Meadow was sharing the sofa with both River and Buddy, happily sitting between the two, listening to Buddy read. River followed Buddy's finger with an intensity she'd never seen from him before. He, too, was making an effort to learn.
This classroom which only minutes before had evidenced her failure, now proved her success. As a teacher, this little band of children - and two young adults, she reminded herself- fulfilled her in more ways than any full classroom ever had. These children needed her and needed the pack and they were growing to love her even though they didn't know what love was. She was teaching them more than reading and writing.
She was teaching them to live without fear and she wasn't teaching them alone. She had the Alpha and his pack. She knew there was still a lot of work to be done. Dakota was still a blood thirsty little devil and Rangers laughter covered a mountain of fear. Forest was still wary of men and Meadow had yet to talk normally. This idyllic scene wouldn't last forever, but right at this moment, she felt there was hope. Whatever River had told them seemed to work.
She looked over to where he sat and found him watching her. She smiled and mouthed the words "Thank you" and her heart skipped a beat when his lips moved, too.
"You're welcome."
The moment of peaceful and studious diligence passed, not because of the students, but because Charles, their Alpha, strode through the door.
"Little Red Riding Hood," he said. He pointed at Meadow and crooked his finger. "Come here."
Her eyes went wide and Charles laughed and that made her eyes grow wider.
"And don't worry about piddling on the floor. We all know you're empty. Come here. Your Alpha awaits."
He held out his hand and it was River who slid her to the floor.
"Go on. Meadow, and remember that you're brave."
Taking very tiny steps, she made her way across the room and placed her hand in the giant's paw. In one swift motion, he tossed her up and over his shoulder and onto his back. Her arms circled his neck in a choking hold. Seating her more firmly, he grasped her legs and jogged a little in place.
"Someday soon I'll let you ride my wolf, but for now we'll do it this way."
He began with a gentle trot around the room, but soon was at a full gallop. Down the hall they flew, Meadow's laughter trailing behind them. It was the first happy sound she had made. Kat wanted to cry for the joy of it, but they didn't give her a chance. The boys were clamoring for a turn on the wolf and while they were both too big for that type of play, Charles galloped away with them without complaint.
They whooped and hollered and when it was Meadow's turn again, they were chased from the kitchen by a laughing Mrs. Martin. Jo, who'd been hiding in the office with Ryker and Hyatt, held the front door open for wolf and rider to escape. The men followed along with the boys and soon the yard became a battlefield of riders and horses with a squealing little girl cheering them on.
Kat and Jo closed the door on their fun and headed to the kitchen to join Mrs. Martin who was filling a plate with cookies and had glasses already set out for the milk. Kat put the kettle on for tea.
"This is the way it's supposed to be," Mrs. Martin said approvingly.
But Kat wasn't listening. The battle had moved to the back of the house and as she watched the Alpha laughing the loudest, she couldn't have loved him more.
Chapter 31
Like all the decisions he'd made since becoming the true Alpha, once Charles decided they would be mated, plans were immediately underway.
"I wonder what he would have done if I'd said no," Kat mused.
The ever practical Tilda looked up and mumbled through a mouthful of pins, "Ya didn't. That's that."
"He probably would have run you down and taken you the old way. That's what I would have done." Jo, who'd organized everything, but had no domestic skills at all, held out an old metal lozenge box filled with straight pins for a refill.
Kat stood in the center of the breakfast table while Tilda deftly turned up the hem of her mating gown. It wasn't the gown she would have chosen to be married in, but it was lovely in its own simplistic way.
The gown was white silk, gathered under the bust in an empire style with long sleeves gathered at the elbow and wrist and a long fall of lace that fell over her hands. The neckline was a deep scoop that showed off the tops of her breasts just enough to be enticing without flaunting her well endowed chest. The gatherings at waist and arm were dotted with tiny pink rosebuds and according to Tilda, it was exactly like the gown Emily had worn when she was mated to Charles' father. And she should know since she'd made that one, too.
"What do you mean the old way? I thought this was the old way," Kat said, referring to the gown. While very pretty, it was designed for freedom of movement as were her shoes which were nothing more than satiny ballet slippers.
Part of the mating ritual involved something called the Chase. She would run through the woods while Charles chased her as a Wolf. According to Jo, the longer she could evade him, the more fun everyone would have and then, in the privacy of a spot he had chosen for the occasion, they would mate.
"It's only symbolic of the old ways. In the good old days the Mate wasn't always willing." Jo laughed. "Hell, I bet they were never willing. They were captured and running was their one hope of escape. Of course, running also triggers the instinct to chase, so… Haven't you noticed that this dress resembles nightgown?"
Kat's eyes widened in horror as she looked down at her dress. It did look like an old fashioned nightgown. Holy shit. "You mean they were… forced?"
"Yup, and with the whole pack there to watch." Jo laughed again when Kat paled and swallowed visibly.
"Nobody's going to be watching us, though, right?"
"Sure. Didn't anyone tell you you'd be spending your wedding night under the watchful eyes of a hundred and fifty guests?"
"No!" Tradition was all well and good but there were some things she simply would not do.
Tilda spit her pins into her hand. "Stop your nonsense, now," she admonished the laughing Jo, but she was laughing, too. "There'll be no such goings-on. All of that was hundreds of years ago. Nobody does that today. Some of the men will follow you on the Chase, but once you're caught they'll leave you in peace to do what needs to be done."
"Okay then." Kat nodded her head, relieved, and then bit her lip worriedly. "Will it hurt?"
Jo cackled at that. "It's a little too late to play the blushing virgin now, isn't it? As I recall, you even have some experience being roped and tied."
"Jo!" Kat cried and then whispered, "Not that. The other."
Charles had explained it to her, showed her how it would be done, but the thought of it frightened her little. During the ritual, while they were physically mating, he would bite her, bite her hard enough to draw blood and at that moment, she would become part of the pack.
The thought of becoming a true member of this wondrous society she had discovered thrilled her. It was a fairytale come true. The idea of running through the wild in wolf form, side-by-side with Charles, excited her. The biting? Not so much. She wasn't into pain. A little paddling on the ass didn't count.
Jo shrugged. "Don't know. Never knew a Mate well enough to ask. The Alpha from Rabbit Creek will be there with his Mate, Elizabeth. I guess you could ask her."
"Sure," Kat sighed, "Hi, Elizabeth. Nice to meet you. You don't know me from Adam. So how was your wedding night? Did your most intimate moment hurt?" She looked down and gave the grinning Jo the evil eye. "Sure," she repeated, "I can do that."
Tilda inserted the last pin and patted Kat's bare foot. "You'll do fine. With what you two get up to, a little nibble on the neck shouldn't be a far stretch."
"How do you know what we get up to?" Kat eyed the woman suspiciously.
"If you don't want folks to know, then you shouldn't be doing it in the backyard for all and sundry to see. You forget, darkness isn't the same for us as it is for you. We can see just fine." Tilda gathered her scissors and loose pins and p
laced the pins in the metal box before taking it from Jo and closing it with a snap.
"Oh. My. God. Is nothing sacred in this house?" Kat's blush had gone from red to purple.
"It's sacred. It just ain't secret."
"What? What did I miss?"
Jo looked from one woman to the other, but neither woman was telling.
* * *
The week leading up to the mating was a relatively peaceful one. Since the incident with River and the resulting wolf rides, the children had settled down in the classroom. Mrs. Martin laid down the law in the kitchen, when yet another glass when flying off the table to shatter on the floor.
"That's it." She slammed the dishtowel onto the counter as if she hoped it might make a resounding crash, too. She marched to the table and began clearing half empty plates, going so far as to snatch the biscuit out of Ranger's hand. "I'm done. You can eat pig slop out back of the barn and be grateful we don't keep pigs." She put her fists on her hips and stared the boys down. "I ain't cooking one more meal for you. No cookies, no cakes, no pies," she said glaring at Dakota who liked his sweets. "No fried chicken and mashed potatoes with gravy." That was for Ranger, who couldn't get enough of the crisp and savory treat.
She didn't ignore the girls, either. "No chocolate chip pancakes for you, young lady, until you hold that fork like a fork instead of a shovel. And you." She shook her head sadly as she pointed at Forest. "I'm so-o-o disappointed in you, Miss Forest. You've helped me in this kitchen. You know how much work goes into laying out a meal in this house and it don't bother you atall when it's thrown on the floor? I thought you'd have more respect for yourself and your hard work.
"So here it is, you ungrateful pups. You can whittle down to nothing right here on my kitchen floor and I'll weep when you're gone, but I ain't feeding you one more thing. And don't go looking at Miz Kat for sympathy, because she ain't got no say here. This is my kitchen and who I feed is my say."
Kat shrugged to let them know there was nothing she could do. In addition to missing half their breakfast, she'd give them the morning without their snack and talk to them before lunch about how to go about changing Mrs. Martin's mind. They should be hungry enough by then to come to their own conclusions.
"It's not all about manners," River said from the door. He ate with the adults now but always took time to stop by the kitchen. "It's about Miz Kat and Mr. Charles, too. They got their big mating party coming up and there'll be lots of folks there looking us over. I won't have you shaming the Alpha or his Mate with your bad manners. It's time you started acting like children instead of beasts. You listen to Miz Kat and do what she's already showed you and no more fussing at the table or I'll be the one feeding you scraps out behind the barn. You hear?"
Kat pressed her lips together to keep from laughing out loud. River, the main instigator of this uncivilized behavior, had executed a complete about face and was now insisting the heathens attend church.
The children, however, missed the irony as well as their breakfast and snacks. They were ready to apologize and promised better behavior well before lunch. Not realizing the self-incriminating aspect of their performance, they were true to their word and by supper were using their utensils like old pros, evidence that they knew how all along or at least from the time they were first shown.
They weren't the only source of surprise. Alex returned from the city with the rest of the pack to join in the festivities. Charles swore he could feel no animosity from any of them and Kat was happy for him, but she questioned their sincerity.
"Are you sure they're with you, Charles?" She knew that some were fence sitters, but surely there were some who resented the changes taking place. A week or two wouldn't cure their dissatisfaction.
"I'm not a mind reader, Katarina, but as they say in the hills where I was raised, my mama didn't raise no fool. I don't trust any of them, but I have no reason to judge them either. Alex did what he thought best and since I never insisted he run decisions by me in the past, I can't really fault him, can I? I can only tell you what I feel. They're well fed, happy and satisfied."
"Satisfied with what?" she wanted to ask, but didn't.
Charles was more relaxed than he'd been since Alex left and she didn't want to cast doubt where there should be none. She didn't like Alex, didn't trust him or his loyalty to Charles, but she also knew her personal prejudices could color her opinions.
Her initial reaction to Jo was a case in point. What she thought the woman was and what she turned out to be were two very different things. Jo had become a dear friend and it was to Jo she voiced her concerns.
"Now that the mantle has fallen squarely on his shoulders, could you hide your feelings from The Alpha?"
"Why would I want to?" Jo seemed genuinely perplexed.
"I don't know," Kat hedged, "I'm trying to figure out how it works, I guess. Okay. Suppose you were planning a big surprise birthday party for him. Would he know?"
"Why? Are you planning one? He's coming up on forty, you know." Jo looked ready to take up her PDA and start the planning.
Forty? Really? She was marrying this guy and had no clue how old he was. Was something wrong with this picture? No! Kat shook her head to clear it of the distraction. "I don't care how old he is and I'm not planning anything. It's just an example. Could you hide it or would he know?"
"He'd know I was happy and excited, but he wouldn't know why. Not unless I kept an image of balloons and a Happy Birthday sign in my head and even then, he'd have to look for it." Jo frowned and squinted her eyes suspiciously. "Are you hiding something?"
"No! But what if other people are, Jo. Who stands for Charles and who doesn't?"
"Hell, how would I know? That's the Alpha's business, not mine. I don't want to see it happen, but if he's challenged, there's nothing I can do to stop it."
"Who can?"
"No one. Once a challenge has been made in earnest, that's it. There's going to be a fight. That's Pack Law. But just because someone pisses and moans about some decision the Alpha's made, doesn't mean they're going to stage a coup. Anyone who issues a challenge puts their life on the line. It's a fight to the death, Kat. You don't just wake up one morning and say 'I think I'll challenge the Alpha today.' And if you win? You sure as hell better have the majority on your side or you'll be the one facing a challenge tomorrow. A simple challenge can grow into a tremendous mess, Kat. That's why there's so few of them."
"Who in the pack is strong enough to beat him, other than Ryker?"
"It doesn't matter," Jo didn't raise her voice, but she was shouting in exasperation just the same. "That's not the way it happens. At least it wouldn't if I was running the show. I'd find the biggest, dumbest wolver I could. That's who I'd put against the Alpha. My guy would get beat and I'd put up another and another until the Alpha can barely stand." She nodded her head in satisfaction. "Now I challenge him. I attack when he's at his weakest. I told you before. It's not just physical strength. It's cunning, too. I'm weaker physically. I'd have to find my strength in other ways."
"You're not helping, Jo."
"I know and I'm sorry about that, but you've got to understand, Kat. We're wolvers. We're not human. The survival of the pack is first and foremost and we follow its Alpha. The Alpha, not the man. In a good pack, they're one and the same and a pack that loves their Alpha is a happy and fortunate pack. We don't have to love the Alpha or respect him, but we are compelled to follow him for the sake of the pack. Without the pack, there's chaos."
"So when Charles and Ryker were counting up those for and against, they weren't talking about one team against the other." This was more serious than Kat first thought.
"No. They were looking at how many challenges there would be before the Alpha wins."
"Or before he dies," she whispered to herself.
Jo punched Kat's shoulder with her fist. "Buck up there, lady. You're going to be the Mate. Charles doesn't need your worry. He needs your faith. Tradition says that a true Mate has more power over
the Alpha than any other member of the pack. Her belief in him gives him strength. That's a tradition I'm going to believe in. You need to believe in it, too."
Chapter 32
Kat tried to follow Jo's advice. She tried to keep her mind filled with happy thoughts, but when she had a moment alone, the darkness of worry would creep in and fill her with such pain she had all she could do not to buckle under the weight of it.
She loved him. Oh, God, how she loved him and the thought of losing what she'd so recently found tore at her heart and brought tears to her eyes. She wanted to tell Charles how she felt. She wanted to share this almost overwhelming emotion with him, but Jo was right. Charles didn't need her worry or her fear, so she smiled and went through the motions of the last few days before her mating as cheerfully as she could.
It wasn't always hard. There was excitement everywhere. Buddy had mown the new grass to a velvet smoothness and the men were erecting huge tents to shelter the guests. As Jo predicted, there would be close to a hundred and fifty wolvers most of whom Kat didn't know. In addition to Charles' small band, his brother Marshall would be there with his Mate and a contingent of Rabbit Creek's finest and a few other Alphas and guests from nearby packs.
She worried about where they'd put them all if it rained, but no one else seemed concerned. Everyone swore the day would dawn sunny and warm and stay that way throughout. Kat could only trust that their animal sixth-sense was more accurate than the weather reports.
There was no point in holding school. There was too much going on inside and out for the children to concentrate.
Forest could always be found in the kitchen at Tilda's side practicing her newly learned skills. At the housekeeper's insistence, she pulled her hair back in a ponytail now and held herself more erect. She was still overly timid and perhaps always would be, but she no longer quaked with fear when the men walked by and she sometimes smiled shyly when they flattered and fussed over her baking.
The Alpha's Choice Page 24