Fated to the Warrior Wolf (The Hunted Omegas #3)

52. Leigh

FIFTY-TWO

Leigh

I sat numbly on the couch as I listened to Kari, who was not sparing my feelings as she listed every negative symptom that the curse would cause me over the years.

“You will experience intense fatigue, muscle weakness, abdominal pain and cramping, hair loss, and reduced libido. Those are all the surface-level symptoms, but this is a nasty curse that also affects the connection with one’s animal side. You’ve seen Brielle struggle to hold her shift. You’re going to start heading in that direction a little more every day. The longer you bear the curse, the less and less you’ll be able to touch her. By the time you die, you’ll have lost her completely.”

Low libido wouldn’t be a problem after Gael found out about this, because I was pretty sure he’d be too pissed to look at me, let alone be in the mood for sex. And the rest? Well, humans dealt with chronic illnesses every single day, and they managed to still have children and live fulfilled, happy lives. I could be the same.

But losing my wolf… I rubbed my fingertips over my sternum, trying to ward off a phantom ache at just the words. It was to o awful to think about, severing the connection to my wolf side.

My wolf was oddly silent on the matter, though I wasn’t sure what I expected. She couldn’t like the idea of being slowly suffocated over the next few decades, but she also had strong protective instincts over our pup.

It was a true sacrifice, for both of us.

“You have time to decide. We placed the curse for Brielle’s mother when she was five months along. Brielle’s powers were too evident to miss at that point. However, I’m older now and a bit stronger. If we put a concealment charm on you now, we might be able to buy you two additional months, but you’ll need to see me regularly to have it reapplied and to gauge its continued effectiveness.”

Two more months.

Would that buy me extra time? Would I make it until her twenty-first birthday? Would she go longer in life before having her own symptoms?

It was more than I’d hoped for.

“Thank you. I’m happy to go with whatever you think is best. So, do we start today, or?—”

The door to the tiny cottage slammed open, and a wave of canine fury rolled over me so thick, it pressed me into the couch.

“Over my dead fucking body!” Gael snarled, stalking toward Karissma with murderous intent in his eyes. His hands were already shifted, fur sprouting up, canines thick in his mouth. “You touch her, witch, and I’ll end you.”

Kari was unmoved by the display of hatred. She lifted one hand, palm flat and fingers tense, and with a single, pushing motion, put up an invisible wall between the three of us and Gael.

His whole body began to vibrate with rage when he bumped into it, eyes going bright as his wolf fought him for control.

“Leigh, come here. We need to leave, now. This isn’t safe.” Gael’s voice was all gravel, no hint of humanity left behind, and I knew I was speaking straight to his wolf. I cast a wary look at Kari, though she was still calm and collected, watching me for cues.

I stood slowly from the couch and started to cross the little bit of space between me and Gael.

“No further, or you’ll be past the ward and he’ll be able to grab you,” Kari said with mild reproach.

I stopped on the spot, wishing I could reach out and soothe him, even as he raged.

“Gael, look at me, please.” I crooned the words low and soft. I was speaking to his wolf, so normally, I wouldn’t make eye contact with an enraged alpha. But in this case… a mate was the only one allowed that right. His wolf was fixated on me. I could see it in the way his eyes would meet mine and catch for a second before rolling back to Kari, whom he perceived to be a threat.

“Nothing is happening today except a concealment charm,” I went on, realizing this was the best I was going to get until he was calmer. “We’re here to talk to Kari about our options, not to take a curse. Do you think you can take a few deep breaths for me? I don’t want to keep you away, but you can’t come into Karissma’s space and threaten her. That’s not who you are. She’s not going to hurt me, my prince.”

The longer I spoke, the more his frantic shudders slowed. So I continued talking for a while, carefully clocking any sign that he was getting more agitated, but it was as if my words wove their own spell, as if we were the only people in the room. Finally, he was still, and he was human again from head to toe, except for the eyes .

His wolf was really fighting giving up control. But maybe I could reason with them both.

“You know I would never do anything to hurt our baby, don’t you? I love our little Petal, so much it hurts. I never knew what that phrase meant before I got pregnant. But sometimes, I just lie in bed thinking about how I feel about her, and it’s like this ping down deep in my soul. She’s part of me. And she’s part of you too. Do you think she’ll be as stubborn as you? I do.”

I cleared my throat, hesitating to get into the nitty-gritty, but knowing I had to. His eyes were locked on me now, no more flitting off to glare at Kari, so I had his full attention.

“I stayed up so many nights after I found out I was pregnant. Some of them just daydreaming about what she’d be like. But others, I had questions. I was alone, unmated. I used to stare up at the ceiling just wondering . Why would the Goddess put me in this situation when so many wolves struggle to conceive and have children with their fated mates? But I know why now, my prince, and I think you do too, in here.”

I pressed my fingers over my heart, giving him a watery smile as I fought the losing battle to keep my composure.

“It’s because our daughter needed the two fiercest protectors on the planet. I’m willing to die for her, if that’s my calling. But you need to live for her. That’s what she needs. I’ll bring her into this world, protected by this curse. But long after I’m gone, you’ll be her warrior. You’ll be the one who keeps her safe for the rest of her life. That’s why we can’t be mated.” My voice cracked, and I squeezed my eyes shut for a moment before I could continue. “Because the Goddess knew I’d have to make this choice, and if we were mated, you would die with me. But now I see that this was how it was meant to be all along, because we have a choice. A choice to do what’s right for our daughter.”

“No, Leigh, you don’t understand.” Gael spoke with a fervor that made my knees tremble. “I never had a choice from the moment I met you. You were mine, and that was never going to change. Don’t you see? You and I are two halves of the same whole. When we’re not together, when we fight it , we’re miserable. Cats and dogs, gasoline and firecrackers. But when we’re together? When we give in to what we both know is meant to be? Well, I’ve never been happier. Have you? Can you honestly look me in the eye and tell me you’re happier apart?”

I bit my lip and looked away, because I knew I couldn’t. I’d lied to him once, telling him he wasn’t Petal’s father out of spite. It was petty and wrong, and I wasn’t going to play those games anymore. So I couldn’t now tell him I was happier without him. Of course I wasn’t!

I’d never given much credence to the old stories that said mates held half of the other’s soul. That only with a fated mate could wolves be whole . But with Gael? I felt whole. I was whole. He filled spaces in my heart that I hadn’t realized had been gaping open.

“I can’t tell you that because it’s not true.” I lifted my chin and squared my shoulders. “But I also know that it’s not just the two of us. We have more to think about.” I dropped my hand to cup my baby belly, and I watched him follow the motion down.

Sorrow. That was the only word for his expression. Pure, unadulterated grief and distress. Because he knew . He knew I was right.

“I can’t choose her over you, Leigh, and you can’t ask me to. How am I supposed to choose ?” His shoulders seemed to cave in on themselves, and watching the tears start to fall down his cheeks broke something inside me. Something that wouldn’t ever be whole again.

I stepped forward, crossing the last three feet and throwing my arms around him. I cupped the back of his neck and pressed myself tightly against him, offering him comfort with my whole being. I tucked myself in close to his ear to whisper, “ You don’t have to choose, my love. I can make that choice. Let me carry that.”

His shoulders shook as he clung to me, and then his fingers fisted in my hair, pulling me back from his shoulder. He found my lips with his, kissing me with all the words neither of us could say, though I felt like I’d poured my very essence out into the air between us. He tasted of salt and man, of promises and regrets.

I don’t know how long we kissed, because time ceased to exist when I was in Gael’s arms. He was my safe space, my shelter in this worst storm of our lives. But when we finally separated, his words were hoarse against my lips.

“I will find another way. I will not give you up. I don’t accept any calling that means I spend eternity without you. I will find another way. ”

“Okay,” I whispered back. I didn’t see another way, but if he needed to believe it, I couldn’t deny him that sliver of hope.

He pressed a tender kiss to my forehead, then stepped back.

“I’ll let you finish your discussion and then escort you both home. We need to have a pack meeting about the IGC decision.”

I nodded, feeling bereft even with only two feet between us. Watching him walk out Kari’s cottage door and then hearing the snick of it seating back into the frame felt so final.

When I walked back to the couch, it was with hollow legs. Brielle wrapped an arm around me, but she didn’t say a word. What was left to say, after all?

There was silence for a heavy moment, and then Kari spoke. “That man really loves you. Are you sure about this?”

I swallowed hard but nodded. “I love him too, and I love my daughter. This is our only option.”

“Okay, then. I’ll get the concealment charm for you to drink, and I’ll see you again in two weeks to a month.”