Chapter 26

JASMINE

Before I knew it, it was halfway through September. I had found myself preoccupied with school and work, and temple choir had started up again. We were now rehearsing every night of the week as we would be performing during the alpha ceremony. At work, Lucy and Valerie were busy prepping for all of the desserts and the huge cake they’d have to prepare for the occasion. The whole pack was alive with excitement for something that hadn’t occurred for over forty years—the transition from one alpha to the next.

I had given up on checking my text thread with Blake. He had never responded. I was disappointed and wondered if it was something I did—was it the revelation about my panic attacks or the finality of our decision to just remain friends? Perhaps he had no desire to see me if our relationship would no longer be physical. But, I reminded myself, he did cosign a loan for me, and that isn’t something that someone who wants you out of their life would do. Deciding it was for the