His Arranged Plus-Size Mate (Belrose Black Ops Wolves #4)

Chapter 1 - Asher

I stood uncomfortably as Brandon stood near the podium.

He had called a pack meeting and planned to hold an open discussion with everyone in the town square.

Kaleb stood next to Brandon, both of them wearing pressed suits.

Westley and I stood just a step behind them, both dressed just as appropriately.

I was still freezing my ass off, though, with how cold it was outside today.

I yanked at my tie, trying to adjust it again. I felt like it was slowly suffocating me. I never liked dressing up.

“You good?” Westley asked, raising an eyebrow at me. A smirk pulled at his lips, telling me he knew just how uncomfortable I was.

“I’m fine. Just…hate meetings like this.”

Westley nodded in agreement. “I don’t like it either, but at least we look sharp.”

I rolled my eyes at his comment and turned my attention back to Brandon.

He cleared his throat. “I want to thank everyone who came. We wanted to have an open discussion about everything that has been going on. We know that everyone has been talking, and we wanted to get everything out in the open. We aren’t trying to hide anything or keep anything for anyone.

So if there are questions about what’s going on, ask. ”

Since the incident involving Hazel’s kidnapping, everyone has been on edge. The pack was divided, and everyone was angry. They wanted answers, answers we weren’t sure we knew everything about. But Brandon also didn’t want it to look like we were trying to hide. He wanted us to stay united.

“Here we go,” Westley whispered.

It erupted. Everyone started talking at once. People were yelling, wanting answers about what happened. Others wanted to know if we were safe.

“What about the hybrids? They are taunting us at this point! Why haven’t we started going after them? Defending our home?”

I watched Brandon nod at them, taking each of their questions in.

“Why are we sitting and waiting for them to pick us off?”

“What about the rumors that the witches are behind it?”

“Why haven’t any surrounding packs joined us? Why aren’t they reaching out?”

I stared across the crowd, my eyes finding the women. They were sitting in the front row. My eyes found Hazel, who was tapping her foot nervously. She was bundled up, but I could see she was shivering underneath all the layers. I wasn’t sure if it was because of the cold, though.

I could still remember how she looked when she finally came to.

She screamed bloody murder, shoving at the witches like she was trying to dig herself out of somewhere.

She looked around the space, an area she used to work in, and seemed to be somewhere else.

You could see the pure fear in her eyes, and they had to restrain her to calm her down.

She looked so small in her chair, her eyes glued to her hands. She refused to look at anyone besides Gabriella, who was nudging her every few minutes.

“We have reached out to the surrounding packs on several occasions, but few have responded. I have tried to get them to join, to help, or offer them help, but few have been willing to accept. The witches have been helping, and with the new barrier put up, there shouldn’t be any incidents like before.

They have been working tirelessly to keep our pack safe and heal anyone who has been injured.

The rumors that the witches are behind it are just that, rumors.

They have no control over the hybrids. We don’t know who is helping them.

We only know that they likely aren’t working alone. ”

“But we know that dark witches have been working with the hybrids! That’s how they were able to attack us with the shelter.”

“We have no dark witches in this pack,” Kaleb said, standing firm with Brandon. “If we did, we would know about it.”

“How do we know that this won’t happen again? How long do we have before our pack falls like the others?”

I felt my hands tighten in fists, hating the questions. I knew everyone was scared, but couldn’t they see that we were doing our best? We were all working long days, giving up sleep and free time to make sure everyone was safe. We were doing everything we could.

Brandon spoke calmly, showing no signs of frustration. I knew it was from years of being on top and having to answer questions for the uppers. “We know everyone is scared, and I promise that we will do everything in our power to make sure this pack stays alive.”

I zoned back to Hazel. Her brown hair was pulled back in a tight pony, looking like it had been put together in a hurry.

She was wearing jeans that hugged her form and a jacket that bagged around her.

Her deep green eyes looked empty as she sat there, picking at her mittens now.

She chewed on her lower lip, her leg still bouncing.

Gabriella nudged her, whispering something to her. Hazel quickly forced a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. But as soon as Gabriella looked back toward Nora and Jade, the smile fell.

I felt it twist up something inside me, seeing that something had shattered deep inside her since her return. She seemed lost and angry at the same time. You could tell she was putting on a brave face, but it wouldn’t last long.

Brandon cleared his throat, getting everyone’s attention back. “We aren’t going to sit anymore. Starting in a week, we will begin hunting. With the barrier up, we don’t need the extra hands watching the woods. I will be taking out people who are trained and ready.”

The space fell quiet. Everyone started whispering, seeming shocked by the news.

A hand went up, sending shivers down my spine. My father sat just three rows back with my mother, looking like he had been part of the pack longer than a few weeks. He had his pure black hair combed back, looking like a CEO of a large corporation. I internally groaned.

“Who are you all taking out with you for this hunt?” he asked, his cool expression never changing.

“I have a hand-picked team already. Two of my guys will be going while I’m leaving Asher to stay behind.”

I watched my father’s jaw tense, and his face filled with anger. “So, my son gets the short stick?”

Westley gave me a side glance, and I sighed. “Jesus Christ,” I grumbled under my breath.

“Asher is staying behind because I’m not leaving the pack completely defenseless.”

“But you guys said that the witches put up a barrier, so why does it matter?”

I watched Brandon’s fingers curl on the podium, the first sign he was getting frustrated. “I’m not talking about hybrids but the internal. Someone needs to be in charge while I’m away.”

“Then why isn’t your second in command staying back?”

Was my father trying to start a riot? I took a step forward.

“I’m staying back because we need someone here to protect the outer circle of the barrier.

Just because they can’t break in doesn’t mean they can’t wait for them to get back from their trips.

And I’m the most experienced in quick-thinking situations. ”

My father looked at me, his face revealing nothing of what he was thinking. I didn’t like it. I knew that I got that ability from him, learned it from years of childhood.

“If anyone would like to talk with me further, please do. My door is always open.” Brandon placed his hands on the podium, making his word final. The meeting came to a close, and I yanked my tie free. Westley snorted. “That didn’t last long.”

“I hate suits,” I grumbled as I unbuttoned the top button on my shirt. I looked back toward my father. He wrapped his arm around my mother and started walking toward us.

“Oh, this ought to be good,” Westley said, with a hint of humor. I shoved him in the shoulder.

My father pulled them to a stop just in front of us. My mother gave me a soft smile, and I returned one.

My father looked at Brandon. “Brandon, great speech. Don’t mind my questions. I just want to make sure my son is being treated fairly.”

I rolled my eyes.

“I treat all the guys fairly,” Brandon said, a little clipped, clearly irritated with him.

“Good,” my father said, looking at me with the same cold expression. I knew that I looked like a copy of him. I had his dark hair and his dark eyes. I had his nose and his facial frame. I even stood like my father.

My mother was softer, with light brown hair and light blue eyes. She had a smile that lit up a room and a contagious laughter. I remembered wishing I had taken after my mother more, had her looks and features.

“Thank you for allowing us to join the pack. We were eager to get close to Asher again after being away from him for so long.” My mother offered Brandon a smile.

“Of course.”

Brandon had tried telling them now wasn’t a great time. Once we had Belrose safer, he would be more than happy to help them. My father refused, arguing that they wanted to be around and were more than capable of keeping themselves safe if any danger arose.

I still wasn’t sure how I felt about it.

I had moved away, so I had some distance from them.

I got along just fine with my father and my younger brother.

We argued, but I grew accustomed to just drowning them out.

My mother and I got along well, but she was very docile, never wanting to upset my father.

“Are we going to be seeing you for dinner soon? Your mother has been wanting to try a new stuffed chicken recipe. Can we count you in?”

“Not this week.” I had too much on my plate, but I knew that excuse wouldn’t last long. “Next week. With them starting the hunt, we have things to figure out.”

He grunted and nodded his head. My mother offered me a smile before my father tugged her along.

It was just us guys and the gals after they left, and Jade sighed loudly. “Well, that went well. Does anyone else feel like they were hit by a truck?”

Brandon made a face, and she walked over, reaching her hands up to him. She kissed him, and he sighed softly against her.

“So, why are we deciding to hunt them now?” Nora asked, moving closer to Kaleb. He wrapped an arm around her, placing a kiss on her forehead.

“We’ve been tracking the numbers, and they have grown, but with the barrier up, we don’t need to worry about what’s going on in the pack while we are out there,” Brandon stated.

It was a decision we came to just last night. We knew something had to change, and while Brandon hated the idea, he knew it was time. We couldn’t sit and wait anymore. No other packs were coming to help. We had to save ourselves.

“Why in a week?” Gabriella asked.

“We have some loose ends we need to tie up,” Brandon said, his eyes drifting toward Hazel, who was still at her seat. We had discussed her as well.

Gabriella’s face shifted. “Like what?” Her protective side quickly set in, and Brandon offered her a reassuring smile. “We need to make sure that Hazel is safe.”

Hazel’s head snapped up at her name. She looked at us, all confused. “What do you mean?” Gabriella asked, crossing her arms. “She is perfectly safe.”

“I mean that Kaleb, Westley, and I will be leading the hunting trips, which will leave your house bare of an extra set of eyes.”

Gabriella looked even more confused now. “Why does that matter?”

“There is a chance that Hazel will come into her magic as you had, and when that happens, we need to be prepared.”

“I can watch her. I’ve been doing it my entire life. If anyone is going to understand how she feels, it’s me.”

“You are going to be needed to help keep the pack safe and the barrier in place. You won’t be able to monitor your sister.”

“I don’t need to be monitored. Besides, I spend most of my time with the witches anyway,” Hazel quickly chimed in. “And why does this suddenly matter?”

I knew what they were all getting at, but wouldn’t say. Everyone had been worried about Hazel since her abduction. “Hazel, it’s clear you’re struggling, and you need eyes on you.”

Her head snapped at me like I was the asshole. Her lips formed a line, and she looked at Brandon. “What are you proposing here?”

“You're staying with Asher for a while. Maybe discuss an arranged marriage to help calm the pack’s worry about you being evil.”

“What?” All the women spoke at once, looking at Brandon as if he were crazy.

“It’s a safe approach to everything. You marry him and live in his house. Asher is going to be in the pack more than any of us. He will be able to monitor and protect you more than anyone else will.”

I had not agreed to this. I hadn’t even known this was on his mind. He couldn’t have at least given me a heads-up on his idea, and maybe I wouldn’t feel like someone just hit me in the head.

“You can’t be serious,” Gabriella said. “She’s perfectly safe with Westley and me.”

“Was,” Brandon corrected. Brandon looked at Hazel. “Besides, Asher can relate more than anyone else can.”

“I doubt that,” Hazel said. “Unless he was kidnapped and someone impersonated him, he won’t.”

Brandon nodded. “He actually was. He was missing for two weeks before we found him.”

I felt a jolt run through my body, suddenly thinking back to when I had been beaten and dragged away from them. We were infiltrating a camp, and hadn’t known they were expecting us. It went south faster than we expected.

Hazel’s eyes snapped to me, a little shocked. I offered a tight smile.

I remembered when Brandon arrived with the guys. They were covered in blood, looking like they hadn’t slept in days. I imagined I didn’t look any better, considering they were trying to get information out of me. I wouldn’t give them anything.

“Let’s give it a week to get things arranged, and then we should be set to start the hunt. You both can decide if you want to move forward with the idea.”

“You can’t be serious about this,” Gabriella said. “She can’t marry Asher.”

“She can,” Brandon said. “It’s what’s best. It doesn’t have to be for long. Think about it.”

Gabriella looked at me. “You think this is insane, right? Come on, Asher. Be the logical one about this.”

I shrugged. “I don’t have an issue with it.”

Gabriella’s mouth just hung open like she was expecting me to disagree. But if I could help Hazel get through this, I would. I could see she was struggling, and maybe this wasn’t a crazy idea.