Page 86 of Witch's Wolf

“It wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows,” he says as we stop behind the pier railing. “My folks used to fight sometimes. Nothing too bad. They’d wait until we were in bed, but we could still hear them through the door.” A small, distant smile tugs at his lips. “My dad was rough around the edges. My mom was a lot mellower.”

“I get that,” I say softly. “But they loved you to death, didn’t they?”

I know the answer before he nods.

“Yeah, they did.” He turns, his expression serious. “You should stop thinking about the past. Remembering what you didn’t have won’t let you move forward. It won’t let you see the love that’s still around you.”

“Like what?”

“Like the love of a godmother for her godchild.”

The words catch me off guard. Disappointment flickers through me, though I’m not sure why.

“What?”

“Monica’s pregnant,” he says, watching my reaction closely. “She and Raul told me this morning when I stopped by to borrow some coffee.”

“That’s fantastic!” I burst out, grinning wide only for it to fade just as quickly. “Wait… then why didn’t she tell me?”

“She can’t decide between you and Stacy,” he explains. “Just so you know, I suggested you both christen the kid together.”

“Thanks, but, uh…” My eyes drop to his chest as something nags at me. “You said ‘sorts’ of love. Plural.”

“I meant my love for you,” he says, smiling and leaning in, his hand slipping from mine.

“Your…?” I whisper, my heart slamming against my ribs.

“Yeah.” His voice is warm, steady, and soothing even as it sends a rush of exhilaration through me. “I love you, Erica. I knew it the moment I saw you crying in the woods. I felt this…” hehesitates, searching for the right words. “Flutter in my chest, I’ve never felt this before.”

“I love you, too,” I murmur, throat tight with emotions as I let myself sink into the tenderness of his gaze. “Just… don’t ask me when I realized it. I have no idea.”

“Fine. I won’t,” he chuckles, low and rich.

Reaching into his pocket, he pulls out something green and gleaming. He holds it up and I see it’s a large locket. It has an intricate engraving of a snowy mountaintop on the cover. The chain shimmers under the pier lights, pristine.

Click.

The locket pops open, revealing delicate script etched into the metal.

Mates Forever.

“My mother left me this in her will,” Sam says quietly. My pulse thunders loud in my ears, my breath catches in my throat. “We can take dozens of pictures and you can choose whichever you like. All you have to do is say yes.”

“Yes,” I say without hesitation, without thought. It’s instinct, need. It’s truth that resonates with the universe. “I want to be your mate. Forever, Sam. I want it more than anything in the world.”

A slow, breathtaking smile spreads across his face. His eyes glisten. Despite the crowds around us it feels as if there is only the two of us. Alone in our own, perfect universe.

“Erica, you make me happy. You are my heart and my soul.”

In one fluid motion he unclasps the chain and then lays the cool metal to my neck. The locket settles against my skin. It has a weight far beyond what its physical matter could ever have. It’s his claim, his mark on me. His hands frame my face, rough palms warm against my cheeks. The world fades. The distant cries of seagulls, the murmur of the Hudson, the city’s ever-present hum.

Then, his lips meet mine. Soft. Intentional.

The wind sweeps tendrils of my hair across my cheek as I wrap my arms around his waist, holding him close. And in this moment, as his kiss deepens, one conviction burns bright in my heart?—

I am exactly where I am meant to be.

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