Page 62 of The Reluctant Alpha

"You’re a teacher?" Ben asked, sliding down to join us on the floor. "Or is that an omega thing, too?"

“I’m a teaching assistant.”

“And an exceptional one,” Emery said. He met my gaze. “We were a damn good team.”

My throat grew tight, and I focused on the babies.

“Wait, you worked together?” Ben asked.

Em grinned as he pulled out things for sandwiches. “Minton Elementary. We were the kindergarten team.”

Ben glanced at us both. “So, will you do that here? In the pack?”

My head whipped around to Em, who was staring at me with the same expression on his face as the shocked one on mine. “But there are no kids,” I said slowly.

“Yet,” Ben said, reaching over and helping himself to a handful of chips that Emery had just given Rhys to put on one of the small tables. “But I’m looking at two here. Raven and Kasim were holed up for a week. Now Mom—”

Rhys made a gagging noise and held up a throw pillow to his face.

Emery snapped his fingers. “Come with me.”

I arched an eyebrow because Em wasn’t usually this bossy but got to my feet and pointed to the babies and glanced at the boys. “Be good.”

I followed Em into the other half of the house away from the guest bedroom I usually slept in, and he stopped outside the third door, then swung it wide.

Inside was a large, airy room with windows stretching from floor to ceiling, bathing the space in natural light. The hardwood floors gleamed, and built-in shelves lined one wall. Double doors at the far end stood open to reveal a fenced garden area, complete with a small playground set and sandbox.

"What is this?" I asked, stepping inside and turning in a slow circle.

"The original pack creche," Emery said, leaning against the doorframe. "Phoenix updated it and built the outside area in the last two months."

"A classroom," I breathed, recognizing the potential immediately. The room was perfect—spacious, bright, with direct access to outdoor play space.

"A nursery, a preschool, whatever we need it to be," Emery agreed. "Phoenix said the pack would need it, eventually. Once the curse was broken and pups or cubs started coming."

I ran my hand along one of the empty shelves, my mind already filling the space with books, art supplies, learning centers.

"He was right," I murmured. "If Isla's in heat now too..."

"And Raven and Kasim before that," Emery added with unrestrained glee. "It's starting, Danny. The pack is going to grow."

I turned to face him, suddenly understanding what he was suggesting. "You want me to help you run a pack school?"

It wasn't a question, but Emery nodded anyway. "We were always a great team. And these kids will need teachers who understand both worlds—human and shifter."

“We’d need space for the older kids,” I said, my mind already focused. Because kids grew.

The possibility unfurled inside me like a flower opening to the sun. Teaching had always been my passion, but Miss Anderson had crushed so much of my joy in it lately. The thought of building something new, something meaningful...

"I wouldn't have to commute," I said slowly, working through the implications. "Or deal with Miss Anderson's micromanaging."

"You'd be helping shape the next generation of the pack," Emery added.

I pictured it—a classroom full of little shifters and humans, learning together. Teaching them not just ABCs and numbers, but how to navigate their dual natures, how to find balance.

"What about certification? Curriculum?" I asked, the practical part of my brain kicking in.

Emery smiled. "We'd have freedom to design our own program. Draven has connections in education administration who can help with the legal side."