“Hold still!” I put one hand on the baby’s leg to keep him from kicking while my other hand tried to pull up his pants to no avail. He kept kicking, preventing me from getting the pant leg over his foot.

I set the pants down and Kodi looked up at me.

“Well, I guess you just won’t wear pants today, then.”

At the sound of the knock on the door, I picked him up and went to let Hailey in. She cooed at Kodi and hugged me.

“All set?” she asked.

I held up the baby, who wore a shirt and no pants. “As long as pants aren’t required, we’re good.”

She laughed. “Come on.”

In the nursery, with Hailey’s help, I was able to get Kodi’s pants on and even his socks. Hailey picked him up when we’d finished and cuddled him close.

“What are you going to do without me when you leave?” she asked Kodi in a sing-songy voice.

“Well, clearly, my baby will be only half-dressed, so there’s that.” I shoved a handful of diapers into the diaper bag and sighed. “I don’t know how I’m going to do this alone, but I don’t think I have much of a choice.”

“I know we’ve been through this a hundred times, but remember, if it doesn’t work, you can come back. I think we were surviving okay.”

“Surviving. Barely. Living off ramen noodles to buy diapers isn’t what I call living. This job will pay double what I’ve been making, plus the housing allowance, and they’re paying for me to move.”

“But it’s still Alaska, which is the farthest state away.”

“It’s always been, Hail. But that’s where the job is. Maybe in a few years, when I have some experience, I can move back.”

“I wish Owen had been able to get you a job here in the ‘Glades. That would have been perfect.”

I nodded. “It would have been. But with all the clans now taking a part in overseeing the park, I think them not having any openings is a good thing.”

“Sure. For the park. Not for us.”

“Well, no, but I can’t change that. Nothing about this last year has been easy. It’s not going to be any easier moving across the country with a two-month old and living alone. But I’ll be able to pay for daycare, so I’ll have help.”

“I know you’ll do fine.” Hailey put a hand on my shoulder. “That’s the only reason I can complain so much about you leaving. Because I know you’ll do great, even without me. And that kinda sucks.”

“Please. I need you more than anyone, you know that. I’m just waiting for you to come visit and fall in love with Alaska.”

“I suppose it could happen. But crocs in Alaska?”

I shrugged. I had no answer for that. Hailey had recently gotten engaged to a croc shifter and she was right. Crocodiles were able to live in lots of places, but Alaska was not of them. Adam wouldn’t be able to shift much or have the environment he needed. Not like bears, who were more adaptable.

“I still hope that…” I let my gaze fall on Kodi’s lips and thought about how much they looked like Cooper’s. “Maybe I’ll find him. Maybe it’ll be different if he knows we have a baby.”

“Maybe. But it’s a big state.”

“It is, but we’ll be in the same area. He’s a Ranger. The park is big, but not that big; maybe I’ll end up working with him.”

“Yeah, it could happen.” Hailey slung the diaper bag over her shoulder. “Got everything?”

“I think so. At least enough to keep us set until the pod arrives in a few days.”

“Then, let’s get on with it.”

Hailey drove us to the airport where we had a very tearful goodbye. We weren’t the only ones crying. Kodi’s nap schedule was being interrupted and he wasn’t happy about it. But we managed to get on the plane and get to Alaska without too much incident.

Once we landed, I followed my plan. I took the shuttle to the hotel I’d booked. From there, I set us up for our temporary stay. I had an apartment lined up and would go tomorrow to walk through the place and get the keys. Then, the pod would come with the movers and I’d start my new job a few days after that. Within a week, my life would look totally different.

Kodi would start daycare and we’d go there tomorrow, too, to check the place out. I had a long-term car rental booked until I could purchase one with the money I made from selling my old car. It wasn’t worth it to have it shipped there; it would be easier to get another car. I didn’t think that would take too long, though. In a month, we should be fully settled and enjoying our new life. I just had to tackle day one.

I looked down at Kodi, who sucked on his fist while lying on the hotel bed. “You ready for this?”

He hiccuped, and I took that as a yes.

On the day we arrived, I remember thinking that, in a month, we’d be settled. Well, it’d been a month, but we were anything but settled. I had found a car, Kodi had started daycare, and I had begun working at my new job. All of that was true. I had even gotten the apartment and moved in—only to find out a week later that the entire bathroom leaked and we had to be moved to another apartment in the same building. The landlord had covered our moving expenses and given me a free month’s rent for the hassle, but still.

Boxes filled every room. We were not unpacked or settled, so I had to keep looking for things, searching through many boxes to locate the one that contained whatever it was I was looking for. And the car I’d bought had just started making a strange sound and was in the shop. Work had been fine. It was a lot to learn and I felt like I had no idea what I was doing most of the time, but I was getting used to it.

What I really needed were some friends. In everything that had gone on, I hadn’t had time to find a clan or really meet people. There were a few people at work who were friendly, and a few were shifters, but I hadn’t found a bear shifter there yet. If I could find one, then I could get some information about the clans in the area and hopefully join one. That would give me the support base I desperately needed.

That night after work, I would do something a little different. There was still a little time before I had to pick Kodi up without being charged extra, so as soon as my shift ended, I took off on a run, touring the area, sniffing around, trying to locate some bear shifters.

I’d run for an hour and was starting to give up when I took a left and entered a part of the park I’d never been in before. With a park that was more three million acres in size, that wasn’t unusual. The park was so huge, there were tons of Rangers who worked in the same park that I hadn’t even met. Everything was divided into sections, and I was amazed at how secluded things were. I hadn’t had much time to explore the park to try to find Cooper. Maybe part of me was so hurt, I didn’t want to face the possible rejection.

As I ran, I picked up the scent I’d been searching for. It was faint at first, but I followed it until I found a fresher one. Then I found one so fresh, I thought the bear might still be in the area. I ran fast, made a grunting sound to let whoever it was know I was coming, and stopped when I heard signs that someone was near.

I approached slowly so I wouldn’t appear to be attacking. When I found the bear—a brown male—I put my head down to show that I was friendly. He dipped his head back and we sniffed each other. I went behind a tree and shifted to human form, staying a bit hidden for privacy. After a moment, he did the same.

“Hi there!” I called out. “Sorry, I don’t have any clothes with me.” I chuckled.

“No problem. Can I help you with something? You’re not from here.”

“No, I just moved here. I’m actually looking for a new clan. Are you part of one?”

“I am. And we’re always looking for females.”

I swallowed hard. What did that mean?

He laughed. “That didn’t sound right. I mean, yes, we are always happy to welcome members, male and female alike. We happen to have more men, as does most of Alaska.”

“Right.” I chuckled, but felt a little uneasy. “Could I meet them some time?” Maybe the rest of his clan was less awkward.

“Well, yeah, sure. We have a meeting tomorrow. You’re welcome to come as my guest and meet everyone, to see if it’s a fit for you.”

“There are some women, though, right?”

“Oh sure. Just more men, is all. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make it seem like…that just came out wrong.”

“It’s okay.” I started to feel a little better; a little less like he was part of some men’s group that sought out available women and hoped to mate them or something.

He gave me the details of where the meeting was and when. I asked if he would mind if I brought my baby along, mentioning he was also a shifter and would need a clan.

“Two for one,” he said. “Cool. One thing we don’t have many of is kids, though. I don’t know if that matters. We’re kind of a young clan.”

“No, that’s perfect. I could use some friends in the area.”

I picked up Kodi from daycare and returned home, wondering what in the world I should look for when choosing a new clan.