There was something in the way he said that, a hidden meaning, but despite our connection, I didn’t know him well enough to decipher it.
I sat back and let it go for now, instead focusing on the world outside. “It’s beautiful here. I can’t see why anyone would want to leave this fresh air for the pollution of the city.”
“This is home,” he said softly.
Home. It sounded so warm and cozy. I’d had a home with Fee but then she’d found a new home with her guys. A purpose that didn’t include me, not really, no matter how much she’d said it did. But now I was here, mated to three dire wolves, and this…This was going to be my home for the next century.
When would it feel that way?
We turned off the main road onto a narrow track bordered by majestic trees, then rolled onto woodchips and leaves bordering a two-story sprawling farmhouse with a wraparound porch. I wasn’t sure what I’d been expecting from the Vita Pack house, but it wasn’t this gorgeous building that looked as if it belonged on the cover of a country homes magazine.
Nerves never really bothered me, but right now they were making themselves known, like, hey, you thought you had us under lockdown, right? Well, guess who was wrong?
“Leif, are you sure this is okay? Isn’t everyone in mourning?”
Leif sighed and twisted in his seat to face me. “Yes, we mourn the loss of our alpha, but we also don’t let it stop us from living. My mother was adamant she wanted to continue with her plans to introduce you to the pack. This was her responsibility as alpha female. Once it’s over, she and her mate will retreat to mourn the loss of their alpha.”
Of course, his mother would have been a breeder for Arne, not his mate. “How long has your mother been mated?”
“Fifteen years. I have four half-sisters, who you’ll get to meet, if not today then soon.”
“And do you…get on with your stepfather?”
“Leo is a good man, the perfect mate for my mother. He was always kind to me growing up.” Leif shrugged. “But I’ve always been closest to my mother.”
So, this was important. I needed to make a good impression, and why did I care if she liked me or not?
Don’t answer that.
I unlocked my door. “Okay, let’s do this.”
Leif ushered me into the house and a hallway filled with so many wonderful aromas it had my stomach doing a happy dance in anticipation. The floor was dark wood, and the walls were a neutral magnolia. There was no time to take in much more than that, because Leif took my hand and tugged me gently down the hallway.
“Just be yourself,” he said.
“Always am, so you should be more worried.”
He chuckled. “Trust me, Cora, I’m not worried about this at all.”
My heart stuttered as we entered the kitchen, cottage-style, bright, and cozy with sash windows and pretty yellow blinds, wooden countertops, and knick-knacks and plaques hanging on the wall. This room was huge and warm, bathed in sunlight streaming in from the many windows.
This room was a beating heart, filled with soft laughter and the clink of cutlery.
This wasn’t the house of mourning I’d expected. This was a happy home, and I wanted to be a part of it.
Two round tables laden with croissants, jams, hams, chicken, ribs, and fruit were set side by side, and several women sat around them drinking tea.
All eyes fixed on me.
I scanned faces, snagging on Astrid’s cool gray gaze, then focusing on warm brown eyes that had a hint of sadness about them. The deep auburn hair and the eyebrows that flicked up slightly at the ends gave her away as Leif’s mother.
“Welcome, Cora,” she said with a smile. “Please have a seat.” She indicated the spot opposite her and Astrid.
Leif pulled the chair out for me, then kissed my temple. “I’ll be back to collect you in a couple of hours.”
“See you later.” I sat and took a deep breath. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“Likewise,” Leif’s mother said. “Call me Heather, or if you like, Mother.”
Mother? My throat tightened. I’d never called anyone mother before.
She frowned slightly. “Or not. It’s entirely up to you.”
Fuck, she thought I was offended. “No, it’s fine. I just. I don’t have a mother, so it just threw me for a moment, that’s all.”
And it felt weird admitting that fact because I was rarely thrown. Being here, amidst these witches and wolves, was proving to be an exercise in new emotions and experiences.
Heather’s brown eyes gleamed with compassion. “When did you lose her?”
I smiled thinly. Okay, here went nothing. “I never had one.”
Silence greeted my revelation and then Astrid broke it.
“Cora wasn’t born,” she said snidely. “She was created.” She arched a brow my way and sipped her tea.
Well, it looked like someone had done her research. Nice to know she cared, and yep, there were several soft gasps of shock.
I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. I was here to make friends, and the best way to do that was to be open and honest whether they liked it or not.
“That’s right.” I picked up the teapot and poured some tea into my cup, adding milk then sugar. “I’m what you call a tulpa. I was created, and I inherited my creator’s witch genes.” I sipped the tea. “I’m happy to answer any questions you have.”
There was a beat of silence and then a young girl sitting two seats away from Heather spoke.
“How were you created?” She looked genuinely curious.
Oh, this one was easy. “Well, tulpas are entities created from an individual’s will. They usually remain inside the creator’s subconscious, but my creator was so powerful her will gave me a life of my own, and a mind
