THEO
It’s dusk by the time we roll back into the six-pack territory, the sky darkening as I pull up to the gate of the squad complex to drop Brooke off.
“Need help with your bags or anything?” I ask as I throw the Jeep in park.
“Nah, I’m good,” she sighs as she drags her bare feet off of the dashboard, slipping them into her sneakers on the floor below and unbuckling her seatbelt.
I don’t know why I even asked, like I’m trying to be a gentleman or some shit.
Brooke hops out of the Jeep, opens the back door to haul her bags out. I turn over my shoulder to watch her as she slings her backpack over one shoulder, duffel over the other.
“Coming out tonight?”
“Not sure,” she breathes, holding onto the back door of the Jeep. “Gotta see what my friends are up to.”
If I know anything about the squad, it’s that the newbies never miss a night out.
“In that case, I’ll see you there,”
Hey guys! Hope you enjoyed this extra-long chapter! I've been getting a lot of questions lately about my update schedule, so I wanted to include it here for some clarity. I upload a new chapter every weekday, Monday through Friday. Depending on how much time I have over the weekends, I may add a bonus chapter on a Saturday or Sunday, but those are never guaranteed. Summer is a busy time! Thank you for your continued support in reading my books. Please keep your comments and feedback coming- I love seeing your opinions!
BROOKE I stare at the back of Theo’s black jacket as he makes the rounds in the hub on Monday afternoon. It’s his first time back in a week, so it takes him a while to gather everyone’s report. He’s listening attentively, jotting down notes while my eyes practically burn a hole in his leather jacket. He stops at Diego’s desk first, then Carly’s. Then criss-crosses his way to the back of the room. I’m the only one in the last row, so after he finishes with Justin, I know I’m next. I stare at my computer monitor; pretend I’m working as Theo heads for the conference table behind me. I cringe inwardly at the scraping sound of chair legs across the floor as Theo drags one over to my desk. “Hey, kid.” His voice is low, velvety smooth and enticing. “Hi.” My own voice comes out like a squeak. Theo sinks down into the chair, starts shrugging off his jacket. I watch out of the corner of my eye as
BROOKE “I brought options,” Fallon breathes, pushing into my room in the squad barracks with a dress bag slung over her shoulder. I spin around to look at her from my spot in front of the mirror, my vision fuzzy- she walked in right as I was putting in my contact lenses and I’ve only got one in. The other is perched on the tip of my index finger. I wink my contact-less eye closed. “Let’s see em’!” Fallon chuckles, kicking the door closed behind her and shaking her head. “Why don’t you get your other contact in first.” I turn back to face the mirror while my sister strides over to the bed, setting down the dress bag and unzipping it. I pop my other contact lens into my eye, blinking a few times before twirling back around. “Glad you went for the contacts on your own so I didn’t have to talk you into it,” Fallon mumbles, pulling dresses from the bag one by one and setting them out on the bed.
THEOI barely fucking slept last night- just thinking about Brooke out on a date with that idiot Connor had me all twisted up inside. I blame it on my wolf- he’s all fucked up; thinks he has a claim on her for some reason. It must be because she’s the only female I’ve spent an extended amount of time around, the only one that my wolf and I have really gotten to know that isn’t family.It’s a problem. Sutton was eye-fucking me across the dining hall all through dinner, tried to get me to go back to her room with her afterwards, but my wolf wasn’t having it. It’s a damn shame because Sutton’s a great lay. I just couldn’t do it. I had to let my wolf out instead, go for a run.It took the edge off, but only minimally. I ran for hours, gave over control and let my wolf lead me around the forest. In the end, he led me back to the complex, around the side to t
THEO “Keep em closed!” “Theo, I swear if you’re taking me to a hotel or something, I’m gonna kill you.” “C’mon, don’t you trust me?” “Not even a little.” I laugh, turning onto the road that leads out of the six-pack territory. I should be paying Gray rent for how much I’ve been borrowing his Jeep lately, but it was necessary for this non-date with Brooke. I racked my brain for a full day before I came up with a plan of where to take her, and now that we’re almost there, I’m actually a little nervous. Which is crazy, right? I don’t get nervous. Then again, I don’t take girls on dates, either. But this isn’t a date, Brooke made that very clear. Even so, my palms are clammy, my heart’s beating fast in my chest. I pull into the parking lot of Cedar Ridge, the ski resort that sits right on the edge of the six-pack territory. The packs work together to run it and it’s a great source o
THEOMy muscles are burning after Thursday morning’s training session with the squad. It’s a hot one today- the sun is beating down on the practice field, sweat soaking through my cutoff t-shirt. I’ve been skipping out on too many of these sessions lately, so it felt really good to get one in, burn off some energy.I spot Gray across the practice field and start making my way over to him. Big surprise- Fallon’s by his side, and he’s got an arm slung over her shoulders as he pulls up the hem of his t-shirt to wipe sweat from his brow. When I approach, he’s leaning down next to her ear, talking to his mate in a low murmur.“Hey, Gray, you got a minute?” I ask, looking from him to Fallon. It’s a little fucking weird to see Fallon after spending so much time with Brooke lately. They’re physically identical, but I’m not attracted to Fallon in the le
BROOKE “Sup, nerds?” Theo greets as he walks into the IT hub on Friday afternoon, flashing that charming smile of his. I hear titters of laughter from some of my colleagues- they take Theo’s greeting as being funny, jovial, rather than as an insult. Over the past few weeks, we’ve all gotten used his presence around here and everyone seems to like his visits. The guys think he’s cool- they idolize him, want to be friends with him. The girls have all fallen for his good looks and charisma- they flirt with him shamelessly. I was the last holdout, but I find myself smiling when I look up to see him standing in the doorway, his big, bulky stature taking up most of the doorframe. Who would’ve thought that Theo’s afternoon appearance in the IT hub would become my favorite part of the day? I used to dread that cocky greeting, bristle when he planted himself beside me to chat. Now I’m finding myself looking forward to t
THEO I probably should’ve looked at the weather forecast before I took Brooke out on this hike. It started out well enough- we went out to the forest after dark, started up one of my favorite trails. Chatted about the new border security system and Brooke’s program. I’m still in awe that she’s building something like that from the ground up- the girl’s brilliant. Even though I’m not, conversation with her is always so easy, so natural. I don’t regret skipping out on the bar one bit. I love being in the forest at night- the sounds, the smells, the stillness. Shifters have great night vision, so even though the forest’s dark, we can see clearly and appreciate its beauty. Being out in nature pleases our wolves, too- helps them settle. From the way Brooke describes her wolf, it sounds like this is the perfect activity for her. I didn’t account for the weather, though. We’re well over a mile away from the complex when we he
BROOKE I should feel offended about what happened in the showers last night. I should feel filthy, violated. But strangely… I don’t. I wanted to look at him. Wanted him to look at me. It was dirty, racy, exciting. I know I’m supposed to be the ‘good girl’, I’ve leaned into that role my whole life- but it felt so good to be a little bad for once. And the way Theo was looking at me… I can’t get it out of my mind. It was wild, predatory, feral. Like I was the only woman he’d ever laid eyes on. There was no mistaking the unbridled desire in his stare… and between his legs. It was hard! He wanted me. If his eyes didn’t give him away, then his huge hard-on definitely made his intentions clear. That thing is massive, I don’t know how it would even fit! Not that I would let him try. It’d be crazy to give up my virginity to