Chapter 15
Willow
So . . . maybe I shouldn’t have agreed to come to dinner at Wyatt’s family home.
Because standing on the doorstep was way more terrifying than it had seemed like it was going to be last night, after Wyatt had fucked me in my bed, on the couch, on the kitchen counter, the table, the floor, and in the shower.
Yep, we’d completed Shaggy’s “It Wasn’t Me” bingo card.
The Sullivan manor was a large multigenerational home that perfectly mixed elegance and spooky.
The deep purple and emerald paint shone against the jet-black shutters, window frames, and roof.
And while the fence surrounding the house was beautifully decorated with fall garlands, hay bales, and pumpkins, the house itself didn’t have many accents apart from some curling Gothic window adornments.
While timelessly beautiful, it was rather severe and intimidating too, which perfectly described the matriarch who lived inside.
Light glinted through the stained-glass cap depicting the moon phases in the center of the massive front door, beckoning us closer.
Wyatt had joked that we should have pregamed before coming, and I was regretting not taking him up on the offer.
Nothing a couple glasses of mulled wine couldn’t prepare you for.
Wyatt raised his hand to knock and paused. “We can turn back right now.”
I took a deep breath and settled my nerves. It was one night. Sandra had come to Wyatt with an olive branch, and it seemed to be important to their relationship that I accepted.
I smiled up at him. “We have pie and a can-do attitude. It’ll be fine.”
“Last chance—never mind.”
The door flew open a moment later, and Sandra stood with her arms wide in welcome. “My son!”
“Hey, Mom.”
“There you are,” she said, grabbing Wyatt by the shoulders and surveying him. “I see you did not stop by the salon. It’s fine. Too late for that now. Come in, come in.”
Wyatt and I passed a silent look between us before stepping over the threshold to follow his mother inside.
“What a lovely home,” I said.
I’d always wondered what it looked like inside.
The house had been featured on countless Pinterest boards for “spooky house inspo,” and it was just as regal as I’d hoped it would be.
Much of the dark wood décor could have been preserved from the 1700s, but there were plenty of modern updates, like AC and a giant TV.
But my favorite part was the subtle nod to the moon in every tapestry and piece of art.
Even the wallpaper had a celestial feel to it, with flecks of moonlight peeking through dark florals.
Wyatt placed his hand on the small of my back, guiding me through the place he’d grown up. I leaned a shoulder into him, trying to signal him to calm down. I wanted to prove to him that I could handle this. I wanted to prove it to myself too.
When we wandered into the dining room, we found that most of the seats had already been taken. From the spaces left, I inferred that I should be told where to sit, and by Wyatt’s hesitance to step in any specific direction, my assumption was proven correct.
It was clear that there was a hierarchy to the seating arrangement.
Wyatt’s grandfather, Daniel, sat at the head of the table, with Gregory on the opposite end. He was flanked by his grandchildren, Aisling and Liam. All three wore sheepish expressions, like they had no idea I was coming and suddenly realized how awkward this dinner was going to be.
She invited the girl she wishes Wyatt would marry instead of me? Seriously? I bit the inside of my cheek to fight the urge to say something about it. I knew Gregory was a close family friend. Still, it felt incredibly pointed to invite Aisling.
Next to Liam sat Lulu and her mother, Edie.
Sandra swept over to the chair to Daniel’s right, pulling it out and presenting it like a throne to Wyatt.
“Come on. We’ve already carved up the roast. Sit next to Pops, where you belong.
” Wyatt looked back at me. “Willow will sit next to me, there.” She pointed to the two vacant seats on Daniel’s other side.
She didn’t want us sitting together or even across from each other.
And worse, she wanted to keep me within arm’s reach.
Wyatt gave his mother a cutting look. “I didn’t realize we needed ceremony seating for a family dinner.”
“Don’t make this a big deal.” His mother balked. “The meat is getting cold.”
It took a great force of will not to roll my eyes. She was the one making this a big deal.
I tugged at Wyatt’s hand before rounding the table to the seat that Sandra had indicated for me. We just needed to get through dinner. It wouldn’t kill us to not sit near one another—at least, I hoped it wouldn’t—but I questioned the look Wyatt was giving his mother.
My own mother had once liked to play similar games. The only blessing was that she didn’t take as active an interest in her children’s love lives as Wyatt’s mom did.
It also helped that my parents lived in another state.
Wyatt finally gave in as I settled next to Eloise. At least I had one ally close by if Sandra decided to bring out her claws later. Daniel clapped his grandson on the shoulder, and the two exchanged a tense acknowledgment.
Once Sandra took her seat, everyone started passing platters around the table.
Everyone, that was, except me.
Eloise and Sandra took it upon themselves to scoop food directly from the serving dishes and onto my plate before serving themselves, as if I couldn’t be trusted to perform the task on my own. Moments later, my plate was piled high.
The roast beef was cooked to bloody, medium-rare perfection. Roasted carrots, garlic confit tomatoes, and blistered green beans took up the vegetable layers of the food pyramid. Then came the rice almandine, roasted potatoes, and a cornbread pudding.
The woman might be trying to break us up, but a sliver of me couldn’t help but be won over by this feast.
When our plates were filled, we ate in stilted silence for what felt like an eternity.
Daniel was the first to speak. “It’s about time you took this pack seriously, Wyatt.” He pointed the tip of his steak knife at me, which I took as him addressing me without any formal greeting. “You should know a mating bond is a big undertaking, especially for a human.”
Wyatt’s nostrils flared, and I gave him a look to tell him to calm down, that I could handle this. I steadied myself before replying, “I haven’t taken the thought lightly.”
Internally, I was patting myself on the back for how diplomatic my answer was, but Daniel shot me a look that said I’d stepped right onto a mine.
“Being the true alpha’s mate isn’t just a thought, young lady. It’s an all-consuming thing,” Daniel snipped, then turned to Sandra with a snide, “I thought you said they’d completed the mating bond.”
“Mother!” Wyatt’s eyes bulged across the table at Sandra, then pinged to me with an apology.
“It’s only natural,” Sandra drawled, waving her fork like a delicate wand. “I smelled it on you. Of course, I would share the good news.”
I was missing something. Was there more to accepting Wyatt’s mating bond than just constantly ripping each other’s clothes off? What exactly did we smell like? Sex? That thought had me fighting back blush-inducing memories from the night before.
“My and Willow’s privacy isn’t news for the pack,” Wyatt snapped, bringing me back to the matter at hand.
“She needs to know what she’s getting into, though,” Lulu piped up. “Being a blended family in this town isn’t always easy.”
Lulu had many of the same features as her cousins.
Their eyes and brows all had a similar shape and weight, but Lulu was part nymph on her father’s side, which gave her an ethereal beauty that was hard to ignore.
And I knew for a fact that Edie having a kid with a nymph had been the talk of the pack back in the day.
At the very least, I could count on Edie and Lulu understanding how I was feeling right now.
Gregory cleared his throat from the end of the table, then spoke to Wyatt as if I weren’t sitting right there. “I’ve stood at your back all these years, hoping that you’d come to your senses.”
Everyone but Aisling looked at Wyatt for a response. I gave him a short nod and hoped his wolfy connection to my emotions was still there under all his simmering rage.
And maybe it was because his shoulders lowered a smidge.
“And what senses would those be?” Wyatt asked, lethal daring in his words.
Gregory met his future alpha’s gaze head-on. “This pack needs a strong wolf queen. Will she even whelp heirs for you? Our generation will be the last if you don’t choose your wife carefully.”
Daniel pounded his meaty palm on the table in support of his best friend’s proclamation. “That’s right.”
In that moment, I wanted to punch Gregory in the mouth until his lips could no longer form the word “whelp.” Suddenly, I didn’t want to be the calm, reasonable one anymore. If they wanted their alpha to have a queen, then I’d give them one.
Wyatt turned to his grandfather, his whole demeanor shifting. “Willow is the strongest woman I have ever met, and if you’re going to—”
“My sister’s dating a powerful witch, and even without the coven’s protection, we’re pretty good at holding our own,” I cut in as I carved a juicy chunk out of my steak.
“And I know there are some who think they can run me out of town, but I’m not going anywhere.
” I took a bite and grinned at Sandra. “Delicious.”
Eloise snickered, lifting her glass of wine and tapping it to mine. “She’s got you there,” she said before finishing her drink.
“We don’t fraternize with the witches,” Aisling said, breaking her silence.
“Maybe you should start,” I shot back, anger rising in my chest. “Jordyn has never been anything but kind to Wyatt and me.”
Daniel snarled at me. “Wolves are meant for the moon. Humans for the sun. It has always been that way. How would you manage such a clash of nature?”
I shrugged. “I’m naturally a night owl. I think I can manage a schedule shift. Perhaps the Witch’s Brew will change its opening hours.”
Sandra’s fork clattered onto her plate. “You care more about your café than my son, hmm? Don’t you want him to live a good life?” Sandra asked, finally letting her claws out. “You’re trying to pull this pack apart.”
“Sandy,” Edie admonished. “This is not your decision to make.”
Sandra didn’t budge. Instead, she refocused on Wyatt.
“Aisling is the perfect age. She is smart, strong, beautiful, and a proper choice for a wife and queen. And your match would then make Liam the perfect partner for Lulu. You need to think about the well-being of everyone, not just yourself. That’s what it means to be pack alpha, Wyatt. ”
Liam and Aisling shrank into their chairs. As far as I was aware, Liam had no interest in women. In fact, rumor had it that he and Dean, Billy’s nephew, had a little fling going on.
Wyatt narrowed his eyes at his mother and grandfather. “If the title already belongs to me, as you say, then it shouldn’t be so difficult to earn it.”
A chill ran up my spine, and I could tell that everyone at the table understood the line had been drawn.
Gregory sat back in his seat, silently claiming defeat, though he looked as if it pained him to bite his tongue.
Sandra, on the other hand, took Gregory’s action as a weak link in the defense she’d assembled. “This is unacceptable. And I won’t have it.”
“You don’t have to,” I said, patting my lips before standing. “I don’t think I’ll stay for dessert. But thank you for this interesting experience.”
When Wyatt moved to stand, I held out a hand and gestured for him to stay while the rest of the table watched on.
“I’m fine. Stay and eat with your family. We’ll talk tonight.” I rounded the table and headed toward the door, but not before stopping to give Sandra one last taste of her own medicine. “Not that you see it as my business, but the only person pulling your pack apart right now is you.”
“Ooh.” Edie laughed, nudging her daughter’s arm. “I knew I liked her.”
Sandra glared at Wyatt. “You’re going to let her say that to me?” she fumed as I headed to the front door with my head held high.
“Enough!” I heard Wyatt slam a fist onto the table, making all the cutlery clang.
What was it with this werewolf family and hitting tables?
I’d only made it two steps out the door before he cut in front of me. “Willow, stop. Please. I’m so, so sorry.” He took my cheeks in his hands, fury still raging in his eyes. My anger softened as I rubbed a hand down his arm. “Please don’t let them get in your head. You’re all I want.”
“I meant what I said. I’m not going anywhere, Wyatt,” I assured him, rising on my tiptoes to kiss him. “They don’t scare me. Now, go back in there and—”
“No, we’re leaving together.”
“I understand, but you’ll make it so much worse if you leave now. And think about Lulu and Liam. Your mother seems very determined to ensure one of them marries into your family.” He chuckled at that and brushed another kiss on my lips. “Go,” I pushed. “I’ll be okay.”
He paused, looking between me and the doorway. “I hate it when you’re right.”
“No, you don’t,” I teased, and he gave me one last kiss, that told me all of the heated thoughts flashing through his mind, before he forced himself to turn back inside.
His body warmth left me too soon, and the chill rattled my teeth as I wove through the crowds back to the apartment, only stopping to give directions three times before taking out my keys and letting myself into the Witch’s Brew.
I didn’t bother to turn on the lights, navigating from memory alone toward the stairwell.
Mindlessly, I trailed my hand across the countertop, feeling surprisingly buoyed despite the chilly reception from Wyatt’s family.
If that was the worst of it, I could handle it just fine. It would get easier over time.
Suddenly, my hand hit cold steel and I jumped.
I quickly reached for the undercounter lights and switched them on. The fluorescence flickered for a second, my heart racing as my eyes landed on it: a butcher’s knife placed in the center of the countertop.
No note. But it was message enough.
With trembling hands, I pulled out my phone.
Harlow answered on the second ring. “You know I hate phone calls. Why didn’t you just text—”
“Hey, Harlow?” I asked shakily.
“Yeah?” My little sister immediately jumped to high alert. “You okay? How was the dinner at Wyatt’s mom’s place? Did something happen?”
“You didn’t happen to leave a knife in the middle of the countertop, did you?”
“No?”
“Okay,” I squeaked, my body tingling with nerves. “I think . . . I think someone’s been in here.”