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"I'm sorry," I say. "You deserved better than that."

"You know what the worst part is?" Belle continues, her voice getting slightly stronger. "I'm not even surprised. Adam has always been someone who gets completely absorbed in whatever's new and exciting. I just never thought I'd be something he could abandon so easily."

"His loss," I say firmly. "Belle, Adam Chen is an idiot if he can't see what an incredible friend he's throwing away."

"Maybe. Or maybe this is just how it goes when people find their perfect match. Everything else becomes secondary."

The interruption gives me a moment to collect myself, and I can see Belle using the time to process what I've told her. WhenClaire hands us our boxes and we've thanked her for the lesson, Belle and I find ourselves standing on the sidewalk outside the shop, both of us holding chocolate we made together and trying to figure out what comes next.

"Felix," Belle says finally, "I like you. More than I expected to, more than might be smart given how little time we've known each other. But I need honesty if this is going anywhere."

"I want to be honest with you," I tell her. "More than anything, I want you to know exactly who I am and what I'm offering. But some things are better experienced than explained."

"When?" she asks. "When will you show me whatever it is you think I need to see?"

"How about now?" I suggest, the decision forming as I speak. "Come home with me, Belle. Come and see how all three of us live. Let me show you what I mean when I say I'm part of something bigger."

Her scent spikes with nervousness, but also with curiosity and something that might be excitement.

"Your home," she says. "With the people who matter most to you."

"Yes. Belle, I promise you'll be safe. I promise that everything I've told you about my feelings is true. And I promise that what I'm going to show you is something wonderful, not something scary."

She looks down at the box of truffles in her hands, and I can practically see her weighing her options. Trust me and potentially discover something amazing, or play it safe and always wonder what might have been.

"Okay," she says finally, looking up to meet my eyes. "Show me."

The relief that floods through me is so intense it's almost overwhelming. "Really?"

"If this turns out to be some elaborate scheme to get me into bed, I will make your life very unpleasant."

"Noted," I say, grinning despite my nerves. "Though I have to ask, how exactly would you make my life unpleasant?"

"I'm a librarian, Felix. I know where all the information is buried, and I have very strong opinions about people who waste my time."

The threat should probably concern me, but instead it just makes me want to kiss her more than I already did.

"Belle Hartwell," I say, stepping closer, "you are the most magnificent woman I've ever met."

"Flattery won't save you if this goes badly," she warns, but she's smiling as she says it.

"Good thing I'm planning for it to go very, very well."

The drive to our house only takes about fifteen minutes, and I spend the entire time trying to figure out how to prepare Belle for what she's about to see.

When I pull into our driveway, I can see Marcus's truck and Theo's SUV already there, which means they're both home from work. The house looks the same as always, large but not ostentatious, modern but warm, designed to be a home rather than a showplace. But seeing it through Belle's eyes, I suddenly wonder if it looks like the kind of place where three alphas might live together.

The drive to our house only takes about fifteen minutes, and I spend the entire time trying to figure out how to tell Belle that the three men she's been dating aren't competing for her attention—they're working together. How do you explain that you and your pack mates have been coordinating a courtship? How do you reveal that what she thought were three separate relationships have actually been part of one bigger plan?

"You're nervous," Belle observes from the passenger seat of my car.

"Terrified," I admit. "Belle, what I'm about to tell you is going to change everything between us. Between all of us. Either for the better, or... well, hopefully for the better."

"Felix, just tell me one thing honestly. This thing you need to tell me—it's not going to hurt me, is it?"

"Not if I can help it. Belle, I would never intentionally do anything to cause you pain."

"Then whatever this is about, we'll figure it out."