Thea’s POV
“Are you serious?” Iris asked, her eyes wide with surprise.
“Yes,” I sighed, running a hand through my hair. “I spent all morning going through my entire closet trying to prepare for tonight, but there’s absolutely nothing suitable for a date. I don’t even have a single dress appropriate for a formal occasion.”
Honestly, it shocked me. I remembered a fleeting image of Kane; in it, I was wearing a black dress when we went out. While I had no intention of wearing that dress again, it was strange that it wasn’t in my closet. I had only a few pairs of jeans and some summer dresses.
“Don’t worry, my dear friend, we’ll help you… in fact, I think we should go shopping,” Sophia said cheerfully, her voice almost singing.
It sounded exciting, but I couldn’t help worrying about Phoenix. I didn’t want to take her with us—shopping is a long and tiring process—but I also didn’t want to leave her.
“I’m not sure,” I mumbled, biting my lip. It wasn’t that I distrusted Mary, but I wasn’t comfortable leaving Phoenix alone with her. If Leo or Sebastian were home, it would be different, but they weren’t.
“It’s because of Phoenix, isn’t it?” Sophia asked, searching my eyes.
I didn’t answer, just nodded. I really wanted to go shopping. I’d been cooped up in this house too long, and it was driving me crazy. Plus, I wanted this experience. I’d never had female friends growing up; no friends to shop with or talk about boys with. This was all new to me, and while I knew we’d probably done these things before my memory loss, I wanted to experience it again firsthand.
“If it bothers you that much, I can lend you one of my dresses. We can go shopping another day,” Sophia suggested.
I’d only interacted with them a few times, but so far, I absolutely loved them. They were kind, lovely, and great friends. No wonder I’d become friends with them.
I smiled at her. “Thank you, but let me talk to Sebastian first, and we’ll figure something out.”
I stood up, leaving them to enjoy their drinks while I went upstairs. I’d left my phone there because I rarely used it. I entered the room, picked it up, and dialed Sebastian’s number.
He answered on the first ring, which warmed my heart. That was one thing I’d noticed since waking up. Unlike before, when he rarely answered my calls, these days he always picked up immediately, as if he was always waiting for and craving my call.
“Hi, Thea darling, how’s your day going? Did Sophia and Iris arrive?” his deep voice came through.
My heart skipped a beat. I loved hearing him call me sweet names, especially in that deep, sexy voice. The feeling made my knees weak.
“Hi,” I said breathlessly, “Great, honestly. They’re both amazing. They even want to take me shopping for our date tonight.”
“I’m glad to hear that… is shopping the reason you’re calling? You know, you don’t need my permission to go anywhere. As long as you take Kestrel with you, I don’t mind.”
I never thought I’d be in this position. I didn’t like having guards follow me; it was ostentatious and drew too much attention, but I also understood that until they caught the person trying to kill me, this was my life.
“No, that’s not the reason… I don’t want to take Phoenix with me, but I also don’t want to leave her here with just Mary.”
He was quiet for a moment. I sat on our bed, waiting for him to speak. Maybe he could provide a solution to my dilemma.
“Can you give me some time to figure something out?” he asked, and I nodded, forgetting he couldn’t see me.
“Okay, no problem.”
After that, he hung up. I exhaled, feeling a little disappointed that he hadn’t provided a solution. At this point, I figured I’d either accept Sophia’s offer or just go with Phoenix, which would be a massive headache. Shopping with a baby usually is.
With my phone in hand, I went back downstairs. Phoenix was still sleeping, and Sophia and Iris were chatting. The snacks Mary had brought were almost gone.
“What did he say?” Iris asked after swallowing a cookie.
I shrugged. “Nothing much. He just told me to wait, that he’d figure something out.”
I sat down and grabbed a cookie. I popped it into my mouth, moaning at how delicious it was. Mary had told me she used a recipe passed down from her great-grandmother. I hadn’t yet been able to convince her to share this so-called secret recipe.
“Wow, Mary really knows how to bring on a food orgasm… this is so fucking good,” Sophia praised, reaching for another cookie.
I just smiled, knowing she was right. Leo couldn’t get enough of them, and neither could Sebastian. Sebastian didn’t really like sweets, but he’d tried one once and had to admit they were good. If Mary decided to start a cookie business, it would definitely do well. She was just that good.
We continued chatting, enjoying Mary’s goodies. Thirty minutes later, there was still no word from Sebastian.
Sighing in resignation, I turned to Sophia. “I think I’ll take you up on your offer. Shopping with Phoenix would be a nightmare, and it seems Sebastian isn’t going to get back to me.”
“Of course… I have this red dress that I’m sure would look gorgeous on you,” she smiled.
Just as I was about to leave to get some drinks, I heard the door open. I frowned, stopping to see who it was. I was surprised when Sebastian appeared in the living room.
“Ladies,” he said to my friends, then walked over to me. He didn’t even wait for them to respond. He pulled me into his arms and kissed me like he was parched and I was the only drink available.
“What are you doing here?” I asked when we separated. It wasn’t even noon yet.
He gave me a charming smile. “Well, you said you wanted to go shopping, so I’m here to watch Phoenix while you go shopping with your friends.”
“You can’t do that; what about your work?” I was surprised by the words coming out of his mouth.
Sebastian chuckled. “Rayne will handle everything. The good thing about being an Alpha is that I can do whatever I want, including leaving business to take care of my daughter so my woman can go shopping with her friends.”