Page 67 of Bullied Mate

“I’m not sure why.”

“I think we both know why.”

Pressure weighed down my shoulders. “Juriah would know.”

“I know lots of things.”

“You know how to hook up with people, Izzy. That’s not the same thing as mating.”

He took a step to the right. “I hate to say you have a point, but yeah. You do.”

“What am I doing?”

“You’re making bread.”

I shoved my fingers into the bowl to mix the ingredients. I wasn’t even sure I was mixing them properly at this stage. Measurements weren’t precise when my head was mixed up. All that mattered was the mixing part, and the proofing part, and then the baking part.

Sharp breaths marked each movement. “I know I’m making bread, Izzy.”

“Then why did you ask, silly?”

“I don’t know.”

He tittered. “You’ve been bitten by the crush bug.”

“Thewhat?”

“It’s an expression.”

A chuckle tilted my head. “Izdor, I don’t think anyone says that.”

“Well, I’m saying it now. So, it should be used, shouldn’t it?”

“Sure. Yes.”

He reached over the bowl to grab the salt and dashed some into the mixture. “I think you’re in love, Galanthia. I’ve never seen you like this. You’ve always been calm and collected. No one has ever rattled you. I mean,nothinghas ever rattled you.”

“That’s the problem.”

“The rattling?”

I nodded. “It applies to them both. I’m not sure how to handle it.”

“Just go with the flow. See where things take you.”

“What if we argue again? What if Leo decides he doesn’t like me? What if they chase me out the door and reject me for not being able to shift into a wolf form that apparently never existed in me?”

Izdor took my shoulders and shook me. “Woman, snap out of it. That man adores you. Hiskidadmires the heck out of you. Stop letting your fear take over!”

Strips of hair had fallen into my face. Wild how a few shakes from an Elderling could discombobulate nearly everything about my appearance. When Izdor let me go, I stumbled slightly, catching myself on the counter. The bowl swiveled off to the left. Flour spattered the ground.

I sighed. “You’ve made a mess.”

“You started it.”

“And I’ll finish it too.”

Dramatics with this one were the norm. I wondered about that now that our lives had progressed in phenomenal ways. “Didn’t you get bitten by the crush bug recently?”

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