The Wolf's Cub (The Wolf's Peak Saga Book 3) Read online

  “So, the werewolves can imprint on anyone?” I asked.

  “It has to be someone who also has werewolf blood running through their veins,” Benedict explained. “For example, if a woman was bitten, a man wouldn’t imprint on her. But if her father, or in your case, grandfather, was a werewolf, then should could be imprinted on.”

  “My case?” I asked. “I’m sorry, I don’t follow.”

  Benedict glanced between Jasper and me again. “Jasper imprinted on you,” he said slowly, as if speaking to a confused child.

  I almost laughed. “That’s impossible. Jasper was married to Cecilia,” I said.

  “Many men have married a woman who was not their soul mate.”

  “I didn’t know it was real,” Jasper said, still looking shocked.

  “I’m sure—I mean, there’s no way. You were happy with Cecilia,” I said.

  “But I never forgot about you,” he told me. “Remember, I met you first, when you were just a baby and I was a small child. I was devastated when your father took you away, and even though I grew up and married, you were always at the back of my mind. Once I saw you at your father’s funeral, all of those feelings came back. I couldn’t put you out of my mind. I think I mentioned once before, if Annabelle hadn’t come to find you, I would have done it myself.”

  Annabelle gazed at her husband. “This changes everything,” she said. “Did you imprint on me?”

  Stephen smiled at her. “My darling, after we met, I couldn’t put you out of my head,” he said.

  From just a few seats down the table, I heard the clinking of a glass, followed by the sound of a chair scraping across the floor, Conor stood up, trying to get everyone’s attention. Bridget looked up at him, confused, and he pulled her to her feet.

  “Bridget, my darling,” he said. “Do you remember when we first met?”

  “I don’t think I could forget,” she said.

  “Bridget had been attacked in an alleyway in Ervine,” he said, for those who didn’t know the story. “I found her dying, and I took her in, helped her heal.”

  She smiled. “You were beside me the whole time,” she said.

  “The moment I laid eyes on you, I knew I couldn’t let you die. I did everything in my power to keep you alive.”

  “You bit me,” Bridget said, nodding.

  “It was the only way your body would heal,” Conor said. “I hadn’t turned anyone before. I was afraid I’d kill you. But you survived.”

  Bridget glanced around at all of us. On her face I could read the confusion as Conor detailed their first meeting and everyone stared at her.

  “Then you left, and I never thought I’d see you again. I searched everywhere for you, with no luck. And then I happened to stumble into you at Wolf’s Peak.”

  “I was surprised to see you, to say the least,” she said with a smile.

  Conor took her hand. “I was equally as surprised to see you, but now I think I understand. It wasn’t coincidence that brought us together, it was fate. From the moment I found you in the street, I have been irrevocably in love with you. Bridget, on that day in the street so long ago, I imprinted on you. And perhaps it had taken seven years for us to find each other again, but it was meant to be.”

  Conor pulled a small box out of his pocket, but I couldn’t see what it was. He knelt down on the ground in front of Bridget, and from this angle I could see the box held a diamond and ruby ring that sparkled in the candlelight.

  “Bridget, my darling, will you marry me?”

  Chapter Seventeen

  It took less than a second for Bridget to say yes and throw her arms around her fiancé’s neck. We all clapped and cheered as they embraced, and Bridget kissed him on the cheek. I couldn’t stop grinning.

  I was worried about what was going to happen when we got home, who was going to help me, but for once, my excitement overwhelmed all of those feelings. Bridget and Conor were in love. They were soul mates. They were meant to be together, and now they’d be getting married.

  Bridget’s face was flushed, her eyes wide with excitement as she held her hand out, now sporting the glimmering ring. Tears sprang to her eyes, and with her other hand, she gasped. Once more she turned to Conor, embracing him.

  I reached over and grabbed Jasper’s hand, squeezing it tightly as we watched their display of love. Jasper leaned over and kissed me on the cheek. He was smiling just as broadly as I was.

  Benedict stood up and raised his glass. “To the happy couple!” he said, and we all toasted. “This calls for a celebration.” He rang the little gold bell again, and Ms. Skarsgaard came from one of the hallways. Benedict whispered something in her ear, she nodded, and disappeared again.

  I wanted to get up and congratulate Bridget and Conor, but I was wedged between Annabelle and Jasper. I’d have to give her a hug later, when we were moving a little bit more freely. My heart was light as my grin began to hurt my face.

  A few moments later, Ms. Skarsgaard returned with a few servants behind her, all carrying massive plates of dark chocolate cake. They cut thick slices for us, distributing it across the table.

  “Not a bad way to celebrate, now is it?” Benedict asked. He turned to one of the waiters. “Some bubbly, please. A lot of it.”

  The servant nodded, returning with several green bottles of wine. He went around, pouring our glasses up to almost the brim. Since I’d still have to feed Lowell again that night, I asked that he only fill mine halfway. Just because I wasn’t drinking, though, didn’t mean I wasn’t part of the celebration. The table was alive with chatter as Bridget continued to show off her ruby ring. As soon as people started clearing away from the table, I handed Lowell off to Jasper so I could gush with Bridget.

  “Isn’t it lovely?” she asked excitedly, holding out her hand so she could look at her ring again.

  “It’s stunning,” I told her. The ruby looked beautiful with her dark hair and alabaster skin. I wondered if hers was an heirloom, as mine was. My ring had belonged to Jasper’s mother.

  I wrapped her in a tight hug. “Oh, I’m so happy for you.”

  She pulled back a bit. “Are you sure? I know you were worried about finding someone to replace me.”

  “No one could properly replace you,” I assured her. “That doesn’t mean I’m not happy for you! Oh, you’re going to be a beautiful bride.”

  She flushed. “Thank you,” she said, clasping my hands.

  “When do you want to have the wedding? Any ideas?”

  Bridget glanced back at her fiancé, who was still at the table, drinking and toasting with the other men. “We haven’t discussed it yet. We had hardly discussed marriage before this! But between the two of us, perhaps by the end of the summer?”

  “No, summer is for me!” joked Hazel as she came up from behind us.

  “Hazel, you’re getting married next month. That’s not even technically summer yet,” I pointed out.

  “Oh, I was only teasing,” she said as she wrapped her arms around Bridget. “I’m just so happy for you!”

  Annabelle came over to join us. “You know, I’m beginning to think I need to have Stephen re–do his proposal. His wasn’t nearly as exciting as both of yours.”

  “How did he propose?” I asked. She had never told me.

  “Just the two of us. We went outside after dinner one night.”

  Jasper had proposed to me privately in the garden. Personally, I liked that a little bit better. I didn’t need the added pressure of other people watching me in such an intimate setting. Still, clearly the others enjoyed the big gestures. Adam had proposed to Hazel in the middle of Weylyn’s fall festival after we’d had a hay ride.

  “I think that sounds lovely,” I told her, trying to keep things diplomatic.

  We all moved into a more intimate side room. Some of the elders had decided to retire to their quarters, but many stayed with us. We sat by the fire, enjoying tea and cocoa. Some of the men played cards, while Hazel, Bridget, Annabelle, Daisy, and I sat talk
ing.

  “We’ve got such a busy year ahead of us,” I sighed. Annabelle’s baby was due in September, and then we had the two weddings, possibly. I didn’t mind the busyness. I was happy for all the wonderful things in my friends’ lives.

  “Now Daisy just needs to find someone,” Bridget said, nudging the petite cook’s assistant.

  Daisy blushed scarlet. “Oh, no,” she said faintly.

  Bridget nudged her again. “Come on. I’ve seen the way you look at Luke.”

  “Luke? Who’s Luke?” I asked.

  “He delivers our food from the market,” Daisy muttered, face still burning.

  “She’s not even telling you the most important part,” Bridget said, turning to me. “He owns the market. He has other people that usually make the deliveries, but he prefers to deliver to Wolf’s Peak personally.”

  “That’s sweet,” I told Daisy.

  “He does the delivery personally because he’s delivering to the duke and wants to make sure everything is perfect,” Daisy said. “That’s all.”

  Bridget smirked. “You keep telling yourself that.”

  Daisy looked intensely uncomfortable, so I wanted to change the subject.

  “Daisy, I wanted to speak to you about your baking,” I told her.

  She looked up at me, and color drained from her face. “Yes, ma’am? Is something wrong?”

  I laughed. “Oh, not at all. Actually, I was wondering how you would feel if I changed your position?”

  Somehow she became even more pale. “Are you firing me, ma’am?”

  “Oh God, Daisy, no. I wanted to make you the baker of Wolf’s Peak.”

  This perked her up. “Are you serious, ma’am?”

  “Absolutely.”

  She nodded her head vigorously. “Oh, yes, I would love that!”

  With Daisy in higher spirits, we were able to go back to laughing and teasing each other. Finally, Lowell, who was in Hazel’s arms, began to squirm, and I knew it was time to feed him. It was getting late anyway, and all of us had to be awake early for the trial. We all stood up from our seats and went to where the men were sitting, still in the middle of another card game.

  “We’re going to head to bed,” I told Jasper, leaning down to kiss him on the cheek. He hadn’t shaved since we’d arrived, and he had a bit of dark scruff on his face.

  “Do you need someone to guide you upstairs?” he said.

  “Actually, yes, that would probably be good,” I admitted.

  Jasper found Ms. Skarsgaard, who led us through the labyrinthine hallways to the stairs. From there we found our rooms easy enough. Bridget sat with me while I fed Lowell, and she gushed about wedding ideas. I indulged her, letting her tell me her plans. I hadn’t had much to do with my own wedding plans, so I enjoyed listening to her excitedly prattle on. Once Lowell was done eating and had fallen asleep, she watched him so I could bathe and get ready for bed.

  As I sat in the tub, I began to realize how close this trial actually was. In just a few hours, I would be standing in front of the judge, jury, and Seth, explaining in intimate detail exactly what he had done to me. My hands clutched the side of the bathtub, my knuckles turning just as white as the porcelain. My breathing came in shallow rasps. I tried to relax in the warm water, but sitting still wasn’t helping, so I climbed out of the tub, wrapped myself in my dressing gown, and stepped into the bedroom.

  “Are you all right, ma’am?” Bridget asked as I lingered in the doorway. “You’re white as a ghost.”

  “I’m all right,” I said, but my voice came out shaky and uncertain.

  Bridget tilted her head, giving me the look she gave when she knew I wasn’t being completely honest.

  “What’s going on?” she asked, keeping her volume low so that she didn’t wake the baby.

  I tried to take a few deep breaths. “I’m just a little nervous about tomorrow.”

  “Forgive me, my lady, but you look quite a bit nervous.”

  I sank down on my chair. “I am.”

  She smiled. “Why don’t I go find Jasper and get you some tea? Help you relax a little bit.”

  “That would be wonderful.”

  Bridget left the room, and with shaking hands I slipped on a nightgown, then pulled the warm dressing gown around me. I walked to the window, looking out at the softly falling snow. I couldn’t wait to be back in England. Sure, it was likely to be rainy, but at least it felt like spring.

  There was a soft knock at the door and Jasper slipped in the room. He came to meet me at the window, standing behind me and wrapping his arms around my torso.

  “Are you all right, my love?” he asked.

  His love. That’s truly what I was. All of the universe had aligned so that we could be together.

  “I’m nervous for tomorrow. I’m terrified of messing everything up.”

  He kissed the top of my head. “You won’t, my dear. I promise.”

  “You can’t possibly know that.”

  There was another knock on the door, and Bridget came in with my tea.

  “Do you want me to take Lowell for a bit, my lady?” she asked. “So you two can talk without waking him?”

  “You don’t mind?”

  “Not at all. He’s fun to cuddle.”

  I smiled. “I would appreciate that. I’ll come back for him when we’re done.”

  “No rush, my lady.”

  She picked Lowell up off the bed and cradled him in her arms. I gave her a nod, and she left the room, closing the door softly. Once she had gone, Jasper turned me around and took my hands.

  “Christine, I know you’re scared,” he said. “But if anyone can do this, it’s you.”

  “I wish I was as certain as you.”

  He shook his head, pulling me over to the bed, where we sat. “My darling, think about all of the horrible things that have happened to you in the last year.”

  “What?”

  “Every bad thing that’s ever happened. In your whole life, even. List them for me.”

  I had no idea how this was going to help, but I nodded. “My mother was murdered. My father fell ill. We were destitute. When he passed, I was evicted. I slept on the street. And then I came here, and everything was all right for a little while. And then Seth came here. He assaulted me. He poisoned me. He stabbed me. He showed me that you had lied to me.”

  Jasper looked down at his hands, ashamed.

  “And I fled into the woods. He attacked me and nearly killed you. He killed Roderick and left Adam for dead. He gave me nightmares, then he kidnapped me and held me captive.”

  Jasper nodded. “And yet, despite all of that, here you sit, as a mother and a strong woman. You came here to put Seth behind bars so that he will stop destroying our family. And that, my darling, is exactly what you’re going to do.”

  “You’re right,” I said simply, because he was. I was going to do what I had to do to keep my family safe. I was going to give the most perfect testimony, and Seth would never get his hands on my child.

  Jasper leaned down and kissed me, a soft kiss that deepened. I clasped his face in my hands, feeling the rough stubble under my fingertips. I pulled him backward, on top of me. His warmth washed over me as he kissed down my neck. My hands fumbled with the buttons on his shirt until I gave up, yanking until they popped. I ran my hands down his chiseled chest. He unbuttoned each button on my dress, slowly, gently, his mouth hot on my cool skin. He sat up, tossing his clothes onto the floor beside us, then gently pulled my gown off, followed by my slip. We fell together back onto the mattress, Jasper on top of me, his weight warm and comforting.

  Jasper’s lips met mine again and I grasped at his shoulders, pulling him close to me. I felt him line himself up at my entrance. My nails dug into his skin as he thrust slowly and deeply inside of me. His stubble burned my face, but the pain only added to my pleasure—another texture between us.

  This wasn’t the quick, desperate sex of our night in London. This was slow and sweet, the love of two people
who had discovered that they were destined to be together. Our lips scarcely parted as we moved together in harmony, our bodies intertwined. We were intrinsically linked, both physically, mentally, and by fate.

  Chapter Eighteen

  I woke up to Lowell fussing next to me. The sky was still a deep black through the window, so I hadn’t slept long. I yawned, stretched, and rolled over to where the baby was crying. My hands found him in the darkness, and I pulled him close to me. As I brought his warm body to my chest I could feel him turning his head, searching for food. I adjusted my neckline so he had easier access to eat, and drifted off a little bit as he nursed. I stroked his hair softly as he suckled, and stifled a yawn.

  My eyes began to adjust to the darkness, and I looked over to see that Jasper wasn’t in bed anymore. We had been given separate rooms, but he had fallen asleep next to me when we had finished our lovemaking. It was rare that he left my side on those nights anymore. The very first night we had lain together he had left me alone because it had all been too much for him. I didn’t suspect that to be the case this time.

  There were a million reasons that Jasper could have gotten up. Perhaps he’d needed to speak to the elders about something, or perhaps he’d needed to change his clothes or freshen up. Still, not knowing was making me anxious. I wished he had left me a note or something so I wouldn’t worry.

  I tried to take deep breaths as Lowell ate. There was no use getting concerned now, since there wasn’t much I could do about it. I’d have to wait until the baby finished eating. I was still drowsy, but forced myself to stay awake as I waited for Jasper to return to us. When the baby had finished his midnight meal and Jasper still wasn’t back, that’s when I began to worry.

  I changed my sleepy baby’s diaper and wrapped him in a blanket. Leaving him asleep on the bed, I crossed the room and pulled on my dressing gown and a pair of slippers before returning to his side and picking him up. In one hand I cradled the baby, and in the other I held a lantern that flickered in the drafts of the castle. Juggling the baby and lantern, I opened my bedroom door and slipped out into the shadowy hallway. I took a few steps down the hall to Jasper’s room. I listened at the door for a moment, but didn’t hear anything, so I tried to knock. The knocks were soft with my full hands, and finally I set the lantern down on the floor, giving the door a hard rap. Lowell flinched in my arms, but he didn’t wake.