Page 9 of Lightning Strikes

After we hang up, I call Mac and leave him a message when he doesn’t answer about him adopting Maximus... Luckily Cal dropped off that check the other day so his adoption is free. I chew on my lip and decide not to do dinner with the human… I think last night was a decent ‘goodbye’ and shouldn’t throw myself at him again since he’s leaving. It ain’t called a one-night stand for nothin’.

Might as well block his number since I’ll never see him again… And so I don’t have to feel bad about not calling him. I feel bad, a little, but until I’m completely over Adam… I shouldn’t be dealing with other men anyway. It’s too soon. I shut off my phone and go back to sleep.

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The weeks pass in a blur and I’m utterly exhausted. Mac was finally able to get the necessary documents to open up Blake’s house and it was completely empty. No car, no clothes… no furniture or appliances. He obviously moved away and probably got a new job, but why not put in a notice? Or even have a conversation about it? At least I have Melissa, Dr. West and Czar, and our new tech, Willow. I now only work weekends or on call, so I spend my weekdays gardening in the forest behind my cabin and I’ve been redecorating my cabin.

I’ve planted fruit trees that will grow over time, but all of the vegetables will be ready in a few months. Carrots, lettuce, kale, pumpkins, and broccoli to start. I’ve never been the best at gardening but figured I could handle this small plot.

I keep my parents’ door closed and locked, but everything else I put in storage as I refurnished the dining room, living room, and my bedroom. The kitchen is in decent condition so I just made it more my own with a brown rug, some gold and bronze décor, and fun animal magnets on my white fridge.

I’m about to step into the shower, drained from this long week, when I hear someone knock on my door. I groan internally as I wrap myself in a pink satin robe, slowly padding down the hall to throw open the door with a scowl on my face.

I close my eyes and intake a deep breath before I punch our alpha in the face. “Alpha. How can I help you?” I speak evenly and step out onto the porch, closing the door behind me so that he doesn’t try to schmooze his way inside.

“You haven’t been around or coming to any pack meetings… I’ve been worried about you.” His stormy gray eyes are serious, concerned… and his black hair is pushed back away out of his face. His too-perfect masculine features are frowning at me in ‘worry’ and I sigh.

“I’ve been working a lot. Now that I hired two new vets and another tech, I’ve been able to get some work done around the cabin, working on that old community garden plot, which I imagine you already know through the gossip. I told you I wouldn’t be around ever since…” I look away from him, staring out into the forest. Now is the time that I wish I had neighbors. Everyone in the damn pack is meddlesome and would hopefully rescue me from this conversation.

He grunts, crossing his arms over his chest, sending me a deadpan stare. “You need to be around other shifters, Ang. I know you worry about your… healing, but you’re old enough, strong enough to control it by now. What’s the real reason?”

I snort and turn my face back to him with a glare. “You know damn well what my problem is,Adam.You destroyed me. Publicly. Then were dumb enough to beg me to continuefucking youbecause Carolina is a dead crow in the sack. That’s the mother of your child!” I throw my hands up in the air, shaking my head at the idiot.

He purses his lips and leans back against my front door, blocking me from going back inside. “I didn’t love her; she was a mistake. I loveyouand didn’t mean to hurt you. That baby should be yours and mine.”

I shake my head, biting down on my tongue so that I can finish this bullshit up amicably and get back to my shower and nap. “Look, we can be pleasant in front of the pack, but I’m tired, Adam. Tired of this mundane life, tired of the stares everywhere I go, and don’t even get me started on yourmate.So try to just imaginewhyI avoid going anywhere I will see the two of you together. We were going to announce our decision to mate soon, and then Carolina shows up and jumps on you and cries about how happy she is that you finally knocked her up.Finally,Adam. She broke into my house, while we were naked in bed together.

“Who the fuck knows how long you were playing us both, or who else was involved. I’m over it all, and still getting over the hurt and betrayal. So, no. I will not be attending any pack meetings. Can I get back to my shower now?” I’m fuming and he just stands there with a raised brow, waiting for my tantrum to end.

“Very well… I did and do love you, Angela. I’m a young alpha and it was a lot of pressure. I made mistakes and had no idea she wasn’t drinking the tea. I was serious about mating you, and only you. I still haven’t offered that to her.”

I shrug, holding my breath as I wait for him to move so that I can slide past him. I don’t turn back around as I slam my door and lock it for good measure, then crawl into bed and place a pillow over my face instead of taking a shower.

Fuck him. Fuck this pack. Fuck Blake for abandoning the clinic. Fuck Cal for being such a good guy that I still feel guilty about ghosting him.

I never got around to blocking him, so when I turned my phone back on the next day, I had a few voicemails and text messages from him.

None of them were possessive. None of them were cruel. Every single one was him checking up on me to see how I was doing, if I was okay, if I needed anything, if I wasn’t feeling well.

Why couldn’t I love a man like him, and not a piece of work like Adam? Well, aside from the fact that he’s human… It wouldn’t have worked out anyway. If only the human movies were true and we could justchangehumans into one of us. It’s slightly true about vampires. Unfortunately, it’s more of a curse. They don’t become more beautiful, they can’t go into the sun, and their hearts still beat. They still age, slowly, and can die from everything a normal human can. Bleeding out, gunshot wounds… diseases. What’s the point of that?

I groan as I roll around in bed, putting Adam and Carolina far out of my mind. I focus on the positives.

Mac was able to adopt Maximus and that little rascal is growing rapidly and the sweetest boy. Cutie was eventually adopted by a human couple that live in town; I personally went to do their house check and the only other animal they had was a parrot that has his own bird room. A pristine, clean room filled with treats, food, and water, the space for him to fly around and hop around on different obstacles.

Fenced in yard for the pup and they promised him a good life.

Everything at the clinic has been smooth sailing, so that’s the only thing keeping me fucking sane lately. Both of the new vets are wonderful and hardworking and next week it’ll be a month since they were hired. So I’m throwing them a party to thank them for being incredible employees. Melissa took it over for me because I’m hopeless and would have just catered a meal into the clinic and called it a night… Instead, we’re renting out a room at one of the Mexican restaurants in town with a DJ, catered food, and a good time. Not much of a party with only a handful of people, but we can still have a good time.

Just as long as we post our after-hours number on the door and don’t have any patients in the hospital, we should be able to have a night out and not even need anyone there for the night shift. We’ll see…

I wake up a few hours after Adam left and get around to taking that shower. I still feel groggy and decide to stay in for the night, eat a frozen pizza, and watch movies while I’m wrapped up in my new blanket I ordered. It’s a fuzzy, thick weighted blanket and I’m in heaven every time it’s curled around my body.

I shove the pizza in the oven, collapsing on my new couch as I click through the channels until I find a silly romance, and sip on a glass of water as I try to get into the story.

I wake up when the oven beeps with the timer I thankfully set and slice it up and eat it all in minutes. Jesus, I must have really been hungry. I search around the room for my phone and find it in my bedroom, groaning when I see a few missed calls from Mac. I smile as I hear his deep voice when he answers. I run my hand down my face to wake myself up. I was getting into the movie… I have no idea why I keep falling asleep.

“Hey, Ang. What are you doing tonight?”

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