Just a quick note: I am a US resident and this week is our Thanksgiving, I will not be posting a chapter on Friday, but will instead post the update on Saturday. I wish all of you who celebrate a Happy Thanksgiving and hope you are able to enjoy a relaxing day with your family and/or friends. Lots of love, Allie
TARYN POV Quiet. Peaceful. Tranquil. Those are the words I would use to describe Crescent Lake’s packhouse in the early hours of the morning, before anyone is up and about, even with half of Silver Ridge in their midst. The calm settles into me, reaching out and soothing my racing and aching heart and my spiraling mind. Even with the restful night of sleep in Reid’s arms, my worries and anxiety returned full force as soon as I opened my eyes. Not even his touch and scent settled my frazzled nerves, so I’d climbed out of bed with him still asleep, and left him a note, telling him where I went. We’d spent a beautiful day together yesterday; him revealing many sides of himself in less than a twenty-four-hour period, showing me how life with him will be — fun, playful, sexy, and full of love. And now it’s my turn to show him all of me. I descend the last step to the basement, where Luna Haven said I could find a small indoor gym space with treadmills, and make my way down the long, na
REID POV Karma is a funny thing. Sometimes it works in our favor, and other times, it works against us. This morning it is not working in my favor. The bed is empty, and Taryn is nowhere in sight, and I know this is payback for me leaving the bed before she woke up yesterday morning. “I knew I should have stayed in bed with her instead of making breakfast,” I grumble, rubbing my eyes with my palms. I sit up and swing my legs over the edge of the mattress, stretching my neck as I do, and I spy a bright yellow sticky note on the lamp. I snatch it off and my eyes zip over each letter of her handwriting, my wolf pushing forward as her scent floats from the paper and into my nose. I’m going to the gym down in the basement. I will be back soon. Love, Cadet Taryn Love. She wrote “love.” Does she mean that? Or is it similar to how girls will say “love ya!” to each other when saying goodbye? Or am I overthinking the whole thing? I stand from the bed and stretch my arms above my head,
REID POV My dad lunges forward from the doorway, his movements strong but erratic, the alcohol affecting his motor control. My gut instinct is to attack first, to fight back and defend myself, but it’s clear he is hallucinating, remembering the attack and mistaking me for the rogue who killed my mom, and I can’t bring myself to hurt my dad, self-defense or not. I dart out of his reach, but his large hands and sharp claws catch my body, slamming me into the cabinets and knocking the air from my lungs. His claws sink into me and slice around and down, pulling me towards the floor, and my chin hits the counter, my teeth snapping down on my tongue and stars bursting into existence behind my eyelids. I groan and spit the blood from my mouth, my hand clutching at the wound wrapping around my abdomen. My vision blurs and my head spins. I can’t see it, but I can feel the deep gashes in my stomach, feel that they’re much deeper than my enhanced shifter healing can handle on its own, without
TARYN POV Reid stands frozen in the middle of my hospital room, his eyes locked on the ultrasound screen. His heart pounds and his throat bobs, but he doesn’t blink or look away from the image. I bite my lip and blink back against the water in my eyes, my hands clenched as I wait for him to react, to say something or turn and run out the door, but he just stands there like a statue. “Taryn?” Dr. Russo asks, pulling my attention back to him. “Sorry,” I say, flicking my eyes to Reid and then back to the doctor. “What did you say?” “I asked if you’re okay with this?” He glances at Reid, and I nod, taking in a deep breath. I would have preferred to tell him myself, tell him when it was just the two of us and we had time to talk, but there’s no taking it back now. The truth is out there, and now I must face the consequences. “As I was saying, the pup looks great,” Dr. Russo says, and Reid’s throat bobs again. “It’s measuring a little on the bigger side, but that is to be expected beca
REID POV I sit on the edge of the hospital mattress, holding the images of my Sour Patch in my hand, staring at them with a smile as Taryn finishes changing into the clothes Maddie brought to the hospital for her. “What are you smiling at?” she asks, climbing onto the bed next to me. “Sour Patch,” I say, holding the strip of ultrasound pictures out to her. “Really? That’s what you’re going with? Sour Patch?” “Don’t you think that’s what she looks like?” I ask, peering over the top of the strip as she examines them. “Like a little sour patch kid gummy?” “I thought she looked like a gummy bear the other day when they first showed her to me,” she says, chuckling. “Nah, she’s totally a sour patch kid,” I say, shaking my head at her. “See, she already has that little cheeky smirk.” I point at the image, at what I assume is the pup’s head, although I really have no clue what is the top and what is the bottom on the black-and-white picture. “Reid, I’m eight weeks pregnant. She’s the s
REID POV “Hey there, Buddy.” The words echo in my brain, setting off a chain reaction of memories, each one with those words as the central focus. “Hey there, Buddy.” He winks at me as I stand in a line with all the other six-year-old pups on our first day of training. Wesley is on my left, his chest puffed out and his head held high. My smile grows as I beam up at my dad, ready to make him proud and show all the other pups what I’ve already learned with him during our roughhousing at home. From the corner of my eye, I glimpse my mom as she runs by. She waves at me and blows a kiss to my dad before continuing on her way with the group of warriors she’s headed out to patrol with, a smile on her face as always. “Hey there, Buddy.” The wind ruffles my hair and the sun blinds my eyes as he exits the water, surfboard in hand. He sets it in the sand, then checks the wrist strap on my board, making sure there is no fraying or tearing before he follows me out into the surf, ready to spe
REID POV “Listen, Buddy,” Dad says as he pulls away from me. His nose is tipped with pink, his eyes are puffy, and his cheeks are stained with tears. He sets his hands on my shoulders and takes a deep breath. “You should go. Spend some time with your mate.” His eyes flick to Taryn over my shoulder, and he smiles at her. I shake my head, and Taryn rubs my back. “I don’t want to leave you. You shouldn’t have to go through this alone.” “I’ll be fine,” he says, squeezing my shoulders. “Bonding with your mate is more important than—” Another coughing fit hits him, and he lets go of me, covering his mouth and gripping onto the bedding again, his knuckles turning white. Taryn moves around me and rests her hand on his arm, pulsing more of her golden healing magic into him. “We don’t mind staying,” she says, her voice cracking. “I can help ease some of your pain, at the very least.” My arm wraps around her waist and I slide closer to her, my lips kissing her shoulder. Selfless. Brave. S
TARYN POV “Here we are! Home sweet home!” Reid says as he opens the door to Wesley and Haven’s old house. I stand on the wide covered porch of the small sage green, white, and tan bungalow, my eyes taking in the view from the steps and the adorable patio swing at one end of the porch. The house has less of a cabin feel than most of the buildings here at Crescent Lake, but it still gives off the same homey vibes I get from the pack as a whole. I turn and walk to the door, but Reid stops me, blocking my path. “What are you doing?” I ask, leaning away from him and the mischievous glint in his eyes. “I have to carry you over the threshold.” I try to protest, but he lifts me in his arms, cradling me to his chest, and I squeak and cling to his neck, laughter bubbling out of me. My braids swing and the charms clink together as he steps into the house, holding me tight against his body and not letting me go. The entry has a long console table under a mirror, and within it, I catch a gli