Wolf's Call (Wolves Next Door #2) - Auryn Hadley Page 0,40

with my tattoo all night long."

CHAPTER 12

Over the next week, things settled into a comfortable routine. We were still working out the final details for Gabby's big quincea帽era. She wanted to make it a little less traditional, but I was worried about losing the purpose of this celebration in her enthusiasm. Granted, her friends weren't Hispanic, and our family really only included my parents, since my siblings probably couldn't make it and Gerardo had all but forgotten she existed, so she had a point.

Ian wanted her to have anything and everything she dreamed of. Pax agreed with me that there should be some family stuff, then pointed out that her family was also her pack, so making it less traditional was actually ok. Trent just wanted to know what presents to buy her. Seth said he was handling the alcohol, and that I would be drinking. Lane? He shrugged a lot, saying it was just a really fancy birthday party, and that he'd do whatever we told him to.

And every night, one of the guys ended up in my room, sometimes sneaking in well after Gabby had gone to bed. The next morning, my daughter would make coffee and set out an extra cup. It was her way of showing she approved, which felt pretty nice. Then the lucky man walked me over to the office, because Karen was still a problem.

Days would go by without a word from her, only for me to see her driving around the community right when I got off work. Once, I asked Ashley to walk me home, just to be safe. Lane was annoyed, making it clear he would've come over instead, but Ashley promised it was fine. Besides, she liked having an excuse to hang out.

Every time Karen came around, I became a little more convinced that being a wolf would make my life easier. The only thing holding me back was my daughter. Every conversation I had with the guys was one more step into actually believing that I could survive the transition, yet the doctor's words hung in my head. It wasn't guaranteed. Without a backup plan, I just didn't dare take the risk. And yet, the sooner I became a wolf, the sooner I'd learn how to use the strengths that came with it.

If I could do that, it would take away Karen's biggest threat. If I was a wolf, then she couldn't turn me. I would do it on my time, when I was mentally prepared, and thus have the greatest chance of survival. Sure, she'd probably still win the dominance challenge thing she was so obsessed with, but a casual comment from Ashley made me rethink everything.

If Karen was the Alpha Mate, Ian didn't have to stay the Pack Alpha. He could resign. He could put the entire pack on her shoulders. If he did that, then Ashley could challenge her - and she swore she would. Once Karen was defeated - if not killed - it would all go back to normal. Ashley would submit to Ian, he'd resume his position at the top, and the world would carry on as normal.

Yes, it was a nasty trick, but according to Ashley, not many wolves would walk away from the power rush that came from being the leader. No other alpha would make room for other alphas in his pack for that very reason, but Ian had a few. Kim was an example. Henry was another. Ashley was the dark horse, though. The strong alpha that no one would think about because she'd already had the chance and gave it up. That one change to tradition might just be the thing to save the Wolf's Run pack from Karen's stupidity.

I wasn't so sure it would be that easy, but all of the little nuances to pack life were finally starting to make sense to me. It also helped with my job. Every day, we had a client or two come to look at the houses available for lease. I could now identify the wolves and humans with a glance - it was the golden eyes - but Ashley was still doing all of the showings. Even with the rest of her workload, she took care of it simply because I hadn't been trained.

So, on Tuesday, I told her to at least let me help. If not the showings, since my brown eyes might make the wolves nervous, then the walk-throughs or such. Maybe even some of her