“Why do I suddenly appear to have wolf-like senses?” I asked, once she was comfortable.
“I think it’s a combination of me briefly taking over your body and my presence within the wild magic. Some sort of bleed over has occurred.”
Which was exactly what I’d thought might be happening. “How far do you think the changes will go?”
A smile touched her ghostly lips. “Not far enough for you, I suspect.”
“I don’t want to be a werewolf.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Not even to catch one?”
“That’s never going to happen—even you know that.”
“I know the heart usually wins, even when the head wishes otherwise.” She glanced up at Gabe. Love shone like a beacon from her eyes and her body.
It made me feel like I was intruding. Made me envious of what they still had.
I cleared my throat. “In the case of your brother, his heart has already been taken, so it’s really not a contest.”
“Perhaps,” Katie said, amusement gleaming in her eyes, “and perhaps not.”
I raised my eyebrows even as my heart began to beat a little faster. “Meaning that you’ve now revised the warning you gave to both your mother and Aiden?”
“No. What they both wish will come to pass—that, I’m afraid, is inevitable now. It’s what happens after she returns that remains unclear.”
Meaning there was no escaping heartache for me. Great.
Katie’s hand lightly touched mine. Her energy fizzed across my skin, as electric as lightning. “Hold on to hope. What isn’t yet written can always be changed.”
My smile no doubt echoed the sadness within. “Except for the fact my own dreams are telling me a very different story.”
“Your dreams aren’t always right. You’ve admitted that multiple times.”
Not to her I hadn’t, which meant that even when I couldn’t feel her presence or that of the wild magic, she was aware of everything that was going on.
“Not everything,” she said. “But I do tend to keep an eye on the people I care about as well as the people they care about.”
I stared at her for a heartbeat. “That thought wasn’t spoken out loud.”
“Because we don’t need to now, thanks to your strengthening connection to the wild magic. Voicing our thoughts is more a pleasant habit than a necessity.”
“Does that mean I can summon the wild magic from anywhere within the reservation? Even if it isn’t in the area?”
“I don’t know, so maybe you should try it next time you’re out in the middle of nowhere.” A smile tugged at her lips. “But, for modesty’s sake, perhaps not when you’re with Aiden.”
“On that I agree.” My voice was dry. “There’re definitely some things a sister shouldn’t see.”
She chuckled. “I was talking about your modesty rather than mine. Wolves tend not to worry about such things.”
“Even werewolves aren’t into public displays.”
“Depends entirely on the werewolf,” she said, cheeks dimpling.
I snorted softly. “How much sharper do you think my senses are going to get?”
She shrugged. “Who knows? By rights, Gabe’s spell shouldn’t have worked. By rights, you should have died in utero. If I had to guess, I’d say that—while there’s no denying the wild magic protects and strengthens you—it will also be the reason why the changes you’re currently experiencing will go no further than sight, sound, and perhaps strength and endurance.”
I frowned. “Why?”
“Because the wild magic is so deeply embedded that even if it were possible for your DNA to be enhanced to the point of enabling change, I don’t believe the magic within would allow it.”
A vague spark of hope stirred. “What about any children I might have?”
Amusement crossed her features. “Are we specifically talking part werewolves here?”
“In theory. Just in case, because hey, sometimes miracles do happen.”
“And I’m proof enough of that.” She paused. “In truth, that’s another question neither of us can answer, as no one, as far as we’re aware—and the songs and memories of the wild magic stretches back to the beginning of time itself—has ever survived complete immersion in the way you have.”
Which only made that vague flicker of hope shine brighter.
“So it is remotely possible that if I did happen to marry a werewolf and we did happen to have children, they’d survive the problem your mother described in great detail?”
“Mom means well, but she’s an alpha and can sometimes be very overbearing.”
“To say the least,” I muttered.
Katie’s smile shone. “To answer the question, what protects you should also protect your offspring, but there’s no guarantee, and Mom is right—the consequences of such a marriage can be heartbreaking.”
I hesitated. “And yet it’s a risk you and Gabe were willing to take.”
“It was never a risk, because death was my fate. Had it been otherwise?” She looked up at Gabe. Both their faces glowed. “I’m not sure what we would have done. Not had children, most likely.”
“That won’t be my fate. There’s at least one child in my future—a little blonde-haired girl.” Whether it was Aiden’s or someone’s I’d yet to meet was unclear.
“Then I’ll keep all things crossed that she is an O’Connor. I fancy being an aunt.” She paused. “Is there anything else you need?”
“At this point, no.” I hesitated. “Do you keep watch over the reservation’s borders at all?”
“No.” She studied me shrewdly for a moment. “I take it this is about the men who were in your café last night?”
“Yes. I don’t suppose you know where they were staying?”
“No, and I can’t say I felt their presence, either. Why?”
After I’d quickly explained the situation, she added, “And you fear Clayton will take his anger out on Aiden as much as Belle?”
“Yes. Are you—via the wild magic—able to protect him?”
“My connection to the wild magic continues to grow, and it may one day be possible that I can use its energy to defend my own. For now, however, I’m limited.”
“Define limited.”
Gabe’s ghostly form shifted, and Katie glanced up at him. I couldn’t hear what he was saying, but after a moment, her gaze returned to me. “I can prevent a
