Page 193 of All Packed Up

“So what are you saying?” Nic asked.

“I’m saying, I’m not letting you get away so easily again.”

Of course Grif was going to the city with him. Only days ago he’d promised Griffith just while I’m here and then this beta thought he could just dip so soon?

They needed more time, and for once, Grif had the opportunity to extend it.

It hurt when Nic hadn’t showed up for him, but Grif couldn’t fault him that. A lot could happen in three years, and it wasn’t like they were mated. No matter how much he loved the beta, no matter how weak he thought ‘dating’ seemed when it came to describing their relationship, that’s really all they’d done. Neither of them had made promises to the other. Neither of them had ever considered they didn’t have all the time in the world.

Until that time came to a grinding halt in the glow of red and blue.

“Are you ready to go?” Grif asked after a long moment.

Slowly, Nic nodded against him, and Grif stepped back, giving the beta space to breathe.

Once Nic looked less like he was on the verge of tears—breaking Grif’s heart—the alpha stepped back and knocked on the front door.

He heard a scuffle on the other side, and even though he knew they likely hadn’t heard much, heat still rushed to his cheeks.

After a long pause, they finally opened the door, all casual, as if they hadn’t been standing on the other side eavesdropping. “Everyone packed?” Grif asked. “We’re ready.”

“I got your bag,” Tate said and led the way out the door. “We’ll follow you until we head for the cafe.”

“Got it,” Griffith said as Wendy walked past him with an arched brow before heading straight to Nic’s side.

Griffith would never admit it, but it was kind of nice, the two of them taking care of Nic as they got the car packed. The two of them cuddled up in the back with a blanket—at Wendy’s insistence—and in moments they were pulling out of the driveway.

His gaze stayed glued to the house and the dim lights as long as he could see it. Daisy would be fine. She’d stayed in the house by herself before.

Granted, the mutt hadn’t had a furry little sidekick to get into shit with.

Wendy would have to return sooner or later for her fur baby, but Grif thought it said a lot about their progress just at the idea of leaving her cat at his house.

From watching her coddle the damned thing, it was practically her child.

“What do you want to listen to?” Griffith asked, tuning the radio to something other than static.

“Anything is fine,” Nic answered, and with a glance in the rearview, Griffith saw Wendy agree.

An alternative station was the first thing he came to, so he let that fill the silence as the road stretched on before them.

Griffith was wide awake, the leftover adrenaline from the conversation with Nic flooding his veins.

He felt good about the conversation. He’d told the beta how he felt. And Nic…

Griffith frowned suddenly.

Nic hadn’t really returned the favor.

Well, fuck.

One step at a time, he reminded himself. Nic had time to process, and in the meantime, Griffith would be there for him until he was ready. There would be plenty to keep them occupied. The gym, Wendy’s alphas, figuring out this thing between the three of them and the two hooligans in the other car.

He had to fight a grin.

After a seventy-two-hour period where he could reach out and find Nic at his fingertips, now he was one step closer to a permanent version of that.

His heart thumped in his chest, and he twitched the music up a notch, fearful the sound was ricocheting around the damned car.