Keeping My Pack

by Lane Whitt

  I pry myself off her, my softening dick reluctantly leaving her warmth. I pick her up gently, wrapping her legs around my waist when it seems she can’t get them to respond just yet, and sit with her in my chair. Kitten moves her face to my neck and her fingers stroke through my hair. I close my eyes, loving the attention she’s giving me now. It’s sweet, just like her, and it soothes my wolf in a way I’ve never experienced.

  After a while, Kitten gets squirmy, and I open my eyes to look down at her. “Were you working in here? Did I interrupt you?” She asks, biting her lip.

  I chuckle at her. “Yes, I was just finalizing a few things before the move in a few days, but you’re welcome to interrupt like that any time you wish,” I tell her with a satisfied smirk.

  She blushes and giggles. “Okay, I’ll remember you said that. Can I help you with anything, Remy? It looks like you’ve got a lot of stuff here.” Kitten says as she turns to look around the room.

  “Hmm… Maybe. If you don’t mind a bit of writing, you could copy this letter of rejection to these people here.” I tell her as I reach back to the shelf behind us and slide a small stack of papers in front of her. “I don’t mind if they are exactly the same or not. It could be done by email, but I’ve always preferred the more personal form of communication, such as letters.”

  “Yay!” Kitten squeals as she bounces up and down on my lap. A growl starts low in my throat, my cock finding new strength.

  Kitten turns her head to look back at me. “Remy?” She questions softly.

  “It’s nothing, Love. You’re just giving a certain part of me a beautiful ride.” I smirk at her innocent blushing. I’ll never tire of her reactions to me.

  I pat her thigh, telling her that I’d love to have her help after she’s showered and redressed, although I do momentarily entertain the thought of keeping her in here naked with me. Ultimately it’s a selfish thought, and someone is bound to come looking for her at some point.

  It turns out Kitten is quite nice to have around in the office. She had written out the rejection letters, sealed them in envelopes and stacked them neatly in a pile for me. Her eyes had quickly sought out praise from me, and it took a decent amount of my control not to growl excitedly at yet another show of her submission.

  She seemed eager to be put to task, so after I had rewarded her with a searing kiss that left us both wanting more, I set her about loading files into pre-marked boxes to get ready for the move. Now, almost two hours later, I’m putting finishing notes on the blueprints for a contractor in Florida. I glance at Kitten and notice she’s waning in energy now. I observe her for a few more moments and note that she’s pausing every few seconds to catch her breath.

  “Come to me, Love,” I call to her, holding a hand out to help her up. She places her small hand in mine and allows he to help her to her feet. I press a kiss to the top of her head, her arms going around me in a hug. “You’ve done an excellent job, thank you for helping me today. I think it’s time for you to go check on the boy, yeah?”

  She rests her head on my chest and speaks through a yawn. “Yeah, probably.” She yawns again, giving me one last squeeze before pulling back. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me today; I feel so sleepy.” She says before smiling up at me.

  I grin back at her. “Well, you have been quite the busy woman as of late, and I’m certain the late nights aren’t helping any.”

  She smacks my arm playfully. “Maybe I should stop with certain activities altogether then?” She asks in a mock-innocent tone.

  I growl at her in answer, making her laugh. I send her on her way, returning to my work, though it proves a bit difficult when all I can picture is Kitten laid out on my desk. I’ll probably always think of her in that moment every time I look at the piece of furniture. Maybe I didn’t think that one through. Then again, it’s not as if I would take it back.

  Kitten

  Mikey settled in quite nicely. It was like he had always been there after a few days. He mostly liked to hang out with Jace, having made him his role model from the start a while ago. Ash had gone to Wolly’s on his own the first day and returned with a brand new bike for him. Complete with helmet, knee and elbow pads and a reflective vest, in case he wanted to ride it at night I guess. Earning hero status in the young boy’s eyes. Remy offered to help teach him to ride it, seeing as he’d never had one before and if Ash saw him crash on it, he probably would have ripped it apart and banned them from the house.

  Logan had taken him clothes shopping yesterday, and the poor guy returned home looking exhausted and maybe even a little horrified, which the other guys found hilarious. Tristan was quick to cheer him up with chocolate ice cream cones though, and I think the intense shopping trip was easily forgotten after that.

  Grandfather and Albert left for the pack house this morning with goodbyes and see you soon’s from all of us and a hug from Mikey. The older man seems to have hit it off with him and Mikey even calls him Grampa, stating that saying Grandfather makes him sound like one of those spoiled rich kids on the television shows he watches. Maksim was okay with the new term, and Uncle Albert followed shortly. Albert was a little wary of allowing him to call him that, telling Mikey that he has no blood ties to the royal family, but Mikey had just made a face and asked how you would go about tying blood, so we had shrugged the episode off entirely. In my opinion, if Mikey wants to go around and start claiming family members, then he can have as many as he wants.

  I collapse to the ground, panting in the early morning air after my yoba session with Reed. He breaks his pose to laugh at me, falling gracefully into a push-up position.

  “You’re done already? That was only your second pose, Babe.” He points out.

  I shrug my shoulders. “Oh well, my favorite part is watching you anyway.”

  “I thought you liked doing yoga with me? You don’t have to do it if you don’t want to.” He tells me before pushing up into a handstand. “It was supposed to help you clear your mind and deal with your panic attacks.”

  “It does, and I do like it most of the time. There’s no clearing my head today anyway; there’s too much going on.”

  Reed sighs, giving up his exercising to wrap me up in his arms. We watch the sunrise instead. “I know, Babe. The moving guys will be out of here soon, though. We’re not taking too many big things with us.”

  “It’s not really the moving guys; it’s about what happens when we step off the plane tomorrow. How much will things have to change with me being a Princess and you guys some form of Kings there?” I ask worriedly.

  “Nothing between the nine of us has to change at all, and that’s what’s most important. In front of others, well, I guess we’ll have to sometimes be different versions of ourselves. Not different people entirely, or fake, but a little more closed off is all.” He explains.

  I lean back against him, now squinting at the bright sunlight as I look to the sky. “What if they don’t like me?”

  Reed laughs happily behind me. “Kitten, you have one of those personalities where people either worship you or dislike you entirely. The people who worship you will go to battle for you in a heartbeat, and the ones who dislike you will on the opposite of that battle. You never need to worry about the latter, those in your corner won’t let them get near you. And I have a feeling that most, if not all of our new pack will love you to the moon and back.”

  I smile up at the sky, feeling relieved and happy. “You’re an artist even with your words, you know that?” I turn my head to kiss him, his dazzling hazel eyes taking my breath away.

  I shower quickly, mostly because Logan stayed in the bathroom and rushed me, before he starts on my hair. He twists it up tightly and pins it to my head before adding a light spritz of hairspray. After applying what he called eyeliner to make my eyes stand out, he urges me into the bedroom where a beautiful light blue dress hangs on the back of the door. My mouth falls open, and I slowly step towards it.

  “Nope! Not yet. It’s yoga pants and a bagg
y t-shirt for you, Girly. At least until we’re ready to touch down, then you can wear the dress.” Logan chirps.

  I shake my head at him take the clothes I’m allowed to wear, slipping them on easily.

  Outside waits a long car that Remy ordered so we could all ride together to the airport. I slide in next to Kellan and his arm automatically goes around my shoulders. I smile up at him, and he smiles back. Everyone finds a seat on the long bench seat and even though I feel like I’m not ready, the car starts driving away from the only home I have ever known.

  “Wait!” I tell then, thinking over my mental checklist again.

  “Babygirl, I promise that we got everything we’ll need. If we missed something, we could always come back to get it.” Ash assures me.

  “Right.” I huff. “Are you sure you got AJ, Noah, and the rest of the stuffed pack? And Big Jace too?”

  “Yes.” He replies gently.

  “And Mikey’s things were packed away, too? And his bike?”

  “I’m sure of it.” He confirms.

  “And Reed sent all of the paintings and my flag, and…”

  “Kitten, Love, we got everything, did everything, you’re worrying over nothing.” Remy takes my shoulders in his hands and looks directly down at me.

  “Okay.” I agree.

  “I can’t believe I’m going to fly in a plane!” Mikey bounces in his seat next to me.

  “Yeah, it should be a lot of fun. And Finn got us a movie to watch on it too; I think it’s called Home. One of those Disney Pixar movies. I watched one before and it was really good, they’re funny.” I tell him.

  “Yeah, I know. I’ve seen lots of them. I really wanna see The Good Dinosaur next.”

  “Well, Christmas is only a day away, we’ll see,” I tell him, feeling better about my gift for him now.

  The guys talk amongst themselves and Mikey, but I choose to stay out of it. My heart hurts at leaving behind so many great memories, or at least the place where they happened.

  “Try not to look so sad, Kitten. We’ll make our new house our home in no time.” Kellan tries to cheer me up.

  I bite my lip and give him a nod. “Right. I know.”

  “I’ve been meaning to speak with you about something, but you don’t have to if you don’t want to.” He starts.

  “About what?” I ask curiously.

  Kellan takes a deep breath and shifts around so he can face me. “I realize that you are all about letting the past go and looking to the future, but you’ve changed a lot since you’ve been back and I have to wonder if what happened to you affects you more than you let on to the rest of us.”

  I glance around at the others, knowing they can hear everything we’re saying, but they’re pretending not to. “Of course it affects me,” I mutter. “How could it not? I don’t want to be sad or angry about it, but sometimes I am anyway. The point is, I’m trying to be happy with where I am now.”

  Kellan nods slowly. “I understand that I do. You can talk to me, to any of us, about anything at any time, though. We like to see you happy, but we are here for you no matter what you may be feeling and sometimes talking about what doesn’t make you happy can actually make you feel better.”

  “I will keep that in mind, thanks, Kellan,” I smile brightly at him. “But I want you all, no, need you all, to understand something. Being locked in that basement, at the mercy of the merciless, changed something in me. I can’t explain it, not really, but I don’t want to be weak anymore. I don’t want to ignore the world because it ignored me. I want…more than that. Does that make sense?”

  “It does,” Finn answers from the other side of Kellan. My eyes flash to his. “You’ve found something worth fighting for. You were worth it all along, but you never realized that. Now, you have a family, and you are willing to do things to keep it that you would never have considered before.”

  I blink at him a few times in disbelief. I’ve wondered a few times if Finn could actually be a mind reader, but how is it possible that he understands my feelings more clearly than I do? I swallow thickly at the surge of overwhelming emotion that courses through me and nod my head.

  A hand on my chin brings my focus back to Kellan. “It’s okay, Kitten. We’ve all been there, one way or another. We feel the same way about you, and about each other. It’s not a wolf thing; it’s a family thing.” He bends his head to lightly kiss my lips, and I sigh at the much-needed contact.

  “But why am I only feeling it now?” I ask.

  To my surprise, it’s Ash that answers me. “Because we came for you. You’re unsure of your place with us, but actions speak more to you than words. We came for you and now you know we always will. That’s what family means.”

  Logan lets out a shocked gasp that has me frantically looking out every window, waiting for the truck to hit us. “Oh my God! It has feelings!” He draws out dramatically, hand clutching his chest over his heart. A swift punch from Ash to his stomach has him gasping for air and trying to laugh at the same time. I raise a brow at Ash, questioning the sudden violence, and he just shrugs a shoulder in response.

  “Way to ruin a moment, bro.” Reed rolls his eyes at Logan before turning and winking at me. My increased heart rate from my near panic slows and I relax back into Kellan’s side.

  The plane is one of the smaller ones I’ve seen flying overhead in the sky, the kind that makes lots of noise. Finn called it a jet. It has plenty of room to move around in though and even a bathroom and a small bedroom in the back of the plane. The seats are cream colored leather and the long couch near the rear is too. A flat screen tv gets Mikey’s attention quickly, and Remy tells him that we have to sit in the seats with buckles for the takeoff.

  I take a moment to wonder what it must have been like for people when these huge pieces of machinery first took to the sky, and what the sky must have looked like without planes dotting the view. As the guys find seats, I realize that there are people who would know those answers. The thought makes me giddy with excitement.

  “Kitten?” Remy says my name like he’s said it more than once already. My cheeks heat when I look over at him, but he continues like he doesn’t notice. “Finn wants to talk to you about a few things; then I’m going to go over the itinerary Albert sent over so we’re all on the same page about the next few days.”

  “Okay, Rem.” I wave my fingers at him before pouncing on the seat next to Finn. The one without his computer.

  “You want to talk to me?” I say with a grin.

  He smiles back. “I always want to talk to you, Beautiful. But I thought we could use this time to talk about Mike’s education. He was enrolled in public school before, but with being bounced around, he was falling a bit behind.”

  I look over to the little guy, smiling sadly at him as Remy give the go ahead to watch his movie. He’s such a special kid, and it makes me sad to know he was slipping through the cracks.

  “Now, I’m sure there’s a public school available to him in Colorado, maybe even some private ones, but I’d like you to think about possibly homeschooling him, in light of our, well, lifestyle I guess. I could teach him myself, and it might be the better option if only so we don’t have to make him a new identity.”

  “If you’re sure that’s what is best for him, then let’s do that. I know you’re more than capable.” I kiss his cheek for being so thoughtful.

  “Thank you.” He replies, finding my lips with his own for a quick peck. “After things get settled at the new place, I’ll begin my lessons with him.”

  “Sounds good,” I tell him.

  I shoo Logan’s hand away from my hair as he tries in vain to tuck a flyaway strand of hair into the updo he has created. He meticulously braided the hair on either side of my face and pinned them in a circle around my head, while making an almost too tight bun with the hair in the back. I sense his nervousness and in turn, it’s making me nervous.

  “Stop picking at your dress; there’s no lint there, not even the imaginary kind,” Jace says as
he saunters up behind me, placing a light kiss behind my ear. I shiver in delight.

  “I’m not picking. I just like the feel of it.” I tell him, though my voice sounds strange.

  He takes one of my hands and has me do a slow twirl for him. My skirts flare out, but not so much so that it would be indecent. “Yes, silk does have that effect.” He whispers lowly. “You, my love, are a vision to behold.”

  My face heats in a blush, but I can’t help the smile that comes over my face. I feel pretty and knowing Logan made this dress just for me, makes me feel special. The bodice is snug against my chest and waist and has a lace overlay that shimmers. My shoulders are bare because there are no straps, but Logan assured me that it would stay in place. The silky skirt that hangs to my knees is my favorite part. It feels like air brushing over my skin as I walk. Logan called the color a nude-blush, but it looks like light pink to me. I was supposed to wear the uncomfortable high-heels, but I managed to get Ash on my side by pointing out that I could run better in the slipper shoes if we were in danger. Once Ash sets his mind to something, it’s almost impossible to change.

  I must have taken longer getting ready than I realized because the guys are all dressed and ready when Logan, Jace and I step out of the bedroom on the back of the plane. Little Mikey is in a white dress shirt with a black vest over it, pulling on his red tie. Oh, he looks so adorable.

  Remy is in a nice black suit with a black button-down under his jacket, and it both manages to hide his bulk and accentuate his muscles. Kellan and Finn have both chosen light gray suits, with Kellan wearing a silky-looking dress shirt and Finn wearing a white one under their jackets. Reed decided not to wear a jacket, but just a white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up his forearms and the top button undone. Jace is dressed in a suit of white with a piece of fabric in gold in his pocket sticking out and his shiny gold watch on his wrist. Ash and Tristan must not have cared to dress up because Ash is wearing his signature black t-shirt that shows off his massive arms and pair of black dress pants with his scuffed up boots, while Tristan is wearing a red t-shirt under a leather jacket and dark washed jeans with white sneakers.