Page 22 of Married to the Wolf

Someone pressed a heaping plate of food in her hand, and the scent of the barbecue brought her fingers to sample the fare even before she knew she did it. Tender meat and delicious juices danced on her taste buds. “Good lord, this is some good stuff.”

Sebastian grinned with pleasure. “No one can cook like our women.”

She pursed her lips at him. “Well, since I’m not big on it, I’m not going to challenge that statement. Who’s the man waving at us?”

Sebastian looked away from her to the man wearing plaid shorts and a plaid button down shirt of a different color scheme. He wore canvas sneakers without socks and had elected to part his hair down the middle. Even fashion-challenged types were amid the shifters, she supposed.

The man waved both hands and grinned so big his cheeks must hurt. Sebastian nodded once, and the man turned to grab the arm of the woman standing next to him and dragged her over to them. For her part, the woman had better fashion sense, wearing a simple halter top, shorts, and sandals. She appeared to be twenty years the man’s junior, and from the sour look she threw him, not a fan.

“Alpha, welcome to our neighborhood,” the man gushed. “This is your beautiful bride? Oh, you are a lucky man, sir. I’m so glad to meet you Mrs. Alpha. My name is Robbie, and this is my wife Belle.”

He held out his hand for her to shake, but Sophia was so far taken aback by his calling her “Mrs. Alpha” she forgot to respond. No one she had met so far called her such a stupid name, and no one kissed Sebastian’s ass like this guy either.

Robbie wiped his hand on his shorts. “Oh, right. I’m sorry. I’m not worthy to shake your hand.”

“Worthy?” She felt a little sick. “Look, it’s not that serious, okay? It’s nice to meet you, Robbie and Belle. Just call me Sophia.”

Robbie scraped and bowed some more until Sophia was ready to crack him over the head. Sebastian’s nostrils flared like he smelled something. Sophia gave him a look as if to say “these are your crazy people.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Belle said, but she wasn’t looking at them. Sophia glanced over her shoulder to see if she could follow the woman’s line of sight and could only tell that she stared toward one of the houses.

While Belle wasn’t paying attention and Robbie talked Sebastian’s ear off, Sophia studied the couple. They seemed to be as unlikely a pair as possible. Mostly because Robbie had grabbed Belle’s hand, and she had promptly yanked it away. He sweated like crazy and wiped his neck with a dirty handkerchief every so often.

Belle stood still and quiet with her hands clasped in front of her. Wisps of silver streaked dark chocolate hair, and strands flew about her face when a breeze stirred. She hardly seemed to notice.

“Belle,” Sophia said on impulse, “do you mind showing me where I can get a soda?”

The woman startled at hearing her name, but she forced a smile. “Sure.”

They moved away from Sebastian and Robbie, and Sophia took advantage of all the noise to talk with Belle. “Is there something wrong? You seem to be a little distracted.”

“No!” She tensed and then seemed to regret her sharp tone. “I’m sorry. It’s just that I’m worried about my son. He’s in the house—”

Sophia stopped walking. “Alone? Kids can get up to all kinds of things when left alone. I know you’re just outside, but I can see why you’re worried.”

Belle blushed. “Well, he’s not exactly a kid anymore. He’s thirteen.”

“Oh.”

“You must think I’m an overprotective mother.”

Sophia shook her head. “I don’t have much family or experience with kids, so I’m not one to judge. Plus…” She didn’t want to bring up the subject of hunters. Sebastian had mentioned attacks in the past, so it went without saying. As she looked into Belle’s hazel gaze, she tried to imagine her as a wolf and failed.

“Your husband seems to be relaxed.” She didn’t know what else to say about Robbie.

Belle’s expression turned sour. “He’s not Marty’s father! Marty’s father was my mate, and he was killed.”

Sophia gasped. “I’m so sorry.”

She shrugged, but Sophia was pretty sure she still hurt over it. “I married Robbie because I needed someone to help me financially. I wanted the best life I could provide for Marty. What a load of crock.”

“Um.” Sophia had wanted to draw her into a bit of light conversation, but Belle was ready to bare her soul. They had just met so she wasn’t sure how to respond. “I’m sure Robbie is a responsible husband and stepfather.”

The woman glared at her like she couldn’t believe what an idiot Sophia was. “You’re sure, huh? Why, because you think we’re all perfect?”

Sophia put up a hand. “Okay, dial it down. First of all, with that outfit Robbie left the house in, nobody in their right mind would think your people are perfect. Second, I’m just trying to be nice. I don’t know you. All I’m getting from you is attitude. You don’t want to be friendly? Fine. You’re not hurting my feelings.”

She spun away, but Belle grabbed her arm to stop her. The second she did she jerked away and stumbled back a step. “S-sorry.”

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