Chapter 50

Kyp

The buzzing of Rachel’s phone woke me as early streams of sunlight drifted through the crack between the curtains. We’d only been asleep a few hours, but I had an impressive crick in my neck.

It was a small price to pay to wake with Rachel pressed up against me.

“Mom?” she sleepily answered her phone. I yawned and my ears popped, keeping me from hearing the immediate conversation.

Rachel’s face sprouted a grin that radiated like sunshine.

“Mom, that’s wonderful. Really wonderful!”

I let my hand stroke over my favorite curve.

“I love you, too. Okay. Talk to you in a few hours.”

“Good news?” I already knew it was from the light shining in her eyes.

“Mom and Dad are bringing Joanie home. They’re going to move her to a facility closer to home where they can visit frequently, but where they’ll be home. Mom said they decided they couldn’t help one daughter and neglect the other.”

“And it’s safe for them now.”

“What do I tell them about being a wolf? Can I tell them anything?” Her forehead creased.

I shook my head sadly. “You can’t. Maybe someday we’ll figure out a way to tell them. But, since we’re dating, assuming they have no great objections, we’ll go out every night. Make sure your wolf has all the attention she needs. We’ll make it work. And hopefully, your parents will be on board with an early summer wedding. I don’t want to wait forever.” I smiled down at her, but it was the truth. She was killing me, and we hadn’t even kissed.

She smiled up at me and leaned in to kiss me when my phone rang from the kitchen where I’d plugged it in hours earlier. I sighed.

“I want to ignore that, but I’m afraid it might be something important, given what happened last night.”

“And you are the Alpha now,” Rachel smiled as she squeezed my arm. I slugged off the couch and grabbed my phone. It was Bowen.

“Kyp. I’m sorry to wake you this early, but I think you should come back. Things are under control, but some are getting restless. They need their Alpha. And we need to figure out some stuff. I’m not sure we’ve heard the last of Drew. He left his calling card on the stump next to the edge of camp.”

I sighed, a sense of pride, trepidation, and a hunger for my own pack filling me. It was a strange combination, but one I embraced. I was theirs and they were mine.

“I’ll be there in half an hour.”

I was the Alpha.