Page 53 of His Wild Mate

Kate huffed. “Aunt Trudy volunteered to babysit.”

“More like begged,” Wyatt said with a snort.

“Anyway, we finally caved. It's only for two hours.”

I scowled and shook my head. “You have two hours all to yourselves for the first time since the kids were born and you're here? What the hell is wrong with you guys?”

I knew for a fact that if it were me, I'd be home making love to my girl. And I could say that with absolute certainty as I'd found myself with only an hour free yesterday afternoon and snuck home to kick Winnie out and please Paige the best I could.

Being the last of my friends to find my mate meant they all understood. She didn't take offense to me asking her to leave. She actually got a kick out of it and ended up calling Clay to tell him. By the time I'd returned, everyone knew exactly where I'd been and what I'd been doing. I couldn't even be mad about it.

“Uh-oh. He's thinking about Paige again,” Kate teased.

“I see it. Gets that stupid grin on his face and a dazed look in his eyes.”

My brow wrinkled. “You two have been together for so long now that clearly you've forgotten what mating feels like or else you wouldn't be here when you could be home alone doing grownup things without fearing a kid will wake up or scream in the middle of things.”

Oh yeah, I'd had to listen to it all. I was well aware of the daddy dilemmas, especially when it came to sex. There was very little the guys didn't share. Sometimes I felt like they were worse than a pack of women gossiping.

“What can I get you, Emmett?” Kate finally asked.

“What's on special today?”

“Pulled pork barbecue, baked beans, green beans, coleslaw, and a roll.”

“Sounds good. I'll take two.”

If I were in a human town, I'd order four, but Kate knew how to feed a wolf shifter. There was always a heaping helping of everything.

We talked while the food was being made, and when it was done, I paid my bill and shook my head at them.

“Well, you may want to waste your kid-free time working here, but I am happily going home to spend time with my mate.”

Wyatt scowled at me, and I knew then that it was Kate's idea to be there, not his.

With a chuckle, I left the diner and drove home.

As soon as I pulled up to the house, my good mood changed. There was no one there. Angel was going to stay with her today, but unless Austin dropped her off, she wasn't there. When I parked and got out, the place was quiet—too quiet.

“Paige?” I called out, but there was no response.

I wasn't entirely freaking out because I could feel her presence nearby. But something wasn't right.

“Paige?” I yelled again. “Where are you?”

I ran to the closet, but she wasn't there. She wasn't anywhere in the house.

Hearing a yip from outside, my heart raced, and my wolf roared in my head. My feet couldn't move fast enough as I burst through the backdoor and saw her cowering on the porch.

“Paige? What is it?”

She growled, looking out towards the woods.

I saw a flash of light gray fur for just a moment before it disappeared into the woods.

“Shit! Get back into the closet and hide.”

Diving off the back deck, I shifted in midair and gave chase. By the time I reached the woods there was no sign of the wolf.

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