The Alpha's to Share: A BBW Paranormal Shifter Romance (10 page)

“I’m ashamed of myself for not noticing sooner,” he said. “It won’t happen again.”

Callie said nothing, instead focusing on eating her apple. Seth hoped she would forgive him, and that in time she would realize that he was the right mate for her. He’d just have to be especially careful to attend to her needs in the future in order to prove that to her.

Once Callie had eaten and he had wrapped her apples carefully in her bundle of clothing, he shifted into wolf form and Callie mounted him. His stomach was gnawing pitifully inside him, but he just wanted to get his new mate home.

Callie heard a long howl in the distance, and Seth reared his head back and howled his response. He dashed toward the sound, and Callie spotted another wolf, a bit smaller than Seth, but with the same coloring, standing on a hill.

The wolf dashed down the hill toward them, but Callie was unafraid. Seth had made no motions to defend them, so she knew this wolf must be one of his pack, or at least one he recognized as no threat.

As the wolf approached them, he sniffed the air deeply and then shifted. Bones cracked and bent, and before them rose a tall, lean man who looked a bit younger than Seth, but was every bit as gorgeous. He was tall with sandy hair and blue eyes. Callie swallowed a gasp, but her eyes widened.

“You must be Seth’s new mate,” he said, coming to stand beside them and extending his hand. “I am Wyatt, Seth’s brother.”

Callie took the proffered hand and shook it. When she tried to release it, Wyatt squeezed it harder for a moment as if reluctant to let go. After a moment, he finally released her hand.

“Nice to meet you, Wyatt,” Callie answered.

She slid off Seth’s back and he quickly shifted, greeting his brother with a firm clap of the hand into his brother’s waiting palm.

“How have you been, brother?” Seth asked. “Is the pack doing well?”

“There have been no disturbances in your absence,” Wyatt answered, his eyes shifting between his brother and Callie. “So this is your new mate, huh?”

“Not yet,” Seth said. “She has not yet accepted.”

“What’s the holdup?” Wyatt asked, his eyes suddenly piercing into hers. “Are you not attracted to my brother?”

She cleared her throat and shifted back and forth between feet, uncomfortable at being put on the spot right in front of Seth. She wasn’t sure how to answer.

“I… I just… I’m not ready to…”

“Wyatt, humans require a bit more time before making a lifelong commitment,” Seth informed his brother. “They prefer to get to know one’s personality on a deeper level before making things official.”

“I see,” said Wyatt, his eyes traveling up and down her body and making her breath quicken. He looked directly at Callie and said, “You never answered if you are attracted to my brother or not.”

“Wyatt, this is not an appropriate line of questioning,” Seth warned his brother. “Do not make her feel uncomfortable here or there will be consequences.”

“I don’t mean to make her uncomfortable,” Wyatt said. “I only mean to find out her intentions.”

“I have no intentions as of yet,” Callie shot out confidently, jutting her chin forward and crossing her arms defiantly. “Not that it is any of your business if I did.”

“Feisty!” Wyatt exclaimed with a wide grin. Then he growled, “I like it!”

Callie glared at Wyatt through narrowed eyes, and he chuckled at her, further infuriating her. Seth grabbed his brother’s shoulders and whirled him around, pushing him back toward the hill.

“Time to go,” Seth said.

Wyatt leaned back against this brother’s hands, struggling against their forward momentum. He glanced over his shoulder at Callie and grinned.

“I’ll see you soon, Callie!” Wyatt called to her.

“Let’s hope not,” she muttered under her breath.

Seth disappeared around the back of the hill with Wyatt in tow. They were arguing about something, and Callie took the time to look around. The area was rather nondescript. The trees were sparse here, but it wasn’t exactly a clearing. The remnants of a large bonfire stood near the hill, surrounded by several fallen logs that were almost certainly brought here for seating.

Her ankle was starting to throb again, so she took a seat on one of the logs to wait for Seth to return.

As she waited, she noticed a tiny creature peeking at her from behind the remains of the bonfire. It poked its head up and blinked at her with tiny black eyes. She couldn’t help but smile at the little animal.

“Hello!” she said softly, not wanting to frighten it.

Its head sank quickly underneath the pile of leaves that surrounded the bonfire. She noticed a lump moving closer to her, rustling the leaves as it moved along beneath them. Then a tiny nose popped out, and she could see the beady eyes peeking at her again.

“Hello,” she said again, reaching her hand toward the creature.

“That’s Ivy,” said a voice from behind her.

She twisted around and saw a young woman, about her own age, standing nude. Callie quickly turned away and apologized.

“I’m sorry,” Callie said quickly.

“For what?” asked the girl, sitting beside her on the log.

“Uh… never mind,” Callie said. “I’m Callie. What’s your name?”

“Willow,” the girl answered. “I’m Seth and Wyatt’s younger, and
much
smarter, sister. So you’re Seth’s new mate, huh?”

“I haven’t decided yet, to be honest,” Callie answered truthfully.

“Hmm, I see,” Willow said. “So what don’t you like about Seth?” Then she gasped and added, “Don’t tell me! You like Wyatt better!”

“No!” Callie shrieked. “No, absolutely not!”

“Ah, you
have
met him, then,” Willow giggled. “Wyatt’s not a bad guy, but he’s not easy to get along with sometimes.”

“I met him briefly, and I can see why you’d say that,” Callie said frankly.

“Come on out, Ivy,” Willow called.

The leaves rustled as the little creature, which had been watching them intently, slithered away beneath them.

“She’s shy,” Willow said. “But she’ll get used to you quickly.”

“Is she a rat?” Callie asked.

Willow burst into laughter and was unable to speak for several moments. Tears of mirth rolled down her pink cheeks, and she clutched her midsection and doubled over.

After a bit, she took a deep breath and leaned toward Callie to whisper, “Please don’t
ever
let her hear you say that. She’s a mink. And a shifter. And she’s only twelve years old and
very
sensitive.”

“Sorry, I didn’t know,” Callie said.

“Oh, it’s alright,” Willow said. “At least you said it to me and not her. Poor kid’s been through a lot.”

“Really? Like what?” Callie wondered aloud.

“Both her parents got killed by fur trappers,” Willow said sadly. “She’s an orphan, and Seth took her in because she’s a good kid and she was completely on her own.”

“Why didn’t they just shift into human form?” Callie asked.

“Most shifters won’t around humans, because we don’t want them to know we exist,” Willow explained, tucking a piece of her brown waves behind her ear. “Right now the only humans who know we exist are largely thought to be crazy by anyone they tell. Or liars. But if too many people start telling tales…”

“Then humans will come for you,” Callie finished her sentence.

“Exactly,” Willow said. “Humans fear what they don’t understand. They’d kill some of us, capture others for genetic research. We can’t risk it.”

“I swear, that brother of mine will be the death of me,” Seth grumbled.

Callie turned to see him heading toward them, his fists balled in fury and his brow furrowed.

“Wyatt’s harmless,” Willow said. “Go easy on him.”

“You would take his side,” Seth spat at her. “Don’t you have cleaning duties to attend to?”

“Yes,” she groaned. “Callie, I have to go. It was so nice meeting you. I know we’re going to be great friends!”

Willow bounced to her feet and bounded away, practically skipping toward the hill, and Callie watched her as she went.

“So, I see you’ve met Willow,” Seth commented.

“What happened with your brother?” Callie asked, ignoring his comment.

“Wyatt has a habit of butting in where he doesn’t belong and of making things his business that are not,” Seth said.

“If you’re Alpha, what does that make him?” Callie wondered.

“Technically he’s pack Beta, but he acts as though he is Alpha half the time,” Seth groaned. “And then I have to put him in his place.”

Callie suppressed the desire to ask him what he meant by that. She had a feeling she’d rather not know.

“When will I meet the rest of your pack?” she asked.

“In time,” he said. “Most of them are in a hunting party at the moment, out near the eastern border of our territory. They will bring food home for later tonight. Are you hungry now?”

“A bit,” Callie said.

“We have some nuts and berries stored in the den,” he said. “We also have some dried fish and meat if you prefer.”

“Berries and nuts would be fine for now,” she said. “I actually love fruit and nuts.”

“Alright, come with me and I’ll show you the den,” he said. “We’ll get you a bite to eat and then I’ll take you to the river where you’ll bathe and drink.”

As Callie followed him toward the entrance to their den, Seth kept his eyes peeled for Wyatt, whose scent he detected nearby, but whom he could not locate. Wherever he was, Seth assumed he was up to no good, and he wished he could take Callie elsewhere and get her away from Wyatt and any potential influence he might develop over her.