Page 27 of Witch Undecided
Chapter Eight
Imust have heard wrong. “What did you say?”
Sten smiled at me as if he were offering me his last Rolo. “You’ll have the privilege of picking Tor’s breeders. Choose whoever you feel most comfortable with.”
He said it as if he was doing me a favor, like it was some kind of honor, but the fact was he wanted me to pick who Tor fucked. Naked, sweaty, and…My chest grew tight.
I looked at Tor, not even bothering to hide my what-the-fuck face.
He bit back a smile and crossed his arms across his broad chest. Okay, so no help forthcoming there. He was leaving me to deal with this, huh. Fine.
I smiled politely at Sten. “No thanks. I’ll pass.”
Bee looked at me incredulously. “Don’t you want to be involved in this? The females chosen will carry your mate’s offspring. It’s an important decision.”
“Unless you expectmeto fuck them, I don’t see why I need to be involved.”
Tor made a strange sound, part chuckle, part cough.
He was finding this funny, the fucker.
Sten studied me for a long beat, his expression wistful. “Charlotte said the same thing when Arne asked her to choose his breeders. Well, not thefuckpart, but the sentiment was the same.”
Bee tucked in her chin. “I thought we agreed we wouldn’t speakhername.”
Sten’s expression hardened. “You made a suggestion, Bee. I didn’t agree to anything. Charlotte is…” His jaw ticked. “Was my mate for a century.”
“Not yourtruemate,” Bee retorted. “We’ve finally found one another, and after what she did…” Bee stood taller, her mouth pressed in a line. “No, Sten, I won’t stand for it.”
Sten leveled her with a cool look. “Show our anchor around. Introduce her to our pack. We’ll speak about this later. In private.”
Oh boy. It seemed Sten had found his true wolfy mate in Bee, and she wasn’t happy about him harping on about Charlotte, but the fact that he was…Did that mean he still loved her? Even after what she’d done?
“I’ll find you in a little while,” Tor said to me. “You don’t need to choose a breeder. I’ve no intention of fulfilling that duty just yet. There’s time.”
Well, he could have said that sooner.
And why was that a weight off my chest? I shrugged. “Don’t hold off on my account. You do what you got to do.”
He studied me with narrow eyes, as if he could see right through me, and in that moment, I would have sworn he could.
He leaned in so his lips brushed my ear. “You’re my mate, remember. I can feel your emotions.” He stepped back. “I’ll find you in a bit.”
Shit. So much for my poker face.
Tor stepped into the house with Sten, and Bee joined me on the decking. She exhaled and I noted how her hands were trembling.
“You okay?”
She looked surprised by the question. “Of course. Why wouldn’t I be?”
I arched a brow.
She pressed her lips together. “This isn’t easy for any of us. Least of all for you.” She smiled slightly. “I’m sorry that this is how it has to be, but it would make life easier for you to choose the wolves who might bear Tor’s offspring. It might give you some control.”
“I don’t need control. I trust Tor will make the right decisions.”
And I didn’t want to dwell on it. Best to keep that aspect of the deal separate from our relationship. From our friendship.
