My heart ached for Len, but I was also angry—angry at his warren and angry at my herd, who both hated what was different from them, even though neither of us had done anything wrong.
“The alpha bucks in my herd hated me because my antlers were bigger than all of theirs,” I said suddenly. Len raised his head, his eyes watery, and listened intently. “None of them wanted to mate with me because of my appearance. In their point of view, I didn’t look like an omega. So they chased me out of the herd and right into Dax. They wanted him to eat me.”
“That’s horrible!” Len exclaimed, outrage and horror on his face. “What awful people!”
“Yes,” I agreed. “But… at least because of that, I was able to meet Dax, you, and this strange pack of yours.”
“That’s true.” Len smiled. “I’m not saying what they did was right, but because of their ignorance I met my fated mate, Hugo, and now we have a wonderful family together.”
The kids were leaping and tumbling in the grass. I swallowed a pang of jealousy. Len had gone through a similar harrowing past, but now he had everything he wanted—and everything I wanted, too.
“But to have a wolf for a fated mate,” I murmured. “Does that bother you?”
There was a small pause before Len spoke. “When Hugo first told me, I couldn’t believe him,” he admitted. “It was beyond my comprehension and I was scared and focused. I was already an outcast for being different, so I thought that a wolf having a hare for a fated mate would a burden on Hugo. But I learned that our shifter species didn’t matter as much as I thought it did. We love each other, and the shape of our animal forms never changed that.” He chuckled. “It just makes things interesting.”
In the grass, Lupa became a wolf pup and rolled on her back as Leveret changed into a hare and bounced on her belly. Their shrieks of laughter filled the air. I couldn’t hold back a smile.
“You’ll find your fated mate someday,” Len promised me, putting a hand on my shoulder.
“How can you be so sure?”
Len smiled. “It happened to me, didn’t it?”
I supposed I couldn’t argue with that. The proof was right in front of me in the form of two romping toddlers, shifting back and forth between their animal shapes.
I had my doubts about finding a fated mate, but I kept them to myself. Len was a shining star, radiant and positive. I didn’t want to dampen his mood by being a downer. But that was who I was—realistic and logical. Even if I knew fated mates existed, they didn’t exist for everyone.
“I’ll keep my eyes open,” I said with a dry smile.
The kids, who’d grown tired from playing hard, toddled over wearily. They slumped in Len’s lap and he made sure they didn’t slip to the ground.
My heart fluttered when Lupa reached out to me with her tiny hand. I checked behind me to see if anyone else was there, but it was me she wanted. I glanced to Len, unsure of what to do.
“What is it, honey?” he asked his daughter. “Can you tell me what you want?”
“Uncle,” she said.
My eyes went wide and I blinked. Dax and Sage were her uncles, weren’t they? But neither of them were present.
“Oh, she thinks you’re one of her uncles,” Len said with a laugh. “She calls Remington her uncle, too. It’s really sweet.”
“Her uncle? Me?”
Lupa let out an annoyed grunt and strained in my direction again. Without hesitation, Len scooped her up and handed her to me. A parent had never offered me to hold their child before.
“Are you sure?” I asked.
“Of course I am. Go on, she won’t bite.” He paused. “Actually, I’m not a hundred-percent sure she won’t bite. Just keep that in mind.”
I smiled and accepted her. Instead of biting me like I was warned about, Lupa settled down immediately. My heart melted into a warm, fuzzy pile of feelings.
Ugh. I really am weak when it comes to kids.
“Does she know I’m not really her uncle? I don’t want to give her the wrong idea,” I said.
Len shrugged. “I don’t think it’s a big deal. We consider Remmy part of the family, too, so that’s why she calls him her uncle even though he’s not related to the other wolves.”
I didn’t want to ruin the moment but I kept thinking about the reality of the situation. “I… I don’t know if I’m going to stay,” I admitted.
