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“Oh, joy, they make the perfect pair then,” Tate grumbled. “Just remember to keep your chaos away from my hatchery once I’ve got it up and running.”

“I can’t wait to get started on that project,” Roark said, rubbing his hands together.

“You and me both,” Tate said.

“Go ahead and find yourselves a quiet corner then,” Rusty encouraged, making a shooing motion at Roark.

Tate was more than happy to hear that and soon led Roark over to a pair of chairs in the far corner of the living room.

“They’ll be at it for a while,” Rusty said, chuckling as he watched the start of their animated conversation.

“Yeah, they will,” Lysander said. “The whole ride here, that was all he could talk about.”

“That owl has fish on the brain, big time,” Ridge said.

“How can Uncle Tate have a fish on his brain, Uncle Ridge?” Wren asked the startled owl, who looked around like he expected someone else to bail him out of this one and answer the pup.

“Oh no,” Logan said, crossing his arms as he stared at his longtime friend. “You get to tackle that one all on your own.”

“Well, um, you see, it-it doesn’t mean there is a real fish swimming around on Uncle Tate’s brain,” Ridge stammered, while Logan struggled to hold back a snicker. “It just means he thinks about fish all the time, so they are always on his mind.”

“Oh,” Wren said, before scampering off Lysander’s lap to investigate the delicious scents that had started wafting out of the kitchen.

“It smells like the brownies are ready,” Ridge said, following Wren to the kitchen.

“That’s our cue to follow so we get more than crumbs,” Lysander said, wheeling after them.

“I will never say no to chocolate,” Wild said, hot on his heels.

“I can’t believe Ridge’s mate was right here waiting for him, just like mine,” Logan said as he caught Rusty’s hand and laced their fingers together.

Rusty squeezed his hand and tugged him closer. “These grounds are teaming with wolves still waiting for their bondmarks to appear. Look at me and Roark. We grew up together but didn’t get ours until last year. The fates move at their own speed, our wishes and hopes be damned.”

Logan nodded and let go of his mate’s hand so he could hug him.

Do you really think Octavius can help Lysander get his certifications back?

He will do everything in his rather considerable power, and he isn’t afraid to call in the even bigger guns when he needs to.

Wren loves all their uncles, but Lysander was the one who taught me how to care for them. I’d have been a gray, frazzled mess by the end of the first week if he hadn’t taught me to breathe and not panic every time the pup fussed about something. I swear, I was on the verge of a meltdown anytime Wren so much as whimpered and convinced I was doing everything wrong. Lysander showed me how to feed them, change their diaper, and most importantly, listen to the sound of their cries so I’d learn what they meant instead of freaking out.

Just seeing him with Wren, I can already tell he’s a special wolf.

He could have suggested that I give Wren to a family. Hell, he knew what the hell he was doing, he could have offered to raise them himself. He loves kids. Never once did he try to take over or suggest that Wren would be better off with someone else. He just helped in any and every way I needed him too, the same as he did when I was out there cluelessly trying to bring Dayton home to Ms. Constance. He’s spent the last two decades helping other shifters. He’s not going to be happy if he can’t do that here at Comet Lake, Logan said, worried for Lysander and certain that by this point it was starting to bleed through their link.

If a wolf has a talent for something, they’ll be given the opportunity to share it. We’ve survived on these lands for as long as we have because we have a long tradition of encouraging wolves to play to their strong suits and rely on the pack when there are areas where they struggle.

You’ve created a circle of trust. It’s everywhere on these lands. When I stopped at the general store on the way to pick up Charlie the other day, Gina hurried over with three pairs of aqua fuzzy socks. She’d set them aside because she knew they were Wren’s favorite color, then she told me to tell Wren that she’d set aside three pairs for their uncle Emari too so they could match. I took all six pairs over to the gallery and gave them to Emari so he could give them to Wren after Thursday’s fingerpainting workshop.

That’s the one Echo teaches, right?

Yup, Rusty replied.

Do you know if it’s all ages?

No, but Emari would. Are you thinking about taking it with Wren?

Tempting, but they felt comfortable enough to sign up without pleading with me to be there, so I won’t intrude. I will, however, suggest it to Tate so he has the chance to hang out with another owl.