ALPHAS CONUNDRUM

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ANNABELLA

“I thought it was just… I don’t know, a moment of comfort? But then I found out he’s an Alpha too.”

“Oh my God.”

“Yeah.” I let out a bitter laugh. “So now I’ve got three Alphas in my life: Ryker, who my dad wants me to marry; Sebastian, who I have history with; and Kade, who I barely know but somehow can’t stop thinking about.”

“Wow,” Milla said, her voice soft with awe. “That’s… that’s a lot.”

"And to make matters worse, they are all cousins!" I said and my hand made its way to my forehead and scrunched it exhaustingly.

"s**t!" Milla cursed.

“I’m overwhelmed, Milla,” I said, my voice cracking. “I don’t know what to do. It’s like my life has turned into some twisted soap opera, and I’m the clueless heroine.”

Milla was silent for a moment. “Okay,” she said finally. “First of all, deep breaths. You’re spiraling.”

I took a shaky breath, then another.

“Better?” she asked.

“A little.”

“Good. Second of all, let’s just acknowledge the silver lining here.”

“Silver lining?” I repeated, incredulous.

“You’ve got three gorgeous Alpha cousins fighting over you. I mean, if that’s not the dream, I don’t know what is.”

“Milla!” I snapped. “This isn’t funny.”

“Of course it’s not,” she said, but I could hear the smirk in her voice.

“You’re laughing!”

“No, I’m not,” she said, but her laugh finally escaped, a soft snicker that quickly turned into full-on giggles.

I groaned, dropping back onto the bed. “You’re the worst.”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” she said, still laughing. “It’s just… you have to admit, it’s kind of ridiculous.”

“Yeah, well, it doesn’t feel ridiculous when you’re living it,” I muttered.

Her laughter softened, and her tone grew serious. “Okay, Bells, let’s focus. You’re feeling overwhelmed because you’re trying to figure everything out all at once. You need to slow down. Take it one step at a time.”

“I don’t even know where to start,” I admitted.

“Well,” she said thoughtfully, “maybe start by asking yourself what you want. Forget your dad, forget the men—what do you want?”

Her question hung in the air, heavy and unanswerable.

“I don’t know,” I said finally. “I don’t know what I want.”

“That’s okay,” she said gently. “You don’t have to figure it out right this second. Just… take a breath. Let yourself feel things without trying to solve them.”

I closed my eyes, her words sinking in. “Thanks, Milla.”

“Anytime. And hey…”

“What?”

“Are they at least handsome?”

I couldn’t help it—I laughed, the sound surprising me. “Ridiculously so.”

“Of course they are,” she said, her tone smug.

For the first time in days, I felt a sliver of light break through the storm. It wasn’t much, but it was enough to keep going.

Well, that was until I received the single message from an unknown number that changed everything.