Page 27 of Wooded Bliss

She’s smart, so damn smart it amazes me sometimes. Then there’s how sweet she is. Her caring nature shines through in everything she does.

One thing she insisted on starting was family dinner night because she wanted the opportunity to get to know my brothers. The way she’s put time into getting to know them warms my heart. She’s stepped into the idea of family, of pack, and being my mate without any reservations.

The fact that she trusted and believed me when I told her she has a family now, complete with brothers, makes me so fucking happy. I can barely stand it. I’ve seen my mate smile so big and so many times over the last few weeks; I had no idea how something so simple could make me feel so good.

It’s not just my mate who has thrived either. My brothers seem happier now. I’m not sure, but I think having a female around has been good for them. Or it could just be the effect my mate has on everyone she’s around.

Birdie even embraced Circe. I’m not entirely sure how I feel about it, but I know Circe has filled in some things I missed in terms of the supernatural world for my mate. Even though it makes me a little uncomfortable, I’ll keep biting my tonguebecause my little one deserves to have as many friends as she can handle.

As I finish cleaning up my workshop, I can’t help but smile. My woman was so shy the first time she asked me what I do, knowing I’m not the kind of guy to be idle. I picked her up, loving the feel of her legs wrapping around my waist as she looped her arms around my neck, and didn’t stop until we were stepping into my workshop.

Instead of looking around at what she was seeing, I watched Birdie’s face. The genuine awe made pride fill me. She gushed over my pieces and then proceeded to ask questions about what I was making and how I take orders.

“You’re amazing,” she whispered after walking through my workshop and coming over to me until our toes were almost touching. Pride shone in her eyes and my bear puffed up his chest right along with me.

It’s a memory I hold close to my heart.

Birdie’s shop will be open for a little while longer, but I’m planning to meet her at her place later. My bear grumbles because he would much rather have our mate in our den. Since I haven’t spent a lot of time with my brothers one on one, I head toward the main house and step inside.

I’m not surprised when I find Wylie doing some work on his computer at the kitchen island and I breathe a sigh of relief at not finding Circe there cooking something. The sigh I let out as I sit down next to my brother has him looking over at me with an amused expression on his face.

“Let me guess,” he muses, a teasing lilt to his voice, “not transitioning well to not being in self-imposed solitude all the time?”

“No,” my rebuttal is fierce, “I love spending time with Birdie.”

Wylie makes a humming sound and the look he shoots me tells me he doesn’t quite believe me. My shoulders slump and I figure I might as well open up to my brother. He’s the one who went to school with my mate, after all. I know he loves her like a sister; all my brothers do.

“It’s been a few weeks since I found her,” I start, my voice quiet. “I’m glad I listened to you guys and my bear about having a mate. She’s amazing, everything I could ever want. I love her and it’s not just because of the bond. I loveher,” I emphasize the word, hoping he understands. When he nods, I shrug, a little unsure how to put the next part into words. “I want her here with me all the time, but I’m afraid to ask because I know how important her shop is, and she’s not like me. I’m afraid that asking her to move out here with me won’t be what she wants.”

Wylie studies me for a long moment before closing his laptop and turning toward me fully. There’s a hint of accusation in his tone, “Do you want her to close her shop and just be a mate to you?”

“No,” I bark quickly, “that’s not what I’m saying. Birdie is proud of her shop, and she should be,” I add on because it’s true. I’m fucking proud of her as well. “I want her here, I want her to have her shop, I want to mark her. I want it all with my mate.”

Wylie’s eyes soften and he nods slowly. “Maybe it’s just time to ask her. She knows bears don’t usually wait to mark their mate, right?”

“Yeah,” I swallow hard, the thought of sinking my teeth into her marking spot making my dick twitch when the last thing I should be doing is getting hard while talking with my brother, “she knows.”

“You don’t think she’s wondering why you haven’t marked her yet? Or why you haven’t asked her to move out here? She knows you love it out here and has seen how everything is set up with your workshop and with all of us living close to each other. You don’t think she would be willing to move while still being able to go into Whispering Pines to run her own business?”

Wylie’s words hit me in the chest, and I know, deep down, I’ve been selling my mate short. I haven’t given her enough credit for being the amazing woman she is.

“Told you,”my bear grumbles,“mate will move out here because she loves us.”

“She hasn’t said that,”I remind him.

“Neither have we,”he snarls and my heart sinks.

I hope I haven’t given her the impression that I’m not all in when it comes to my mate. I am.

“I just didn’t want to push her to move faster than she’s comfortable with,” I try and explain my reasoning to Wylie.

He arches an eyebrow in response before, very logically, asking, “And have you talked to her about it?”

I groan and run my fingers through my hair. “No,” I admit, the one word filled with defeat, “and I should have.”

Wylie chuckles before reaching over and giving my shoulder a squeeze. “Yeah, you should have,” he agrees. “You can’t make assumptions about what she wants. I think going at her speed is a good thing, it shows you want to put her first. But if you don’t ask her about what she is and isn’t ready for then you’re really putting yourself first, not her.”

I grumble, “When did you get so smart?”

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