His eyes cast down sheepishly. “She doesn’t know. From what I can tell. I’m not getting all her thoughts yet, the connection is too new. She hasn’t shifted. She’s strong though. I need to figure out how to get on her good side before she shifts and freaks out.”
A loud laugh he hadn’t heard since before his father’s death came from his mom. “Oh dear boy, this is the worst mess yet. The only good thing is that she can’t deny you. Fate is fate. She will want you regardless if she hates your guts. In wolf form though, she’d be drawn to the pack. You make sure you get to her before the next full moon. It’s rare for a newly bitten mate to turn, but with you my dear boy, you generally have the worst luck.
“I have been a plague to this pack. Maybe I should just go rogue.”
“Bite your tongue. You are a good alpha, but you won’t be whole until you get her here. You need a strong woman, but she needs to be your opposite as well. You need her to calm the pack, to be the balance. Ever since your father was murdered, there’s been so much unrest.”
A whiff of fresh coffee permeated the air as he watched his mom start a pot.
He closed his eyes trying to focus on the here and now. He couldn’t go back. His father had died because of him because he’d made the wrong decision. Peace. What was peace exactly?
“Ethan. Look at me. You are a good boy. You need to believe that,” she said, turning to look at him. “Don’t you doubt that. Your heart was in the right place when you tried to mate the daughter of that horrible, horrible alpha. You can’t beat yourself up for your father’s death. I know what you wanted to happen.”
Ethan bit back the churning in his gut and opened his eyes. He was a serious fuck up.
“Yeah? Why didn’t you tell me it was a terrible idea? That pack seems more pissed than ever now. I still don’t doubt she will come back for Amelia. I know Amelia was her bargaining chip for her freedom, but what mom leaves? That’s not a wolf thing. She’ll come back, and then I have one more pissed off shifter to appease. Let’s just start handing out numbers.”
His mom’s strong arms wrapped around him and he let her. The warmth of her hug was a healing touch that only a mom could have, but it wasn’t the touch he needed. Habit had him wrapping his arms around her. Looking down at her head, he caught himself thinking that she looked smaller.
Lines he swore hadn’t been there three years ago seemed to have sprouted like a million rivers of tears. His mom had made it through the mess of his father’s demise, but not as unscathed as he thought.
“I’ll fix it all. Have you heard from Brody or Wes?”
Her eyes softened.
“Yes. They were just by the other day. Your brothers have been careful about keeping their distance from that pack while still keeping a good eye on them. They came by earlier and asked you to meet them at the ravine tonight. Now enough chit chat. Amelia is only little once. Go spend the rest of the evening with her, and we will fix your issue tomorrow. Then you can fix this pack.”
Chapter 7
“Livi, what did you change?” Bridgette asked. Icing caked her mouth.
“You have a little something, well everywhere,” Olivia said, holding in a laugh.
“These are amazing. Not that you haven’t always been great at baking, but this is something out of this world,” Bridgette said.
Olivia shrugged, eying the rows and rows of new flavors she’d spent all night baking. One idea after another had invaded her sleep until she couldn’t take it anymore and went to work.
“Mm,” said Bridgette as she bit into another. “No Livi, I don’t know what has gotten into you, but these are going to get us noticed. It’s almost like I can feel the flavor. This one.” Bridgette grabbed at a blue iced cupcake of edible art and bit in. She chewed, her eyes closing.
“It’s like I can actually feel the ocean breeze and taste the salt of the ocean. And this one.” She picked up a bright pink cupcake and bit into it. “Oh my God. It’s like an orgasm. This one needs to be rated X and hidden behind some damn curtains.”
Olivia’s face heated. That flavor might have been created somewhere between wanting to have sex on a beach and finding a cupcake that would calm her ass down. She darted from one surface to the other, all colored in a different shade of the rainbow. Perhaps she’d gone a little crazy.
“I think it’s time to get these out front into the cases. After I finish this one.”
Bridgette shoved in the last of the orgasm in a paper cup. “Oh God,” she said, around chewed cake.
Olivia threw her hand over her mouth, trying to stifle the hysterical laughter. “Do you and the cupcake need a room?”
The two laughed. “You have no idea how long it’s been since someone touched that spot and I don’t mean my va-jay-jay. I mean actually figured out how to give me a damn orgasm. I have a better relationship with my vibrator than I do with the current warlock. Granted, if I take this little pink flavor of the week with me...”
Olivia watched her eye the cupcake.
“Do you think he’d notice if I were eating a cupcake while he did his thing?”
Olivia’s eyes widened. “Bridgette! That’s awful. Just get rid of him. Believe me. There are men out there that can give you the most amazing pleasure by simply whispering your name.” Her body shivered as she
