Page 95 of Wolf Mate

Something she’d said nagged at me.

The brown-complected woman across from the blond man tossed her dark-brown hair over her shoulder. I estimated she was in her thirties. “Don’t worry, Skylar.” Her dark-brown eyes warmed as she placed a hand over her chest. “This won’t go beyond our trusted circle.”

I wasn’t sure I believed them. The jolt changed to a fizz. Maybe I shouldn’t have come here. “Why do you say the wolves shouldn’t be leading?”

“Witches were in charge centuries ago, and we did the goddess’s bidding.” Priestess Olwyn tapped her finger against the book. “And this particularBook of Twilightis part of the history of when the shift in leadership happened.”

I snorted. “No pun intended, right?”

All five of them stared at me blankly.

“‘Shift in leadership.’ Shift.” Wow. This was a tough audience, and my anxiety was getting the best of me.Lovely. “Wolves shift, right?” I mean, they were called wolf shifters for a reason. If they didn’t shift, how did they—

The woman on Olwyn’s other side, a caramel blonde close to my age, laughed. “Oh, that makes sense.” Her giggle sounded like bells chiming. “Because you’re right. They do shift. It’s so weird, and I’m hardly ever around them.”

“That’s a blessing if you ask me.” Slade scowled and leaned back in his seat.

At least one person here appreciated my horrible joke. “Sorry. I’m a little nervous.” There was no point in lying. I ran a finger along the seam of my jeans, hoping to work out a bit of excess energy. “Look, I appreciate you allowing me to come here and learn about my heritage, but why are you telling me all this? I’m not a supernatural.”

“You need to understand your history, which is entwined with that of the witches and the wolves.” Priestess Olwynsteepled her fingers. “The fall of the covens came with the death of the last arcane-born.”

My breath seized, and my blood increased to a solid fizz.

“Now you have her attention.” The man glanced at me with a smirk.

Now that my blood had enough power, I could read his emotions. He was intrigued by me but also disappointed as if he’d expected something more. I couldn’t blame him. Calling me an arcane-born was like calling a chihuahua a wolf. There was no comparison. I shivered at the slightest provocation, tried not to pee my pants when frightened, and had to pretend to be somewhat ferocious.

“Well, I should, Priest Alastor.” Priestess Olwyn sat up straighter and spat, “Especially with her growing friendship with Prince Raffe and his cronies.” Hatred and frustration poured off her like cancer.

Priest?I hadn’t expected that. And cronies? Had we gone back in time? “My friendship with Lucy and the other shifters isn’t your concern.” I’d come here to learn about my heritage, not get lectured about who I chose to hang out with. “EEU put Lucy and me together as roommates.”

“What?” the woman with dark hair gasped. “Supreme Priestess, you didn’t tell us that.”

“Because,PriestessEva, it was none of your concern.” Priestess Olwyn’s face looked strained, and anger dominated her emotions. “When I learned of it, I talked with Lafayette. Apparently, the old vampire was bored and wanted to give Raffe’s family hell by matching a human with someone of the royal line.”

A knot formed in my stomach. I was pretty sure she was angry with me, but she was lashing out at her people.

The fair-skinned blonde smiled kindly. “I understand wanting to keep things civil with your roommate, but you mustunderstand; if the wolf shifters find out what you are, they’ll kill you in an instant.”

She was petite compared to the others, her cobalt irises shone like beacons … and something malicious emanated from her.

I had to be reading her wrong.

“Priestess Sabrina, that’s easier said than done with the mutt panting at her heels.” Slade’s lip curled back. “Even though King Jovian has declared that we keep our distance from Skylar until we discover what she is, he must have directed Prince Raffe to get close to her. He publicly humiliates her at every chance, following his father’s directive, but he’s always lurking close by. They’re clearly trying to figure out what she is, and Prince Raffe has doubled his efforts since King Jovian witnessed her surge of power in the stadium. They must realize she’s special.”

My chest ached. Once again, doubts grew about why Raffe was spending more time with me. He’d pretended for years that he was dating Josie—maybe he was doing the same with me. But that didn’t make sense. Between the yank in my chest and the buzz whenever we touched, he couldn’t be faking his attraction. Had he lied about dating me being forbidden and was actually keeping our relationship secret to do what Slade had suggested? My heart ached at the thought.

“Something you said upset her.” Priestess Olwyn tilted her head, examining me. “You didn’t think Prince Raffe was truly interested in befriending you, did you?”

I bit my bottom lip, my fizz nearing a damn hum.

“That’s how wolf shifters work.” Priestess Sabrina frowned and leaned across the table. “They manipulate people to get what they want, and they don’t care who they screw over. That’s what happened to the last arcane-born and why we’re warning you.”

Ears ringing, I tried not to physically react. “What do you mean?”

Priestess Olwyn opened the book and spun it around, allowing me to read.

Foster met the princess of the wolf shifters under the full moon. He was taken with her, despite our warnings about the dangers the wolves posed to the coven. Though our magic is stronger, the wolves are more resilient. They’ve learned that if they force us to use our magic for long periods of time, they can overcome us. That’s why the goddess blessed us with him—to keep the wolf shifters in check. Yet Foster isn’t listening. The wolf shifter has entranced, I suspect, another coven’s magic, though I can’t read a signature from him. I keep warning him that all relationships with wolf shifters end in great disappointment, but he thinks she’s different.

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