Cherished: True Mates Book 5 (BBW Wolf Shifter Romance) (A Craggstone Paranormal Romance) by Olivia Arran
Authors: Olivia Arran
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win.”
“Again!” Josh cried, the scowl melting into a big grin as his hands eagerly swept up little chunks of wood, deftly arranging them in—
“Chess!” I exclaimed.
Oliver glanced up at me, his lips curved in a welcoming smile. “Yeah, Josh was just trying to convince me that the knight, or horsey as he likes to call it, can move in a square.”
“The rules suck, and you know it.”
“Josh!”
“Moooom, it’s true! Whoever decided that a horse could only move in an ‘L’ shape was—”
“Don’t finish that sentence, young man.” I tried to make my voice stern, to keep a straight face, but the sight of him shaking his head in complete seriousness was nearly my undoing. “So, you guys are playing chess?”
“Oliver is teaching me. It’s really cool, Mom. He was showing me how it’s all about reading your opponent and guessing their next set of moves. Like a battle!”
I raised a single eyebrow at Oliver and he shrugged. “It’s good, clean fun. Exercise for the mind.”
And not just the body , I heard his unspoken words loud and clear.
“What time is…” I glanced at Josh, my question trailing off, but he was preoccupied, trying to remember where all the pieces went.
“We’re setting off at seven p.m. So, we’ve got another hour. Why don’t you grab something to eat from the table and come join us? There’s a buffet laid out.” He turned back to Josh, a sly tilt to his mouth. “You can watch me beat him again.”
“No way! I’ve got you figured out. You always make the same play.”
“Not this time. Remember what I said, try and read the pieces and look for patterns.”
My son nodded sagely, intense concentration furrowing his brow.
I clutched my stomach as it let out a loud grumble. “I’ll be right back,” I said, making my way over to the table. I couldn’t get the image out of my head: two heads together, one dark, one light, both laughing.
Looking around the room, it struck me that I hadn’t seen any of the other women from Bert’s camp yet.
“Are you looking for the others?” a tall, blonde woman asked. Macey, I recalled, Jason’s mate.
“Yeah. Are they still in their rooms?”
She shook her head, her hands busy fixing a sandwich the size of a small trailer. “They went to Smithrock to get the children settled in. They didn’t want to hang around, not with Bert being here.”
“Smithrock?” For some reason the name made me uneasy.
“The other pack that we are aligned with. That’s where Gary is originally from. Did you meet Eric?”
Taking in my look of disgust, she laughed, but it was a hollow sound. “Yeah, he died a little while back, started this whole thing off actually. We didn’t know anything about what was going on up until then. Anyway, Smithrock has a lot more space. They lost some of their packmembers recently, so it made sense for the women and children to go there. Amanda and Tarq run Smithrock. I think you met them?”
I nodded, putting the finishing touches on my own sandwich. It stung a bit that they hadn’t said good bye. Gina especially. But I couldn’t blame them. My eyes darted to Oliver. I had a reason to stick around.
Macey followed my gaze, her lips curling up in a grin. “That makes me happy,” she whispered, then sauntered off, back to her man, taking her trailer-sized sandwich with her.
Following her lead, I set off back to the man in my life—Josh. My heart clenched as Oliver took one look at my sandwich, swiping it off my plate and taking a big, noisy bite, sending Josh into peals of laughter.
Okay, I was ready to admit it—it was quickly becoming the men in my life.
***
Oliver
I shoved my prisoner in front of me, the chains clanking and rattling in the quiet forest. We were almost at the clearing, and knowing the others were already there waiting for us had me itching in anticipation.
It was finally time to put an end to all of this.
Next to me, whistling pierced the air in a jaunty tune. I
“Again!” Josh cried, the scowl melting into a big grin as his hands eagerly swept up little chunks of wood, deftly arranging them in—
“Chess!” I exclaimed.
Oliver glanced up at me, his lips curved in a welcoming smile. “Yeah, Josh was just trying to convince me that the knight, or horsey as he likes to call it, can move in a square.”
“The rules suck, and you know it.”
“Josh!”
“Moooom, it’s true! Whoever decided that a horse could only move in an ‘L’ shape was—”
“Don’t finish that sentence, young man.” I tried to make my voice stern, to keep a straight face, but the sight of him shaking his head in complete seriousness was nearly my undoing. “So, you guys are playing chess?”
“Oliver is teaching me. It’s really cool, Mom. He was showing me how it’s all about reading your opponent and guessing their next set of moves. Like a battle!”
I raised a single eyebrow at Oliver and he shrugged. “It’s good, clean fun. Exercise for the mind.”
And not just the body , I heard his unspoken words loud and clear.
“What time is…” I glanced at Josh, my question trailing off, but he was preoccupied, trying to remember where all the pieces went.
“We’re setting off at seven p.m. So, we’ve got another hour. Why don’t you grab something to eat from the table and come join us? There’s a buffet laid out.” He turned back to Josh, a sly tilt to his mouth. “You can watch me beat him again.”
“No way! I’ve got you figured out. You always make the same play.”
“Not this time. Remember what I said, try and read the pieces and look for patterns.”
My son nodded sagely, intense concentration furrowing his brow.
I clutched my stomach as it let out a loud grumble. “I’ll be right back,” I said, making my way over to the table. I couldn’t get the image out of my head: two heads together, one dark, one light, both laughing.
Looking around the room, it struck me that I hadn’t seen any of the other women from Bert’s camp yet.
“Are you looking for the others?” a tall, blonde woman asked. Macey, I recalled, Jason’s mate.
“Yeah. Are they still in their rooms?”
She shook her head, her hands busy fixing a sandwich the size of a small trailer. “They went to Smithrock to get the children settled in. They didn’t want to hang around, not with Bert being here.”
“Smithrock?” For some reason the name made me uneasy.
“The other pack that we are aligned with. That’s where Gary is originally from. Did you meet Eric?”
Taking in my look of disgust, she laughed, but it was a hollow sound. “Yeah, he died a little while back, started this whole thing off actually. We didn’t know anything about what was going on up until then. Anyway, Smithrock has a lot more space. They lost some of their packmembers recently, so it made sense for the women and children to go there. Amanda and Tarq run Smithrock. I think you met them?”
I nodded, putting the finishing touches on my own sandwich. It stung a bit that they hadn’t said good bye. Gina especially. But I couldn’t blame them. My eyes darted to Oliver. I had a reason to stick around.
Macey followed my gaze, her lips curling up in a grin. “That makes me happy,” she whispered, then sauntered off, back to her man, taking her trailer-sized sandwich with her.
Following her lead, I set off back to the man in my life—Josh. My heart clenched as Oliver took one look at my sandwich, swiping it off my plate and taking a big, noisy bite, sending Josh into peals of laughter.
Okay, I was ready to admit it—it was quickly becoming the men in my life.
***
Oliver
I shoved my prisoner in front of me, the chains clanking and rattling in the quiet forest. We were almost at the clearing, and knowing the others were already there waiting for us had me itching in anticipation.
It was finally time to put an end to all of this.
Next to me, whistling pierced the air in a jaunty tune. I
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