Page 20 of The Chosen One Universe: Volume One

“Well, that’s about to change!” Nana flipped another pancake and added it to the small stack she’d already made. “Sam, honey, will you get the blueberries out of the fridge for me? I think Ben might like some with his pancakes.”

“Sure,” Sam said. He got the fruit and carried it back to the counter for her.

Nana grabbed a small handful and sprinkled them over the top of the pancakes before passing the plate to Ben.

“Go on and sit in my spot,” Sam said as Ben stared down at the plate in disbelief.

Ben looked to Vaughn for approval, so he nodded and Ben slipped onto the stool beside him. Ollie paused in his eating long enough to push his forehead into Ben’s arm before turning his attention back to his plate. Their actions were very telling. Ben seemed to understand a little bit more of an alpha’s role, but Ollie tended more toward his animal instincts. He’d trusted Vaughn and Sam, but as a small cub, his instincts would be heightened for safety.

Ben, though, was a curiosity. How did he know how to interact with an alpha when the other kids didn’t seem to?

Vaughn had to look away when Ben slowly picked up one of the blueberries and placed it in his mouth. The poor kid looked like he was waiting for the other shoe to drop. For someone to take the food right out of his hand. He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to find Sam standing beside him.

He glanced up and met Sam’s gaze and realized Sam had the same thoughts he did, and they were both so angry. It helped, not being alone. Knowing Sam understood and was reading the kids behavior, too.

“Eat up!” Nana said. She put a small portion of eggs on Ollie’s now empty plate and beamed at both boys.

A vehicle pulled into the drive and Vaughn recognized the familiar rumble of Travis’s truck. The other kids began to stir as well. His parents hadn’t been kidding when they said it was going to be an interesting day.

“Oh, good,” Nana said when she heard footsteps on the front porch. “That’ll be Travis and Rachel. I sent them a shopping list earlier. I hope you don’t mind.”

“Of course not,” Vaughn said.

“Good, because I told Travis to put everything on your credit card. The kids needed clothes, and we’re going to need a lot more groceries around here.”

Vaughn nodded. “Thanks, Nana. I hadn’t even gotten that far in my thoughts yet.”

She glanced down at Ollie, who was finally slowing down as he ate the few remaining bites of his eggs, and then back up at him. “You have more pressing concerns. I’ll handle food and clothes.”

The rest of the kids began to stir as Travis and Rachel came into the house with their arms full of shopping bags. The kids stilled at the intrusion, and Vaughn realized they had all instantly gone on alert.

“Morning, Travis,” Vaughn said. “Thanks for coming by.”

Ben let out a small sigh of relief once he realized Vaughn had approved their visitor. He nodded to the others, letting all of the younger kids know it was okay. Sam squeezed Vaughn’s shoulder gently, once again figuring out without words what was going on in the room.

“Morning, Alpha,” Travis said.

He paused by Nana and pressed a swift kiss to her cheek before placing the shopping bags on the counter on the opposite side of the kitchen. His wife, Rachel, followed him, both keeping their distance from the anxious cubs. Vaughn wasn’t sure what to do next. He never had to deal with so many visitors in his home, even though he’d built this house with guest suites upstairs for families of his patients.

The main reason his grandmother had begun helping in his home in the first place was to deal with the visiting packs and their needs. Vaughn’s attention had always been on his patients in the clinic, and he’d never been good at making sure other people had snacks and towels and soap and whatever else they needed for their comfort.

No one ever expected him to be responsible for those details because he made sure their loved ones were receiving the care and treatment they needed. He could assess a broken bone in minutes but forgot to eat if food wasn’t put in front of him.

All that was about to change, and although Vaughn could admit to being a little nervous, he was looking forward to the challenge, at least for as long as the goddess intended him to care for these cubs.

Ollie leaned back against Vaughn with a happy sigh. “I like pancakes,” he said.

Nana grinned. “I thought you might.”

“Okay, the rest of you head to the table,” Sam said. “Everyone hungry?”

They nodded, and Sam began guiding them over to sit down. Ben looked at Vaughn and winced, the lines of worry appearing yet again on the boy’s face.

Vaughn leaned over and spoke softly. “What’s wrong?”

Ben glanced toward the table then back at Vaughn. “Henry can’t really have milk and cheese. It makes his stomach hurt. He didn’t drink his milk last night but… can I get him some water?”

This kid had carried such a heavy burden for goddess knew how long. “You can, or I can get it while you and Ollie go sit with the others. Thank you for letting us know. If there’s anything else, you just have to tell me, okay? You won’t be in trouble and you aren’t bothering me. I need you to tell me these things because I won’t know otherwise. I want you all to be safe and healthy and happy here.”

Ben nodded and lowered his gaze.

“I don’t like green beans,” Ollie said. “I won’t be healthy or happy if I have to eat them. Ben says I have to eat my vegetables but you’re the alpha and you can tell him they don’t make me happy.”

Ben scowled over at the little boy. “Ollie—”

“But Ben! Alpha said!”

“Ollie,” Vaughn began, “Ben is right. Eating vegetables may not make you happy, but they do make you healthy. So you’ll be eating vegetables here.”

Ollie sighed and slid off Vaughn’s lap and onto Ben’s. He leaned against Ben with an unhappy grunt. “I don’t wanna.”

Ben glanced up at Vaughn nervously to see his reaction, so Vaughn smiled at the older boy and shook his head at Ollie’s silliness. Once he was certain Vaughn wasn’t upset, Ben bumped his head to Ollie’s then pushed to his feet. “Come on. Let’s go sit with the others.”

Ollie skipped over to the table and clambered up into one of the empty seats. He immediately began chattering about his breakfast as Nana began placing more plates of food on the table. Sam caught his gaze and gestured with his head toward outside. Vaughn nodded and pushed to his feet. He retrieved the promised water for Henry, made sure everyone was situated with their breakfast, and then followed Sam outside.