Page 51 of Secret Pucking Unicorn

“Hey,” Bedard says. “It’s going to be okay.”

My laugh is without humor. “The woman I love discovered she’s a witch, I knew, and didn’t tell her. I know her. She’s going to think I lied to her. She’s going to run.”

“Why would she run? She has a job, her friends are here. You’re here.”

“She is used to being nomadic.”

“But is that what she wants? It’s what she’s known, but it doesn’t mean that’s what she’d choose.”

That brings me up short. All the times she moved as a kid she had no say in it. Her parents were calling the shots. When she was old enough to decide for herself, she settled at one high school and then spent four years at the same university. She went to New Zealand because her plans here changed with Kendall eloping and Carter choosing a pro hockey career over practicing law and being a sports agent. She was going to stay. And she came back. Last night—okay, early this morning—she was crying happy tears because of our future having a home and a family. Of being settled. She doesn’t want to go. All the more reason I need to make sure she knows she’s safe here, that she stays here. With me. Or without me, if necessary.

“You should shift and go for a run,” Bedard says. “It’s New Year’s Day, it’s a wolf tradition, right?”

It is. If I was with my family, we’d shift and go for a run around our estate in Scotland. We always spend New Year’s and celebrate Hogmanay there. We run on New Year’s Day to burn off the last of the alcohol we drank. As shifters, especially shifters of Scottish and Irish heritage, we have a high tolerance for alcohol, but we do our best to get drunk anyway.

“I don’t want to leave Miranda. I don’t want her to be alone when she wakes up.”

“Kendall and I will be here. I don’t know Randi as well as you do, but I think she needs some space to process things and decompress. I know how it is when the woman you love is hurting and you are powerless to fix it. You were there for me then, and I want to be here for you now. Go run, clear your head. I shouldn’t say it’s all going to be okay because I don’t know, but I know it’s not going to make it worse.”

He’s right, I know. But everything in me wants to be near her, to comfort her. What I want doesn’t matter though. It’s what is best for my dear Miranda that is important now.

Nodding, I sigh and push away from the washer. “Yeah, you’re right. You promise you’ll be here if she wakes up before I’m back? I don’t want her to be alone right now. I’m worried about her.”

Bedard claps me on the shoulder. “I’ll be here. Kendall won’t be going anywhere. She’s dealing with guilt over how she got wrapped up with her ex and neglected their friendship. She won’t do that again.” He grins. “And you know where Kendall is, I am.”

“Aye. Thanks.” Now it’s my turn to sigh. “Let me go see what the terrible twosome is up to. I can’t believe they will be teamed up to dance together. I’m not sure which one I feel sorrier for. They are going to drive each other crazy. Sophie is an adorable little tyrant and Carter won’t take anything seriously. It’s going to be like oil and water.”

“Or matches and kerosene,” Bedard says.

I peek in at Miranda before I go downstairs. She’s still sleeping peacefully, curled on her side with her hands tucked under her cheek. My heart swells with love for her. I hate that I accidentally hurt her. If I had any clue she didn’t know about her powers, I would have spoken to her about it. Helped her learn about them. My mother would have taught her if her own parents wouldn’t. It’s her choice if she uses them or not, but at least she would be the one choosing. Too much of her life has been out of her control. I never want her to feel powerless again.

I guess it’s ironic because I feel like I’m ceding my power to her, but she’s always had it. I love her and as my fated mate, my goal in life is to make her happy and keep her safe. If it means I have to let her go at the expense of my desires, it’s what I must do. But I pray I don’t have to.

I go downstairs to find Carter and Sophie. Hopefully they are getting along because trying to dance with someone you don’t like is challenging. I’ve watched enough episodes and heard the gossip from Ma and Ian that it was obvious which pairings couldn’t stand each other. It was fun watching them grit their teeth and dance, but when it’s my teammate and my sister, it’s different. Carter needs to focus on the game and Sophie needs this chance to prove she’s good enough to be a full-time pro and not get moved back to the troupe.

“You have a dance background.” Sophie’s voice pierces through walls, clear as day. “You know you must wear the proper gear. You wouldn’t play hockey without your pads. You’re going to wear Cuban heels on the show.”

Grinning, I walk toward the dance studio at the back of the gym space. Carter’s cousins participated in cheerleading and dance when they were younger. When the barn was converted from unused stables and added on to, they put in stuff for the other kids in the area to give everyone a safe place to hang out.

“Hey guys,” I say as I enter the dance space. I recognize Sophie’s fists on hips, head tilted back, glaring at a man pose all too well. I’m rarely the recipient, but our brothers are. We are about three seconds from a foot stomp or a shin kick, depending how pissed off she is. Carter is smiling down at her. This will not end well for him.

“I’m going to shift and go for a run in the woods. Want to come with me? Bedard and Kendall are staying with Miranda. She’s still asleep. I don’t know if Coach and Stone are joining us. It’s New Year’s Day, may as well keep with tradition even though the rest of the day has gone to shit. I need to do something before I go crazy.”

Soph spins on her heel and walks over to where I stand at the edge of the blue tumble mat and wraps her arm around my middle. Carter can thank me for saving his shin later.

“Declan, I’m sorry I messed everything up for you. I didn’t mean to. I’m an idiot. Please forgive me?” She looks up at me with her tear-filled blue eyes. Of course, I forgive her. She’s my baby sister. I’ll forgive her almost anything. She’s impulsive but not malicious.

I return a hug and kiss her forehead. “Soph, there’s nothing to forgive. Well, never burst into someone’s bedroom like that again. But we didn’t know Miranda was in the dark about everything. If I’d known, I would have done things differently.”

My cheeks heat at the smirk spreading across Sophie’s face.

“Okay, I’d still do things as they happened, but we would have talked about it. I never brought up my unicorn or her witchiness, because why would we talk about it? You know we don’t talk about it in normal conversation any more than we talk about clipping our toenails. It’s simply part of us.”

“Ew, do not compare my powers to foot hygiene, thank you very much. And, as a dancer, we talk about clipping toenails more than you’d expect.”

Shaking my head, I go back to the original subject. “Shift. Run. Want to?”

Sophie looks at Carter questioningly.

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