is a good sign that the Goddess has blessed the clan. The news will give our people hope.”
He turns to the side, where a servant casts a nervous glance at Brandon before turning to me. “The hall is prepared, sire,” she says.
“We will talk on the morrow, Pete,” I say. “Thank you for all you have done, and for having a level head in handling Jack.”
Bowing his head in deference, he takes his leave.
“Come on, mutt,” I say. I swear the wolf glares at me.
Jessa smiles. “He looks grumpy,” she says.
“Are you sure they can’t understand humans?” I say, taking the steps to the hall. Brandon’s claws clack against the wooden floor as he follows us in. “Mayhap, it is a shifter secret.”
A bowing servant swiftly pushes the door shut, just as a scrap of red fur darts inside.
Brandon yips.
The cat jumps up onto the oak table like he owns it and gives Brandon a haughty glare.
“Oh!” Jessa says. A moment ago, she looked like she was ready to fall asleep. Now she is wide-eyed and perky. “What is that?”
“A cat,” I say, thinking this is obvious.
“My cat,” I correct. “The little bastard has taken to sleeping on my bed of a night when he is not busy mousing.”
“Can I pet him?” she asks, trying to wriggle down.
Brandon and the cat are eyeballing one another. I hope the wolf has the sense not to try and eat it.
Do wolves eat cats? I have seen the cat eat rats bigger than he is. I’m confident Brandon’s nose will feel the sting of claws if he gets too close.
“No, you can have a bath and eat some supper before we rest.”
“Oh,” she says, sounding disappointed.
Rolling my eyes, I carry her through to the bedding chamber where a bath is steaming ready for her.
Brandon follows us in, still in wolf form, and sits down to watch. The cat darts in, making a beeline for the bed, and settles in to start his nightly cleaning routine.
I wash Jessa in the bath. She can’t take her eyes off the fucking cat! But I like this too, the homely feeling as I work the tangles out of her hair, watched by our audience. How my life has changed. Not so long ago, I was bitter, angry, and heart sore with the ways of my clan.
There is a deep pain in the center of my chest when I think about Danon, still a prisoner of the Halket clan. But that is a worry for another day. First, we must deal with the fallout from the Ralston clan.
After we are done, and she is squeaky clean, I take her to the furs and settle her down for sleep.
It is not long before the cat snuggles in behind me. A little later, as I am falling into a doze, the bed dips, and Brandon, once more in human form, presses in on Jessa’s other side.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
Brandon
THE SCENTS OF the clan make me edgy, so I elect to go for a run first thing. It will help my wolf to become familiar with the clan and allow the clan to become familiar with me.
The three of us are bound together now. With hindsight, it has turned out better than I thought it might. When I spoke to Fen on the morning of the festival, he had encouraged me to consider the possibility.
At the time, I was in denial, still hoping that Jessa would say that she did not care for Gage.
That didn’t work out so well.
The forest here is mostly fir trees, being higher up the mountain than the Randal and Halket clans. My paws make a drum against the forest floor soft with fallen pine needles as I take larger and larger loops.
It helps to clear my mind in this form, and the clean forest scents further eases the anxiety balling in my gut. I sense no nefarious goings-on, only wary villagers while I was closer to the center.
They will come today, Jack, maybe Fen as well. I’m nervous, but I’m also hopeful. By now, Fen will have told Jack about our conversation, and learning that the three of us are bonded will not come as a surprise.
With hindsight, I do not believe Jack would have given Jessa to another Alpha. But neither Gage nor I were clear of mind when she first revealed. Still, Jack might have tried to separate us, perhaps thinking to protect Jessa. Neither Gage nor I would have tolerated that.
As I near the place