Page 26 of Pack Scratch Fever

PIPER

“Welcome back, Princess,” Blair smirks as I head into the rescue.

I’m disturbingly early today, which makes Blair look even crazier than she already is.

“What the hell are you doing here already?” I demand. Alvin lets out a pleased yowl and hurries toward me, nudging my hand aggressively.

“Eh. I couldn’t sleep,” she admits. “Emptied the litter boxes and responded to some emails. Now we’re ahead for the day.”

I missed an entire week at the rescue. In the time I was gone, a video edit Blair made about one of our kittens went viral. Six cats were adopted, and we received a generous amount of cat food donations off our online wish list.

Furs and Purrs did just fine without me.

“You can go home for the day,” I say, glancing at the schedule Blair jotted down on the calendar. “Mari is coming in to help soon, and you’ve worked all last week.”

“Nope.” She types at the computer while Alvin rolls onto his back and exposes his belly to me.

“You can’t get rid of me that easily. You’re not the only workaholic here, my friend.

Besides, I was off at the bar last night, so I went to bed early and woke up at four in the morning. What else was I going to do?”

But there’s something off about her tone.

Something is bugging my best friend, and I don’t figure it out until I glance at the schedule again, drumming my fingers on the counter.

I pause at the date.

“Oh, shit.”

Blair stops typing and looks at me, a sad smile on her face. “Yeah.”

It’s the anniversary of the car crash of her ex-pack.

“I’m an idiot,” I grumble. “I should have come in last week; you should have taken it easy?—”

“You were going to come into the rescue during your Heat?” Blair cocks an eyebrow. “I’ll be okay. I’d rather be here than at home wallowing in it, you know?”

I nod. “I understand.”

I do the same thing. Instead of experiencing my negative emotions, it’s much easier to distract myself with productivity.

Also, the broken part of my brain thinks I must be productive to have any worth, so feeling sorry for myself isn’t an option.

“And then, tonight, I’d like us to get a drink together,” Blair adds.

I laugh. “Absolutely.”

“Even Mister Whiskers was nice to me today.” She motions to the new flesh-colored bandage on my hand. “Has that scratch healed up yet?”

I frown. “I think it’s getting better, but it’s still itchy. It’s healing slowly, if that’s what you’re wondering.”

“Yuck. Just make sure it doesn’t get infected.”

“I’m not going to get infected from a scratch. It wouldn’t be the first time he’s clawed at me. I’m perfectly fine. Besides, we’ve got better things to talk about.”

Blair swivels her chair toward me, resting her hands on her thighs and leaning forward. “Oh yes we do,” she purrs. “You'd better tell me everything right now.”

“Are you sure?” I ask as I plop down in the desk chair next to her. Alvin settles on my lap, his purr as loud as a car engine. “I mean, with the anniversary, we don’t have to talk?—”

“Shut up,” Blair says. “I want all the details. Like I said before, let me live vicariously through you.”

A huff escapes me. “Fine.”

Then, I let everything out.

I can’t stop smiling as I recount the week before. I don’t go into as much detail on the… inappropriate events, but I try to tell Blair as much as I can about Poe, Maddox, and Avery.

“They sound amazing,” she says wistfully. “So different from your past Alphas.”

I nod. “I mean, the bar was in hell, so it didn’t take much for them to be above it,” I joke.

“Do they know about your last Heat?”

I stop stroking Alvin’s fur. “No. But I think they have an idea, especially when they saw how surprised I was at the nesting room.”

“The nest is the bare minimum,” Blair says, narrowing her green eyes. “Keeping you fed is the bare minimum.”

“I know.”

“Purring for you. Keeping you hydrated.”

“I know .”

“It’s just…” she shakes her head. “You know how I feel about what happened to you.”

“I know, Blair.”

“And if these guys treat you well, then that’s all I want. Oh, and maybe to find that shitty Alpha and chop his knot off.”

My best friend rarely threatens violence, but I still recall the fury in her eyes the night I showed up at her house while still experiencing symptoms from my violent Heat.

Used, abandoned, and broken.

I force out a humorless laugh. “You and me both.”

Blair shakes her head. “ Anyway. So when are you seeing them again?”

“Tomorrow night, hopefully. Tonight is girl’s night.”

I barely left their packhouse yesterday morning, and despite wanting to be near them again, my friend needs my support right now.

Some hot Alphas aren’t going to distract me from that.

It was extremely difficult to say goodbye yesterday, though. Poe had quietly pulled me aside and extended his invitation to have me stay there again, and despite my yearning, I turned it down.

They may be my scent matches, but I’m still apprehensive.

Nothing this good has ever happened to me before.

Something is bound to go wrong.

If I voice that to Blair though, she’ll yell at me for being negative.

“Invite them out tonight! We’ll hang out at Scents , and I can get to know them better.”

That’s Blair’s way of saying she’s ready to give them the third degree to make sure that they’re treating me well.

I don’t blame her after everything that’s happened.

We’re both protective of each other in that way, and I’m truly grateful to have her as a friend.

“We’ll see,” I say finally. “I don’t even know if they’ll want to go out. Especially Poe.”

Insecurity flares in me at the thought. Poe is addicted to his work. A workaholic suddenly won’t drop everything just to hang out with their girlfriend .

Is that what I am to him?

Should I be with someone who has such an unhealthy relationship with their job?

You’re the same way. Punishing yourself for not doing enough. Always having the rescue on your mind.

Never allowing yourself to just have fun, unless someone else is forcing you to do it.

“I doubt they know how to say no to you,” Blair replies, amused.

“Yeah, yeah,” I scoff, waving my hand dismissively. “Scent matches and all that. We’ll see.”

My phone buzzes and lights up with a text on the desk, and we both look at it, surprised.

“It’s five in the morning,” Blair observes as I check it.

It’s Poe.

Good morning. Would you be interested in getting together again soon?

I snort as I reply.

He texts like an old man.

Do you want to meet up at a bar tonight? Blair works there; it’s called Scents. I can text you when we leave the rescue.

“Well, I just asked him,” I murmur.

“How did he know you would be up that early?” Blair asks.

“I just don’t think he sleeps. I don’t know if he has a realistic concept of time.”

“That’s fair.”

I doubt Poe would say yes to coming out. Avery and Maddox, maybe.

Alpha will say yes, my inner Omega supplies. He wants to see us already. Just like we need to see him. It’s been too long.

The suppressants should quiet my inner Omega, especially now that my Heat is over, but apparently, she has a mind of her own.

My phone buzzes almost immediately with his answer.

Sounds like a plan. I look forward to your text.

A grin spreads across my face.

“He said yes, didn’t he?” Blair asks knowingly.

“Yup.”

“Good. We’ll have fun tonight. Let’s celebrate you and your newfound pack instead of thinking about depressing stuff.”

I nod, still only tentatively excited.

Everything is going too well.

But the morning goes by easily, and Mari arrives around noon. She gushes about how much she loves Maddox and how polite he is.

It’s only because she doesn’t know the filthy, delicious things he did to me in the back of the pet store.

After Mari’s talked my ear off, I step out of the building to get some air. Despite my Heat ending, I’m still slightly flushed and overheated.

I sit in my car and turn on the air conditioner, the cool air blasting in my face. I lean against the seat and exhale deeply, then close my eyes.

I’m excited for tonight, but I also feel like I haven’t slept in days. My limbs are heavy, and moving the slightest bit is more difficult than it should be.

So, I allow myself a bit of time to rest.

My phone buzzes repeatedly, and I open my eyes to see the familiar numbers on the screen.

Dread curdles in my stomach.

I debate not answering. He calls only once a month at most, but when he does, it’s usually unpleasant.

I decline the call.

The phone buzzes again.

I’m only putting off the inevitable. He’ll keep calling and calling, and the longer I put off answering, the worse his response will be.

Today is a good day. I can handle him.

Sighing, I answer the phone and let the call connect to the speakers in my car.

“Hello?”

“Oh, look who finally answered.” My dad sounds pleased, but it’s nothing but passive aggressiveness. I’m familiar with that tone, and it gives me the same sick feeling it always does.

“Hey, Dad.”

“Is this a good time? Or are you busy working?”

I exhale slowly through my nose.

It’s another one of my parent’s traps.

If I say it’s a good time to talk, it means I’m not working, which means they’ll ask why I don’t have a job. If I am busy, then the next question would be with what, and then they’ll determine whether my means of employment is good enough in their eyes.

Running a cat rescue certainly is not good enough for Joseph Rhodes.

“I have a few minutes,” I say carefully.

“Good. I wanted to call to see how you’re doing.” His tone is clipped.

“I’m doing fine,” I say as politely as I can. I realize it comes out quicker than it should, and my dad catches on to it.

“Oh, so you don’t want to talk to me?” he asks sharply. “Fine isn’t a good description, Piper, and you know it. If you want me to hang up, just say so.”

He’s set another trap with no right answers.

Fatigue settles in my bones, and I hang my head in shame. “I want to talk,” I mutter, lying through my teeth.