The Alpha in her Dreams

Oregon

“Hey, Sunshine! Are you ready for me to come over?”

“About that. I had a family emergency come up, and I’m afraid I’m going to be out of town for a few days. I’m so sorry, Shepherd.”

“Is your aunt alright?” Shepherd asked, his voice full of concern.

“Yes, she’s fine.” She paused but decided there was no reason not to be completely open with him. “She’s been having some financial issues that I didn’t know about, and it looks like she’s about to lose her land.” Laurel's voice shook as she tried not to cry.

“I’ll be there in ten minutes. Don’t make any plans.”

“But—”

Nothing. Shepherd had hung up.

Laurel then decided to call Jim and give him a heads-up that she wouldn’t be at work.

“What is it, Davis?”

Laurel suppressed a scream. Who answers the phone that way? “Hey Jim. I wanted to let you know that I won’t be in the office for a few days. I’ve had a family situation come up and need to head home to Oregon.”

“Something like your boyfriend broke up with you? Come on, Davis. You’re going to have to face the music sometime. Get your butt to work tomorrow.”

Now she really wanted to scream. What a jerk! How did he even know? It just happened yesterday. She took a deep breath to regain her composure. Focus, Laurel. None of this matters.

“I’m not sure what you heard, Jim, but it’s not pertinent here. My aunt needs me, and I will be out at least a few days if not the whole week. I’ve used very little of my vacation time, so it shouldn’t be an issue,” she reminded him.

He’s probably only mad because he’ll actually have to work with me out of the office.

“Alright, Laurel, I’ll approve it this one time. Get back to work as quickly as you can.”

“Will do. I’ll let you know when that will be. Have a good day.”

She hung up before she could give into her temptation to tell Jim what she really thought. Him already knowing about her breakup aggravated her. There hadn’t even been a workday yet and the word had already leaked. Work was going to be miserable when she got back. She’d have loads of work piled on her desk from being gone and she’d have to deal with the office gossips. Great.

She barely had time to dwell on it before she heard a knock on the door. She heard Susu greeting Shepherd as she walked out of her room. As soon as Shepherd saw her, he enveloped her in his strong arms. She instantly felt comforted. He held her for several seconds before reluctantly letting go and stepping back to look at her.

“I have a plane at my disposal. Let me help you. I know this must be difficult for you, and you shouldn’t have to plan a trip when I could take you.”

“I appreciate it, Shepherd, but that’s too much. I can book a flight.”

“What’s going on here? Why do you need to book a flight?” Susu interjected.

Laurel looked around Shepherd’s large frame to answer. “Aunt Lucy is going to lose the cabin…and the land. I need to see if there’s a way for us to keep it somehow.”

“Wow. I can’t even imagine her being anywhere else. What is she going to do?” Susu asked with concern.

“Hopefully stay in her cabin if I can figure this all out. If not…I have no idea, Susu. It’s not good. She loves it there. It’s her home.”

“It’s yours, too,” Shepherd interjected, stepping forward to grab one of her hands. His touch seemed to give her strength. “Let me take you, Laurel. We could leave within a couple of hours.”

“I don’t know, Shepherd.”

She heard Susu groan out of exasperation, “Laurel, stop being hard-headed! You need to get to your aunt and Shepherd here has a plane. Let. Him. Help. You don’t always have to handle everything yourself.”

“Okay, okay,” she relented, knowing that it made sense.

She looked up at Shepherd and squeezed his hand. “Thank you for doing this. I really appreciate it.”

“There is absolutely nothing I wouldn’t do for you, Laurel. You’re my…you’re the one I want to love and take care of forever.” He let go of her hand. “I’m going to head back to the hotel and pick up a few clothes. I’ll arrange the flight and be back here within an hour.”

She fisted the back of his shirt as she hugged him tightly. “Thanks again, Shepherd.”

He leaned down and kissed her gently on the lips. If her mind hadn’t been so weighed down with worries, she would’ve led him directly to her room. He smiled coyly as if he had shared her thought.

“See you soon.”

As they stepped onto the plane, the pilot was there to meet them. Laurel wondered if Shepherd always used the same pilot.

“Ms. Davis,” he smiled as he nodded his head towards her.

Shepherd stepped forward to grasp the pilot’s forearm in greeting. “Thanks for being ready on such short notice, Truett.”

“My pleasure, boss. Skies look clear for our flight. We’ll be ready to head out in about ten minutes.”

“Good.” Shepherd put his arm around Laurel’s waist and led her to the couch, holding her hand. “It’ll be about a six-hour flight. What do you want to do?”

“I’m actually pretty tired. Would you mind if I took a nap?”

“Of course not. Go lay down. There’s a television in there too if you want to watch a movie. I’ve got to check in with Matty and Beck on a few things, but I’ll join you in a little while.”

She made her way to the back of the plane and laid down. Exhaustion settled in and the next thing she knew, she was waking up to Shepherd cuddling with her. She turned over to face him as she yawned.

“Hello, sleepyhead. We’re about to land.”

“I slept the whole time? Wow, I didn’t know I was that tired. Did you sleep too?”

“No. I had work to do. I just came to wake you. I have a car waiting for us at the airport. Do you want to text your aunt and let her know we’ll be there in about an hour?”

“Yeah, that’s a good idea.” Laurel slowly sat up in bed, rubbing her eyes to wake up. She dug her phone out from her bag and sent a text to her aunt, who responded right away.

[Lucy] I can’t wait to see you and meet Henry. I’d say it’s about time!

Laurel groaned. Lucy obviously thought the “friend” she mentioned bringing was Henry. The news about the land had been so shocking to her, she hadn’t thought to update her aunt on the situation. She hated to do it over text, but it was the only way.

[Laurel] About that. Henry and I broke up recently. The man I’m bringing is Shepherd Ryan. We haven’t been dating long, but I really like him. I think you will too.

There was a long pause in the message. Laurel stared at the screen, waiting for a response. She didn’t want to go into detail over text about what happened between her and Henry or how special Shepherd already was to her. She hoped that Aunt Lucy would be open to their relationship. Finally, her phone dinged, and she looked down at the message.

[Lucy] If he’s special enough for you to bring home, I’m sure I will like him. I’ll be watching for you both! I love you!

[Laurel] Love you too, Aunt Lucy

Relief rushed over her, a welcome feeling in what had been a stressful day. Before she knew it, the plane had landed, and they were in the car on the way to the cabin. Laurel felt nervous. Not only about introducing Shepherd but how they would resolve the situation with the land.

Shepherd saw her furrowed brow and grabbed her hand. “Don’t worry. It will all work out, I promise.”

“How can you say that? What if there’s no way to keep the land? I’m so worried for Aunt Lucy. I just can’t imagine her anywhere else. She loves her cabin.”

Shepherd hesitated before taking a deep breath. “Okay, this may make you upset.”