Forced Plus-Size Mate (Silver Meadows Wolves #6)

Chapter 12 - Body

I sleep very briefly, only a couple of hours. This is partly because my makeout session with Amanda left me so keyed up that I couldn’t settle, but I never sleep deeply when I have youngsters to care for.

As cold, pale sunlight creeps across the icy peaks of the mountain, I greet the dawn, feeling like a new man. She couldn’t give herself to me yet, and I understand that completely.

I don’t deserve to be forgiven. I’ve always known that.

But finally, it looks like I have a chance to prove myself, and that’s all I’ve ever wanted.

I hear Amanda moving around in her tent, and I hurry to get the fire started so I can make coffee. I have the brew prepared by the time she sits down. She wraps her hands around the cup gratefully.

“Thank you,” she says. “I didn’t think it would be so cold up here!”

“It’s not even winter yet,” I say. “Well, almost. The peak is always pretty harsh, though.”

“Will your kids be alright?”

“They have to learn to regulate their temperature. It’s a core principle of our training.”

She just nods, sipping her coffee. I sit beside her, wondering if I should bring up last night or not.

I feel awkward as hell. Am I supposed to act like we’re good, or put space between us? I really don’t know.

She sighs, leaning against my arm. I’m excited, but also too scared to move. I desperately want to put my arm around her, but I’m not sure that’s what she wants.

“Last night was nice,” she says. “I like that we’re making progress. It was so difficult not being able to talk to you.”

“I know,” I answer, relief flooding through me. “Acting like we were strangers was absolutely killing me.”

“Well, we kind of are,” she says. “We’ve been away from each other so long that we’ve changed. It will take time to get to know each other again.”

“Yeah, I guess.” I want to tell her that she’s exactly as I remember—strong, spirited, powerful, and kind, but the moment passes.

“We should get some breakfast going for those pups,” she says, getting up.

“Yeah, I should wake them,” I agree. “They need to go for a run before they get breakfast.”

She raises her eyebrows. “You’re a slave driver.”

“Nah. Brutal dictator, maybe.”

She giggles. “Go on, get out of here. I’ll have some food ready by the time you get back.”

I wave to her before I hurry away, pausing for a moment. Set against the slate-blue sky patterned with streams of white clouds, Amanda stands with one hand raised to wave back to me. Even from a distance, I can see the joy in her bright blue eyes and the warmth of her smile. A sudden breeze from the peak whips down the slope, spiraling around her and catching her long, mahogany hair, tossing it around her face.

When I turn away from her, I can still see the afterimage behind my eyelids, and I know that moment will be burned into my memory forever.

This is the day, the very first day of us being together. From here on out, I have a chance to earn her heart. And this time, I won’t let her down.

I wake the kids, ignoring their protests as I hustle them onto the mountain. I don’t make them run too far or too hard. They are only kids, and the really rough stuff comes later.

When we return, Amanda has cooked breakfast, as promised. Thick slices of bacon and hash browns are sizzling on the skillet. The kids descend upon the feast like starving crows at a barbecue.

“How was the run?” she asks me as we sit down.

“Good,” I mumble through a mouth full of bacon. “After breakfast, I want to take them into the deeper woods to do some plant identification. There are things that are healthy for humans but poisonous to wolves, and vice versa.”

“I could help with that,” she offers. “It’s pretty much the base level of witchcraft.”

“I actually forgot about that. Why don’t you come along?”

“Sure,” she agrees, smiling and snuggling next to me. My heart leaps in my chest to see such a happy, carefree expression on her face.

Even if I don’t get her back, giving her this peace is enough. To heal the wounds I caused, even a little, is worth every moment of my penance.

When we go out into the woods, Amanda takes the snowmobile and keeps up with the pack easily. We spend the afternoon lifting logs and burrowing through snowbanks to find fungi, bugs, and random plants to teach the pups about the beauty—and the dangers—of the forest.

On the way back, Nick asks Amanda to show them some magic.

“Oh, I don’t know,” she dithers. “Magic is supposed to be for specific things. I’m not very good at performances.”

“But what is your special talent?” Dawn asks. “I heard that all witches have individual skills.”

“That’s true,” Amanda answers. “But I have a few different ones. It’s how I become the high priestess—I have more than one skill.”

“So, show us,” Marty urges, though he looks a bit skeptical. “I hear a lot about the witches being seriously powerful, but so far I’ve seen nothing that proves it.”

“Okay,” Amanda says with a grin. “Let’s see if the mountain is listening to me today.”

Amanda closes her eyes and tilts her head upwards. With her arms out and her palms up, she spins in a small circle, her movements slow and heavy as if she’s underwater.

Dawn lets out a sharp gasp as Nick yelps in surprise. A flock of birds has gathered over Amanda’s head, flying in a small circle and flitting down towards her. I can feel her energy radiating outwards, connecting to all the living things in the woods around us.

To my surprise, Amanda isn’t done. Green grass sprouts around her feet, and wildflowers stretch up towards her. She smiles gently and raises her arms a little.

“More,” she whispers.

Around us, a fierce rumble echoes through the trees. Snow shakes up and down from the forest floor. The ground shudders so badly, we almost can’t keep our feet.

I hurry towards her, staggering on the slippery ground. When I get close, I tap her shoulder.

“Amanda, stop!”

She opens her eyes and looks around as if she doesn’t recognize where she is. “Sorry,” she mumbles. “I just… got carried away.”

“I don’t think we need to worry about the strength of your magic,” I say wryly, trying to lighten the situation.

“Not when I’m around you,” she answers, blushing.

When we turn back to the kids, their faces are a mixture of awe… and fear.

I should have thought of that. Scaring the kids is the last thing we want to do. What if they go home and tell their parents about the scary witch almost killed them?

I run the pups ahead of me while Amanda follows behind with the snowmobile. The afternoon is peaceful, and once Amanda gets the kids toasting marshmallows and eating smores, they seem to forget about her display of magic.

I sit on the ground, watching the firelight flicker across Amanda’s face as she sings songs with the kids.

Up here on the mountain, everything is so different, as if we truly have a fresh start.

Town is so full of bad memories. We both had it so hard as teenagers, in completely different ways. I know Amanda’s issues with her mother made her want to get out of town. All she wanted was that I would go with her.

I swallow down a lump of guilt. I worried about my parents ragging on me and getting teased by my jock friends while Amanda didn’t even know where her mother was most of the time, let alone if there was food in the cupboards or if the rent was paid.

We put the kids to bed, and I try to hide my eagerness. I know it’s too early to expect anything, but I’ve been waiting to get her alone all day.

“Hey, you,” she says, taking my hands.

“Yeah…” I say nervously. “Hey to you, too.”

“Sorry it got a bit hectic with my magical display. I just went with it. I wasn’t thinking too much.”

“It really does look like our bond has worked and your magic is back.”

“Yes, it does,” she says, though she looks a little troubled. “I’ll have to talk to the others to see how they’re going, but it seems like this is the solution.”

“Would that be so bad?”

“Only if there are witches and wolves that disagree but still match.”

“Oh, of course. I didn’t really think of that.”

She shrugs. “The Decker pack has a valid concern. Lucy did trap Peter, and it appears to have happened a lot in the past.”

“I didn’t see him complaining.”

She grins. “He complained—a lot. Lucy was keeping me updated on the situation, remember?”

“Yeah, I do,” I say. “But I also know that by the time you got here to help them break the spell, the two of them were joined at the hip by choice.”

“Yeah, that was pretty funny,” she giggles.

“And then, you just left,” I go on, unable to stop myself. “You came to town and ran off right away, before I could get a chance to see you.”

She shrugs. “That was kind of the point, yeah.” Her hands are still gently linked with mine, and she gives me a light squeeze. “I know you’ve explained and everything,” she whispers. “But I can’t just trust you yet. You know that, right?”

“I know,” I say solemnly. “And I deserve it. Just know this, Amanda. I will never give up.”

“That sounds good to me,” she says, grinning. I lean in, just a little, and she gives me a quick kiss on the lips.

Before it can develop into anything more, I hear a twig snap nearby. I immediately drop Amanda’s hands and put myself between her and the noise.

“What is it?” she asks.

“It can’t be a predator. The noise was deliberate.”

“Yes, it was,” Kelta’s voice floats out of the darkness. Her tall, pale form slowly appears as she approaches the light of the fire and leaves the shadows behind. I offer her a blanket, but she ignores me.

Typical wild wolves. Too high and mighty to act human for even a few seconds.

“What’s happening?” I ask with some annoyance.

“I don’t know if I should say,” Kelta answers, looking over my shoulder at Amanda with a steady gaze.

Amanda steps forward to stand beside me, reaching for my hand and linking her fingers through mine. “Anything you can say to Body, you can say to me.”

Kelta stares at her with a blank expression, and I can’t tell if she’s being hostile or just being herself.

“Very well,” she finally says. “You’re being watched. We’re having trouble tracking them, but we’ve found paw prints throughout the ridge where you were training today. Whoever they are, they’re good—good enough to avoid detection from us for the last few hours.”

The news shocks me. The wild wolves are all instinct. Anyone who can hide from them would have to be a master of both shapes. An elder, or an alpha…

Or both.

Kelta is still staring at Amanda, the steel in her gaze starting to make it look very close to a glare.

“Is there a problem?” I ask, my voice hard.

“No, none,” Kelta answers, though her tone implies the opposite. “We are using the relay to inform Bae of the situation. What would you like to do?”

I have a feeling that Kelta just doesn’t want a witch on the mountain and would do anything to get rid of her.

Did they feel her magic? Is that what this is about?

“If there’s any chance of harm to the youngsters, we have to end the mission,” I state. “We were pretty much done, anyway. The team and I will leave at first light.”

“We will relay your message to Alpha Bailey,” Kelta says courteously. She turns to walk into the woods, her steps slow and sure.

“She’s weird,” Amanda mutters.

I nod. “She’s probably saying the same thing about you.”

“Yeah, probably,” Amanda agrees, laughing. “So, what are we doing? Do you think we’re in danger?”

“No, most likely not,” I answer with more conviction than I feel. “It could be totally benign. The chance of a dangerous wolf getting through the ranks is extremely slim. Cutting the trip short is just a precaution.”

“Okay,” she says. “She really doesn’t like me, does she?”

I don’t know if I’m ready to talk to Amanda about what went down at the last council meeting. And even if I was, now isn’t the time.

“Witches are just new to her, I guess,” I say. “We should get some rest so we’re ready to leave at dawn.”

“Okay,” she says, getting up on her tiptoes to kiss me lightly on the lips. “See you in the morning.”

Amanda wraps her blanket tighter around her shoulders and heads to her tent.

She still wants to sleep separately, but she gave me a goodnight kiss, and that’s better than I could have hoped for.