Page 12 of Forced Plus-Size Mate

“Amanda,” Lucy says in a hard voice. “I think you know more about this than you’re telling me.”

Amanda’s eyes flick away from me to Lucy. Her face is hard, even as her eyes fill with tears. Lucy looks sympathetic but still has challenge in her demeanor.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Lucy asks.

“Because I didn’t tell anyone!” Amanda cries, covering her face. “I couldn’t! I just had to get out of Silver Meadows.”

“What are you talking about?” one of the other witches asks. “Are you telling me we left Silver Meadows for your own selfish reasons and not for the good of the coven?”

“Knock it off,” an older lady growls. “Amanda has been our head priestess for a long time, and rightly so. I enjoyed our time in the wilderness, and I didn’t hear any of you complaining at the time.”

“But now we get to marry wolves?” a younger one says eagerly. “Wolves like this one, and Bae, and Rider?”

“What?” I blurt out, feeling reality land on me again. “What are we talking about?”

“The witches lost their magic,” Lucy explains. “We performed a ritual to understand why, and it showed me that love had been denied and magic was failing because of it. I was also shown that witches and wolves have come together in the past to strengthen each other’s magic. The bond is good for both.”

The full impact of this news begins to sink in. Amanda has covered her face, and when she moves her hands away, my heart breaks to see the tears running down her face.

“You and me?” I ask, and she shakes her head.

“No!” she cries. “It can’t be. I won’t let it!”

“Then cast the runes,” Lucy says, her voice hard. “You don’t believe my intuition or the spell, so cast the runes for yourself and see what they say.”

Amanda tugs open the small leather sack and smooths out the snow next to her to make a flat surface. She gathers the runes in her hands and whispers to them before scattering them across the ground.

She makes a small cry of disbelief, then picks them up and tries again. On the third throw, she shakes her head and wraps her arms around herself.

“I don’t know much about this, but it looks to me like they are coming up the same every single time,” I remark.

“You got that right,” Lucy mutters. “Amanda, are you okay?”

“No,” she gasps. “Not by a long shot… no way.”

“Can I help?” the older witch asks.

Amanda shakes her head, but Lucy waves her over. “Come on, Nell. I think Amanda could use your help.”

“So, did I actually bring myself here, or was this a spell?” I ask nobody in particular.

The witches around the circle speak at random, some of them saying “free will” and others answering “spell.”

“It was both,” Lucy said. “Often, our destiny aligns with intent. I get the feeling your soul, and Amanda’s, have beencalling to each other for a very long time. On some level, you were aware of her presence and wanted to come to her. When the spell opened the way for us to see the solution, it simply showed you where to go.”

Nell has one arm around Amanda’s shoulders, and the women whisper quietly to each other. I don’t like seeing Amanda so upset, and it’s even worse that I’m the cause of it.

“Did you really leave because of me?” I ask her gingerly.

Amanda looks up at me, her eyes blazing electric-blue.

“I left to immerse myself in my calling!” she snaps. “I didn’t want to be distracted from my path by immature little boys who don’t even know what they want. Don’t you dare stand there, displaying yourself like you’re God’s gift to all women, Body Andrews! I know you, I never forgot you, and I don’t have to believe a single word you say. I also don’t have to explain myself to the likes of you!”

The words sting, and they should. I lower my head, unable to meet her gaze. A couple of other witches come forward to comfort Amanda. Some of them stare at me with outright hostility.

“What are we going to do next, Amanda?” Nell asks.

“You know the result of the spell,” Lucy points out.

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