13 All That I’ll Ever Need

13: All That I'll Ever Need

Posy

"Posy? Can we talk to you? We have something we want to tell you."

I smiled at my brothers and, when James held his hand, I grabbed it without hesitation.

"Of course!" I said.

As he led me away from the noise and laughter, Aiden came up on my other side, and I held out my free hand to him. He took it gently and looked down at me.

"I want to thank you for sending Poppy to do that absolution ceremony," he said quietly. "I was at such a low point, I was only living for Keeley. I don"t know what would have happened if—"

"I"m glad she was able to help you," I cut him off, not wanting to think about it. "And I"m glad you accepted that help and are healing."

"Healing slowly, but steadily. And you? How are you, baby sister?"

"Healing slowly, but steadily." I smiled up at him. "Having your mates" support really helps, doesn"t it?"

"It certainly does," he agreed with a gentle smile.

We sat down at a picnic table, and the boys held onto my hands. Their grips were loose; I could have pulled away at any time, and I knew they did that on purpose.

I squeezed their hands tightly in mine.

"We started something at Green River." With his free hand, Aiden held out his phone and showed me pictures of a large house with lots of windows and surrounded by flowers. "It"s a sanctuary for anyone who needs a safe space. The official name is the Logan and Naomi Everleigh Refuge, but everybody calls it Everleigh House. We hired Mrs. Miller as the director. Do you remember her?"

"My kindergarten teacher?" I smiled as I remembered that sweet lady. She had blindingly white hair when I was her student; how old was she now?

"Yep. She retired a couple of years ago and was looking for something productive to do."

"We started a scholarship, too," James added. "The Posy Anne Everleigh Award. Once a year, we"ll give it to a female pack member who has the grades and ambition to go to college, but couldn"t afford it otherwise."

"Wow." I blinked away tears, not expecting any of this. "I"m honored that you named it after me."

"Our mates came up with the specifics," Aiden admitted. "We told them we wanted to do something to honor Mom and her true mate as well as you. Keeley came up with the idea for the safe house, and Callie thought of the scholarship in your name."

"I"m proud of you both for making it happen." I hugged James, then swiveled and hugged Aiden. "Mom would be proud of you, too."

"It was the least we could do," Aiden murmured in my ear. As he released me, he kept his hands on my upper arms and looked me in the eyes. "Did you know King Julian is setting up a special task force to prevent alphas from abusing their power?"

"I did!" I grinned at him. "While we were at the coronation, I told his dad, Magnus, that they should, and he said the king already had a plan that he would share soon. Did he announce it already?"

"Yes," James said. "On Wednesday morning, every alpha in the kingdom got the royal decree. I"m surprised your mates haven"t told you already."

"Um, we"ve been distracted," I murmured as a warm blush settled over my cheeks. "We were on vacation at the beach."

"Oh, was that your secret destination?" Aiden grinned. "I wondered where they were taking you!"

"Yeah, the house was right on the beach! We went swimming and built a big sandcastle and collected shells and sea glass. In the evening, our wolves played in the water and chased seagulls. We all had so much fun!"

I skipped the part about going through heat. They didn"t need to know that.

"Did the decree go into details about this task force?" I asked. "I mean, the kingdom has always sent out undercover inspectors to check on packs, yet Alpha Briggs got away with so much. How will this program be different?"

"For one, the visits will be made at regular intervals, not in reaction to an incident. For another, the inspectors will stay at each pack longer and talk to more than just the upper ranks," James explained.

"And the inspectors will have the authority to immediately act on any abuse of power," Aiden added, "Before, they had to report back to the king or his advisors and prove their case, which slowed down the process."

"Or allowed it to get swept under the rug," James said darkly. "That"s what happened with all the complaints filed against Father."

I took a second to digest everything they told me, then asked who would make sure the inspectors didn"t abuse their power.

"Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?" James grinned when I frowned at him. "It means, "Who watches the watchmen?" The king does, but he also selected very specific shifters who are strong enough to protect themselves and others, intelligent and observant enough to ferret out issues, and loyal to him and their cause. They cannot be bought or corrupted."

"Are there such people?" I raised one eyebrow.

"Oh, baby sister!" my brothers chuckled together before Aiden said, "You and your mates are such people, so how can you ask if they exist?"

"Some of them were victims of abuse themselves," James said, his expression serious again, "and you can bet they will not take the job lightly."

"You would be a good inspector." With a big grin, Aiden nudged my arm with his elbow. "I hear your Ultimate Luna Voice isn"t something to mess around with!"

Blushing, I ducked my head.

"Quartz said I could probably stand against any wolf, and I did make the king stumble back a step or two, so I guess I can protect myself and others," I mumbled, "but I don"t know about the rest."

"You don"t think you"re intelligent and observant?" James chuckled. "You don"t know yourself very well if you think that."

"And do you believe you can be bribed?" Aiden asked. "Is there something someone can offer you that would make you betray others?"

"No. Well, not unless they had one of my mates. Then I"d do anything to save them."

"Good thing your mates are so powerful, then, isn"t it?" Aiden smiled. "Besides, it"s a moot point. The luna of Five Fangs has better things to do than run around the kingdom to check in on packs."

"Maybe once you and your mates retire," James suggested with a smirk. "I can"t see those alphas kicking their heels up and doing nothing in their senior years."

That gave me food for thought. I could almost picture it, the six of us with graying hair and surrounded by our children and grandchildren, only leaving Pippi"s Place to act as inspectors once in a while...

"We did one more thing, too." James cleared his throat. "We asked your grandma, Alberta, if we could move Mom"s remains to rest next to your father"s. We even had a headstone made for them."

Aiden held out his phone again and showed me a gray tombstone that read, "Logan and Naomi Everleigh" with their birth and death dates. It had a garland of flowers engraved along the top and going down the sides, and I knew that was for our mom. She"d loved flowers of all kinds.

"Oh." My eyes stung, and I folded my hands over my nose and mouth. "Oh, my heart."

"Are you okay with this?" Aiden asked, rubbing one hand up and down my back.

"Yes." I nodded and blinked away the tears. "It"s perfect. They deserve to finally be together."

"That"s what we thought, too," James said.

"Hey."

A heavy body plunked across from us, startling me, and my brothers" bodies tensed. I raised my eyes to see Cole had joined us, and I tilted my head in question.

"So, uh," my bear-like mate cleared his throat, "we"re playing football, and me and the boys want you on our team, so come on before they start without us."

"I don"t want to play football!" I held up my hands in protest. Those giants would squish me in seconds!

"Not you, shortcake," Cole snorted as he stood up. "Your brothers. You have a different job. Ethan"s on Liam"s team, so they have Millie and Leyly cheering for them. We need you to cheer for us."

"I"m sure Callie and Keeley will, too, if James and Aiden are playing," I said as I got to my feet.

"Yeah, but Evan"s cheering for Liam"s team. We want an equal amount of support."

"Where"s Eden?" I asked as the four of us walked along.

"She"s playing for Liam, which is why Evan"s cheering for them."

"What?" I came to a dead stop. "Eden"s playing football with the boys, and Evan is cheering with the girls?"

"Don"t get caught up in antiquated gender roles, baby sister." Aiden rolled his eyes.

"Anti-what?"

"It means any gender can do any activity, honey," Cole explained as he took my hand and towed me toward the open field where a dozen or so people had gathered. "A boy can cheer and a girl can be a quarterback."

"Oh. Okay. Yeah, you"re right." I grinned. "I bet Eden slaughters you guys!"

"Hey!" James and Cole growled, and Aiden said, "You"re supposed to be on our side, Posy!"

"Sure, sure." It was my turn to roll my eyes. "I wonder if Millie is going to play her trumpet. If so, I need something to make a lot of noise, too!"

"I got you, Posy."

I looked up to see Wyatt running up to me with a cowbell in his hand. With a grin, I took it and tried it out, wincing at the din it made as I shook it.

"Do I want to know why you even have this?" I asked as I raised an eyebrow at him.

He leaned down to whisper in my ear.

"I"m going to prank Ash with it on the way home, so don"t tell him you got it from me, okay?"

Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

I never should have made that fake poop.

But it so funny! Lark shrieked with laughter. They keep revenge-pranking each other andnever once suspect you start it all!

"All right, everyone," Liam called out before I could respond, "let"s get this game started!"

#

Despite Eden"s amazing throwing arm, my boys won.

It was hardly fair with a team of six alphas and a beta against a team of one alpha, a gamma, an omega, and four unranked shifters. None of my mates wanted to hear that, though.

By the time the game was over, lunch was served, and we piled up our plates with barbecue, potato salad, coleslaw, and a dozen other summer picnic foods. I managed to seat Grandpa next to Grandma, then I sat across from them and got them talking about Grandma"s butterfly garden. In moments, they were gabbing like old pals and gently arguing over the best way to deal with aphids - whatever they were - on rose bushes.

"Ladybugs, William! They"re a cheap and effective solution, and great pollinators to boot. Why use a toxic pesticide that might not even work when Mother Nature provides all you need?"

"Fair point, Alberta." Grandpa inclined his head gravely. "But how do I attract them to my garden?"

"Evan helped me order some on the internet. That was two years ago and they"ve been flourishing since. I have the company"s web address somewhere at home."

"You should exchange phone numbers," I blurted out, then froze when I realized I had hardly been subtle. Scrambling a bit, I added, "Then you can give him a call once you get home and find the information."

"A good idea, Posy." Grandma beamed at me and reached for her purse. Handing Grandpa her phone, she said, "Can you make yourself a contact, please? I don"t know how to do it."

Nodding, Grandpa put down his fork and carefully took her phone from her wrinkly, little hand.

Holding back my giggles, I looked down the table to see Camille watching their interaction with keen eyes, and I gave her a thumbs up. She put her hand over her mouth, but I saw the laughter in her eyes before Ethan leaned down and said something to her, drawing all her attention.

"What are you up to, little flower?" Mason whispered in my ear, drawing all my attention.

The smile I gave him was so big, it hurt my cheeks, and he snorted as he shook his head.

"Well, just smile like that if you get caught, baby. No one can resist your sunshine smile."

I liked that he said if I got caught, not when, so I rewarded him by standing up and throwing my arms around his neck.

"I love you, Mason!"

Then I gave him a big kiss right on the lips, complete with a loud, "Mwah!"

"I love you, too, little flower," he murmured with a half-smile, and I giggled at the pink stealing across his cheeks and tinting the tips of his ears.

"Me, too, cupcake!" my waffle demanded. "I want kisses!"

I laughed as Mason passed me down to him. Grabbing him by his ears, I pulled Ash"s face down and gave him a loud smacker, too.

"I have an unlimited supply of them, you know!" I teased him. "It"s not like I"m going to run out!"

"Good thing!" He tickled my ribs, making me giggle again.

As I was passed from mate to mate for kisses, hugs, and tickles, I couldn"t help but think of how blessed my life was now. Aiden was right when he pointed out that I was unable to be bribed. There was absolutely nothing on this earth I wanted other than what I already had.

#

We spent the rest of the reunion hearing stories about my parents, getting to know my family, and meeting my distant cousins.

Oh! I got to find out where Mr. Nibbles came from! James and Aiden had bought him for me shortly after I was born. Well, got Mom to buy him for me on their behalf. James smiled when he described how I"d drag the bunny around with me everywhere, even though it was bigger than me until I was about two years old, and Aiden explained I came up with the name Mr. Nibbles after I saw a hungry little mouse character on Tom and Jerry.

When it was time to leave Sunday morning, I was a little sad, but knew I"d see everyone again. I had a dozen new numbers stored in my phone and an invitation to visit Crystal Caverns any time. Grandma told me we were welcome to visit her whenever we wanted, too, and I was over the moon when I heard her ask Grandpa to come see her soon.

Even better, he said he would!

Camille and I exchanged secret smiles with Eden, whom we"d looped into our scheme, and we giggled together at how cute the old people were acting with each other.

All in all, though, I was ready to go home. We"d been away from the pack for ten days, and I knew my mates were worried about the paperwork and problems that had probably accumulated in their absence. Even though Dad and Papa told us things were fine, my mates wouldn"t be satisfied until they could see that for themselves.

As for me, I missed my friends. Emerson and Tyler and Peri and all the rest. School was starting in two weeks, and Peri was going to introduce me to some people beforehand. Plus, we had back-to-school shopping to do, which reminded me that I needed to plan out our meals for the coming week. That meant doing an inventory in the kitchen and writing a grocery list and—

"What. Is. That. Sound?!" Ash asked for the fifth time as we zoomed along the highway, headed for home.

"I don"t know, dude. Are any warning lights on?" Cole asked.

"No. None. Grr! I just got this thing like three months ago! Why is it rattling?"

"I think it"s the engine." Wyatt shrugged and turned to look out the window, but I saw his smug grin in the reflection.

Aha. So that"s where the cowbell got to! Covering my mouth with my hand, I swallowed down my giggles.

"But it"s practically new!" Ash yelped. "It shouldn"t have any engine problems yet!"

"Pull over," Mason told him with a sigh. "Something"s caught in the undercarriage, most likely."

"Nah, man, let"s just get home," Wyatt disagreed. "We"ll look at it there. I mean, it"s driving fine, right?"

"I ain"t going to be able to stand listening to that rattle - and Ash whining about it - for another hour," Cole grumbled. "Pull over like Mase said."

How are you going to keep from being found out now, Mr. Black? I linked Wyatt.

I might need an assist, shortcake. You up for some mischief?

What do I get if I help you?

The same thing you"ll get if you don"t—

No, no, no, I cut him off as he wagged his eyebrows up and down. I want something.

Oh? What? You know we"ll get you anything your little heart could dream of, cutie.

For one, I began, if the truth comes out about your prank, I had no part in it or knowledge of it.

Done. I would have covered for you regardless. What else?

Wait, I just remembered. Mason said you weren"t allowed to use me to play pranks on each other. I bit down on my bottom lip.

Cutie, you control you. Mase Almighty Price doesn"t. If you want to do it, do it. If you don"t, don"t. Besides, it"s just between the two of us, and I only need you to distract Ash for a few seconds.

And you won"t use it against me later? I felt like I was negotiating a major treaty here, but I could totally see Wyatt blackmailing me with this in the future.

I swear on the moon I won"t.

Okay. I"ll do it. I nodded, knowing he wouldn"t break that vow. No sane shifter would. But I still want my reward.

Which would be...?

I want you and Ash to keep your promise and teach me to drive, I said with determination. I don"t need a car of my own. At least not right away. But I want to know how to drive.

He fell silent, and I wondered if I"d offended him by pointing out he hadn"t kept his promise. Then again, it was Wyatt. Not much offended him. So maybe he was just thinking?

Cutie, he said at last, sometimes I think you can either see the future or have bugs sewn in our clothing.

Huh? I scrunched up my nose. How could I sew bugs in your clothing? It would kill them. Well, unless I looped the thread over their shells. But even then, they"d die the first time they went through the washing machine—

No, cutie, he giggled. Not those kinds of bugs. Never mind. But yes, we will teach you how to drive very soon.

As Ash pulled into a truck-stop plaza, Wyatt said that all I needed to do was tell Ash and Cole that I wanted them to accompany me inside so I could use the bathroom.

Take as long as you want, but I literally need only one minute to take it off and hide it in my toolbox, okay?

I agreed with a nod, then asked why Cole had to come, too.

Because he knows as much about cars as I do and would want to help. Jay likes racing, but never cared to learn about fixing engines, so he won"t get involved.

And Mason?

He"ll insist on standing watch while I crawl under there. See? Very simple.

I nodded. I had to go to the bathroom, anyway, so I wasn"t even lying.

And it would give me a chance to shake up the bottle of soda I was going to get Cole to buy for him.

#

"I don"t get it," Ash muttered as he turned into our driveway. "Vehicles don"t start clanking for no reason, then stop clanking just like that."

"Dude, count your blessings that Wy found nothing but a loose bolt." Cole threw his head back against the seat, obviously fed up with the same conversation for the last hour.

"I"m just saying—"

"Stop saying!" Cole snapped.

"At least you didn"t have to ride an hour covered in sticky soda!" Wyatt whined and glared down at the big brown stain on his shirt.

"Dude! I told you, I didn"t drop it!" Cole growled. "Someone at the store must have!"

Since I was tucked under Mason"s arm, I bent over and hid my face in his stomach to hide my grin.

Eden was one-hundred percent right; playing pranks was super easy when you were always underestimated.

"We"re home!" Jayden crowed before Cole and Wyatt could get heated.

Raising my head, I cheered when I saw our house, then furrowed my eyebrows at the gray car parked in the lot.

"Who"s here?" I asked with a little pout, not really feeling up to more socializing.

"Surprise, cutie!" Wyatt turned around from the front seat to grin at me. "Dad found you a great little car. Are you ready for us to teach you to drive?"

I whipped my head toward him so fast, my neck twinged. I gave him The Look, but he only winked at me, the little devil.

"It"s not a new car." Jayden leaned up from the back seat and laid his palm on my shoulder. "It"s an older, inexpensive model, but it runs well and starts reliably. We thought that it would intimidate you less to have something you could dent or scrape without it being a big deal."

"That was a good idea," I agreed with a grin. "When I crash it, I won"t feel so horrible."

"If you crash it, cupcake," Ash chuckled. "Not when."

"Yeah, honey. Think positive. Half of success is positive thinking."

Cole jumped out of the vehicle as soon as Ash put it in park. Running around the front, he came to my door and opened it and held out his hands. I smiled at him as he helped me down, then let him lead me over to the new-to-me car.

"Do you know what kind of car this is, honey?"

"A gray one." I shrugged. "Why?"

He cracked up, and I heard my other mates laughing as they joined us.

"It"s a 2011 Chevrolet Malibu LTZ. It has a four-star crash-test rating, handles easily, and is a quiet and steady ride," Wyatt listed as if he were filming a commercial.

"That"s good," I murmured, then went into a daze as he and Cole started tossing out more details.

"Dudes, you"re overwhelming her with stuff she doesn"t need to know," Jayden finally broke in.

My savior! I linked him with a grateful smile, and he winked back at me.

"It"s a good car for you to learn in, little flower," Mason summed up. "And once you"re ready, we"ll buy you any vehicle you want."

"Thank you!" With a broad grin, I gave him a hug, then went around and hugged each of my boys.

"Hahaha!" Ash pointed through the driver"s side window at something. "Dad added a little safety feature of his own, I see!"

We all gathered around and saw strips of white paper taped to the gauges on the dash behind the steering wheel. Both had NO! written in dark red letters. Looking over at Ash, I waited for him to explain.

"One"s the speedometer that tells you how fast you"re going. The other is the tachometer that tells you the RPMs, or how fast the engine is turning. See those orange needles? He doesn"t want you to make the tach go above two and a bit and no more than sixty-five miles per hour on the speedo."

"Sounds reasonable." I nodded.

"For you? Very reasonable," Wyatt muttered.

"What was that, my fifth star?" I pretended not to hear him to give him a chance to correct himself.

"Nothing, cutie. Let"s get unloaded and see what we can scrounge up for lunch, then you can have your first lesson."

"Yay!" I clapped my hands and ran back to Ash"s SUV. Tapping on the back door, I called out, "Waffle, can you open, please?"

"We"ll get it, baby." Mason put his hand on my shoulder and tugged me back a step as the door opened with a click. "You don"t need to be wrestling with any heavy luggage."

"Okay, but I want my beach art before you smash it."

"Wow. Your confidence in me is inspiring," he said with a straight face.

"Don"t feel bad, campfire. I"m not confident in any of you when it comes to breakable things." I patted his elbow. "That"s why I want to carry it myself."

He blinked rapidly for a few moments, then burst out with deep belly laughs that I rarely heard from him. Not sure what he found so amusing, I grinned as I watched him.

Not even two months ago, this man was like a statue carved from ice. Now, he smiled and joked and laughed, and I was going to do everything in my power to nurture his amazing growth.