Page 65 of Remington’s Mate

You could see that parts of the house were renovated and parts were still in progress. She also loved that there were two ratty couches on the porch, with a beer fridge to the side, and assorted other chairs scattered around.

Redneck outdoor living at its finest.

Remy was watching her, a tiny worry crease in his forehead. “It’s beautiful,” she said, and felt him relax. He still wasn’t over the whole Turning thing—though she agreed, he hadn’t Turned her in the usual sense. He’d somehow opened a channel into the spirit world, so her animal could come through.

They parked the trucks and Kitty, Callie and Colt started unloading packages out of the truck beds. They were clearly not all groceries—there were bags and bags and bags.

Jaeda hoped the Wild Blood crew had money, because Kitty seemed to go through it like water.

The ground floor was the public part of the house. Half of it was under construction, but the other half was a huge great room with a fabulous open kitchen, living and dining area.

They were starting up the central staircase when Brandon called Remy back.

“I’ll take her up,” Callie said, coming up behind her with her hands full of shopping bags. “Come on.”

Remy’s suite was on the third floor. “Mine and Colt’s is right down the hall,” Callie said, opening Remy’s door and leading Jaeda inside. “Let me know if you need anything. Kitty and I bought you some things while you were unconscious, in case you couldn’t go home. Here’s some of them.”

Callie put the shopping bags she was carrying down in the living room, and Jaeda realized that a large portion of the stuff in the truck was for her.

Here I was being judgmental, and they were doing all this for me. Tears pricked at her eyes. “Thank you,” she said. “I didn’t expect that.”

Callie smiled. “We’re a small crew, so we take care of each other. And… you’re going to be family, now.”

She added shyly, “I know it’s weird for you, to suddenly be Remy’s mate. But I’m really glad you’re here. He’s been so unhappy, and now he’s not.”

Now she really was going to cry. Jaeda brushed the tears back. “No, now he’s homicidal, because Sutcliffe attacked me twice.”

Callie grinned. “Yeah. Sutcliffe is toast.” She turned to go, then added softly, “Be extra good to him, okay? The boys—they act like goofballs, both of them, and like everything’s a joke, but really they need a lot of love.”

Impulsively, Jaeda hugged her. “I’ll remember that. Thanks.”

Colt and Kitty barged in at that moment with more shopping, Remy following. He looked at the sea of bags. “Holy owl gods, what did you buy?”

“Things,” Callie said with dignity.

“Girl things,” Kitty added. “Clothes and makeup and pajamas.”

“She won’t need those,” Remy said, winking at her.

“And sexy underwear,” Callie added.

Remy’s face lit up. “Excellent.”

Kitty said, “And shampoo and hair stuff and—”

“Is there anything left in the store?” Colt asked.

“Nope.” Callie kissed his shoulder. “I’m pretty sure we cleaned them out.”

Jaeda was touched, but she felt guilty. They must have spent a fortune.

“Let me know how much it cost,” she said. “I’ll pay you back.”

Kitty and Callie rolled their eyes. “She’s too nice,” Kitty said. “We have to fix that.”

“And you’re not paying us back,” Callie said. “I told you, you’re family now.”

“Besides,” Kitty said, “you got hurt and can’t go home because of Brandon’s case, so technically he should pay. I used his credit card for half of it, anyway.”