Page 44 of Their Witch Bride

She shrugs. “They bonded as young kids and always intended on finding their mate and marrying her.”

My thoughts are turning. “And you said mate? Does that just mean wife?”

“Oh, no, a mate is far more important than a wife. When you choose a wife, you could fall in love with any woman. But your mate? For males, there’s only one. And the men adore her. They’re drawn to her from the first moment they meet her. It’s like there’s a force pulling them together, and no one can escape. Hell, no one wants to escape.”

This shifter society is so incredibly strange. With witches, the women basically stake their claim on whatever men they want. They seek out whoever is most capable, or the families that have yielded the most powerful witches, mostly daughters, etc. It’s certainly not for love. If the man doesn’t return their interest, they move on until they find one that does. Then, their hope is to have a daughter, so they can have a powerful witch in their family instead of some boy who can never wield magic. If something like this were to happen in our society though, multiple women might share one man.

“So they never have more than one wife?”

“No,” she answers easily.

I think, circling through the conversation. Princes Arlys, Drogo, and Rinan knew they were going to share a woman from a young age, not someone like me. “But I’m not the princes’ mate, so…”

Her smile falters. “No, you’re not.”

They wanted true love. Someone they all wanted to be with. Someone they felt a pulling when they were with. Instead, they got a witch they hate.

“They must be disappointed they didn’t get to wait for someone so special.”

She avoids my gaze. “They realize how important the treaty is.”

Which is code for, yeah, they’re really upset. This is the last thing they wanted. You're the last person they wanted.

“I understand,” I say, feeling a little sad.

“So… can I take you down to dinner? It’s about that time,” she asks.

Relieved, I pat my stomach. “I am famished for a real meal.”

“You’ll love our food. Moonfall Castle has some of the best food in the whole Shifter Kingdom.”

She rises to her feet and we head towards the door. As we step through, Scarlett yelps. Looking behind her, I see that her dress has gotten caught on one of the crates holding my belongings. There’s horror in her face as she dislodges her dress, and a good part of her skirt is torn.

“Oh no, this is my absolute favorite dress!” Her eyes glint with unshed tears. “It belonged to my mother. It’s irreplaceable. I can’t believe I just did that,” she laments, holding the dress in her hands and running her fingers along the tear in the fabric that goes from the bottom hem of the dress to her knees.

And, unfortunately for her, the material is a delicate lace she’ll never be able to repair. Not with a needle and thread, at least.

I step closer to her and touch the spot where the tear starts. “Fix,” I say with the dress still in my hand.

The threads lift and meld together, seamlessly repairing the damage until the gown is whole once more. For a second, I’m stunned. This spell has worked for me in the past, but not often, and not when the witches were taunting me. But maybe without the pressure of others the spell is easier?

Strange. Does my magic work better here? I haven’t set an accidental fire in a while…

I drop the fabric and look up to see her eyes wide and her mouth forming an O of shock. My stomach clenches, and I have to force myself to breathe, wondering what will happen now that I’ve used magic in a shifter castle. Is it forbidden? Are witches looked down upon? I hadn’t thought to ask the rules.

After a moment, she asks, “Was that magic?” Then she runs her hand along the dress where the tear once was, and gapes at me.

Hesitantly, I manage, “It was… just a little bit.”

“Magic can… fix things?”

A little laugh slips from my lips. “Of course!”

She stares at me, bewildered. “The only magic I've heard of is the kind that witches use to kill or burn or boil. All I know about magic is that it hurts. This was useful magic. It was helpful. It was good magic.” She looks at me as if she truly can't believe what she just saw.

I nod, not sure what to say, but my mind starts turning to the last time I felt that way. “I've only known shifters to be vicious, cruel monsters who attack and fight, but I watched a little boy shift into a tiny pup, and it was the cutest thing I ever saw. That was magical.”

To my surprise, Scarlet links her arm in mine and looks me in my eye. “We might be different, but I have a feeling we're going to be the best of friends. Who would have thought?”

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