Wolf at Her Door: BBW Paranormal Romance by Liliana Rhodes Read Free Book Online Page B

trust me, that is to your benefit. You'll spend centuries waiting for Bran, unaware of how close you two really are to each other."
    I didn't care about how long I would live as long as one day Bran and I were together again. I was willing to wait however long that took.

Chapter Eleven
    Ainsley

    Present Day

    I smiled at Bran and the rest of our company. Pinky and Rafael were entranced by my story. Their eyes never left me. Bran's shoulders were weighed down and sadness covered his face. He looked down at the table, deep in thought, before looking up at Callen.
    "You were raised by your mother and a banshee?" he asked. "How does a boy become a man without a man's guidance?"
    "How dare you, Bran MacCulloch!" I said indignantly as I stood from my seat. "I was a better hunter than you, and I was always faster, too. My father taught me all the things a man needed to know. I did what I had to do to protect him and us."
    I couldn't believe that after all these years, Bran still had his Old World thoughts. I wanted to strangle him, but I knew his chauvinistic attitude was just his grasp on the past.
    "I'm more of a man than you could ever understand," Callen said. "Yes, I was taught how to hunt and how to be a wolf by a woman, but I wouldn't have it any other way. It is because of her that I also know how to love, how to be gentle and kind, and when to shut up and listen."
    "I'm sorry," Bran said. "I said the wrong thing. I'm angry that I wasn't there to see you grow, to help teach you things a father teaches his son. You're right, my thinking is archaic. I come from a time when men and women had their place, whether it was right or not. I've spent my life wandering and alone, a nomad. I never settled in one place. To think all these years the two of you were out there. I had a family I didn't even know about. It upsets me. Callen is a lucky boy to have such a strong mother. I mean that wholeheartedly. I didn't mean any disrespect."
    I came up behind Bran and set my hands on his shoulders. He tilted his head to the side, onto my arm, and I brushed his hair back from his head. It hurt to see so much sadness in him.
    "I wish we could have been a family," I said. "I really do, but Gracelin was right about the curse. And as I've seen, things really could have been worse."
    "How?" Bran asked, turning to look at me. "We've lost so much time together, how could there be anything worse than that?"
    I turned away and walked to the other side of the room. Folding my arms in front of me, I thought about his question. I knew the answer, but it wasn't my story to tell.
    "Go ahead," Callen said. "Tell them about me."
    Searching Callen's eyes, the one trait he got from me, I saw that he was serious.
    "Alright, but a small part," I said. "It's your story to tell whenever you want to. But I'm proud of you and I love you, Callen. One of my happiest and proudest days was the day of your hand-fasting such a long time ago.
    "Our life with Gracelin flew by. We didn't always stay in the Otherworld. At times, we traveled to Scotland or other places in Europe. It was a life I never thought I would ever experience. Living with the banshee was probably the best education Callen could ever have.
    "Eventually though, I decided it was time to move on. We needed to be around other people. Callen needed a life of his own. With everything going on in the world, we decided to head to the New World. Specifically, we went to Salem, Massachusetts."

Chapter Twelve
    Ainsley

    Late 1600s, Salem, Massachusetts  

    It had been a long time since I had to interact with people. I couldn't believe how quickly a hundred years had gone by with Gracelin in the Otherworld, and it made me feel bad that I had kept Callen from having a life and the possibility of a family of his own.
    It was autumn in Salem and the trees were changing colors from their dark green to reds and golds. Callen and I lived in a house owned by friends of Gracelin. She was never mentioned and I didn't know