Eleven

“Heeeeeeeere comes the tickle bug!” Surge fake growled as his thumb and forefinger came down on Grace’s tummy. She squealed with delight, kicking her feet in the air, turning Surge’s giggle into a full-on belly laugh.

“My god,” Drake said, standing over them where they laid on the living room floor. “You’re completely and totally gone, aren’t you?”

“What?” Surge breathed through the laughing fit. “It’s fun. She likes to play. She’s not boring like some people around here.”

“Did you hear that, Grace? Your daddy thinks I’m boring.” He turned his attention back to Surge, smirking. “I have a mate who says differently.”

Surge laughed. “She can’t be trusted. She’s biased.”

Drake shrugged in agreement. “True. But speaking of my mate, she sent me to tell you…” His expression grew serious. “The cat is awake.”

Drake’s words sobered Surge the same as a bucket of ice water would.

“She’s awake?”

“Yes.”

“Tana is out at the build site. I have to—”

“I sent Beast to get her.”

Surge nodded. “Yeah. Okay.” He gathered Grace against his chest, his stomach twisting with nerves.

He’d paced a lap and a half around the living room when Tana barreled through the front door, eyes wide.

“Surge.” Her tone was anxious, scared, even though she was trying to be strong.

“Come here.”

She ran to him and he pulled her close. Her hand landed gently on Grace’s head, and the child’s already drowsy eyes fluttered closed.

Surge kissed Tana’s head, using his bond to calm her as best he could. “It’ll be okay. Remember, whatever happens, I’m here.”

She nodded, her arm tightening around his waist.

The scene in the spare room was heartbreaking. It was just Ella, Drake, Diz, and the female, but the cat was weeping so hard she could barely be understood.

“Arkansas,” she cried. “Where’s Arkansas?”

“This is Arkansas,” Ella assured her. “You are in Arkansas. Cedar Valley, to be exact.”

“I told her,” Diz murmured, dragging his hands through his hair and pacing the room like it was a track. “But she didn’t believe me.”

“No,” the woman wailed. “No, you don’t understand. I need to see Arkansas.”

She was clearly delirious.

Ella looked at Drake, helpless. “I can sedate her again, but I don’t know if it—”

“No,” Diz said. “We just need time.” He looked up and saw Tana holding Grace. “The baby. Bring her the baby.”

Tana nodded, scooting close to the side of the bed where the female lay crying. Glassy eyes scanned the room, searching and searching but not finding.

But then her gaze landed on the bundle Tana held and she went still. “Arkansas,” she breathed. “She’s okay. Thank god, she’s alright. I couldn’t feel the bond anymore. I thought… I thought she was gone.”

Arkansas. Grace’s name was Arkansas.

Surge went cold with fear. Bond. She had a bond with Grace? But she couldn’t be her mother. They’d seen evidence of nursing on the mama kitty’s body.

The only way to bond with another shifter was by mating or parenting. Where did that leave this female?

“What do you mean, bond?” he asked carefully, stepping up to stand beside Tana.

The female’s eyes went to him, wary and afraid.

“No one here will hurt you,” Ella said. “You’re safe with us.”

The cat seemed to focus, her eyes touching on each person in the room and coming back to settle on Grace.

“Arkansas is my sister,” she rasped. “When I felt the bond break with our mother, I assumed the baby was gone too.” Her eyes welled with fresh tears. “What happened? How did we end up here?”

Ella’s response was gentle. “I think before we get into that, you need to tell us your name. And how you came to be separated from your clan.”

She nodded, swallowing hard and dashing tears from her cheeks. “My name is Destiny, and my clan is gone. We were small, the Hutch Clan from Colorado. They were decimated by a clan of bear shifters. My mom, she was pregnant with another litter, so we ran for our lives. I’d heard word that Arkansas was a safe land. That shifters didn’t war here. Is that true?”

Drake frowned. “There hasn’t been a real shifter war here since my great grandparents’ time. There was a pack on pack scuffle in the Ozarks a couple years ago, but that was over an abusive alpha. ‘Round here, we stick to ourselves and we get along just fine.”

“You have cats in your pack?” she asked, eyeing Tana.

“One, right now. Tana. She’s mated to Surge here.”

Destiny flashed a suspicious gaze his way.

“It’s not what you might think,” Tana said. “The wolves mate for love.”

Destiny frowned, cocking her head, and staring as Surge wrapped his arm around Tana’s waist.

She blinked and then continued her story. “We were in Kansas when mama went into labor. Three of the kittens were stillborn, but one survived. We named her Arkansas to remind us that we had hope. Had a reason to keep going even when things seemed hopeless. We knew if we could just get to Arkansas, we’d be safe. But I didn’t think we’d made it.”

“Cedar Valley is right on the border of Oklahoma,” Diz explained. “You wouldn’t have known you crossed over.”

Destiny shook her head. “At dusk, we were attacked by wild dogs.”

“Not shifters?” Drake asked. “And the bears didn’t follow you?”

“No. They might have, but not all the way. They wouldn’t have a reason to leave Colorado. They wanted our territory. No, these were dogs. I fought them off while mama ran with Arkansas, but there were too many so she shifted to help. Then the baby shifted, and she was easy prey. I was injured too badly, and lost consciousness. I don’t remember anything after that.”

“You and the baby have been here almost a month,” Diz told her.

“A month? I lost an entire month?”

He nodded.

“My mama?”

He shook his head sadly. “She’s gone.”

Destiny nodded, wiping tears away as fast as they fell. “What happened?”

Diz looked at Tana.

“I was driving home…” she began, her voice choked. “From out of nowhere, she ran into the road. She had the kitten by the scruff. I slammed on my brakes but she just stood there, and I was too close anyway. There was no missing them.”

“She ran into the road?” Destiny hissed.

Tana nodded, her expression full of pain.

“I… I can’t believe she did it.”

“I wouldn’t lie about something like this,” Tana said.

Destiny shook her head, frowning. “No, I mean… she’d been talking about it for weeks. About ending it. She was depressed, hopeless about bringing another baby into such a cruel way of life. I’d kept her alive by promising her it would be different here. She must’ve thought the dogs killed me.”

“I’m sorry for what happened,” Tana murmured. “So very sorry. For your loss, for the baby’s. We want to help you in any way we can. Drake has already offered to let you stay as long as you’d like.”

Surge could barely swallow as he watched everything unfold. He’d been right about Grace’s mother. He’d been right about the cats running from danger. He’d been right to fight for them. Now he hoped it’d pay off.

The wolves were ready to add two more cats to their pack, if only she’d say yes.

Destiny sniffed, her pain palpable to all in the room. “I’m just glad Arkansas is okay. And that she had someone to care for her. Can… can I hold her?”

Tana glanced at Surge, clearly worried. She was battling her instinct, he knew, because he was too.

Mine, mine, ours.

Jaw clenched tight, he managed to give her a small nod.

Tana carefully handed Grace to her sister, arranging the blanket so her head was amply supported.

“Hey there, little sis.” Her voice was a mere whisper. “How have you been getting along without me?”

Tana wrung her hands. “W-we named her Grace.”

“We?” Destiny frowned.

“Surge and I. We’ve taken care of her as if she was our own. We’ve…” Tana glanced nervously around the room. “We’ve bonded with her.”

Destiny’s surprised gaze lifted to Tana. “Bonded? Are you sure?”

“Yes. Very sure. We’d like to be her parents. With your blessing of course.”

The silence that followed Tana’s declaration was ages long. With every second that passed, Surge struggled to hold in his nervous laugh. But he’d strangle his fucking wolf if it meant the difference between keeping and losing his daughter.

“Parents,” Destiny murmured sadly. “She’ll need someone, and I’m not prepared to be a mother yet. Maybe not ever. I’m just a sister.” She looked at Surge and Tana. “You’d take care of her? Love her?”

“We already do,” Surge confirmed. His voice was rough and startled Destiny. “Sorry. I just meant… well… damn it, we’re terrified of losing her. We want you both to stay, be a part of our pack.”

Destiny nodded, looking weary. “For now,” she said. “I have nowhere else to go. And I need to see what kind of people want to raise my sister.”

Surge let out a rough breath, so relieved he could barely contain a whoop. He wanted to shout from the rooftops, jump up and down, and just generally scare people with his antics. But Destiny was still healing and she’d had enough thrown at her for one day.

“Good people,” Diz said. “You’ll see.”

“You took us in when you could have just left us to die. That tells me more about your pack than you know.”

“Thank you,” Tana said. “Thank you for giving us a chance. Wait until you see how well we’ve taken care of her. She’s a very happy kitten.”

A small sad smile appeared on Destiny’s face. “Arkansas Grace. Her name is perfect.”

As Surge watched Destiny reconnecting with her sister, he couldn’t help feeling like he’d been walloped over the head by kismet. Sometimes the best gifts came in unexpected packages.

***

“Wooooooooo, son! Get that dirt moving, boy. If it ain’t flying, you ain’t tryin’!”

Tana watched Surge as he cheered on Diz. He’d race later, but for now they were introducing Grace to her first dirt track race. They’d spared no expense on her ear protection, making sure she had the very best infant noise reduction muffs. And they stayed far enough away from the fence to make the dogs breathe easier.

Surge glanced back at them. “She asleep?”

Tana nodded, laughing as he shook his head in dismay.

“Sleeping through her first race. We’re gonna have to teach her our ways soon.”

“Give her a break, love, she’s only been alive six months. Her life revolves around sleeping and eating. Not cars.”

“Not true,” he said, pointing a finger at her. “She chose a car squeaky toy the other day at the store. A red one. She knows what’s up.”

Tana rolled her eyes. “And you had nothing to do with that, right?”

His hands went up in the air. “Not a thing. I swear.”

Tana laughed, and his eyes grew hot, the race temporarily forgotten. He stalked over to her, leaning over the sleeping baby to cradle Tana’s cheek. Capturing her lips, he kissed her long and deep, causing her knees to weaken.

Every time he kissed her like that, with reverence and promise, it reminded her of all she had to be thankful for. And she was. Boy, was she ever. She could’ve never guessed her life would be filled with so much happiness. So full. To the brim and overflowing.

Sure, they’d had rough times. And they’d have even more along the way. But Surge’s promise that they’d always go through it together had held.

And they weren’t alone. They had the pack. For backup, they had her clan. And they were going to visit Surge’s mother in the morning. Being a dad had gone a long way to helping him forgive her bad decisions. He understood how far a parent would go to do what they thought was best for their young. Their relationship wasn’t perfect yet, but they were getting there.

Even Owyn had taken to Grace, demanding he be referred to as Uncle Owyn. To which Surge countered that by calling him Uncle Badass Who Will Cut Anyone Who Messes With His Niece.

They’d shaken on it.

And they had Destiny. She’d made a full recovery from their ordeal. Physically anyway. It would take time, but she was learning how to trust the pack and how to live by their ways. There was a lot of love in that tough outer shell. She proved it every time she cared for Grace. Every time she looked at Tana with zero contempt for what had happened to her mother.

Surge broke their kiss, giving her a lazy smile. “Alright, alright. How am I supposed to set a good example for our girl when you’re over here lookin’ so sexy? Hmm?” He gripped her hip, squeezing.

“You’re setting a perfect example.” She kissed the corner of his mouth, right where his dimple was. “She’s going to know exactly what to look for when it comes to a mate. She’ll know not to settle for an asshole. That’s the best example you could set.”

Surge frowned looking deeply disturbed.

“What is it?”

“I have this urge to annihilate any male that comes near her and she’s still just a baby. What the fuck will we do about that?”

Tana arched an eyebrow. “I have an idea.”

“I’m listening.”

“It’s simple. We pretend you’re crazy.”

Surge’s eyes went wide, his mouth quirking as he nodded. “Aw, yesssss. That’s smart shit, right there.” He tipped his head back, cackling with glee.

“Yeah, like that,” Tana laughed. “Except even crazier. Give me your most insane laugh. And make it a little maniacal too.”

Surge gave her exactly what she asked for, and maybe even took it a step further when he added crazy eyes to the mix. Yeah, no male would come around with that all up in his face.

“What the hell are you guys doing? Don’t you know there’s a race going on?” Drake called to them from the fence.

“Important shit,” Surge informed him. “We’re coming up with ways to keep males away from Gracie.”

Drake crooked an eyebrow. “Carry on, then.”

Surge bent his head, placing a sweet kiss on Grace’s cheek. “You’re never mating,” he cooed. “Never ever, ever. You’ll see.”

Tana laughed like a villain, and Surge glanced at her, shocked. “What’s that?”

She shrugged. “I’ll be crazy too. Twice the crazy, twice the effect, yeah?”

“My god, woman. I love the way you think.” He kissed her lips. “Scratch that, I love you. Everything about you.”

His confession brought a smile to her face. “How do you know?”

He sighed. “Because. Love is the feeling you get when you like something as much as dirt track racing, and I’ve just missed most of Diz’s run.” He dropped a kiss on her nose. “Don’t regret a second.”

“I love you too, Surge.”

His gaze was full of adoration. She’d never get used to the way he looked at her, or how it made her feel inside. How it washed away all the old and made life shiny and new.

“How do you know?”

“Because. When I think about life without you, it’s just a pile of broken parts. Together, we make a masterpiece. And because last night when you were doing that thing with your tongue I kept screaming your name followed by ‘dying happy’ and ‘do it again’.”

Surge threw his head back in a laugh. “Proof positive, right there, baby girl.”

And they laughed and laughed… happily ever after.