Page 21 of Beta and the Beast (Beastverse #2)

Sarah

T he staring competition between Fenrir and me is one of our best. Usually, one of us gets bored long before there's an actual winner, but he really has something up his ass tonight.

He started growling at me about two minutes into this staredown, and Lilah slapped his chest with the back of her hand to get him to be quiet.

We're going on five minutes now, and honestly, I could go all night with how ridiculous he's being.

Barging into my apartment, reminding me there's no mark on my neck, so nothing is stopping an alpha from leaving me when he's done. Thankfully, Romulus was too distracted trying to get in my pants that he didn't hear Fen's worries.

"Enough of this, Fenrir. I'm hungry and bored," Lilah calls out from the couch.

Fenrir's lips press hard together, and I can tell he wants to look at his mate.

Probably wants to take care of all her problems, too.

Now, which desire is going to win out? His desire to please his mate or his desire to win a staring competition.

I watch his jaw clench twice before he snarls at me and turns his attention to Lilah.

" We came to make sure you were okay, " Fenrir says, sounding more angry than protective. He scoops Lilah into his arms before sitting back on my couch.

When they came inside, I grabbed the pillow Henry brought over and threw it into my bedroom. No way, no how was I going to let it stay out here, especially not now that I know how good everyone's sense of smell is.

"As you can see, I'm fine." I hold out my hands and spin around.

" You were panicked on the phone about an alpha outside your door, and you hung up on us, " Fenrir growls. " What if something had happened to you? "

I give him a nasty face at him thinking I'd be stupid enough to do anything myself when I thought there was a deranged alpha outside. "I called Henry. I didn't just go out there and confront the alpha myself."

Fenrir's eyes narrow a fraction more, but his body seems to relax. " You called him to deal with the alpha? "

I nod, not wanting to voice it out loud. I don't want to know what it says about me and how attached I've gotten to the alpha next door that he was the one I called for help instead of my brothers, who have always been my go-to.

" So, you didn't leave your apartment and get lucky it happened to be Henry outside?

" Fenrir cocks his head to the side in that animalistic way some alphas can get.

" I thought you went to confront them on your own, and it was just a miracle Henry was out there, so you weren't mauled by an angry alpha. "

I snort at the description because an alpha definitely mauled me. "Henry and Romulus were fighting about something. I didn't realize it was them at the door. But I'm fine. Everything's fine."

My words take a second to fully sink in before Fenrir closes his eyes and lets Scott back out.

Scott or Fenrir, I don't mind talking to either of them, but I don't need the same big brother talk from both of them.

So if Scott starts up the same bullshit Fenrir was spouting about trying to warn me from being with alphas unless they've given me a reason to believe they aren't just using me, I will kick him out of my apartment.

"Sorry about that," Scott says, rubbing the back of his neck. "You know how Fen gets when–" He doesn't finish, the highs of his cheeks staining soft pink as his nostrils flare. "Why does it smell like Henry in here?"

I roll my eyes because I don't know how he's just now noticing that my whole apartment is a peppermint candy land.

It's not like it magically started smelling like this just now.

But maybe Fenrir was so up his own ass that he didn't notice because he was too busy lecturing me on messing around with alphas like I'm a teenager and not a fully grown woman.

"Why do you think it smells like Henry in here?" I ask, my eyebrows going high as I add as much attitude to my voice as possible. He can't be so dense that he doesn't know what was happening before he came in and interrupted the great time I was having.

"No, why isn't your ventilation system working? It smells like he lives here, Sarah."

Blood rushes to my face because I'm not about to explain to Scott that Henry or Romulus, probably Romulus, locked the controls to my ventilation system to keep my apartment smelling like him, and I've been too stubborn to ask anyone to fix it.

"Maybe he's over here a lot." I sniff and refuse to meet his eyes.

Silence fills the room. It's enough to have my cheeks flaming even more. I glance at Scott to see him fighting back a smile, but Lilah isn't even trying.

"I thought alpha smells bothered you." Scott shrugs. "Surprised you can live in this since you always make such a big deal about spraying Sam and me down."

I don't dignify that with any sort of response.

Really, it's because I don't have a good one.

Any other alpha smells awful. Their scents are abrasive, annoying, and a reminder that they're always horny and trying to mark everywhere as their space or demanding everyone submit to them for absolutely no reason.

The smells are a nuisance. It's just that I don't find Henry's to be that annoying.

No, I don't want to think about why.

"We should get going, Scott," Lilah says, standing from his lap and tugging him to join her. "We've already intruded enough."

Scott looks around the apartment. I don't know what he's looking for, considering this place is tiny, and it's not like I'm hiding anything.

Maybe he's looking for proof that Henry is over here more often, which he won't find because Henry's been in my apartment twice—once with Sam and once tonight.

Fenrir's golden eyes flash to cover Scott's dark ones, and he makes such a dick move that it has my mouth popping open and an indignant groan pulling from my chest. He somehow manages to make himself so smelly that it's suffocating over the scent of Henry that I've kept trapped in my house since his first visit.

"Why, Fenrir?" I ask, choking on the scent of pine needles and burnt sugar.

" I want to see how he handles it. " Fenrir shrugs as though ruining the way my apartment smells just to test another alpha is an appropriate response to anything.

"Get out," I tell him. There's no heat in my words, but I'm exasperated.

He doesn't have to be told twice, and it helps that Lilah at least looks remorseful enough for the two of them. It's fine. I'll just have to think of a way to get back at Scott and Fenrir the next time we're all together.

"We'll see you on Tuesday, right?" Lilah asks as I open the door.

"Of course," I tell her, looping an arm around her shoulders and hugging her goodbye. "Even if Fen royally pissed me off, I'm not about to be run off from family dinner."

"Good." She gives me a soft smile before nudging her mate.

Fenrir snaps his attention down to me from where he's staring a hole in Henry's door. Fenrir huffs like he's annoyed to have to hug me goodbye, but he wraps both arms around me and squeezes me so tight I think he's getting payback for me one hundred percent winning the staring contest.

Henry's door cracks open like he's been waiting for Scott and Lilah to leave.

Of course, he couldn't have waited just a couple more minutes until they were gone.

Oh no, instead, everyone gets to witness as Henry's nostrils flare, scenting how his scent has been smothered in my apartment.

His eyes flash gold, but Romulus doesn't lunge at Fenrir. That'd be too easy.

Fenrir stands back up to his full height, watching Romulus step out of his apartment and take long strides over to mine.

He doesn't even look at Fenrir, which I know has my brother bristling.

I want to stick my tongue out at him, but I keep myself looking serious in case this turns into a whole thing.

Beasts can be unpredictable, and even though Romulus says he doesn't fight, it doesn't mean he won't ever fight.

Romulus wraps his hands around my waist, lifts me enough that he can pivot, and places me away from the door before setting me down and stalking inside my apartment. The three of us watch from the open door as he goes to the storage closet where my ventilation system is.

His back is to us, but we can see him messing around with something. A few seconds later, the ventilators kick on, and he leaves the closet. When he turns to face us again, he's back to being Henry.

He straightens his glasses before smiling at me and then joins me in the open doorway, his hand on my lower back like we're both saying goodbye to our guests.

I know he's doing it to stake a claim on me, to let Fenrir know what he did wasn't okay, and even though I usually hate this alpha bullshit, I can't help but like it when it's Henry.

Henry, in his cute pastel yellow sweater and somehow still crooked glasses.

"We'll see you on Tuesday," Henry says, offering his free hand to Fen.

" Tuesday, " Fenrir says with a smile that shows too many teeth. He looks like he wants to say something more, but Lilah wraps her arms around him and distracts him. His eyes sparkle when he looks at her, and then they're off, taking the stairs and disappearing down the alleyway.

Henry doesn't remove his hand from my lower back, and I find myself leaning into him. The warmth permeates his sweater, making me feel even cozier as his scent envelops me again. It's easy to forget that our dynamics aren't compatible when he's just here being gentle and kind.

"Do you still want to go out?" I ask him, pulling away enough to look up at him. Panic flashes over his features at my question. He must think I'm trying to cancel. "I don't want to go out somewhere. I thought maybe we could order takeout?"

That settles the panic instantly. His purr rumbles through his chest, telling me he likes my suggestion. He tugs me back close to him, spinning me so we're face to face.