10. Oliver

Chapter 10

Oliver

"Oh, there are so many..." I look out over the pumpkin patch with awe. It must be at least an entire acre, maybe more, dedicated just to pumpkin plants.

"The pumpkins are hard to see right now." Lucas stares out as we stand near the edge of the field. He kneels next to one of the big green plants and lifts the leaves so we can see the pumpkin beneath. "Every plant has one though, and by the time we reach the harvest season, they'll be at least double this size.

"Then when the first frost comes through, the plants will die back and leave just the pumpkins sitting on the ground ready for us to gather and take to town. We save some of the best of them to collect seeds for next year. The rest get sold or made into pies and soups and whatever else everyone thinks up."

"I've never seen anything like this," I admit. "We've never actually grown pumpkins before. Our garden back home is pretty small. Definitely nothing like this."

Sebastian sighs. "Do you miss it?"

I look solemnly out over the pumpkin patch and think of the home I left behind. I wish things had gone differently, but...

"Yes." I nod. "I don't regret leaving. I still believe it was the right decision, but…I miss it. I miss my family, my pack. I miss my brother and my friends. While I was on the road, I didn't really have time to think about it. I was too worried about where I was headed next or how I was gonna get enough money to buy food or whatever. I didn't stop to think about everything I'd left behind. But now that I'm here with your pack, it's all I can think about."

"We're glad you're here," Sebastian says quietly.

I look over at Lucas who offers me a warm smile before chuckling. "I mean, I still wish you were actually the wolf we'd been after. Would've been way less of a pain in the ass if you had been."

"Sorry to disappoint." I smile and laugh softly. "Now that I know why you were after him, I feel like I kinda got in the way a little."

"Nah, it's okay." Lucas shakes his head, but there's something in his expression that makes me think the mistaken identity hurt him more than he's letting on. But we're still practically strangers, it's not like I've got any right to ask him what he's really thinking.

"Come on," Sebastian says, clearly trying to keep things moving in a positive direction. "There are a few more places you haven't seen yet. We've got a beach volleyball court that we installed last summer, and it's one of the best additions we've had in a long time I think."

"Sure, lead the way." Letting Sebastian show me around last night and this morning has kept me distracted from everything else that's been going on in my head. There are too many stray thoughts, and my wolf isn't making things easier. Right now, walking between Sebastian and Lucas, it's acting fairly calm. It still keeps whining from time to time, but at least it's not going completely crazy trying to get me to go find one of the four alphas that scooped me up and brought me here.

I still don't fully understand what's happening. I've always been able to trust my wolf, and it wasn't wrong when it told me that I had nothing to fear from these alphas.

Sebastian's been friendly toward me from the beginning. Lucas didn't talk much on the way back, but he seems to be warming up to the situation a bit. I haven't talked to Theo much at all, but I did catch him looking at me from across the hall during breakfast this morning. There was something in his eyes that made me feel, I don't know…desired?

Then there's Roman.

He's been standoffish toward me at best. He doesn't want anything to do with me it seems. Not that he's required to want to do anything with me. I don't even know where my thoughts are going with this. How can I worry about what other wolves are thinking about when I can't even get my own thoughts in line?

I'm still lost in thought as we enter a clearing with a wide flat expanse where a big sandpit has been installed. The volleyball net is stretched out roughly over the middle, giving a fairly even division of the playing field.

"It's pretty popular, the beach volleyball area," Sebastian explains. "There are a few groups that have tournaments during the summer. They all compete for a pot of prize money."

"Sounds fun." I smile. "I can't say I've ever played it. It was never a thing in our pack."

"No worries." Sebastian grins back and nudges me playfully. "I'll teach you the basics."

"Oh, you don't have to do that." I laugh as I politely try to decline. "I'm not really that into playing sports. But I'd love to watch you guys play."

"You're in luck." Sebastian grins as the three of us approach the sandpit. "Lucas and Theo were one of the best duos in the tournament last summer. They came second only to Roman and me."

"We were a close second," Lucas reminds him.

"Hang on, I'll get them down here and we'll give you a demonstration of our skills," Sebastian says, whipping out his phone before I can reply.

"It's not necessary, really." I smile, trying to reassure him. "I don't want to make a nuisance of myself."

"It's not a nuisance," Sebastian promises. "We've been needing to get some practice in anyway. Why not a friendly scrim between last year's top two teams? It'll be the first time we've played since fall, I think."

With that, he starts typing in a text as he walks toward the sandpit alone.

"Is he always like this?" I ask with a light laugh as I stand beside Lucas.

"Seb's the hothead of our group," Lucas says with a shrug. "He's always been spontaneous and likes doing whatever he feels like at the time. Usually, he's not quite this pleasant about it, though."

"It seems like, I dunno, like you guys have known each other a long time. Did you grow up together?"

"Pretty much," Lucas shrugs. "We've all been running around the compound since we were pups, getting into all sorts of trouble."

I smile at the thought of the four of them as pups. "I bet you were a formidable quartet."

"Everyone was pretty much convinced that we were going to be the next generation of elders," he says with a somewhat forlorn look in his eye. "Now I think Roman might be the only one they still feel that way about."

I want to ask him what changed, but I can sense the shift in his mood. I'd rather not push him to talk about something that seems like it could be painful for him.

Thankfully, Sebastian quickly saves the day.

"Hey! They're on their way," he calls out from the direction of the sandpit. "Come help me clean up the court before they get here!"