Page 7 of Silas

“I know we are, but this will be great for the pack, too. Too long we haven’t been acting like a pack, but more like individuals. Granted, that isn’t anyone’s fault except for Orion’s but, we need to learn and grow from that.”

“I agree with that as well. I just am not sure how we are going to pull it off is all I am saying. What are we going…”

A quiet clearing of a throat sounds beside us. “I think that I have an idea that would bring in lots of money.” The timid woman says. I look at her expectingly. “With Christmas only a month away, what if we hosted a Christmas Festival for the town? We could have game booths, food booths, and then, of course, a silent auction. I am sure that the local businesses would love to donate items to the silent auction. We also have several crafters in our pack that could also donate items. What do you think?” Selene, one of our younger female pack members, asks.

“That is a wonderful idea! Thank you so much for the suggestion, Selene. I know we haven’t had a lot of time to get to know each other, but I want you to know that I appreciate your input.” I squeeze her petite shoulder with appreciation.

A slight blush pops on the apples of her cheeks, “You are quite welcome, Silas. If you need any help organizing it, I would love to help.”

Giving her a warm smile, “I am sure that Gail would love the help. Thank you for volunteering.”

Turning towards the pack, clearing my throat, “Thanks to our lovely Selene for her idea, we are going to host a Christmas Festival. Gail, our matriarch, will look for volunteers to help with planning, organizing, and putting everything together. As I am sure that everyone will step up for the pack, but I want to mention that we will need to act fast. Unless anyone else has something to add, I think we should call the meeting for now to allow Gail to begin her process.”

Stepping down from the dais, Warrick throws an arm around my shoulder, “Hey man, when was the last time you ate?”

“Uh, I had a bagel with cream cheese this morning before I headed to the pack house. Why?”

“Well, now that there is a plan in place, I thought we could go to You’re Bacon Me Crazy and have a quick bite to eat. You are allowed time to eat, ya know?”

“Yeah, yeah I know. Alright fine, let’s grab a quick bite to eat. I want to be here in case they need any help with planning. Let me tell Gail that I am heading out so she knows to reach me by cell if she needs me.”

“Fair enough, I will allow it. If you must, I mean, I am not kidnapping you to Alaska or anything. Just lunch.”

Huffing out a laugh, I grab my coat and scarf. With the scarf wrapped around my neck, I walked down the long hallway with oak-paneled walls. Gail has taken the Luna’s office across from mine. When I find my Luna, that will become her office, but for now it is Gail’s. Rapping my knuckles on the door, I hear a quiet, “Come in.”

Gail, a woman in her sixties with long flowing silver hair and laugh lines from years of laughing and loving. No one really knows when she arrived in Jasper, Colorado, or where she came from. All we know is that she has loved and cared for generations of pups, watching as each of them grows into adults with pups of their own. This woman treats every single pup as though they are her grandpup. She is the matriarch for a reason. Glancing up from her paperwork, her eyes warm as she acknowledges it's me in the doorway. “What can I do for you, Silas?”

Scratching the back of my neck, “I just wanted to let you know Warrick is forcing me to go to You’re Bacon Me Crazy for lunch. I shouldn’t be gone that long, but I just wanted to let you know in case you need anything.”

“Silas, come sit down for a moment. We need to have a talk.” She points to the chair in front of her.

I shuffle my feet over to where she pointed. This is feeling an awful lot like a parent scolding and she isn’t even my parent. I plop my ass down into the chair and mentally brace myself for the verbal lashing.

Humming to herself, she places a warm smile on her face and her eyes twinkle with love. “Silas, I know that you have been feeling overwhelmed and stressed with all that comes with being an alpha. I also know that you are trying to make up for all the horrible things that Orion did. I also know that you feel you have to be here every step of the way, but I really need you to hear me when I say this. You can’t be here every single second of the day. I need you to make sure that you take care of yourself. Nobody will fault you for eating lunch. You have assigned your pack leaders and you need to have faith that they can take care of things when you aren’t around. Otherwise, what is the point of having leaders to begin with? Now, I know I am just the grandma of the pack, as you guys like to call me, but I think I know a thing or two.”

I knew she was going to lecture me, “I know Gail, I just don’t want to make the same mistakes that Orion did or have pack members feel as though I am not there for them.”

Giggling, “Well do you plan to borrow thousands of dollars or begin abusing our females,” she asks with a quirk of her eyebrow.

“Absolutely not. I would never lay a hand on any of our females in any manner beyond friendly. I hope to never have to borrow money from any pack, let alone from a pack like the Ghost River Pack.”

She gave me that knowing look, unsurprised by my response. “There you go. I think it’s safe to say that you can take care of yourself by enjoying a pleasant lunch with Warrick. Now go on! We will be fine.”

“Alright, alright I will go, but if anything happens, you better call me. I mean it Gail. I will be right back if something happens.”

Standing from her desk chair, she comes around her desk and opens her arms out in the show of wanting to embrace me. This is that grandmother vibe that I am talking about. You can’t help but accept her love. She wraps her arms around me and squeezes firmly. You can feel the love and admiration pouring out of her. It is almost as though she can erase the stress with one of her infamous hugs.

Warrick keeps glancing around, almost like he is looking for something. “Are you good? This is like the seventh time you have scanned the room. You know we know every single person in this town, so who could you possibly be looking for?”

“Man, the other day when I was in here, there was a new girl. Gail could tell you more because, of course, she was talking with her and got all the details. But I really think you should meet her.”

“No, thank you. You literally had to drag me out of the pack house for lunch. What in the world makes you think I have the time or the care to meet a woman?”

Chuckling, he shakes his head. “You know you need to be actively looking for your Luna and mate. I am just saying clearly it isn’t anyone around here because you would already know if it was. So, that is why I am mentioning it.”

Continuing to just stare at him, I sip from my ice cold soda. “I have no time to look for Luna, despite what you or the pack may think. My Luna, my mate, is just not high on my priority list right now. Gail and I can run the pack just fine. Why do I need to add to my already full plate by searching for her?”

“Well man, because it is your responsibility as the Alpha to ensure that we have a Luna to care for our females and pups. Now, while Gail is great at it, she isn’t going to give you pups and she doesn’t have years to dedicate to that. I mean, the woman is in her sixties, for crying out loud. Let her enjoy her remaining years without stress and responsibility.”

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