“I’m glad you stayed safe,” Foster said, moving closer to his mate. He took a deep breath of his alpha’s scent, wishing he could hold it in his lungs forever.
“The big one…he headed south,” Crow said.
River raised his head from where he’d been studying his plate. “You saw X leave?”
Crow nodded. “While the rest of you mourned the dead, he took off.”
“He was so sad when he lost Trace.” Sam’s eyes filled, and Leo pulled the omega onto his lap. “X loved him so much. When we burned the bodies, his howls broke my heart.” Sam peered at Sid across the table. “So did yours.”
A single tear ran down Sid’s cheek, but he remained silent.
“I hope X is okay,” Brooks said quietly.
“It would have to be a large predator to mess with that one,” Crow said, and Foster had to chuckle at that. Xavier was tall, thick, and broad and one of the largest alphas in River Wolf pack.
“I wish he’d stayed with us,” Sam said.
“I think it was too painful for him to stay.” Brooks cast an apologetic look in Sid’s direction, as though realizing the beta must feel the same way.
“It’s okay,” Sid mumbled. “I don’t have anywhere to go even if I wanted to.”
“You belong with us.” River laid a hand on the beta’s shoulder. “I know it doesn’t feel like it, but things will improve.” Foster noticed Josiah stiffening a little. He knew it was customary in the shifter world for the pack alpha to claim a pack member who’d lost his mate, and Josiah seemed more than aware of that.
“Patrick was it for me,” Sid said, abruptly standing. “I don’t want anyone else.” He darted out of the room, and seconds later his footsteps pounded up the stairs.
“Maybe I shouldn’t have mentioned it,” Crow said quietly.
“I think it’s worse when everyone acts like it never happened,” Sam said.
Foster smiled at his friend the peacemaker, grateful for Sam’s support.
Brooks urged everyone to eat, and soon the room filled with the sounds of forks scraping plates.
After everyone had eaten and the dishes were done, Foster turned to his friends. “Crow and I will be leaving for Crow’s pack soon.” Foster didn’t want to put it off, especially since Leo already knew.
The big alpha tightened his arm around Sam as the omega turned shocked eyes to Foster.
“We understand,” Josiah said.
River nodded. “And we wish you the best of luck.”
“I appreciate how you took me into your pack,” Foster said, eyes on Sam, who buried his face in Leo’s neck. “Sam.” Foster’s voice wavered. Sam shook his head, and Foster decided to leave it for now; he could talk to his friend later. He would miss Sam more than he’d miss anyone in the pack, but the need to go with Crow to be with their kind was too strong to resist, and more than anything, he wanted his alpha to be happy, which he instinctively knew Crow wouldn’t be living with a pack of wolves.
After everyone had helped to clear the breakfast dishes, Foster and Crow spent most of the morning walking and talking outside.
“I’m glad they have a safe place to live,” Foster said as they walked along the fallow fields. “I’d hate to leave them otherwise.”
“You still hate to leave them.” Crow took Foster’s hand and squeezed it. “Are you sure it’s what you want?”
Foster looked at him, taking in the alpha’s light brown skin, stark cheekbones, and squared jaw. His chest tightened with emotion.
“I want what you want,” Foster said.
“That isn’t what I mean, and you know it.” Crow tugged Foster so the beta faced him. “I won’t lie to you, Foster; I miss my pack, and I think we’d be happy there. They will celebrate my return with my true mate. We will be elevated in the pack, our status only second to the pack alpha and his family. My grandfather will be happy to meet you.” He touched Foster’s face tenderly, and Foster closed his eyes for a moment. “But if you want to stay with this pack, I’ll find my happiness here and count myself lucky.”
Foster opened his eyes again, so tempted to say he wanted to remain with his friends. But Foster couldn’t permanently take Crow from his pack, and the need to be with coyotes again was strong.
“I’m not going to lie. This is hard, but I want us to go,” Foster said quietly, and the fierce kiss that followed told him he’d made the right choice. The unasked question of when they would leave still hung between them, but Foster left it for now.
When they returned to the house, the others were busy with various chores. As it was Saturday, no one was working. Foster would have to go into the club that night, and when he did he’d tell them he was quitting; but he still had the rest of the afternoon. Crow sat down on the back porch with David and Kane, and Foster looked for Sam.
He paused outside Sam and Leo’s bedroom. Sniffing at the door, he didn’t smell Leo, so he knocked softly. He got no answer. Foster pushed open the door. His heart melted when he saw the small form huddled in the center of the large bed.
“Sam?”
The bundle of blankets moved, and Sam’s head popped out, hair disheveled and face puffy from crying.
Foster closed the door behind him and walked to the bed to sit beside his friend.
“I’m sorry. I don’t want to leave you.”
“Then why are you?” Sam asked, brown eyes huge in his pale face. “Crow left his pack. He should stay here with us.”
“Crow only left his pack to find me. We’re coyotes,” Foster tried to explain. “We don’t belong with werewolves.” At Sam’s hurt look, Foster rushed on. “I’ve been happy with all of you, and you’re the best friend I’ve ever had, Sam. But I belong with my mate. You know it—you feel the same about Leo. That’s why I couldn’t mate with you guys—I knew Crow was out there waiting for me. You don’t understand what a big deal it is for a coyote to find his true mate. Hardly any of us ever do. I always felt half of me was missing, and even though I love you all, being away from my pack has been hard. And the way I feel with Crow—it’s like nothing I’ve ever felt before.”
Sam sat up, bringing his thighs to his chest and wrapping his arms around his legs, chin resting on his knees. It was endearing; the pose of a child trying to protect himself. “After my brother died, I thought I was going to die, too. I was all alone out there. And when River took me in, even though I knew I was safe, I was scared.” He looked at Foster. “You filled the hole Jimmy’s death left in me.”
Foster put an arm around the omega’s shoulders and scooted closer.
“Please understand,” he whispered against Sam’s hair.
“I do. It’s just I’m going to miss you so much.” Sam’s voice shook. “We’ll never see each other again.”
The tears Foster had been trying to hold back overflowed, spilling down his cheeks. He squeezed his eyes shut. This was so hard.
Sam swallowed before continuing. “Meeting you changed everything. It’s like my dead brother sent you to be with me.” A sob escaped Sam’s throat.
Foster brought his other arm around Sam’s chest, hugging the omega even more tightly.
“I know it’s selfish, but I don’t want you to go,” Sam whispered.
This was one of the most difficult things Foster had ever had to face. He didn’t want to leave Sam. “Maybe your brother did send me to you to help you. And you helped me, too, Sam. But you have Leo now, and I have Crow.”
Sam’s face crumpled. “I love you, Foster.” He looked miserable. “But I do want you to be happy.”
Foster smoothed back Sam’s hair from his face. “Do you want to come with us?” he asked, against all rationality, not knowing if Crow would agree or if the Mojave pack would even accept Sam.
Sam hiccupped and pulled away, lips trembling and wet. Deep brown eyes stared at Foster with astonishment. “I can’t leave Leo!”
Of course, he couldn’t, even if he wanted to, and Foster knew Sam didn’t want to. “And I can’t leave Crow, and we
can’t stay here,” Foster said quietly, more as a statement of fact than to prove a point.
“I guess we’re fucked, then,” Sam said miserably, laying his head against Foster’s shoulder.
“Well and truly,” Foster agreed with a hint of amusement, and to his relief, Sam gave a wet laugh and snuggled closer.
Chapter 6: River
“I have some good news,” River said, taking a seat beside Josiah on the back porch. A cool breeze that spoke of autumn rustled the leaves of the trees outside and blew a strand of River’s hair into his face. “And a surprise.”
“Really?” Josiah smiled and pressed a kiss to River’s mouth. “So do I. You go first.”
River sat back in his chair and rested his foot on his knee. “The news is,” he paused for effect, “my boss found out I’m a werewolf.”
Josiah’s mouth dropped open. “What?”
Sadie left her dollhouse and toddled over to Josiah, lifting her arms to be picked up. Absently, Josiah pulled her onto his lap, still staring at River. “How?”
“He has a shifter friend who saw me and knew immediately.” The moment had chilled River’s bones. The alpha couldn’t believe it when the boss said he was okay with it.
“Really? And your boss wasn’t angry?”
River shook his head.
“The friend lives here in the city?”
“Not as surprising as it once would have been, considering we live here, too, but yeah. I’m still in shock Rocco’s friends with a werewolf.”
Sophie had taken over the dollhouse, happily moving the furniture around. River scooped Sadie from Josiah’s lap and kissed her cheek.
“He wanted to know why I hadn’t told him but understood I was afraid of losing my job. He said we could work my schedule around your heats.”
“Wow. That’s a step in the right direction for human/werewolf relations.”
River’s eyes clouded. “I think we were just lucky. Plenty of humans out there would like nothing better than to kill us.” He looked out the screen to where Sam was coming around the corner of the house, a bucket of milk in his hand. River was glad the cow he’d purchased was giving good milk. “How’s Sam doing now Foster’s gone?”
The omega had holed up in his room for days after the coyote shifter left with his true mate. Their goodbye had brought tears to every pack member’s eyes. Concerned at Sam’s behavior, Leo had bodily carried Sam from their room, depositing him in the stables with the cow. Sam had immediately taken to the animal and became its chief caretaker.
“He’s doing better. You said you had a surprise.”
“Oh.” River picked up the bag he’d laid by the chair and pulled out three mobile phones. “I got these today.”
“Cell phones!” Josiah took one from River. “I’ve missed having one of these. I thought you were against getting them.”
River shrugged. “I was, but maybe I was wrong. If we’re living among humans, we’re going to have to do some of the things they do. Actually, my boss is the one who pressed the issue after he found out. Getting to you when you go into heat is a priority, and last time Brooks had to call the club, and it took a while to get the message to me. I got two for everyone to share and one to keep at the house.”
Josiah knew Jax had his own. He spent a few moments helping River activate the phones and showing the alpha how to work them.
“What’s your surprise?” River asked when they were finished.
Josiah’s mouth twitched. “Wait until you see. As good as yours was, I think mine’s better.”
“Go play with your sister,” Josiah told Sadie, who’d been clutching the side of River’s chair and watching what they were doing. “I’ll get you two a snack.”
The little girl happily returned to the doll house, and River followed Josiah inside and down the hallway, where voices could be heard coming from the back room where they’d put the pool table Mark had given them as a house-warming present. Jax had spent every night that week teaching everyone to play, and River had to admit the game was fun.
“Just wait,” Josiah said, smiling widely before pushing open the door.
River couldn’t hold back his grunt of surprise when he saw David, Jax, and Brooks playing pool with Sawyer and Liam.
“Where did you two come from?” River asked as the omega and alpha rounded the table to embrace him. River noticed the young alpha had grown, and now stood at least six feet tall.
“We came looking for you,” Liam said. “We tracked your scent, but when we got to the city, the smell of the humans drowned it out. So, we went to the Congress for help.”
“We’re glad to have you here, but I thought you wanted to wait until the baby came.”
“We couldn’t stay at the compound,” Sawyer said. “Things have gotten too bad. And I missed Jo.” He smiled at Josiah, showing the gap in his front teeth, and Josiah grinned back. Although happy his mate was reunited with his friend, River couldn’t help but focus on the first thing Sawyer had said. River thought things would be thriving at the compound. What could have gone wrong? “What do you mean you couldn’t stay?”
“Pandemonium,” Liam said, wrapping an arm around Sawyer. “We had to get out of there, even with Sawyer so close to delivering.”
River sat in one of the large chairs flanking the pool table and listened with a heavy heart to what had occurred after they’d left. The fact things had fallen apart in his absence didn’t make him feel any better about being forced to step down as pack alpha, and it strengthened his increased belief that having any kind of alcohol on pack property was a bad idea.
“We’re glad you’re here,” he finally said.
Sawyer smiled. “This place is great.” The omega immediately sobered. “David told us what happened to Trace, Patrick, Matthew, and Toby. How awful. No word from X?”
River shook his head. “None.”
Sensing his mate’s distress, Liam pulled Sawyer close and kissed his temple. “We’ve missed everyone.”
“We’ve missed you, too,” Josiah said. He and Sawyer had been the best of friends from practically the moment Josiah set foot on the compound, and River knew his mate was happy to have the other omega with them.
“What about Malcolm, Danny, and Zane?” River asked.
“They’re toughing it out for now,” Liam said. “There’s hope Malcolm will take over the whole pack.”
“He’d be a good pack leader,” River said, meaning it. “But fighting to the death? I can’t see him taking the chance.”
“Griffin spends half his time drunk. The others are urging Malcolm to fight him. It wouldn’t be hard to win at this point.”
River wondered if he’d been wrong in asking Malcolm to step down as his third. Taking on another mate and having children had taken a lot of Malcolm’s time and attention, but perhaps River should have given the other alpha longer to adjust. As though sensing he was questioning himself, Josiah ran his hand comfortingly down River’s arm. Suddenly, River wanted nothing more than to be balls-deep in his omega. He gave Josiah a meaningful look, and Josiah’s neck flushed, his voice hoarse when he excused himself to go get the girls a snack. Maybe after that they could grab a few minutes alone.
“We were sorry to miss Foster,” Sawyer said. “He really found his true mate?”
River nodded. “Crow. His pack’s in the Mojave Desert.”
“I’m happy for him. Oh.” Sawyer put a hand on his belly. “The pup’s moving.”
Liam stood behind Sawyer, both hands on his mate’s rounded belly. Pregnancy had smoothed out the omega’s formerly sharp edges, and he glowed with health. “I’ll bet he’s an alpha.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised, the way he jumps around. And he’s really big.”
“I gave them one of the downstairs rooms,” David informed River. “Sawyer’s looking forward to helping Josiah make the carriage house into an omega den.”
“That’s great. He started cleaning it out a few days ago.”
“I think we?
??ll take a rest,” Liam said. “David’s beating us at pool, anyway.” He took Sawyer’s hand. The omega did look tired.
River watched them walk to the room down the hall. “I’m going to help Josiah with the girls.” He headed for the kitchen.
* * * *
Part of River’s responsibilities at the club was to get there early and make sure the cleaning crew had taken care of the restrooms and the employee lounge. He’d then change the sign-in sheet, meet the liquor delivery person, and flip on the lights in the rest of the building while making sure everything was as it should be. At that point, other employees would begin to trickle in. Rocco had only recently added these responsibilities to River’s job, and he couldn’t help but be proud of that fact. And now what had he done? Forgotten his goddamned keys.
Being with humans so much of the time was adding to his list of swear words, he thought in some amusement, which was probably a good thing. He didn’t want to be heard cursing the wolf gods in public. He pulled into the driveway of the pack house, as they’d taken to calling the plantation, and retraced the steps he’d made just fifteen minutes ago when he’d left. He found the keys in the pants he’d worn the night before, and stuck his head in the great room where he found the girls building a house of blocks and Briar reading a book.
“Where’s Josiah?” River asked. His mate had been there when he’d left.
“He said he was going out for a while. I think to see Mark.”
River frowned. Josiah had been spending a lot of time with his friend lately, and the pack alpha had suspicions it was more than just friendly chats. Mark worked, after all, and on a weekday afternoon Josiah could only be visiting his friend at the Congress. Wasn’t it enough for Josiah that he and River had recently been there for a meeting? River had agreed to it only because the pack alpha of Angel Hills would be there. River hadn’t said much, but Josiah had been in his element.