Chapter 13
Carter
The morning sun was warm against my shoulders, not too harsh yet, the kind of day that almost tricked you into believing things could be simple.
I stood on the edge of the worksite, arms folded across my chest.
I watched my pack mates hammer and haul, laughter ringing out between them as they put their backs into the clinic renovations.
The old clinic had been a ruin when we first started. A hollow shell of what it used to be, overgrown with weeds and memories of neglect.
Now it was beginning to look like a place of hope.
Beside me, Devon shifted his healer’s kit from one shoulder to the other, his gaze tracking the wolves as they worked.
He’d been helping sketch out plans with some of the younger ones, pointing out how the light ought to fall in the treatment rooms.
Where herbs could be stored, how water should be routed.
Devon looked at it with such focus that for a heartbeat I could almost forget the weight that hung over all of this. I let myself enjoy the sight.
His profile in the morning light, the way his lips quirked when someone made a joke he overheard, the gentle patience in his posture. My wolf preened just having him close.
Still, duty pressed in, as it always did.
“Any word yet?” I asked quietly, not taking my eyes off the half-built walls.
Devon turned his head, brows drawn. “Word?”
“From the Healer’s Circle,” I clarified. “About your inquiry. Anyone interested in coming here?”
For a second, hope flickered in me, even though I knew better. But Devon only shook his head.
“No responses. Not yet,” Devon admitted.
The words landed heavier than they should have. My chest tightened. Of course there weren’t. What healer in their right mind would take a chance on Thornebane?
Not after our history. Not after the scars Adrian and his family left on our name.
I exhaled slowly, trying not to let the disappointment show, but I knew Devon saw it anyway. He always did.
My gaze drifted back to the workers. They were making progress, yes, but what was the point of a clinic if we had no one permanent to run it?
Was I chasing smoke, trying to build something no one wanted to tend?
A light touch brushed against my arm. Devon.
“Come on,” Devon said softly. “Let’s go for a walk.”
My wolf stirred at the invitation, restless in my chest. The truth was, I’d been on edge all morning, pacing inside my own skin.
Maybe he sensed it, maybe he just knew what I needed before I did. Either way, I nodded.
“Alright,” I said.
We slipped away from the bustle of hammers and voices, heading toward the tree line at the edge of the compound.
The path wasn’t long, but it wound gently upward, taking us past tall pines and maples just beginning to turn toward autumn. The air smelled of earth and resin, grounding.
Devon walked close, his hand brushing mine every so often, like he was testing whether I’d take it. My wolf wanted to grab and never let go, but I kept my restraint, matching his pace instead.
“Do you really believe there’s a healer out there willing to come to Thornebane?” I asked finally, the words slipping out harsher than I meant.
Devon glanced at me, then back at the trees swaying above us.
“I’m here, aren’t I?” he said simply. “It’s not about any healer. It’s about the right one. You just have to wait until the right fit comes along.”
The right fit. My chest tightened, my wolf practically shouting the answer. That’s you. You’re the fit. You’re exactly what we need. What I need.
But I bit the words back, swallowing them like they burned. I couldn’t throw that weight on him, not when he’d already given us more than anyone else ever had.
Instead, I asked, quieter, “You don’t feel pressured being here, do you? If you ever do, you need to tell me.”
Devon stopped walking and looked at me steadily, eyes dark and calm like still water. “I chose to be here, Carter. No one forced me. Not Cooper, not your kids, not you. Me.”
Something in his voice, firm and certain, settled the restless edge of my wolf. He wasn’t saying it to soothe me. He meant it. The simple truth of it unraveled something inside me.
I looked at him, really looked. His chest rose with each rising breath.
The stubborn line of his jaw, the warmth in those eyes that had already seen too much of my pack’s damage and hadn’t turned away.
“You’re… more than I expected,” I admitted, the words slipping past the defenses I usually kept up.
Devon smiled faintly. “Good more, I hope.”
I couldn’t help a quiet laugh. “Yeah. Good more.”
We started walking again, the trees thickening around us until the compound was out of sight.
A clearing opened ahead, a ridge that overlooked the valley below. From here, the forest stretched endless, rolling hills painted green and gold by the season.
Beyond the treeline, patches of farmland broke up the wilderness. Cornfields standing tall and rustling in the breeze, their golden tassels swaying like a sea under the sun.
The contrast struck me, wild and tamed side by side, just like the push and pull inside my own chest. Devon stepped closer to the edge, tilting his head back to take it in.
“It’s beautiful,” Devon murmured.
I watched him instead of the view. The sunlight caught on his hair, brushed his skin golden.
His lips parted slightly in awe, and all I could think about was how badly I wanted to taste him again, to claim him right there with the wind carrying his scent to me.
My wolf shoved hard against the leash I kept it on, claws scraping the inside of my chest.
“Devon,” I said, voice a little rough.
He turned, brows lifted, and something in my expression must’ve given me away because his breath caught.
In two steps I closed the distance, my hand finding the back of his neck, pulling him against me. His mouth opened under mine like he’d been waiting for it, like he’d been wanting it as badly as I did.
The kiss was slow at first, tentative, then it deepened, heat sparking and spreading until my wolf was howling its approval. His fingers curled into my shirt, tugging me closer, and I let him.
Hell, I wanted to climb inside his skin, keep him so close no one could ever take him from me. When we finally broke apart, both of us breathing hard, I rested my forehead against his.
“You make it impossible to think straight,” I confessed.
Devon’s lips brushed mine in the ghost of another kiss. “Maybe you don’t need to think all the time, alpha.”
A growl rumbled from my chest, not of anger but of want. My hands slid down his sides, memorizing the shape of him, the way his body fit against mine.
We stayed like that for a while, just breathing each other in, until the sharp edge of my desire settled into something quieter, steadier. Comfort.
Devon leaned back, studying me with those healer eyes again. “Feel better?”
I gave a reluctant smile. “Yeah. You’re good at that,” I told him.
“At what?” Devon asked.
“Making me forget the world doesn’t always bend the way I want it to,” I answered.
He chuckled. “Guess that’s a skill.”
We lingered a little longer on the ridge, shoulders pressed together, watching the forest sway with the wind. My wolf settled too, finally at peace just being near him.
I knew reality waited for us back down the path. Problems, responsibilities, pack politics. But for that sliver of time, standing there with him, it didn’t feel so suffocating.
I walked Devon to his next class, the kids already waiting in a loose circle outside the old meeting room.
They straightened the moment they spotted him, their chatter quieting into eager silence.
Devon gave me a quick smile before slipping inside, and I lingered in the doorway, unwilling to move on just yet.
For this first aid session, Devon showed them how to splint a pretend broken arm with nothing more than sticks and cloth.
His voice carried easily, calm and certain, and the kids leaned forward with wide eyes, hanging on every word.
Even from where I stood, I could see the way his hands moved. Devon was steady, precise, and patient in a way that held their attention better than any stern command ever could.
The sight made me smile, but it also twisted something sharp in my chest.
Watching him like that, so gentle, sure, and exactly what we’d been missing, it hit me harder than I expected. Once again, I didn’t want to leave.
My wolf sure as hell didn’t want to leave.
It wanted me to stay rooted right there, to watch over him, to bask in the quiet sense of belonging Devon brought with him like a second skin.
But I forced myself to. There was still business to deal with, and if I wanted Devon to feel safe here, then I had to keep proving this pack could stand on its own two legs.
By the time I finished with patrol reports, a supply delivery, and a quick meeting with two older wolves about border agreements, I was wrung out.
My head pounded faintly, a reminder that I hadn’t eaten since breakfast.
Still, instead of heading to the cafeteria, I found myself back in my office, staring at the phone on my desk like it might bite.
For minutes, maybe longer, I just sat there, elbows braced on the desk, running a hand down my face. I knew what I wanted to do.
My wolf had been pushing for it all damn day. But knowing it and doing it were two different things.
Finally, with a growl at myself, I picked up the phone and dialed Cooper’s number.
He answered on the second ring. “Carter.” No pleasantries, no pause. Just my name, clipped and tight. Then, before I could even open my mouth, he asked, “Is Devon alright?”
Of course. A muscle ticked in my jaw. Part of me bristled at the implication that Cooper thought something might’ve happened to Devon under my watch.
That Thornebane was still a place where violence and danger were expected. The old pride, the one I’d fought to bury since taking over from Adrian, stirred in my chest, ready to snap.
I took a long breath through my nose, forcing myself to stay level. Cooper had every right to worry. Devon was his healer. If our roles were reversed, I’d be just as protective.
“He’s fine,” I said, keeping my voice calm, clipped. “Better than fine. He’s been teaching the kids, helping the injured, supervising the clinic renovations. He’s made himself invaluable in such a short time.”
Silence hummed on the other end of the line. I could almost picture Cooper, expression hard, weighing every word.
“Good,” Cooper said at last. But the tension hadn’t left his voice.
I leaned back in my chair, staring at the ceiling. This was the hard part.
“Listen,” I began, “I wanted to talk to you about something. A favor.”
Another silence. “Go on.”
My fingers drummed restlessly against the desk. I hated how hesitant I sounded, how it felt like I was treading a line between alpha and beggar.
“The clinic’s not finished. It’ll take at least another week or two to get it operational.
And the training sessions Devon’s been doing have been more effective than I expected.
He’s reaching wolves I haven’t been able to.
Hell, some of them are actually excited about learning. I’d hate to cut that short.”
Cooper’s voice sharpened. “Carter—”
“I know.” I cut him off before he could say no. “I know Devon belongs to your pack. And I’m not trying to keep him from you longer than necessary. But if you’d consider extending his stay, just a little… it would mean a lot. To my pack.”
And to me. The words almost slipped out, but I bit them back so hard my jaw ached. I couldn’t admit that. Not to Cooper. Maybe not even to myself.
The real reason I wanted Devon here had nothing to do with training or construction. It was selfish. I wanted time. Time to figure out what the hell this pull between us meant.
But I couldn’t say any of that. Not to another alpha.
Not to the one who trusted me with his healer. So instead, I leaned on the excuse that was still true, even if it wasn’t the whole truth.
“We need this. They need this. And Devon seems willing to keep helping. If you’d allow it,” I said.
There was a long pause. So long that my wolf prowled under my skin, ears flat, tail lashing. I hated the uncertainty, hated waiting on another alpha’s word, hated that it mattered so much.
Finally, Cooper sighed. “I’ll think about it.”
The tension in my chest didn’t ease, not even at that.
“That’s all I ask,” I said.
“Carter,” Cooper said, his tone softening only a fraction. “You understand why I have to be careful. He’s important to us.”
“I understand,” I said tightly. More than you know.
“Good.” There was a click, and the line went dead.
I set the receiver down slowly, staring at it like I could will a different answer out of it.
My wolf was restless, pacing, wanting to break free and go to Devon, claim him, keep him. But I stayed rooted to my chair, forcing myself to breathe.
Extending Devon’s stay would solve some problems, at least for now. But it wouldn’t solve the biggest one.
That every day he spent here, I wanted him more. Every smile, every touch, every damn look across a room, it all just dug me deeper.
And when the day came for him to leave, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to let him go. I pressed the heels of my hands to my eyes, trying to chase the thought away. One problem at a time.