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The door opens, and Saint lets go of my hand. I look up and see a huge arrangement of flowers being carried by someone. The flowers are made up of a variety in shades of red and pink. It must have cost a fortune.
Hunter stops in front of me and lowers them to me. I reach out hesitantly.
“I am sorry.”
I blink up at him. “You’re sorry?”
“For treating you so badly. For being scared. But, mostly, for hurting you. I’m sorry. I was an ass.”
I take the flowers and sniff them. “Thank you,” I whisper.
No one has ever brought me flowers before. Tears well up in my eyes because not only are these flowers absolutely gorgeous, but Hunter is sorry. He’s sorry. He regrets his actions.
What does this mean?
“I’m going to do better. I’m going to figure my shit out. Give me some time, but I’m going to become the alpha you need. We all are.”
I look at Saint and find him staring at me. “Really?”
“I want to get to know you. Friends is the first step,” he says, as if trying the words out for the first time.
“We would like to court you, Bethany. Your father has given us permission, but at the end of the day, if you tell us you don’t want us to try, we will abide by your wishes.”
“No, I…” I trail off, my throat tight. “I want it, I just don’t want to get hurt again.”
“We’re going to do this slowly. Getting to know you, and you getting to know us. We’ll go on dates and learn to trust and respect each other.” Saint says evenly, “If you will allow it.”
I scramble up, trying hard to sort out the cyclone of feelings inside me. They only have one week left of my deadline, but this is tremendous progress.
“And then, when we’ve all done some healing, we can talk about bonds and what it means for us and forever,” Hunter says.
I forget how to breathe for a long moment. He didn’t talk about love. But maybe we don’t need a label. Maybe this is enough.
I put the flowers aside and stand up. Hunter doesn’t expect me when I throw myself into his arms, but I can’t help it.
“Thank you. Thank you for not sending me away. For giving me a chance.”
“No, Bethany. Thank you for not giving up on us. We will do better.” Hunter kisses my forehead, and then Saint is there, curling his big, strong arms around me. The bourbon scent fills the air.
“I’m sorry that we hurt you. So sorry,” Saint whispers.
I don’t say anything, just keep my eyes closed and listen to his heartbeat. Hope and happiness flood me, only for Crow to pull me out of Saint’s arms. He picks me up, holding me under my ass.
“We are terrible alphas with hundreds of things that are going to drive you nuts, but we will try to fix those things. We will try.”
I cup his cheek, seeing the conviction in his eyes.That’s all I can ask.
Another week has broughta whirlwind of gifts, dates, and hours spent with the pack. There are only two days left until I reach the three-week deadline. If I don’t hear them say they love me, will I walk? Do I have the strength?
We’re being very careful to keep our hands to ourselves and not touch too much. Every time they do, I feel like I’m going up in flames. My libido that I had under control is now out of control.
I’m wary and cautious, and there are times when I’m lying in my bed all alone that I wonder if this isn’t another trick or a ploy to screw me over. I wonder when they will change their minds.
Sometimes, I’m afraid, and I keep some distance between us. I try hard not to let my fears poison me, but I’m not sure.
Hunter has me standing in between his legs and is feeding me a rolled up pancake. I moan at the taste and lean even closer.It’s strangely erotic to be standing in just a shirt and panties in between a man’s legs while he feeds you his breakfast.
“We’ve got an enormous event at the pub in a month. Tonight is a mini trial run, just to see what we need to change.”
