Page 29 of Healer’s Reckoning (The Healer’s #3)

Cha pter 29

Ava

Bryce leaves me after that to get back to his work. After swimming for a while, I sit in the sun again and then take a shower and get dressed for the day. I stare at my phone and then finally make myself send a text to Rose. I debate forever on what to say and then decide to just keep it simple.

Me- hey Rose, just wanted you to know I’m so sorry to hear what happened to Cade and Amber. Just wanted you to know I’m thinking of you and your pack

She doesn’t text me back right away, but I feel better knowing I sent it. Sherese shows up after that. “Hey, welcome.”

“These houses are so nice.”

“I know. Does Hunter have a pool?” I ask.

“He does.” I slide open the door and step out under the covering and drag over two lounge chairs from the pool into the shade. “That’s one thing I miss. Well, that and being in the sun.” She collapses into the chair across from me.

“I’m sorry.” I feel for her; I would hate not being in the sun or being able to swim.

“What’d you do this morning?” she asks.

“Bryce took me out for coffee and pastries.”

Her eyebrows rise. “Wow. Tell me about this coffee date.”

“Well, it wasn’t a date. He just watched me spit out my coffee this morning and decided to take me out for coffee instead.”

“I hate to even ask, but why did you spit it out?”

“Because it was gross. It was whatever coffee he made in his regular coffee pot.”

“You drank black coffee?” she asks in mock horror.

“No, I added some milk and sugar; but it was still nasty.”

“Well, that’s because you need a good, flavored creamer.”

“Well, he took me to this place and got me an iced coffee and a hot coffee from this really good place that also had croissants.”

“Mmmm. What kind of coffee and what kind of croissants?”

I pause. “I feel like I shouldn’t be talking about it with you.”

“Why?”

“I feel bad.”

She waves me off. “Let me live vicariously through you. What did you get?”

“The hot one had whole milk in it and caramel, and the iced one had whole milk and toasted marshmallow sauce.”

“Ohhhhh, that sounds so good. Next time, try half and half in the hot coffee. It will make it creamier and try oat milk or coconut milk sometime in the iced coffee to change it up. I love lattes. What kind of croissant did you get?”

“What kind didn’t we get? Bryce bought like one of each of them. There was a plain one, a cinnamon roll one, a chocolate one, a waffle one with raspberries and cream—”

“Okay stop. This is torture.” I want to ask her about what happened to her, but I don’t say anything because I know I don’t like people digging into my past. “What?” she asks.

I meet her eyes; they’re so bright and vibrant. It always takes me aback. “Nothing.”

“Just ask what you want to ask, Ava.”

I shake my head. “I don’t like people digging into my past. I won’t do that to you.” She seems to relax a little, and I feel good that I didn’t push her. It doesn’t matter what happened in the past. This is what she’s stuck with now. “Do you have what you need for blood?” I ask quietly.

She makes a humming noise. “Yeah.” I don’t ask her any more about that. “Want to run away yet?”

I laugh. “No. I can’t.” Knowing we both need a topic change, I steer the conversation towards something else. “So, one of the females in Bryce’s pack...actually, one of the ones on his security team...did the shopping for all the clothes in my drawers. So that’s fun. How about you? How do you have clothes to wear?”

“Oh, you didn’t notice my look? It’s called Hunter black.”

I hadn’t really noticed, but now I notice that black t-shirt and black pants. “Oh.”

“Yeah, oh. I need to order some clothes. I just can’t yet because hmmm.” She puts her finger up to chin. “Oh yeah. I don’t have a phone or a wallet and don’t have access to anything because Hunter got rid of all of it!”

I grimace. “Want to take some of my clothes?”

She scoffs. “We are not built the same, but thanks for the offer.”

“I’ll talk to Bryce. We’ll figure something out.”

“No, don’t worry about it. I’d rather keep wearing Hunter’s and drive him crazy complaining about it every day.”

The afternoon passes quickly with Sherese to keep me company. I dig through Bryce’s fridge and pantry and come up with enough to make a dessert for tonight. I try to get her to try some of the clothes in my room for dinner at Bryce’s parents, but she refuses. She helps me pick out an outfit though. “Ooo, wear this yellow dress with this denim jacket.”

I eye the two pieces. “That’s not exactly what I normally wear.”

“I know. You wear ripped jeans and t-shirts. I get it but live a little tonight. Ooo.” She digs through my closet a little more. “Never mind. You should wear this.”

She pulls out a black shirt. At least, I think it’s a black shirt. It has thin straps for the shoulders and thin straps crisscross across the front. It’s actually really cute. The old me would have totally worn something like that. The new me, not so much. “Not tonight.” I decide instead on a pair of ripped jeans, but at least I pair it with a dressy sleeveless black blouse. Paired with gold hoops and my hair down, it looks like maybe I kind of tried.

“Are you nervous to meet his family?” Sherese asks from where she lounges on the bed, waiting for me to finish getting ready.

“I’m trying my best not to think about it.”

“So, yes.” She answers her own question. “The alpha is home.”

I hear the front door open a moment later and take a deep breath. “Ready?”

“I’ll give you a moment to go greet him,” she says, wiggling her eyebrows.

“It’s not like that,” I tell her, even as I open my bedroom door.

“Sure, it’s not.”

Her words follow me as I walk out into the living room. He looks up from the mail he’s going through and doesn’t look away. “Hey,” I try to sound relaxed.

“You look great.”

“Thanks. I made brownies,” I say suddenly and totally succeed in making an awkward situation even more awkward.

His brows knit. “You did?”

“Yeah. I put caramel in them and walnuts. I hope that’s okay. I probably should have checked first. Does anybody in your family have a nut allergy?”

He gives me a smile I can’t quite read. “No, they sound amazing.”

“What time do you—” I don’t get to finish because somebody bangs on the front door. I look to Bryce, but he appears calm.

“It’s Hunter.” He walks over to the door and opens it.

Hunter pushes past Bryce and takes a breath. “Where is she?”

“Calm down.” There’s an edge to Bryce’s voice.

Sherese comes around the corner a moment later. I can’t help but smirk. She’s wearing Hunter’s sweatpants that are too big on her and a black t-shirt that she’s tied to the side and used a scrunchie to hold. And yet, she walks like she’s dressed in a black-tie dress. “What’s gotten you all in a twist?”

He scowls at her. “What about don’t leave the house don’t you understand?” His words are little more than a growl.

I wince because even I know that’s not going to go over well with my new friend. “Excuse me?” she asks. “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize I was wearing a leash.” She feels around her neck with her hands. “Oh wait. I'm not.”

His scowl deepens. “I told you to stay at the house.”

“And I told you that I wasn’t a prisoner, and if you try to keep me as one, I will run away.”

That silences him. Bryce steps in front of me, blocking the two of them out. “Want to head to the car, so we don’t have to hear this?” I look up at him, worry on my face. He seems to know exactly what I’m asking. “She’s perfectly safe with him.” At my skeptical look, he leans closer. “I promise.” He surprises me by putting a hand on my waist and taking a deep breath. I stiffen. He immediately removes his hand and studies me with an intensity that I don’t see from him often. He’s still really close. “You smell really good.” His voice is low, and it sends a shiver through me.

Feeling nervous, I step back. I don’t look up at him as I say, “Ready?” I step outside and try to still my racing heart. He disappears for a moment and then comes out of the house holding the pan of brownies.

“Can’t forget these.”

“Wait for me,” Sherese calls out from behind us. She walks quickly over to the car and climbs into the backseat, shutting the door behind her.

“Go ahead and get in; I’ll be right back,” Bryce says. He walks over to where Hunter is standing, and I climb into the car.

“Soooo,” I start.

“I don’t want to talk about him.”

I nod. “Okay.” I don’t bring him up again. When I fail to think of anything to talk about, we just wait in silence for Bryce.

He climbs into the car soon after. “Ready?” I nod. He glances back at Sherese and must be good with however she responds because he pulls out a moment later. We drive past Hunter’s house. The street narrows somewhat, and it suddenly feels like we’re no longer in the city. There are fewer houses back here but lots of land.

“We own the nature preserve back here,” Bryce explains. “It gives us the space we need for our wolves to run.”

“How much land is back here?” I ask.

“Twenty acres. It’s not as much as some packs, but it’s enough for us.”

I’m impressed. He pulls into the driveway of a home that looks pretty much like all the other homes. Nerves suddenly hit. As if he can feel it, he turns to me and puts a hand on my knee. I flinch. I don’t mean to; it just surprises me. He removes his hand immediately. “You have nothing to worry about.” He climbs out of the car a moment later.

I blow out a breath. “Come on,” Sherese says from the backseat. “It could be worse. You could be a vampire entering a house of wolves.”

I turn back in my seat. “We don’t have to go in.”

She waves me off. “It’s fine. The alternative is sitting in my room alone all night at Hunter’s house. This way I can watch you be awkward around the alpha all night.”

I scowl. “I’m not being nice to you anymore.” She laughs and climbs out of the car. I do as well. Bryce waits near the front of the car. “Oh, you could have gone in.”

“And throw you to the wolves by yourself?” He smirks as he says it, and Sherese groans.

I follow him to the front door, where he doesn’t bother to knock but just walks inside. I follow him in, trying to calm my racing heart. “They’re here,” Krista squeals, and I’m suddenly wrapped up in a tight hug. I really need to start bracing when I see her coming.

“Kris, let her breathe,” Bryce says.

She finally pulls back. “I’m just so excited that you’re here.” She turns to Sherese next. I can tell she’s trying to be brave. “Hi, I’m Krista.”

“Sherese.” She smiles, flashing her fangs. Krista audibly gulps and steps back.

I shoot my friend a look. “Be nice,” I mouth to her. She just grins back.

“This way,” Bryce says. We follow him to the kitchen. The smells coming from there are enough to make my mouth water. “Smells good, Mom,” he says.

A woman pulls out a dish from the oven and sets it on the stove before turning to us. She smiles, and it instantly sets me at ease. “Ava, it’s so nice to finally meet you.” Seconds later, I’m wrapped up in the second bear hug of the evening. I try not to hold myself stiffly. She turns to Sherese next, and I brace myself. But Bryce’s mom is nothing but gracious to my friend. “You must be Sherese. Welcome to our home.” Then she does something that shocks me; she hugs Sherese. It’s brief, but it’s definitely a hug. Sherese’s shocked eyes meet mine, and I relax just a little bit, knowing she’ll be okay here.