Page 74 of Plus-Size Sold Mate
Rage and stubborn willpower surge in me now, coming in so sharply as my instincts respond to their threats.
They think I’m still the same girl they bargained away. They think I’m weak and easy to corner, but they’re sorely mistaken.
As one of the wolves lunges forward, my magic answers immediately. With a protective edge to it, knowing exactly what I’m protecting now through my pregnancy, the air between us seems to compress as it slams into it mid-strike.
The wolf flies back, crashing hard enough into a nearby tree to crack the bark with a yelp.
While the others move at once, trying to encircle me even closer, I can’t watch them all at once.
The unshifted one finds a gap, darting in to grab at me. His hand clamps around my wrist before I can spin fully to face him, but in a rush of energy, my magic pulses outward. He has no choice but to let go of the force of it as he’s sent back several feet until he collides with the ground.
The effort steals my breath, but I focus on standing my ground even as they recover quickly, restless in the way they surround me.
As much as I want to fend them off on my own, there are too many of them, all focused solely on me.
They snap at my heels, jumping in to force me back while the others herd me in. I know they’re trying to corner me and wear me down until I have no choice but to exhaust my power or give in completely.
Surrounded by this many, I can’t risk either.
As panic and fear spike all over again, caught on the damning thought of being held captive again and dragged away like prey, I know I’ll only be able to handle so much.
So I do the one thing I haven’t yet, and I reach for Luke. Without hesitation, the bond sparks as I push into it, not remotely gentle or subtle. My fear hits the tether, and in a surge of fury and alarm, he responds so suddenly through the connection that it almost knocks me off balance.
He feels me, and he knows.
Rather than just him, though, I feel as the others in the pack sense it too. I catch what smells like Eve’s scent, and I hear her voice in the back of my mind like she’s trying to reach me.
It’s only a matter of time now. I just need to hold them off long enough for backup to come.
Facing them down all on my own for the time being feels like an impossible task, but I know what’s on the line.
I’m defending myself and my child. I’m fighting for the chance to see Luke again, and for the chance to discover exactly what we might become.
I just have to hold on.
Chapter 26 - Luke
Everything feels like it’s slipping through my fingers lately, regardless of how hard I try to keep it all together.
While my authority is still intact, I can feel my control wavering, and the respect that had once seemed to come so naturally from the others is more precarious than it ever has been before. In a way, the ground beneath me doesn’t even feel steady anymore.
The pack watches me differently. While they aren’t openly defiant, they’re assessing and measuring. I know they are.
And Dad, like usual, keeps his distance, like he can sense the fallout coming.
Between the pack, my father, and Sera, nothing feels certain, and I don’t know if it ever will. But I chose this, and I don’t regret it. Even so, the pressure is there, and it has weight that doesn’t hesitate to dig in.
Moving along the north-east boundary in wolf form, my paws sink into the earth with measured steps while I follow the rocky cliffside that eventually leads to Briarwood. Since the land forms a funnel shape with Coldreach being the thinnest point, the channel running between all three areas is the hardest to monitor through the dense woods.
All the while I track, my mind drifts to Sera and our conversation.
While it wasn’t outright rejection or a refusal to work with me, leaving everything out in the open makes it feel unresolved, and I’m restless because of it.
Still, I know I can’t push. I have to let her come to me, regardless of how excruciating that feels.
A strong gust of wind stirs up my surroundings, throwing the smell of salt and decaying underbrush into the air. Then, an unfamiliar scent joins it, and I freeze.
Immediately, I know it isn’t one of mine. The foreign presence makes my hackles rise instantly, and I grit my teeth.
