It’s a Flower
“Absolutely not.”
I blinked at the enormous arrangement of white roses sitting in the center of the dining table.
“What do you mean, absolutely not?”
Maddox Hargrove stood beside me, his muscular arms crossed over his broad chest, looking at the flowers as though they’d personally offended him.
“Gideon, you’re not doing that.”
“Doing what?”
“Working.”
I looked down at the single rose in my hand.
“Maddox, I’m putting flowers in a vase.”
“Exactly.”
“How scandalous of me.”
His mouth twitched.
“Don’t get smart.”
“Then stop making it so easy.”
He stepped closer, plucked the rose from my fingers, and shoved it haphazardly into the arrangement.
“There. Finished.”
I stared at his handiwork.
The rose leaned sideways, its delicate white petals practically brushing the tablecloth.
“That’s terrible.”
“It’s a flower, Gideon.”
“It’s a crooked flower.”
“Then it fits right in.”
I laughed despite myself.
Maddox grinned, looking entirely too pleased with his victory.
Of the three Hargrove brothers, Maddox was the easiest to identify, despite their nearly identical features.
At six-foot-two, with broad shoulders, a powerful build, and a sharply defined jaw that made him look perpetually displeased with the world. His dark brown hair was kept short on the sides, slightly longer on top, and his piercing steel-gray eyes had a way of making grown warriors reconsider their life choices.
He looked every inch the Alpha he was destined to become.
Unfortunately, he also knew it.
“Come on,” he said, taking my hand. “Mother’s looking for you.”
“Your mother sent me to help with the flowers.”
“Well, now I’m sending you somewhere else.”
“Since when are you in charge?”
“Tomorrow.”
I rolled my eyes.
Tomorrow.
The word had been floating through the estate for weeks.
Tomorrow, Maddox, Ronan, and Kellen Hargrove would turn twenty-one.
Tomorrow, the three brothers would experience their first shifts, awaken their wolves, and formally inherit the Alpha titles from their father.
All three of them.
The Hargrove Pack was unlike most werewolf packs. Rather than a single heir, the Alpha bloodline had produced identical triplets, each carrying an equal claim to leadership.
The pack elders had spent years debating what that meant.
Their father had settled the matter rather simply.
His sons would rule together.
Three Alphas. One pack.
And, according to the Moon Goddess’s blessing, one mate.
One woman destined to stand beside all three brothers as their Luna.
I had spent more time thinking about that particular detail than I cared to admit.
“You’re nervous,” I said, glancing up at Maddox.
“No.”
“Liar.”
“I’m not nervous.”
“Then why have you been pacing around the training grounds every morning?”
“Because Ronan keeps leaving his equipment everywhere.”
“And why did you ask your father three times whether the first shift hurts?”
He stopped walking.
I smiled sweetly.
“Thought so.”
“Gideon.”
“Maddox.”
He narrowed his eyes.
I widened mine.
It was a battle we’d been fighting since childhood.
And, as usual, I won.
He sighed, tugging me against his side and pressing a kiss to the top of my head.
“You’re a menace.”
“Your favorite menace.”
“Unfortunately.”
I smiled into his shirt.
Maddox had been looking after me for as long as I could remember.
All three brothers had.
I couldn’t remember a time when I hadn’t been part of the Hargrove household. Their parents had welcomed me into their home when I was young, and the brothers had taken it upon themselves to ensure I never felt like an outsider.
They’d shared their toys, their secrets, and eventually their entire world with me.
I had never wanted for anything.
Not affection.
Not protection.
Certainly not material things.
The Hargrove brothers seemed to consider it a personal insult whenever I attempted to purchase something for myself.
And despite how much I complained, I secretly loved being spoiled by them.
Not because of the gifts.
Because of the thought behind them.
Because they always remembered the smallest things about me.
Because they made me feel important.
Loved.
Like I belonged.
