Page 14 of Bullied Pregnant Mate (Silver Meadows Wolves #7)

Sweet trilling outside my bedroom window wakes me, and when I open my eyes, clear, bright sunlight is rippling through the glass panes. After checking that Alisa is still asleep, I get up and carefully pull down the curtain, waving to the little robin perched on the branches on the other side.

I stand over the bed for a few minutes, watching Alisa sleep. Her long hair is spread across the mattress, pale gold strands that glint like sunlight dancing on fresh snow. Her pretty face is turned towards the pillow, but I can see the graceful edge of her cheek and the delicate curve of her red mouth.

She’s the most beautiful and precious thing I’ve ever seen. I can’t believe I hurt her.

I let my emotions tumble through me, not resisting them for the first time in my life. I feel rejuvenated from the amazing sex last night. Or maybe revived would be a better word.

I’ve walked around for half my life dead inside. Now, I am alive.

Being with Alisa took me to a new world of pleasure and connection I never knew existed. I can suddenly see, with sickening clarity, just how shallow and meaningless my previous encounters were.

Along with those feelings of joy and contentment comes a sliver of fear. I told her things I’ve never told another living soul, and I’ve never been so vulnerable. Ever.

It felt good to tell someone. It felt good to tell her .

Even though I feel exposed, I also feel safe. It’s a new sensation for me, and there is peace inside me where a restless urge to make trouble used to live.

I did everything and anything to avoid facing this pain, and it’s also why I bullied Alisa.

Even though I didn’t directly mention it last night, I’m sure she knows that lashing out at her was just a very stupid way of protecting myself. I hated witches in high school because I thought it was what made my mother so strange and different.

Now I know that’s not it. My mother was a psycho on her own merit. It had nothing to do with being a witch.

Taking one last look at my beautiful wife, I leave the room silently and go straight to the kitchen. I put the coffee on and start mixing up batter. Since we’ve had pancakes a few days in a row, I decide to make waffles today.

I hope Alisa understands me more now. I don’t want to make excuses or try to justify what I did—it was wrong, no matter which way I look at it. I just hope she understands that I was confused and now I’ll do anything to repair the damage I’ve caused.

I’m slicing up her favorite berries and getting ready to whip the cream when I feel a faint tingle down my spine. I turn around quickly to see Alisa on the other side of the counter.

“I almost snuck up on you,” she says, grinning. “You felt me, didn’t you?”

“I did,” I answer, smiling. There’s a quip right on the tip of my tongue about being part witch, but after the way I exposed myself last night, I can’t bring myself to say it.

Alisa just smiles, a gentle look in her eye. To my astonishment, I can see pale, flickering lights around her. Tiny hints of silver and gold glint in the air, as if she’s surrounded by a cloud of glitter.

Is this her aura? Am I really seeing this?

“What are you making?” Alisa asks, sticking her finger into the bowl and slowly licking batter off her finger. I’m so entranced that I just stand there staring at her, not noticing that I’m squishing a strawberry in my hand.

She giggles. “What did that poor strawberry ever do to you to incur such wrath?”

“Huh? Oh, shit!” I drop the strawberry pulp and wipe my hand with a paper towel. “I just… got distracted.”

“You sure did. What are you making?”

“Waffles,” I answer, struggling to return my mind to the task. “I am fairly certain I’m making waffles.”

“Can I help?”

“Nope,” I say, grinning. I turn back to the bench, grab the mug that is already waiting, and pour out some coffee, presenting it to her with a flourish.

“Oh my God, Jenks,” she mutters, taking a sip. “This is perfect.”

“I try,” I say, grinning with pride. “I left a couple of things on the table for you, too. You just sit and relax while I finish up.”

While I finish slicing fruit and whipping the cream, I keep half an eye on Alisa as she sits down at the table. Over the past couple of days, I’ve picked up random things—shiny stones, odd feathers, and flowers—and put them aside to give to her. When I sit down with the plates, she’s still running her fingers gently over the items.

“Do you like them?”

“I do,” she replies. “Where did you get all this?”

“Random places. I don’t know how to explain it—I’d just see it and think of you, and I had to pick it up.”

She looks at me, smiling. “They have a very pure vibration, all of them,” she says. “Natural objects with clear energy can help me connect to the earth and nature. This is so thoughtful, Jenks.”

I can feel my cheeks getting a little warm, and I shake my head bashfully. “It’s nothing,” I say, pushing her plate towards her. “Here’s your breakfast.”

Alisa looks down at the food hungrily as she picks up a fork. “My favorite coffee, and my favorite fruit. You’re outdoing yourself today, Jenks.”

“Good to know,” I say with satisfaction. “I guess I’ll keep it up.”

“You better,” she says, giving me a grin and a wink.

The teasing is fun, but I can still see lingering doubt in her eyes. I’m well aware that one night of sex doesn’t give me a free pass, and it doesn’t mean I’m forgiven.

I will work harder. There is no end to the lengths I will go to prove my love for her.

My phone buzzes on the counter, and I hurry over to grab it, groaning when I see the message.

“It’s Bae. He wants me out on patrol, like now.”

“Well, you have to go, then.”

“Yeah, I do. I was just hoping to spend more time with you today.”

“I’ll be here when you get back. You have to take care of your pack.”

“I have to take care of you.”

She smiles, and with the light pouring through the back windows behind her, she looks like an angel glowing with celestial light. “I can take care of myself,” she says. “Well, for a little while, anyway. I wouldn’t want to try and live without you.”

Her cheeks color immediately, and hope surges in my chest. I go over and kiss her gently, stroking her hair.

“Hopefully, I won’t be too long,” I say. “Call the girls over if you’d like, or anyone from the pack if you think you need protection.”

“I will,” she says, giving me a shove. “Get out there before you get in trouble.”

I take one last look at her, then go out the back door, stripping when I reach the deck. I feel the prickle across my skin again and look back to see Alisa checking me out.

She jumps a bit, then turns around quickly, attacking her waffles. When I turn and jog towards the hills, I’m chuckling softly.

I can see she still doesn’t fully trust me, but that’s okay. I will do my absolute best to remove every last shred of doubt from her heart.

I shift into my wolf shape as I hit the tree line, charging up the slope into the forest. I have more energy than ever before, and I’m able to reach the first ridge much quicker than last time.

Raising my head, I put my nose to the wind, and my senses are keener. Besides having a wider range and a more sensitive nose, I can hear softer sounds and see further into the sky.

Is this the power boost the others talked about from marrying witches? I feel amazing.

Since I don’t sense any danger, I head back into the forest, running hard towards the next ridge. My muscles don’t tire even as my breath and heartbeat speed up. All I can feel is surging, glorious strength, and unbelievable joy singing through my veins.

As I reach the peak, my heart is so full, I want to howl into the sky, announcing my happiness to the whole forest. I know I can’t, though. We only communicate on patrol for emergencies, and it would be stupid to alert my enemies to where I am.

Maybe one day, the hills will be safe again. For all of us.

Then the wind changes, and I catch a scent. Every hair on my body stands on end as I realize it’s the same smell from before.

I whip around, facing the trees. The big black wolf paces slowly out of the shadows. He keeps his head down, flicking his ears back and forth. His eyes are wide, and he makes a soft whine, not snarling or baring his teeth.

What the fuck?

He shifts right in front of me into a tall guy with short, dark hair. He kneels and spreads his arms wide, palms up.

“Don’t attack me, please.”

The shift comes over me suddenly, happening so fast that I stumble. I end up on my knees.

“Who the fuck are you?” I snap.

“I know this is going to be hard to believe,” he says calmly. “But I’m your brother.”

I stare at him. “What?”

“Hear me out, please. My name is Brad, I’m from Decker pack, and I am your half-brother.”

I want to scream at him, deny everything he says, and run from this cursed peak all the way back into Alisa’s arms. I can’t, though. His voice rings with truth, and something deep in my heart yearns for this, for absolution and knowledge.

“Alright, I’m listening,” I say. “What the fuck are you doing here?”

“We’ve been watching you for a while,” Brad says. “When you were working in Silverton. We couldn’t be sure of anything, then. Father was sure your scent was familiar but didn’t know why.”

“This is bullshit,” I snap, getting up. “I don’t know what your game is, but I’m giving you five minutes before I call the pack and kick your ass all the way back to Decker.”

“Listen!” he yells, standing up as well. “Your mother didn’t tell him—she didn’t tell anyone. He didn’t know!”

Shock crackles through me, as if my blood has suddenly turned to ice. I stare at Brad, my heart pounding with the beginnings of panic.

“What?” I croak.

“Father was curious about you because of your scent. It’s not like he could just walk up to you in Silverton and ask if you’re his son. Minette ran away from him, and back then, the packs weren’t friendly with each other. He assumed she went back to Silver Meadows, but he never knew she was pregnant.”

I want to deny it and scream at him, but all of this is making a scary kind of sense.

So that’s why she hid me away… she didn’t want anyone to know my father was from Decker pack. And she didn’t want the information to get back to Silverton, either.

“I don’t believe this!” I bark, even though I actually do.

“Look, I know it’s a lot,” Brad says. “By the time Dad did some digging and he had enough information to actually talk to you, we were at war again.”

“I thought my father was a witch,” I mutter absently.

“There’s witch in you, from Minette,” Brad says. “Father told me it’s one of the things that made her so alluring and irresistible. But witches turn on you, man. Always.”

I fix my eyes on him as fury burns in my chest. I’m beginning to understand his meaning.

And why he’s here.

“The other day, that was him,” Brad says. “I was looking for you in the forest, then Dad came with me to look for you as well.”

The memory of that day roars through me, bringing red-hot waves of aggression.

You were going to hurt my wife!

Before I can move or speak, a great howl rips through the forest not too far behind me. The cry is taken up by the next wolf, and the next. Before I can stop him, Brad shifts and disappears into the woods.

Fuck! Fuck this!

Turning towards the howls, I shift back into my wolf shape and run towards the sound. Patrols are being coordinated. I don’t know if it has anything to do with Brad or not. All I know is, I have to go in.

Could this be true?

I don’t know, but too much of it makes sense for me to outright deny it. I need more information, and I wonder if I should try talking to Mom.

Bad idea, for so many reasons.

Beyond my confusion, and a painful, vain hope that I might have found my father, is a deep, encompassing rage.

They attacked my wife—my mate! It sounds like they have no love of witches.

And that means they are worse than useless to me. They are a liability.