by Kat Bostick
“Help us resolve it?” She choked on the words.
“Not in a literal sense…” Charlie stroked his chin, considering. “Clementine, put some finesse into my words, please.”
“Pa just wants to give you encouragement. Or, if you need it, counseling. We can talk about whatever it is that’s making you hesitate. On both fronts.”
“We can talk about it?” The borders of Mari’s vision were beginning to redden. Or maybe that was her entire body blushing. “You’re not hearing me. I don’t want to talk about this. It’s. None. Of. Your. Business.”
Passive aggressive as always, Deak added, “And in the meantime, Jasper’s just going to go on a killing spree the next time someone looks at you wrong.”
Cash gave his two cents as well. Charlie’s coaxing voice joined the mix, with Clem accenting every few words with her finesse. The noise was too much. That familiar shroud, inky and smothering, was rolling over her mind. Anxiety mingled with anger, each of them growing heavier and heavier until her shoulders were curling inward. Couldn’t they hear her heart beating too fast? Couldn’t they sense the darkness dirtying her soul? It was like an ichor that coated her insides. She felt so very filthy.
Rotten and foul. I bring nothing but agony and death. That blackness crooned in her voice.
Desperate for them to stop, just stop, Mari shouted the first thing that came to mind. “We’ll get married!”
A pause, then Clem asked, “A wedding?”
“It’s a commitment, isn’t it?”
“Clever,” Said Charlie. “A temporary solution, but a solution.”
The fog lifted, a little anyway, but the anxiety stayed. Did she just propose to Jasper? Without him even being present? Mari didn’t hate the idea of getting married. To the pack, mated was as good as married, maybe better. To her, marriage still meant something. Witches held marriage as sacred. They didn’t always stay true to their vows as earnestly as werewolves but the ritual and commitment was important.
And maybe it was important to her on a personal level, too. It was humanizing, a touch of her world infused into theirs.
“I wonder,” Clem paced in front of Charlie’s desk. “Could this help with your father as well?”
“My father?” Mari was absolutely positive that she hadn’t talked to anyone about that except Jasper. She didn’t want to. The way Dad behaved toward her was patronizing and she had no interest in sharing that humiliation with the pack. “That’s—” Magic pulsed eagerly beneath her skin. How frustrating that it was so easily accessible when she shouldn’t be using it. She took a slow, calming breath, willing the magic to sink deeper into her and settle wherever it belonged before the pesky devil on her shoulder got a hold of it. “Stop eavesdropping.”
Clem and Charlie had the decency to look guilty. Cash and Deak did not.
“The pack needs to learn to integrate themselves into the modern world. We need to have ears and eyes open both to humans and to the allies we might create in the world of magic folk, if we’re careful.” Deep blue eyes watched her carefully, beseeching and apologetic all at once. For all that they could be frightening and destructive, werewolves were also annoyingly good at puppy dog eyes. Clem continued, “We’re inexperienced in that arena. We need practice.”
Mari was unclear where this was going but she didn’t miss that they were changing the topic and refusing to apologize for what had definitely been eavesdropping. “Practice?”
“Yes. Your introduction into the pack has made it clear that in some ways, we’re very behind.” She rested on the edge of Charlie’s desk, hands clasped neatly together. “Bringing your family here could be just what you need to feel settled. You want to be more involved in the outside world, as do we all.”
“Not me.” Deak interjected.
“No.” Mari rubbed her temple with two fingers. “No way. You can’t invite my dad here. He has no reason to visit and he’s made it clear how he feels about me living here.”
“He has the perfect reason to visit.” Charlie smiled like a Cheshire cat. “What father would miss his daughter’s wedding?”
“Dad is not going to be less worried about me if I tell him I’m marrying some guy I met months ago. My family and friends back home think I’m having a mental breakdown and this whole thing is a result of my impaired judgement.”
Clem was as giddy as Charlie now. “But it’s not and you can prove that to them. Consider it an experiment. The best way to help us become more accustomed to outside interaction is exposure. We’ll expose ourselves to your family and see what happens!”
Mari tried, really, she did, but she couldn’t hold back laughter. “I think it’s going to take more than one visit with my family to make you normal.”
“It’s a start.” Clem smiled softly, taking the laughter as encouragement and probably forgiveness.
“It’s settled then. They can come for the wedding and stay for Christmas.” Charlie clapped his hands together, his excitement teasing out that playful Irish lilt of his. “I love parties.”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa! Jasper doesn’t even know that we’re having this conversation.” Mari put her hands up to stop him before he started doing a jig. “Let me talk to him. In the meantime, I’ll find a way to calm him down.”
Deak rolled his eyes. “We just told you exactly how to do it.”
“Well, not exactly how. If you need instructions, maybe a little hands on experience, I can help you there.” Cash winked. Both Clem and Deak smacked him this time.
“Is there anything else, Charlie? I need to get ready for work.” Mari crossed her arms over her chest, ready to stomp up the stairs.
“Yes, there is one more thing.” Calculating. That fast he went back to calculating. Mari could see the wheels turning and she didn’t like it. “You’ve been a member of the pack for two moons now and it’s time you had your own role. I’m naming you pack liaison. From this point forward you will be my voice when I’m not present during negotiations with outside parties. I want you to handle dealings with other magic folk and humans alike.”
“What?” Deak, Cash, and Mari all asked at once.
“I’m naming you the official liaison of the Humble Springs pack.” Charlie repeated.
“You want her to be the voice of the alpha? She’s not even a wolf!” Deak snarled. “You call me tactless but have you heard her speak?”
“What better candidate than a Wolfseggner? Ina was an excellent diplomat.” Clem pointed out, obviously in on Charlie’s plans. “You’re going to do very well, I know it.”
“What if I don’t want this job?” Mari asked. “For once I agree with Deak. I’m not cut out for that.”
“It’s not a job, it’s your role. You belong to this pack so you must meet certain expectations, as we all do.” The alpha perched beside Clem on the desk and gave Mari a look that dared her to challenge him.
Mari took the dare. “I’m not any more equipped to handle humans or magic folk than the rest of you. I’m a recluse with no friends or social skills.”
Cash looked offended. “We’re your friends.”
“And you have excellent social skills. The reviews that customers leave for you at the lodge prove that.” Charlie’s doe-eyed cheerleader said. Of all the occupants in the room, she could claim the most innocence. She genuinely meant well and her motives were black and white. The pack was in distress—more specifically, Jasper was in distress—and she viewed it as her responsibility to help fix it.
Charlie, on the other hand, was so devoid of innocence that Mari thought she could smell it. He was up to something.
“You want to form alliances with witches and wizards? Do you remember what happened to the last Luminary that tried to form an alliance with me?” Mari was losing this challenge and quickly.
“She does have a good point.” Cash pretended to stab himself in the heart while making a horrible choking sound.
“Too soon, Cash! Way too soon!” She covered her face, feebly willing the darkness
away. How could they be so nonchalant about death? About murder?
He put his hands up. “You brought it up.”
“This summer you marched into werewolf territory and demanded an audience with the alpha. You demanded my respect. That is the attitude I want from a liaison. That is the impression I want our pack to have on the magic world. They already fear us. What I want now is for them to respect us.” Charlie dismissed any further argument with a wave of his hand. “I’ve already got a meeting set up for you in Hibbing next week. Now, off with you or I’ll have to fire you for being late.” The alpha winked. He actually freaking winked as if they were just having a friendly chat and he wasn’t puppeteering her life.
Mari clenched her jaw shut, considering whether or not she wanted to attempt a snarky retort on her way out. She was fuming so hard that she was afraid her words would carry magic. It wouldn’t help to cast spells on the alpha, accidentally or not. Instead, she whipped around, flung the study door open so wildly it slammed against the wall, and stomped up the stairs as loudly as possible. It was a childish exit but it was better than the alternative, which was to spit on Charlie.
Jasper was in the shower when Mari returned to their room. She was unbuttoning her jeans and preparing to join him—who cared if she was late to work? Her boss was an ass—when her cell phone rang. Mari stripped out of her shirt, ignoring the annoying tone. It rang again. She was half naked when the third call came, letting her know that today was not going to be her day.
With a growl that could rival a werewolf’s, Mari stuffed herself back into her clothes and whipped the phone off the nightstand.
“Hi, Dad. How’s the weather back home?”
Chapter 4
Mari
The thing about a lie was that it only counted as a lie until it became the truth. Mari reminded herself this at least four times as she listened to her father’s irate voice through the speaker of her cell phone. By the time she hung up, her lie had finally sunk into her own brain, leaving her with an “oh shit” expression on her face.
It shouldn’t be a big deal. They were already as good as married, weren’t they? Irrevocably bound. And yet, there wasn’t a ring on her finger or a white dress with her name on it. So why the hell did Mari just tell Dad that she and Jasper were getting married? Well, because they were. As soon as she informed Jasper, anyway.
Flying by the seat of your pants, as always, Mari. Nice one.
“It’s not a big deal.” She shook her head back and forth enough times to dislodge her wool hat and send it into the snow. “Really, it’s not that big of a deal.”
It was going to happen eventually. Mari was fine with the whole mate thing now—lie. Okay, let’s try that again. Mari was happy to be with Jasper and easing into the whole mate thing, but she would have wanted more for them at some point. Marriage, rings, that official piece of paper. She was raised the human way and to her, marriage was important. She just hadn’t expected to do it so soon.
And she hadn’t planned on being the one to ask him to marry her. Whatever, she could be flexible. Mari was nothing if not adaptable.
But was she doing this because she actually wanted to? Or was it because she was trying to appease Dad and Charlie? Was it because she was trying so hard to be a different person—an honest person—and now felt obligated to fix her lie before it festered and dishonesty became a part of her personality? Or—this was her least favorite one—was she panicking because Jasper was in a tailspin and offering him more commitment seemed like the way to fix it without having to complete their bond?
Freaking Charlie. This was all his fault.
“It doesn’t have to be a big deal. People my age do it all the time. Nothing to freak out over.”
“Do what all the time?”
“Sweet baby werewolf Jesus!” Mari shrieked, spinning on her heel and falling butt-first into the snow. “You scared the crap out of me!” Jasper’s grin was one part mischief and all parts smolder. “Handsome jerk.” At least he didn’t appear to be mad at her anymore.
“You think I’m handsome?”
Mari was about to accuse him of stalking when she realized she’d been pacing in front of the house for nearly half an hour after telling him she only needed two minutes to wrap up what should have been a routine phone call with her dad.
“I didn’t mean to say that out loud.” To herself, she mumbled, “I shouldn’t have said anything out loud today.”
He offered her a hand, hoisting her up before her jeans were soaked through. “You never do, and yet that tongue of yours is always getting carried away.”
Why did that make her feel so warm and tingly? He could quote lines from Star Wars and it would probably be sexy. Which was as annoying as it was thrilling. No one should be that seductive when they were just existing.
His grin broadened, eyes glinting like emeralds. “What are you thinking about, precious honeysuckle?”
“You.”
He shifted closer, drawing in a long breath and letting it out in a pleased purr. “What about me?”
“Marriage.” She blurted. “We’re getting married.” Clearing her throat, she added, “by the way.”
“We are?”
“Yup!” Mari backed up to give herself space before she was distracted by his body heat and how good he smelled freshly showered. “If you want to, I mean.”
“We’re already mated. Why do we need to get married?”
That miffed her more than she expected. “I’m not a werewolf. We should do both. We are doing both.”
His laughter echoed across the front yard. “That’s got to be the worst marriage proposal I’ve ever heard.”
“Have you received many marriage proposals?” She asked, huddling further into the North Face jacket that Jasper had somehow tricked her into letting him buy. Good thing too, because Minnesota winters were not pretty and her previous coat—all of her winter attire—was burned to a crisp.
“Well, Charlie did spend years trying to set me up with a she-wolf.”
“Remind me to kill him when we go back inside.” Freaking Charlie.
“Does that make you jealous? I didn’t know you were so territorial.”
Mari lifted her chin primly. “Stop looking so pleased with yourself. You’re avoiding the topic. Do you not want to marry me?”
“Do you want to marry me.” He corrected. “And you’re not even on one knee. Should I be insulted?”
“If you want to get technical, you are supposed to ask me.”
He cupped her face, pressing his thumbs against her cheeks and forcing a smooshed smile. “Is that why you’re scowling at me? Because I haven’t asked you to marry me?”
“I’m not scowling at you.”
“Now who’s avoiding questions?”
Mari wrapped her arms around herself, shivering as the wind picked up. Dang it was cold out here. “I haven’t even been here six months. Why would you ask me to marry you?”
“Ah, a question with a question. Your avoidance tactics are improving.” He untangled her arms and slipped them beneath his coat.
She lifted the bottom of his thermal shirt and pressed her bare hands into the skin on his back. Jasper hissed and wriggled, but she kept her arms locked tight around him. “Serves you right.”
“Particularly feisty this morning, aren’t we?”
A sigh floated hot and weary through the cold air around them. “I don’t know why I can’t just tell my dad to get a life and be done with it. I don’t know why I even answer his calls.” By the wrinkle of his forehead, Jasper clearly didn’t understand what this had to do with her botched marriage proposal, but he let her continue without interruption. “He’s always so angry with me, like it’s my fault the house burned down and I was left with nothing.” Though, if she thought about it long enough, Mari could certainly find reasons to blame herself for it too. And for Gran’s death. For what happened to Jacob the night she met Jasper. All of it.
But it was done. Each of those event
s happened and there was no changing them. There probably never was. Being a Sibylline Dreamer—dreaming the future—didn’t necessarily mean she could change it, only that she knew it was coming. If Gran was to be believed, everything that happened to Mari this year was fate, a divine intervention to set her life on the course it was on now.
Well, to point her in the right direction, anyway. Goddesses could only control an individual so much, which meant they couldn’t stop her from making irreversible mistakes. They couldn’t protect her from what she might have allowed into herself by killing Lyse with an enchanted dagger.
And she wanted Jasper to marry her? To bind herself to him further? If anything, she should be scouring Lyses’ tomes and legacies for a way to undo the bond that they already shared. It was the only way to protect him.