by Sammie Joyce
I thought about shifting but he was terrifyingly big. If I startled him, he might trample me and I had no doubt that watching me morph would do just that. No, I had to get away from him and hoped he would lose interest.
Backing away slowly, I snorted at him again, wanting him to sense my annoyance. Even if he understood, he didn’t care. Abruptly, I spun around and took off through the maze of trees. I didn’t need to look back to know that he was hot on my heels. I could hear the crunch of twigs as he barreled after me, surprisingly nimble for a beast his size, even as I dodged through small spaces and wove around to duck behind fallen logs.
This bull had clearly been in too many mating dances and whatever curveball I threw at him, he seemed to anticipate. I was getting tired, my hooves sliding against the mud, and I remembered the time I’d almost gone over a cliff. I didn’t know this area well enough to be sprinting through like that. If I ended up tumbling down a ravine or falling off a cliff, I’d be left there to die. No one would know where to find me.
I had two choices now:
Turn and shift.
Or let him have his way with me.
The latter was not an option at all and I knew the former was just as dangerous as continuing to run, but what else could I do?
I had to shift.
Jumping onto a low hanging cliff ledge, I spun around, preparing to morph but he was flying after me. If I shifted now, I’d surely be crushed beneath him when he landed.
I’d given him too much room to catch up, and suddenly, I was pinned beneath him, panting and frustrated as he tried to maneuver me. Grunting, I bucked him off me but before I could start running again, I saw a blur of movement out of the corner of my eye.
Another bull had appeared on the scene and was squaring off with the one who had been chasing me.
I paused, my heart racing as I struggled to catch my breath, watching the two males go head-to-head. Like the original bull, this one’s antlers had also started growing, his only slightly protruding from the velvet of his head. I wondered if I was going to have to fight off two bulls now and the thought filled me with dread. I knew this was the time to shift, now when they were both distracted and not on my literal tail.
Yet as I began to shift, my eyes rested fully on the newcomer and I gasped aloud when I realized who it was.
Ruben!
The second bull was undeniably the shifter who had been haunting my every thought for the past two weeks.
But what was he doing there?
I paused my shift to watch the fight in fascination, Ruben pushing against my enamored pursuer, his eyes flashing as he danced the bull backward. The bull was trying to fight but he was no match for Ruben, who clearly had the upper hand. Eventually, my suitor dropped his head, conceding the fight before bounding back the way he came into the forest.
It was only then that Ruben turned to me, a sheepish look in his eyes as he met mine.
But the exhaustion of the chase kicked in and my legs gave out, my body falling to the foliage with a thud where I lay until Ruben hurried to my side.
14
Ruben
I nuzzled her with my snout and to my relief, I saw she was still conscious. Before my eyes, she shifted back into her human form, lifting her head to look at me woefully. I could read the exhaustion in her face and I lowered my body for her to climb onto my back. She didn’t need to speak—I could hear every question she wanted to ask loud and clear as she pressed her body against mine as I continued through the thick.
She guided me, but somehow, I knew where she was going already. Despite wanting to stay away, despite wanting to keep my distance, something had drawn me back to her, just as it had during the migration. No matter how angry I was at her, she was my mate, and staying away just hadn’t been an option.
On the other hand, my pride had stopped me from making direct contact with her and for over a week, I had been watching her from a distance, sure that she was about to embark on the journey for Kealani.
It was infuriating, sitting in the shadows, knowing that I was there while she didn’t seem to sense me. But I had also seen her melancholy, the sadness reaching out to me in waves like slaps in the face.
She hadn’t believed I was coming back. That was why she’d left. If I’d shown myself sooner, she probably wouldn’t have been on this ridiculous mission to find something that likely didn’t exist anymore.
I was sure I would have been discovered when I followed her to the shifter meeting, if not by her then by the ever-watchful eyes of the others who seemed just as disgruntled by her journey as I had been.
I found it interesting that she didn’t tell them the truth about where she was going, as if she knew that they wouldn’t approve.
None of that mattered now.
Seeing her fleeing that bull had scared me enough to realize I needed to protect her, even if she didn’t think she needed protection. Whatever she was going to do, I needed to be at her side. That’s how mates worked.
We rode on for over an hour until I needed to rest and I paused by another bank of water where beavers worked diligently, ignoring our arrival.
I gently laid Larissa on the grass and she didn’t move, her eyes staring stonily at me as if she was still angry. A familiar twinge of annoyance shot through me as I became fully human. No sooner did I find my legs did her voice call out.
“What the hell are you doing here, Ruben?”
It wasn’t quite the greeting I’d expected but I was quickly learning that Larissa never gave me what I anticipated.
“Is that any way to say thank you?” I retorted, heading toward the water to splash some water on my face. A moment later, she was at my side, doing the same. The color had returned to her face but I could tell she was still feeling the effects of the chase, even if she was too proud to say so.
“I would have been fine,” she muttered, falling back onto the embankment, her mouth puckering into a frown.
“Yeah? Were you going to outrun him? Because it sure didn’t look that way from where I was sitting.”
“And where was that exactly?” she shot back. “Spying on me from the trees?”
I gaped at her, shaking my head in disbelief.
“You really are ungrateful!” I snapped. “I just saved you from having caribou babies.”
She visibly shuddered and I realized I’d gone a bit too far. I crouched down to her side and cupped her face in my palms.
“Yes, I’ve been following you,” I confessed in a rush of breath before I could change my mind. Her shoulders sank slightly, the defensiveness sliding off her face.
“Why? For how long?”
“Since the day I left your house.”
Her jaw slacked in amazement.
“What?”
I shrugged and flopped down at her side, allowing my hands to fall onto her bare shoulders where they lingered. Larissa didn’t try to shake them off and I took that as a positive sign.
“I tried to go away,” I sighed. “But I couldn’t stay away.”
“You fool,” she snapped, swiping at me. “Why didn’t you just come back?”
I inhaled and shook my head.
“Because, Larissa…” I paused, trying to find the words but knowing no matter how I said them, they weren’t going to sound right.
“Because you know our belief systems are too different,” she finished for me and I nodded slowly.
“Yes,” I breathed. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t care about you. I-I just don’t know how we’re going to make this work if…”
She was on her knees, pressing her lips to mine as my palms fell along the flesh of her shoulders. When she pulled back, she looked at me, a plaintive expression in her eyes.
“Maybe we can kick that can down the road for now?” she whispered and I nodded. I’d been thinking the same thing. We were out there now and I certainly wasn’t leaving her alone out there alone. Even if I didn’t agree with what she was doing, I wasn’t going anywhere. There was no poin
t in fighting about it now—particularly not at that moment when she was looking at me with so much love and desire.
I pulled her toward me, my mouth brushing against hers gently. I felt the explosion of goosebumps of her arms as my fingertips trailed along the perfect lines of her body.
She pushed me back, straddling my body with her lean, lithe legs. Had it only been a week since we’d last felt one another like this? To me, it felt like an eternity.
My one hand splayed against the small of her back, middle finger teasing at the top of her cheeks as my other twined through her magnificent dark hair, urging her as close as she could get—for the moment.
Her breath grew faster, a soft sigh escaping her mouth as she made her way down my chin, tongue sampling the scruff of my unshaven chin and along the ridges of my throat toward my chest.
I savored the tickle of her tresses over my abs, a low, feral moan falling out of my lips when she found my center.
My eyes took in the hazy blue of the sky above, dusk trying to fall but seeming kept at bay by the gloriousness of the day.
In rhythm, Larissa drew me too close and with a choking gasp, I sat up to pull her forward, positioning myself beneath her. Our eyes locked as my hands found her breasts, kneading them gently as I filled her. I watched her pupils dilate, relishing the cries until I silenced them with my kisses, pulling myself up to press our chests together.
She was riding me again, this time to her own pace, our bodies responding to one another’s movements like we’d done this a thousand times before.
“I missed you,” she murmured, her words almost inaudible as she began to tremble.
“I missed you too,” I assured her, my forearm locking around her waist as I felt myself swell inside her. Her thighs clenched around my waist and together, we released in unison, our desire unable to hold a second longer.
Our cries echoed through the area, causing the beavers to pause and give us a dirty look, one that Larissa caught. She began to laugh as she fell back, her frame still quivering from her climax.
“I think we interrupted them,” she told me and I shrugged.
“They needed a break,” I joked. “They were working too hard.”
The smile on Larissa’s face held but faded slightly, a shadow overcoming her eyes when she looped her hands around my neck and studied my face closely. I knew what she was going to say, even before she said it but I didn’t get the opportunity to stop it.
“What are we going to do now, Rue?” she breathed. I gave her a warm smile that I was sure didn’t meet my eyes but I was trying here.
“I told you. We’re going to stay together,” I insisted. She eyed me dubiously.
“What about—”
I held up my hand to stop her and sighed deeply.
“Larissa, I’m not happy you chose to come out here,” I agreed. “But you’re here now and there’s no chance I’m leaving you. I’m staying by your side. Whatever happens when we get home, we’ll worry about then.”
I thought she’d be satisfied with that answer but she didn’t seem to be.
“Or maybe we’re prolonging the inevitable,” she replied softly. I shrugged, bothered that she might be right.
“Even if we are,” I said flatly. “I’m not leaving you alone out here.”
She stared at me pensively and for a terrifying moment, I thought she was going to send me on my way. To my relief, she only nodded.
“It has been lonely,” she agreed and I exhaled. “I could use the company.”
“Good. Then it’s settled.”
She slid off me and snuggled down into my chest, her dark hair tickling my nostrils.
“Let’s just rest for a few minutes,” she murmured sleepily and I nodded in agreement. I could use the break too. The migration had trained me for long distance travel, but even so, the fight with the bull had taken something out of me.
Not to mention the fact that I haven’t slept a wink since our fight.
“Sure,” I purred. “Let’s rest.”
“And when we wake up, we’ll go for the artifact,” she concluded, her eyelashes fluttering against my chest.
I forced myself not to think about about the artifact or its repercussions. I’d had enough living in the future. Right now, I only wanted to live in the present.
And the present was right there, with Larissa in my arms.
15
Larissa
The first two days had dragged on hopelessly, but after Ruben’s unexpected arrival, suddenly, two weeks was gone and we were still in the wilds. I barely noticed the way time flew by after Ruben appeared.
Our days were made trekking through the woods, pausing to gauge the sun to ensure we were on track in accordance with the guide the spirits were instinctively giving me.
The nights were spent with me conferring with my guides, asking for their wisdom and allowing myself to astral project beyond our spot to the wilderness beyond so that I might find an artifact.
I could see it so clearly in my mind’s eye; the mountain where we needed to be, the lake inside the cave and yet as we moved during the day, I knew we weren’t quite there, not yet.
To his credit, Ruben kept his opinion about the journey quiet and I found myself appreciating his new resolve to simply relish the feeling of euphoria that enshrouded us both as we traveled, mostly in silence, mostly in our caribou forms. The nights, however, were for human lovemaking and talking endlessly by the firelight.
Some days were hot and Ruben would broach the subject of global warming but never with his views on shifter overpopulation. We spoke intelligently, respectfully and after the end of the second week, I had almost forgotten that we’d once argued about anything at all. We were two mates on a journey to find something mystical and I was thrilled that I had him to share in this experience with me.
I paused mid-gallop and Ruben ran directly into my rear end, sending me forward three feet. I skidded to a stop and he grunted in disapproval. When he finally looked up, he saw what had captured my attention and he, too, paused.
It was the mountain I’d seen in my visions, the ones the spirit guides had sent me. I felt a fission of apprehension snake through me and the sensation surprised me. I couldn’t help but think that I should have been more excited.
I lifted my chin toward the towering incline and he nodded his understanding. It was still a good day’s journey away but at least we had the mountain in our sights. Nothing until that moment had told me that I was entering into any danger, yet there was an unmistakable feeling of worry gnawing at my gut.
Sensing my hesitation, Ruben nudged me with his head. His antlers had grown more over the past weeks and he seemed majestic as he stared at me, waiting for my direction.
Of course we’re going in there, I thought, annoyed at myself for second guessing what we were doing. Isn’t that why we’re here?
I nodded at him and started forward, feeling him on my trail. Yet every step we took, I felt like my hooves were getting heavier and I wanted to stop with more frequency than we had before.
I wondered if the gods were warning me, if my body was responding to peril I had yet to see.
Ruben shifted beside me, his eyes questioning.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, concern lacing his words. “Are you okay?”
I, too, shifted out of my caribou form and nodded quickly, forcing a smile.
“I think I’m more tired than I thought,” I told him. “Maybe we should call it a day early and get a dawn start in the morning. I think it shouldn’t take more that twelve, fourteen hours to get over there?”
His eyes darted back toward the mountain and he nodded at my assessment.
“That seems about right.”
“Are you good if we find something to eat and hunker down then?”
He bobbed his head again but I could still read the naked worry in his face.
“Are you sure that’s all it is, Larissa? You’re just tired?”
“What else could it be
?” I joked. “I mean, we’ve been out here for over two weeks. I’m used to being spoiled with a bed and fireplace.”
He smiled but I could see he wasn’t sold on my answer. It didn’t matter. Apprehensive or not, in the morning, we were going to be at the mountain and it would finally be the moment of truth. Either we would find an artifact or I had dragged him out there for no reason at all.
* * *
Despite my claims that I was exhausted, I was up earlier than Ruben the following morning. For a long moment, I watched his chest rise and fall, enjoying the peaceful expression on his face as he lost himself in some dream. For the first time in weeks, I hadn’t reached out to the spirit guides the previous night and he had asked me why.
But I wasn’t sure why I hadn’t.
Maybe I was afraid that they might direct me away from where we were going or perhaps I inherently knew that I was doing something I wasn’t supposed to be doing. Whatever the reason, I had closed my mind to the guides and decided to wing it.
I shuffled to the mouth of the cave in which we slept, staring out into the day to get a handle on the kind of weather we might anticipate. It was hardly a surprise to me that it was overcast, storm clouds brewing up above. For once, I was not pleased that the elements were mimicking my emotions. I tried to force happy, optimistic thoughts into my head but the weather couldn’t be fooled.
We were in for a stormy day in more ways than one.
“Larissa?”
I turned at the sound of my name and saw Ruben stretching like a cat.
“Good morning, darling,” I said brightly. “How did you sleep?”
He laughed and then moaned as he sat up.
“I think you know the answer to that.”
I gave him a warm grin.
“Well, after today, we can head back.”
“It’s always easier heading home than it is going somewhere, isn’t it?” Ruben commented and my smile widened. I remembered how I’d thought the same thing when I’d gone looking for him.