Page 75 of A Chance at Redemption for the Alpha

And mandarin.

Like the tea Silas made on my first day in Sunset Hills.

twenty-six

Another Chance

*LORI*

The drive is awkward at best, at least for me. Meanwhile, Percy seems to warm to Micah, especially when he hears how he will get his own room with a small balcony. The group homes in the pack are small and only host four minor wolves in each, which means Percy will have much more privacy than he thought he would.

I don’t really care about what happens to me, but I’m happy for Percy. He is still a kid and deserves to be accepted and loved.

“We got a cottage for you,” Micah tells me when we are crossing the pack borders. I can already spot the first houses, and one building that looks particularly intriguing, a beautiful mansion. It’s on the smaller side, but it’s obvious someone hasput a lot of work into it. I assume this is where the alpha and vampire lord are staying. This pack is like nothing I have seen so far. The whole area is sprinkled with small houses. Simple, but clean and tasteful. It looks so idyllic; so much, it almost feels unreal. “I hope the cottage is as you wanted it,” Micah adds. “If you look out of the window now, you can see it.”

Out of mere curiosity, I follow the direction he points in. The cottage that’s apparently going to be mine is not in the busiest part of the pack, just as I hoped. It’s small with a red roof and ivy on one wall. There is even a garden and a small tree house next to it. “Amazing!” I whisper.

“I am glad you like it,” Alpha Marcellus says. “There is still some work to do, though, but you said you wouldn’t mind giving it your own touch.”

“I would love to,” I say, not sure how else to react. I don’t want to sound too excited and let my guard down, but at the same time, I don’t want to insult him by showing no reaction. Everything was so much easier a couple of weeks ago. Now I just feel exhausted. I know I should put on a brave face and accept the outcome of my own actions, but I just want to sleep and bury myself under a blanket. I don’t even know what to do with my life anymore. Before things happened with my former mate, I had the dream of finding my other half, maybe even having my own family and doing something with my life, but now it feels like all my dreams have vanished.

I don’t know what to do or what I want.

“Look, the welcome committee,” Micah says with a bright smile. “You see the woman there, Percy? The one with the little kid? That’s Sheila and her daughter Maddie. Sheila is in charge of the group homes.”

“Really? She looks nice,” Percy says.

“She is very kind and sweet,” Micah reassures him. “And there is Lord Silas,” he explains further. “He is the coven leader and Marcellus’s mate.”

I’ve never seen a vampire before. I only know that they usually stick to themselves. But Lord Silas looks friendly. He even waves at our car.

“Yeah, I hit the jackpot,” Marcellus says proudly.

“And the young man behind him is Benjamin,” Micah continues.

“My surrogate brother,” Marcellus explains.

I look at the guy they call Benjamin. What a handsome man. He has tanned skin, clearly someone who is outside a lot. He has a handsome face and fluffy brown hair. He is pretty tall, too. “Is he an alpha’s son?” I hear myself ask before I can stop myself.

“You have sharp eyes,” Micah says. “Yes, he was an alpha’s son.”

“He is going to be my gamma,” Marcellus says. “Very capable young man, and very nice. If you two need anything, don’t hesitate to ask him.”

They even took in an alpha’s son? What did he do to end up in this pack? Maybe he didn’t do anything, though, and they saved him like they saved Percy. The alpha sounds like he respects him a lot and thinks highly of him.

I gaze at him again. He has a cute smile.

I’ve sworn to myself to stay away from any guys from now on, nothing romantic in this pack, but I can’t seem to tear my gaze away from Benjamin. What is this?

I’m still battling my confusion when the car halts and Micah opens the door. The heavenly scent of cinnamon hits me, like that one time that Mom made cinnamon rolls for me, many years ago, one of the few times she paid attention to me.

Something in my mind stirs.

I raise my eyes, looking at Benjamin again. He’s looking right back at me, too, his eyes wide in surprise.

“Benj!” Marcellus waves at him.

It seems to rip him out of his shock, and he steps forward with a smile. “Welcome to the pack, Percy and…“ He gazes at me nervously. “Lori.”