Page 54 of Black Moon

I could get used to this.

For now, though, it would be the smart use of my time to get some things accomplished.

First, Brook.

I threw on some sweat pants and a T-shirt, and jogged over to the clinic, checking my phone as I went. No messages. No new notes on the door.

Inside the clinic, I ran straight into Brook’s mother, almost literally. She threw her arms around me. “I knew you’d bring him home.”

“It was the reporter,” I denied. “Colt. He’s the one who found Brook and got him out.”

She shook her head as she pulled back, wiping her eyes with her palms, but then hesitated, taking a sniff of the air.

Oops. Maybe I should have showered, and not just wiped us down with a washrag.

She gave me a secretive little smile and a nod. “Yes, all right, Alpha. I’ll thank him personally when he’s feeling himself again.” Then she glanced around, as though she needed to check for spies, and asked, “Is there anything you need in the meantime?”

I actually took a moment to consider. I had very little doubt that there would be a pie from Rowan in the kitchen. I was sure we had some almond butter and other healthy snacks available. Other than that, we had the room we needed, and Colt had brought his things.

I shook my head. “No, I think we’re covered, Mrs. Morgan. I do appreciate the offer though.”

She leaned up and kissed me on the cheek. “I’m glad something good could come of this.” Turning back to the clinic to look at the sleeping form of her son, still on bed number two, she sighed. “I hope your young man stays. Brook talked about him. I think it would help. He needs...he needs someone who doesn’t know him.”

“I’ll have to talk to him, but I’m pretty sure he’ll be willing to stay with Brook. For a while, at least. He’s got a life back in Washington, but he’s a good man.” I squeezed her shoulder in an attempt at comfort. What I knew of Colt told me he’d be happy to help, but that didn’t mean he was willing to move indefinitely to the boonies. I needed to remind myself that as much as Rhonda and Brook.

Brook looked so small, wrapped into a ball around his little sister, face buried in the ruff of fur around her neck. He’d never been one of those tiny, delicate omegas like Skye, but right now, he looked breakable.

Broken.

No. He was one of the strongest, steadiest people I knew, and we would help him get through this. We were his family. He would make it.

And if I ever laid eyes on Maxim Reid again, I might just tear his throat out. It was easy to say that, since literally nothing had been required of me in the name of pack defense. But I also hadn’t ever been a man of violence. I was a doctor, for fuck’s sake.First, do no harm, right?

Maybe they’d been dragged to the surface by Colt’s heat, but my alpha instincts snarled at the notion of not hurting Reid.

We would rip out his heart.

Rhonda squeezed my hand. “You should go see to your young man. He’ll need you. Remember, lots of complex carbohydrates. It’s a marathon, not a sprint.”

I didn’t think I’d ever gotten advice on carbo-loading for sex before, but it didn’t seem like a terrible idea. I nodded to her. “Call me if anything changes. Or if any of you need me, for anything—”

She waved me off toward the door, so I went. I had complex carbohydrates to hunt down. And pie, because I simply wasn’t willing to disappoint Colt.

28

Colt

Iwoke to the sound of a softly shut door, wrapped up in Linden’s blanket, the shreds of it from his clawed fingers sticking to my sweaty skin. I had his pillow pulled against my front, my face buried in softness that smelled like alpha.

My alpha, my wolf provided.

The thought alone was dangerous, because Linden was perfect. If I gave into instinct, I’d weld myself to his side, but my life was back in Washington. My career and family were there. What could I do here in Grovetown that was worth giving up everything I knew?

Well, except set up camp in Linden’s cozy bed and fuck every night and most mornings.

Damn it all, in the middle of my heat was not the right time to try and make my brain function. Not a time for big decisions. I shut my eyes and buried deeper in the makeshift nest.

But along with the pure smell of alpha, there was another scent wafting in, warm and sweet and spiced and—oh! I perked up, pushing on one arm to sit, a smile on my face before I had time to calculate it.

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