Chapter 5
Vanessa
Mary had been right, I’d needed a break. Much to my surprise, and anyone that knows me, I took two full days off before heading back to work. I’d spent several hours of that looking for the boys, but there was absolutely no sign of them anywhere.
“How can three little boys just disappear like this? It doesn’t make sense,” I told Kelsey when she stopped by for lunch with Mary.
“I know you’re worried. We all are, but I assure you Kyle has everyone on the lookout for them.”
“Where could they have gone? It’s been cold overnight. I really fear the worst, though I’m trying hard to be optimistic and believe they’re okay, wherever they are.”
“I hate to think of any of our children out in this cold, but there’s not much more we can do that isn’t already being done. If you have any ideas, please let me know.”
I sighed. “I know you guys are doing everything possible. It’s just so frustrating. And I miss my little buddy.”
I glanced over to the empty seat at the children’s table as they ate. Cam should be there with them.
“You really need to just take your mind off things,” Kelsey said.
I snorted. “Easier said than done.”
“What are you doing this evening?”
I bit my lip not wanting to tell her I was going to drive around looking for the boys again.
“At this point, that’s not going to help, and you know it,” she said, giving me a stern look.
“What?”
“Driving around aimlessly looking for them. I love that you care so much Vanessa. Your love for children is limitless. Let the experts do their job. I have to believe they will be found. Three little boys don’t just disappear.
Someone has either taken them in, or they’ve found a place to hole up and stay warm.
When they’re hungry enough they’ll come out looking for food. ”
I nodded. “I know you’re right.”
“So instead, why don’t you join us for ladies’ night.”
I scoffed. “Your little book club?”
“People are still calling it that? We gave up even pretending to choose a book to read ages ago. Now it’s more like a wine night.”
“I don’t really drink.”
“It’s not a requirement, though strongly encouraged by some. Come on, Vanessa. Just relax for one night and have a little fun.”
“I’ve heard about some of your ladies’ nights. I’m not sure it’s my kind of fun.”
Emma had gotten so drunk one night that she’d gone into the Crate and found her mate then announced to everyone that she was taking him home to have sex.
Okay, so that happened more than once and might just be an Emma-thing because she really didn’t have a filter on that mouth of hers. But still.
“Please?”
“Are you really asking and not ordering me?”
Kelsey feigned shock. “I would never order you to attend. That’s an abuse of Alpha powers.”
I stared at her until she cracked. We both knew damn well she’d command me if she’d wanted to bad enough.
“I wouldn’t,” she insisted. “Besides, I don’t have to, because you’re coming.”
I felt the punch of Alpha power hit. After all these years, I was used to it by now. Half the time, I genuinely believed she had no idea she was doing it.
“Kelsey!”
“Oops. Sorry. I didn’t mean for that to slip out. But you are coming, right?”
I rolled my eyes. “When and where?”
She squealed. “It’s going to be so much fun having you there.”
As lunch ended, she texted me the time and location, then said goodbye so Mary and I could get back to work.
Kelsey and I had never exactly been close but I would consider her a friend.
In truth, I had a lot of friends like her, the sort that I forgot or didn’t bother talking to unless our paths actually crossed.
Come to think of it, I was a terrible friend.
Or maybe I was just comfortable enough in my own skin to like spending time with myself.
I wouldn’t call me an introvert exactly. But after spending all day with my kids, I tended to like the quiet and calm of being home alone.
That wasn’t going to help find me a mate, as my parents always reminded me, but it made for a content life.
I was happy. I had a great job. And I was surrounded by people I loved every day.
Sure, they might be two feet tall ankle biters, but I wouldn’t trade my job for anything in the world, not even a mate.
To most, I was practically a spinster by now.
I laughed to myself at the thought.
I wasn’t that old. Humans were still marrying and settling down in their mid-twenties, plus a decade or so. I grimaced just thinking about it. How had I reached my mid-thirties and remained a virgin?
As far as I was concerned, the blame lied solely on Kelsey Westin.
My parents hadn’t been true mates, so I’d thought nothing of taking Kyle as a mate.
But Kelsey had shown me just how much better a true mate could be.
Sure, she’d unleashed her unnatural witchy Alpha powers on me and commanded me to stay away from her mate, but it was more than that.
I’d seen first-hand the difference it made in their relationship and I wanted that for myself.
Unfortunately, if my true mate were here in Westin Pack, I’d know it by now. That meant if I wanted to actively seek him out, I’d have to travel, or start praying regularly that Westin Force would drag him back here for me.
I grimaced. No, they brought home survivors and victims of horrible things. I didn’t want to even think about something that horrific happening to my mate.
I shuddered at the thought.
No, it was best to think of him off on some exotic adventure somewhere just waiting for me to cross paths with him, just as I was waiting for him.
With a sigh of resolution, I got back to work.
“Okay, who wants to help me for story time?”
Eager hands flew up all around. I smiled, feeling more content with my life than usual and knowing that this was exactly where I was meant to be.
*****
I sat in my car outside the Alpha’s house. I couldn’t believe I had agreed to this. Kelsey had commanded me and that was the only reason I was here, I lied to myself.
A tap on my window startled me. I jumped in my seat.
Shelby was there. She motioned for me to roll down the window, so I did.
“You have to actually turn the car off and come inside for ladies’ night.”
I scowled. “I know that.”
“So why are you sitting out here all alone?”
“You don’t seem surprised to see me.”
“I’m not. Kelsey texted everyone to let us know you were coming.”
“Everyone?”
“Yup. So come on. You weren’t going to bail on us, were you?”
“I was considering it,” I admitted.
“No. Why?”
“It feels like I’m party crashing or something. I don’t want to intrude on your night.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. Everyone’s excited to have you here. The more the merrier.”
More cars pulled up and others started walking towards the house.
“How many more are we talking?”
Shelby laughed, but this time she opened my door and dragged me out even though the engine was still purring.
“Let me at least turn the car off,” I grumbled.
She loosened her grip long enough for me to do that, but I was already halfway to the house before I remembered the window was still down.
I looked up into the night’s sky. I could see thousands of stars in the sky. The air was chilled, but it was a clear night with no threat of rain. At least the pizza I’d gotten for dinner wouldn’t go bad. I hadn’t yet eaten it due to the nervous butterflies in my stomach.
“Relax Vanessa. It’s not like you don’t know everyone here.”
She was right about that. Once we were inside, there was only familiar faces filling the room.
Kelsey was talking to her sister-in-law, Elise.
I ignored everyone else and made only vague hellos in passing as I made a beeline for her.
“Elise? How are you? I didn’t expect to see you here.”
“Hi Vanessa. It’s great to see you here.”
“We were making bets on whether you’d actually come or not,” Emma yelled from across the room.
I shook my head but smiled.
“I’m out twenty dollars,” she confessed.
“Emma! You bet against me coming?”
“I do know you well, but I’m also happy to see I was wrong.”
It was then that I realized the rest of the room had gone quiet and were all staring at me.
There had been a time in my life when I had thrived on having everyone’s attention, but that had come to a crashing halt when Kyle had not chosen me as his mate. It had been a big piece of humble pie back then.
Once I was the center of Pack gossip for all the wrong reasons, and having everyone pity me, well, let’s just say I didn’t enjoy all that attention anymore. Things like that were hard to just let go of and forget.
Turning back to Elise, I tried to ignore the stares in my direction before I got inside my head and began to question my sanity in agreeing to come here.
“So, Elise, how are you?”
I hadn’t seen her since her little girl was born.
“I’m great. How are you?”
“Good.”
Well, that was awkward, I thought to myself, looking for opportunities to slowly back away.
I wasn’t sure what I thought she’d say, but “I’m great” and nothing else certainly wasn’t it.
She grinned. “Wanna see pictures?”
“Yes,” I blurted out.
Elise was already pulling out her phone as she proudly showed me pic after pic of the little girl she never knew she wanted.
“Wait, is she a red head?”
“Just like her father,” she proudly admitted.
“She’s gorgeous, Elise.”
“Thanks. We certainly think so.”
“Is her name still top secret?”
She laughed. “No. It’s Everlyn Kelsey, or Little-E as Patrick calls her.”
“That’s adorable. Congratulations.”
“Thanks.”
Elise wasn’t all that much younger than me and she’d just had her first baby after more than a decade being happily mated. No one thought they were going to have kids, and then one romantic getaway to Paris and they returned with the surprise of a lifetime.
My romantic loving heart adored their story, but it also gave me hope that just maybe my biological clock wasn’t about to run out just yet.
“Vanessa, would you like a glass of wine?” Christine asked.
“She’s not drinking,” Kelsey told her.
The room went quiet again and everyone stared at me with open curiosity. A few mouths dropped.
“What?” I asked, a little louder than I should have. It was a reactionary response. The older I got the more I despised being the center of attention.
“Why aren’t you drinking?” Shelby asked, and then her eyes involuntarily looked down to my waistline.
“No! I’m not pregnant!” I blurted out. “I just don’t like wine.”
Everyone burst out laughing and went back to their conversations.
Kelsey was still laughing even while trying to apologize.
“I swear I didn’t know it would come out sounding like that.”
I glared at her.
“Really. I didn’t even think about that.”
“You were just so adamant that she couldn’t drink,” Christine said.
“We spoke about it earlier when I convinced her to come over.”
“Commanded. I think that’s the word you’re looking for.”
“Kelsey, you didn’t,” Christine said.
“I didn’t mean to do it. She was free to ignore it.”
I knew she was right, but still, I’d felt that jolt when she’d accidentally set her Alpha powers free.
“It happened,” I insisted.
Christine laughed. “Well, we’re all glad you’re here. Would you like anything else to drink?”
“Just water is fine.”
“Sure, I’ll get it for you.”
Seeing Christine here with Kelsey was surreal. I’d heard they were on friendly terms, but not serving people at Kelsey’s house friendly.
When Kelsey was going through the mating trials, everyone expected me to be first in line to challenge her.
And I would have too, if I hadn’t gotten cocky and showed up at Kyle’s office one fateful day.
She hadn’t even known she’d had powers but in her anger and need to protect her mate, she’d zapped me so good that I’d given allegiance to her right on the spot.
Well, maybe not immediately, but pretty soon after.
I was pretty sure I was the first person to realize she was a she-Alpha. We all embraced that now, but at the time, it was something to be feared and she’d scared the shit out of me. After that, I’d refused to challenge her, but Christine was a bit more stubborn.
She’d gone through the challenge, and while a worthy opponent, she hadn’t stood a chance against Kelsey. Fortunately for Christine, Kelsey had chosen to forgive her and save her life.
The mating challenges were supposed to be to the death, but as soon as victory was declared, Kelsey had shifted and demanded medical attention for Chris. We were all watching and had thought her dead, but our now beloved Pack Mother had other plans.
Christine had found her own true mate not that long ago. Perhaps that should be another glint of hope for me, too, because Chris and I were around the same age. Granted, her mate was significantly younger. I was happy for her, but wasn’t sure how I’d feel in her shoes.
“Here you go,” Christine said, shoving a bottle of cold water in my hand.
I took a long drink of it and then tried to relax and enjoy a bit of girl time.