SWNOVELS Chapter 40
Chapter 40 Asher
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Leaving my office for the night, planning on going to the gym, despite it being almost midnight, I heard footsteps up ahead of me, and I couldn’t help but wonder who would be in the packhouse at that time of night. The packhouse is always abandoned about an hour after dinner has finished, with everyone returning to their homes for the night. And the place becomes my lonely hideout. A place where I am free to roam in the darkness and silence. Not caring for anyone else.
Though, tonight, I worked a little later than usual as there was a backlog of paperwork with Caleb having to stay with Eden and take care of her. She was truly struggling with this pregnancy. I was thinking this baby would not be long until it decided to make its appearance and arrive in our crazy little world. At least then, I suppose, it would stop making its mother suffer… well, then it would just be causing both its mother and father to suffer sleepless nights…ah, the joys of children!
packhouse
I listened carefully for the noise of the footsteps once more, wondering who they would be at this late hour, and could feel Zion pushing forward too, feeling unsettled at someone being in the when they shouldn’t be. He is rippling beneath my skin, ready to push forward and shift should the need present itself. The sound of someone here had him on edge as much as it did me……
protect me
I increased the speed of my own steps, to turn the corner, to walk straight into Eden, and nearly backwards as I almost bounced off her pregnancy bump.
“Ooff!” she mumbled, stumbling backward herself. I quickly went to steady myself and go to help her. but she had already leant against the wall, her breathing quite rapid as she held her belly. “S**t Asher!” she snapped now, sounding far from impressed with me. Though I could hear the fear within her voice, so I think the snapping was more because I had scared her.
“What are you doing in here at this time of night, Eden?” I asked her, completely puzzled. She should be home in bed by now surely? “You should be at home!” I had to say I was more than a little concerned at the fact to get here she had to have walked across the pack on her own in the dark too. Why hadn’t Caleb come? Or called for me?
“Oh should I?” she snapped again. “Thanks Dad.”
My eyes widened at her grumpiness. Jeez, if this is what Caleb has to put up with on a daily basis, then he was welcome to married bliss. “Fine, go back to wandering around in the dark then, oh happy one.” I snarled, not in the mood for dealing with her mood swings, as I turned to move away.
“Where are you going?” Eden asked me, like she was shocked I was suddenly leaving her.
“Away from you.”
“Not rude much.” She is eyeing me with a scowl. I don’t know if she thought her evil eyes were going to scare me, but they simply amused me.
“Well, if you are talking to me like that, you can’t expect me to want to talk to you, nor spend time with you. Besides, I am going to bed.” I lied, still planning on going to the gym, knowing it was far too early yet for me to even try getting any sleep.
“Well you can’t expect me to be in a good mood at this time of night when I want to be asleep she grumbled.
12:17 Wed, Jul 31 G.
Chapter 40 Asher
-5 Pearts
I frowned. “So why are you up then?” I find myself asking, despite me saying I didn’t plan on talking to her. “Let alone wandering around the corridors of the packhouse!”
“I am ling for the new teacher to arrive,” She told me with a shrug. I already told you would be arriving. Do you not listen?”
earlier she
I rolled my eyes. Yes, she may have told me, but I still would not expect her to be arriving at this time of the f**g night! Why on earth would she allow a new member of the pack to arrive in the early hours? Needing to get away or not, desperate for her to join our pack or not, it still seems illogical to allow someone to come at this time of day… or night, as the case may be. This woman did not think sometimes, I swear. Though her excuse for anything she did of late that we disagreed with was that it was pregnancy brain. Personally, I think it was just bad planning, or being too big-hearted…
“Go home Eden.” I said to her with a sigh.
“No, I need to wait for the new teacher. She should be here anytime, or in the next hour or two.”
“I will stay up and wait for her. Why did you not just ask me? You know I am here anyway, and I rarely sleep well.” I said to her, already hating myself for even suggesting this, but knowing I would be awake for hours yet, and it seemed silly Eden struggling to keep herself awake, and making herself feel more ill than she already does in the process. I would just have to fight all my natural instincts to avoid. interacting with people I don’t know or like and welcome the teacher the best way I could.
“Are you sure?” she says to me with a small smile, and I give her a reluctant nod, knowing that I would regret this
“Aww, thank you, Asher!” she gave me a big hug
“And when you get home, give Caleb a big kick, preferably in the head, and tell him he is a lazy f**r. it should have been him coming here doing this and not you. Especially at this time of night.” I told her and she laughed.
“He looked all sweet, all snuggled up fast asleep, sucking his thumb, I didn’t want to disturb him she said with an affectionate smile.
I found myself smiling too, in spite of myself. I can’t believe my best friend still sucked his thumb. I knew he had done for as long as I could remember.. “Hmm, you may want to keep that quiet, it kind of ruins his big, tough. Alpha image when you say he sucks his thumb.” I told her and she laughed.
“Thanks again Ash, I will go home and try to get some sleep now. If this one will let me. Please be nice to the new girl. Her name is Bailey, remember?” she tells me, with a warning stare. Like she thought I couldn’t be trusted to welcome someone into our pack nicely… not like it was that difficult to do, was it? And, besides, if she decided to turn up in the middle of the night, then that was her look out, she would have to take us as she found us. Can’t say I was bothered if she was here or not. It was more for Eden that she was coming….