Chapter 267: Chapter 271

Chapter 271 Edwin Avis’s shop was quiet as the others filed in one by one, each giving me a quick nod or a whispered greeting before settling into the scattered chairs around the display table. The bell over the door chimed softly as Peter entered last, closing it gently behind him.

Once everyone was there, Avis glanced around, raising an eyebrow. “Alright, Edwin. What is this secret meeting about? You sounded like we were pulling off a heist or something and needed to use my shop as our criminal headquarters.”

“We might as well be,” I said, glancing around at everyone. “Audrey’s birthday is coming up and I want to surprise her with something big. Huge. Bigger than a party or an expensive necklace.”

“Good luck with that,” Tina muttered from where she was perched on Avis’s worktable in the back. “The girl had got a sixth sense for sniffing out surprises. You’ll be lucky if she doesn’t figure it out before we even start.”

“That’s exactly why I need all of you to help me,” I replied. “Look, she’s got her heart set on starting this charity–and she’s doing great, selling a lot of designs online to save up for a space. But right now, she’s doing all of her work out of the apartment, and well... It’s a disaster in there.”

As I spoke, I couldn’t help but picture the state of our small apartment. We’d both decided to remain there rather than moving to the estate–I was still teaching at Grayspring and Audrey’s friends and mother were nearby, so it just made sense -but it was cramped.

Very cramped.

“Trust me, we know,” Betty chimed in, chuckling. “I was there yesterday and the place is covered from top to bottom with fabric and packing materials. I feel like one or both of you is gonna die of suffocation in there.”

I sighed, running a hand through my hair. “Exactly. And that’s why I was thinking we could do something about it.”

A silence settled over the room, and I could sense that they were getting what I was hinting at.

“I want to find her a real workspace,” I continued. “A small office, maybe. Just somewhere she can have a desk, some shelves, and a little breathing room. I figured I could quietly look around and maybe find a place she could afford on her own, something she wouldn’t feel guilty about. You know how she is about taking help from others.”

My Silver Star. Always offering help, but never wanting to take it Avis nodded slowly, her eyes narrowing thoughtfully. “That could work, I guess. Or, there’s always...” She gestured toward the empty storefront across the street, a silent mention of the place that Audrey had obviously been pining over for months now. And it was somehow still available.

Gavin shook his head immediately. “She won’t go for it.”

I nodded along. “Gavin’s right. It’s too expensive, and she wants to be able to afford the place for herself.”

Although, if I was being honest, I disagreed with that sentiment. It was hard to watch my mate make herself unhappy simply because she was being stubborn about this. We had the money to buy it outright–I was the Alpha of Crescent, for Goddess‘

sake–but she seemed to think that she didn’t deserve it.

“I mean... Betty hesitated, scratching her head. “What if we just did it? Before she had a chance to say no?”

Tina suddenly hopped down from her perch. “Are you implying that we should buy that place for her?”

Betty’s mouth curved into a grin. “Why not? She’s done so much for us, for this whole community. She deserves it. We could all go in on it together.”

With that, everyone turned to me. I rubbed the back of my neck uncertain. “I don’t know... She won’t even let me buy the place for her, let alone you guys...”

“She’ll just refuse or kill herself trying to pay us back,” Peter added somewhat bitterly. “Selfless little brat.”

“Not if we do it right,” Betty said, resting her hand on his arm. “We can give her a reason not to pay us back.”

Everyone turned to Betty, blinking in confusion. Even I was a little bit lost as to what she was getting at.

+5 But as Betty began to explain her plan, it all began to fall into place. It was a foolproof plan, one that would perhaps piss my silver–haired mate off at first, but foolproof nonetheless.

If Betty’s idea went according to plan, then Audrey wouldn’t feel indebted to her friends–and everyone would get what they wanted.

After a few weeks of planning, the day of the reveal arrived faster than I expected. My nerves were wound so tight I could hardly stand still, but I kept my composure as best I could.

We took Audrey to a restaurant for her birthday, claiming that it would just be a quiet day without any big celebrations. She didn’t mind that, of course; she was so infuriatingly selfless that she likely wouldn’t have minded if we all flat–out ignored her birthday.

But we had so much more planned than a nice dinner.

After we ate, Audrey opened gifts at the table. A bolt of rare fabric from Avis, a journal from Tina, a hilariously ugly sweater from Peter, and the list went on. But when she got to mine, she frowned upon seeing nothing more than a silk tie sitting in the box.

“A... tie?” she asked, holding it up. “Is this a joke? Edwin, I’ve literally seen you wear this one before.”

I couldn’t help but grin. “The tie is just part of the gift. Fasten it around your eyes,” I instructed.

She eyed the piece of cloth warily. “Why...”

“Just trust us,” Tina said with a mischievous little smirk. “And no complaining!”

Audrey shot her a glare, but I could see the flicker of curiosity in her eyes. “Fine.” With that, she tied it around her head. I waved my hand in front of her face to make sure she couldn’t see, and once we were all satisfied, we helped her to her feet and led her out of the restaurant.

“Guys, where are you taking me?” she whined, stumbling a little as I guided her out the door.

“I said no complaining,” Tina chided.

Audrey sighed and crossed her arms, pouting, but didn’t protest any further as we led her down the street. Each of us took turns guiding her toward the storefront. People on the street stared at us, but they were growing used to our group’s antics by now.

And besides, most of them had already been whispering about what we were planning. Word traveled fast when it came to us. I was surprised that, somehow, Audrey hadn’t found out through the grapevine, We finally stopped in front of the storefront. I nodded at Peter, who was holding the keys, and he unlocked the door quietly, pushing it open so we could all slip inside with Audrey still blindfolded.

“Alright,” I murmured, taking a deep breath as I steadied her shoulders. “Are you ready?”

Audrey huffed. “As ready as I’ll ever be. I guess I untied the cloth, letting it slip away from her face. She blinked as her eyes adjusted to the light streaming through the wide front windows.

Slowly, she took in the space–the open floors, the natural light spilling across the empty room, the faint scent of fresh paint in the air. Balloons floated around the wooden columns, streamers taped to the ceilings. A large, multi–tiered birthday cake sat on a table in the center of the room, with party hats and bottles of champagne waiting beside it.

Her eyes darted from the polished counter to the gleaming display cases, then finally landed on the banner we had hung by the door: “Happy Birthday, Audrey!”

For a long time, Audrey said nothing. She just stood there, frozen, her expression unreadable. The others were silent too, waiting for her reaction with bated breath. I couldn’t help but wring my hands a little, hoping that her fury wouldn’t result in the walls crumbling like they had at the factory.

Finally, Audrey turned to us. Her face was red, her eyes brimming with tears.

She didn’t look too happy. If anything, she just looked confused and a little betrayed–especially at me.

“Why... Why did you buy this place for me?