Gen shook her head as her big sister spoke. She tried to put herself in the other wolf’s shoes. What would have happened if Finn had simply left instead of passed away? It would be a blow almost too hard to take, harder than death because it was a choice. And one that could be avoided. Gen, knowing her sister, moved from her spot on the couch to sit by Tempy’s chair, one hand tucking pieces of her sister’s blonde hair behind her ears, the other squeezing her hand. She wanted Temperance to know, to feel, that there was no more running from Genevieve. This was it, her family was it, and it was more clear than ever that she was where she needed to be. “I know how much you loved him, Tempy. I’m am so, so sorry. He has no point of view. He knew your family needed you, and he was selfish enough to want you all to himself.”
She listened attentively to her sister’s story about their mother, her own eyes filling with tears. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d seen her sister cry, and she wasn’t sure how to take it. Her hand squeezed her sister’s. “I remember Lachlan.” She said with a nod of her head. She let her own tears fall, one hand covering her mouth at the imagery of their warrior goddess of a mother in danger.
Quietly, she asked, “Did they say what caused her to collapse?” Her hand left her mouth and reached up to brush some of her older sister’s tears away, even though her own were falling as well. “I’m really glad you had them too.” Gen hated herself for this. She hated the fact that she’d made herself an outsider in their family. Selfish tactics, things she shouldn’t have done. She reached up from her position and took Tempy into a tight hug, letting them both bask in the moments that had changed them to their very core. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t here for any of you, Tempy. I really am so damn sorry. For you to have carried all of this…” She sniffed, shutting her eyes. “Well…not anymore. I want to be part of this family again, part of our pack. I’ll always be one step behind you.”
The small touch and the understanding was a welcome comfort. Temperance had not talked to anyone about Asher’s leaving. She had not let herself dwell on it and so never told anyone the extent of the pain. She, like her mother, threw herself into her work and pretended that the part of her heart that Asher had taken with him didn’t exist. It was easier than admitting that the man she had thought was her mate, that she’d planned on marrying and having a family with had called it quits and not just on her, but his alpha and the town. Asher was gone, in the wind.
She sighed softly and squeezed her sister’s hand. “Thank you, Gen,” she said softly. “It’s nice to be reminded of that.” She needed to remind herself of that when she started down this path. It was getting easier, but it was still hard. She hadn’t even dated since their breakup. No one in town had even caught her eye. She just couldn’t be bothered to find herself in a relationship like that again. She didn’t want to put the effort into something only find herself lost and lonely again.
“He’s a nice guy,” she said, happy for the change in topic. “Exhaustion mostly, though I think her drinking was part of it.” She hid it, decently well, from the rest of the people around her, but Temperance was different. She knew her mother and her mother wasn’t very good at hiding things from her eldest. Just as her eldest wasn’t very good at hiding things from her mother. “I moved in with her after she was released from the hospital and stayed with her for several months. The switch back to the pack structure has been good for her. She’s not over run with business. Owen can deal with the town and Mom has the pack, plus she’s got the wardens that deal with the trouble that isn’t big enough for the Alpha. It’s a less strenuous structure for a pack this big.”
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