“Good. If I hear a single breath of this outside this room, I have all of my inheritance and access to very good lawyers, do you understand?” Despite everything, I wasn’t going to embarrass Mom in the media. That was her worst nightmare, and I wasn’t that cruel.

I turned to leave the room and stopped, looking back at my mother one last time. Eva’s sentiment echoed in my head, and I couldn’t stop myself from saying it. “I’m so disappointed in you.”

Before I completely lost it, I left the house. My breath was coming in short gasps, and I was barely keeping myself from crying. This morning they’d stopped talking when I entered the room, and then barely touched me when they left. On the way to the screen test.

My mind swirled, finding every moment of the past week when they’d been distracted or busy, focusing on this instead of me. Which wasn’t fair. This was an amazing opportunity and I wanted them to have it.

But Mom had hit the target she aimed at. Every other pack—every other Alpha—was more interested in Eva than me. Why would this be any different?

Luke told me he loved me last night. Was it something I could trust? Did he love me? Or the paths I opened for him?

Stop it.

I needed to see them. Now.

The screen test wouldn’t last long. I could just wait in their office in the back until they were done. Lifting my bracelet to my nose, I inhaled their scents in order to calm down.

They were mine. I knew they were mine, and I’d known it far longer than I’d been willing to admit it. If something went wrong now, I wasn’t sure I would survive it. Just the thought—

I choked back the sob and wiped away the tears.

Wes did a double take at my appearance. “Miss Williams?”

“Take me to the Nautilus studio, Wes. Right now, please.”

“Of course.”

I didn’t even wait for him to open the door for me, and I slammed it behind me.

Fuck. I used my phone to check my make-up. I’d been blissfully free from the press, but Eva was there. Where she went, cameras followed. Wouldn’t they love that, me showing up in streaked make-up?

I fixed the streaks and tried to control my thoughts. It wasn’t working well. I knew they loved me. I knew it. And I suspected the only reason they hadn’t said it yet was because they were waiting for me to choose. As if I could choose anyone but them. As if I wasn’t hurting them now by not telling them I wanted all of their marks on me.