Page 81 of Forget-Me-Nots and Apricots

"What was his name?" Dakota growled, his voice dangerous and low.

"It doesn't matter now," I said quickly. "He moved away years ago. It's in the past." I wasn't ready to dredge up those memories fully, not tonight.

"It matters," Gabriel said, his voice controlled but with an undercurrent of something fierce. "What he did was abuse, Vivian. Using an Alpha voice to control an Omega is—"

"Criminal," Theo finished, his clinical tone belied by the anger in his eyes. "It's considered coercive control under current statutes."

"I know," I said quietly. "I just... I got out. I rebuilt my life. I focused on my business and kept my interactions with Alphas strictly professional after that."

Lucas reached across the table, his hand stopping just short of touching mine. "Until us," he said softly.

I nodded, finally looking up to meet their gazes. "Until you four came crashing into my life and turned everything upside down…”

I paused, gathering my thoughts. "I never expected to feel... whatever this is. Not after what happened."

Dakota's hand found mine under the table, his touch surprisingly gentle for someone so intense. "We would never use our voices on you," he said, his tone fierce with conviction. "Not to control you. Not ever."

"I know," I replied softly, surprised by how true it was. Despite knowing them such a short time, I did believe that. "That's part of what confuses me. I should be more cautious, more guarded. But instead..."

"Instead?" Gabriel prompted, his blue eyes intent on my face.

I took a deep breath. "Instead, I find myself trusting you. All of you. And that scares me almost more than anything else." The room fell quiet, the weight of my admission hanging in the air between us and no one saying anything to break that silence.

Chapter Thirty-Five

Lucaswasthefirstto break the silence, his usual playful demeanor replaced by a quiet sincerity. "Thank you for trusting us with that," he said, his eyes warm as they met mine. "I know it couldn't have been easy to share."

"It wasn't," I admitted, suddenly feeling exposed, vulnerable in a way I hadn't allowed myself to be in years. "But if we're going to... explore whatever this is, you should know why I've kept my distance from Alphas."

Gabriel nodded, his expression thoughtful as he studied me from across the table. "Your caution is understandable. And I hope you know that none of us would ever use our voices to control you."

"We've actually made a pack rule against it," Theo added, adjusting his glasses with precise fingers. "Alpha voices are only to be used in life-threatening emergencies, never for coercion or control."

I glanced at him, surprised. "Why a rule? If you don't mind me asking."

The four Alphas exchanged looks, another of those silent communications passing between them. It was Dakota who finally spoke, his deep voice unusually soft.

"Before we formed our pack, I was in the military," he said, his dark eyes fixed on some point beyond my shoulder. "Saw too many commanding officers use their voices to break down recruits. Especially Omegas." His jaw tightened. "It wasn't right."

"When we decided to form a pack," Gabriel continued, "we established boundaries from the beginning. Equal respect, despite traditional hierarchies. The voice rule was one of our first."

I nodded slowly, processing this information. It explained a lot about their dynamics—how four Alphas could function as a unit without constant power struggles.

"That's why," I said softly, understanding dawning. "That's how you work together so seamlessly. You've built something based on choice rather than instinct or tradition."

"Exactly," Gabriel confirmed with a nod. "We chose each other, chose to form bonds based on trust and respect rather than dominance."

"And now," Lucas added, his voice gentler than I'd ever heard it, "we're choosing you. If you'll have us."

I felt my breath catch at his words. There was no teasing in Lucas's expression now, only sincerity and something more vulnerable that made my heart ache.

"All of you?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper as I looked around the table. "You're all... choosing me?"

"Yes," Gabriel confirmed, his blue eyes holding mine with quiet intensity. "Though what that means—what shape it takes—is something we'd determine together. At whatever pace feels right."

I wrapped my hands around my water glass, needing something solid to ground me. "And if I'm not ready? If I need time?"

"Then we give you time," Dakota said immediately, his voice firm. "This isn't an ultimatum, Vivian."

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