Page 103 of Taming of a Wolf

I wish I knew the perfect thing to say that would free him of his guilt and pain.

As if sensing my thoughts, Jamie bumps his shoulder into mine. “It’s not your job to fix me, Anders. Besides, you help me a lot, in your own way.”

“I do?”

Sighing exasperatedly, Jamie turns me toward him and stands on his toes. Looping his arms around my neck, he pulls me down for a sweet, brief kiss in the middle of the village square. The crowds disappear as I melt into his affection, and I sweep my arms around his back and slender waist, holding him close to me.

“Yeah, puppy dog, you do. You remind me I deserve love.” Patting my chest, Jamie steps back. I take his hand in mine and we walk the final stretch to Wulfric’s longhouse. “Maybe I’ll always feel guilty, but as long as I have you and the tools to help me deal with it, then that’s good enough for me.”

“Come on, guys! Hurry!” Jace waves at us. He’s already run ahead.

“Jace, I told you not to run!” Jamie calls. “If you fall, you’ll have to stay in that cast even longer.”

I knock on Wulfric’s door.

Helga calls, “Come on in! We’ve got warm food and drink to chase the cold out of you.”

Jamie sniffs the air as we enter. “Smells great in here. What’s cooking?”

Kieran laughs. “Whatisn’t?We’ve got stew, bread, cheese, and meat, vegetables from the garden.”

“So, enough food for a whole pack of wolves,” Jamie says.

A roar of greetings comes at us from the dining table. Wulfric and Gunnar are there, and so is Helga, of course. They all greet Jace as if he’s a pup of their own while he bombards them with questions of all sorts.

Gunnar looks over at me, then leans to the side, trying to get a glimpse of the door.

“Arlo isn’t here,” I say.

Gunnar tenses, color rushing to his cheeks. “I wasn’t looking for him,” he insists, but the disappointment is written all over his face as he slumps in his chair.

Oddly, Lyall is absent. I feel a pang of disappointment. I’d hoped to see him.

Kieran asks, “How’s the café?”

“Great.” Jamie takes a seat at the table. “I’m training Anders to become a barista.”

Kieran looks at me with interest. “Wow. I can’t say I ever expected to hear Anders and barista in the same sentence.”

I pull up a seat beside Jamie. “Neither did I,” I admit honestly. Emotion swells in my throat. “Thank you for giving me a seat at your table. All of you.” My gaze holds Wulfric’s. When I look upon my little brother, I no longer feel envy or contempt.

Kieran elbows Wulfric, and my brother coughs to clear his throat. “It is… it’s good to have you back, brother.” His smile is warm and sincere. “And it is wonderful to see Jamie again. Thank you for putting up with my brother.”

Jamie grins. “My pleasure.”

“I am sitting right here,” I grumble, but when Jamie squeezes my hand, I smile with more ease than ever before.

I can’t believe I’m at this table, surrounded by the family I thought I had lost in one world and a family I’ve found in another.

The gods themselves have blessed me with a second chance at happiness, and this time, I will be the father Jace needs, the most supportive brother in the world, and the lifelong companion my mate deserves.

It’s late by the time we’re ready to go. Jace fell asleep, so I carry him as Jamie and I walk back to our boat. “To think, one day he’ll be too big to carry,” I say, chest aching at the thought.

Jamie laughs softly. “Don’t remind me.”

The ocean roars, and gulls cry as we walk over gravel and sand toward our boat.

“I’ll take him if you get the boat in the water,” Jamie offers.

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