Yet even despite all that, something worse had stepped foot right into our house without any of us being aware.
It made me appreciate Winter being around all the more, knowing she’d gotten Rose away from the situation the moment she realized what was going on. That, and she chased the person out of the house, defending our family even though she didn’t think there was actually a threat at that point.
After Rose and I hugged silently for a few minutes, I encouraged her to feed a little from my wrist, knowing it would make her feel better, and then reminded her that Eden was waiting for her downstairs.
That definitely cheered her up.
She wrapped her arms around my neck to give me one last tight squeeze before hopping down with the grace of a cat and running downstairs. Watching her with my second-sight, I couldn’t help but grin when I saw Heidi and Lily both flinch when Rose silently slipped past them to kneel by the chair to watch Freya feed Eden a bottle.
At the same time, Winter began heading upstairs, the skillet sizzling on the stove, prompting me to take a deep breath and get up to leave Rose’s room, closing the door behind me. I then paused when she stopped a few feet away, facing my direction. She seemed hesitant, and a little somber too.
“Sorry if I was a little intense earlier,” she said quietly.
I shook my head, assuming she meant how possessive she sounded. “It’s fine. Just unexpected is all. But you should know I don’t really mind.”
“I know you don’t,” she agreed. “But I’ve just been trying really hard to hold myself back, and I feel bad that it slipped.”
I gave her a confused look. “Hold back?” I repeated.
She nodded, frowning slightly. “Yes. Imagine how your females would have reacted even just a week ago if I was acting like that.” When I didn’t respond, a little stunned by what she was implying, she sighed. “Sam, I really wanted you to be my alpha from the moment I assessed you. I told you the number I would have given you was high, and it was. My subjective assessment of you probably would have been one of the highest numbers I’ve ever given out.”
She sighed again, glancing away. “And I admit that I was a little indecisive at first, even despite my assessment. I had reasons for feeling that way, but in hindsight I realize I knew the moment I did my evaluation.” She grimaced, focusing on me. “But with humans, often good alphas normally don’t get to choose their females beyond the first one, so I had to hold back. And all I could do was hope that maybe somehow it would work out. That they’d accept me.” She paused. “I did have some reason to believe it would work out, but that didn’t stop me from being really careful about how I approached it.”
I scratched the back of my head, finding it difficult to believe that she felt possessive of me all this time and was just holding back. After all, we hadn’t known each other for long.
“That too,” she agreed. “I’ve heard just about every thought that’s popped into your head since we met, whereas we’ve barely spoken aside from a few instances. Combined with my sixth sense to know the integrity of a person, that means that how well each of us feels like we know the other is very lopsided. I feel like I’ve known you all my life at this point, whereas you obviously…don’t.”
“Sorry,” I said sincerely. Because she was right. I did kind of like her, and I definitely appreciated her, and she was obviously as hot as hell, but it wasn’t the same level of feelings that I had for Heidi and Lexi – not even close at this point.
She gave me a small smile, her pale green eyes endearing. “It’s alright. I can keep holding back. And I will keep holding back, so that you can become more comfortable with your relationships involving those two.” She paused, her expression a little vulnerable now. “But I’ve decided to let you know how I really feel, now that I’ve slipped anyway. I’m way more attached than a normal person would be at this point. In a weird way, I feel like I’ve been waiting to meet you all my life.” She glancing away then, and almost looking as if there was more she wanted to say, but was set on holding back like she promised. “And now that I have met you, I can confidently say that I know you and understand you better than anyone else does, aside from Freya. Perks of being a mind reader.”
I smirked a little, wanting to be playful since this conversation felt a little somber and awkward. I really kind of wondered if she was being literal when she said she’d been waiting for me all her life, and that definitely made me a little sad if it was the case. Because if that was true, then in a weird way, she’d been waiting to start a relationship with me a lot longer than Lexi and Heidi. Really, Lily too. Yet, despite that, she was the last to join the family.
I cleared my throat, forcing a smile in an attempt to change the mood. “So, does that mean I can take a peek under your clothes now?” I teased.
She grinned in return. “Yes. Except you are also now welcome to take more than a peek.”
Damn.
I tried to swallow the lump in my throat. Honestly, from a sexual standpoint, her offer was extremely tempting, but I’d just started advancing stuff with Lexi and Heidi, and wanted to focus on that right now. I wanted us to all be secure in our relationships, or otherwise our family might really fall apart if I
