Chapter 5

Lily

I froze, staring at the sight before me. Thomas looked pale. His hair was standing up in every direction possible and his left cheek was bleeding. My heart nearly stopped as I realized where we were and what likely had happened.

"Thomas, you tell me right now that you did not go out in this storm."

His eyes darted to Cole, who just shrugged, and then back to mine.

"We had a few wolves go missing. I had to find them. I had to."

My jaw clenched. It was a good thing our bond hadn't fully sealed because he did not want to know what I was thinking just then.

Knowing we were being watched by a third of our Pack, I plastered a smile on my face, linked my arm through his and dragged him back to our suite to get him cleaned up and presentable again.

Once we were inside the suite and I verified the dampener in there was turned on, I glared at him.

"What were you thinking?"

Sam walked into the room without knocking. He froze, looked from me to Thomas then back to me.

"I'll come back later."

Before either of us could respond, he fled like a chicken.

I turned back to my mate. "Seriously, Thomas. What were you thinking?"

"I was thinking that three of our wolves were missing in this mess, Lil. What was I supposed to do? Just sit by and hope they were okay? I couldn't do that. What kind of Alpha would that make me? What kind of mate? What sort of example would I be setting for our daughters?"

I sighed. "Fine. I get it. But you can't just run off into a storm like that without even telling me."

"You would have tried to talk me out of it."

"I would have talked you out of it," I corrected.

"Which is why I didn't tell you."

He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me to him. My big belly kept me from snuggling into him the way I wanted, but I loved how his fingers dug into my hips. It was so possessive and turned me on immediately.

Thomas sniffed the air and shook his head with a knowing smirk on his face.

"This doesn't change my protest," I argued.

"Noted."

He kissed me slowly at first and then more passionately.

"I'm okay, Slugger," he whispered.

"I know. But I was scared."

"I'm sorry I worried you."

"Did you find the missing wolves?"

"Yeah. Hewitt and friends. They were most likely drunk and stumbled into shelter three."

"Hewitt? You risked your life for that fool?"

"He's one of our wolves, babe."

I sighed. "I know, but I don't have to like it."

"I really am okay, Slugger."

Pouting, I looked up at him. "I know. I can see that. But you scared me. And I may have sort of freaked out a bit when no one would tell me where you were."

"Just a little?" he teased.

"Just a little."

"It's okay. Everyone is accounted for. Everyone is safe. That's all that matters."

I knew this man better than I even knew myself most times. His words were specific and there was worry in his eyes.

"How bad is it?"

I knew he didn't want to tell me. He hated worrying me, but I had to know, and I knew he wouldn't lie to me.

"It's bad, Lil. There is going to be a lot of damage. I haven't been able to bring myself to ask about the cattle yet."

"It's going to be okay, Thomas. Like you said, we're all fine and that is the most important thing. The rest can be repaired or replaced."

He nodded. While I knew he would never admit to being afraid of anything, not even to me, the look in his eyes told me it was more than just worry.

"It's late. Why don't you try to get some sleep? I'll have Sam come in and check on you before bed."

I rolled my eyes. Sam was going to suffocate me before this kid arrives.

"Fine. But you'll lay down and rest at least?"

He clearly saw the annoyance on my face and knew me well enough to know I wasn't going to get much sleep tonight.

"I'll try. But no Sam."

"No Sam."

He splayed his hand across my belly and lovingly rubbed it before bending down so he was face to face with it.

I ran my hands through his messy wet hair.

"You let Mommy get some sleep tonight and stay put in there. I mean it. Behave little one." Then he kissed my stomach before standing to full height and kissing me again.

"I need to do a walk through."

I cringed. "You may want a shower first. You're likely to terrify everyone looking like that."

He chuckled. "I can always count on you to keep me in my place."

"You know it. I'm not good at sugarcoating things."

"Unless you really want something," he teased.

"That's flattery. It's entirely different."

Thomas went to take a quick shower. A part of me felt guilty about it. While there were toilets and sinks with running water in the main room, the only shower in the shelter was in our suite. Likewise, clean clothes were stashed down here for our little family where everyone else only had the clothes on their backs and whatever they managed to carry in with them.

It was a perk of being the Alpha. I was grateful for it all and having grown up as an Alpha's daughter, I really didn't know much else, not really. But I could see the differences clearly in times of crisis. No matter what happened, my family would be protected and safe. The Pack would literally starve before we went without. It was humbling to say the least.

I had a king-sized bed, same brand and comfort as the bed in our bedroom, while they slept on cots or on the hard floor.

There was nothing fair about Pack life. Our status determined our station in life. And while Thomas and I would gladly give our lives to protect any one of the numerous wolves, we also know there's an entire Pack ready to protect us at all costs.

When I calmed down and really thought about it, I couldn't blame him for going out on the hunt for one of our wolves, even Hewitt. It was part of his job. But the thought of anything happening to my mate made me crazy.

"Mama, is everything okay?" Cammie whispered.

Thomas had already taken off to shower and I was just standing there thinking through everything and trying to calm my inner wolf down.

I put a smile on my face as I turned to my eldest daughter.

"Everything's great. Everyone's accounted for. Dad had to see to it, and I got a little worried, but we're all just fine. Go back to sleep."

"Are you coming?"

I hesitated but nodded.

It didn't take long after climbing into my king-sized bed for all four of my daughters to join me. I missed having Thomas next to me, but otherwise, all felt right in my world.

*****

Unfamiliar sounds woke me from my sleep. It took me a moment to get my bearings straight as I looked out remembering we were in the shelter.

The storm!

I shot up quickly, causing too much pressure on my bladder, which had me running for the bathroom.

"Where's your mom?" I heard Thomas ask the girls.

"Bathroom," Audrey informed him.

Thomas knocked on the door. "Lil, you okay?"

I finished my business and opened the door.

"For crying out loud, I just had to pee. It happens. I have the equivalent of a bowling ball sitting on my bladder."

"The storm has passed. We're heading up to assess the damage. There could be some needing to stay in the shelters a bit longer."

"I'm coming."

I followed him out to the main room. People were still waking up. They all looked exhausted.

Thomas waited for me at the bottom of the steps and then the two of us took the lead heading up and out of the shelter.

Outside, the wind had died down and the rain had stopped. The sun was even beginning to peek out through the clouds, but my heart nearly stopped at my first look of the damage caused by the storm.

Trees were down and debris was everywhere. It was a mess.

My heart sank.

"Shit. This is worse than I thought," Thomas confessed as he ran a hand through his hair.

We walked mostly in silence through Collier, taking inventory of the extensive damage. It was devastating to see. Tears pricked my eyes as we walked through downtown Collier.

Thomas must have sensed how upset I was because he slowed down and moved to my side, wrapping an arm around me.

"It's going to be okay," he assured me.

I nodded. I had no words to speak. Me. Speechless. That wasn't a common occurrence. I always had something to say about everything, but this was too much.

"Let's check out the house and if it's okay then you should rest. We'll bring the girls home too. Okay?"

"Thomas, I'm fine," I tried to assure him.

"Slugger, we're just taking an assessment right now and making lists of the damage."

"I need to know how bad it truly is."

I wanted to beg him not to keep me in the dark. No matter how hard it was and how much it hurt, I needed to see it.

"Okay," he conceded.

Linking our hands together, we walked side-by-side. There were others with us, too. Cole and Lizzy had notebooks to document everything. She would work with the insurance companies to get the money needed to rebuild or repair. Luke and Sydney were there too. Luke was going to oversee the construction where needed. Together we were going to rebuild our community.

As the day went on, people were out everywhere helping to clear debris and put temporary fixes into place where damage occurred.

A sob escaped me as I watched them all work together. This was more than a community, and it was more than friends and family coming together. This was Pack. My Pack. I had never felt prouder to be Pack Mother of Collier than in that moment, and I was overwhelmed by the emotions of it all.

"Slugger, are you okay?" Thomas asked.

"Yes. I'm just so proud of our Pack right now. We could be wallowing in despair but instead, look at them, Thomas. Everyone's pitching in. Those whose houses are fine are making meals and putting up those displaced. It's just really amazing to witness."

"We're Pack. This is what we do for each other."

"I know, but . . ." I sniffed. "It's just amazing to witness it all in action."

We hadn't even checked on our home yet. It wasn't important.

The Alpha House was fully intact. Cora and Zach had taken the girls to stay with them there. Actually, they had all their grandkids, or at least the ones living in Collier, for a big cousins' party with plans for a sleepover. Knowing my girls were safe and happy through this was a huge burden lifted from my shoulders.

"Since we increased the overall insurance coverage for everything in territory, this should be an easy claim. They aren't going to like it, but I will see to it that they pay and not shortchange us for anything," Lizzy insisted.

"Honestly, as we're removing the debris, the actual damage is not as bad as we originally thought," James insisted.

"He's right. It looks worse than it is," Luke confirmed.

"And I'm happy to report that your house is virtually untouched," Wyatt assured us.

"Oh, thank God," I blurted out without meaning to.

Thomas hugged me. "That's certainly a relief. Do we have a count on how many people are being displaced by this storm?"

"Five families so far," Luke said.

"That's it?" I couldn't even believe it.

"So far," he reiterated.

"The country club has been cleared. No building damage, so we're instructing people in need to head there now. No one wants to stay below ground any longer than is absolutely necessary," Sydney informed us.

"I should head over there to assist and see what individual needs we can meet," I said.

Thomas grinned and kissed me. "Good idea. We'll swing by there when we're ready for a break."

"Okay."

I turned to leave but Syd yelled after me.

"Wait up, Lil. I'm coming with you."