Page 116 of Knot That Serious

“Acting like jealous alphas,” he pointed out softly, pulling out of the parking space.

Eli’s smile faded a bit, guilt sneaking in. “Maybe.”

Raj reached across the car, and Eli lifted her gaze to him, placed her hand in his. He squeezed gently. “It’s okay if you like making them jealous. This is about making them realize how much they want you, right?”

Eli squeezed back, the pinch of guilt easing. “Yeah.”

“Then they need to want a pack, too. So, we should be one.”

“Uh… how?”

“The laser tag! You’ll play along?” Raj asked, a mischievous smile curling his lips.

“I hope I don’t regret this,” Eli drawled.

“You won’t, you won’t. Nothing embarrassing,” he promised.

Eli hummed, dubious of his intentions, but she was just curious enough to see how it played out.

The silence lasted all of ten seconds. “D’you want me to really give them something to be jealous of? We could make out in one of the black light rooms in the arena. I’d sacrifice a win for that.”

“No!” Eli said, pitch rising as she giggled. “That’s not necessary.”

“Aw,” Raj said, disappointment adorably thick in his voice.

“Just… lay on the charm. They’ll like you.” I think, Eli finished in her head.

“I’ll make sure of it,” Raj declared.

The drive was short, and both Eli and Raj only yelled at the slow drivers once in tandem before bursting into chuckles.

“They weren’t even going the speed limit,” Eli sputtered through her chuckles.

“I know!”

Then they were pulling in and Eli was reminded that she was about to spend the evening with the alpha who was fake-courting her, as well as the roommate she was in unrequited love with and his boyfriend that she most definitely at least had a crush on.

What could go wrong?

There wasn’t any sign of them yet, so Eli and Raj went ahead inside without waiting. A beta was sitting behind the desk in the lobby and he stood, greeting them with a smile. He looked very young, or at least younger than them.

Raj reserved them a time slot, and on a Tuesday evening they had the place to themselves.

“Okay, I’ll go get the vests ready and double-check that the arena is good while we wait for the rest of your pack—party,” he said, shaking his head, eyes wide. “Be right back.”

Eli’s cheeks flushed, but she waited until the kid left before leaning into Raj. “Are we too old to be here?”

“Oh, there’s no age limit on fun, my sweet,” Raj said.

Something fluttered through her stomach at the endearment, and she fought back a smile.

“Ah, here they are!” Raj announced as the door behind them opened.

Beckett’s cheeks were flushed red, and Eli shared a grin with him when their eyes met.

Jack waved, and then ran that same hand through his hair. “We made it.”

“The guy’s just setting up the vests, said he’d be back,” Eli told them.

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