Page 13 of Lightning Strikes

“No worries. Are you hungry?” I nod, stepping back so that he can come inside. His broad shoulders barely fit through my door. I move my gaze away so that he can’t catch me ogling him.

He starts pulling out paper-wrapped meat from an insulated bag he brought with him as he gets comfortable in my kitchen. “I thought we could barbeque tonight.”

“Perfect. I’m going to go grab the kitten and feed her. Come on, Max. Let’s go find your friend.” I whistle, listening to his nails clacking against my floors as he trots behind me. We step into my bedroom and I look at the box sitting on my bed and smile. She’s just now waking up, digging her tiny claws into the blankets and towels surrounding her. I scoop her up and kiss her nose, she immediately calms when she scents me. I kneel down and let her and Max get acquainted before I head into the kitchen to heat up a bottle.

“Wow, she’s getting bigger… How hard is it going to be to find a home for her with her being…”

I chew on my lip and wink at him. “I’m going to keep her.”

He stares at me with wide eyes and blinks. He removes his hat and runs his fingers through his wild brown hair. “Well, I wasn’t expecting that. Will you be taking her into work on the weekends?”

I nod as I sit down at the island to feed her. “Yeah, I can keep her in my office until she’s bigger and vaccinated. I’ll just have to use treats for her to follow me around until she gets the hang of everything.” I turn my head to watch Mac as he prepares the meat and vegetables. I follow him with my eyes as he heads out to the back porch and prepares the smoker in stunned silence. He knows me too well… I never would have offered to keep a pet unless something was going on with me… Honestly, if Adam and Carolina didn’t show up today to fuck with my head, I probably would have stuck to the plan to adopt her out. Now I want someone to love as I deal with their bullshit for the next few months.

I have no idea when she’s due… But going off of when she announced her pregnancy, I’d say she’s around three months along, halfway through a shifter pregnancy. Three months to go… Three months to formulate a plan to accidently be away from the pack at that time…

Max is laying beneath my feet with his head on his paws and the kitten passed out. What I wouldn’t give to join them in another nap. I cover my mouth with my shoulder as I yawn, standing up to pad down to my bedroom to place the kitten back in her box so that I can make myself a massive pot of coffee. After I sit down on the couch and chug my bean water, I hear Mac step in, cocking a brow at me.

“You going to tell me why I scented Adam and Carolina on the front porch or will I have to drag it out of you?”

I sigh and roll my eyes. “I wanted to put it out of my mind. They were inviting me to their mating ceremony and trying to demand me to be there. And apparently they had it in their little minds that I would be the one to deliver their pup.”

He snorts, turning back to the kitchen to grab a beer from the fridge. He sits down beside me and throws an arm around my shoulders. I tell him about how Carolina and Adam acted when I mentioned them finding a midwife, sooner than later, and we tilt our heads together and laugh. I’m so glad that I at least have Mac and his parents. I haven’t seen them in a while… I should bake something and bring it by, let them meet my new kitten to cover up my true emotions. They remind me of how much I’ve lost, and it hurts being around them.

“I don’t know… I’m not sure how much longer I want to stay here in Prescott for, to be honest. Between my parents, the pack, and just exhaustion in general dealing with the clinic… I’m either ready for a damn vacation or maybe to try out another pack. A larger one in Alaska…”

He tilts his head, staring intently into my eyes. “You know I love you, right?”

I spin around on the couch so that I can look into his light green eyes and frown. “Yes…”

“I go where you go… Even my parents would follow you, Ang. You’re not alone and I apologize if that if how you’ve felt lately…”

I straighten my spine, narrowing my eyes at him. I pluck at my pants and look away from him. “Is this about why you’ve been so shifty about work? What’s going on? You never talk to me anymore… I’m not sure if it’s something I did, or if you’re busy seeing someone? I would never ask for you to choose, Mac. You deserve love and happiness, not follow me around the globe if I decide to leave the pack.”

He sighs and licks his bottom lip. “I was assigned my new rookie partner a while back. It’s been a few months but she’s still causing problems. We went out one night in the early weeks andmighthave slept together after an adrenaline-filled night. She hasn’t let up since. Thinks that I’m her boyfriend and threatens to go to our captains, to the chief if I don’t commit to her.”

I chuckle and cover my mouth as my body shakes. “Oh. My. Mac! You are so fucking stupid. You need to record her behavior and blackmail bullshit… show it to your superiors. So, what, you keep fucking her to shut her up?”

He sends me a droll look, closing his eyes. “No. Only the once and I keep her at bay with how busy I am outside of work. I placate her, telling her that we can’t do anything like that while on the clock. Or off the clock since, one, she’s a rookie, two, she’s my partner, and three, it’s going to be an HR nightmare.” He shrugs and I steal his beer, stealing a long sip. His golden skin is flushing a bright pink and I smile widely. He’s adorable.

“So why haven’t you just talked to me about it? Why change the subject or stay away from me when I ask about work?” I frown. I know he would tell if I was jealous, which… Yeah, I guess I am. Mac was neverminebut I still feel like he is. I sigh internally.

“It’s just everything that happened with Adam… I didn’t want to throw a woman in your face. Even if she is turning out to be batshit crazy.”

I chew on my lip, nodding slowly. “Then why offer yourself up to me?” I smirk at him as he pales and rolls his eyes up to my ceiling.

“It’ll always be you and me, Ang. Even if you ended up mating that piece of shit, I would still be here for you. For anything.” He winks at me and he sits straight up and growls under his breath. “I think we should get out of here. It’s been three years and there’s nothing for me here either. I wouldn’t mind being a beta in a larger pack.” That would be great for him… Our pack is so small that there really isn’t a true hierarchy here… Just the alpha and ‘enforcers’. Then there are the females that sit around cleaning and cooking all day. I’ll never understand that… Even human women vote, work, and are the heads of their households nowadays.

I really have dodged a bullet not mating with Adam.

“I can always sell the clinic or keep it as an investment and just hire more vets and a manager…” I mull that over as I close my eyes and start on a list. Melissa can manage the techs, Cassie can manage the vets… I just need to hire a business manager, an accountant, maybe a lawyer… Two more vets and another tech should suffice. I’ll have a meeting after out little celebration.

“I can see those wheels spinnin’, what’s your plan?” I lay it out for him and he nods and smiles. “Sounds good… Let me know when I can submit my letter of resignation at the department. The sooner the better… Get me away from that psychotic bitch.”

I send him a look and slowly smile widely at him. “What’s her name?” I whisper as I crawl onto his lap and lick his ear.

He groans. “Laura Szabo.” I kiss his cheek, jumping back, landing on the balls of my feet and cross my arms over my chest with a frown on my face.

“Okay, hang out here and feed the kitten in about an hour. She will need a wipe down and new bedding by then, too.” I wave him off and step into some shoes, grab my purse, and I run out of the cabin, ignoring his shouts. I climb into Big Blue and head into town. I pull up outside of the police department after driving for about thirty minutes, not even letting the beautiful sights of Prescott to slow me down.

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