AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I’ve been backto work for a few weeks now. Jerrick was ecstatic to have me back. Said that the temp they hired to cover for me in my…absence…was awful. Unorganized, unmotivated, and completely useless. Apparently, she spent more time taking selfies at my desk than actually working. Truth be told, I was excited to be back, too.
I love my mates… I do. More than my own life. But holy hellfire, they were driving me crazy with all the coddling.
I get it.
What it must have been like to nurse me back from basically a braindead comatose; it would have sent me into a depression spiral if it were one of them instead of me. That’s why I gave them some leeway for the first month after I came to.
Despite feeling ready to come back after a few weeks of sitting around the house doing nothing, I didn’t push the issue.
Besides, I did need the help for a minute.
Getting around that first week was difficult. According to Doctor Tanner, my brain had been working so hard to survive; it essentially shut down to preserve its strength. In fact, she said she was surprised I was so alert to begin with. I improved at a rate that I absolutely should not have. But she ran some tests, and everything came back fine. So fine, that she went into a little bit of a medical tailspin.
Hardly any drug left in your system,she had said before getting a slightly suspicious look in her eyes, and then we didn’t hear from her for a minute. And when she came back, she didn’t bring up my speedy recovery again.
Walking again after existing like a veritable vegetable was a learning curve. I teetered around the house with the help of each of my mates until I got my sea legs back. Well, and Nala of course. Hudson said she wouldn’t leave my side for anything except to use the bathroom and eat. They eventually stopped letting her in the nest because she would growl at them anytime they came in to sleep with me.
When I started back at work, each day I came home she was whining and waiting at the door for me and then stayed by my side until bedtime. After the first week though, she got used to my absence again. While she still waits at the door for me when she hears cars pull in, she no longer whines.
Speaking of getting home to my overprotective baby, I glance at the clock to see it’s coming up on five now. It’s been a slow day, and Jerrick has no more meetings on his schedule, so I pop my head into his office and ask if he needs anything else from me today.
“No, I’m okay. You can head home. I’ll see you tomorrow.” He smiles, and I do my best to smile back. It feels a little forced, though. I’ve only been back for a few weeks, and already I feel like something is missing. It’s not being away from home. I’m happy to be kept busy again. But after everything, coming back to an assistant job does not feel as satisfying as I thought it would. I’ve been job hunting for the last few days, and I think I’ve found something I’m interested in that is in my wheelhouse. That application was submitted last night. The people pleaser in me doesn’t want to tell Jerrick though until I know it’s a sure thing. Not after how supportive he’s been. So I hold back.
“Yeah, see you tomorrow.”
Wells is waiting for me when I hit the sidewalk, the passenger door held open. Houston and Damien have already taken other jobs. Since we don’t really need them anymore. Truth be told, I never was that close with them, so their absence is not a painful topic.
Thinking about Wells leaving…is a different story. The two of us have grown as close as brother and sister. I think he’s feeling a little miserable about having to leave, too, because he should have left weeks ago. But he insists he needs to stick around until Pack Monroe is actually prosecuted and put behind bars. Their hearing keeps getting pushed back, but their next one is in a few weeks. Our lawyer says they were convinced to plead out rather than take it to trial, thank the Goddess.Due to overwhelming evidence,she’d said.
So I’ll let Wells stick around until then because I’m going to miss the big bastard, but I won’t let him waste a minute more once those bars slam shut on my old life. Figuratively and literally.
We’re stuck on I-55 in rush hour traffic when my stomach spasms.
“Oof,” I grunt, bowing over and pushing a fist into my abdomen to lessen the pain.
Is it already time for my heat again?
I try to count back the days on when my last one was, but another contraction hits me.
“Fuck,” Wells growls out when my perfume saturates the car. He may be like my brother, but he’s still an alpha, and I’m still an omega about to go into heat. His knuckles tighten on the steering wheel, and he checks each of his mirrors, turning his body to check for blind spots before gunning it when the light turns green. Weaving in and out of cars and being a complete jackass, honking his horn and flashing his lights to get cars out of his way faster. If I didn’t feel so bad for the way his alpha pheromones must be riding him like crazy, I’d probably laugh.
It’s not even that I’m in pain. Goddess, I’ll probably not even go into full-blown heat until tomorrow, but this man clearly wants to get me the heck out of his car. Another wave hits me. This time I feel slick drip onto my thighs. The sound of teeth grinding pulls my focus. A little vein is popping out of Wells’ forehead to match his grating molars. With a flick of his thumb, the hands-free phone sounds through the car, and he grits out, “Call Hudson.”
He picks up after two rings. “Hey, man. Everything okay?”
“Summer is going into heat. Can you meet us at the end of the driveway?” The strain in his voice is clear as day. Which is probably why Hudson curses.
“Yeah. How far are you?” Hudson asks, and there is rustling on the other end of the line while he moves around.
“Ten minutes. Maybe sooner.” A car honks at us as Wells cuts off yet another car. My right hand is clutching the door handle for dear life, while my left is still fisted against my stomach.
“Okay. We’ll meet you down there. Am I on speaker?” he asks.
“I’m here,” I respond, knowing he’s asking if I can hear him.
“You doing alright, pretty girl?” Concern drips from every word.
“I’m okay. It’s not too bad yet. Wells is just a big alpha baby.” At the wordbabyanother wave hits so it comes out a little breathless.
