Page 97 of Healer's Call

Amber laughs. “You girls know me too well.”

“I take it this isn’t the first time you’ve done this,” I say with a glance at the other three girls.

“Nope. She does this to us every year for the pool party and the Christmas party,” Sabrina informs me.

“Christmas party?” I perk at the sound of that.

“Oh, it’s amazing. You’ll love it! We decorate the entire training gym to look like a winter wonderland, complete with fake snow, a Christmas village, at least thirty fully decorated Christmas trees, and a hot chocolate fountain.” Sara looks over at me and wiggles her eyes. “And hundreds of balloons.” Sabrina and Leah groan as Amber grins widely.

“What? I love Christmas,” Amber says with a laugh.

“It sounds amazing,” I can’t help but add.

“Well then you can help me decorate since everybody else here is giving me a hard time,” Amber says giving me a high five. We get back to decorating, and a deep peace fills my soul.

“All right,” Amber says a few hours later. “That’s as good as it’s going to get.”

I look around at the work we did and can’t help but feel pride. Tiki torches line the perimeter of the entire outdoor area, as well as the extra lights we hung up. There’s a huge balloon arch right when you enter and several balloon bouquets placed strategically between the pools and chairs. Bright colored beach balls and pool rings float in the pools. There are several tables decorated with tablecloths and fresh flowers that are ready for the food. The grills are set up and ready to go. At one end of one of the pools, there’s a huge screen set up for a movie later on. Several bright colored bins are just waiting to be filled with ice and drinks. There’s even a table set up with a homemade ice cream maker that I can’t wait to try out. The table is lined with every kind of topping that you could think of for an ice cream sundae. I take a few pictures of everything we decorated.

“Hey, let’s all get in,” Sara shouts from the other side of the pool. She comes around the side, bringing Sara, Amber, and Leah with. They all gather around, and I take a selfie of us. When I look at the photo, I stare at myself. I look so...happy.

“All right, ladies. Time to suit up and meet back here for a party!” Amber shouts as she starts back on the path. We followher back to the main house and split to get changed into our swimsuits for the night. Once I’m in my room, I quickly change into my swimsuit and pull a pair of shorts over it and slip on flipflops. I braid my hair and put on a splash of perfume and more deodorant. After a glance in the mirror, I decide to add lip gloss; but that’s it. Everything else will get washed off in the pool. I stare into the mirror a moment and try to steady my nerves. “I will enjoy tonight,” I say out loud. “This is my pack now. They love me and accept me, and I am going to return that love and enjoy myself.” A real smile forms.I’m actually excited about tonight. On the way to the door, I snag my phone. There’s a text from Ava.

Ava-Miss me yet?

I smile.

Rose-Yes!

Not wanting her to feel bad, I quickly add more.

Rose-But I’m doing really well here. Tonight’s the pack pool party!

Ava-you're going I take it

Rose-I am and I'm actually kind of excited about it

Ava-you're just excited about seeing all those sexy males in just swim trunks

Rose-well, maybe at least a certain male

I can’t help the grin that slides across my face as I text those words.

Ava-you're officially smitten

Ava-can't say that I approve of your choice, but if he’s good to you and makes you happy...

Rose-he does

I text her a heart, a beach ball, and a bikini emoji.

Ava-groan

Ava-you and your emojis

I can practically hear her groan through the phone, and it makes me smile.

Rose-love you

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