Page 46 of His Whispered Witch

“Well, apparently, there’s an irrevocable tie between us. You weren’t lying about that. And I hid a werewolf from them, so even if we were just casual acquaintances, I’d still have to get on the road.”

He stepped toward her and gently took her hand. “I’m sorry.”

“Not your fault.”

He bit his lip, sure it was precisely his fault, but he didn’t want to fight. “Tell me that’s not the only reason.”

She met his eyes and took a huge breath.

It couldn’t be the only reason.

“It’s not.” But she pulled away anyway. “This is insane. I’ve known you for a week. And here I go again, ripping my life apart. This time for a man instead of against a man, but what am I thinking? Where are we going to go? There’s nowhere to go. There’s nowhere safe.”

He took a deep breath, thinking of the grief in Malcolm’s eyes when Asher walked away, then thinking of the fear in thechildren’s eyes when he walked toward them. Could he go home? He felt guilty for even hesitating. He had a home, dammit. He had a pack, people who loved him, territory that was protected, and a whole family who understood about witches and shifters.

Could he take her there?

She wasn’t wrong. They barely knew each other. Normally, couples made this kind of decision after months or years.

“We could go home,” he said, and something cracked open within him at the thought.

She turned back to him. “I don’t have a home.”

“I do. I have an entire pack. Half of us at this point are mated to witches. There are wards. You would be welcome. You would be more than welcome. Hell, they’d love to have another witch to add to their magic.”

“And you’re saying complete strangers are going to take me in…” She seemed to shrink into herself. Carefully, he put his arms around her and encouraged her to lean against him until her head landed on his shoulder. His gut clenched in pleasure, and he ignored it.

“I don’t know why I’m hesitating,” she whispered. “I’ve already torched any new bridge I’ve built here. Well, to be honest, I did that first with a donkey race.”

“Please come with me,” he murmured into her hair. He was generally an even-keeled guy, or maybe not even-keeled, but at least numb. He’d had more emotions in the last twenty-four hours than he had in the last ten years combined. He wasn’t sure he could take much more of this.

She pulled away from him. “This isn’t a declaration of eternal love. This is just a declaration of…” She trailed off, sounding so lost. “This is just a declaration of not having anywhere else to go.”

His heart broke for her. “You will always have a home with me. Whether or not we are ever a we. My family will welcome you with open arms.”

She pulled away until they were not touching. “A wolf pack.”

“Well, yeah.”

“The world is topsy-turvy. I’m seeking shelter with a wolf pack from a coven full of witches.”

“We are meant to be together.” He felt her stiffen and winced. “I don’t meanus. I meant witches and shifters. We’re made of your magic. We were meant to be together.”

“And we spent how many years trying to kill each other instead.” She took a deep breath. “Okay, fine. For now, I go with you.”

The sense of triumph and claiming and mate felt like a blow to the solar plexus.

“We have to move,” she said. “They’re just waiting for reinforcements. They could be here any minute. You need to gather whatever is important.”

“If that included a couple of donkeys?”

“We’re not riding burros over the mountains like we’re inThe Sound of Music.”

He chuckled, loving her. “Two things. They didn’t have burros. They walked. And I have a horse trailer.”

“Oh. Right. That makes sense. You’ve seenThe Sound of Music?”

“It’s a wolf pack, not a movie-hating cult. Who hasn’t seenThe Sound of Music?”

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