The Mating(56)

Helen pointedly looked at her neck each morning but never mentioned the blood-bond again, though Elise could sense the woman was getting impatient with them. Elise paid her no mind. It was between her and Kane and since he hadn’t brought it up, she wouldn’t either. At times, she did watch John and Carrie with envy. They often slipped an “I love you” into their greetings or departures and seemed to seek each other out, holding hands or brushing against each other. Would she and Kane ever become that close? A hollow feeling would sometimes appear inside her when she thought too much about it, so she firmly pushed the idea away.

Thoughts of Bryan also passed through her mind, especially in the mornings since she’d taken to writing in her diary again. She was trying to analyze her feelings for him and Kane, and found that writing them down seemed to help. To be sure, she missed Bryan and the good times they’d had together, but was coming to suspect that her feelings for him had been more that of deep friendship based on years of togetherness, rather than an all-consuming, passionate love.

Her new existence was pleasant and on the one-week anniversary of her mating, Elise found herself in Kane’s office again, reading as he worked. It was a companionable way to spend the evening; the scratching of Kane’s pen and the occasional rustle caused by the turning of a page kept the room from being totally silent.

Despite her claims that her book was engrossing, Elise found her gaze wandering from the text and staring at Kane’s back as he bent over his work. It had been a good week, she reflected. The time spent with him had been nice, but she knew that he wouldn’t always be home for lunch nor have time for late afternoon romps. At this point in time they were experiencing an unusual lull in pack business; the oil company negotiations were in the hands of the lawyers, they were still waiting for lab results on the oil spill, and no further problems with Ryne had occurred. Somehow, she knew that a rush of activity must be just around the corner.

Yes, it had been a good week, but a trifle long with nothing in particular to do. She couldn’t begin to imagine how she’d occupy herself once Kane became really busy again. The idea of spending the rest of her life wandering around and reading held little appeal. Helen had the house thoroughly under control, and while Elise had helped with the various meals and cleanup afterwards, she knew her assistance wasn’t crucial.

Not being one to sit doing nothing, Elise knew she’d have to find something to keep herself occupied. Remembering her half-formed plan from the day she’d gone shopping with Zoe and Phoebe, Elise decided to raise the idea of getting a part-time job. She wasn’t sure how Kane would feel about the idea; did Alpha mates even work outside the home? She suspected that wasn’t done usually but maybe she’d be able to talk Kane around to her way of thinking. Studying him for a moment longer, she decided when he was finished with his report she’d broach the subject.

Satisfied with her plan, Elise went back to reading her book.





*****





“Elise?”

“Hmm?” Looking up, she was surprised to find their roles reversed and now Kane was watching her. “Oh! Are you done with your report already?”

“Already? I’ve spent almost two hours on the damn thing! But yes, it’s done. Listen, I was just thinking that maybe tomorrow when I go to drop this paperwork off, you’d like to come with me and we could pick out a car for you.”

“A car? For me?”

“Yes. A car. For you.” He chuckled at her surprised expression. “We’re quite a ways out and you’ll want to get about on your own sometime.”

“Kane, I don’t know what to say. That’s a great idea, but I really can’t afford a car right now.”

“What do you mean you can’t afford a car? You’re my mate. I’ll buy you a car. As a matter of fact, I was going to set up an account in your name tomorrow, too. You’ll want to go shopping and get your hair done and... Well... Whatever else you ladies do.”

She frowned at his rather condescending view of how ‘ladies’ spent their time but, to be fair, she hadn’t really done anything yet that showed great initiative. Well, now was the time to change that.

“That’s very generous of you, Kane. Actually, I was going to talk to you about something. I was thinking that I’d like to get a part-time job.” Kane opened his mouth to speak but Elise ploughed on, giving him no chance to interrupt. “Back home, I helped out a bit in the office and around the house, and I earned a small wage from the pack’s general operating budget. I know you probably don’t need that kind of help here, so I was thinking I’d apply for a job waitressing in town.”