Chapter 0003

School was awkward. They had all but one class together, and Thea did her best to avoid or ignore the triplets all day. Everyone could tell something was wrong. Typically, they were inseparable. Kai usually had his arm draped over her shoulders. Alaric always offered her his arm when they walked because she often didn’t pay attention to where she was going. Conri held onto the hem of her shirt to keep her close. Today, she ignored them, left each class as the bell rang, didn’t walk with them anywhere, and made sure there was plenty of space between them.

Thea was usually good-natured and happy, but she spent the day subdued. Instead of eating lunch at their usual table, she went to the library to be alone and think. 

Could she be blamed for being attracted to the triplets? Everyone wanted them. They were Alphas. They exuded power and sexiness: tall, dark hair, crystal blue eyes, beautiful chiseled faces, strong jaws, defined cheekbones, broad shoulders, muscles for days. They were gorgeous among werewolves, who were already preternaturally attractive beings.

Maybe she could recover from this. If she could figure out a way to tame her libido, things could go back to normal.  

Maybe she was just full of hormones because her first shift was close. What if her wolf turned out to be a horny beast, and she had to satisfy her urges constantly? 

Maybe there were herbs she could take that would suppress any hormones or horniness. She could at least look into masking her scent. There had to be herbs for that. 

She started looking up books that could give her insight into how to fix this. Witches could do all sorts of things, but she didn’t want to mess with them. They were enemies of werewolves. Dangerous. She’d leave the pack before she used witches. 

She loved this pack, though. The people. Her family. The triplets. All she ever wanted was to be Beta and help this pack stay the most powerful, most coveted on the west coast. She didn’t want to leave. She checked out several books and put them in her backpack to take home.

After school, she dutifully went to the training field to lead training alongside the triplets. She didn’t look them in the eye, which irritated Kai and Conri. She tried to look professional, only speaking to them when necessary. She brought up other wolves to demonstrate things where they usually used each other.

After training, Thea usually stuck around and talked with the pack members. This time, she left immediately. She went to the pack house, got some food, then went to her room to read the books she checked out. She didn’t go to pack dinner. 

A while later, she’d written down a list of all the herbs she wanted. She went down to the pack apothecary store in the village area of the pack lands and handed the list to the apothecary. The older gentleman gathered the items, labeled them, bundled them up, separated them into groups.

“These are most effective in tea form. You can mix them with your favorite tea or brave the bitter taste alone. These are most effective when smoked. Do you have something to smoke with?”

“No,” Thea said.

The apothecary walked away and came back with a pipe and lighter. He demonstrated how to use it, how to clean it.

“I also devised a concoction that may interest you. It’s a spray. Our warriors and trackers use it regularly to mask their scents. Would you like to try it?”

“Yes, please.”

He added it to the bundle, handed it to her. “If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out.”

“Thank you.” She paid for them. “Can you make sure you have these in stock? I’ll probably be buying them regularly.”

“Of course, Miss Lyall.”

“Thea. Please call me Thea, Mr. Garrity.”

“Of course, Thea.” He smiled at her.

She went back to her room and read up on how to prepare the herbs. How much to use, how long to steep the tea, how long the effects would last. She fell asleep with her head in a book, the rest of them strewn around her on her bed. 

She woke up when the bed dipped. Two strong hands pulled her against a warm body. She instantly knew it was Alaric. She always knew which triplet was which, ever since they were kids. Everyone else had trouble telling them apart since they were identical. He had cleared the books off her bed, stacked them on her desk, and put a blanket over her.

“Hey,” Alaric said softly. “I missed you at dinner. I missed you all day. How are you doing?” 

“I don’t know,” Thea said.

“You’re researching something.”

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Okay. You don’t have to. Can I stay with you like old times?”

The triplets used to sneak into her room every night and sleep with her. They always slept better in her bed. They stopped a few years ago. Thea missed sleeping with them, but she would never sneak into any of their rooms. She had to accept it.

Thea nodded. Even with the lights off, they could see each other in the dark. She didn’t know if she’d ever get to sleep with him again. She didn’t expect this tonight, but being in his arms was comforting. She wrapped her arms around his waist. He adjusted, and they pulled in tight. He hooked her head under his chin. Her face against his chest, she breathed in his scent. It calmed her and made her sad at the same time. She knew he wasn’t hers. None of them were. Tears spilled over.

“Hey,” Alaric said. He rubbed her back up and down. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m afraid of losing you guys.” She sniffled.

“Never going to happen. You’re stuck with us forever.”

She wished that were true. She settled for being in Alaric’s arms tonight.

He held her, trailing his fingers over her until she fell asleep.