The Werewolf's Pregnant Bride (8 page)

Chapter 12

Nathaniel kept his eyes on the landscape as the carriage approached their country house. It was less of a house if truth be told and more of a lodge. It was up in the mountains. Once all the wolves were assembled guards would be placed at the end of the only path. The guards were witches trained to subdue wolves but not to kill them. Magic barriers encouraged the wolves to stay away but they were supposedly not foolproof. In Nathaniel's life he had never known of the guards encountering a werewolf but it was comforting to know that they were there if needed.

Additionally, the witches' magic kept away anyone who had not been given the location of the mountain by a pack member. After the attack by werewolf hunters six months before the new safeguard had been put in place. Any incidental visitors would feel a desperate fear that would force them to relocate to a safer place. Once the wolves arrived the mountain paths became invisible to anyone who had not been invited. Since that magic had been put in place there had been no further harm from werewolf hunters. Personally, Nathaniel thought that some magic to prevent people from entering the mountain should have been put in place long ago. At the least there should have been some adjustments made after the incident with Ezra.

The nights of a full moon were spent hunting together as packs. Usually, enough humanity remained in a werewolf even during the actual night of the full moon that he was unlikely to harm others. Still, there were occasions when the wolf overtook a man completely. He had seen it happen once and the pack leader, his father, had been forced to kill that wolf. Nathaniel had been seventeen at the time and the man not much older than twenty. His name had been Ezra and he had been a farmer on the Wolstenholme land. Even as a human, Ezra often showed poor judgment and a foul temper. Nathaniel wanted to blame Ezra's human failings for what happened that night.

Unbeknownst to the pack there was a small band of gypsy refugees that had climbed the mountain.  Ezra had caught their scent during a hunt and while the rest of the wolves had been pursuing a bear he had left the group. The gypsies’ weapons did little to fend off Ezra but they did alert the pack to something unusual.

His father had led the pack towards the noise and Nathaniel had stumbled into the horrific scene right behind his father.

Three men and a child lay mauled to death on the periphery of the campsite. Two women had wounds consistent with being violated and mauled. When they approached Ezra had his jaw locked on the neck of a young woman whose wounds were already fatal.

Nathaniel's father ordered Ezra to release the girl which he begrudgingly did. Then, Ezra turned on the pack. He charged at his alpha. Nathaniel still did not know if he was in some kind of rage created by feeding on human flesh or if Ezra had simply gone mad but Nathaniel watched as Ezra and his father fought.

Several werewolves tried to intervene but his father called them off. It was his job as the alpha to subdue a lesser member. Ezra would not submit. Ezra fought fang and claw until his alpha finally dealt the killing blow.

As a werewolf much that happened during the time when he was transformed was vague. It was like a dream that he woke up barely remembering. That night was as clear in his mind as any memory made during his human existence.

The lodge was made of wood and it was much more primitive than the house on Wolstenholme estate. It was even cruder than most of their tenant's homes.

There was no pump on the land so all water came from a stream that flowed past the lodge and down to the base of the mountain where it joined a rolling stream from which villagers fished.

Nathaniel stepped down from the carriage and helped Vivian and Claire down after him. Owen carried the single trunk filled with the supplies they needed over the threshold and into the large room where everyone was gathered. It was important for the packs to stay together and for the packs to meet, conduct any wolf business, and strengthen alliances through friendship. As werewolf numbers dwindled it was becoming even more important.

Towards the back of the room was a stairway which led up one level where there were partitioned areas for supplies. A few wolves could also use the area for resting if they wished.

"Shall we take a walk? I am not ready to be stuck inside yet. There is one more pack to arrive and besides that the heat is stifling. In an hour the sun will start setting and the air will be cooler." Vivian said.

"I need to stay," Claire said taking Eldon's arm, "Your father wants Eldon to take a more active role in pack leadership and I need to learn what I can from the other wives of the alphas."

"If you care to accompany Vivian for a walk just be sure to return before the sunset," Eldon said. Nathaniel nodded even though it was not something he had needed to be told. His brother would one day take over the pack and it would not benefit him to show his brother disrespect in the circumstances.

"Do you need me to find anyone to chaperone you?" Claire asked.

"I do not see any impropriety in walking alone with Nathaniel. After all, we are family now that his brother and my sister are married," Vivian said. Something in her tone of voice made Nathaniel momentarily uncertain but he pushed down the reaction. This was Vivian. He had nothing to fear from her.

He offered her his arm and led her out of the lodge. Several other people were also outside walking. Apparently, they also felt the heat of the day mixed with the cramped conditions of the lodge were stifling.

As long as they avoided going further than a mile away from the lodge they would be relatively safe. Claw marks on the trees showed the boundaries of their territory.

The alphas kept those boundaries well marked with their scents so that local predators would stay away. It was incredibly rare to see any creatures on the marked land. Bears and bunnies avoided it equally.

"The sky is very blue today," Vivian whispered.

"It is," Nathaniel agreed.

"It is a pleasant day to be outside," Vivian said.

"Yes," Nathaniel agreed.

"Do you remember that meadow just before the boundary? The one with the rich blue flowers?"

"I do."

"Will you accompany me there? I think I will gather some flowers to press. I brought a book for just that purpose," Vivian said.

Nathaniel knew the meadow she was talking about. There was a hill before it that would make them invisible to anyone not also in the meadow. He was not sure why the idea made his skin tingle. They had picked flowers there a dozen times together as children but something felt different. Not least of which that they were no longer children. Still, he was not about to refuse her such a small request.

He led her to the meadow and watched as she examined several flowers seeming unsure of which ones were just right to meet her needs.

When she spoke the sound almost startled him because of how long they had been standing in silence.

"Do you see that tree on your left?"

Nathaniel followed her gaze to a willow tree. The branches hung almost to the ground. She grabbed his hand and tugged him towards it. In a moment he was against the bark of the tree and shielded by the branches.

"I never thought you would marry. I wanted you to for such a long time," Vivian said.  Her body was against his and he could feel the heat radiating from her.

"Why?" Nathaniel asked. His mind seemed to whirl and twirl as her scent invaded his nose.

"You are handsome. Not perhaps the most handsome man in Britain but certainly never the least handsome at a party. I have been ignoring your attentions for a long time even though every moment of it was like water on a pebble. I thought I never would be able to have you. Now that you are married I can finally see if you are all I have imagined you would be." Vivian's hand was on his chest and her finger was caressing his nipple through his shirt. His heart beat fast and it felt hard to breath as his nipple hardened under her touch and his cock stiffened.

"I don't understand," Nathaniel said. It came out a gasp. The animal part of him warned him to shut his mouth and let the pretty female attend to him.

"I could never marry you. That has always been out of the question. I could never marry a man with no chance at a title and with no real wealth. My mother would not allow it and I would not allow it either. I knew that there was a chance that if I came to your bed you would refuse to give me up. Now, we can enjoy each other and separate after.  There is no chance that you can force me to marry you by telling my father of our loving. Nor is there a chance that if a baby was conceived you could force me into marrying you. If I laid with you before you were married you would have spent your life trying to make me yours and that could never happen. Now, we can couple without consequences."

Nathaniel tried to think but thoughts became fuzzier and fuzzier as her fingers reached out to caress his cock through his pants. Her fingers were rough on him and knew the exact amount of pressure to exert to drive him mad with desire.

"There could still be consequences," Nathaniel gasped though his mind was not coming up with any at the moment. All he wanted was to push Vivian against the tree, pull up her dress, and sink himself deep within her.

"The chances of that are unlikely if we take all the usual precautions," Vivian said. How many men had she lain with? There had to have been several if she knew about the usual preventions of pregnancy. That was something men usually took care of. It was not something innocent women should know about. Clearly, Sophronia had not known enough to ask Eldon to do what was necessary to prevent a baby. Perhaps she really was as innocent as she claimed.

Vivian put her arms around his neck and pulled his lips down to hers. They were soft and warm against his but the fact that her fingers had left his cock seemed to allow his brain to work again. He was married. Unlike Eldon, he took his promises of fidelity seriously.

Sophronia was the only woman he had ever laid with. It would be a betrayal now to couple with Vivian.

The darker side of his mind reminded him that he had been forced into the marriage and he did not love his wife. It was not as if spending a few moments deep in pleasure with Vivian would break Sophronia's heart. In fact, she would never know of it.

"I would know," he whispered as he pulled his lips from Vivian's.

"What?" Vivian asked confused. She had a right to be confused. How many men turned down the offer of an eager coupling with no attachment?

"I can't do this, Vivian," Nathaniel said. He took a step away from her and once her warmth and smell were not immersing him he found his thoughts came more easily.

"There is no harm in it. Your little wife need never know. Certainly, I have no intention of telling the man I intend to marry. Everything here is a secret. There is no reason this should not be one more," Vivian said.

"I cannot do that to my wife," Nathaniel said softly. He did not fully understand why but it was true. He had vowed himself to Sophronia and he would not break those vows.

"I am sure Eldon did not think he could do it to my sister the first or fiftieth time but he seems to get over it," Vivian said.

"What do you speak of?" Nathaniel asked.

"I was at the party where Eldon met Sophronia. You were absent. I heard from some of my friends what happened. It is not the first time Eldon has seduced a girl with alcohol until she succumbed to his charms. More likely she passes out and he has his way with her. Of course he is usually too drunk to remember the next day. He tried it once on me but I tolerate the alcohol much better than he does. "

"Does Claire know?"

"She knows of Eldon's infidelities. She would be a fool if she did not. She forgives them as any good wife should. Every titled man I have ever met, who was young enough still to use his cock, has had a mistress or two. There is no shame in it," Vivian said.

"Bloody hell and damnation," Nathaniel said.

"Sophronia will learn in time what all the other wives know," Vivian said. She reached for Nathaniel again but he took a step away.

"I am truly sorry Vivian but I cannot do this," Nathaniel said. His body had finally caught up with his mind and the engorgement had left his cock. He was hopeful that even if she cupped her hands on him his body would not respond.

"It is just a bit of sport," Vivian said.

"Go and pick your flowers. Then, we are going back to the house," Nathaniel said. He pushed away the branches of the willow until he was again out in the meadow.

Vivian stomped forward and gave him a quick glare before reaching down and ripping the bud off a stem of a nearby flower. She had half a dozen when she stopped. He reached out his arm to escort her but she refused to take it and instead stomped beside him back to the lodge.

All the packs were now present and the pack leaders were conversing. In another hour the moon would appear and he would change from a man to a werewolf.

He had just sidled up beside his brother and Claire when he heard a howl. It was not the howl of a werewolf. Instead, it was the howl of a woman.

He and the rest of the room turned o the door where a man was carrying his wife. The noise they had heard had come from her.

Her dress was red with blood.