I wasn't sure about that, but I wasn't about to say no. Summer was kind, and she had the best interests of her pack at heart. If she was willing to take time out of her day to spend time with me, I wasn't about to pass that up.
"If you're sure, then yes. Please."
She grinned and clapped her hands together. "Let's go."
Despite the fact that I'd explored the town quite a bit, Summer was still a good tour guide. She knew all the secret places, and he humor was the perfect match for mine. I was having fun, which surprised me.
Summer's presence also helped people relax around me. No one could stay annoyed or haughty when Summer was there. Having Summer next to me helped me absorb some of the affection the pack had for her, just like being with Noah made me more respected.
The pack itself had changed, too. When I had left five years ago, Noah was one of the only people to know that I was a witch, but I'd still been around long enough to see how terribly magic users were treated. While that had changed under Noah's rule, old habits still died hard.
Summer pointed out the places that she'd grown up, her favorite store, and where she spent her time when she wasn't working. What I really wanted to know, though, was how she dealt with being asshole Richard's caretaker, but I didn't want to be too forward. So I skirted around the subject, instead.
"How long have you been a nurse?"
"Oh, it's my passion, so it feels like I've always known I'd be a nurse," Summer said, looking happy at the question. "I'm lucky, though, because I work directly for the pack. Richard isn't always an easy patient, but it's not as awful as you might think."
I somehow doubted that, but I didn't push. I also didn't tell her that I would have run screaming if I'd been tasked with caring for the asshole former Alpha, but apparently Summer was stronger in that regard.
She also wasn't a witch, so she likely avoided the worst parts of Richard's hatred.
I began to see why Noah wanted me to spend time with her after a few hours. Summer would pepper questions about Noah into our conversation, carefully trying to assess how I was feeling about the Alpha and if I'd warmed up to him any. Therewas no way I was going to reveal just how close we'd gotten the other night, but she wasn't easily distracted from the subject.
"Have you and Noah talked about anything? Anything important, I mean." I couldn't hide the blush on my face. "What do you mean?"
"About your future. About the fact that you're going to have to have children someday."
I almost choked. "Oh, that's not happening anytime soon. If ever."
"But...he's an Alpha. He needs an heir, preferably a lot of them!" "So what? We can have children later," I said, feeling defensive.
Summer cocked her head to the side, "Do you not want children?"
"Summer," we had made our way to a short hiking trail that Summer said she enjoyed, but I stopped and turned to face her, "I didn't want to marry him at all. I didn't even want to stay here, so why would I want to have children? Why would I want to bring them into this situation?"
"Because it's not as bad as you think it is." "That's easy for you to say."
"Maybe. But Noah cares for you." She paused, biting her lip like she wasn't sure how much she should say. She'd pulled her braid over her shoulder and was tugging at it nervously. "He talked about you, you know. During those years, you were separated. He probably won't ever admit it...But I think he missed you every day."
My stomach flipped, and my throat went tight, "Even though he had no idea what sort of person I'd grown into?"
"He's not perfect, and he can be an ass sometimes. He's also stubborn and has a temper. But he's not an idiot, and as far as Alphas go, he's one of the best I've ever seen. He's also your mate." She looked up into the trees, where the sun was pushing through the branches, "He's family and I love him. I just want him to be happy. I swear I'm not trying to push too hard, but just consider what I've said, okay? We can drop the subject if you promise to at least think about it."
I couldn't meet her eyes. "I promise." "Great. Let's go see the waterfalls."
After the seriousness of the last few minutes, I was grateful for the change of subject.
The hike was nice. The path was easy, and the scenery was beautiful. I'd always enjoyed being outdoors, and the walk gave me plenty of time to think and sort through my emotions.
Last week had been a roller coaster, and I wasn't sure how much more I could handle.
We were approaching a clearing that Summer said had a small waterfall, and just past the rolling hills, we could see one of the local farms. Crops were planted in even rows, but large swathes of them were brown.
Noah had mentioned the ways in which the pack land was turning on them, but this was the first time I'd seen it for myself.
"It's not going well, is it?"
Summer shook her head, "No. We try, but...it's like the soil itself is rejecting us. Nothing is growing, and what is, dies soon after. They're doing everything they can, and the pack has offered to buy seedlings and irrigation systems, but the cost is...insane."
