Page 6 of Her Big Bad Wolf

I’d been up half the night looking for the boys and gotten very little sleep, so by daybreak when my alarm sounded, I was exhausted. There were other kids counting on me though, so I knew I didn’t have the luxury of taking the day off.

With a groan, I forced myself to roll out of bed and hit the shower. That was normally enough to wake me up, but not today.

I started a pot of coffee then went to get ready. It was definitely going to be more than a cup kind of day.

I pulled my hair back into a ponytail something I rarely ever did. I didn’t even bother with makeup. I even wore comfy clothes and probably looked like a hot mess. I couldn’t care though. I needed to just survive the day.

By the time I got to the school parents were already lined up for drop off. I felt bad because I was never late.

Mary was already there welcoming our students.

She hugged me when I walked up.

“I told Kyle you probably hadn’t slept a wink.”

“I got a few hours of sleep. Just moving a little slow this morning. I’ll be fine. I’m guessing there’s been no sign of the boys yet?”

“No, I’m afraid not. But they’ll turn up. I mean really, how far can three little boys get without being spotted? They can’t hide forever.”

“Who can’t hide forever?” Lucy asked.

I knelt down and held my arms open wide as her daughter, Vada, ran right into them giving me the biggest hug. My day was already better.

“Good morning, sweet pea. Are you ready to have some fun today?”

“Yes, Ms. Vanessa.”

“These kids really do fill you with life, don’t they?” Mary asked.

“They do.”

“It’s her calling,” Lucy insisted.

I didn’t argue, because I felt exactly the same. I was meant to do this.

More than anything I would have loved to have been a mother, but with each passing year, it just didn’t seem like it was in the cards for me. Instead, I loved on the Pack kids as if they were my own. It was both an honor and a blessing to do this job and I never took it for granted.

After seeing Kyle and Kelsey together I knew I wanted that for myself. I had offers for mating over the years, but none had been my true mate. I deserved nothing less than my true mate. No mate, no children, no family of my own.

I’d made my peace with it and was just grateful for the small role I got to play in the lives of others’ children.

Vada scurried off to put her bag away and find her friends as I turned to watch her go.

“So, who’s hiding?” Lucy asked again.

“The Baylor boys,” Mary explained. “They snuck out last night and aside from a brief sighting here in town, there’s been no sign of them.”

“I thought they were being separated.”

“They were,” I told her. “I knew it was a bad idea. I found them here, but they ran out and got away before I could reach them.”

It had kept me up most of the night thinking about that. I’d let them just slip passed me. The weight of that weighed heavily on me.

“I’m not surprised they came here. They’re familiar with it, comfortable here, and they know there is food and supplies.”

My jaw dropped in shock.

“Food?”