Page 11 of Wynter Abandoned

Something was up with Titan and, as I lay on my belly, letting the cool grass cool me, I wondered what it was. Titan didn’t get worked up about anything.

Beyond the meadow was a house. It needed a new coat of paint and some of the windows were broken, but it was a large manor. I should know who lived here, but the name of the family didn’t come to mind. It should. I usually remembered these things.

The meadow boasted blooming flowers despite the winter. The thorny vines wrapped through and within the bushes and tree branches gave the whole place a rose-like feel—beautiful but dangerous if you stumbled the wrong way.

My wolf raised its nose as the wind whipped toward me. Once, there was only the smell of the pig at a distance, the dirt, and the faint scent of other shifters but in a second, everything changed.

The scent of cinnamon buns reached my nose before I saw her. My wolf stepped back and lay on the ground, in a hunting pose. Except the woman wasn’t his prey.

He was entranced by her and, through his eyes, I found myself equally enraptured. Her footsteps were heavy even though her body was lithe. I expected the wind to whip up,whisking her away at any moment. She came into the meadow, only the entrance, and plopped herself on a log, shielded by a tall bush—a barrier between her and the house. The female had a bundle rolled up in her apron and took out a chunk of cheese and the butt end of a baguette.

Not enough food for a female, in my opinion. She gobbled it as though she hadn’t eaten in weeks and I believed it.

I scooted closer to her on the ground. My wolf offered no option in that matter. I had to get near her. Take in more of her scent. See her face. The color of her eyes. The way her mouth moved with each bite.

As I slid on my belly, one of my paws caught a thin branch and snapped it under my weight.

Damn it. The last thing I wanted to do was scare her.

“Hello?” she said and I rumbled, letting out a growl at satisfaction. Her voice was something only the wolf goddess could create.

My wolf gave another growl, this time as she stood and approached. Light footsteps barely graced the ground as she came near. My wolf was big, even large for a shifter, so I lowered my muzzle to the ground, submitting to her visit.

Goddess, I might not be able to keep my form if she reached out and touched me.

“You are gorgeous,” she whispered. I inched toward her more but stopped at her swift intake of breath.

My wolf slapped me with a notion about her, but I pushed it away. Maybe it wasn’t too late to catch up to Xerxes.

I had so many questions. Who was this female? Why hadn’t I seen her before? She was more beautiful than any female I’d ever seen and I’d seen a lot lately.

Chapter Eleven

Wynter

Though sleep was the best thing next to food in my life, there was no rest to be had after seeing that wolf in the woods. I woke up before the sun and bolted from my bed despite the chill that nipped at my feet. I leaned on the windowsill and looked around, scanning the yard.

Yeah, Wynter. He’s just going to show up outside the rusty tool shed, looking for his mate.

Sounds like reality.

I’d sped through my chores the last few days, eagerness rising with each setting sun. I lay awake, replaying the scene with the wolf. He was strong and powerful. I bet he was just as capable and strong in his human form. I tossed and turned, fantasies blending with dreams as I drifted in and out of sleep, that wolf always on loop in my mind.

Those fantasies continued through the day, interrupting my work but also providing solace from the drudgery of life. With morning chores done and my stepsisters taking their early afternoon nap, I snuck outside, promising myself this would be the last time I looked for the wolf that haunted me day and night.

As I made my way through the forest, butterflies batted their wings in my stomach, and I tripped several times, looking ahead and around for the wolf instead of where I was going. With my hands braced on the harsh bark of the tree that marked my stepmother’s boundary for me, I waited, listened, and hoped. Hoped with my eyes closed, whispering to the gods for help. Hoped with them open, hyper-focused on every movement and breath of a noise.

But the wolf never returned.

Tears spilled down my cheeks as my yearning and wanting cracked, leaving me hollow again. I’d held on to the promise of him returning so hard that letting it go felt like reaching inside my chest and pulling out my heart without anesthesia.

I shouldn’t have been so stupid. I shouldn’t have wanted. Never should’ve hoped for anything but what I had.

Nodding, I turned and began to walk back toward the main house. This was where I belonged and, more than anything, I should be grateful. While the tears dried, I pinched my sides right between my ribs and my pelvis, reminding myself that pain was my only solace now. Instead of being bitter and wanting something I couldn’t have, I should be grateful for a roof over my head and some food in my belly. That was all I deserved, after all.

Nothing.

This was a good reminder. I deserved nothing. I was owed nothing. For some, life was no more than a fight until you stopped breathing.

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