Chapter 184

Shawna POV

It was the day that my sister and Clint were to arrive, finally. We had spoken several times over the past two days, and her excitement about leaving the little town where they had been stuck was palpable, even over the phone. Those responsible for the damages had been taken into custody by the council, and their punishment was to be determined. Lynn said she wasn't interested in returning home to testify when she was asked. She wanted to get as far from them as possible. Cedric actually gave her some relief when he managed to get the council to agree to a written and witnessed statement as evidence enough. This guaranteed that Lynn never had to return to Wyoming, unless she chose to do so on her own. I doubted she'd want to go back after all that had transpired and the Alpha's apparent desire to force her return. I was certain that Mom would have issues with that, but I was also reminded that she could just as easily come visit Lynn if she wanted to see us. For now, she'd be busy with Ben's daughter. Neither Lynn nor I had mentioned to her that we were both pregnant as well. That would surely have Mom's head spinning and her trying to weave all kinds of ways to get us back up there. Not a chance in hell, was my immediate thought.

I was literally bouncing with excitement when I woke, rushing around the house to ensure everything was in order. I had cleaned the day before, even though the house was already spotless. How could it not be? We hadn't been in it but three days now. We did manage to christen many more of the rooms, though. With my second trimester, my hormones raging, my sex drive was through the roof. Michael was, of course, not complaining; he was getting plenty of sex these days. I didn't need to remind him that once the baby came, there would be little time for sex, as every extra minute would probably be about catching up on sleep. I wasn't completely clueless about how much work children were. I did have younger siblings to make the comparison to, and I do remember mom always complaining that she was tired.

"How long till you arrive?" I asked my sister when she picked up on the first ring.

"We are sort of lost," she said. "Cedric said we have to take a turn on some unmarked road, and he missed it. We are currently parked in a parking lot, letting the horses out. He's on the phone with Alpha Dean."

"It is hidden, if you don't know where to go," I admitted. "Wait till you see it, though; it's extraordinarily beautiful and peaceful."

"I need a hot shower and a good long sleep," Lynn said. "Hotel beds are just garbage. I think I kept Clint awake last night with all my tossing and turning."

"How do you feel?" I asked. "I mean about the pregnancy and the baby? Things are good?"

"Yes, aside from this overly long road trip," She sighs. "I'm like fifteen weeks pregnant now," she says. "I have a tiny little pooch. It just looks like I ate too much bread and am bloated," she giggles.

"I don't know if I told you, but the doctor here says I'm about thirteen weeks, so our babies are only going to be a couple of weeks apart. Isn't that exciting?" I ask.

"Really?" Lynn responds. "That's going to be so cool for our kids, and for us. We get to be exhausted together," she says and we both laugh. "Can I see the pack doctor there when we get settled?" she asks.

"I'm sure you can. Doctor Constance is the best, though she's like amazonian tall and willowy," I say.

"Oh, a female pack doctor?" Lynn says it awestruck. "That's great."

"Yeah, and her mother is like the receptionist at the pack hospital, or something like that," I add. "I think you will love it here, and I am just so excited. So far, everyone I've met has been very nice. Oh, and my sister in law Collette, she's really something."

"Really something? What does that even mean?" Lynn asks.

"She is exotic looking, or so I initially thought. Uniquely beautiful. I found out after spending more time with her that she's Native American. She has the most beautiful skin tone and huge, dark eyes with long lashes that I'm so jealous of. Whenever she and James decide to have some pups, they will be strikingly gorgeous, I can picture it."

"I look forward to meeting them," Lynn says. "Looks like it's time to go. Cedric is helping Clint load the horses back onto the trailer. By the way, that's an interesting site. It's not every day you see a huge black man whispering in a horse's ear," she giggles. "He's like the horse whisperer for real, they calm right down. Never seen anything like that."

"Did you ask him if he had experience with horses?" I ask. "You know who else I know that is like that with horses? Ashlynn. Dawson told us stories about how she calls her horses with a whistle and they just come. Even her horse, Buck, who is a total asshole, does anything she tells him to. It's amazing." As I talk about Ashlynn, I realize how much I miss my friend, and my mind slips to her baby boy. I need to call her and catch up, let her know that I will soon be a mother too. I think she would love to hear about this place and how happy I am. It's not Montana, nothing is, but Montana has too many dark memories attached for me to want to live there. Georgia was the right move, and having Michael's family near us has been wonderful. They are amazing.

"It would make sense that he does," Lynn replies. "You can ask him when we get there. It sounds like Alpha Dean is sending someone down to lead us up. Cedric says it will take about two hours to get up there. I think Clint is getting nervous about meeting the Alpha. Should he be?" she asks.

"Alpha Dean is fair. I think as long as Clint is himself, as long as he's honest, he will be fine. Michael has really let the Alpha know that he trusts him. There's some land here that he thinks is perfect for a cattle ranch." I hear Lynn make a heave sigh before she replies.

"I hope you are right, big sister. I don't think either of us can take too much more disappointment or trouble in our path. We just want a safe place to live, raise our family, and be together."

"Of course," I say. I completely understand the need for safety and peace, probably more than anyone. "You will have that very soon. Can't wait to see you." We say our goodbyes and hang up. I'm unsure whether I should worry that the Alpha will not like Clint. I don't think that will be a problem. Honestly, I'm more worried about what kind of drama is going to be drummed up with Cedric here. He isn't even here, and already one woman in particular is going to throw herself at him, with no idea who he is or what kind of man he is. This should be interesting for sure.