Page 51 of Protected Promise

I scrunched up my face. “No it wasn’t. No wonder you’re so little.”

She laughed. “Not all of us can be big scary giants.”

I gulped. “Did my wolf scare you?” I knew it was a possibility, but it hadn’t seemed like she was intimidated by him.

“No, not at all,” she confirmed much to my relief.

I really wasn’t that self-conscious about it, but newcomers were always afraid until they got adjusted to seeing him, or me for that matter. I wasn’t exactly small even in my skin. The top of Kaitlyn’s head didn’t even reach my shoulders. I didn’t mind though. She was perfect and fit seamlessly against me almost as if she were made just for me.

When we finally got back to the hotel, the very first thing I did was set the alarm.

Kaitlyn frowned. “That’s early.”

“Don’t we still have to get your stuff packed up before we leave?”

She sat down on the bed with a contemplative look. She kept staring at her phone with an odd look on her face. “I guess I hadn’t really thought about it. Not the details of it all at least.”

“Oh,” I managed to say trying not to freak out. Of course she’d had plans before I arrived. I already knew that. It was the end of school, and she was supposed to be going to Florida. I had heard it, we had even briefly discussed it, but it hadn’t really sunk in until now. “You have plans for after college. Tell me about them.”

She gave me a look like I was crazy. “Does it even matter now?”

“Of course it does. I’ve told you that you will always have a say in our lives. We’re partners in this, Kaitlyn.”

“I know, but the Pack. They need us, right?”

“Tell me,” I insisted ignoring the obvious.

She sighed. “To be honest, I had no idea what I was going to do after here. Sure, I had applied for a bunch of jobs in Florida, but that was just the other day.” She turned her phone to me as I read the email she’d been staring at.

“They want you to come in for an interview.” They would have been idiots not to want that. My only concern was with what Kaitlyn wanted. “Is that what you want?”

“What? No.” She looked at me like I was insane.

“It’s okay. We’ll figure it out if you do.”

“Do you not want me to go back to your Pack?”

“Our Pack,” I corrected her. “And of course I do. But I’m trying to also be supportive here, isn’t that what a good mate is supposed to do?”

She laughed. “Stop trying so hard, Landon. You are going to be a wonderful mate. You already are. I’m excited to go and meet your Pack, our Pack. Everything’s just happened so quickly that I hadn’t thought through the details of all of that. I don’t want to go to Florida. I never really did, it just sounded like a better escape at the time.”

“From Longhorn?”

“Exactly.”

“I’ve warned you my Pack is small, and we don’t need much. Most of our food is sourced within territory. We’re pretty self-sufficient and isolated from the outside world. I fear it’s quite different from what you’re used to.”

“It sounds perfect, Landon. I know there will be an adjustment period, but I’m actually kind of excited about the future right now.”

“I have to be back soon. I need to be in Seattle tomorrow. I was supposed to take Tobi back home. She doesn’t do great in big cities. Jackson’s there so it’ll be okay, but she’s been prone to anxiety attacks when there. I shouldn’t have abandoned her like that.”

“Tobi’s going to be fine, Landon,” she said confidently. I knew she was right, but I also needed to hear that affirmation too.

“Why don’t we just go back to the house and pack my things tonight. I really don’t have a ton. I guess I’m more of a minimalist really. But then maybe we won’t have to get up quite so early.”

I chuckled. “Not a morning person, huh?”

“Definitely not.” She laughed.