Bella arose the following morning to the sound of a deep chuckle and the cabin door closing. She peeked out the window next to the bed to find Wolfe and another man speaking in hushed tones. The sun was only beginning to rise, the moon still visible through the trees.
The smell of breakfast fully awakened her senses, and her stomach growled. She reluctantly pulled her eyes away from Wolfe and moved to discover what they offered.
While she examined the small feast of fruit, sweet pastries, porridge, sausages, cheeses, and boiled eggs, there was a knock at the door. Bella rushed to pull her dressing gown from her luggage and swiftly covered herself. She would not be repeating the embarrassingly inappropriate scene from the night before. Bella was tying the sash as the cabin door opened, and a smiling Wolfe stepped inside.
"I thought I heard you up and about," he said cheerily.
From that far away? It seemed impossible at such a distance, but she ignored her suspicion in her happiness to see him.
Wolfe had changed his clothing and tied his long hair back at the nape of his neck. His long-sleeved white shirt was unlaced, hanging open from his throat to his chest. Tight black breeches hugged his muscular thighs, and Bella blushed as she nearly drooled while ogling his large, solid physique.
"Th-this is quite a feast," she stammered, gesturing toward the table.
"It is for both of us. I hope you might eat more with some company. You barely touched your supper."
"I would enjoy the company very much. Thank you."
Wolfe stepped beside her to pull out her chair. She thanked him again, noticing a second chair for the first time as he sat across from her. It was thoughtful of Wolfe to go through so much trouble to keep her company.
Neither said much as they filled their plates and consumed breakfast. Bella's ravenous appetite surprised her, but the sheer volume of food Wolfe put away astounded her. She wondered how honest he had been about having eaten already when she offered to share her supper with him.
Though he did not say so, he grinned at her in relief as Bella ate. His unspoken worry did little to calm her nervous energy or the rapid beating of her heart. She did not understand why he felt so concerned. She was not underweight and had eaten more the day before than he knew.
Wolfe stared intently from the corner of his eye as she wrapped her lips around an egg and bit. Her tongue dipped out to swipe yolk crumbs from her lips, and Wolfe cleared his throat as he looked away.
She swallowed and teased, "Do you not like Eggs, Mr. Wolfe?"
"Actually," he whispered and looked up through hooded eyes from where he leaned over his plate. "They might be a new favorite for me." He held her gaze as he bit into a large, ripe strawberry.
Bella could feel herself blushing as she looked back at her plate. How does he draw me in so easily? It was entirely disconcerting.
Bella continued to eat in silence, acutely aware of his every movement and glance. She looked at his knee twice as he shifted his sitting position and longed to lay her hand there. Bella wanted a reason to touch him, to see if he felt as warm as he had the night before.
After breakfast, he excused himself from the cabin to allow her to dress and gather her belongings. Soon, they were walking along the snow-covered trail as Wolfe led her horse behind them.
Patches of sunlight broke through the overcast sky as the slowly melting snow dripped from the tree limbs. Eventually, the surrounding trees changed from fir and pine to nuts and fruit. Apples and plums hung from branches, appearing ripe and out of place in the wet snow.
As if noticing her scan of the fruit-riddled trees, Wolfe said, "The first snowfall is early this year. The harvest should be fine. The snow is melting quickly." Wolfe handed her the reins and darted off the path to the trees. He plucked two plums simultaneously and jogged back to her.
"Try one," he said as he handed her a deep purple plum. Simultaneously, they bit into the cold fruit. The chilled texture was a pleasant surprise as juice dripped down her chin and flavor exploded onto her taste buds.
"See?" Wolf chuckled before taking another bite. "Perfect."
They ate as they walked, chuckling at each other when one or the other had to wipe juice from their lips. Bella stopped at his suggestion and rubbed her hands into the snow, washing the stickiness away as well as she could. Afterward, he laughed as she shook the icy wetness from her hands and walked over to take hold of them.
Wolfe's hands felt feverish despite having just had them covered in snow. He stroked the feeling back into one of her hands and then the other. Wolfe held onto Bella's left hand a little longer than necessary, frowning as he examined her thin fingers.
Noting his furrowed brow, she asked, "Is something the matter?"
"No." He smiled, his face lighting up like sunshine as he let go. "Your fingers are quite small. It may take time to find a ring that will fit. I suppose you won't mind waiting?"
"I care naught about the ring," she said, examining her now-warm hands as they resumed walking. "It is but a superficial decoration."
Firmly, he said, "It is a symbol, Madam."
"Between lovers," she countered, looking up at him. "Jacob Black does not love me. We have never met."
Wolfe sighed, the frown returning to his face. "Perhaps you will come to love him," he suggested.
It was possible, of course, provided her heart did not belong to another. Bella would do her best to be a good wife and confidant to her future husband. The racing heart and quick breath that accompanied Wolfe's every touch left Bella wondering if an unrequited love would be her price for giving Mary Alice her freedom.
It was for the greater good of all, Isabella! You can relinquish your future to fate, help your siblings, and prove your father wrong! Still, Bella could not help but wonder if it was ridiculous to hope she might have an affection-filled, intimate marriage.
Tentatively, she asked, "And Jacob Black? Would he come to love me, do you think?"
Wolfe would not meet her gaze. "He would be a fool if he did not."
Bella blushed at the compliment and bit her lip to keep quiet as a thousand questions worried her mind. The energy between them was palpable as they fell into a nerve-riddled silence. Eventually, only the crunch of boots on melting snow hung between them.
Sometime later, he asked, "Do you need to rest, Mrs. Black?"
The term felt somewhat cutting, an unnecessary reminder of her circumstances. Bella cared for Wolfe now. It was pointless to deny it. She watched after his every move, fascinated to the point of distraction. Bella had not known him a full day, yet she felt irrevocably changed.
"Bella," she corrected him. "Or Isabella. I told you, I'm not Mrs. Black just yet. They have to agree to go through with it first."
"They will," he said, finally turning to look at her. "I told you, he will like you. He will like it even more that you are not your sister. He never wanted to betray Jasper's friendship."
She and Wolfe were clearly on the same page where Mary Alice and Jasper Whitlock were concerned.
Wolfe gestured ahead, pointing out another cabin. The prospect of warming her feet made her sigh with relief. He chuckled. "Come along, Isabella."
Barns and other storage buildings sat in the back of the property. He pointed toward a section. "That is where the harvest gets stored. By the end of the week, they will be full of fresh fruit to ship." The fruit trees they walked through were only a portion of what they farmed, and Bella was in awe.
How could anyone get the harvest done so quickly? Bella had seen naught but two men so far.
As if sensing her question, he explained, "Travelers will fill the empty cabins within a few days, and other locals will help with the harvest. Each one will get paid for their labor. Handsomely, I might add. What cannot be sold will also get divided. Much of the harvest goes home with the harvesters."
When she didn't respond, he teased, "You will be sick of plum pudding, preserves, and stewed prunes by spring, I promise."
Her laughter made him pause. His returning smile was genuine and affectionate, leaving butterflies in her chest. Wolfe held his arm out to her and carefully guided her up the front stairs.
"I'm going to take her into the barn." He gestured to her horse. "I'm sure she is thirsty by now. You should go inside and warm up." With that, he walked away, leading her horse behind him.
Bella watched him until he was out of sight before stomping the snow from her boots and stepping inside the cabin. She froze in the doorway, staring at the men inside. Each reminded her of Wolfe in some form with their tall, muscular frames, suntanned skin, and sharp features.
Most of them stood, surprised to see her. One man, whose short, dark curls needed a thorough brushing, quickly stepped toward her with a ready grin. He blatantly looked her over from head to toe. "So, we get to meet Jacob's bride after all."
Each man's clothing looked similar to Wolfe's, with tight-fitting breeches and thin, loose shirts. Several wore no shoes, she noticed and grimaced over her frozen toes.
The man she recognized from that morning was feeding wood into the stove as he called out, "Shut the damn door."
The person most resembling Wolfe in size stood and pushed the curly-haired man aside as Bella shut the door behind her. His appearance was initially startling, with jagged scars along his neck and right cheek. Bella bravely showed no outward sign of fear and met his gaze dead-on. The grimace on his face lifted into a contrastingly perfect white smile. His voice was deep yet loud as he said, "Someone needs to tell Mrs. Cleary that Jacob's bride has arrived."
Bella glanced around the room nervously, willing her racing heart to slow down. Three men were heavily scarred, with cuts in random places along their faces, arms, or torsos, evidence of their particular occupation. The one called Paul grinned in amusement as he worked. The rest remained silent, watching her uneasily.
"Hello," she squeaked out as she carefully stepped around the two men in front of her.
"Greetings, Miss," another said from his position at the window as he smiled. His kind face and relaxed demeanor felt genuine, immediately easing some of her tension. "No need to feel nervous. Come inside and get warm. We will not bite."
"Speak for yourself," said one of the others, earning a cackle from Paul.
The cabin was much more spacious than the last, with doors to bedrooms surrounding the main room. Several pieces of worn furniture, pelts, and blankets gave this cabin the same cozy ambiance as the other. A separate, wide fireplace covered by a boiling cauldron of white linen drew Bella in with its promise of restful heat.
Bella gave them all the friendliest smile she could manage and approached the fireplace. Paul laughed as she sat down on the floor and pulled off her boots. Though dry, her feet were freezing and tingled painfully as the heat from the fire licked her toes. She fought back a grimace and turned to watch Wolfe enter the cabin.
Amused at her position, Wolfe chuckled as she rubbed the feeling back into her feet. Entirely ignoring his peers, he walked over to sit beside her and pulled her stocking-covered legs into his lap. The others watched in stunned silence as Bella leaned back on her hands and Wolfe massaged her right foot.
The heat of his hands seeped into her skin. Bella had never known a touch so warm. Wolfe's thumb pressed into her arch and slid to her big toe. He repeated the motion a few times before moving to her heel. As he pushed into it, she shivered. Bella would not look away from his hands, noting his gentleness despite his strength. Wolfe could crush her foot in a second if he desired. Contemplating his physical strength left her feeling oddly excited.
"Those cold, tiny hands would take all afternoon to warm those toes, Isabella."
She giggled.
The smirk on Wolfe's face brought her out of her lust-filled stupor. Her giggle cut off abruptly as he pressed into the arch of her foot. Her hood fell as she tilted her head back, and a pleasure-filled whimper escaped her parted lips.
The youngest and smallest of the men dropped his jaw for just a moment before Wolfe shot him a warning glance. Her face reddened.
"So," said the curly-haired man, "you are not Mary Alice."
" Isabella Swan, allow me to introduce you to the guards," Wolfe grumbled as he looked up, annoyed. Pointing each man out, he said, "Paul, Samuel, Jared, Seth, Embry, and this cheeky bastard is Quil." Wolfe gently grabbed the other foot.
"I suppose any semblance of formal proprietary is out the window with this one, " Jared muttered. Paul's cackling laughter filled the cabin.
Wolfe glared at Jared, and the room again fell silent. As they watched him rub her feet, the tension among them left Bella uneasy as she wondered what social faux pas she had committed. After all, Wolfe was merely looking after her, a charge he had fulfilled.
Is it inappropriate to rub someone's feet? They are clean, Bella thought as she looked toward her foot in Wolfe's massive hand. It was not as if he were touching blackened, scaly toes as some folks gained with too much yeast and pinching shoes. As she reached for her boots, Wolfe snatched them away to tuck behind his back.
As if Embry plucked the very thought from her mind, he whispered, "Pay us no mind, Mrs. Black. You have offended no one."
" Mrs. Black ," Paul teased in a wistful tone.
"I, for one, will enjoy hearing that around here," Seth mumbled.
Jared snickered and said, "No one asked for your opinion, mutt."
Her eyes went wide as Seth snarled in response.
"We mean no harm, Miss," the one called Embry said, still staring out the window. "Seth is our newest guard, and we enjoy riling him up a bit. I hope you understand you are a novelty at the moment. It is not every day that one of us gets married."
Quil asked, "Where pray tell, is Mary Alice?"
Bella asked, "Why are you so concerned about Mary Alice, Quil? Do all of you know my sister?"
Simultaneously, Quil, Jared, and Samuel asked, "Sister?"
Bella laughed, turning to Wolfe. "How many know my sister yet have never heard of me? Do you truly not see any resemblance?"
Paul held a chunk of soft cheese over the fire, turning it slowly as it heated. "Most of us know of Mary Alice through Jasper but have not met her."
Shooting Wolfe a sly grin, Quil said, "We thought there must be some confusion when we heard of the engagement. Considering Jasper planned to propose when he returns, that is. I have met your sister, Miss. She is quite the handful."
Wolfe reprimanded him by snapping, "Quil!"
"He is not wrong," Bella soothed, laying her hand on Wolfe's forearm. The incredulous look on his face made her laugh.
"Mary Alice and Jasper are why I came," Bella admitted. "They will have their time if I may help it. I am unattached. It made more sense to offer myself in her stead."
Paul grinned at her and nodded his approval before returning to his task. She watched him curiously as he shoved the warm cheese between two large chunks of bread and then cut it in half. He set the halves on top of bowls and carried them over to Bella and Wolfe. The scent of the hot, brothy chicken and vegetable soup filled her senses, and her mouth watered. She thanked Paul as he handed her a spoon.
Leaning toward her, Wolfe whispered, "Try this." He dunked the cheese-filled bread into his broth and took a large bite.
Bella followed his example, and her eyes widened in delight.
"Eat up while you can," Sam warned as he glanced out the window. "More snow is coming. I should get moving." He nodded toward Paul and walked outside without another word.
Bella attacked her lunch in silence, relishing the rich flavors and warmth that filled her belly. Everything that had passed her lips since walking through the gate tasted phenomenal. Paul had a gift.
After eating, she laced her boots and thanked Paul for all he had done. Outside, Wolfe helped her onto her horse. Snow steadily fell as he mounted his own and cautiously led them back onto the trail.