Weregirl by Patti Larsen Read Free Book Online Page B

has made himself an ally of the werenation thanks to his close friendship with my fallen brother. He’s accepted and well-liked. And Piers is a frequent guest. Not feeling so alone any longer, I grin up at him. “You’re a little fresh tonight,” I say, leaving him to follow me as I finish my walk to the throne. “Kiss me without permission again and we’ll see what your pretty face looks like with my fist in it.”
    Piers laughs and slips a familiar arm over my shoulders. “I love it when you talk dirty to me.”
    Despite my challenge, I really do adore him, happy he’s here for me while I face off with Oleksander. I’ve been skirting Piers’s advances the last year or so, well aware from the feeling of him, the way he treats me, he has feelings for me beyond friendship.
    My mind cranks over slowly, though connections are made at last. I may have been unwilling to shift from Sage to another possibility in the past, yes. But as I glance up at Piers’s smiling face, taking in the warmth of him, the gentle way he handles me despite his casual flair, how his scent alters when he’s near me, I wonder if perhaps he might be a suitable candidate. That my fears of a loveless and power-driven mating might not be so inevitable after all.
    My wolf encourages the connection, masking my still painful feelings for Sage. She loves him as I do, but she is far more pragmatic. There are times I wish for less emotion and more the practicality of the wolf. This is one of those times. Though it hurts at first, I allow her to smother Sage and carry his memory away for a time so I can think, rationally and like the wereprincess I’ve come to be.
    It helps a great deal, the sharp agony now only a dull ache I can barely feel. Perceptions shift as my wolf takes over. She’s well aware Piers isn’t a werewolf, but he has power, at least. But how would the werenation react if their prince consort was a sorcerer, so soon after our freedom from the Black Souls? I turn my head to meet my grandfather’s eyes, seeing through the gaze of my wolf. She’s not surprised by the hint of his approval and joy as we stand together.
    The old wolf is actually pleased, obvious to me who can see past the mask of decorum he wears. And even the werewolf guards lining the throne room don’t seem to take affront to the friendly way Piers treats me. Has this been his plan for me? My wolf chuffs, though not in anger. Have Piers and my grandfather conspired to bring the two of us together? I should be upset, if that’s the case, but I’m so hopeful, suddenly, I might have more than I resigned myself to, I can’t summon anything beyond a smile.
    This mating is a real possibility, then, one I hadn’t considered, not allowing myself to when Sage was my only thought. But standing here, with Piers, my wolf closing off the part of me longing for what I can’t have, the rest of me wondering now if maybe I might have the perfect mate at my side already, I relax and feel the last of Piers’s own tension leave.
    Perhaps I shouldn’t be so mercurial, should cling yet to Sage and the love I know my wolf has partially buried under her stoic nature. But part of my desperate loss comes from the fear I will be married off for position and power. I simply cannot live a life like that. But with Piers… hope takes the last of my hurt away, at least for now.
    It helps, not hinders, they’ve been feeling me out after all. While I’ve been ignoring the two of them and their fumbling attempts at matchmaking. No longer. I slip my arm around Piers’s waist, trying it on for size, and find I like the feeling of him against me. I know I should feel odd and awkward about thinking this way, considering how I’ve just left Sage and his bed. But my wolf, as practical as ever, encourages me, and I embrace the alternative as much as I do Piers.
    Do I love him? No. At least, not yet. But he is a much better choice for me than any of the pack I know. My heart swells against my