Page 3 of His Arranged Plus-Size Mate

It was a decision we came to just last night. We knew something had to change, and while Brandon hated the idea, he knew it was time. We couldn’t sit and wait anymore. No other packs were coming to help. We had to save ourselves.

“Why in a week?” Gabriella asked.

“We have some loose ends we need to tie up,” Brandon said, his eyes drifting toward Hazel, who was still at her seat. We had discussed her as well.

Gabriella’s face shifted. “Like what?” Her protective side quickly set in, and Brandon offered her a reassuring smile. “We need to make sure that Hazel is safe.”

Hazel’s head snapped up at her name. She looked at us, all confused. “What do you mean?” Gabriella asked, crossing her arms. “She is perfectly safe.”

“I mean that Kaleb, Westley, and I will be leading the hunting trips, which will leave your house bare of an extra set of eyes.”

Gabriella looked even more confused now. “Why does that matter?”

“There is a chance that Hazel will come into her magic as you had, and when that happens, we need to be prepared.”

“I can watch her. I’ve been doing it my entire life. If anyone is going to understand how she feels, it’s me.”

“You are going to be needed to help keep the pack safe and the barrier in place. You won’t be able to monitor your sister.”

“I don’t need to be monitored. Besides, I spend most of my time with the witches anyway,” Hazel quickly chimed in. “And why does this suddenly matter?”

I knew what they were all getting at, but wouldn’t say. Everyone had been worried about Hazel since her abduction. “Hazel, it’s clear you’re struggling, and you need eyes on you.”

Her head snapped at me like I was the asshole. Her lips formed a line, and she looked at Brandon. “What are you proposing here?”

“You're staying with Asher for a while. Maybe discuss an arranged marriage to help calm the pack’s worry about you being evil.”

“What?” All the women spoke at once, looking at Brandon as if he were crazy.

“It’s a safe approach to everything. You marry him and live in his house. Asher is going to be in the pack more than any of us. He will be able to monitor and protect you more than anyone else will.”

I had not agreed to this. I hadn’t even known this was on his mind. He couldn’t have at least given me a heads-up on his idea, and maybe I wouldn’t feel like someone just hit me in the head.

“You can’t be serious,” Gabriella said. “She’s perfectly safe with Westley and me.”

“Was,” Brandon corrected. Brandon looked at Hazel. “Besides, Asher can relate more than anyone else can.”

“I doubt that,” Hazel said. “Unless he was kidnapped and someone impersonated him, he won’t.”

Brandon nodded. “He actually was. He was missing for two weeks before we found him.”

I felt a jolt run through my body, suddenly thinking back to when I had been beaten and dragged away from them. We were infiltrating a camp, and hadn’t known they were expecting us. It went south faster than we expected.

Hazel’s eyes snapped to me, a little shocked. I offered a tight smile.

I remembered when Brandon arrived with the guys. They were covered in blood, looking like they hadn’t slept in days. I imagined I didn’t look any better, considering they were trying to get information out of me. I wouldn’t give them anything.

“Let’s give it a week to get things arranged, and then we should be set to start the hunt. You both can decide if you want to move forward with the idea.”

“You can’t be serious about this,” Gabriella said. “She can’t marry Asher.”

“She can,” Brandon said. “It’s what’s best. It doesn’t have to be for long. Think about it.”

Gabriella looked at me. “You think this is insane, right? Come on, Asher. Be the logical one about this.”

I shrugged. “I don’t have an issue with it.”

Gabriella’s mouth just hung open like she was expecting me to disagree. But if I could help Hazel get through this, I would. I could see she was struggling, and maybe this wasn’t a crazy idea.