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Now I just had to help it grow, and make sure Tully stayed to see it become perfect.

This time I wouldn’t fail.

14

Tully

I should be panicking.

But my name didn’t feel so heavy on my tongue or choke my throat. It made me wonder if I could keep it? What would that future look like? My parents had no faith in my abilities to own who I was, but maybe I could try one last time.

Walden asked me to trust him, and I believed him.

I thought back to my parents’ funeral, when I’d been raw with grief. His perfect jawline, softened by unwanted pity. His eucalyptus scent cleared my blocked nostrils and stung my eyes. I felt a bizarre desire to sink into his arms and beg him to look after me. What would my life look like if I’d taken his offer? Chase had swooped in after he left, and I’d trusted him instead.

Baylark Pack had nothing to gain from me. They had all the riches and reputation already. They were also the only oneswho could really understand the position I was in. I sighed and turned my focus back on my mood tracker. There was a missing spot for yesterday and I colored it pink.

Happy.I hadn’t done that color in a long time.

The pens Walden gifted me glided across the paper in the most satisfying way. Yesterday, after the tense breakfast, I’d stayed while Baylark Pack flitted around me. Taking Walden’s lead, both Lloyd and Ajax took a day off. Observing them left me with a restless prickle under my skin. The way they bantered and laughed. There were cracks, but so much love was trying to glue them together.

Nobody pressed me, even Lloyd, who I knew itched to know more about why I turned to Only Omegas.

I dropped my head in my hands. The first sign of acceptance and family had my knees wobbling on my plan to leave for Astaly. When Walden and Pan went to therapy together, my stomach ached. Hot enough to make my toes curl. They fought for each other, and I… wanted that.

When would it be my turn for someone to wind their arm around my shoulders and lend me their strength?

The force of the Baylark scents shook my nerves. Like ocean waves coaxing at my heels. Begging me to sink deeper into their depths. For a moment, I’d felt like the bridge between them all, softening the harsh edges.

Longing sprang deep in my shadowy insides and wouldn’t stop spreading. Sitting at this desk reiterated how lost I was. The mood tracker gloated at me, and I slammed it shut with a sharp breath.

“What’s wrong, Tully?” The door snicked open, and Lloyd slipped in when he saw my wobbling lower lip.

I covered my face and shook my head. Lloyd’s fingers landed on my tight shoulders, massaging them. His touch made thebase of my head tingle. Something primal reared its head internally.

Tell him to stop before it’s too late.

But Baylark Pack was all over me, sinking past the barrier of my skin. Where no scent wipe could remove their mark. I melted with a moan as Lloyd ground his thumbs into my shoulder. What would his hands feel like all over my body?

Oh no.

My bitch of a heat was inching closer, and I could barely resist Lloyd as it was. I darted out of the chair, dashing his touch from my shoulders. He held his hands up, wary and wounded all at once.

“Don’t,” I gasped, and my ribs pinched when his face crumpled.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have touched you.” He trailed off when I waved my hands, grappling for control of my surging need.

“That’s not it.” I shook my head. “It’s my heat. It’s close and—” I bit off with a curse.

Lloyd’s nostrils flared as what I said sank in. There was a sharpness to the edge of his smile, and it pressed against me like a flame. Heated ruination in one flash of his white teeth.

“We could tend you through it. No bonding marks, no pressure. Let me take care of you, Tully.”

Oh, those magic words. My insides swelled to meet them, along with the whisper of my name. Like it was a rare jewel. His pupils dilated as my scent thickened.

Taking suppressants wasn’t an option. I’d already skipped my last two heats. Skipping didn’t take away the buildup of hormones. There were only two options for me now: prescription medication, which involved going to the Omega Center. Not something I was willing to risk. Or a pack, with their delicious knots and cocks.

“You want to,” Lloyd whispered, a grin toyed with the corners of his mouth.