The broken she-wolf - Healed by innocence

Coming home

*Lillian*

“Oh my goodness!”

As the wagon rolls along, I shift Two-bits on my lap and stare at the massive adobe structure. Turrets in the corners. A crenellated roof. I have never seen anything like it. "Is that an inn?"

Beside me on the wagon seat, Blaise chuckles. "Nope. That's my brother's house."

I press my hand against my stomach as though to protect the child. "It's so big."

"I think it's god-awful ugly." He grins.

"Well, it's not exactly what I would want in a house..." I admit.

"What do you want, Lillian?"

I turn at the serious tone of his voice. We had gotten married in Blaise, with only Thomas and his family in attendance. I had worn a white dress and new soft leather shoes that Blaise had purchased for me. I had carried a bouquet of wildflowers that he had picked for me.

As nervous as I had been, I had also felt a spark of happiness because he treats me with reverence and respect, and he constantly worried over me. Too many years has passed since anyone other than Thomas has worried over me.

He had packed up my belongings, loaded them on the wagon, and traveled slower than a snail’s pace for fear the jarring wagon would cause me to lose the baby. At night, we slept within each other’s arms, beneath the stars, but he never attempted to exercise his husbandly rights.

"Something smaller," I assure him. Then I smile brightly. "Something much smaller."

He returns my smile. "I ought to be able to give you that."

I slip Two-bits into his box on the floorboards. He no longer looks like a puppy and is rapidly outgrowing the box. Blaise has promised to build a shelter for the dog as soon as we arrive.

"Are we going to stay with your brother?" Isak.

"For a while. Till we get settled. Decide what we want, where we want to live. I have a little money saved up, but it won’t get us far."

The wagon rolls past a huge barn that bears no resemblance to the one that had sat on my property. I hear the clanging of iron from the blacksmith who worked near the barn. Horses trot around a large corral. In the distance, I see a long narrow clapboard house and a brick building.

I feel as though I am traveling through a miniature town. Men wearing chaps and dusty hats saunter between the buildings. Only a couple acknowledge Blaise as he drives the wagon by them.

I might have thought he didn’t know the others if it weren’t for the tightening in his jaw. He brings the wagon to a halt in front of the veranda. A man and she-wolf sitting on a bench swing slowly come to their feet. The man stands as tall as Blaise does, and I know from the facial features that he is Blaise’s brother. The she-wolf is nearly as tall. Slender, she moves gracefully across the porch.

"You should have sent word that you were on your way home," she says as she floats down the steps.

Blaise leaps from the wagon, walks briskly to her, and hugs her fiercely. "Didn’t know how long we would be. Didn’t want you worrying about us."

"Did you find out anything?" his brother asks, and I sense in the tone of his voice that he is a man who gives no quarter.

"Not a damn thing," Blaise says as he steps toward the wagon and holds his arms up to me.

I wipe my sweating palms on my skirt before placing my hands on his shoulders. He grabs my waist, and I feel his trembling through my clothes. I meet his gaze and see the worry in his eyes. I try to give him a smile of reassurance, but I fear that I fail miserably.

He brings me to the ground and slips his arm around me. "This is my brother Chase and his mate, Callie."

Callie smiles prettily, and Chase looks as though he is waiting for a clap of thunder to sound.

"Did your parents name all their sons to rhyme?" I ask.

"Yeah, they kinda did." Blaise meets his brother's darkening gaze. "This is Lillian. My mate and wife."

Chase narrows his eyes. "Your mate and wife?"

Shock ripples across Callie's face, before her eyes warm, and she gives me a sincere smile. Stepping forward, she wraps her arms around my shoulders. "How wonderful! Welcome to the family."

As Callie releases her hold, a wave of nausea hits me, and the world suddenly spins around me. I stagger backward. Blaise reaches out, steadying me. My cheeks burn as concern sweeps over Callie's face.

"Are you all right?" Callie asks.

I nod. "It's just the baby. I get light-headed when I go too long without eating."

"The baby?" Chase grounds out in a clipped voice. "And when is this blessed event to take place?"

From the tone of his voice, I'm not certain he truly considers it to be a blessed event, but I'm not going to let him think I am ashamed of carrying his brother's child. I angle my chin. "End of January."

"Callie, why don't you take Lillian inside and get her something cool to drink?" Blaise suggests. "I'm afraid I might have pushed us a little too hard trying to get here before nightfall."

Callie wraps her arm around my waist. "I would love to get her out of this heat. Come on inside."

I glance over my shoulder at Blaise.

"Go on," he urges.

*Blaise*

I watch Callie guide my mate into the house. Then I meet Chase's blazing glare.

"She is your mate and she didn't know your brother's name?" he asks.

"I told her I had brothers. I mentioned Wade to her. Guess I just never got around to mentioning your name. Don't take it personal." I step onto the porch. Chase grabs my arm and jerks me back down.

"Let me get this straight," Chase says, his voice seething. "Five years ago, you bedded Olivia Littlebeck and to protect her reputation, you kept your mouth shut and ended up in prison. Now, you have been gone less than four months and show up at my door with a mate... a pregnant mate at that. Do you have a problem keeping your trousers buttoned or do you just have a tendency to get involved with she-wolves who have no morals..."

Chase's tirade ends the instant my fist makes contact with his jaw and sends him staggering backward. He lands hard in the dirt. It takes every ounce of control I can muster not to pound my brother into a bloody pulp. "You don't know a goddamn thing about any of it, and until you do, keep your goddamn mouth shut!"

I storm up the steps and throw open the door. "Lillian, we're leaving!"

I stalk down the steps, taking deep breaths, trying to calm myself before Lillian gets outside. Chase works his way to his feet, backhanding the blood trailing from the corner of his mouth. "Where in the hell do you think you're going, boy?" Chase demands.

"I'm not a boy. If prison does nothing else, it beats the boy right out of you. Where I'm going is none of your damn business," I snarl. I spin around at the sound of footsteps and hold my hand toward Lillian. "Come on, Sugar."

Worry etches creases into her brow. "Is something wrong?" she asks, her gaze darting between me and Chase.

"No, I just decided we will be better off staying at the hotel in town." The anxiety doesn't ease from her face. I squeeze her hand. "Honest."

I help her into the wagon, then climb up, release the brake, and slap the reins. I had expected coming home with a mate to be difficult. I just hadn't expected it to rip away the last bonds I had with my family.