Chapter 179: Grace: Not Wolf Enough For Him

"Is something wrong?" Caine asks, and I shake my head immediately, swiping the notification away.

He shouldn’t be able to see it, but I’d rather avoid situations where I have to outright lie to him.

"Nothing, just an annoying notification. I’m looking now."

I pull up the map on my phone, pinching and zooming while everyone bustles around me. Sara zips around gathering toys for Bun, Jer searches for his missing shoe, and Ron’s already standing by the door with Bun, who’s got her hands filled with carrot sticks.

It takes under three minutes to find exactly what we need. I zoom in on the blue dot marking our salvation.

"There’s another Walmart about one hundred seventy-four miles away," I announce, turning my phone to show Caine. "They’ve got a massive parking lot, and it’s right off the highway. No rivers in sight, so hopefully no flooding, either."

Caine stares at the screen with a frown. "Another Walmart? Why is it always Walmart?"

I shrug. "Lyre says they’re the best choice for overnight parking. They don’t hassle RVs. Well, most of the time."

He grunts. "She would know best, I guess."

"She’s lived in that camper for god knows how long. So yeah." I zoom in further, showing him the satellite view. "I was going to look for a truck stop with hookups, but this is better because we need to get cat supplies, too."

"Good call."

His approval sends a flutter through my chest. Being useful is such a nice feeling.

"Andrew, pull up the directions." Caine hands his phone to the other man without skipping a beat.

He takes it, his expression unreadable. "Sure thing."

The next ten minutes are a flurry of activity—securing the cabinets we opened, tucking away loose items from play, and washing the dishes we’d used. It’s now our third time doing this, and we’ve found a bit of a rhythm to our chaos.

Everyone knows what to do, and it makes a big difference. Well, that and we didn’t exactly camp out like we were expecting to stay here.

riding with who?" Ron asks. "Same as

me to make the call. It’s a

cat’s still locked in the bathroom. "I’ll take the cat with

Jer, Bun

the dog!" Jer protests,

say, my tone firm enough to prevent further argument. "The cat stays with us, and Sadie will

what havoc it might cause. Having an adult pair of hands to wrangle it is better than leaving

from his pocket, handing it to Caine. "Got these on my way back. Old school, but they work. Better

the walkie talkie over in his hands.

range," he explains. "Better than nothing if our phones

no guarantee the walkie

clears his throat. "Everyone

the camper. I do one final sweep, making sure we haven’t forgotten anything essential,

* * *

out now," Caine’s voice comes through, slightly distorted,

and says, "Copy

me to feel like they’re

he comments, keeping

"Better than what?"

pretty pale, but there’s some color in

cheeks in surprise. "Oh. I guess I was just

"Hmm."

into a tight, if still oversized, ball. Its fur feels impossibly soft under my fingers. I stroke along its spine, and a rumbling purr vibrates

thing, aren’t you?"

but it doesn’t open

just a cat, just

all zonked out, their little bodies surrendering to the exhaustion of the day. Sara and Jer have their heads tilted toward each other, both leaning against

and pull out my phone, snapping a quick picture of the peaceful scene. After the chaos, this moment

The Novel will be updated daily. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

Comments ()

0/255