The Light in Us

17. Rowan

17

Rowan

T eddy throws out his arms dramatically. “I’m stuffed . Great food, Wilder.”

I bury my smile under another mouthful of chicken arrabbiata, reaching for my wine. The five of us are gathered in our kitchen, dishes sprawled across our well-used table. Candles flicker, casting shadows across our faces as music plays softly in the background.

Across from me, Wilder’s hands are braced against the table, his knuckles white. “Teddy.”

My omega’s arms drop to the floor. “Okay, okay. I’ve been appropriately fed, and my mouth is now available for other things.”

I watch as the three alphas in our pack all lean forward. Even Fox, his thumb still tracing a circle over my knee. Even Zeke is starting to look a little frayed as they wait for an update.

On their scent-matched omega. Their mate .

Their scents swirl heavily in the air, the three of them mixing together in a way that I haven’t smelled before. It’s surprisingly heady, even for me.

Stay grounded, Ro. One of us has to.

Even Teddy is clearly a little in love with this omega already. So much so that he’s reluctant to share, an omega trait to the core.

Omegas can be far more possessive than even an alpha.

“So.” Teddy looks a little nervous as he glances around. “Her name is Fallon.”

We wait.

“ And …,” I prompt finally, taking pity on the three of them.

“Uh.” Teddy rubs at his neck. “She smells phenomenal – blood oranges and nutmeg, all spicy and sweet. Like Christmas.”

Fox’s voice is dry, but I can sense the longing underneath. “Trust me, we know .”

“ Some of us know,” Zeke mutters. He looks a little gutted still.

“Right, right.” Teddy clears his throat. “She has long dark hair – really dark, like midnight – down to her waist. These really pretty amber eyes that take up half of her face. Kinda pale. Came up to my shoulder.”

Silence again. “Didn’t you take a creative writing class at college? Is she an omega or a frog?”

He cackles at that, but he throws his napkin at me. “Shut up. You’re all staring at me. I have stage fright.”

“You do not .” He’s loving every second of this.

Teddy narrows his eyes at me. “Stop calling me out, RoRo. Emily is leaving, and I got mauled by Wilder. It’s been a chaotic day. Let me have my moment.”

But then he sighs, his eyes dropping. “I… don’t know much more than that. She likes books. Loves them, I think. She had a really old copy of The Light in Us with her. Well-thumbed.”

Murmurs of approval. We all love that book.

“Excellent taste,” Fox murmurs next to me. He looks proud, a small smile tugging at his lips. “That’s good.”

“Yeah.” Teddy reaches for his wine glass, takes a large swig. “That’s it, really.”

“Teddy,” I say softly. He doesn’t look at me. “What else?”

The others flick their eyes between us.

“Teddy?” Wilder leans forward. “If there’s something else, tell us. Please.”

The strain on his face is obvious, Teddy sees it too, and he sighs. “It’s not… it’s nothing concrete. But I get the feeling that she’s not… her home life isn’t great . Maybe?”

Oh, shit.

The three of them burst into questions at the same time. Wilder and Fox actually jump to their feet, their questions mingling together as Teddy shrivels.

And their scents increase tenfold. Teddy whines at the heavy distress that thickens the air around us. For him, it must feel like being smothered. Even I fight to take a breath.

“Okay – woah – woah !” I round the table, my hands gripping Teddy’s shoulder. “ Enough .”

“Sorry,” Teddy says quietly as they all shut up. His face is darkening. “I mean, I don’t know that for sure . But she had this blue floral dress on that looked really old, and she didn’t have a coat – so I gave her mine. That’s how she has my phone.”

I glance down at that. “You gave her your coat? Your wool one?”

Teddy loves that coat. It was one of the first things he bought when we finally started making money at Ink & Quill. He half-shrugs. “So?”

Fox’s face softens as we exchange glances. “Teddy.”

“I liked her,” he whispers. He cranes his head to look up at me. “I really liked her. She’ll fit with us, Ro. But she’s so sad .”

The tension creeps up again at that. Wilder pushes back his seat abruptly. “I need—,”

“Go,” Fox says firmly. “Work it off in the gym, Wild.”

Wilder is already heading out the door, his fists clenched, but Teddy suddenly flings himself forward. “I could call her. See if she answers?”

Everyone pauses. Wilder turns, slowly, but the haze is clearing from his eyes. “Yes. Please.”

His expression says it all. He won’t be able to sleep otherwise, not after what Teddy confessed.

My chest constricts, wondering what her life looks like.

I wonder if she has any idea how much it’s about to change.

Fox hands over his phone and Teddy pulls up his number on the screen, putting it on speakerphone. We all crowd around him, our faces pressed together and Teddy almost buried beneath the four of us. Wilder’s scent is still heavy, and I rub absently at his shoulder as the phone rings. “Maybe she’s—,”

“Hello?”

My throat locks up at the sound of the husky, sweet voice that comes out of the phone. And she’s not even my damned mate.

We all stare at it like idiots, until Teddy clears his throat. Beside me, Wilder is barely breathing, his hands gripping the back of Teddy’s chair. Zeke is frozen, his jaw tight as if he can sense their connection through the small device on the table.

“Fallon!” Teddy jerks into action when I flick his ear. “I’m so sorry. Totally forgot that I left my phone in my coat. But you’re coming tomorrow, right?”

“I… yes.” Her voice drops to nearly a whisper. “I’ll be there.”

God. Fox lurches forward, his brows creasing as if he’s in pain.

I suddenly realize exactly what Teddy means.

Fallon seems… sad . So sad that it drips from her voice as if she doesn’t even notice. Like she’s used to it.

“Great.” Teddy closes his eyes, relief leaking from him like rain over my senses. “I’m really looking forward to seeing you again. I think you’ll like it here, you know?”

We all wait.

Silence. And then a small voice. “I hope I don’t disappoint you.”

Fuck.

The bang is almost audible.

That’s the sound of three alphas metaphorically falling to their knees for an omega they haven’t even met yet.

“Oh, sweetheart.” Teddy’s voice wavers. “You couldn’t disappoint me if you tried. We’ll work it out, okay?”

“Okay.” A pause. “Thank you, Teddy.”

“Don’t thank me yet.” He forces a smile into his voice, but his eyes are glittering. I drop my fingers to his neck, squeezing gently, and he grabs for my hand. “Actually, you never need to thank me for anything. Especially not before you’ve seen me in action. I’m a chaos cannon – I need all the help I can get.”

They murmur a goodbye before he silently ends the call.

None of us move.

“You were right.” Fox’s words are hoarse as he leans against Teddy. Teddy buries his face in his shoulder. “She’s…,”

“Hurt,” I say bleakly. “She’s hurting.”

Their mate is bleeding with it, her emotions sinking us even through the phone.

Shit. “Wilder—,”

But he’s already gone, the door swinging closed behind him.

Teddy squares his shoulders. “It’s a day. We’re seeing her tomorrow. We can last until then, right?”

Slowly, I slide my own phone out of my pocket, and flick through the passcode, swiping until I reach the family app I built last year.

I don't use it to track the others unless there’s an emergency. I wouldn’t even let Fox use it earlier, not when Teddy was only out for a walk.

This feels like it could be an emergency.

My throat tightens.

“Well?” Teddy demands.

They’re all staring at me when I look up.

“She turned the phone off,” I say heavily. The tracker we use doesn’t show Teddy’s phone at all, only a small cluster showing the rest of us here, at home.

I can’t track her. Can’t find her.

Zeke stirs, running a hand over his face. “Then we have to hope she shows up.”