Chapter 38: A Storm in the Saddle
Josie
The rain started early.
Thick, heavy drops that slanted from the sky like tiny needles, soaking the ground before anyone could even consider whether the day was worth stepping outside for. And yet, there I was, standing beside the stables, completely drenched and glaring at my three mates like they were the dumbest alphas on the planet.
Which, at that moment, they absolutely were.
"Are you seriously going horse riding in this?" I asked, arms folded tightly around myself.
Thorne just adjusted the strap of his saddle and grunted like I wasn’t even speaking. Varen gave me one of his usual charming smirks, the kind that would make my knees weak if I wasn’t already shivering from the cold. Kiel didn’t even bother with a response—he just climbed onto his horse with the ease of someone who didn’t have the sense God gave a flea.
"Josie, it’s just a bit of rain," Varen said, as if I hadn’t been staring at the storm clouds for the past hour. "We’ll be fine."
"You’re not the one who nearly died falling off a horse," I snapped, my voice tight with a panic I was trying very hard not to show. "Or have you all forgotten that?"
"Don’t be dramatic," Kiel muttered under his breath.
I stiffened, the words slicing through me sharper than they should have. I wasn’t being dramatic. I was being honest. Terrified, yes—but not irrational. But of course, no one wanted to hear that. Not from an omega. Especially not one like me.
They had brought others along too—some pack members I didn’t recognize, chattering and laughing under their hoods. One of them held out a helmet toward me with an encouraging smile. I didn’t take it. My legs felt like they were filled with lead.