett’s body so close to mine that I was surprised he didn’t accidentally step on my heels.Inside, we barely made it past the front door before Hannah was reintroducing everyone.
My pack, of course, Everett, Oaks, and Atlas.Her alphas, Jackson, Sebastian, Han, and Zeke.Then Koda and hers, Jenson, Enzo, and Aidan.
Despite how big Hannah’s house was, this was a lot of people.We all stood apart for a moment, our three packs just sort of eyeing each other.It was in moments like this where I was grateful to be a beta with a weaker nose.The scents of dominance and multiple packs were overwhelming to me—let alone everyone else.
