5

BROCK

I slept like shit last night. Something about that girl being here under my roof has both me and my wolf on edge, and I woke up with the sunrise to let him out for a run this morning. I feel marginally better when I return, pulling on a pair of grey sweatpants that I left hanging off of a tree branch behind the packhouse and tugging them on.

When I walk into the packhouse through the door off the back patio, I immediately hear Astrid’s airy little giggle and I’m right back where I started. Annoyed. I take a couple of tentative steps forward so I can see into the kitchen, spotting her perched on a barstool at the kitchen island wearing a tiny pair of shorts, one bare leg crossed over the other. A baggy sweatshirt hides the rest of her slim physique, and her curly hair is piled on top of her head in a messy bun. She’s clutching a steaming cup of coffee in both hands, still giggling softly.

Brent and Jared are standing across from Astrid on the other side of the island, leaning toward her with obvious interest. The way these two are fawning over this girl is pathetic- she’s all they could talk about last night when we were hanging out. At present, Brent’s regaling Astrid with some sort of story or joke -which she must find hilarious, judging by her giggling- and Jared is just shaking his head with a big, goofy smile on his face. I can’t help but roll my eyes as I head toward them, Astrid being the first to notice my presence.

Her head whips in my direction, eyes wide like a baby deer caught in the headlights. They immediately drop to my bare chest, and I don’t miss the blush that forms on her cheeks as her gaze slides from my pecs to my eight-pack abs. By the time her eyes make their way back up to my own, I can’t stop a smirk from tugging at my lips.

For a second, she seems a little flustered- but I’m quickly learning this girl is a pro at concealing her emotions. Within seconds, she’s got a bright smile on her face, any trace of unease buried. “Hi!” she chirps, way too fucking chipper for this early in the morning.

Jared immediately straightens when he sees me, setting his coffee cup down on the counter. “Morning, Alpha.”

Brent leans a hip against the kitchen island. “Good morning, Alpha,” he repeats mockingly. The guy thinks it’s funny to tease me about my title for some reason- I think it’s how he copes with his jealousy over the fact that I’m now technically his superior thanks to our birth order. “Out for a run?”

I nod, stepping closer as comb through my hair with my fingers and pull it back, securing it with an elastic.

“Coffee?” Jared offers, nodding toward the pot.

I shake my head. “I’m good. Gotta get up to the complex.”

“Now?” Astrid asks, a little bit panicked. She sets her coffee mug on the island. “I’ve just gotta change quick…”

Fuck. It didn’t occur to me that I’d have to drive this girl around, too. I heave a sigh, flicking my gaze in her direction. “So I guess you need a ride?”

She hops down off of the barstool, sinking her teeth into her bottom lip and staring at me with that doe-eyed look again. “Yeah, is that okay?”

“Fine.” I mean, what the hell else am I gonna say?

Astrid scurries out of the room, and I resist the urge to steal another glance at her bare legs as she retreats.

“Guess I’ll have that coffee after all,” I grumble, stepping over to the barstool that Astrid vacated and sinking down onto it.

I push Astrid’s abandoned cup of coffee out of the way, watching Jared as he grabs a fresh cup from the cabinet and starts to pour me one.

“You know, it wouldn’t kill you to be a little bit friendlier to our guest,” he says, shooting me a disapproving look.

“I just didn’t realize I’d be stuck being her personal chauffeur, too,” I growl.

I see movement out of the corner of my eye as Astrid suddenly appears beside me, darting out a hand to grab her coffee mug from the island.

Fuck.

Her eyelashes flutter as she looks up at me timidly. “Um, sorry,” she mumbles, taking the coffee and spinning back around, rushing off toward the guest wing again.

Well now I feel like a fucking asshole.

I look back to Jared, and he’s still giving me that look of disapproval.

“Bro…” Brent breathes, shaking his head.

“Don’t,” I snap, shaking my own head and pushing up off of the stool. I don’t need to hear it- I already know that was a dick move. It’s not like I did it on purpose, though.

I snatch my coffee cup off of the island and stalk over toward the stairs, heading up to my room to get changed. Now I feel bad, and I’m annoyed that I feel bad. Having this girl staying here is already cramping my style. I hate that she’s up in my space, throwing off my daily routine. I hate the perky little-miss-sunshine thing that she has going on. I hate that I’m fucking attracted to her, that I can’t stop looking at her. These next few weeks might just kill me.

~

A half an hour later, I’m parking the Escalade in my usual spot at the squad complex, glancing over at Astrid as she unbuckles her seatbelt. The ride here sucked- I thought she’d be quiet after overhearing me talking shit in the kitchen, but instead she was just as chatty and bubbly as she was when I drove her to the packhouse yesterday. And I fucking hate forcing smalltalk.

“So should I just call you later on to bring the car around?” Astrid asks, looking up at me and arching a brow.

I freeze, eyes narrowing. Slowly, her lips spread into a smile.

“Kidding,” she giggles.

I just stare at her blankly.

“You know, the chauffeur comment earlier? I was just trying to make light of it…”

“Oh I got the joke,” I grumble, opening my door and climbing out of the Escalade.

Astrid scrambles out of the passenger side, and I’m already heading down the sidewalk when I hear her door close and her quick footsteps scrambling after me to catch up. I don’t bother slowing down for her, but somehow she keeps up- even though she’s gotta take at least two steps for every one of my long strides.

We round the corner of the complex and I head for the gate, Astrid’s little head bobbing beside me in my peripheral vision. She’s so fucking small- good thing I’d never give into my attraction for her, because I’d break the girl in half.

“IT is that way,” I mumble, pointing at the second-story windows across the field. I start to walk away when Astrid pipes up.

“Actually, I think I’m gonna train with you guys this morning, if that’s alright.”

I stop in my tracks, turning to look at her over my shoulder. “Huh?”

Astrid nods. “Yeah, I mean I’ve gotta keep in shape, right?”

I blow out a breath, turning to face her. “Sure, but we don’t just do endurance workouts here. We do a lot of combat training. Sparring.”

“And?” she arches a brow, a smug smile on her lips as she folds her arms across her chest. “What, did you think I was gonna sit out on the fight when the shadow pack comes knocking?”

My jaw goes slack- because yes, that’s exactly what I thought the princess of Denver would do. I’m at a loss for words, but thankfully Quinn sweeps in at that moment, whisking Astrid away to join some of the other females.

I find my way over to the guys and we get practice started with a few laps around the track followed by some circuit training. After the first hour, we all pair off to spar. I pair up with Gray because the guy always gives a hundred and ten percent, and I’m not planning on taking it easy today. I need to blow off some fucking steam.

As fighters, Gray and I are pretty evenly matched, and we give each other hell. Twenty minutes in, I’ve got blood dripping from my eyebrow, some killer road rash on my right forearm, and a gash in my left knee. Gray doesn’t look much better from his position across from me as he swipes his bloody knuckles off on his t-shirt, glancing across the field.

“Damn…” Gray breathes, and I follow his gaze to see what has caught his attention.

It’s his mate, of course- Fallon is one of the squad’s fiercest warriors, and she’s currently rolling around on the ground with her opponent, attempting to dodge her blows. It isn’t easy to take Fallon down, but it looks like whoever has is giving her a run for her money.

“No fucking way,” I murmur when I see a tangle of light brown curls and the realization dawns on me that it’s little Astrid on top of Fallon, pinning her down with an elbow.

I shoot Gray a sideways glance and a smile of amusement crosses his face. He folds his arms, continuing to spectate the matchup.

I turn back to see Fallon still trying to wriggle free, to no avail. She finally concedes, tapping the ground to signal Astrid.

“Well that’s unexpected,” Gray chuckles, looking to me again. “Did you…?”

I shake my head. “I had no idea she could even fight. I mean look at her…”

I glance back in Astrid’s direction to see her brushing off her leggings, a triumphant grin stretching her cheeks. This girl is full of fucking surprises.

So I guess she’s not just some pampered princess- she’s actually a warrior princess. Why does the thought of that get my dick hard?

“You ready to go again?” Gray asks, taking a few steps back and crouching down.

I’m still staring at Astrid, and my breath catches when her eyes meet mine across the practice field.

“Brock?”

Gray’s voice knocks me out of whatever fucking trance I’m in and I look toward him, shaking my head. Pushing out every stupid fucking distraction and focusing in again on what matters- training.

“Yeah, sorry,” I mumble, crouching down into a defensive position, ready to get back to sparring. I smirk at Gray, giving a little flick of my head to beckon him forward. “Bring it.”