Page 21 of Unknowingly Adopting the Alpha
Was it a petty thing to do? Probably. But I had spent far too many years accepting mere scraps of attention. I wouldn’t force others to be around me anymore, even though it had seemed Jeremy liked my company. It had truly felt mutual in that regard, but it changed when Darius came in. He was one of Jeremy’s friends, and I wasn’t a part of that.
It had also broken a piece inside of me to be pushed out of the conversation. Not once did they elaborate or explain anything to me. I was as good as forgotten. No one of importance. Then there was the look in Jeremy’s eyes. Damn, that had hurt the most. Were they exes? You couldn’t deny the longing and hurt pouring off Jeremy. I left for self-preservation purposes.
If I wanted the future I’d looked forward to ever since I got the house, then my heart would need to remain intact. I couldn’t get involved with whatever was between Jeremy and Darius. Considering I was only friends with Jeremy, it would be easy to put some space between us while he worked things out with Darius.
Wewerefriends, so I shouldn’t be this jealous. But Iwas.
I unlocked my car and slid in, glad that I could escape without Jeremy noticing. Fuck, why hadn’t he evennoticed?
Sighing, I turned the key, then drove, putting as much space between me and Jeremy as possible.
I parked my car in the parking lot of a pet store. Driving straight home after leaving Jeremy had seemed like a stupid idea. He would find me too easily after that, or I would be even more hurt when he didn’t show up at my house at all. To save myself the added hurt, I’d decided to force my company on acat instead, one that would be forced to love me. That sounded much more reasonable than forcing Jeremy to stay friends with me. I wasn’t worth the trouble with his pack. I simply wasn’t born to be a part of his world, and I needed to come to terms with that.
So, a cat it was. I needed to buy the basics before I found the nearest animal shelter. I ideally wanted the three cats, but feared they would shower each other with love and leave me without, so just one first and then maybe two more later on.
The pet store held so many amazing things, and I might have gone a tad overboard with the way my car was quickly filling up. But seriously, who could pick just one collar? I’d chosen three different ones, letting Daisy, my first cat, pick which she preferred. I’d also gotten a name tag made, so she could show off her pretty name.
The cat tree was the biggest box. I preferred my furniture to be claw free, so it was a good investment. It also reminded me that I needed a new couch and TV, but Daisy was simply more important right now.
Sitting in my stuffed car, I found the nearest animal shelter and saw they were open for the next two hours. It left me plenty of time to play around with the cats until I found my Daisy.
There were a few cars parked out front, so I had to park a little farther away from the entrance. I wasn’t bothered, though. I’d already bought a cat carrier so I grabbed that and brought it with me.
The man who worked in front greeted me with a warm smile as I entered. “Greg?” I gasped, delighted to see him.
“Cass!” he beamed, standing up and hurrying over to grab me in a bear hug. “I feared I wouldn’t see you again!”
“Nah,” I waved it off, standing back and feeling delighted we’d bumped into each other. I’d maybe lost Jeremy, for now at least, so having a friend in Greg meant a lot. “I forgot to get yournumbers before I left.” I unlocked my phone and handed it over. He eagerly tapped away and shot himself a text before giving it back.
“So…You aren’t mad at us?” He was biting his lip, looking nervous.
“No? Why would I be?”
We’d had fun, right? Or was that only me?
“Because we basically kidnapped you,” he whispered, eyeing the elderly couple looking at some collars to the left.
I scoffed at that. “There were way too many muffins and fun to be considered a kidnapping, besides, I feel like we became friends. I think back on it fondly.” I knew I spoke of it as if it had happened years ago, but it actually felt like that.
“Rowan and I feel the same about you. You’re our friend now. We hate that we didn’t get the chance to say goodbye properly before you left,” he sighed, then looked at me with miserable eyes. “I truly thought you hated us after Jeremy took you home.”
Shaking my head, I hugged him again. “I could never hate you,” I vowed. Greg and Rowan both had these amazing vibes around them, and I felt comfortable in their company. That was simply enough for me.
“Thank you,” he whispered, hugging me tighter.
“Silas likes you too, by the way,” Greg added, stepping back from our lovely hug. “He just had a lot to deal with so he couldn’t stay.”
“I know,” I grinned, then realization dawned on me. “Oh my God…Are you…?” I eyed him up and down, then whispered, “Wolves, too?”
Greg grinned victoriously at that. “Took you long enough to piece that together.”
I smacked his arm. “Why didn’t you tell me?!”
He held his arm like it had truly hurt. “Hey! You didn’t seem to know about us, and it wasn’t our place!”
Scoffing, I turned my back on him and walked in the cats’ direction. He scurried after me, sighing as he closed in. “Please don’t be mad. You promised you wouldn’t!”
Smiling, I turned around. “Fine,” I relented, not really mad at all, but loving how desperate he was for us to stay friends. I was a tad petty after the whole Jeremy and Darius thing. Sue me, I was only human.
