Page 124 of Starting a New Life

I huffed and carefully extracted myself from Gray’s arms to sit up against the headboard.

Pale light fell through the window. It was either snowing, or everyone out in the dining room had their alarm set for like, six a.m.

Gray let out a sigh that made me stop dead in my tracks, my arm halfway to the nightstand where my phone was. With my breath held, I watched my mate. His eyes were still closed, but his brow was furrowed, hands searching for something. When they reached my thigh, he let out a satisfied sigh and shifted closer until his head was resting on my lap. His breathing evened out again, his forehead no longer wrinkled but smooth and relaxed, a small smile tilting the corner of his mouth upward.

My heart skipped a beat as I watched him until I was sure he’d settled. One of my hands found its way into his hair, and the second eventually got hold of my phone.

It was nine a.m.

Internally, I screamed at the unfairness of me being up already. I deserved more sleep. By the time we’d gotten everyone situated last night, it’d been almost three.

My stomach let out another rumble—loud enough for Gray to grumble quietly.

“Shh,” I whispered soothingly, combing through his sleek black hair. He didn’t have any braids in, but it was just a question of when the kids and teens would get a hold of him again.

Would Connie and Nick ever join in?

They’d started talking to the other teens more, occasionally joining them in the gaming room, but they were still hesitant, mostly keeping to themselves. That’d inevitably change now that the pack officially had custody over both of them. They’d get enrolled in school again and thus spend more time with their peers.

Would they get a new family too?

Or families?

I rubbed my chest as an ache bloomed right where my heart was.

They deserved to have people who cared for them, who looked out for them. Connie deserved to get to know real family life. Without mental and physical abuse and brutal training regimens. And Nick deserved to have a family again after he’d given up on his own to ensure Connie’s safety.

Surely, people had already applied to take them in, right? To give them the home they desperately needed—even if they might not want it in the first place.

Did Gray sift through the applications, or was that Oakley’s job?

I’d have to ask. I needed to make sure they picked good people. Connie was deathly afraid of getting hurt again, so he didn’t want to put his heart on the line. He’d need someone patient. Someone who understood what he’d been through. Someone who’d let him be and give him the time to come out of his shell on his own.

“You’re thinking awfully hard over there,” Gray mumbled, his deep bass vibrating in his chest. “What’s got you so worried?” He blinked, his dark eyes slowly focusing on me, and he raised one of his thick brows in question.

I reached out and smoothed it with my finger.

“It’s nothing.”

Gray chuckled. “Baby. Sweetheart. Mate of mine. I can feel your worry here.” He rolled onto his back and placed his hand over his heart.

I busied myself by caressing his cheeks. The skin there was scratchy, his stubble a dark shadow on his tan skin.

“Is it the mage? Or the pups?” Gray inquired.

“Connie and Nick.”

Though Callum was another concern of mine. But he was still asleep, his aura not exactly calm, but not swirling with worry and basically screaming at me to help.

Gray smiled.

“What’s the problem? They’re safe. I don’t think Otto will dare to attack us. We’ve seen his pack. Yeah, he has fighters, and I don’t doubt they’re vicious. But we outnumber them. And the Council will keep him busy for now.”

I sighed, rubbing a hand over my face. “I wasn’t worried about that. But now I am. I’ll have to check on the barrier later today.”

Gray shook his head and sat up and pulled me in until I was firmly pressed against his bare chest.

“You’ll do no such thing. You can spend time with Callum or Connie and Nick, and then I’ll take you home.”