Looking To Belong (A Runt's Story)

Chapter 42

"You are going to be the death of me one day..." Will was still grumbling as he walked beside me holding my hand, once more in human form.

I shook my head. "You were supposed to chase Ruby, not ruin my exploration."

"From what I could sense through the mate bond, you were stuck. It is dangerous down in those tunnels, if one of them collapses or caves in, we might not be able to get to you fast enough."

I rolled my eyes as I continued walking. "Thanks for the vote of confidence. I have never gotten stuck in a burrow for more than a few moments, and if I did, I could have called for help. I have never had a tunnel collapse while I was in it. Keep in mind that when I was a rogue, I went into rabbit burrows and climbed trees on a daily basis. I even slept in a rabbit burrow almost every night. You didn't have to destroy the rabbit's home like that. The poor thing is going to be traumatized for life."

Will stubbornly defended his actions, "As far as I knew, you were stuck. I couldn't see you, and I thought something was wrong. I was worried that I wouldn't be able to get to you fast enough."

Tony shook his head as he idly commented, "I am thankful that I never ended up with a runt for a mate."

I narrowed my eyes and poked him in the ribs. "What do you mean by that?"

The older man wasn't at all intimidated and chuckled at my actions. "The fact that you can fit into places that I haven't been able to since I was six months old still boggles my mind. I can't imagine having a mate that can literally disappear down a rabbit hole. I nearly thought that Will had lost his sanity when I saw him ripping up the ground like a madman. At first, I thought you had gotten stuck down there until I saw you in the tree above him, so I really couldn't figure what had gotten into him to send him over the edge like that."

Will grumbled, "How was I supposed to know that she had gone out a different exit? I was just following the various tunnels trying to find her."

Tony looked at me with raised eyebrows, amused now that everything had settled down. He said, "It looks like you are going to have to start avoiding places where he can't follow or reach you. This seems to be a constant and major trigger-point for him."

I shook my head while protesting, "But keep-away is my favorite game. Are you sure we can't work on this slowly and see if we can wean him out of it?"

Tony tilted his head in contemplation. "You can try, but I doubt it is going to help. Please give us warning before you attempt it though."

Will shook his head. "And I repeat myself, you are going to be the death of me one day..."

We just grinned at him.

~

       After supper, Will and I escaped to relax in front of the fireplace. He had been teased quite a bit over dinner about today's events. Many people were still going over to see the massive hole that Will had dug while searching for me.

I leaned my head against his shoulder as he fiddled with a strand of my hair absentmindedly. I was half asleep already. Will groaned and sat up straighter.

"I hate to say it, but duty calls once again. Why do they always wait until evening to get into arguments?"

I sat up to lean against the side of the couch, regarding him sleepily. "Because they are too busy during the day. I am pretty sure if you drop a few hints about them disturbing your evening with your mate, they might take the warning. Especially if they knew that their antics would be mostly ignored if they postponed such stunts until they were near the border, provided that they didn't do any serious damage to one another."

"I think I shall do that. Be back soon." Will smiled at me and leaned down to put a kiss on my forehead.

I yawned again. "I am going to find the washroom and come back to wait for you. If I fall asleep, it is your fault for being too slow."

He chuckled as he headed out of the room. I shook my head to clear it before heading to the washroom. Note to self, busy days and big meals are exhausting. I entered the washroom and sighed while shaking my head. Someone had used all of the toilet paper and didn't replace the roll; it was a good thing that I had noticed when I had entered the room.

I crouched down to dig under the sink for another roll. I paused as I examined a small pink box. I did a quick mental tally and narrowed my eyes. I pulled a small object out of the box and grabbed a roll of toilet paper before heading to the toilet.

I examined the stick while I washed my hands. One line, that meant that I was not pregnant. I wasn't sure whether to be relieved or disappointed. Considering how alive and well my love life was with Will, it was only going to be a matter of time until a child appeared.

I wasn't sure what protection or preventatives Will might have used. He probably hadn't bothered; most Enforcers rarely had more than two or three children, even if they found their mate. Enforcers seemed to have gotten the short end of the stick when it came to family life.

I wrapped the test in more toilet paper and stuck it in my pocket. Some people were just too curious and would actually search the bathroom garbage just so they would have something to gossip about. I had learned that startling fact when I had been an Omega. I didn't want to be in their gossip chains, so I would dispose of it in a different garbage.

I headed back to the couch, and it wasn't long until Will joined me. He sighed as he pulled me into his lap. I leaned against his broad chest; the warmth coming off of his chest was relaxing.

"I think this group finally got the message to conduct such annoyances well away from the pack house."

"Hmmm.... What did you say?"

He grinned with a wicked glint in his eyes. "I told them that if they interrupted my cuddle time with my mate one more time, that they would be training with me all day for a solid week just to ensure that they would simply not have enough energy to think about such actions. Needless to say, they readily agreed with me after that."

I laughed. Oh, that would scare them. Nothing like having an irritated Enforcer determined to work you until you dropped from sheer exhaustion.

Will wrapped his arms around me and leaned back slightly, pulling me so I was lying on his chest. I absentmindedly traced patterns along his forearm as my eyelids got heavier. Will hummed lightly and the sound dragged me to sleep against my will. I dimly felt him carry me upstairs to bed.