Page 47

47

Lucas

Moving around the kitchen, a smile on my face, I watch the bedroom door to see when Kaylee will wake. Last night was a blast seeing Titus and Carson again, but I was worried when Kaylee went off with Ash and Royce alone. I waited patiently beside my god-brother while counting the minutes until she returned to my side.

When she did come back, she had a worried air about her but brushed it off when I asked. Of course, Royce stood beside her, his eyes scanning the crowd like a watchdog. I knew they’d bonded as friends and felt happy to know he was keeping my mate safe when I wasn’t around, but the way he refused to budge worried me even more.

“Lucas, are those pancakes I smell?” Kaylee calls out as she exits the bedroom, rubbing her eyes with the back of her hand. She looks so tired yet adorable, and I can’t help but move to her side and pull my mate in for a hug.

“Yes. I just finished making apple cinnamon pancakes,” I answer with a chuckle, kissing the top of her head.

“How did you know I was craving them?” she asks in disbelief, her eyes wide with happiness.

“Because you woke me up two hours ago telling me you were craving them before passing out immediately after,” I answer, shaking my head playfully. She looks away sheepishly, embarrassed, and I think again how lucky I am. I almost lost this incredible woman, and now she’s here in my arms.

“Let’s get you some food. You told me you had something to discuss with me last night,” I suggest, pulling away from Kaylee and taking her hand. I lead her to the small table in the corner. The morning light filters in through the window, glowing around Kaylee.

Suddenly, my mind shifts, and the scene before me changes. Kaylee is no longer sitting in front of the cottage window but instead on the front porch of a different house resembling the one she grew up in. A little pup is in her arms, smiling at Kaylee with a toothy grin. Her blonde hair is pulled into pigtails on either side of her head, and her gray eyes, so much like mine, sparkle in the morning light.

“Lucas,” Kaylee calls out to me from the porch. I reach for her, only to feel like I’m falling.

“Lucas!”

My eyes refocus, and Kaylee is back to sitting at the small table in the cottage, looking at me with a worried gaze. The pup in her arms is gone, but I know for sure who that pup is.

“A girl,” I state with a grin, looking down at Kaylee’s stomach, which is slowly starting to bump out.

“What?” Kaylee asks, taking my hand in hers.

“Our pup is a girl,” I state, falling to my knees to kiss her small bump.

“It’s too early to tell,” Kaylee says with a laugh, running her free hand through my hair as I rest my head on her lap, breathing in her cinnamon-sugar scent.

“She’s a girl, Kaylee,” I state once more with conviction. “I saw it. Saw her in your lap. She will have your hair and my eyes,” I continue, looking up at my mate, who stares at me with wide eyes.

“You saw it? You had a vision like—”

“Like my mother, yes,” I confirm.

“Aspen Joan Rider. Our daughter.” Kaylee whispers, shocking me.

“You’re giving her my last name?” I ask, confused. I thought we would take her surname—Kingsley—and remove the Rider name from the world for good.

“We’re mated, so it’s only fair I take your last name eventually,” Kaylee answers with a shrug. “We can make good of it once Ramos is gone.”

I open my mouth to protest, but her stomach growls before any words come out. Shaking my head, I decided to shelve this discussion for later and stand. The food is already on the table with plates and cutlery set. All I needed to grab was tea for Kaylee and coffee for me.

“We need to talk to Kurt about your sudden vision. See if this is a one-off occurrence or if it’s something you inherited from your mother that was suppressed for some reason,” Kaylee says as she loads pancakes onto her plate, ignoring the syrup and adding an absurdly large mound of chopped apples on top of her pancakes.

“That’s a good idea. Kurt would know more about this vision stuff,” I agree, placing the mug of tea in front of Kaylee before taking my seat. The smell of the pancakes mixes with Kaylee’s scent. Her bright blue eyes are focused solely on the food before her. I decide to let her eat in silence—let her relax and enjoy the moment before we need to prepare for our battle.

After breakfast, I clear the table while Kaylee fiddles with her empty tea mug. Having known her all my life, I know this quirk means she has something on her mind that she wants to discuss with me but doesn’t know how to say it.

“What did Ash and Royce want with you last night?” I ask, deciding I need to start the conversation or Kaylee would keep playing with the cup until we had to leave for the training facility. Kaylee stops fiddling and lets out a long sigh. I can see her reluctance to talk, but I know she wouldn’t be so hesitant if this conversation weren’t important.

“Ash and Royce want to join Oak Fur when we take it back,” she blurts out. Shocked, I lean back in my seat, running a hand through my hair.

“What?” I ask, blinking a couple of times. “Why?”

I can’t seem to wrap my head around why Ash and Royce would want to leave Ivory Fangs, why they would leave behind their friends here for a pack that will go through turmoil and uncertainty when Kaylee and I take it over.

“Because they lost their families when Shadow Moon attacked Ivory Fangs, back when it was called Silver Paw,” Kaylee answers with a sad smile, looking out the window. “They’re orphans like me and feel like moving to a new pack that could use help the way Amelia and I helped Silver Paw would be best for them,” she continues, her eyes welling with tears.

Getting up from my chair, I make my way to Kaylee’s side and wrap my arms around her.

“What did you tell them?” I ask, running my fingers through her blonde locks and feeling Kaylee calm down in my embrace.

“That I would talk to you. If we agree they can come, then they have to break the news to Amelia and David themselves,” she answers with a small smile, her head resting against my stomach.

She takes deep breaths, breathing in my scent, and for a moment, I wish we could stay like this—that there was no imminent war or a pack to take over, that we could just stay in our cottage away from the world for the day.

But a knock at our door causes a small growl of annoyance to escape my throat. Reality is cruel. If we want peace and quiet, we need to fight for it.

“Tell them yes,” I state, pulling back and placing a finger under Kaylee’s chin, tilting it slightly so that she is looking up at me. “Tell Ash and Royce they can come with us.”

“And Devon, too?” Kaylee asks, making me chuckle.

“Of course. He’s Ash’s mate, after all,” I agree.

Kaylee smiles, taking my hand in hers and kissing it. The tingles from the mate bond make me grin until another hurried knock at the door reminds me that an unwanted guest is interrupting our day.

With a sigh, I release Kaylee and open the door to find a very angry Simon standing there.

“Marco beat Devon up,” he says before I can greet him.

Without thinking, I race out the door. Kaylee calls out to me, but I’m already too far away to respond.