13
Ness
Ryder tookhis time burying the dead animal while I waited back on the path. Eventually, I sat down and buried my head in my hands. While my mind tumbled one thought into another in the silence, I tried to push my attention in another direction.
The pack would change soon. We wouldn’t look like the same huddling mass of terrified animals that we’d been. We were under new leadership. Ryder wanted to stay. He even had plans for the future.
I got the sense that he was worried about his brother, but we would deal with that when it came time. I wasn’t going to let his brother hurt him. So long as I had access to my arcana, I would make sure of it. I would stay by Ryder’s side and keep using my command until my voice dried up.
Anything to make sure Ryder stayed safe.
He quietly exited the grove and touched my elbow to tell me to get up. I jerked, suddenly on alert. Heart hammering in my throat, I looked up at Ryder with wild eyes. He didn’t say anything. By now, I was sure he understood.
Shit, I hated this. I just wanted to feel safe.
We were fighting to be safe. There was a future ahead of us that promised happiness if only we could get through this part first. As wary as I was of new shifters, I knew that Ryder had the right idea. We couldn’t rely on the pack as it was. We had to strengthen our numbers with shifters who wouldn’t panic like I just had.
The thought that I wasn’t fighting just for myself, but for what the pack could become was what got me back on my feet. I squeezed Ryder’s hand before letting go. If I held onto him for too long, then I would never want to let go.
Someday, I might be able to hold onto him longer. Maybe…Maybe I could share him with Bri?
My hound growled. No, she didn’t want that. She wanted Ryder all to herself. She wouldn’t allow anyone else to touch him. If they tried, they would lose a finger…then a hand if they tried again.
My hound had become possessive of this man. She’d claimed him, heart and soul.
Stupid dog, I thought.Why couldn’t you have found someone else? Someone who wasn’t already claimed?
Ryder would bring new shifters into the pack, soon. There was a chance I could have found a lover among them. Instead, my hound had latched onto an unavailable man.
And, he’d done the same to me. Which I did not understand in the least. He kept reaching for me, touching me, looking at me like he had something he wanted to say. There were words trapped behind his lips, a thought behind those beautiful eyes, that I wanted to know. I wanted to hear what he wasn’t saying.
“I have to speak with Thor and Bri,” Ryder said. “You should visit your parents while I’m gone.”
I lifted a brow. “ThorandBri? Don’t you want to have a private conversation with Bri? Or, do you mean you’re going to speak to them one at a time?”
Ryder gave me an odd look, his head tilted as he studied me quizzically. I opened my mouth and shut it when I couldn’t think of anything else to say. Honestly, I was really confused, myself.
“Go,” Ryder said. “Spend time with your family.”
Well, that didn’t answer any of my questions. Apparently, he and Bri still hadn’t kissed and made up yet? As much as I wanted to pry, it wasn’t my business.
Back at my parents’ house, I marveled at how much had changed. Not only had I basically moved out in the past couple of weeks, but it seemed as though others had moved in. The house was buzzing with activity when I arrived.
The kitchen was alive with bodies, dancing around one another as they prepared meals. I dared a quick peek into the kitchen before moving on. I wasn’t about to mess up their careful choreography.
In the hall, Haylee passed me on my left. Kelsey softly apologized and quickly darted after her. Stunned, I stopped and watched the two climb the stairs to the second floor. Then, the back door opened, and I heard someone start to kick off their boots.
The sound was so familiar that I knew who it was without looking. I went to the mudroom door and leaned against the frame as Dad kicked his boots into the corner, even though there was a tray for them nearby.
Dad smiled and pulled me into a tight hug. The affection caught me off guard. I still wasn’t used to seeing kindness from him. He’d always been so surly, so angry about what I’d become. Now that things were changing, and he could see hope ahead, maybe he’d finally cast off that anger once and for all.
Awkwardly, I stepped back. “What’s going on today?”
“What do you mean?”
I gestured to the full house. Someone passed behind me right at that time, proving my point.
The corner of Dad’s mouth lifted. “People need somewhere to go. Everyone used to convene at Alvin’s estate. We lost that after your first shift.”