Page 40 of The Beta: Part One

Maybe, that’s a small possibility, and the only logical one, but the nagging feeling doesn’t go away.

Before I can say anything else, Trent and Nathan come into the kitchen and start harassing Talia for food.

“Did I hear Danny call you this morning? Is everything alright with Laura?” Nathan asks me.

“Yeah, he was calling to check on Talia. She was apparently good for business last night.”

“You went to a bar?” Trent sounds incredulous.

“She did,” I answer for her, “She convinced a bar full of men to foot the bill for Laura’s treatment.”

They’re both looking at her like she’s grown an extra head.

“Why?” Nathan asks.

She sighs dramatically, “I went down there looking for one thing and ended up dealing with more attention than I could stomach, so I turned it into something positive for the bartender’s mate. And I ate way too many cheese fries, so if you all would kindly sit at the table I’d like to go for a run.”

She places a breakfast casserole onto the table with a little more force than necessary, but she doesn’t realize that she just waved a red flag in front of a pair of bulls.

“What were you looking for?” Now Trent sounds suspicious.

Talia shrugs and tries to brush it off, “Nothing that concerns any of you.”

Nathan looks at me, and whatever is showing on my face causes him to grin and raise his eyebrows, “Talia, did you go down there looking for a hookup?”

Her face screws up, and she blushes a bit, but she answers, “If I tell you, will you shut up, eat your breakfast, and leave me alone?”

He nods solemnly and she heaves another big sigh. “Fine. I listened to the five of you fuck for four solid days. Four mother fucking days. I was in a state, and I was hoping to find someone to help me address it. But none of those males were worth the effort so I left and came back here. Happy?”

Sometimes I forget that she is painfully blunt and that she doesn’t care what we think of it.

Nathan is comically amused, “You’re telling me that none of them met your standards?”

“Not a single one,” she deadpans.

“And you call Jasper a princess.”

Then she giggles. She actually giggles. I’ve never heard more than a small chuckle from her, and the sound affects me more than it has any right to.

Trent and Nathan look similarly surprised, but Talia ignores them, “Jasper is a princess. I’m going for my run now. I’ll clean up when I get back.” She puts her shoes on at the door and then dashes off down the driveway.

I feel angry omega energy rolling down the hallway before Jasper stalks into the kitchen and glares out the window. He’s covered in our marks and I can’t help the satisfied purr that comes out of me. He’s wearing a pair of low-slung faded jeans and his hair is still messy from sleep and sex. He’s gorgeous and seeing him in all his angry glory is giving me a hard-on despite the days and nights I just spent fucking him. “What’s wrong, angel?” I ask him and he turns his glare on me.

“Where is she?” he bites out.

I wave to the window, “Out running. What did she do?”

He huffs at me and stomps out onto the porch.

I pour him a glass of orange juice and walk out to join him. I lean on the banister and watch him pace the length of the porch for a few minutes before I ask him again.

He just huffs again and keeps pacing.

Trent wanders out and raises his eyebrows at Jasper and then me. I don’t know what’s going on so I shrug.

“How the fuck far did she go?” Jasper grinds out.

“Why are you pissed at Talia? What did she do?” Trent asks.

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