Chapter 4

CRESSIDA

4

Between Jack sending me to Timber Ridge and Ramsey suggesting there was a better place for me to go, the path I'd taken to get here was an odd one, but I had zero complaints about the destination. The land that The Wilderness Pack claimed as their own was downright gorgeous. With the forest surrounding a bunch of cabins, I could easily see myself getting more comfortable than I'd been in years.

As I stepped out of my SUV, I enjoyed the quiet surrounding me. The nearest town was a bit of a drive away, and I'd barely seen any other vehicles on the road since I had driven through it. If Thora hadn't given me specific directions, I wasn't sure I would have been able to find the place since I was in the middle of nowhere and my maps application on my phone hadn't recognized the address for the alpha's cabin.

Which just made it that much more perfect to me. Being somewhere that strangers stuck out like a sore thumb would make it difficult for anyone to look for me without warning.

Ramsey and Thora offered to let Keane know that I was headed up here, but I wasn't sure which one had called until he opened his door, stepped onto his front porch and called, "Cressida Crawford? You're earlier than Ramsey thought you'd be."

I nodded. "Yeah, I was up, so I figured I would hit the road. I hope that's okay."

"It's fine." A woman followed him out and beamed a smile at me. "Atlas thinks he should be awake whenever the sun is up, so you're not pulling us out of bed. He already did that hours ago by jumping on his daddy. The day that boy figured out how to climb out of his crib to crawl into our room was the last night of good sleep either of us has had."

Keane placed his palm on his mate's stomach with a smug grin. "He's just getting us ready for when our next little one will keep us up all night."

"Aw, you're expecting another?" I flashed them a smile as I climbed their front steps. "Congratulations."

"Thanks." Laina waved me inside their home, tugging her mate into the kitchen. "Want some coffee? Now that Atlas is down for a nap, I'd love a cup more than anything, but mine will have to be decaffeinated while you two get all the good stuff."

Taking the seat at the small table that Keane pointed toward, I nodded. "I'd love some."

After she made a cup for each of us, adding cream and sugar to hers and mine, they joined me at the table. Keane's eyes assessed me over the rim of his mug. "Ramsey said you needed a place to lay low?"

I'd gotten away with not giving her too many details yesterday, but I knew the same wouldn't be true with him. Keane was an alpha with a pack to protect, along with his pregnant mate and son. Taking a sip of my coffee, I collected my thoughts while deciding how much to say.

Although I hadn't shared a lot with Jack when I asked him for permission to be in his territory, I found myself wanting to give Keane a better explanation. "There are some things I can't tell you because they're secrets my parents taught me to keep from anyone except for the man I'll eventually take as my mate. But you need to know that just by existing, I've always been a target for unscrupulous people, and that will never change. I left the last place I called home because someone was in town asking about me. I have no idea how they tracked me there, but I've basically been on my own for the past two years. It isn't safe for me to be with my parents because my mom is also at risk. We needed to split up to increase the odds of us staying safe."

"You poor thing," Laina whispered, reaching across the table to pat my hand. "Two years is a long time to be all by yourself."

The sympathetic gleam in her eyes was almost my undoing. It took nearly all my willpower to stem the flow of the tears that welled in my eyes. "It hasn't been easy, but I'd rather be lonely than someone's captive. Or worse."

"Fucking hell," Keane muttered, shaking his head. "You shouldn't have to look over your shoulder like this. You can't be more than nineteen or twenty."

"I turned eighteen shortly before we had to run," I confessed.

Keane fisted his beefy hands, his knuckles turning white. "Ramsey was right to send you my way. There's nobody I hate more than people who try to hurt defenseless women and children."

Considering all the self-defense training my dad had given me, I wouldn't call myself defenseless, but I appreciated the sentiment. "From what she told me, it sounds as though this isn't the first time you're taking in a loner with trouble nipping at their heels."

He shrugged. "She wasn't even the first."

Laina leaned her head against Keane's shoulder. "My mate might shift into a big, scary grizzly, but he's really a big softy on the inside."

My heart filled with longing for what they'd found together, and I laughed softly as he grumbled, "Only for you, baby."

"And our cubs." Wrapping her fingers around his wrist, she shifted back to place his hand over her belly.

"Them too," he agreed with a nod. "But with everyone else, all I've done is the right thing. Just like any other alpha should do since it's ingrained in us to protect the vulnerable."

"See, a softie," Laina whispered, winking at me.

Seeing them interact with each other loosened the lingering tension in my body. The past two years had been rough for me, never feeling as though I could truly let my guard down. But between the tranquility of my surroundings and the goodness that emanated from Keane and Laina, I thought it just might be possible that I'd found my new home. One where I could stay a good long while. Maybe even a place where it would be safe for my parents to join me, at least for a short visit.

"My mate might think I'm a softy, but as a shifter, you know that's not the full truth, or else I wouldn't be an alpha." His grizzly swirled in his eyes, and my animal whinnied in acknowledgment of his strength. "If anyone comes here looking for you, they'll pay with their lives. Same as what happened to the men who fucked with Ramsey. My pack and I won't let anyone take you."

There was no missing the sincerity of his vow, and I heaved a sigh of relief as tears welled in my eyes again. "You have no idea how much that means to me."

Cuddled against her mate's side, Laina sniffled. "Everyone deserves a place to call home, where they're safe."

I nodded as a tear slid down my cheek. "I've really missed having that."

"There's a cabin past Booker's that nobody is using. You're welcome to stay there if you'd like," Keane offered.

"It'll need to be aired out." Laina wrinkled her nose. "And there aren't any supplies in the kitchen, so maybe you'd like to have breakfast with us first?"

Anxious to make my way up here, I had skipped breakfast this morning. So I wasn't surprised when my stomach growled. Especially with what was inside the cooler in my car. "Thora and Ramsey showed up at the hotel I stayed at last night and made sure I had enough food to last me for at least a couple of days. But I wouldn't turn down anything before I go check out the cabin if you were already planning on making something."

"You good for breakfast this early?" Keane asked, his palm cupping his mate's rounded belly.

"I think so." Her skin lost its color, almost turning green as she pressed her lips together before mumbling, "Just don't make bacon. I don't think my stomach can handle the smell of it yet."

Keane stood and strode over to the pantry. While he was grabbing her crackers, I got up and gave her a hug, drawing on the healing powers my kind had been blessed—and cursed—with. I could only use them like this for very small ailments. Luckily, morning sickness was one of them.

"Wow," Laina breathed. "I'm not sure what just happened, but I'm suddenly feeling like I could eat an entire cow."

Handing her a cracker, Keane widened his eyes. "Really, baby?"

"Yeah." She licked her lips. "I know you got rid of all the beef in our home because even the thought of it has made me feel like puking over the past month, but maybe one of the guys has some we could borrow? Or Thora left something in their freezer that we could thaw and heat? Like that amazing stew she made a couple of weeks ago that my mouth really wanted but my stomach couldn't handle."

"You're in luck." I beamed a smile at her. "One of the containers in the cooler in my car is stew."

She clapped, her eyes lighting with happiness. "Yummy."