Page 21 of Forced Plus-Size Mate

I sit up and rub my hands together, but I don’t feel the deep, throbbing power that would gather between my palms if I were at full strength. I try to shrug off my disappointment and look for a bathroom.

There’s a very old-fashioned en suite bathroom attached to the guest room. Despite its age, it has hot running water as promised. I take a long shower, then come back to my room, realizing that the only clothing I have with me is Gina’s dress.

I’ll be damned if I’m spending the day in a wedding dress!

Even though I’m dismissing the idea, there is a kind of whimsy in it. It wouldn’t be the first time I put on a fancy dress for absolutely no other reason than that I felt like it.

Nothing more fun than frocking up and running through the forest feeling like a queen.

I pick up the dress and look at it. It really is beautiful, but it’s still my wedding dress. For that reason alone, I’ll never be able to touch it again.

With a sigh, I rummage through the drawers. I find some oversized pants and sweaters in the closet along with spare towels and blankets.

I didn’t think Body was the kind of guy to keep such a well-stocked guest room. Maybe Carla furnished it for him. Wouldn’t surprise me one bit.

Outside the window, I hear the bird again. I stop, closing my eyes while I listen.

He’s close—less than two feet from the window. Perched on a twig, sunlight filtering through the leaves around him. He’s small… a wren? Colorful. And he’s saying…

The song is beautiful, and I know the bird is happy, but I can’t make out exactly what he’s singing about. When my magic is at full strength, I can translate the messages of all the beasts and birds, even deciphering the song of the wind as it blends with the whispers of the trees.

And sometimes, I could even hear the mountain itself, and the ancient voice coming from somewhere deep inside the ground. The earth herself, sharing her secrets with me.

I head outside, walking around the house until I reach the small garden outside my bedroom window. The little wren is still there, waving his tail and singing brightly.

“Hello, little guy,” I say gently. “You’re a happy fellow, aren’t you?”

He chatters at me, flitting around on the twig and bouncing around. I back up a bit, and he swoops up to the top of the tree, does a little circle, then comes back down.

The trickle of intuition that is starting to come back to me draws my eyes upwards. I see a neat little nest of tightly woven threads stuck between two branches.

“Oh, that’s what you’re singing about!” I say, smiling. “Your little lady is sitting on eggs, isn’t she?”

He chatters again, scooting up and down the branch.

“It’s okay, you don’t have to be cross with me,” I back away, laughing. “I’ll leave you be.”

I walk around to the long deck at the back of the house, turning to go towards the woods. At the edge of the trees, I close my eyes and extend my senses outward.

Deer grazing nearby…a rabbit in a burrow over the ridge. A raven in the tree to the left of me. High above, there’s a hawk watching us all…

A cool breeze ruffles my hair, and the smile that slowly spreads across my face is an expression of pure, complete joy. There is a warmth in my chest that I haven’t felt in a very long time, and my hands are tingling, almost humming with energy.

“Amanda.”

Body’s voice cracks through my serenity. Even though I know it’s my marriage to him bringing my magic back, I didn’t want to be reminded of it right now.

“What?” I say.

“I made breakfast.”

I can’t hold in a sigh as I open my eyes and look up at the forest. The anxiety rising in me is so strong that I want to run away from him and disappear into the wilderness forever.

I tried that already.

“Okay,” I answer, turning to face him. The look on his face is so nervous and tense, it actually comforts me a little.

If this isn’t easy for me, it shouldn’t be easy for him, either.

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