An awkward silence filled the air. It wasn’t the kind of uncomfortable silence that made you want to squirm or run away—it was tense, heavy. Like the room itself was holding its breath.

Maybe it was because we were stuck in this closed space, the air thick, and he… God, he was attractive. Too attractive. The kind of man who made you forget your own name for a second if you weren’t careful.

His dark hair was messily styled, like he’d just run his fingers through it in frustration—or maybe it just grew that perfect. His jawline was criminal, sharp enough to cut glass, and his eyes… damn it, his eyes. That lazy, heavy-lidded stare that made you feel like he could see things you didn’t even know about yourself. His broad shoulders strained against his shirt, and the sleeves were rolled up, showing off forearms that had no business looking that good. He was hot. Objectively, dangerously hot.

But deep down, no matter how hard I tried to deny it, no matter how my brain screamed at me to appreciate what was sitting right in front of me… he still wasn’t them. He wasn’t him. Or him. Or him.

I cursed myself under my breath. Pathetic, I thought savagely. Absolutely fucking pathetic.

“So how is life being the mate and wife of the famous triplet alphas?” the handsome stranger asked.

I frowned. “Just one word to sum it up. Hell.”

The handsome stranger smiled at my words, revealing a beautiful set of teeth that reminded me so much of Levi. But I cursed myself and pushed the thought of him away.

“You know, many ladies would kill to be in your position.”

I rolled my eyes so hard it was a miracle they didn’t get stuck at the back of my head.

“Yeah, li?” I scoffed, crossing my arms tightly over my chest. “Then they can gladly take my place. Hell, I’ll even gift-wrap it for them.”

The handsome stranger chuckled, a deep, rumbling sound that danced along my skin like an unwanted caress. I hated how my body reacted, goosebumps breaking out even though I was glaring at him like he’d personally offended me.

“You don’t mean that,” he said smoothly, his voice low and teasing.

“I mean every goddamn word,” I snapped, harsher than I intended, but I didn’t care. The words tasted bitter on my tongue, but they were true.

He tilted his head, regarding me with a strange glint in his eyes, almost like he was trying to peel me open and read every raw, bleeding page inside. I hated it. I hated how it reminded me of them—how they always saw too much.

“Must be hard,” he said finally, his voice dropping an octave, “being tied to men who don’t want you.”

My throat tightened. Don’t you dare cry, Olivia. I forced a smile and looked away. My eyes roamed around the luxurious room before I moved them back to him, noticing his eyes had been on me.

“What is your name?” I asked, wanting to know his name at least.

“Gabriel,” he responded without hesitation. I nodded, noting his sister’s name was Abigail.

“Where is she? Your sister?” I asked, needing something—anything—to shift the heavy direction this conversation was heading toward.

Gabriel’s lips curled into a small, almost fond smile. “Abigail’s not here. She traveled outside the pack a few days ago for some training. She’ll be back in a few more days, give or take.”

I nodded, tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear just to have something to do with my hands. The silence between us was still tense.

“And your parents?” I asked, feigning casual curiosity, even though I wasn’t sure why I cared. Maybe I just needed more noise, more anything to drown out the mess inside my chest.

“They’re away too,” he said, leaning back casually against the seat, crossing his arms. “They went on some kind of extended trip. Four months now, actually.”

“Four months?” My eyebrows shot up, genuinely surprised. “That’s… a long trip.”

Gabriel shrugged, his muscles flexing beneath the thin fabric of his shirt far too distractingly. “They needed a break.” “Vacation, or whatever excuse rich, bored people use to abandon their children.”

I laughed at his sarcasm, and Alpha Gabriel smiled. “You should laugh more often… it suits you,” he said, staring directly into my eyes.

I looked away and frowned. If only he knew that I had forgotten how to laugh; I couldn’t remember the last time I laughed genuinely.

I swallowed the lump in my throat and stared at the floor, forcing my heart to slow down.

“So…” I said after a moment, twisting my fingers together, “what about you? Your wife?”

Gabriel let out a short, unexpected laugh that made me glance up at him.

“Wife?” he repeated, like the very idea was absurd. “There’s no one, Olivia.”

He leaned forward slightly, resting his forearms on his thighs, his gaze never leaving mine. His voice dropped lower, silkier, sending an involuntary shiver down my spine.

“The space is vacant,” he said, a slow smirk curling the corner of his mouth. “Unless…” He tilted his head, studying me like he could breathe through me. “You want it?”

I blinked, my mouth parting slightly in shock. A laugh—small, bitter, and humorless—escaped me before I could stop it.

“You must be joking. That is not possible,” I said with another laugh.

Gabriel shrugged lazily, like my words were just another challenge to him. “Maybe I like impossible things.”

I stared at Gabriel, stunned, a weird knot forming in my chest. Was he serious? Was he actually flirting with me? Offering me a place at his side like it was some casual thing?

Something about it felt wrong. Twisted. Like I was betraying something deep inside me, even though the ones I would be betraying had already betrayed me.

I shifted uncomfortably in my seat, feeling uncomfortable.

“I should go,” I said stiffly, pushing myself up to my feet so fast my chair scraped loudly against the floor.