Page 56 of Sanctuary
“Those are for Ori,” Seosamh said with mock severity. “Be a good host.”
Bram grinned and rolled onto his back. “Adelaide wants you to come have the baby checked over as soon as you’re settled. She’s our nurse,” he said at Ori’s puzzled expression. “I’m in my first year of nursing school, but I do a lot around here too because my program only covers human problems. So, if you don’t mind, I’d like to be in on the exam, just for the experience.”
They had a nurse. Ori looked down at little Willie Rose, her eyes half-closed and her mouth hanging open with a drop of milk leaking from the corner. He wiped her face and picked her up to hold her against his shoulder. “Sure,” he said, his mind in a whirl. They really were rich here. Oh, the future he saw for Willie Rose. For Patton, too. And, maybe, himself.
More rustling in the trees behind them, only this time Holland stepped into Ori’s clearing, carrying a cloth bag. “Clothes,” he said. “For you and Patton. We’ll take you shopping once you’re in, but for now, you can borrow these.” He looked over at Bram. “I had Duke raid your closet,” he said apologetically.
Bram waved the apology away with a casual hand. “That’s okay. I have plenty.”
Holland crouched down beside Ori. “Can I hold her for you while you change?”
It didn’t take him any time at all to make the decision. He passed Willie Rose over to Holland, feeling a pang as he gave her into the care of someone who wasn’t blood related to her. So this is what being a parent is. “Sure. But I’m filthy.”
“Clothing washes,” Bram said in a bored tone. “Can I hold her after you?” he asked Holland.
“Go pick up some branches, Bram,” Holland said dryly. “We need to look like we actually came out here to work.”
“Fine.” He huffed off into the trees, but with a friendly pat on Ori’s shoulder.
Seosamh laughed. “He never changes.”
“No, he doesn’t,” Holland sighed. “I think we’ll try to sneak you in after lunch. You can carry one of the picnic baskets and I’ll have Aggie carry Willie Rose here and pretend she’s a doll. Aggie looks after her dolls pretty well, I think we can trust her with this little one.”
“Who’s Aggie?” Ori asked, pulling off his t-shirt and folding it carefully.
“My daughter. She’ll be seven next month.”
Ori opened his mouth to say something, he didn’t know what. But Holland hadn’t had any pups when he lived in Perseguir and he hadn’t been gone long enough to have a seven-year-old.
“We adopted her, Quin and I. Her and her brother, after the fire at Green Moon. Their parents died in it.” He rocked the baby as he watched Ori change. “A lot of things have happened. We’ll have time to catch up once we’re inside. I hope you don’t mind—I didn’t think we could give you one of the new-built houses without setting up resentment in the community, so I’ve assigned you one of the old ones that’s probably going to be torn down.”
“Oh, no, wherever we can fit, I don’t mind. I’m just grateful that you didn’t turn us away.” Ori pulled on the borrowed t-shirt, smelling of sunshine and soap, and buttoned up the borrowed jeans.
“I owe you,” Holland said quietly. “And even if I didn’t, things are changing for the packs, no matter what the old guard want to think. The more people we can prepare for that, the better the transition will be.” He smiled and reluctantly handed Willie Rose back. “You make me want another.”
“You only have the two?” Ori asked as he automatically checked Willie Rose’s diaper, then laid her down so he could change it.
“No, we have a third. Zane. Little omega boy. He’s terrifying his uncle Cas right now.” Holland smiled fondly.
An omega baby. It would be twelve years before Ori would know if this baby was omega—an advantage to being a girl. “What, uh,” he cleared his throat. “What did your mate think of that?”
“He’s head over tail in love. Don’t think that all alphas are like the ones in Perseguir. Mercy Hills is different in ways you can’t even imagine.” Holland glanced up at the sky, then over at Seosamh. “Do you want to start setting out the picnic baskets? I’ll bring Ori over, and if you could find Agatha, I’d appreciate it.”
“Sure,” Seosamh said and he, too, patted Ori on the shoulder as he left.
Holland watched him go, then got to his feet. “Let’s go feed you, and get you and the baby inside. They’ll we’ll get your Patton inside, and after that… Well, as Cas would say, better to ask forgiveness after than beg permission before.” He smiled and held out a hand to Ori to help him up. “Leave your bags and we’ll have them collected over the next couple of days as people come and go. Unless there’s something special inside, we can provide you with clothes and food and baby necessities.”
Ori shook his head and let Holland help him to his feet. “Nothing special there. It’s all in that beta over felling trees with your alpha.”
“Good.” Holland put an arm around his shoulders and led him out into the sunshine. “Then let’s go eat, and set our plans in motion.”
C H A P T E R F O R T Y - N I N E
T hey had lunch in the middle of a laughing, joking crew of shifters. Seosamh had set out the blankets and picnic baskets near the gates, following some unspoken plan that Holland had approved of. Ori saw why when, shortly after all the shifters had seated themselves, Bax got to his feet and walked over to talk to the humans. A few moments later, two of them had come to sit next to Bax and his pups, and be handed plates filled with pack food.
Ori watched in amazement as they joked with the shifters near them. One even played tug-of-war with one of the pups, who was still galumphing around in wolf form and creating havoc wherever he went.
“Fan, stop. Eat your lunch,” Bax scolded and set a plate with finely chopped meat and vegetables off to the side, where a pup could eat without getting paw or tails into someone else’s food.
