Page 106 of Power Shift

Sitting in the back lot of my apartment building, I shake my head at her subtle guilt-tripping. My mom has always had a habit of laying it on extra thick, so this isn’t that surprising. Back when I first moved out of the pack house, I would come visit every weekend. Things have changed over the course of the last couple of years, and I don’t really have an explanation for that. I love my mom and dads. Life is just . . . hard sometimes. Nothing is ever as simple as you’d hoped it would be.

I rub my lips together while butterflies fill my stomach. “I’ve met my scent matches.”

“What? Briar Meadows! Excuse my mouth, but are you shitting me right now? When did this happen? Are you bringing them home with you when you come?”

It’s impossible not to laugh at her eagerness.

“Slow your horses, Mom.”

“You had a chance to tell me when my horses were slow, and you didn’t take it, so now you get my fast ones.”

“Oh, god. You’re killing me with these sayings.”

“Don’t try distracting me!”

“I’m not, you’re just being too antsy!”

She takes a very vocal few breaths. “Okay, I’m better now.”

“You sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure. Out with it, Briar.”

“Fine, since you askedsonicely,” I tease, adjusting the heat I had blasting so I don’t sweat to death in here. “There are four of them.”

Her squeal is so high-pitched it makes my ears ring. “Four! Oh, sweetie. I knew you’d find them. It’s a Meadows specialty. Did you know that both your grandma and great-grandma had scent-matched packs?”

“Yes, Mom. You told me that all the time growing up.”

“Well, I’m saying it again. I remember when you used to stay up past your bedtime asking Rodger if he thought you’d find a pack like ours.”

“He told you about that?” I ask, cheeks hot.

“Of course he did. At first, he swore up and down that he’d never allow it, but I know he eased into the idea the older you got.”

Rodger is one of three alphas in my mom’s pack. We’ve never known which of them was my biological father, and honestly, it’s never mattered to me. They’re all my dads. Growing up as their only child meant that I got too much attention, good and bad. It was a lot easier to get approval for things I wanted but a lot harder to hide when I messed up.

“Well, I hope he’s eased into it enough because they’re not really the types to let anyone tell them whether or not they can be with someone,” I say.

“Is that so? They’re tough, then. That’s good. You need tough.”

“What does that mean?”

She hums. “Nothing bad, sweetie. Just that you can be a bit . . . shy at times. You don’t like causing waves, and that means that you can let others walk all over you. Having a pack who isn’t afraid to stand up on your behalf isn’t a bad thing. They say we find mates who fit with us perfectly.”

“You’re right. There have been a couple of those times already.”

I purposely leave out the most recent example of that from two nights ago when Sadie’s mates showed up at her place. Without Ronan there with me, there’s no telling if things would have gone the way they did. Knowing he was there to stand up for not only me but Sadie and Clover, too, was everything I didn’t know I needed.

I even saw him hanging around outside of my apartment building last night. While he never said anything to me about it before or after, I recognized him and the bike he sat perched on. The only explanation I have for his secret appearance is that he still felt uneasy after our time with Thorne. If I find him there again tonight, I’ve already promised myself that I’ll go down and invite him inside. I should have done that last night, but when he didn’t tell me he was there, I didn’t want to be clingy, thinking he was there to see me. Now, it seems ridiculous to have thought that way.

“And? Did you say thank you, at least?” Mom asks.

“Before and after, since you’re so curious.”

“Oh, don’t give me that. I’m just excited for you. What are their names? How old are they? What do they do for work? Do they live in Rayton?”

“You’re asking too many questions at once again, Mom,” I chastise lightly.

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