When the house came into view, Rylan’s eyebrows crept up his forehead, and I couldn’t contain my smile. Or a soft chuckle.
“You didn’t say it was a mansion,” he said, turning wide eyes to me.
The cabin was nice. I’d invested quite a bit of money to make it so, but it certainly wasn’t the fanciest. What it did have,though, was plenty of room. “Because it isn’t. It’s a cabin. A big one, but a cabin. I wanted plenty of room for all the pack to have space if they ever needed or wanted to stay with me.”
“Wow.” He looked back out the windshield.
The cabin had two stories above ground and a basement below. The front was mostly log, with a few windows and a big covered porch. The inside was where it truly shined—a custom stone fireplace, floor to ceiling windows overlooking the creek out back, and the most comfortable furniture I could find.
I pulled the truck to a stop close to the door. “Let’s wake up the others and get them inside.”
Rylan shot me a sweet smile and hopped out of the truck.
***
RYLAN
There was enough space in this house that it’d been easy to find everyone a room to sleep in. Of course, Hux had followed Milo around like a lost cub, Jamal and Xander had wanted to room together, and Tony and Sebastion had both fled to the first room they’d seen and locked themselves in. I knew they were just overwhelmed and needed some time to breathe. Thorn hadn’t been much better. As soon as we’d parked, he’d jumped out of the second truck, told Shep he'd patrol the perimeter, and taken off into the woods.
Looking back out toward said woods, I let out a little sigh. The windows along the back of the cabin were really something. Beyond the back deck, string lights lit up a fit pit and sitting area, complete with a swing hanging down from a large branch of the closest tree. It was beautiful. And Shep had said it wasours.
When I’d fled the basement the first time, all I’d had was a mattress on the floor, the attention of an Alpha I didn’t want, and the clothes on my back. Standing in this beautiful kitchen and looking at the evidence at a cherished space out the back door…it was a lot of change to happen since I’d stumbled into the bar’s parking lot.
“I thought you’d have chosen a room and been fast asleep by now,” Shep’s voice, whisper soft, reached me from the kitchen door.
I looked back over my shoulder and gave him a caught smile. “Just, uh, trying to wrap my head around all this. Feels like a dream.”
His dark gaze grew softer as he made his way over to me. He’d changed into plaid pajama pants and a black t-shirt. His dark hair was damp and a little wild, like he hadn’t combed it after he’d run his towel over it. He smelled divine and when he slid his arms around my waist and pressed himself along my back, a warm jolt of arousal flared in my belly. It caught me so off guard; I gasped.
Shep hummed, running his nose up the side of my neck as he took a deep breath. “I know it’s fast, but there’s no need for this worry.” He held me tighter. “Even if you never want to complete our bond, you’ll always have a home here, and I’ll protect you with everything I have.”
My bangs fell into my eyes when I turned my face towards him. I huffed and swiped them off my forehead. Taking a small step forward, I turned to face him completely. I liked that he didn’t try to stop me or hold me longer than I was willing to be held. “Will you do something for me?”
“Of course.”
I smiled at his lack of hesitation. “Will you cut my hair? Trent made me wear it this way, and I hate it.”
He moved his focus from my eyes to the unruly, too long mess on my head. “Sure. I’m no barber, but I’ve got clippers in my bathroom. We can at least shorten it until we can get you into one of the shops in town.”
Shep led me down a hallway off the kitchen. There was a single door at the end and inside was a spacious bedroom with thick rugs dotting the hardwood floor and the biggest bed I’d ever seen.
“Come on,” Shep said, nodding toward one of the doors in the room.
The bathroom had a lighter tone than the rest of the house. Several shades of gray covered the floor, walls, and vanity. A shower with dual heads sat directly across from the double sinks, clear glass doors revealing gleaming silver fixtures.
“This is really nice,” I said, standing just inside the door while Shep opened a drawer and began pulling things out of it.
“Thank you.” He stood, a pair of clippers in his hand, and looked at me. “I’m really glad you think so.” He rifled through the drawer he'd opened and pulled out a guard for the clippers, holding it out to show me. “Does this look short enough?”
I nodded.
“Okay.” He closed the drawer and clicked the guard into place over the head of the clippers. “You can just stand in the middle of the floor if you want.”
Shep motioned to a spot a couple of feet back from the vanity.
Once I was there, he moved toward me, meeting my eyes in the mirror over the sink.
“Ready?” he asked.
