Page 26 of Forcing Fate
“It’s okay,” I murmur, squeezing her hand. She hasn’t let go of me since we stepped outside, clutching me like I’m a life raft on a stormy sea. Like she’s afraid she’ll be pulled under by hatred and mistrust.
There’s a sense of confusion and concern over the crowd that doesn’t ease until Declan explains why he brought everyone together this way. “Nora’s family was banished, but they were found lingering on pack land after they’d drugged Cole and Tara,” he concludes, raising his voice to be heard over the concerned murmurs and angry grunts. “They’re no longer a threat to any of us. It’s important that you understand the truth we learned: my father didn’t die because of a child’s carelessness, but because of parental neglect. A parent who allowed his daughter to be blamed all these years for the crime he committed.”
My brother looks over at us, standing on the porch overlooking the crowd. “As you can see, Nora is part of our family now. She is Cole’s fated mate, and they’ve completed the bond. She is under our protection from now on, and I expect all of you to welcome and respect her the way we have. I, for one, would like to personally apologize for ever blaming her for my father’s death.” Zeke and Tara nod their agreement, and I’m pretty sure I see tears sparkling in my twin’s eyes.
“Do you hear that?” I whisper while Nora clings to my side, barely able to look at any of the people in front of us who now look regretful. “You’re one of us. You’re part of our family, part of our pack. Nothing is ever going to change that.”
I’ll make sure of it.
Epilogue
Nora
“I haveto tell you something, but I don’t want you to freak out.”
And there we were, enjoying a Sunday morning together. Lazing around in bed, cuddling, pretty much in the bubble we’ve existed in over the past few weeks. Everyone in the pack has gone out of their way to make me feel welcome. It’s actually kind of uncomfortable sometimes. I get the feeling they’re all trying to make themselves feel better for treating me badly for so long. But then they didn’t know the truth. They thought I killed their alpha.
I’m even starting to get used to being around the rest of the family. I don’t know if Tara and I will ever be good friends or anything like that, but she’s trying. I guess I have to meet her halfway—if not for my sake, then for Cole’s. I don’t want there to be any awkwardness or tension in his life if I can help it, and Tara is his twin. She’ll always be important to him.
With Cole’s arms around me, I turn over to face him, draping a leg over his. I can’t believe there was ever a time I feltuncomfortable being this close to him—not to mention naked. Now, I can’t wait for the chance to tear our clothes off so we can be skin to skin like this. “Now that’s the first thing I’m going to do after hearing that, right? Of course I’m going to freak out.”
“I’m just trying to prepare you, that’s all.” He plants a tiny kiss on the tip of my nose. “Do you promise to do your best?”
“I will do my best not to freak out,” I promise, even if I don’t really mean it. I mean, how can I know for sure? He hasn’t said it yet, whatever it is.
His lips twitch in a smirk because, of course, he senses the truth behind my vow. “Your scent has changed.”
Oh, terrific. I sniff my armpit, frowning. “Do I stink?”
His laughter fills the room before he shakes his head. “No! Quite the opposite, actually. Your scent has changed because… you’re pregnant.”
Holy shit. I’m not supposed to freak out about this? “I am?” And now I have to think back. How long has it been…? Everything’s been so crazy, I lost track.
“I hope you are happy.” He strokes my hair, giving me time to process while my brain basically explodes. Pregnant. I’m going to have a baby.
Our baby.
A soft giggle bursts out of me before our eyes meet again. “I’m going to have a baby?”
“It seems that way, yes.” With all the tenderness in the world, he asks, “Are you happy? I know we never talked about it?—”
I silence the rest of his questions with a deep kiss filled with all of the love and promise swelling in my heart. “I’mso happy.” Tears fill my eyes, which he wipes away once they spill over onto my cheeks. “Are you?”
“Are you kidding? I can’t wait for it to get here.” One hand drifts between us and lands on my belly. “The thought of you growing with the life I put inside you? It’s also kind of a turn-on.” His eyes darken with meaning, and of course, my body responds as strongly as ever.
But… “We did say we’d be downstairs for breakfast today,” I remind him when the aroma of bacon hits my nose. “And I really am trying to be more a part of the family, remember?”
“Sometimes, I wish we could go back to when we never left this room,” he grumbles, and we’re both laughing and joking as we get out of bed and get dressed.
A baby. It’s almost too much to wrap my head around. We’re going to have a baby. How is it possible that my life has changed so completely in such a short amount of time? It feels like everything I went through—all of the loneliness, the beatings, the bullying—happened to another person. Another version of me who had nothing but hope to cling to. Hope that one day, things would be better.
And now here I am, in love, pregnant, with nothing but the rest of my life to look forward to.
I’m floating on air by the time we reach the kitchen, where Declan’s bacon and French toast await. “I swear, I could eat an entire loaf of bread worth of your French toast,” I tell Declan, who gives me a smile as I take a seat.
“You would have to get through me first,” Zeke warns as he loads up his plate. “Did you see Tara upstairs? What’s taking her so long this morning? Does she need more beauty sleep?”
Cole pauses in the middle of pouring juice for us. “You know what, I didn’t hear her in her room.” Zeke gets up to look for her, and Cole snags a piece of bacon from his plate.
He’s only halfway through eating it when Zeke calls out from upstairs. “She’s not here!”
A ripple of concern moves over the room as we all exchange glances. Cole checks his phone, and Declan does the same in case they missed a text from her, but she hasn’t sent any messages.
It’s obvious what needs to be done. We go out to the back porch and strip down before shifting so we can follow her scent. Declan leads the way with Cole close behind. I feel his worry building the further we get from the house. Why would she be all the way out here? Why wouldn’t she tell anybody? I can’t help but remember the way we found her and Cole in that clearing. There’s nobody left with any sort of grudge against the family, is there?
I don’t realize how far we’ve gone until Declan stops short, and Cole along with him.“We can’t go any further than this,”Declan announces, scanning the area around us with narrowed eyes.
“Why would she go here?”Cole is full of disbelief. Even I know where we are. This is the edge of bear territory, where the pack is never supposed to wander. Why would she come out here?
“There’s only one reason she would dare venture into bear territory.”Declan looks at the three of us in turn before his body heaves in a deep sigh.“The mating bond.”
