Page 46 of Talk About… Trouble

“Though, I’d say their instinctual responses are in favor of my theory.”

She soaked in his words before continuing her story. “After the sentencing and settlement, my therapist said that I should get a change of scenery. So, here I am. I’m supposed to relax and find myself again, and not be too hard on myself, and…”

“Is that where the coloring comes in?” Shepherd asked, his voice far more gentle now.

“That was to help with panic attacks. At first, it didn’t take much to trigger them. The stress of the trial just wrecked me. But after it ended, itwasgetting better. Then this whole picture and information leaking happened.”

“So, it actually leaked?” Devon clarified.

She nodded miserably. “Yeah. My lawyer called me. Apparently, someone released all of our pictures and names, along with key details. They’re trying to figure out who. They will be punished, but it doesn’t fix the damage that was already caused.”

“It’ll blow over,” Nash said gently. “Until then, we’ve got your back. Honestly, outside of that stupid omega that said those things to you, I don’t think anybody else around here would.”

“Maybe I should just change my looks,” she said as she lifted her long, blonde hair. “I could dye my hair.”

Even as she said it, the frown deepened on her face. She didn’t like that idea any more than I did.

“Don’t change yourself. Any battles you don’t want to fight, you have four pack members who will happily go to bat for you.”

“Pack members?” she asked, as if needing to hear it from us, too. “A few hours ago, you were just my boss. And you were the vet.”

“Now we’re pack,” Shepherd said, shifting his chair. “And I’ll admit, that’s not something I saw coming a mile away. I also thought that you smelled great but didn’t have thatresponse, either. You’re sexy as hell, and I could barely keep my eyes off you, but I didn’t want to overstep those professional boundaries.”

“Now that we know we’re mates, forget those boundaries,” I said, finishing for him.

“What now? Are we just going to go back to our respective houses and pretend this isn’t happening?” Devon asked, already frustrated.

“We have Grace to think about,” she said, turning sideways so she could look at Devon now. “I feel terrible about backing out on her. We’ve lived with her for less than a week.”

He was chewing on his plump bottom lip now, too, looking just as conflicted. “There were tons of omegas on this list, and it doesn’t change the friendship that we have with Grace.”

“She already knows, too,” Wren said. “She’s observant.”

It was funny, the way they talked to each other, bouncing ideas back and forth, half-sentences that only they understood. Devon was right. They were absolutely mates.

If that meant the rest of us were, only time would tell.

Nash took another shot before adding in his own thoughts. “We’ve only been on one date together, and Devon and I hung out today, but I’ll be honest, going home without you is fucking miserable. I understand that it’s soon, and you can’t bring us home if you’re in an omega-only apartment. We need a pack house.”

“Good thing I’ve got plenty of land and extra space,” Shepherd said, as if that was that.

Could it really be that easy?

Wren

“What is with these alphas and wanting us to move in with them the moment we scent match with them?” Devon asked, his exasperated tone laced in humor.

Even though he thinks we’re both their matches, I’m still skeptical on that front.

“Let’s leave that talk for the morning,” Braxton offered, looking at me with concern again.

My eyes had drifted closed on their own. I was so exhausted that it felt bone-deep, as if I couldn’t shake it if I wanted to. It had been a really long time since I’d had one of these kinds of panic attacks.

To say they were draining was an understatement.

I had half a mind to text my therapist. She promised that she’d always have an open door for me, or an open phone, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it yet.

I’d barely settled in here, hadn’t given any time for my omega to come out, but it seemed like the moment I came to Rockwood Valley, my life was even more chaotic. Though, in a far different way.

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