I Stole the Alpha's Car (18+)|✔️

Chapter 35

The door of the suite swung shut and broke me out of my light doze. After an hour or more of replaying our conversation in my head, I'd finally forced myself under the covers and shut my eyes, Evan's voice echoing in my mind.

A knock sounded on my bedroom door. Jess's voice asked, "Hey, Lauren; do you still want to grab lunch?"

Sitting up, I answered, "Sure – give me a couple minutes, I'll meet you down in the buffet."

"Actually, we were thinking about trying Del Lago."

I paused, asking, "'Del Lago'?"

"Italian. It's part of the resort. Apparently their pizzas are amazing."

"Okay, yeah – I'll be right out."

Throwing on some clothes, I took a moment to try and make my hair look less sleep mussed, then grabbed my purse.

Out in the common area of the suite, Jess and Tori lounged on a couch.

Tori looked up from her phone. "Ready?"

"Yup." As they stood, I went to the door and held it for them. "How was the hike?"

"Amazing!" Jess gushed. "We ran into some other guests from the resort, and then you'll never guess-"

Tori walked past me, glaring at her mate. "This one decided to get up close and personal with a bear."

Jess gasped, "Tori!" She stamped her foot. "Dammit, I'm the one who tried to make friends with it, I wanted to tell the story!"

"It was a bear, Jess, and you were talking to it like it was a lost puppy."

"But it was so cute!"

"It's an apex predator, Jess!"

Jess snorted as I closed the door. "And we aren't?"

Tori led the way to the elevators. "The point is that I wanted to have a nice, relaxing walk through the woods. Then, suddenly, I'm facing the very real possibility that I'm going to have to fight a full-grown black bear to save my idiot mate."

Jess turned to her, eyebrows waggling. "You would have, though."

Tori sighed, placing her hand on Jess's waist and pulling her closer. "Yeah, I would have. Still wish you had some kind of survival instinct, though."

Pressing the button, Jess turned to me conspiratorially, "It wouldn't have done anything anyway – it was just as startled as we were."

I raised an eyebrow and glanced at Tori. "Isn't this their mating season?"

Jess blanched, "Oh. Oh, shit."

Tori shook her head, smiling fondly. "You're lucky you're cute."

Downstairs, the hostess seated us out on Del Lago's terrace, where the shade of the awning protected us from the sun and the light breeze carried the scents of pine and lake water to us.

As I sat down, I spoke to the hostess, Penny, "Thank you."

"You're very welcome." Smiling, she pulled out a pad and pen, "Can I get everyone started with some drinks?"

Glancing at Jess and Tori, I answered, "Um, I'll just have some water, please."

"Still or sparkling?"

"Sparkling, thank you."

Jess looked up, "I'll have the same," and Tori agreed with her.

Penny jotted this on her notepad and stepped away, leaving us alone.

Checking out the menu, I asked, "What are you guys having?"

Jess was studying the options, "I'm definitely thinking pizza. This couple on the hiking trail was absolutely raving about it." She frowned, "Although I kinda wish I knew Italian right now – what the hell is 'fontina val d'Aosta'?"

I didn't look up. "Fontina's a type of cheese, and 'val d'Aosta' is probably the valley where it's made."

Jess chuckled, "And here I was about to google it..."

I shrugged, "Culinary school."

"It's a nifty trick." Laying the menu down, Jess spoke, "What would you say about ordering three pizzas and then sharing?"

Tori nodded, "I call dibs on the one with prosciutto on it. Could you order for me, babe? I'm going to find the bathroom."

"You got it!" Jess leaned her cheek up for Tori's kiss.

As she walked away, I was debating the merits of the margherita versus the mushroom pizza.

"She's acting weird."

I looked up to find Jess staring after her mate, a worried expression on her face.

"Tori's being weird?"

Jess nodded. "She's just been... off all morning. I can't put my finger on it, but something's going on."

Following the direction of her gaze, I felt worry grip my heart.

"I'm sure it's nothing. She might just be out of sorts from the five-hour road trip you two took yesterday."

Jess muttered "Maybe...", but her face remained unconvinced.