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She blinked quickly, shaking her head. She needed to focus. They only had a few hours before the buses would arrive, and everything became chaotic.
She headed inside after completing her project and looked through her closet. She grabbed the dress she had set aside for today. She heard Benton coming in from outside. He headed up the stairs and down the hallway toward their master bedroom.
She leaned out, finding him walking in. He smiled at her, pulling his shirt off. "Hello, darling." His eyes skated over her, seeing she was half naked.
"We have the bus arriving in an hour."
"An hour." He smirked, tossing his shirt into the hamper. "That's a lot of time. You want to join me in the shower?"
She did. Oh, her toes curled at the idea, but she knew better. Lilly was arriving in twenty minutes to go over a few things. She didn't have the time.
She grabbed the dress and started to pull it on. "No, I will not."
He chuckled and turned on his heel. She watched him strip down, walking toward the shower. Her insides twisted, wanting to join him.
"I guess I'll just shower alone."
She scowled at him, watching him pull the shower open. He looked back at her, and she dropped the dress. She had no self-control.
She found Lilly outside thirty minutes later. Her hair was half-dried as she tried to make herself look like a proper person instead of someone that just orgasmed hard in the shower.
Lilly gave her a smile holding a clipboard and a binder. Lilly and Opal had become close friends after spending endless hours together.
She learned a lot from Lilly. Lilly had shown her around town and how to hold the city council meetings. She helped her calculate how much the city would need to get back on track and even offered a shoulder when everything became too much for her.
"Sorry if I kept you waiting," she said, trying to tie her hair back.
"It's fine," Lilly smiled at her, looking across the yard toward where the gardener stood. She couldn't help but smirk. Lilly had been trying to flirt with him for months now. She was waiting for him to finally ask her out.
"What's first on the agenda?"
Lilly opened the binder and flipped through the papers until she got to the list they had worked on for months. The grand opening for Horizon Senior Living.
They had broadcasted the new opening, welcoming all shifters to the new housing. They wanted to give whoever needed it a helping hand, and they got a lot of great feedback. They were expecting a bus today filled with seniors coming to their new homes.
"The first thing was to make sure that all the food was brought in," Lilly said. They headed toward the entrance as Lilly continued to talk. "The server is estimated to be here in ten minutes, so we should have some wiggle room."
They headed inside, making sure everything was ready. Before they knew it, the clock ticked noon, and they heard the bus coming down the street. They rushed outside and found Benton standing with a couple of other helpers from the community, waiting eagerly to welcome everyone.
Opal stood watching the people unloading and taking each of the seniors in. They seemed eager to be there, ready for a safe space. It warmed her heart.
Everyone said their hellos, and Benton and she welcomed each one personally. They heard stories of love and loss, some good and some bad. It twisted her heart.
They headed inside, showing each of the seniors to their space and going through the papers Lilly had.
Mary Tomlinson, a tiger shifter, was there because she had nowhere else to go. Lucas Rodtof, a panther shifter, was there because he was diagnosed with cancer and needed a safe place to live. Lorina Kather, a bear shifter, was there because she'd been scammed and lost her life savings.
Everyone had a story, and each story was burned into her mind. She was going to make sure everyone had everything they needed and more.
The faculty was quickly working to accommodate everyone's needs. They had wheelchairs ready and nurses to help where they were needed. She smiled proudly.
Benton stood next to her. "Things are running smoothly."
She nodded, looking at him. "It seems so."
He gave her a smile. "Does this lessen your worry?"
He worried about her. He'd held her many times when she felt everything was falling apart. This was just as much his victory as it was hers.
