Chapter 897 Chapter 897
She was squeezing his hand so hard that Foster thought she might break a few fingers. It didn’t matter, he decided. If she needed to bust up his hand to feel better, he’d handle it. He watched Jesse plug the phone into the laptop and then it dawned on him that they had no internet here, so he was using his phone for connection.
All he could taste was her. Each breath he took drew her scent into his body and his coyote was currently acting like an energetic puppy. It was funny but distracting at the same time.
Ena squeezed his hand and looked at him. Her eyes were filled with fear.
“You’re going to be fine.” He said softly.
“They’re royalty.” She whispered.
“They’re no different than you and I.”
She scoffed and looked back at Jesse.
“Okay. They’ll call through in a few minutes.” He backed away and then went over to the edge of the shelter and looked into the darkness. Foster guessed that Minn was out there somewhere.
He looked to see Ena chewing the fingernails of the hand, not crushing his. “Hey.” She looked at him. “They’re just like us. Rayne didn’t even know she was a shifter until a short while before her first shift.” Some of the fear left, so he continued. “I heard Devin hid at some deserted campground for years to avoid being a prince because one day he’d be king, and he wasn’t sure he wanted to be.”
“Really?” She searched his face. “You’re not making it up to make me feel better?”
“It’s the truth. You have thirteen people to look after. They have the entire shifter world.”
“Rayne sounded so calm and relaxed.”
He nodded. “She does. We’re lucky to have her and when she’s the queen, everyone is going to be better for it.”
She inhaled deeply through her nose and then blew it out. “I’m so scared. What if I say the wrong thing?”
“They just want to welcome you.” He wanted so much to kiss her again. “They’re not expecting anything from you right now.” He tugged her closed and leaned down. “Take a second, close your eyes, and just breathe.”
She nodded.
He watched her close her eyes and wanted to kiss each eyelid. When she leaned forward and rested her head against his collarbone, he put his hand behind her head and stroked her hair. He could have stayed like this for hours, but when he glanced at the laptop, he saw the screen was changing. “Better?”
She lifted her head, forcing him to drop his hand. “Your scent calms me.” She said it with wonder in her voice.
He smiled. Hers may have centered him, but calm was not the feeling that was rushing through his body. “Okay. Turn around. They’re calling.”
She sucked in a breath and spun around. ‘What do I do?”
“Hit the—” He leaned forward, reached around her, and tapped the space bar to accept the call. He had planned to let go of her hand and step out of view, but she held their melded hands behind her back with both hands. He wasn’t moving anywhere.
She squeezed harder when Devin and Rayne appeared on the screen.
Rayne waved. “Hello.” She was smiling. Leaning closer, he could see her eyes shining. “You are so pretty, Ena. Hi, Foster.”
“Hi.” He smiled.
“Hello, Ena,” Devin said and then glanced at his mate. Foster thought he looked like he’d rather be doing anything else right now.
“This is very exciting.” Rayne waved her hand around. “Jesse told us that the clan basically elected you as their Alpha. That is so wonderful.” She looked at Devin for a second. “It confirms that it is possible.” Her expression was serious now. “You are the first of many.”
Devin only nodded.
Rayne leaned closer again. “I’ll let you in on a little secret.”
Ena’s grip had loosened slightly, and Foster almost laughed because Rayne’s magic even worked through a video.
“Devin and I have been working with his father to set up a new system for Alpha once we deal with all this nastiness, of course.” She nodded. “Alpha’s will be elected. There will be no more of this pure bloodline hoaky. That’s not to say there’s anything wrong with the Alphas of most of the clans. There are just some that think it means they are better than everyone, and that’s not the case.” She smiled and waved her hand around again. “I’m getting so far ahead of myself.” She sighed. “It’s so wonderful that your clan is going to be part of the Alliance again, Ena. I know it’s a little crazy and probably overwhelming, but you are going to have all the help you need.” She looked at Foster. “Foster, you and Jesse make sure she has my personal number, okay?”
Foster nodded. “I will.”
Rayne smiled again. “When things settle down more, Devin and I will be traveling to every single clan in North America.” Foster almost laughed when Devin jerked his head and looked at her. He figured this was the first the prince had heard about that trip. “I do love your hair, Ena. How do you get it to stay straight?” She touched her own. “Mine has a life of its own.”
Devin said something they couldn’t hear.
Rayne nodded. “Do you have any questions right now?”
Ena shook her head. “No. I think I’m still in shock.”
Rayne laughed. “I understand that, believe me, but I do know that when it seems like your whole world has tilted, it’s only to shift it around for better things.”
Ena nodded. “I’m just trying not to drown.”
Rayne laughed again. “You have enough people around you to toss you a life preserver. You’re going to be great at this.”
“Thank you.”
Both of them looked away from the camera. Devin nodded and leaned forward. “We’re going to have to go, Ena. Welcome to the Alliance family.” He smiled, and Foster thought that may have been the first time he’d seen the man really smile.
“Foster.” Devin nodded to him.
“We’ll talk soon, Ena.” Rayne smiled.
“Yes. I’d like that. Have a good night.” Ena’s grip was normal now.
“You too. Bye.”
Rayne waved one last time, and the screen blanked.
“That’s it?” Ena turned and looked at him.
“That’s it.” He smiled. “How do you keep your hair so straight?” He looked at it, teasing her.
She scoffed. “I wash it. That’s all.” She sighed. “They seem so–normal.”
“Mhmm.” She released his hand, and he flexed it, trying to restore the circulation.
Jesse came over. Foster looked at him. “Did you know about the alpha elections?”
He unhooked his phone. “I had an idea a change was coming.” He closed the laptop. “If you’ve ever met Oren Marin or Vesper Hughes, you would understand where Rayne’s passion for change comes from.”
Foster sighed. “I know Amari’s father is a jerk.”
Jesse laughed. “That’s a mild description.” Tucking the laptop under his arm, he smiled at Ena. “You guys have a good night. I’m going to go track down my mate and try to get a few hours of sleep.”
Foster wanted to grab Ena and run back to her dark abandoned house, but he tucked his hands in his pockets instead.
Ena yawned. “This has been a day.”
He chuckled. “It has.”
She turned and looked at him. “Will you go for a run with me in the morning? If we go around dawn, the others won’t be up yet.”
He nodded. “Yeah. I prefer early morning runs.”
She smiled. “Me too.” Her smile faded. “I know I owe you a talk, but can we just do it tomorrow too? I’m so tired right now, and I know if I don’t try to sleep, everything is going to sink in, and I’ll be a wreck all over again.”
He nodded and took a step back so he wouldn’t reach for her. “Sure. We can go for a run, then come back and have breakfast and talk.”
Her smile made his heart thud louder in his chest. “That sounds perfect.”
Foster bowed his head. “Good night, Alpha Clarke.”
Her eyes rounded. “That will be enough of that stuff.” She scoffed. “Good night, Foster.” She held his look for a moment and then turned and walked toward Orson’s.
Foster watched until he couldn’t see her. When he turned to go to his van, Zach came walking out of the trees. He had his jacket slung over his shoulder.
“I figured with that leopard out there roaming around, I’d be safe to go for a run.”
Foster nodded. “Yeah. She wouldn’t let anything happen to you.”
He stopped and looked around. “I never thought I’d see this place with life in it again.” He sighed. “It’s going to be something to see when it’s all done.”
Foster looked around. “Yeah, it will be nice not to have to worry about the roof falling on you while you sleep.”
Zach chuckled and then turned and looked in the direction Ena had gone. “She’s what we needed.” He looked at Foster. “What happens to her when you leave?”
Foster sucked in a breath. “I’ll have to go help the teams, but I’m not leaving forever.”
“I hope not. She’s hard to keep up with, but I think it might be worth your time to try.”
Foster nodded, because he had no idea what to say to that. Did he know they were mates? Had Ena told the others?
“See you tomorrow.” Zach turned and walked in the direction his house was.
Foster blew out a breath and started toward his van. His phone buzzed in his pocket. Pulling it out, he looked at it. Gia had messaged him. Opening it, he chuckled.
Well, are you mated yet?
He sent back, No, but Ena was elected to be their Alpha.
Wow. That’s awesome. Better get things sorted out with her, Foster. We got a call that most of the teams are heading to two locations that will take a lot of people.
Foster sighed and looked at Orson’s house. We’re going for a run and breakfast in the morning. I’ll see what happens.
Use your words. Happy face emoji.
His words. That was great advice, if only he knew what words to use. I will. Heading to sleep now. Talk soon.
Take care.
He put the phone back in his pocket and opened the door. His coyote was not happy at all. They weren’t with Ena. “Me too, bud, but suck it up for now.” Getting in, he popped the seat back and grabbed the blanket he’d tossed on the passenger seat this morning. He was just going to have to tell Ena that he had to leave. There was no other way around it. He’d damn sure be back, but he couldn’t give dates and times. He hoped that was going to be enough.
It wasn’t like they’d known each other for a long time. They’d survive a few days apart.
He stared at the ceiling of the van. Despite all his internal chatter, he wasn’t feeling it. They may have only known each other briefly, but he felt like she had always been there. Like when you have a friend you’ve known since you were kids, you could go a month without seeing each other and feel like you had just seen them once you were together again. It almost felt like that with her—his animal interrupted his rambling brain to let him know that he wasn’t making any sense and if he wasn’t going to sleep, they were going for a run.
Foster sighed and closed his eyes. His coyote was turning into a nag.