New Mutiny

Chapter 12

She should be running. Becky felt it in her shoulders, her legs. She needed to run, whether as a wolf or a human, but she worried that if she started she wouldn't know when to stop. Maybe she just wouldn't want to stop. She had never been the sort to run away from her problems, but it was starting to sound like a viable solution. It would at least be cleaner than whatever she was doing now.

Maybe I should have asked to go with Roman and Seth, she thought as she swam lazily in the pool. As soon as she thought it, however, she knew she wouldn't have gone, not even if she had been invited. Hunter had summoned the Shield brothers for a run to explain the contract fiasco—apparently at Stephanie's insistence—so Becky would only have been a distraction. As soon as Roman had told Galina, she arranged for Joelle to spend the afternoon at a friend's, leaving only his young sons at home with her and Becky. The boys were currently dozing in the shade of a patio umbrella while Becky swam and Galina stretched out on a floating lounger. Since the two women were essentially alone, Galina was sunbathing naked, enjoying the sun and the rare bit of quiet. "Do you know of any good hotels nearby?" Becky asked as she swam past the lounger. The simple, repetitive strokes weren't as fulfilling as a run, but they helped calm the ache for movement in her muscles.

Galina lowered her sunglasses a bit. "There's a few I'd recommend. Are you bringing over some of your pack members as backup?" she asked. "I know that's not my business and I should stay out of the werewolf side of things, but if it's going to affect Roman...."

"I understand that. No, it would... it would be for me." Becky stopped swimming and floated on her back for a moment or two, watching her bright hair drift around her head like flames underwater.

"Why do you need a hotel?" Galina gestured first to the guest house and then to the main one. "If you and Seth want some space from each other, there's a bunch of rooms open in the main house. There's no need to go to a hotel." She gave Becky a stern look. "You need to talk, don't you? Bring over a float."

The only other float that was inflated and within reach was Joelle's, shaped like a slice of pizza, but Becky wasn't fussy. She swam over to the pool's edge, grabbed the triangular float, and brought it into the water. "I shouldn't bother you with this," Becky said, pushing the float until it was alongside Galina's. "You've already got your hands full with the kids and I don't want to put you in the middle of anything...."

"You're not a burden, Becky," Galina chided gently, flipping over onto her stomach. "I offered, remember? I know you've got Bayley and Sasha here or people you could talk to back home, but I'm practically a stranger to you. That can make it easier to talk to someone. The friend Joelle's visiting right now? Her mom and I trade notes. Sometimes her daughter will say things over here that she doesn't know about or Joelle will mention something over there. We're not doing it to snoop," she added quickly. "But it helps me prepare for potential problems. Most of the time, it's nothing: just petty little things like white lies or a crush that she might not feel comfortable telling me about."

"You mean telling Roman about," Becky guessed. The triangular float wasn't the most comfortable, but it was also designed for someone less than half her age.

Galina laughed. "Amazing how many of her classmates think it's cool to have a wrestler for a dad, and then they freeze up when they meet him. I know it's outdated and cliche, but when she starts dating?" She shook her head. "That's going to be hilarious to watch."

"I imagine curfew will be followed religiously." Becky dangled her feet over the point of the pizza.

"That it will." Galina reached across to Becky's float and squeezed her hand. "I won't tell anyone. Not even Roman. And the boys can't, so you don't have to worry about it."