The next day was a busy one for everyone. Siobhan had several calls regarding jobs in the area, a couple of them small, but one was a good sized, one, which put a smile, on her face. Word of her doing the landscaping work, for the Alpha, had gotten around and it looked like it was starting to pay off.

Taren had a lot on his plate, as well, several meetings with prominent community members that would tie in with the businesses he has brought, with him. He needed to assure them that he wasn't taking over, merely expanding his holdings and that they should all be able to work together. He did not want to appear, as if he was competing, with them or trying, to close them down.

Rhys and Thomas were also busy with prospective recruits. That is to say, Rhys organised for the men to come in and Thomas interviewed them. Rhys wasn't exactly happy with the way this worked, but he held his tongue. Thomas was second in charge and if Taren wasn't available, he was the person who took charge. Thomas had also stated that that he would be doing the first round of interviews. Rhys figured, to decide which ones to hire and discard the ones he didn't think would be a good fit.

They'd set themselves up in a small office in the bunk-house. Although Thomas would be doing the interview, Rhys would be there as well. On hearing a car pull up Rhys turned to Thomas. "Look I know you probably don't think too much of me at the moment, but I know these guys. I know what they are capable of, will you at least listen, to what I have to say in regards to each of them?"

Thomas wasn't one to keep a grudge, he knew Rhys was trying to step up and do the right thing. "I'll listen, but at the end of the day if I say no..."

Rhys nodded, "That's fair enough. These are all good men, some are still a bit young in the head," he laughed, "yeah like I've been. They want to play and fool around, but given a chance to prove themselves and if they see me working my arse off." He sighed. "I'm sure it'd make a difference."

"Let's just see how we go." Thomas said with a smile.

They got through all the interviews and ended up deciding that all, six men would make a good fit. If they could follow orders. Thomas discussed his findings with Rhys, making Rhys, feel more comfortable, about the situation, considering he'd put the men's names forward and knew they'd be counting on his influence to get a position.

"So, what now. Will Taren meet with each of them, then make a final decision?" he asked.

Thomas shook his head, "No, that'd be way too time consuming for the boss. I'll... actually we, can meet with him and let him know how we thought each man went. I'll tell him what I think and you can add to, if you think I've left anything out." He smiled, "you know them better than I do, so you'll be able to add more information. I'm expecting you, to be open and honest in your assessment."

"Yeah, I will. I know they're my friends, but if we both, agree they aren't, what's needed then we shouldn't give them a position. We could tell them that maybe later on... you know, give them a chance to grow up a bit more. We could maybe revisit them again, if you know what I mean?"

Thomas laughed. "Good idea and if they see how mature their friends are, they may just follow suit." Now they were both grinning. They spent a good hour discussing each of the men before making their way to see Taren.

Neither had stopped for lunch, Taren hadn't either, so Owen ushered them into the dining room to discuss business, while he organised coffee and sandwiches. By the end of lunch they'd decided to bring on all six men. But, they'd be on probation for the first three months. If they could work with the rest of the men, without any problems and most importantly; if they could do what they were told or what was deemed necessary, then each individual would be reviewed again and a final decision made.

"So," began Taren. "Is there any one specifically that we should be looking at?"

Rhys thought for a moment, not wanting to look like he was pushing his friends' case. "I'll be up front here okay. Henry. He's my best friend, but he's also one of the best men I know. He's honest, loyal and although he'll do what you tell him he's no sheep, if you know what I mean."

Rhys sighed not sure he was explaining himself in the way he needed. He glanced at Thomas who gave him a nod to continue. "I'm not saying this right. Okay here's the thing. Henry does what he's told, but he can think on his feet and sees more than most." He waited a moment, looking Taren in the eye, "I'd have him my back any day." He lowered his eyes again waiting for a response.

"Okay. You're head of security and we've got to trust your judgement. If Henry's all you've said he is." Taren, sighed. "The rest should follow his lead." He turned to Thomas, "Why don't you let them know they've been accepted into positions on a three month condition. Maybe have a welcome barbeque. Not everyone will be able to be there, but a good many will be and if they stay all day, our men can come and go so they'll get to meet a fair few."

"Good idea Taren. I'll speak to Owen about supplies for the barbeque. What do you think about this coming Saturday?"

"Sounds good. If you two get everything organised. I'll drop by early and meet with them. We'll leave the official welcome to after they've proved themselves".

The meeting broke up a few minutes later with each man feeling positive about the new recruits. Rhys had stepped up, at least for the time being. Taren was hoping he'd stay that way, not just for himself, but for his sister as well. He had a feeling she was likely to need his support in the future.

Taren grabbed a mug of coffee on his way out the back door through the kitchen. He wanted to sit quietly and think over a few things. But he was the Alpha and his time wasn't always his own. As he came out onto the back porch he found Seth waiting there.

"Seth, what can I do for you?" he asked, hoping it wouldn't be too big of an ask.

"Hey, Taren. I, umm. That is..."

Seth wasn't usually one stuck for words, so Taren knew it was either bad or important to him. He truly hoped it was the latter. "Seth, what's going on? Come on spit it out."

Seth seemed to find his shoes really interesting at this point and his hands were fumbling with his baseball cap. Finally he took a deep breath, released it and spoke. "I spoke with my parents and well they said I should talk to you and if you say it's okay, well then... it's okay."

Seth rubbed a hand over his face and Taren was doing his best to remain calm. "It's like this Taren. You remember when I picked that fight with Shivey?" he looked at his Alpha and when he nodded continued. "Okay so Shivey and I got talking and I helped her clean up when she was finished working here. She said that she had more work coming up and that she could use some extra help. She offered me a job." He looked at Taren and waited.

It took Taren a minute to catch on. Seth was asking his permission to take the job. He'd caused a problem for Taren and he needed his go ahead to now take the job with Shivey.

"Siobhan offered you a position?"

Seth nodded. "I'd need to go back and do some study, she said so I'll grow with the job."

This made Taren smile. "You're willing to do that, the study that is?"

"Yes sir, and Shivey said because I'll be learning on the job and I'll be working for her she'll give me some free tutoring sessions if I need it. I'm hoping I won't, but just in case you know..."

"Yes Seth I know and I think this is a wonderful opportunity for you. I agree wholeheartedly. Who knows maybe one day you'll be taking care of the grounds here on a regular basis."

"Yes sir! Thank you sir!" he ran off most likely to let Shivey and his family know, the smile on his face huge, the light in his eyes greater than Taren had ever seen it. He shook his head and smiled. At least one of his people was happy.

Now to court his mate.

Taren headed for the car; a man on a mission. He knew what women liked. He knew how to get a woman's attention. He knew how to... "Shit!"

The Alpha stopped dead in his tracks. This wasn't just any woman. Siobhan was different. He could never encourage her affections with sweet words and flowers. She was the one who'd probably have grown the damned things in the first place and as for sweet words... his Siobhan would be suspicious. She'd be looking for an ulterior motive. And how screwed up is that?

"Shit!"

Taren stood in the back garden for a good ten minutes as still as a statue. Owen looking out the kitchen window at him worried but not wanting to interfere. Finally a smile crept at the corner of Taren's mouth. He had an idea. Actually he had a few, but he'd need to move slowly, carefully. He was a wolf, used to stalking prey with as much patience as was necessary. He now had the beginning of his game plan. Step by small step with his Siobhan, until she was his.

He finally made a move, striding towards his car a determined expression fixed on his face. Once Taren got to the outskirts of town he slowed down to just under the speed limit. He wanted to check out the restaurants and cafes on the main street, see how busy they were. Busy meant the food was usually good. He also wanted to take a look at a couple of the more exclusive restaurants. He knew they wouldn't be open this early, but wanted to see where they were situated, what they looked like.

By the time he was finished driving around his stomach started grumbling. He called Coral hoping she'd pick up. She did, which he was grateful for.

"Hello, Shivey's Landscaping, Coral speaking. How may I be of service?"

"Good afternoon Coral, it's Taren. I was hoping you could tell me the whereabouts of Siobhan? I was going to drop by with lunch for us both."

"Oh hey Taren, Shivey's been down at the sports park most of the morning. The Local Council wants to spruce it up. She took Seth with her, he's all hyped about working with her. Umm, is that going to be a problem?"

"No Coral, I just wanted to drop in and thought I'd bring some lunch. I'm glad I called. Now I can bring enough for all three of us."

Taren hung up and pulled into a take-out burger café ordering enough food and drinks for all three of them, then made his way to the sports park. He spotted Seth first carrying several long tubes that more than likely contained plans of the park. Making his way towards Seth he soon saw Siobhan in the distance speaking with who he assumed was one of the Council members.

He watched for a moment and realised that although Siobhan was smiling, it was forced. Taren seeing that Seth had already placed the tubes and the backpack he'd been carrying on a picnic table, did the same with the food. "Be right back." He said to Seth, the promptly turned his attention to Siobhan.

Taking several steps her way he called out, "Siobhan!" giving her a wave at the same time. Then waited to see if she'd respond in a positive way.

Siobhan had been excited when she got a call inviting her to speak with Councillor Frank Kingston in regards to the landscaping of the Sports Park. It wasn't a huge job, but it was a way of putting her mark on the town itself. Discussions went well and having Seth with her worked well as she was able to hand off her backpack with relevant information, note pads, pens and so forth as well as the plan of the entire sports centre and surrounding area she was able to get copies of.

She got the go ahead to do mock-ups and if Council liked them the job was hers. They'd been walking around the grounds and talking through her ideas for some time and Shivey was now getting the feeling Kingston wanted more that to just get a feel for her work.

Seth didn't like the man, had stayed by Shivey's side the entire time which made her smile and was starting to get under Kingston's skin. She wasn't about to explain his actions and was more than happy when the meeting seemed to be coming to an end.

As the out towards the picnic area Seth moved away believing it was safe enough to do so. That's when he made his move. "Siobhan, you are a beautiful woman. I can't believe you haven't been snapped up already." He smiled and Shivey all but cringed.

"Shivey. No one calls me Siobhan."

"Oh, of course. Shivey, I was hoping now that we've finished our initial meeting..."

That's when she heart it.

"Siobhan!"

She turned and her face lit up. Without even thinking Shivey waved back and Taren made his way towards her a smile on his face.

As he came to a stop beside her he couldn't resist, he put his hand on the small of her back and reached in to give her a kiss on her cheek. "Siobhan, I was hoping to catch you. I've brought lunch for the three of us."

Siobhan hadn't even realised that she's leaned in towards Taren, either wanting or needing to be closer to him. She smiled up at him, "That's really nice of you Taren." She turned to the Counsellor then back to Taren introducing them.

Kingston smiled amiably, but both sensed he was none too happy about not having Siobhan to himself.

To make sure Kingston knew he didn't have a chance with her Shivey took a chance and spoke without thinking. "Taren are you still free for dinner tomorrow night?" she smiled. "You got lunch, I'd like to return the favour."

"If I wasn't I am now." He grinned then turned to Kingston. "Have a nice day." He led Shivey away doing his damnedest not the laugh at the man. The look on his face was priceless.

Once they were out of hearing distance Shivey couldn't help the small laugh that escaped her. "Thank you so much. That man was... well he was kinda creepy."

"No problem, I'm getting dinner out of it." He grinned.

"Umm, yeah about that. Do you Mexican food?" she waited and when Taren nodded, she smiled. "Good."

For some reason Taren wasn't so sure he'd gotten the best of this deal. In the end he pushed it to the back of his mind and concentrated on the here and now. Lunch. Seth had put all the business things aside and already unpacked lunch. He placed a burger, fries and a drink together for himself on one side and did the same on the other of the table for Shivey and Taren. In the middle of the table he placed a large serving of onion rings and dipping sauce.

"Oh my god! This look delicious! And now I'm really hungry. Thanks Taren." Without thinking, Shivey turned and gave him a hug.

Taren hugged her back. It felt good to have her in his arms. That there were witnesses, possible gossips to what they were doing would also in his favour. He would not admit or would he deny any rumours of him and Siobhan being a couple. That was no one's business but theirs. But men would be wary of attempting to start any kind of relationship with Siobhan now.

So they sat at the picnic table and ate their meal in good spirits. Seth telling his Alpha all about what had happened during the meeting, glancing at Shivey for her approval from time to time. He talked about what he'd learned and what he was hoping to do to help if they got the job. Shivey added to the discussion where it was needed, but for the most part let Seth do all the talking. He was hyped about being involved so early in his employment.

During lunch they all ignored the fact that the Counsellor was an arrogant prick. It wasn't until they'd finished and Seth was taking the lunch wrappings to dump in the garbage that Taren noticed a look of worry on Shivey's face.

"Don't worry Siobhan. I have a meeting with the Mayor next week. I'll put in a good word." He winked and gave her a grin making her laugh.

"Thanks Taren. Kingston was giving me the creeps towards the end of the meeting." She rubbed her arms and shuddered. "I'm glad I had Seth with me and he must have felt the same way because he stayed close to me too."

"Good. I know you can look after yourself Siobhan, but still... I don't like the idea of you being alone like that." He held up his hand to stop her when he could see she was about to start in on him. "No, I'm not trying to control you or bud in on your business Siobhan. But as it grows you will come in contact with more people like Kingston. Some perhaps worse.

"Think about it Siobhan. You're young. Single. Estranged from your family. An easy target. Your only really starting your business, so if you make complaints about a well-known, well established business man. Who would you believe?"

Shivey looked at Taren in horror. "I can't win can I?"

"Yes Siobhan, you can. You just need to make sure you protect yourself."

"So make sure I don't go in to meetings alone. Have Seth or someone else around when I know the client is going to be around."

"Yes. Play it safe. If you show people how good you are business wise and at the same time let them know you aren't about to let anyone take advantage of you either they'll soon get the message." He laughed, "It might help if I can get a few of the men at the gym to spar with you too."

Shivey laughed, "Yeah. I see your point Taren. I still need to prove myself, especially with the bigger jobs. And I need to make sure people know I'm not interested and I can take care of myself." She grinned, "It'll be nice to be able to spar with someone again and if it makes you happy, I'll even let you pick who."

"Just not me!" stated Seth as he took his seat and they burst out laughing.

They got to their feet making their way to where their cars, "Hey I'm serious, no way am I hitting on my boss! That's just not right no matter how you look at it." Seth shook his head in emphasis.

Shivey wrapped her arm around him in an affectionate way and he leaned in to her. "So we're good?"

"Yep! I promise, no sparing with you Seth."

Seth released a sigh and hugged Shivey tighter.

Taren said his goodbyes with a smile on his face. Lunch with Siobhan and now dinner tomorrow night. It was a start.

Shivey was all smiles as she came through the front door, Seth trailing behind her. Coral took a moment to appreciate the happy her friend had going on before saying anything that might ruin it. She smiled too. "Have a good day huh?"

"You could say that." Shivey paused. "We haven't quite got the job yet, but Taren said he'd put in a word with the Mayor for us."

"The Mayor huh?"

"Yeah, he said he's got a meeting with him in a few days, and the guy we met with today was a bit of a creep." Shivey shuddered at the thought of the man, turning to Seth who was rolling his eyes.

"That's an understatement," he stated. "He was a huge creep! And, he was hitting on Shivey." He shook his head and shoulders in a mock shudder to show just how big a creep the guy was. Shivey laughed, but Coral gasped at their twin reactions!

"Seriously, he was that bad?"

"Taren came to the rescue. He put his arm around me like we had something going on, so I umm... invited him for dinner tomorrow night. I told him we were having Mexican." She smiled sweetly at Coral.

Coral was surprised that Shivey would have invited the big guy for dinner. "Okay, I can work with that." Then she thought for a second. "Umm, Shivey, when you invited Taren to dinner, what exactly did you say, cause is he expecting a home cooked meal with me here. Or is he expecting to be going out to some restaurant?"

"Crap!" the colour drained from Shivey's face.

Seth started laughing and she thumped him playfully on the arm. He stopped laughing long enough to tell her to chill." Why don't you call and tell him to bring Owen with him, that way he'll realise it wasn't an 'intimate' dinner for two." He grinned and she wanted to kiss him, but rubbed his arm where she'd hit bet instead, putting a smile on his face.

"Actually," began Coral. "That's a really good idea. You should come too Seth. We're all working together now, more or less. I'll do a smorgasbord type of thing with the food. What do you think?"

Both Shivey and Seth were smiling as they nodded their heads.

"Right," began Coral. "Seth, first thing tomorrow you're mine. I'll have a ton of shopping to do and I'll need help with it all."

Shivey saw the look of fear on Seth's face. "Don't worry I'll be coming too. We can get all the shopping done early and once that's done we can do a visit to the local college to see what courses are available and when you can sign up."

"Really, you'd do that for me?"

Shivey just smiled and grabbed her bag and keys. "Yeah. Come on, I'll drop you home. I need to speak with your parents in any case."

Shivey saw confusion on Seth's face, "about tomorrow and me maybe enrolling you in a course."

"Oh, okay. I've already spoken to both my parents about everything and they're just happy I've found something I want to do with my life. My mother will be home, she's been wanting to meet you."

Shivey saw the half grin on Seth's face and couldn't help but wonder what it was about, just didn't want to ask. She'd find out soon enough in any case. "Umm, should I take something with me?" Shivey stood where she was for a full minute then... "Coral!!!"

Coral handed her a container of coffee-walnut slices and waved her off. "Lamb shanks for dinner, so don't be late."

Seth turned, taking a step back towards Coral, "No, go home. You're eating her tomorrow night. Now shoo!" she laughed and he trailed out behind Shivey. Mumbling under his beard... "I love lamb shanks."

                                                                            ~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sarah Bradshaw had just made a fresh pot of coffee when she heard a car pull up out front. She didn't usually make a full pot of coffee this late in the afternoon, but Sarah sometimes had a way of knowing and this afternoon she just knew to put on coffee. She'd just opened the pantry door to look for something to nibble on when he youngest son came through the kitchen door with a young woman behind him. Seth was holding a container in front of him holding it out to her.

"Well what's this then?" she asked.

Seth looked over his shoulder at Shivey, because he had no idea what was in the container. "Coffee-walnut slices," she whispered in his ear.

"Coffee-walnut slices, mom. Coral made them." He smiled and gave his mother a kiss on the cheek.

Sarah took the container, then turned her eyes to the young woman. "Oh," Seth began. "Sorry, umm. This is Shivey, my umm... my boss Shivey Anderson." He turned to Shivey, "Shivey this is my mom, Sarah."

"Shivey moved forward holding a hand out, "It's nice to finally meet you Mrs Bradshaw. Seth was right my friend Coral made the slices. She's an excellent cook." She shook her head. "I'm afraid my talents lie more in the outdoors."

Sarah took her hand, holding in both of hers. She could feel the callouses on her fingers from all the hard work, saw the way she stood, standing straight and reaching out her other hand to her son, knowing he was nervous about their meeting. Sarah good a good feeling about this woman. Finally she smiled, gave her hand a squeeze and released her.

"I've heard things about you Siobhan. You're a strong woman and I like that. In our world you need to be strong or you can get swallowed up. My Seth seems to like you, even after he picked a fight with you." She scowled at him, then shook her head.

Shivey couldn't help the grin that was creeping onto her face. She was really starting to like this woman. "I like Seth too Mrs..."

"Please, it's Sarah. Us women... we need to stick together." She turned towards the kitchen table, indicating they should join her. The coffee was already there ready to be poured. She just put the slices onto a plate to make it easier to pick them up, then she took her seat and relaxed.

"Now Siobhan, what is it you wanted to speak to me about?"

Shivey was going to correct her in regards to her name then figured it was a small thing and it actually sounded nice when she said it. Not quite as nice as when a certain other person called her by that name, but nice all the same. So she let it be.

"Sarah, when I first talked to Seth about working for me, I told him if he did, he'd more than likely need to do some study. That he'd need to enrol in the local college and do one or two courses. I'd be able to help him with his studies and he'd have on the job training. I'd be willing to give him a couple of hours at least two nights a week and I'm always around if he gets stuck.

"At the moment I can only give me part-time work, but I can guarantee at least three days a week. That will increase depending on the workload, so he'll need to be able to commit to working more hours if I need him." She glanced at Seth, who nodded his head vigorously.

Sarah was smiling, putting Shivey and Seth in a good place. "In regards to the cost of the courses. There will also be tools, books and other things Seth will need as well. We talked it over and I can't afford to cover all the costs, but and I'm sure you'd like to discuss this with your husband first. I'm willing to cover half the cost of his training, if he is willing to sign on with me for a three year period after he's completed his studies."

Sarah sat quietly for a few moments considering what Shivey had said before she spoke. "Just to make sure I have this correct, you want take on Seth part-time while he studies. That's three days a week, possibly more when you are busy." Shivey nodded.

"You are also willing to provide tutoring throughout his studies, free of charge. Two days a week and where needed. And, you will pay half the cost of his training as well as giving him on the job training." She glanced at Shivey as if waiting for confirmation.

Shivey nodded, hoping she'd be okay with what she proposed. She wasn't sure if it would be enough or if they'd be insulted that she'd want to pay for their son. In any case she figured speaking woman to woman would be the best way to go.

"Correct me if I'm wrong Siobhan. You are just starting your business, it's becoming known, but it's still early days, which means you still don't have a great deal of money behind you."

Shivey could feel her face turning red, her business might be fairly new, but she was building it up, she was doing okay. "I can..."

"Woman to woman my dear. I like you and..." Seth opened his mouth to protect Shivey, but his mother silenced him with a look. "As I was saying. I like you and if you are going to succeed, the money you are offering to put towards Seth," she sighed. You're going to need it to put back into your business.

"I have a college fund set aside for both our sons, Thomas Lee and Seth Davison Bradshaw. There is no need for you to pay for his courses, books, tools or whatever else he might need. And if you do find yourself tutoring him, we will come to some arrangement in regards to payment. Don't ever undervalue yourself Siobhan." Sarah smiled then sampled one of the coffee-walnut slices.

All the air seemed to rush out of Shivey all at once. She wanted to speak, to say thank you, but her mouth wouldn't work.

Seth was worse, he came around to his mother and hugged her so hard if she'd have been human he'd have broken something.

Finally when Shivey was able to speak, she reached for Sarah's hand, "Are you sure. I mean do you need to speak to you husband first?"

"No my dear. We've been waiting for an opportunity to speak to you about Seth. We want him happy and settled into something that he enjoys doing. It looks like he's found that with you."

"So you don't care that he's not following in the footsteps of his brother?"

Seth almost choked on a mouthful of coffee. "Shivey, that's who Thomas is. It's not me, never was."

Sarah, smiled, "I believe Seth said it more succinctly than I could have. We are all individuals Shivey. If we had have pushed Seth into being something he's not. What kind of parents would we be?"

Yes, what kind of parents indeed. "Wow! Seth if I ever hear you complain about your parents, I'm going to thump you. Hard!"

"Great! Now look what you've done mom." He rolled his eyes, but had a grin on his face knowing that things were indeed looking up for him. Tomorrow he'd face food shopping with Coral, but then he'd be going to the local college and see about his future.

On the way home Shivey parked by the side of the road and considered the best way to deal with her problem. Taren was a friend, nothing more... right? So.... It'd be okay to call him and tell him to bring Owen with him, hell he could... she heard a car horn honk loudly scaring the crap out of her and bringing her back to the here and now!

Shivey looked out her window and saw Thomas grinning at her. "You okay Siobhan?" he asked inquisitively.

Shivey's heart was doing its best to slow down. She glared at Thomas, "You scared the hell out of me!"

"Sorry about that. You look kind of spaced out. Are you..."

"Yes, I'm okay. Just got a few things on my mind. Oh and I just met your mother. I wanted her to adopt me. Seriously!"

"Seth?"

"Yep. It's sorted. We're going to look at courses tomorrow." Shivey could see a sense of calm envelope the man and it was then that she realised that Seth's family had all been worried about him.

Not one to leave things for too long and knowing because of his rank in the Pack, Shivey figured she best get things sorted regarding her name. At least where Thomas was concerned. "Oh and if you call me Siobhan again I'm so gonna start calling you Tommy Lee. In front of everyone." She smiled ever so sweetly.

The expression of shock on his face was enough to make her burst out laughing, Shivey was polite enough to wait until she'd driven at least out of hearing before she did so not wanting to rub his face in it. Pulling up five minutes later, knowing she had to make a decision, Shivey sat staring at her phone. Call or text. Call or text. The words kept running through her mind.

"I really should be an adult about this and just call the man." She texted.

'Taren, Coral said to bring Owen with you for dinner,there will be lots of food. Shivey' then she turned her phone off. "Okay so I'm a coward."