She stood up a little straighter, the smile wide across her face. “I’d love that.”
“If you’re ready for him, I can send Doc Monroe over here after I leave.”
“That would be great,” I said.
Abraham nodded again and gave us a little wave before leaving our new house and closing the door behind him. As soon as he was gone, Mom spun to face me, a small fire in her brown eyes.
“I can’t believe you! Why were you arguing with your new alpha like that?”
I sighed. “Mom. You know I have my reasons.”
She huffed. “You don’t need to baby me, Wyatt. I’ll be just fine. And we don’t need you causing waves here before we’re even settled.”
“He understands I’m just trying to protect you.”
“If the alpha says his pack won’t care that I’m human, you should believe him. He seems like a very nice man.”
I tipped my head back and stared at the ceiling. “I know he’s nice, Mom, but we don’t know anything about the rest of this pack. And as far as I know, he’s never had a human live here before, so he doesn’t really know how they’ll react. I’m not taking that chance. Wes and I will get to know them, and when we think it’s safe, we’ll introduce you. I’m not willing to negotiate on that.”
She huffed again and threw her hands in the air. “You’re impossible. Just as stubborn as your father.”
I cracked a small smile as she stormed out of the room. Being compared to one of the best men I’d ever known was something I’d take as a compliment. Even if she hadn’t meant it that way.
Just as I was about to follow her, there was a knock on the door. I walked over and tentatively opened it to find the woman who’d let us into the lodge yesterday. I think her name was Audrey or something like that.
“Hello?” I said.
Her smile was wide as her light brown eyes raked the length of my body. I was in a t-shirt with the sleeves cut off and I knew it was covered in sweat from the move. I felt a little self-conscious at being seen like this and a lot self-conscious at the way she was looking at me. Like I was an ice cream sundae or something.
“Hey there. Wes, is it?”
“No, I’m Wyatt.”
Her smile grew. “Even better. I was just coming over to say hi and welcome you to the pack. I live right over there,” she said, pointing to the next house over. “If you ever need anything, feel free to come ask.”
“Um. Okay. Thanks.”
“And if you’re not doing anything later, I’d love to cook you dinner. I’m sure you’ll be tired from your move and could use a good home cooked meal.”
“Oh. Um. Thanks, but I think I’ll just figure out something here with Wes.”
“He’s welcome too. The more the merrier.”
I was pretty sure she was talking about dinner, but the look in her eyes made me feel like it might be something else she was referring to. Either way, I was uninterested.
“Oh. Um,” I said again, stalling for a good way to get out of this invitation. I didn’t want to offend one of the first people I’d met in my new pack, but I wanted to have dinner with her even less.
The sound of a door closing from the house on the other side of us caught my attention and I turned to find a lanky man with strawberry blond hair making his way toward us.
“You must be one of the Carter’s. I’m Doc Monroe, it’s nice to meet you,” he said as he approached with a hand held out toward me.
“Yeah, I’m Wyatt. Thanks for stopping by.”
“It’s my pleasure.” He cast a quick glance at Audrey before turning to me again. “Shall we?”
“Yeah, of course.” With a glance back at the over-eager woman, I pasted on the most sympathetic smile I could. “Thanks for the offer, Audrey, but I’m going to have to pass tonight. Maybe some other time.”
Her smile dimmed the smallest bit. “It’s Aubrey.”
“Right! Sorry, Aubrey. Thanks again. I’ll see you around.”
With that, I ushered the doctor into the house and closed the door behind me. It was less than convenient that her house was right next door, but I guess that was a small price to pay for getting to live here.
“Mom, this is Doc Monroe, the one Abraham said he’d send over to take a look at you. Doc, this is my mom, Nora. Thanks again for coming to see her.”
He reached out and shook Mom’s hand gently, the smile wide on his freckled face. “It’s my pleasure. Nora, let’s have a seat and talk a little bit about what’s going on with you. It’s been a while since I’ve treated someone who doesn’t turn into a giant wolf on the full moon, but I did go to traditional medical school and I’m positive I can help.”
My shoulders slumped with relief as Mom and the doctor headed into the kitchen to talk. It was like another load had been lifted off me and I felt lighter than ever. This really felt like the start of something great. Like Wes and I might get to relax for once. Like our mom might have an opportunity to get better finally. It seemed like the Asheville pack was exactly where we were meant to be.
Chapter 4
Wyatt
I stood in front of the mirror in my room as I analyzed myself. Unsatisfied with what I saw, I growled under my breath and pulled the shirt over my head. I turned to
