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Audrey pushed herself upright, and before Kyle could dig a deeper hole for himself, she jumped in. “Normally, people thank the person who almost died on their behalf. Seeing as gratitude does not appear to be part of your repertoire, let me help you. It usually goes ‘thank’ and ‘you,’ but smashed together minus the ‘and.’ Is that too hard of a concept for you? I think you’ve been knocked around the head one too many times, Mr. Bruce Nobody-Bested-Me Lee. You Neanderthal.” Her eyes flashed with defiance, daring him to argue as she jabbed her perfectly painted nail right into Kyle’s chest.
Kyle huffed. “Yeah, well, likewise. Many people might thank me for pulling all the silver out of their bodies and making sure they didn’t bleed to death for no damn good reason. In thefuture, give up the bodyguard work and stick to your pedicures, wolf.”
Wiggling her fingers at Kyle, Audrey spat, “This is amanicure, G.I. Joe wannabe.”
As the two continued their sparring match, I glanced at Tori again, trying hard not to laugh. She bit her lip, her eyes sparkling with amusement, and she used one hand to cover her mouth.
I leaned closer to Tori and said, “Is it me, or is the sexual tension stifling in here? They already sound like an old married couple.”
Tori snorted, trying hard not to laugh. However, Audrey’s heightened hearing picked up on my comment, and she turned her glare on me.
“Ew. No. Gag me.” She rolled her eyes. “Both of you shut up, and you—you ungrateful Ken doll—get out of my room.”
Kyle hadn’t overheard what I had said, but after Audrey’s reaction, he scowled at us. Tori finally stepped in.
“Kyle, go on, let the nurses do their job. We can talk later,” she told him, gently guiding him out of the room. Kyle shot Audrey one last scowl over his shoulder before allowing Tori to lead him out the door where the nurse was waiting.
“Now, are you ready to be treated, Mr. Summers?” the nurse huffed. “Because I don’t have all day.”
It seemed all the women, minus his sister, were exasperated with Kyle, and I chuckled. Soon, Tori returned to the room.
“Well, Kyle might not have said it, but thank you, Audrey,” I said. “I appreciate what you did and am relieved you’re okay. You obviously meant what you said about turning over a new leaf, and I’m glad to see it.”
Audrey looked down, picking at her fingernails. Her posture became stiff, displaying her unease at the positive feedback. Audrey seemed unsure how to handle my appreciation, whichshouldn’t have surprised me, considering her parents had probably never given her any praise.
Tori echoed my sentiments. “Yes, Audrey. Thank you so much. I have no idea how I’ll ever make it up to you. I just got my brother back, and if I were to lose him now, I...” Tori shut down at the prospect, and I rubbed her back to soothe her.
“I told you to stop that. No more of that.” Audrey’s cheeks went pink. The emotions and the praise seemed to be too much for her, but she shrugged it off. “Plus, there’s only so much trouble I can get into in Blackwood Creek without getting bored, and I thought it’d be a shame to let someone so handsome die. Even if he is a brainless douchebag.” She smirked slightly.
Tori found it impossible to hold back her laughter, and I joined in, shaking my head at Audrey’s audacity.
“I couldn’t let my best friend down,” Audrey said. “Tori loves the insufferable hunter for whatever reason. And, I might add, I did not want to go to the stupid festival, anyway. Been there, done that, over it.”
Audrey put on too much of an act for me not to notice how our gratitude had affected her. I appreciated her humor and strength in the face of adversity. As I watched Audrey’s eyes dart to the door for what had to be the hundredth time since we’d entered, my thoughts instantly turned to Audrey’s parents, who were conspicuous in their absence. It bothered me that Tori and I, and especially Kyle, were more concerned about Audrey’s well-being than they were. For now, though, we needed to focus on the tasks at hand and deal with the emotional fallout later.
“Get some rest,” I said, gently squeezing Audrey’s shoulder before I left the room. I had to get back to pack business. As much as my instincts urged me to stay by Tori’s side, the pack required my attention. With the hunter attack and all the new shifters in town, I couldn’t neglect the town any longer.
“Let me know if you need anything, and I meananything. Sleep, and I’ll be by tomorrow,” Tori said as she left Audrey’s room.
Before Tori and I could resume our conversation from earlier, Clawson spotted us and started down the hallway. When Tori saw him, she stroked my arm reassuringly and went to see her brother. She gave me a small wave as Clawson pulled me aside. From the strain on his face and his taut muscles, I could tell my friend was under significant stress.
“You look stressed, Birch,” I said. “What can I do to help?”
“I tightened security, but the shifters need all hands on deck, including you,” Clawson said. “We have to vet the new shifters in town, and since you’re the alpha, it’s probably best for you to greet as many of them in person.” He let out a frustrated sigh, running his fingers through his hair, which stuck up in all directions. “Ridge, we need to figure out where some of these packs will be staying. Since we were given no heads-up about this sudden migration of shifters to Blackwood Creek, it’s caught us off guard.”
I nodded. “What’s the lodging situation like?”
“Bad,” Clawson said. “Bogford Bed and Breakfast is overbooked. Diana’s already been doubling up on rooms, and she’s converting areas in her living space so shifters can camp out in sleeping bags. With no other hotels or inns in Blackwood Creek, we have nothing else to provide, and many other shifters are camping out in the woods close to town at the moment. We’ve got patrols set up to look for threats from the hunters, but our security is severely lacking.” He blew out a breath. “With the blending of so many packs, I’m worried there’ll be territorial disputes.”
Crossing my arms over my chest, I leaned my head back against the wall and closed my eyes for a second. I was exhausted, and honestly a bit pissed off that I was being pulledin so many different directions when all I wanted to do was get Tori on board with what it meant to be fated mates. I couldn’t help but think that being mated with her would make everything more manageable, but I quickly pushed those thoughts aside. It did me no good to wish and hope. Tori would be ready when she was ready. I would not push her into mating just because it suited me.
Thinking over Clawson’s words reminded me of Tori’s suggestion to expand the town so there’d be enough room for the packs I’d tried so hard to bring here for their safety.
“We’ll take care of it,” I assured him, clapping him on the back. “Let’s go meet some of the newcomers, check and see if any of our new inhabitants—or anybody else, for that matter—is suspicious or not. I’ll spread the word that the Northeast Pack meeting at 11 p.m. is postponed. We need time to resolve the hunter attack, and I want to provide the pack with sufficient information. None of the guessing games that will set everybody half-cocked.”
“Thanks, Ridge,” Clawson said. “I appreciate the help.”
As much as I detested leaving my mate, Tori needed time to adjust. Smothering or making her feel like she was trapped or somehow robbed of her own free will would only make things worse. The best course of action was to see to my duties.
