Page 123 of Starting a New Life

“Great. Rhett and I already went over the seating arrangement. You’ll be in this truck with me, Gray, Connie, and Rhett, Gray’s second in command. Oak, who you’ll meet soon and is the biggest softie there is—he’s the one in charge of all things social in the pack, so he’s probably gonna be your welcoming committee—will switch to Paul’s car, as will those two lugs here. Oh… you’re probably wondering who Paul is…”

The more Nix talked, the less Callum smelled of fear. I watched my mate in awe as he chatted to Callum all the way out of the bed of the truck until they were both firmly seated in the cab, my mouth hanging open. Since when did Nix talk so much?

“He’s doing a Levi,” Rhett said, walking up next to me.

“Huh?”

“Nix,” Rhett said, nodding at my mate. “He’s imitating Levi. You know, Levi starts rambling when he’s nervous. It’s adorable, and his viewers love it almost as much as I do. Anyway, Levi told me that when Nix used to clam up, he’d start to ramble and it’d put Nix at ease… I think Nix is trying the same tactic with Callum. And it’s working.”

I looked at the tinted windows that were hiding Nix, Connie, and Callum from view, but I could still feel Nix. Could feel his fury warring with relief. His tiredness with excitement. And underneath it all, worry.

My muscles ached as I pushed to my feet, but I ignored it. I’d be sore for a while. The fight might not have lasted that long, but a real fight always took a toll. It had one tense and on edge in a way that no training exercise could.

Angelo and Heath climbed to their feet too and hopped off the truck, both giving me short nods. I clasped their shoulders and offered them a smile.

“Good job,” I told them. “You did well. And thank you for keeping my mate safe.”

“It was an honour, Alpha,” Heath answered, the sentence sounding like an automatic response. Angelo rolled his eyes and elbowed him.

“Dude. You sound like a robot.”

Heath tensed, shaking his head. “Yeah. Sorry. I really didn’t care for the atmosphere in that pack.” He gave me an apologetic look. “I mean it, though. I didn’t expect you to send me in when I was vocal about my doubts.” His jaw was set, the muscle ticking as if he had to keep himself from saying more, the stoic, almost petulant set of his jaw reminding me of the way he’d held himself when he first arrived.

I squeezed his shoulder again, waiting for him to meet my eyes. “I don’t blame you for critical thinking. But I hope you realize why I had to take the risk.”

Heath swallowed, eyes darting over to where Callum sat. “I do now.”

“That’s all I ask.” I gave his shoulder one last squeeze and waited until his muscles relaxed before I let go. “We’re gonna debrief tomorrow afternoon. It’ll be past midnight before we’re home, so… sleep in.”

I certainly planned to—with my mate in my arms and no more threats hanging over our head.

Chapter 25

Nix

It was way too fucking early.

I sighed and rolled over, burying my nose in Gray’s side. He smelled like blood and dirt—and not his regular earthy scent, but dirt from the fucking fight and his own blood from where Connie’s brother had sliced him open with a damn knife.

Anger threatened to bubble up inside me, but I forcefully shoved it down. Gray was still fast asleep, his face relaxed, a smile on his face as he wrapped his arm around my shoulders to pull me in closer.

His body was warm, his skin soft and inviting, luring me in, telling me to close my eyes and drift back into blissful sleep, but… there were so many people around.

The packhouse was bustling with action. Gray had done a lot to soundproof his living quarters, but no soundproofing in the world could keep out their auras and the way Connie and Nick’s worry practically screamed at me.

I closed my eyes again and inhaled deeply, trying to use Gray’s scent to calm me down, but I only managed to get myself worked up again because he still smelled like his own fucking blood. Okay, yeah, and that asshole’s blood—but I didn’t mind that. That guy could’ve died for all I cared. He would’ve deserved it for what he put Connie and Callum through.

Why couldn’t I fall back asleep?

Gritting my teeth in annoyance, I squeezed my eyes shut and tried breathing calmly. One, two, three, four in, hold… one, two, three, four, five out. And again. I counted each breath, focusing solely on the way my chest expanded, the way my lungs slowly filled with air. Warm, comfortable, smelling like Gray. Yes, there was blood and dirt, but underneath it all was the scent of home. Of warm cedar. Of the woods outside. Gray was more than the pack’s Alpha. He was the pack. He smelled like everything this pack stood for. He was its heart.

But I still couldn’t relax.

There were too many auras. Too many people around.

The faint scent of bacon and eggs hit my nose, and my stomach grumbled.

I pressed a hand against it, willing it to shut up, but now that I’d acknowledged it, the hollow feeling just got worse. My mouth was dry, my stomach beyond empty.