She smiled. “I figured that out. Last night when they said you were the one they wanted to kill, my wolf wanted out for a fight and boy did I want her to. That being said, I realized I’m still not adept at being a wolf yet. So, she and I compromised.”
“Fog?”
“Fog seemed like the best distraction for me to escape.”
He nodded. “Yeah. So we saw.”
Ethan paused.
“Did you hear that?”
She shifted on the bed. “Yes. The pack. They’re outside waiting. Waiting for what?”
He looked around the room.“There. See those clothes? Put them on. It’s time for you to be presented to the pack.”
“Are these from your mom?”
He nodded. “We have a surplus of clothes. One never knows when a wolf drops buy.”
A few minutes later they both walked out into the field behind the house. Both packs, Ashburn and Pike Valley waited.
An uneasy line seemed to exist between the two. The Ashburns never looked up.
“I’m glad everyone’s here.” Ethan gave a questioning look to his brothers.
“We’ve come to pay honor to our alpha. We’ve come to pledge our loyalty to you and your mate,” said one of the larger men from the Ashburn pack.
“I see,” said Ethan. He took a few more steps and stood in front of the man who took a knee. One by one, the entire Ashburn pack bowed. He started to laugh and thought better of it.
“You don’t need to kneel. I’m not that kind of alpha. If you swear your loyalty and swear to protect the pack, both packs, then you have my forgiveness and my respect.”
“Thank you, Ethan. Is it true that Kurt is gone?”
Ethan nodded. “I don’t see any way for him to be coming back.”
One of the women stepped forward. “Can I ask what happened to Gianna?”
“Can I answer this one?”
Ethan smiled. “Go for it.”
Olivia sheepishly took a step forward as she approached the packs. “She won’t be back. She’s off to find her sister. I told her if she came back, I’d sick a plague of mosquitoes on her.”
“But why did she leave?” asked another female.
Ethan and Olivia exchanged a glance.
Ethan spoke. “You do not threaten my mate. You do not threaten the beta of the pack. If we can’t learn to respect each other, we can’t survive.”
Ethan’s pack, and now her pack, nodded. They stood in unison. Olivia now knew the Ashburn mess wasn’t their fault. She knew enough to understand they needed leadership, they needed to be trained, and be led properly. They deserved to know what a good pack was like. Olivia caught a glimpse of Ethan’s thoughts and his fears. He knew it would take years for things to settle, but he was willing. A sense of pride filled her. She would have purpose here.
“Tonight we will celebrate my mate and our new family. Tomorrow will find a new settlement for those that wish to remain on the pack lands.”
He pulled Olivia closer, bringing her comfort. Knowing he’d come for her should have been enough, but this moment the reassurance that he didn’t want to be without her spoke to her beyond words. She caught mumbled words filtering through the crowd like a wave.
A meek voice spoke up. “Can we leave pack lands?”
He straightened beside her. She saw the leader Ethan would be in that moment.
”Let me be clear. Pack will always come first. You come on my call, but you are welcome to live and work outside of the pack. We are only as strong as each other.”
Heads bobbed in agreement. Some appeared shocked or shaken. Younger wolves stood a little taller.
He wouldn’t run the pack like the past. This was a new age and to survive, the pack needed to change.
“Ashburns, go pack your things. You won’t be staying in that ramshackle lodge. Until we can find more suitable accommodations, families will be housed by Pikes. Singles will be welcome in the den house at the back of my land.”
Olivia looked at him in question.
“Long ago, packs slept in dens. We don’t do that anymore, but we still use it for emergencies, meetings, and things that require us to all be together.”
She bit the corner of her lower lip. “Okay. Sounds fair.”
“It’s the best I’ve got right now. I didn’t expect to be housing a whole other pack today. I thought I’d be presenting my mate.” His mouth moved closer to her ear as he whispered. “I thought I’d be spending the entire night mating you properly.”
Tendrils of excitement shot through her as his hand slid down her back to her butt where he copped a feel.
“Ethan. You settle down. What if your mother is watching?”
He smirked. “She’d be happy to see me finally living up to my obligations.”
Shaking her head she let out a sigh. Her body finally letting out the stresses of the night.
“You’ll have to remind me how squeezing my butt is your obligation.”
The silent rumble of his chest was the only indication of his laugh as they turned back to the packs.
“Go. Pikes. If you can find room for our new brothers and sisters please do. We will figure out arrangements tonight at the bonfire. Go back to your land Ashburns, and collect what you want. You are always welcome back to your own lands, but for now I feel this is the best way to ensure we are one.”
Ethan grabbed Olivia’s hand and pulled her away from the meeting.
He looked down at her and cocked a brow. “That whole thing with Gianna, was creative. Can you do that? Sick mosquitoes on someone?”
She smirked. “Not sure. But why test me?”
The bell of the shop rang. Olivia dusted off her hands and headed to greet her customer. Bridgette was off to a delivery leaving her alone. A quick glance down at her apron reviled how badly today’s experiment was going.
“Hi, how can I help you?” she said as she looked up.
“Wow. I like what you’ve done with the place.”
Olivia’s mouth gaped. “Harold? What
