Page 18 of Talk About… Trouble

“He’s not the confrontational type, but, apparently, he laid into her, kicked her out and her entire group. He even snapped her picture to hang on the wall.”

“Good. She was awful,” Devon said. “No one deserves to be treated like that.” He reached over and gave my hand a quicksqueeze. His fingers lingered on mine for a moment more than would be considered normal, but I didn’t mind. I soaked in his warmth.

“I’m not really comfortable going into the details yet, but I promise to tell you guys more eventually.”

“Wren, we don’t need to know your whole life story to be friends with you. This was a new beginning for us all, so let’s embrace it. Don’t let her set you back and make you hide away in here.”

“I feel like all I’ve been doing is hiding,” I said, letting my head fall back against the headboard and closing my eyes in defeat.

“Then it sounds like today is the perfect day to reclaim your life. Get out there and show your face, make sure they know that you are not backing down and not hiding away. You deserve to take up space in this town just like any of us,” Grace said, not letting this go, either. I didn’t have one person in my corner, but two.

Two more than I had during the trial and after. I’d take it.

“I could use a little retail therapy,” I agreed. “And I wouldn’t say no to some greasy diner food.”

“Oh, then we have you covered,” Grace said, ruthlessly tossing the covers off of me. “Now get up and change, because I’m feeling waffles.”

She was already halfway out of the room, giving us orders to hurry up before disappearing.

“Do you need help getting dressed?” Devon teased, bumping his shoulder into mine.

I snorted and rolled my eyes. “I think I can manage it today.”

At first, I thought he was joking, but then I saw the heat in his eyes. As much as I wanted him, I wasn’t sure I was ready for anything.

My body was on board. A surge of warmth swept through me, slick dampening my underwear in response. It was the most my omega had reacted, though she was still a distant memory.

“Another time, then,” he said, giving me a wink before pushing off the bed and walking out.

Was I reading this wrong? Did this omega just shoot his shot?

Honestly, the idea of giving an omega a chance over an alpha had quite the appeal. With an omega, I didn’t have to worry about him coercing me into anything.

I couldn’t stop thinking about him the entire time I took a shower, brushed out my long, blonde hair, and tied it into a side braid before pulling on a comfortable shopping outfit.

It was pretty warm outside, so I found a cute crop top and soft, black overalls. I slid my feet into my white sneakers and loaded my things into a black mini backpack.

It had been a long time since I had done anything for myself, and they were right. This was supposed to be a fresh start. How could I expect my omega to come out of hiding if I wasn’t even giving her the things that she would need?

Grace and Devon were waiting for me by the front door. Grace didn’t call me on taking my time, she just launched into making plans.

“Most of the places in town do delivery for big orders, so if we do end up buying nesting stuff, we don’t have to worry about carrying it back. We’re right in the middle of town, so I thought we’d just go on foot,” Grace said as we walked out and locked the door behind us.

“Works for me, I’m used to walking,” I said. The traffic in the city was way too congested to be driving back and forth all the time. Especially for something as simple as going down to the shopping district.

The diner was pretty busy when we got there, but Grace managed to snag a corner booth, sliding in and waving us forward, ignoring the pack that was heading that way.

“For someone so tiny, you sure know how to command a room, don’t you?” Devon said as he slid around the booth, giving me room.

When I sat down, he scooted closer, his leg pressing against mine. I could feel my cheeks warming, and the urge to touch him was strong, but I fought it.

An older woman hurried over to take our order, but it was so busy that we didn’t get much more than a hello and a jotting down of what we wanted before she was off again.

“Don’t mind Sandy, she’s just like that,” Grace said before we could say a word. “It’s always really busy here. She is professional but isn’t chatty.”

“As long as she brings me pancakes, I don’t really care,” I said to reassure her. Grace seemed to be trying to sell us on this town but I was already in love with Rockwood Valley.

Minus our interaction last night.

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