Chapter 15
Lyall
What have I gotten myself into?
Of all the foolish things I could have said, I had to say I was courting the witch my brother is fated to.
After spending time with Soren, the very last thing I want to do is pretend to have feelings for another.
I’m doing this for Soren, though, so that we can spend time together without raising any suspicion.
I just hope Gunnar doesn’t take my head off.
Even if he rejected Arlo, it won’t be easy to see his fated mate with someone else.
Although… mayhap this will be a… what’s the word Kieran uses?
A silver cloud? I don’t remember. Mayhap seeing me with Arlo will be the push Gunnar needs to spend time with him?
Or he’ll go berserk and take my head off.
Both seem likely possibilities.
Beside me, Anders growls. “This has to be the stupidest idea you’ve ever had, brother, and that’s most certainly saying something.” He pulls up to the curb and unlocks the doors.
I step out after him. “You think I don’t know that? I panicked.”
“You’re an idiot.” Anders smacks the back of my head as he passes. “Sometimes I have to question if you’ve got any brains at all in that thick head of yours.”
“Brains?”
“The meatball in your skull that does all the thinking! Or it’s supposed to.”
There’s meat inside my skull? How unsettling… I scowl at him. “It’s a simple cover story! That’s all. You know I can’t tell Wulfric and Gunnar the truth. They’d be furious.”
Anders returns my scowl, arms folded over his chest. “I came around, didn’t I?”
I shake my head. “Gunnar would lose it if he knew the truth. Wulfric wouldn’t forgive me.”
“You’re making assumptions.”
I heave a sigh. “Am I?”
Anders hesitates, chewing his lower lip. “I don’t know. It’s hard to predict how they’d react. And then we also have the TTA to worry about… I worry about you, that’s all.”
I try to smile, but I’m unsure how convincing I am. “The TTA won’t find out, Anders. I’m not going to endanger our pack.”
“Let’s hope not.” He sounds even less convinced than I feel.
Taking in a breath, I push open the door to Jamie’s cafe. The scent of coffee thickens the air, mixing with the pleasant smell of books.
“Morning, Anders!” A woman behind the counter waves. Her hair is bright, the same color as glass when it’s been tempered by the sea.
“Morning, Jess.”
“Is Jamie coming in?” she asks.
“Later. He’s taking the lad to school.”
She sighs. “Guess we’re stuck with your moody ass.” When my brother scowls, she laughs, making Anders chuckle.
Calling Anders an ass would have resulted in a bloodbath not long ago. I’m proud of him. He’s settled so comfortably in this timeline, carved out a place for himself.
Will Soren and I ever have that?
Anders goes behind the counter, catches my eye, then jerks his thumb toward the back of the store.
Nodding my thanks, I pass through aisles of shelves stuffed with books.
Sitting on a sofa is the very witch I’m looking for.
Arlo is tall and lithe with glossy golden locks and brown eyes that widen in surprise when he looks up and notices me.
“Lyall! What a surprise.”
I offer him a smile. “Greetings.”
Arlo sweeps curious eyes up and down my body. “You look like you’ve settled in nicely. Good. Been spending time with the family here?”
“I have, but that’s not why I’m here today. I wished to speak to you.”
I haven’t seen Arlo for some time. Anders and Jamie told me he visits the cafe often to check in.
It worried me at first. Arlo is still an enforcer of the TTA, after all.
He hounded Anders for a time until Anders finally registered with the TTA, but he proved himself an ally.
I do wonder why he helped Anders stay sane when he was losing himself to berserker rage. I’ve never asked.
Arlo sets aside his book. There’s a handsome, shirtless man on the cover. “Really? Color me intrigued!” He flashes me a grin.
The words are stuck in my throat, reminding me of the time I dared myself to swallow a chicken bone whole to impress my brothers. Father was not impressed.
Why in Odin’s name would Arlo ever say yes to such a proposal?
I’ve got to ask. Anything to keep my brothers off Soren’s trail. “Would you like to come over for dinner tonight? My timeline.”
Arlo’s mouth pops open in surprise. “Oh. Well, I—” He cuts his gaze away, clearing his throat. “Your aunt’s cooking is delightful but I’d rather not impose… or see Gunnar.”
I wince, wishing I’d anticipated that. “I would not ask if it were not important, Arlo. And this is important. Urgently. I—I need you to pretend that we’re… what’s the word? Dating.”
Arlo spits out his coffee. Coughing, he thumps himself on the chest. “Hold on, hold on! Listen, darling, it’s not that you aren’t attractive. You’re one hundred percent my type. But why in the bloody fuck would I say yes?”
Ah, I’d feared this. “My aunt’s cooking?”
“Nope. I’m sorry but not even your aunt’s delicious food could tempt me into sitting at a table with your brother after he rejected me in front of all of you. You would have to offer me something truly—” He pauses, eyes going wide. “Wait a moment. This is brilliant!”
Thoroughly confused, I ask, “Aye? How?”
Arlo jumps up and paces, chin in his hand. He murmurs soundlessly to himself, nodding every once in a while. “Yes, this is just what I need.” He spins around on his heels to face me. “Fine. I’ll pretend to be your date on one condition only.”
I don’t like the sound of that. What could a witch want with me?
“What is it?”
“You must pretend to be mine as well. My sister is getting married this spring. The whole coven will be there. I’ll be your date if you’ll be mine at the wedding.”
“Is it a custom in this time to bring a mate to a family wedding?”
He huffs. “Just mine. It’s essential to my research that I bring a date.”
“Your research? What does that have to do with a wedding?”
He shakes his head. “It’s a secret. I’d rather not discuss it until I’m certain it’s ready. Trust me when I say that my research could benefit shifters greatly—including your family. But that’s only if you come to the wedding.”
I fail to see the connection between his sister’s wedding, my pack, and his research, but my father taught me to always return favors when I can.
“Agreed.”
Arlo claps his hands together, smiling brightly. “Oh, marvelous!” He pulls out his phone. “What’s your number? Text me all the details, and I’ll see you later tonight.”
We exchange numbers. Arlo goes back to reading, looking happy as a pig in slops while I’m wondering just what in Loki’s name I’ve gotten myself into now.
The time to meet for dinner arrives. Usually, I love nothing more than gathering with my brothers and their mates for our weekly meal.
Between Wulfric and Kieran’s duties as Alpha and Alpha-Mate and Anders’s duties to work and family, we’ve had to set aside time for us to gather together.
Aunt Helga makes her delicious venison roast, freshly caught by Gunnar.
Kieran and Wulfric cook a hearty vegetable stew.
Anders and Jamie bring these sweet, delicious things called pastries from their time.
It’s a time I always look forward to… except for tonight. I’ll be amazed if Gunnar doesn’t kill me before the night is over. Arlo is an attractive man, but he can’t compare to Soren, and yet I must pretend that we’re courting.
Worst of all, I’ll have to see Anders and Wulfric doting on their mates, happy and in love, while the only man I truly need is far away in a whole other time.
It hits me that Soren will never be able to sit at our table.
I’ll have to hide him like some filthy secret, when that couldn’t be further from what he means to me.
He makes me happy. Even after all these years and the loss of his memories, nothing could take away my feelings for him.
My family will never understand how I feel. They’ll never accept him.
It breaks my heart and makes me wonder how I’ll even manage a smile tonight.
“Yoo-hoo, Lyall!”
I jump out of my brooding. Arlo’s way ahead of me, the distant torchlight from the village flickering behind him.
“Coming, darling?”
“Aye. Apologies.” I quicken my stride until I’m beside him.
“You know, you never told me why you came up with this harebrained scheme.”
A scowl tightens my mouth. “I’m seeing someone my brothers would not approve of.”
“Oooh, how intriguing! I don’t suppose you’d tell me more?”
I shake my head. “It’s not your concern. Let’s stick to our arrangement, aye? You help me, and I help you.”
Arlo sighs dramatically. “What a tease. Very well.”
Mayhap it’s unfair to keep secrets, considering he was honest with me.
Arlo may have been an ally in the past, though, but he’s still an enforcer of the TTA.
If he knew it was Soren I was seeing, that I’d exposed him to our world—he’d likely react as poorly as my family.
If not worse. He could go to the Council and ruin everything.
Still, who else was I to ask?
As the longhouse comes into view, Arlo suddenly stops. “Hold up a moment. We need a plan.”
“For what? It’s supper. You grab utensils, eat, drink, and go on your way.”
Arlo rolls his eyes. “Freya, give me strength… I know what supper is, darling. Believe it or not, I’ve eaten dinner before. I mean, we ought to have a plan to convince your family that we are dating.”
“Can we not just show up and say so?”
“Not if you want to convince them!”
The witch has a point, I suppose. Planning has never been my strong suit. “Fine. What do you propose?”
“Well, for starters, why are we together?”
Good question… Why would I court the man my brother rejected? The answer comes to me. “I was taken with you from the moment I saw you. When Gunnar rejected you, I felt for you and asked if you’d consider being my mate.”
Arlo frowns. “So, just so we are clear… you’re dating me because you felt bad for me.”
“Did you not hear the part where I said I was taken with you before you were rejected?”
Damn. When he puts it that way—
“How about this,” Arlo adds. “You sought me out after your arsehole brother rejected me in front of your whole family. I was in a bar, feeling irritable, and you comforted me. Sparks flew.”
“Why? Was there a battle?”
Arlo heaves a sigh, raking a hand through his hair. “Goddess, help me. No! We fancied each other. So I dragged you off and rode your cock until dawn.”
“I prefer to submit to my lover in bed.”
“Whatever! We had sex. It was hot. I used you to get back at your brother.”
I scowl at him. “What? Why?”
“Because I was hurt, obviously! But over time we fell for each other. Sort of. It’s still new.”
It’s not a bad plan, aside from the part where he uses me. “It will have to do.” So long as my family buys it, then I’ll be content.
As we near the front door, Arlo hesitates. “Wait. We should hold hands.”
I sigh. “Must we?”
“It would be more convincing.”
A good point, I suppose. I take his hand. His skin is soft and warm, lacking the calluses Soren developed from long hours of training. My wolf stirs, making my fangs sharpen. Mate, he whines. There’s a twist in my gut.
This feels so wrong. A betrayal, no matter how necessary it may be.
“Are you all right?” Arlo asks.
I force a smile onto my face. “I have to be.” I lift my fist and knock.
The door swings open, and my heart sinks.
Gunnar looks at our joined hands, then up into my face. His nostrils flare, muscles bunching in his jaw.
“E-evening, brother.” I wrestle with the instinct to drop Arlo’s hand and run.
Gunnar grunts, shifting his gaze to Arlo’s. “Good evening.”
Arlo squeezes my hand so hard it hurts. “I suppose it is.”
They stare each other down. The air thickens the way it does before a thunderstorm.
“Can we help you?” I ask, my voice like the crack of a whip in the silence.
Gunnar’s shoulders tense. “No. I was just leaving.”
“Good,” Arlo says, holding his head higher. The sour stench of his anger is unmistakable. Tugging on my hand, Arlo drags me past the threshold. He drops my hand like it’s a piece of rotten meat. “Jamie! How nice to see you!” He hurries off, eager to be rid of me, no doubt.
I pause, looking back. Gunnar never skips dinner. “Gunnar—”
“No, Lyall. I won’t stay. Do what you like with the witch.
It matters not.” But the stiff set of his shoulders and the way his fur ripples tell another story.
One of a wolf full of fury, fighting to come out and take what he perceives as his.
How Gunnar fights him back every day he spends away from Arlo, I haven’t a clue.
I bite my tongue so I don’t tell him to stay, to talk to Arlo, to understand his anger only comes from a place of hurt.
But I can’t.
My heart aches as my brother marches off toward the woods. The distance widens between us, and I have to wonder if loving Soren is worth losing the love and respect of my brother.
It aches that I can’t have both the love of my family and the man I love. That I must choose. It isn’t fair.
But it’s my only option.
A life with Soren will be worth any sacrifice.
Won’t it?