Page 43 of The Wolf's Bullied Pregnant Mate
I threw back the duvet covers with a shout, surprising them, as I grinned, taking the phone from Zephyr. Then he climbed onto the bed next to me, both of us cramming our faces into the small FaceTime window.
“You two look cozy,” Harper noted with a smile.
“Uncle Zeff and Auntie Addie aren’t upset anymore!” Hallie cheered. I shot Zephyr a glare, but he only returned it, as if to sayhey, there are two of us here who caused arguments.
“Auntie Addie, we’re on vacation,” Marie told me, but Hallie nudged her aside.
“No, we are not. I heard Daddy telling Mommy that we’renot.” She leaned in close to the camera. “It is Joseph’s fault.”
“Hey!” The little boy cried. “Mommy!”
“Hallie, stop teasing your brother.”
“But he did! I told him something bad would happen if he played with Marie and me, and itdid.”
We all paused as the triplets began to squabble. But it was Zephyr who piped up.
“Hey, kids,” he said, getting their attention. “Did you ever hear the story about the magical fairy and the great, grizzly bear?”
“Fairy?” Marie asked. “Like, with wings?” Her face lit up.
“Wings, a wand, magic,allof it.”
I handed the phone back as he distracted the triplets with a made-up story about a fairy who helped a lost bear find his way through an enchanted forest. My heart softened as his voice rose and fell, his arms going wide in big gestures, imitating sound effects for magic and big bear stomping.
Alex had propped the phone far enough that I could see the five of them all huddled together on a white, plush rug. Joseph sat on Alex’s knee, and Hallie was curled into Harper’s lap, while Marie leaned forward with eagerness to listen better.
But in the background, sitting in an armchair, was my grandmother.
And in her eyes weighed a disappointment so heavy I felt it in my chest.
Throughout Zephyr’s story, I couldn’t stop glancing at where my grandmother watched me. She didn’t care about a magical fairy. She cared about the wolf she now knew was in a witch’s sanctuary, and her witch granddaughter who had brought him into it.
A pit grew in my stomach the longer Zephyr narrated the story.
“You said the fairy was called Hallie, named after me,” Hallie pouted. “You changed it three times!”
“That just proves how good a listener you are.” Zephyr’s laughter was a brief reprieve from the tension I could feel. But as soon as he saidthe endto the kids, finishing them off with a happy ending where the bear was led to an ever-growing meadow of flowers where the fairy cast an animation spell to make all the sunflowers dance around him.
“Auntie Addie,” Joseph mumbled sleepily. “Mommy says you can do magic. Are you the fairy?”
I glanced at Harper, who only smiled and shook her head, indicating he might not understandwitch. I never had quite learned how to talk to children yet.
“You know, kiddo, Iamlike the fairy. I’ll find you a meadow of flowers when we can all hang out again soon, okay?”
“I’d like that.” His little face was so bright it made my chest ache. Harper’s eyes slid to Zephyr, and a look of amusement crossed her face. When I turned to him, I found his eyes already on me. He averted them quickly, clearing his throat.
Zephyr was older, almost thirty. Did he ever think about children? Did he think the military life would keep him from being a present father?
I wanted to know so much about this impenetrable man.
“Harper, Alex.” My grandmother’s voice cut into the happy call. “Could you take the triplets somewhere else? I would like to speak with my granddaughter.”
My grandmother had never used this tone with me, and the use of it dropped dread into my stomach. I didn’t dare look away from her as she approached the camera as soon as Harper herded the triplets away. Alex gave Zephyr a long, hard look before he went out of view. Greta walked towards me, looking older than I had ever realized. She walked with a slight hunch. Ihad seen her resting on a long, wooden cane now and then, but her face looked more lined with age.
“Ma’am,” Zephyr said, nodding. He swallowed nervously, but as far as I could remember, he had been casual and friendly with her over the summer. Yet, now, with the weight of her stare carrying even through the screen, he shifted. EvenIdid.
“I would like a moment with my granddaughter.”
