Total pages in book: 24
Estimated words: 21858 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 109(@200wpm)___ 87(@250wpm)___ 73(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 21858 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 109(@200wpm)___ 87(@250wpm)___ 73(@300wpm)
I nodded as a tear slid down my cheek. “I’ve really missed having that.”
“There’s a cabin past Booker’s that nobody is using. You’re welcome to stay there if you’d like,” Keane offered.
“It’ll need to be aired out.” Laina wrinkled her nose. “And there aren’t any supplies in the kitchen, so maybe you’d like to have breakfast with us first?”
Anxious to make my way up here, I had skipped breakfast this morning. So I wasn’t surprised when my stomach growled. Especially with what was inside the cooler in my car. “Thora and Ramsey showed up at the hotel I stayed at last night and made sure I had enough food to last me for at least a couple of days. But I wouldn’t turn down anything before I go check out the cabin if you were already planning on making something.”
“You good for breakfast this early?” Keane asked, his palm cupping his mate’s rounded belly.
“I think so.” Her skin lost its color, almost turning green as she pressed her lips together before mumbling, “Just don’t make bacon. I don’t think my stomach can handle the smell of it yet.”
Keane stood and strode over to the pantry. While he was grabbing her crackers, I got up and gave her a hug, drawing on the healing powers my kind had been blessed—and cursed—with. I could only use them like this for very small ailments. Luckily, morning sickness was one of them.
“Wow,” Laina breathed. “I’m not sure what just happened, but I’m suddenly feeling like I could eat an entire cow.”
Handing her a cracker, Keane widened his eyes. “Really, baby?”
“Yeah.” She licked her lips. “I know you got rid of all the beef in our home because even the thought of it has made me feel like puking over the past month, but maybe one of the guys has some we could borrow? Or Thora left something in their freezer that we could thaw and heat? Like that amazing stew she made a couple of weeks ago that my mouth really wanted but my stomach couldn’t handle.”
“You’re in luck.” I beamed a smile at her. “One of the containers in the cooler in my car is stew.”
She clapped, her eyes lighting with happiness. “Yummy.”
5
AARON
Just when I had started thinking I’d finally adjusted to life in The Wilderness Pack, my damn animal decided to get his fur ruffled. Over what, I had no idea. But ever since I woke up, he’d been pushing me to go to Keane’s cabin. Irritated with whatever had gotten under his skin, I gave in to his demands and headed over there as soon as I finished breakfast.
Rapping my knuckles against the front door, I flared my nostrils when I caught the trace of an unfamiliar scent. It had a sweet note to it, almost like my favorite candy, and made my mouth water.
“What’s that smell?” I asked Keane when he opened the door.
“Thora’s stew.” He glared at me. “But you can’t have any because my pregnant mate is scarfing it down like she hasn’t eaten in days.”
“I don’t think that delicious scent is stew.” My brows drew together when the second half of what he’d said registered in my brain. “Laina is finally past her morning sickness?”
“More like meat sickness,” he muttered, waving me into their cabin. “The time of day didn’t matter. Only the kind of food.”
“Whatever the cause, I’m glad to hear it’s gone.”
I followed him into the kitchen, coming to a sudden stop when I spotted someone I didn’t know sitting across from Laina.
I’d never paid attention to what women looked like before, but I couldn’t help but notice her curves and that I towered over her by a foot. Her dark blond hair was pulled up in a ponytail, and my fingers oddly itched to pull those long locks down so I could feel how soft they were.
Head tilted to the side, her blue eyes were curious as she looked up at me. “You must be Booker.”
“Nope.” My brows drew together as I wondered why she assumed I was my former packmate. “Aaron Kemp.”
“Oh, sorry.” She ducked her head, but I didn’t miss how her pale cheeks filled with a pretty pink color. “I’m Cressida Crawford. Ramsey only mentioned one other wolf besides Rome who was part of Keane’s pack, so I assumed you were him.”
“That makes sense.” I shot a glance at Keane. “If she was only telling you about members of the pack, then she wouldn’t have brought me up since I’m just staying here for a while.”
“Unless you pull your head outta your ass and take me up on my offer to join the pack,” Keane grumbled.
Laina rolled her eyes. “Maybe if you asked nicer, he’d actually consider it. Nobody wants a bossy grump for their alpha.”
Keane’s eyes heated as he smirked down at his mate. “You love how bossy I am.”