I stared blankly in front of me as I sat on the couch. I seemed to be getting really good at sleeping with Ben while avoiding talking about the big issues. It was kind of impressive. Ben's kiss last night had taken me by surprise. It was a nice surprise though. I was so worked up that all it took was that one little spark to create an inferno inside me.

I didn't know if I was more disappointed or impressed with myself by just how turned on his possessiveness had made me. I fanned my face as memories of the night before flooded back to me. I was pretty sure I had put a crack in my cabinet when I pushed Ben against it. So worth it, though. I bit down on my lower lip and glanced out the window.

He was outside right now, talking on the phone. I guess he went out there for privacy, but we were shifters. It wasn't like I couldn't hear him. From the sounds of the conversation, it was a call about an accounting or finance-something job.

Ana was down for a nap, so I busied myself with reading on the couch. Pretending to, that was. It was some sort of medical text my sister had left behind. It didn't matter. I was reading the same line over and over as I eavesdropped on his conversation.

I wasn't entirely sure how I felt about it. We had been skirting around serious talk since he got here. Well, it was much more fair to say that I had been skirting around it. I couldn't bear the thought of shattering the illusion of normalcy we had, even though I knew it was inevitable. Now, however, it was finally time for me to face reality.

Ben had already graduated from college, so it made sense that he would be looking for a job, but I didn't know what that meant for us. I didn't even know what I wanted for us, really. I was torn between wanting him, what was good for my daughter, and the simple logistics that came with two people living very different lives.

When Ben walked back inside the house, he was grinning from ear to ear. Apparently he wasn't so torn up about our options. When he looked toward me, I quickly looked back down at the book I was fake-reading.

"What you got there?" he asked with a hint of confusion.

"A book, obviously."

"A medical textbook . . ."

"And? Sometimes you want to read about . . ." I quickly scanned the page, "the cervix. I'm reading about the cervix, Ben."

His brows lifted. "Really?"

"Yep."

"You were listening to my conversation, weren't you?"

I pursed my lips as I thumped the massive text closed. "Maybe."

"I thought so. You know I've got some great news then, huh?"

"Do you?"

Ben seemed as excited as a little kid as he rushed over to sit next to me on the couch. He opened his arms wide and exclaimed, "I've got a job!"

A moment of silence stretched between us. Ben looked from side to side, his arms still open wide like he was waiting for me to hug him. Although I was calm on the outside, I was silently screaming on the inside. He seemed way too happy about this. Wasn't he worried about leaving me and Ana? Did he have any worries at all?

"That's great," I finally said, my voice neutral.

His arms slowly lowered. "Don't you want to know what the job is?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Thrill me."

"A buddy in my pack just got some major funding for his startup. He wants me to be his Chief Financial Officer."

"Way to put that degree to work."

Ben deflated against the couch. "I'm not getting the vibe that you're excited about this."

"Yeah, um, I'm definitely happy for you, but . . ." I sighed.

I was a mother but I was still learning how to adult properly. I was a living billboard for why you should be diligent in taking your birth control. I was faking it 'til I made it day in and day out. Sure, I had stepped up to the plate for my kid, but that didn't make me world-wise.

In fact, it only seemed to point out how inept I was. All that fancy college-learnin' didn't prepare me for how to discuss custody and all those other logistics with the accidental father of my child.

"But . . .?" Ben asked, concern growing in his eyes. It was good to finally see him freaking out a little too. I was feeling alone here in Awkward City.

"About me and Ana—"

"Oh, is that it?" He suddenly looked relieved.

"Uhh . . ." Did he seriously just say that? I was starting to feel like we were talking circles around each other.

He placed an arm around the back of the couch and faced me with a big smile. "Trust me, you two are going to love it back home. My pack is huge, but we're all close and—"

"Excuse me?"

He furrowed his brows. "What?"

"Haven't I told you several times that I'm staying in Fayoak?"

"Yeah, but I've got a job back home, so you don't need to. It'll be perfect. You can finish up school there. You won't have to do it online anymore. The pack has a great daycare that Ana would love. It's safer there too. I can protect you better there."

"I have a job here."

"You just work at the orchard, so why not—"

"Just the orchard? Peter's accounting was all out of whack when I showed up, okay? I'm needed here."

"But you could go to school and get an even better job through my pack."

I clenched and unclenched my jaw as I tried very hard to force myself to not shout. "I like going to school online. Peter doesn't mind me bringing Ana to work, either. Name another place that would do that. That's three strikes, buddy. I'm pretty sure you're out."

"Aly, come on." Ben looked hurt but I was too.

"Do you even realize what you're asking me? You want me to uproot my life? Just because you said so?"

"But my pack—"

"Screw your pack, Ben. I have one too. Jack's a badass Alpha. Fayoak is a good place to raise Ana." I was just rambling at this point. I didn't care. I was right. "It's safe for our kind. Law enforcement? Hospital? We have people everywhere. No hiding the fact that your baby will sprout fur someday."

"Jesus Christ, Aly, I'm just telling you we have options."

"No, you're not. And if you thought about it, you might realize that's part of the problem."

Ben gave me a confused look that only served to enrage me more. How could he not realize what he was asking of me? He wanted me to give up everything while he gave up nothing. I knew that wasn't fair of me. I was, in reality, asking him to give up his pack. But he really did want me to give up everything. I realized that sometimes you have to compromise but that wasn't a compromise.

Ana's shrill cry cut through the air as she woke from her nap. Normally it would make me smile. Weird, I know, but it always seemed like she was saying, "Attend to me, servant!" She often did it first thing when she woke up and it would stop the moment I peeked into her crib. She was a cunning little brat and I loved her for it.

Even though I knew it wasn't Ben's fault, all I could think about was the fact that he didn't know that about her. He just met her. Up until he showed up here in Fayoak, we were just good friends who messed around one night. And this . . . this was all too much. I was getting whiplash from all these sudden changes. Everything that I had feared would happen was happening. That comfortable feeling of normalcy had been stripped away.

I was angry. Ben was angry. My inner cougar was angry at me. It was screaming at me that he was my mate. I knew that already. So what? My shifter side could argue all it wanted but I wasn't fate's bitch. I needed to go. I needed out. Shaking my head with a bitter laugh, I turned and walked away.

"Hey, we're not done."

My brows shot up to my hairline. "If we weren't, we are after a line like that."

"What . . .?"

"You heard me."

With that, I went to Ana's room, got her ready to go, put her in her car seat, then marched back out to the living room. Ben was still standing where I left him. I could practically feel the angry energy coming off him in waves.

He was bouncing on his feet, no doubt itching for a run. He used to always do that after a rough test or a frustrating study session. Accounting wasn't exactly a fun major.

For a brief moment, I caught myself falling into thoughts of our time together and quickly pulled myself out. No. I was mad, angry, and every other synonym one could find. I started for the door, Ana's car seat slung over my arm.

"Aly."

"No." I paused by the entrance to heft Ana's diaper bag over my shoulder, grab my keys, and open the door. "I need time to think."

"Alysse."

I closed the door.

* * *

"Shit."

By the time I was sitting in the driver's seat of my car, I realized I had no clue where I was going or what I was actually doing. Typical Alysse. One day I would learn to access that rational part of my brain that everyone was always going on about. Not today, though. I had left and I was sticking to it. For the sake of being fair to the me of less than five minutes ago, I really did need the time to think.

This was the father of my child, I repeated to myself. I couldn't be all brash about this, as tempting as that might be. I had to think of what was best for Ana. Okay, if we're being honest, I really enjoyed his company, too. I didn't just enjoy it, I craved being with him—always had. He felt like home. Comforting. Warm. He was good, kind, and strong. He was my mate for heaven's sake.

The front door banged open and Ben came striding out. I narrowed my eyes, all my good thoughts blowing away like dust in the wind. Just because he was hot stuff didn't mean I wanted to talk yet.

Right when I thought he was going to come try to argue me out of leaving, he stopped. I slowly processed the fact that he was bare-chested and wearing running shorts. I met the liquid silver of his wolf's eyes through his as he gave me a furious look. I blinked in surprise, then he was gone, running off into the trees.

Well, Ben knew where he was going. What about me? I picked up my phone and browsed through my contacts as Ana burbled in the backseat. Sophie was probably busy with her boytoy. Charlie had been pulling a lot of weekend shifts for some project with Maddox. I could always just go somewhere and sit down. I wasn't in the mood for dealing with a crowd, though, so that ruled out The Peach.

My eyes landed on Izzy's name and my brows rose. Bingo.

"Hey, kiddo, wanna go bug the snot out of Aunty Izzy?"

I took the steady stream of spit-bubble noises as a resounding yes.

* * *

By the time I had climbed up to the fifth floor of Izzy's apartment building, I was considering suing for the lack of an elevator. I didn't think that was legal. Plus, I might be whiny when it comes to stairs, but I was also hefting a baby up all five flights. So, y'know, that wasn't exactly easy.

Once I reached her floor, I leaned against the wall and wheezed. "Ana, baby girl, I need you to learn how to walk. Pronto."

I looked toward Izzy apartment door, surprised I didn't hear any raucous noises from inside. Ever since she started working as a nanny for the pack, her place had been a zoo. Pun intended. She enjoyed it, though, and that was all that mattered.

I peeled myself from the wall and approached her door. I rapped my knuckles against her front door and said, "Izz-monster, it's your favorite person."

The door flung open and I was greeted by my smiling best friend. Her pale blonde hair was neatly curled, resting primly on her shoulders. I had no idea how she always managed to look so perfect but she nailed it on the daily. She was even wearing a lilac dress. A dress. Inside her house. When I was home, I almost exclusively lounged in sweatpants or even just my underwear.

"No kids today?" I asked.

Izzy shook her head. "Jack said I needed to start taking days off."

Since we got her set up in a small apartment in downtown Fayoak after our great escape from the old pack, Izzy had been working for the Fayoak cat-pack. Jack said that with her gentle nature—those two were so into each other—she would make for a perfect pack nanny.

She ran her little daycare out of her apartment. It gave her something to focus on while she healed from the abuse at the hands of our old pack. It had been good for her too. She was happier than I'd ever seen her before.

"I'm surprised Jack didn't use it as an excuse to take you out on a date."

"We're just friends," she insisted as she ushered me inside.

"Does he or does he not take you to the library with suspicious frequency?"

"Because we both enjoy books, Aly," she said with a soft sigh.

She could deny it all she wanted but I knew she had a crush on a certain Alpha. Mine, actually. Her and Jack were moony over each other, whether they wanted to admit it or not. I took a subtle sniff of the air, just to check. Darn. I couldn't smell him on her.

Izzy gave me an exasperated look and I shrugged. There was no defending myself. I was nosey, pure and simple.

"I can't believe you two are still playing coy."

"Oh, honestly . . ." Her pale cheeks flushed a deep red that crept down her neck. "Remind me why we're friends?"

"Let's see . . . I'm hilarious, my baby's cute . . ." I pursed my lips as I realized I was quickly running out of reasons. "Because you're wonderful and I need you as a friend?"

"You're very lucky I can put up with you." Her slightly ruffled expression softened. "Also, you forgot to include the part where you saved my life."

"That's just what friends do, right? Besides, that was more Sophie and Alex's doing. Oh, hey, by the way, they wanted me to tell you that you don't need to send any more gift baskets."

Izzy's blush deepened. "I'm just so thankful for all their help."

"They know, trust me."

"I hope so."

"Trust me, they do." I waved a hand in the air to motion a shift in topic. "Now, I need your advice, Izz-monster."

She cocked her head to the side, her curls bouncing with the movement. "What could you possibly need my help with?"

"Ben."

She stared at me blankly for a moment, then I saw the connections slowly form in her mind. "Oh . . ." Her eyes grew wider. "Oh."

Izzy was one of the few people who knew about him. Although she hadn't met him, not even when we still lived back at the old pack's compound together. Back in the day, I thought she turned down my invitations to go out because she was just a homebody.

I ended up finding out, woefully late, that she actually wasn't allowed out of the pack compound without an escort. She had been a captive right out in the open and I hadn't realized it for years. That one still stung to think about.

"Did you find him?" she asked. "I thought you gave up months ago."

"He found me."

Her eyes widened. "Is he in Fayoak?"

"At my house, in fact."

"Oh my."

"Damn right 'oh my.'" I started thinking about our argument all over again and scoffed. "He wants me and Ana to leave with him. Just pick up my life again and move."

Izzy looked completely stunned. It was only then that I remembered she had no real context for my current situation. It probably wasn't fair to not explain things.

Especially if I wanted real advice. And I did. I was pretty sure that was why I was so eager to come see Izzy when I saw her name. She would tell me the truth—gently—which was exactly what I needed with my temper as it was right now.

"Okay, if you ask me, Ben is being really selfish." Izzy nodded slowly before I continued, "But he seems to think that we're in danger here in Fayoak and that his pack of dumb wolves would be better at taking care of us."

"But you don't want to uproot your new life?"

"Exactly." I threw my hands up in the air in triumph.

"Well," Izzy said meekly, "you did just tell me that."

"But you get it, right?"

"I do, but I'm also certain he wants what's best for you and Ana."

"What's best for me is a man who can respect my wishes. I want Ana to grow up here. I want her to grow up at the orchard. God, Izzy, I just want her to have the family I didn't have."

"You had Sophie."

"But I didn't get to have a mom and a dad for long. After they died, nobody was there for us. Our grandparents probably don't even care we're alive. But Petunia and Peter . . . they're like Ana's grandparents." I looked down at Ana, who had long since fallen asleep in her car seat. "They're the only grandparents I can give her."

"Don't you want Ana to be with Ben's family too?" Izzy asked softly.

I looked away, guilt gnawing at me. She had a point.

"I just don't know why we can't find some sort of compromise. We start talking, and I explode because I feel like he's trying to change everything and not listening to me. Or maybe I'm not explaining it right . . . I don't know."

"Why does Ben think you're in that much danger here in Fayoak?"

I cursed inwardly as I realized she had no idea that the old pack was here. Seeing the faint panic in her eyes—she always was very intuitive—my thoughts flashed to Robby and Seth. I wanted to know if they had ever hurt her. I already planned to knock them sideways when I got the chance, but I would rip them to shreds if they had laid a finger on her.

"Hey, um, yeah . . . there's something I need to tell you . . ."

She might be human but she picked up on the shift in my tone easily. Her expression fell and that panic lurking in her gentle eyes took precedence. "It's the old pack, isn't it?"

I nodded.

"How many?" I could hear her actively fighting to keep the shakiness out of her breath.

"It was only Robby and Seth at first, but—"

Izzy winced at both of their names and I saw red for an instant. That was all the confirmation I needed. I would destroy them for hurting her. I swallowed my rage, but only for now. I was saving it for later.

"They attacked me at the Greenhaven Orchard but Petunia scared them off. So, true to form, the cowards called in backup. I don't know how many are here now, but you need to lay low. Maybe call Jack."

The fear in Izzy's expression gave way to a small, embarrassed smile. "He's my Alpha, Aly, not my mate."

I flashed her a cheeky grin. "You so sure about that?"

"Yes."

"Seriously though, if you're not going to call Jack, you should at least come stay at my place until this all blows over."

Izzy shook her head politely, then lifted her chin. It was such an adorable show of strength that I had to fight to keep the smile from my face.

"I can't live in fear forever," she insisted.

She had made big strides in the last year and I wasn't about to tell her to give that up. I figured the pack was more concerned with me anyway.

"Alright, Izz-monster, just promise me you'll have the sheriff on speed dial."

"I always do."

I gave her something between a frown and a smile as I nodded. We said our goodbyes and I carefully picked up Ana's car seat, hoping I wouldn't wake her.

The moment I made it downstairs and pushed through the apartment building's front door, the scents of the outdoors assaulted my senses. I was used to it as a shifter, but this was worse than usual. I paused and sniffed the air. My eyes flew open wide when I realized exactly why it smelled so damn bad out here.

The old pack had been here.

Robby and Seth's rotten scents were especially pungent. They had been here. Right outside Izzy's apartment building. I had brought them right to her. Way to go, Aly. Now they knew where she lived. The only thing that must have stopped them from barreling on in was the fact that it was still daylight. Wouldn't want any witnesses to your rampant assholery, would you?

I slammed the security door shut and thudded back up the stairs, quietly cursing Izzy for living on the top floor as Ana's car seat felt heavier with each step. Yet, somehow, my little brick of an angel was still happily asleep. That was good. I didn't want my fear rubbing off on her. I banged rapidly on Izzy's door as I tried to catch my breath. She flung the door open with wide, panicked eyes.

"Aly? What's wrong?"

"Izzy, babe, I know you're tough as hell, but you need to come with me."

She looked like she wanted to cry, but instead swallowed deeply and gave me a firm nod. "Should I pack an overnight bag?"

"I think so."

If I wasn't so scared for us right now, I would be bursting with pride. She had come so ridiculously far and I respected her for it. I went back inside with Izzy as she gathered her things. In the meantime, I sent Charlie a text. I was going to need some major muscle on the way home, just in case.

I gnawed at the inside of my lip as I waited for a reply, my eyes focused on Ana's sleeping face. I hoped Charlie was done with work by now. I needed my main ogre at my side right now more than ever. If it was just me here, I wouldn't care. I'd take all of them on solo. But with Ana and Izzy? Hell no. I wasn't taking chances.

My phone vibrated and I opened up Charlie's reply.

No questions asked. That was how I knew he was my friend for life. I could always depend on him.

Charlie replied with a string of mostly nonsense emojis that included the eggplant. I told him it was a sign of strength and virility. I wasn't completely lying. But I would say that nobody should ever depend upon me to keep them current.

Izzy came out of her bedroom with a pastel floral backpack in hand. And yet, she still looked surprisingly ready to kick some ass in her sensible flats and A-line dress. I wanted to beam at her, but I kept it cool.

"Charlie's on his way to be our bodyguard. We'll be safe at the orchard, alright?"

"I know. We'll be fine." It sounded like she was trying to reassure herself more than me, and that was okay.

Charlie arrived in record time, announcing his arrival with a musical knock. Izzy opened the door and he gave us both a big grin.

"Ready?" he asked, as cheerful as ever.

"Thanks for coming, big guy." I picked up Ana's carrier and started toward the door. "I hate to be brief, but we gotta jet. Let's go."

"I wasn't expecting much chattin'." Charlie gave Izzy a smile instead of me. He was trying to keep her at ease and I was thankful for it. I wasn't sure I could be that person right now. I was too worried that I had just put my best friend in danger.

As we stepped outside a few moments later, in a moment of sickening realization, I noticed that the scent of my old pack members hadn't dissipated yet. In fact, it smelled fresh. I swiveled my head around, looking for the source.

None of them were here, as far as I could tell, yet my spine was crawling. Edward had paired up with a witch to erase his scent when he came after my sister. What was to stop my old pack from finding witches of their own to play friends with?

"We need to get the hell out of here," I bit out, all pretense of keeping calm gone. "Now."