“When do we get to move in?” she asked.
Wes walked over and grabbed her other hand. “Tomorrow morning.”
Mom did her best to stand up without a fuss, but I could tell her joints were bothering her again. She’d never complain though. “Oh! We have so much to do before then!”
I watched her with a small smile on my face for a while. It had been a long time since she’d had a reason to be excited like this and it felt good that I could be a part of it.
I stood up and wrapped my hands around her frail shoulders. “Relax, Mom. Wes and I are gonna take care of everything. You just get some rest, and tomorrow, the new doctor can check you out and hopefully get a plan in place for you.”
She waved me off and spun out of my hold. “I’m feeling fine, Wyatt, don’t worry about me.”
Little did she know that was easier said than done.
***
“You must be Nora Carter. I’m Abraham McCoy. It’s so nice to have you here.”
The alpha wrapped both his big hands around one of our mom’s small ones and shook it gently. There was a wide, genuine smile on his face, and I breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
We’d arrived on pack lands around eight that morning and Beatrice had been waiting outside with a key for us. She’d given our mom a similarly warm welcome and that set my mind at ease as well. Since then, we’d been unloading me and Wes’ vehicles and trying to set things up the best we could.
“Abraham, thank you so much for giving me and my boys a place to stay. You’re a good man,” Mom said.
His smile widened. “It was my pleasure, Nora. Can I come in for a moment? I know you all must be busy unpacking, but I’d like to get to know you a little better.”
She quickly stepped aside and waved him in. It was strange seeing the two of them standing next to each other. Mom was so thin and frail, while Abraham was broad and robust. It proved again how far her health had declined and made me even more anxious for her to meet with the doctor.
“Can I get you some tea or water?” she asked as Abraham took a seat on the couch in our new living room.
Thankfully, this place had come furnished because we’d had to leave most of our big stuff at our old house. Our move had been abrupt, and we’d only been able to pack the essentials before we had to be off pack lands. Just thinking about the way we had to leave made my hands clench into fists.
“No thank you, Mrs. Carter. I’m not here to trouble you. I just like to get to know all the members of my pack.”
I heard her sniff from across the room and knew hearing herself being called a pack member affected her as much as it had me yesterday. She hadn’t belonged anywhere in a really long time, and now she finally had a chance at that. I knew I’d forever be in Abraham’s debt for giving her that opportunity.
She sat down with him and they began talking as Wes and I continued to lug stuff into the house and drop it off in the appropriate rooms. I caught snippets of their conversation here and there but didn’t pay close attention. It surprised me how quickly I’d come to trust Abraham with her, but I had.
When we finished unloading the vehicles, Abraham was just saying goodbye to Mom.
“It was so nice meeting you, Mrs. Carter.”
“Nora,” she cut in.
He smiled down at her. “Okay, Nora. Well, I’m glad you’re here and I hope to see you again at the pack barbecue this Sunday.”
I wiped the sweat from my forehead and leaned a hip against an empty bookshelf. “Pack barbecue?”
“We have one every Sunday. It’s my way of keeping the pack together and giving us a chance to socialize. I’ll be calling a mandatory meeting before this upcoming barbecue to introduce you all to the pack.”
I shot Wes a look and could see he was thinking the same thing I was. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”
Abraham frowned. “Why not?”
I stood up straight and crossed my arms over my chest. “I don’t think I want to expose her like that.”
Abraham’s eyes softened as he glanced between us. “I told you, you won’t have those kinds of issues here.”
I didn’t want to be contradictory this soon after joining his pack, but when it came to my mother’s safety, I refused to compromise.
“I know what you’ve said, and I hope it’s true, but until we know that for sure, I can’t risk her safety. I think it would be better if we kept quiet about her for a little while. At least until we know more about your pack and they know more about us. Maybe we can start introducing her to other members slowly over time, but bringing her out in the middle of a crowd of wolves we don’t know is out of the question.”
Abraham’s eyes flicked between us before he finally sighed. “I understand. I’ll make sure no one knows about your mom until you’re ready.”
I let out a small breath of relief. “Thank you, Abraham. I’d appreciate that.”
He waved my words away. “Anything to make sure she’s safe and you’re all comfortable here.” He took a step toward the door before turning back around. “I hope the both of you will be at the barbecue at least?”
I shot Wes another look and he shrugged. “We’d love to. We’ll be coming one at a time though, as we don’t feel comfortable leaving her alone yet.”
The corners of Abraham’s eyes creased with concern. “How about I send Bea over to stay with her during the meeting so I can introduce the two of you together? It might look suspicious if only one of you shows up. Afterward one of you can go back and stay with her during the barbecue.”
Wes met my eyes and we both nodded. “That sounds great. Thanks, Abraham.”
“Good.” He gave Mom one more warm smile. “Again, it was nice meeting you, Nora. I’ll be sure to stop by again sometime soon and take you up on that offer for a cup of tea.”
She stood up a little straighter, the smile wide across her face. “I’d love that.”
“If you’re ready for him, I can send Doc Monroe over here after I leave.”
“That would be great,” I said.
Abraham nodded again and gave us a little wave before leaving our new house and closing the door behind him. As soon as he was gone, Mom spun to face me, a small fire in her brown eyes.
“I can’t believe you! Why were you arguing with your new alpha like that?”
I sighed. “Mom. You know I have my reasons.”
She huffed. “You don’t need to baby me, Wyatt. I’ll be just fine. And we don’t need you causing waves here before we’re even settled.”
“He understands I’m just trying to protect you.”
“If the alpha says his pack won’t care that I’m human, you should believe him. He seems like a very nice man.”
I tipped my head back and stared at the ceiling. “I know he’s nice, Mom, but we don’t know anything about the rest of this pack. And as far as I know, he’s never had a human live here before, so he doesn’t really know how they’ll react. I’m not taking that chance. Wes and I will get to know them, and when we think it’s safe, we’ll introduce you. I’m not willing to negotiate on that.”