Chapter 26 - Leslie

I press my cheek against Kyle’s chest, hugging him as tightly as I can. Seeing him fighting Jethro scared me more than anything has in my entire life.

There’s losing him… and then there is really losing him.

Kyle puts his hands on my shoulders and pulls back a little. His deep aqua eyes are full of joy, and he looks more relaxed than I’ve ever seen him. Somehow, I just know he won’t have nightmares anymore.

Especially with me curled up beside him, keeping his heart safe.

“Leslie,” Kyle says softly. “I love you, so much. I always support you… but please, don’t ever put yourself in danger like that again.”

I shake my head, my eyes filling with tears. “I had to. They were going to kill Lena. I couldn’t let it happen.”

“I know, my love. But if I lost you, there would be nothing for me to hold onto in this world.”

I wrap my arms around him again, squeezing him as tightly as I can. “I’m holding onto you,” I whisper. “So you don’t have to worry about that ever again.”

Slowly, I become aware of the others gathered around us. Blankets and robes are handed out from our stash at the camping ground so that we can make introductions without being completely butt-naked.

Shifters have to get used to nakedness, but it doesn’t mean I want to strut around all day completely bare—especially when we have new friends to meet.

There is a lot of talking, laughing, and hand-shaking as we meet the new wolves. A very tall, imposing man with bright blue eyes and pale blond hair approaches Bailey with his eyes lowered.

“I have to ask your forgiveness, Bailey,” he says. “Jethro approached us, begging for our help. There is a network of sorts amongst rogues, and we had loose connections with him for trade.”

“Black market,” Jack snaps.

The tall man looks at him and nods. “I make no excuses for myself. We survive as best we can, but we have never hurt anyone the way Jethro did. He told us that the Decker Pack had stolen his mate and it was a matter of honor to get her back. He also promised us food and clothing and cash. We live wild, far into the mountains, so this was a very valuable offer, as well as sounding honorable.”

“Let me guess,” Bae says. “He didn’t come through with your payment?”

He shakes his head. “No. He also promised to back us up as a second wave of attack in Silverton, but he never came. When we retreated, we found our supplies were not where he said they would be, and that’s when Sasha found us.”

“You weren’t hard to track,” Sasha says, coming out of the crowd. “I could tell by the damage done to the village that you had no intention of hurting anyone. When Kyle said he didn’t recognize any of you, I decided I had to get to the bottom of it.”

“I’m glad you did,” the tall guy says, smiling. He bows his head and extends a hand to Bae.

“I’m Elroy,” he says. “Call me Roy. I am no alpha… none of us recognize such a title, but most of the group look up to me. I thank you for your kindness, Alpha Bailey, and beg your forgiveness.”

“You have it,” Bailey says, grasping his hand. “By coming to help us in our time of need, you have proven yourselves to us. Whatever supplies you need to get through the winter, we will provide them to you.”

“Thank you,” Roy answers, his eyes widening in surprise. “That is extremely generous. I will accept, but only on one condition.”

“Name it,” Bae says.

“That you will let us rebuild Silverton. We are ashamed of the damage we did there, and would like to make repairs and support everyone there until the town is fixed.”

Bae smiles and tightens his grip on Roy’s hand. “Of all that has come out of this today, I am very pleased to have met a new friend and ally.”

“Me too,” Sasha says softly, shooting a glance at Roy, who blushes fiercely.

“Wait a minute,” I say, moving away from Kyle. “What damage? What happened in Silverton? I heard there was a fire, but I didn’t know the damage was that bad.”

Roy turns to me. “A few buildings were burned to the ground, unfortunately. No one was hurt, we made sure of that. We were only supposed to drive the main pack to the north end of town, where Jethro was going to be waiting to reclaim his mate. Then, all of us would leave. I figured out right away that something was very wrong.”

“So, my parents are okay?”

“Yes,” Kyle says. “I saw Gladys in her diner. She told me everyone followed the evacuation plan, so your family got out.”

“She was defending the diner?” I ask.

Kyle nods. “With a shotgun.”

“Oh, God,” I can’t help chuckling. “That sounds like her. Where is Decker?”

“He was on relay between the two towns,” Bailey says. “He’ll call in as soon as he gets near a phone.”

“If you will allow it, Bailey, we’d like to head to Silverton now to help with the cleanup,” Roy says. “People will be in need of help, and I want to get started as soon as possible.”

“I’m going with you!” Sasha says a bit too quickly. A few of us have to hide knowing smiles, realizing that Sasha most definitely has a thing for our new friend.

“I’m coming, too,” I offer.

Kyle tightens his grip on my shoulders. “No, Leslie, come with me—”

“I’d love to,” I answer, turning to face him. “But Silverton is my home. I haven’t even been back since the wedding. I need to see my family and friends, and help with repairs.”

“I’ll go with you.”

“Sorry, Kyle,” Bae says. “I need you here, at least for the first few days. We have had damage done in our town as well. You won’t be apart from Leslie that long, and I have work for you.”

Kyle nods. “Okay, I understand.”

He looks down at me, and for a moment, we just look into each other’s eyes. Emotion builds between us until Kyle bends down and kisses me. I kiss him back, holding on to him as tightly as I can.

“I love you,” I whisper through our kiss.

“I love you, too,” he answers. “Go to your family, then come back to me, and we’ll start our life together.”

I move a few steps away, still holding his hand. “I can’t wait,” I murmur.

He gives my hand one last squeeze, then lets me go.

“Okay, guys.” I look around at the other wolves. “Are we ready?”

Around me, everyone starts shifting, and the air fills with howls and barks again. I shift, too, and we run towards the forest. Just before I hit the tree line, I turn, pausing to look at Kyle one last time.

He smiles, pressing his fingers to his lips and blowing me a kiss. With a happy bark and a wag of my tail, I turn and follow the others into the forest.

The next few days are such a flurry of activity, it’s almost impossible to measure time. People and supplies are being moved around the town while the new pack work on rebuilding houses and cabins. There is a lot of cleaning to be done in places that didn’t get burned down, and supplies to be restocked.

Even though I fall asleep each night tired and aching from head to foot, my heart is happy in a way it never has been before. Being away from Kyle reminds me of how much it hurt when I lost him last time, but now I know I’ll never lose him again.

He was the one who broke my heart… and he was the only one who could mend it.

After about a week, I head into Gladys’s diner early in the morning, ready for another hard day’s work.

Gladys greets me at the counter with a big smile. “And what are you doing here?”

“I’m here to work, obviously,” I chuckle. “You got a problem with that?”

“As a matter of fact, I do,” Gladys says, folding her arms and glaring at me with a mock frown. “Look around, girl.”

I do, but I can’t see anything strange. “I can’t see anything wrong.”

“That is exactly my point!” she declares. “The place is pretty much back to normal. There’s no reason for you to be here anymore.”

“Trying to get rid of me?” I ask wryly. “Admit it, you just can’t stand my company.”

Gladys laughs, coming around the counter to wrap me in one of her big, warm hugs. “It’s so good to see you happy, girl,” she says. “Get on outta here and go to your mate. It’s where you belong.”

“Thank you,” I answer. “For everything.”

“I knew it would all come good,” she says, stroking my hair. “You just had to be patient.”

I squeeze her a bit tighter. I can’t express how grateful I am that she took me in and gave me a safe place while I mourned for Kyle and what might have been. Without Gladys to welcome me into the diner every day, I might have completely given up on love.

And then I wouldn’t have been ready when he came back. I’d be closed off, shut down. Gladys helped keep love alive in my heart.

“Go on now,” she says, shoving me away. “You can take my car. That man of yours is waiting for you.”

I hurry out the door, jumping into Gladys’s little car and heading out of town towards Silver Meadows. The drive makes me remember my road trips with Kyle and how I can’t wait to go on another one.

We never got to try out that lovely hotel. Next time, we will.

Before I know it, I’m on the outskirts of town, cruising down the looping streets towards Kyle’s house. When I get there, he’s waiting outside for me, waving the second he sees the car.

I’m laughing as I throw the door open, and his arms are around me before I can even get out. For a few seconds, we get tangled together in our eagerness to kiss, and then he wraps his arms around my waist, grips me hard, and hoists me up to join his lips to mine.

“Welcome home, my love,” he whispers.

Happiness rings through me, and all I can do is kiss him back. I stroke his unruly dark hair with one hand, clinging to his waist with the other as the kiss deepens.

“We better get inside,” he says, laughing.

“Why?” I ask, my eyes wide with innocence. “What could possibly happen?”

Kyle laughs and pulls me close again, kissing me quickly.

“Believe it or not, I’m not worried about that. My neighbors are pretty far away, and I don’t think I’d mind if you hurled me to the ground right here and now and had your way with me.”

“Don’t tempt me,” I answer, wiggling my eyebrows up and down. “You know how impulsive I am. How can I resist if you’re going to tempt me with such vivid imagery?”

Kyle laughs and pulls on my hand. “Come on, I’ve got something to show you.”

I let him lead me inside, eager to see what the surprise is. I’m expecting a nice dinner or something similar, so I’m truly shocked when we get into the living room.

“Oh my God. It’s my chair!”

“Yup,” Kyle answers, grinning. “I remember how much you loved it, and I realized that we still hadn’t made arrangements for your stuff.”

“You’re just a terrible husband,” I say, shaking my head. “Utterly woeful.”

“I’m aware,” he says, nodding. “A complete disgrace. But I’m going to make it all up to you, I promise. I got all the stuff from your old place and—”

“Kyle,” I whisper, putting my fingers across his lips. “Shut up.”

I stretch up and kiss him, pulling his head down to me. His arms go around my waist, stroking my back until he runs his hands across my ass and gives me a hard squeeze on both cheeks.

“I missed you,” he mutters.

I giggle, leaning into him. “You missed my ass?”

“Yes…” he says, rubbing my butt and squeezing it again. “How could I not?”

This just makes me giggle even harder, and I kiss him fiercely, gripping his shoulders and pressing my body against his.

“I need you to know something, Leslie, in all seriousness.”

“Yes?”

“ You are my home now. I was so miserable over this last week—I think I needed it, though. I needed to feel how much it would hurt to be away from you.”

“Oh, Kyle—”

“No.” He shakes his head. “Now I know, don’t you see? I know I can’t live without you, and I’ll never let us be separated ever again.”

For a moment, I can’t say anything. I just stare into his face, my hand on his cheek.

“Leslie?”

“Shut up, you fool,” I whisper. “Shut up and kiss me.”

Kyle smiles and leans down to comply.