Page 12 of Beta and the Beast (Beastverse #2)

Sarah

A bout five minutes ago, I got a text from Henry asking me to please be nice to the teenagers coming over to offer me cookies and not to do anything that might make him react.

The first request is easy enough, and Sam already talked to me about it when Scott picked him up a couple of hours ago to work on the clinic.

It's the second request that has me worried.

Sam's working with these young alphas to teach them to be better than the crappy alphas out there who use and abuse others because of their designations.

That also means showing good examples of an alpha behaving himself and being respectful.

Showing them healthy examples of an alpha pursuing a partner would also be good for them, but not Romulus's fixation on me.

The boys don't need to see Romulus pursuing a beta, even though he's been much more subdued about it than others.

Alpha and beta relationships are considered crass.

They're usually only physical and short-term.

Not to mention the unhealthy dynamic that can come into play if an alpha has the beta doing things they don't want to do or their body can't handle.

The difference between those situations and what I'm doing with Romulus is that nothing will happen between us. He can keep being weirdly obsessive, but it'll fade with time. More importantly, he'll eventually find an omega perfect for him.

I have no intention of giving in to the temptations I have late at night in bed.

I'm never asking him for a mark or thinking this is something it's not.

I also know, or at least am pretty sure, Romulus wouldn't ever hurt or overpower me in ways that could hurt me.

He's pursuing me now, but he won't force me.

He hasn't spoken to me since the night he came into my home.

My apartment still smells like him because, as much as I might want the ventilation system to work for my sanity, I also like his pepperminty smell.

I see their shadows on the sidewalk before I see them.

I've been watching the door like a hawk, so I'm ready as soon as the alphas want to come over.

I still haven't had any customers today, and there are only thirty minutes until closing, so I don't feel bad about them coming inside.

Plus, I have this fancy new ventilation system that sucks their pheromones right out of the air.

It also makes me blush scarlet whenever I think about it because I remember how the one in my apartment isn't working and what I've done while sniffing the air for Romulus's pheromones.

I don't even want to think about my reasoning for not calling Sam and making him fix it. I shouldn't be thinking about anything other than making these alphas not feel unwanted. Not when they're all about to come inside.

And just like they can read my mind, they finally start walking over.

Henry's right behind the younger alphas, arms crossed over his sweater-clad chest as he marches them to my door.

The boys are large for their age, already looking like men.

Then again, I remember Scott being a twig one day, and the next, he was as big as our father.

Still, their size doesn't take away from the dejected looks on their faces or how they both look more toward the ground than in front of them.

My brows pull together and up as my bottom lip pouts. These boys look like they're about to give up, which breaks my heart. I rush over to the door, trying to hide my sad look so they don't see that I can tell they aren't having a good time.

I won't mention the pink tint to the tip of the red-haired one's nose or how his eyes are rimmed red. A lot of alphas feel like emotions make them weak. Not all, but enough for me to know not to bring it up first.

"Hello," I say in my cheeriest voice as I swing the door open.

The two alphas perk up a bit, and I have to stop myself from looking down the line of buildings and scowling at the other businesses.

I bet the other owners didn't even say hi.

I wonder if they even stepped outside to talk to the boys.

I don't scowl, though. No, I take a deep breath to steady my anger and then smile as wide as possible.

"Do you want to come inside? I don't have any customers, and I'm closing soon." I keep the smile on my lips even as Henry winces at the mention of no customers.

I hope he does wince. I've told my brother how the bakery is killing my business, and he keeps telling me it'll sort itself out.

As if it's not my livelihood being threatened.

At least Henry looks affected by the news.

Maybe I'll start texting him every afternoon to inform him of my dying business like I do to Sam.

"Guys, you have to talk to her." Henry chuckles as he nudges both alphas' shoulders.

They snap their heads up at the same time, their lips pulling back in what I'm sure are meant to be smiles, but come across more as grimaces. I tilt my head back, motioning for them to follow me inside, and Henry mouths 'thank you' before urging them forward.

My cheeks heat at his attention, but I guide us to a table in the middle of the coffee shop.

I normally like to sit in the booths, but they can be uncomfortable for alphas since they like to be able to act on a moment's notice.

Sitting with Scott and Sam at dinner in a restaurant can be exhausting when they both want to sit on the end, facing everything else.

No, tables are much more manageable and make the choices easy to swallow.

The boys look around the shop as they follow me, their noses working to pick up any scents they can.

If anything, they'll smell Henry or themselves.

I let them look around without interrupting them.

When Scott and Sam come in here, they always act like little kids sneaking somewhere they're not meant to be.

I'm sure it feels the same to these boys who know this is a beta-only coffee shop.

"We came to introduce ourselves," Henry says, stepping away from the boys and offering to pull out my chair for me.

I sit down, hoping it makes the alphas feel less stressed about this whole thing.

They're obviously upset by being rejected by the other businesses in the strip.

Not that I blame the other businesses since they're pretty vocal about being beta only, but they also didn't have to be so harsh as to make these boys almost cry.

"Yeah, I'm Aiden." The blond one, and older of the two, offers me his hand when he sets a plate of what I'm pretty sure are chocolate chip cookies on the table. I shake his hand, his cheeks burning bright pink as I do.

"I'm Jace," the other boy says, pushing in front of Aiden and offering me his hand.

Aiden's nostrils flare, his lips pulling back in a snarl as his growl starts in his chest. I'm not surprised since setting an alpha off doesn't take much. Jace pulls his hand back from me just before his eyes flicker gold, and he launches himself at the other boy.

"Of course," Henry mutters as he steps around me to the quarreling teenagers on the ground.

Romulus emerges as he grabs the back of Jace's neck, tugging him off Aiden. When both boys are off the ground, their eyes are cast downward, and their bodies are stiff as boards. Romulus shakes his head, and when he speaks, Henry's back in control.

"What was that?" he asks, hands on his hips as he looks at both boys.

I'm still seated. Everything happened fast, and honestly, I have two alpha brothers, so I know it doesn't take much to have them quarreling, especially not a beast. Henry could've warned me about the beast, since they're much less predictable than regular alphas.

Aiden mutters something under his breath that I can't quite make out.

"Speak up," Henry tells him. "You both wanted to act tough in front of the beta. Where's that same attitude in owning up to what you just did?"

"He didn't wait his turn," Aiden says louder, his cheeks burning even brighter when he brushes his light hair back and lifts his eyes to meet Henry's stare. "I was talking to her still."

"I wanted to introduce myself." Jace shoots him a glare as his eyes flicker rapidly between his beast and him. He clenches his fists at his sides, straining to stay in control.

I push away from the table, moving behind the counter to grab some milk to go with my cookies and a few glasses of water for the boys.

Whatever Henry's talking with them about, I'm not needed for.

They're still learning how to act around other designations, and if these are some of the boys who got kicked out of their houses, I might be one of the only non-alphas they've interacted with in a long time.

When I return to the table, the boys are already sitting. Their faces aren't as dejected as they were when they came, but it's clear they've been reprimanded for their behavior.

"I'm sorry for fighting in your coffee shop," Aiden says, taking one of the glasses of water and taking a long drink so he doesn't have to say anymore.

I give him a soft smile and turn my attention to Jace, who's very purposefully looking not at me. His hands are clenched in his lap, and his shoulders shake. Henry inhales loudly behind him, and I lift my hand, asking him to give me a second before he goes all alpha tough love on Jace.

"If your beast promises to behave, he can come out.

" I keep my voice low, the words soft in case he freaks out.

I don't know his relationship with his beast, but I'd say it's not good based on how hard he's fighting for control.

Jace looks like he wants to argue with me, so I cut him off.

"My brother has a beast, and we all know Henry has one.

They know how to behave themselves. I'm sure yours can behave, too. What's his name?"