by LeAnn Mason
CHAPTER 17
“I’m worried about your safety around him, Mae. He’s a freaking lion, and he can’t control his shifts. I don’t like it. I think I should be there. We can protect you.”
“I think you were the one to set him off last time, Red,” Jason put in with a droll quirk to his handsome face. Allya threw a fry at him in response, which only made him laugh and pull her closer, delivering a quick kiss to the top of her glossy, dark head. She grinned like a lovestruck fool in response to the adorable tenderness before wiping her face clean of her acceptance. I was happy they'd figured themselves out over the last few weeks. Lord knew I wasn't having any luck with my own predicament. Only stubbornness would keep them from being happy.
“Oh, don’t mind me. Please, continue in your lovebird haze,” I cooed, laughing as I batted at the wayward fry launched at my face. “But seriously, he says I’m the only one who doesn’t set him off.” I shrugged, snagging the flung fry from where it landed atop my half-eaten sandwich. We'd been having daily "sessions," trying to get him figured out, but he was resistant to any ideas regarding showing me how people affected him, choosing instead to waver between surly and hostile with a few glimpses of vulnerability thrown in to keep me eager to come back. This time, Rory had gotten defensive and then defeated, so I'd left the estate so he could reflect in private.
It was becoming increasingly hazardous to my health to inform Lorraine Leone of her son's lack of improvement. Heaven forbid she realize that it wasn't me barring forward progress. If he never showed me how he was affected, how could I analyze the data and come up with an appropriate experiment? Lately, I'd taken to spouting random facts about arbitrary things that flooded my mind in the absence of his input.
This morning, I'd rambled about an experiment I'd done for the science fair. I'd 3D printed an irrigation monitor to conserve water while optimizing watering of plants/food, only having access to such expensive equipment because of the prestige of the fair. I'd thought about the past while staring at the abundant verdant growth that didn't fit the garden, either by planting zone or seasonal bloomage.
I seemed to be a glutton for punishment though I pretended it was strictly his mother's coercion that strung me along and kept me coming back day after day. I knew I'd be back again tomorrow.
“He’s always had issues shifting,” Jason mumbled around his ketchup-slathered mouthful.
“Hunter here and his buddy Nick did use Rory as a cautionary tale during my… transition.”
“He did mention that he’d always had trouble containing his beast.” I felt horrible thinking that Rory had a constant internal battle raging, a war against himself. A war that lately he’d been losing. “It’s been uncontrollable since…” I trailed off, guilt once again assailing me.
“Since?”
I should have known Allya wouldn’t let it die. She stared at me with those bright amber eyes that were too sharp, doubly intelligent with the addition of Ebony. The stare was only step one in the Allya confession arsenal. She’d amp it with a barrage of questions if I didn’t fess up. I didn’t hold up under her scrutiny. Ever.
“Since his father’s been in a coma.”
Her face softened with understanding. “That isn’t your fault, Mae. None of it is.”
Jason eyed the two of us, mouth working and wheels turning, but he wisely stayed mute.
“I know you have a plan formulating in that big noggin of yours.” My friend sidestepped the complicated minefield that was “the incident” leading us into the situation we now found ourselves, choosing instead to distract me. “Tell me about it.” She continued munching as if we were talking about the weather. As if the answer didn't have someone's sanity and well-being on the line.
While I attempted to formulate my epiphany experiment into words, a flustered Bianca strode hurriedly to our tableside, arms waving in short motions. A plea for our attention. She definitely had mine. “Hey, what’s wrong?”
The pretty server usually had a rather bubbly demeanor, so seeing her worried shocked our group, sending the accompanying Shifters into fight mode.
“Risa’s here,” she panted, looking back toward the diner’s entrance just as a very striking blonde stalked up behind her. “Oh, here they are, Risa,” Bianca said, smiling with convincing brightness.
Man, that girl has a great fake calm going.
“I assume the four-eyed one is the human?” the blonde asked of no one, in particular, her predatory eyes scanning our table. “You, human, are to be at the Leone estate as dictated by the queen. You must accompany me back to the property.” The formality of the words didn’t soften the disdain dripping from her tone. Her beautiful face was contorted into the same ugly mask anyone got when they allowed prejudice to dictate their actions and emotions.
“Risa,” Jason acknowledged tersely, knowing the girl. She returned the short greeting before dismissing him in favor of looking down her nose at me again.
“Rory wasn’t in the mood to practice this morning, so I made myself useful elsewhere and am now having lunch with friends. I’d be happy to try again after my meal.”
“No. You will accompany me. Now. Queen Lorraine expects your retrieval and return to the estate. You were not excused.”
“Whoa there, Blondie, Mae is not a Shifter, therefore not subject to Leone rule. She can’t be forced into compliance,” Allya seethed. I didn’t know if she had met the girl previously, but she certainly appeared to dislike her.
“You have no input, abomination. The human must accompany me back to my Queen. If she does not wish to go willingly, I will—”
“Don’t finish that statement, Risa. You will not touch her. If she needs to return to the estate, I will see she gets there. You are dismissed,” Jason ordered, his voice like steel. His hazel eyes turned the golden glow of his wolf as their staredown continued. A quick scan of the table revealed both Allya’s and Risa’s eyes were also alight with their animals. This could get ugly.
“I have orders.”
“And now you have new orders. I outrank you, and I am giving you my word that I will get Mae to the queen momentarily.” He then shooed her away with a flick of his wrists, blithely returning his attention to Allya and me while the newcomer fumed at the edge of our booth.
After receiving no attention for her hovering, she admitted a huffed, begrudging defeat, and turned to leave.
“Oh, and Risa?” Jason called after her then paused, reveling in her mounting anger. “If you ever disrespect Allya or Mae again, I will bloody you.”
The rest of the meal was quiet, a contemplative and resigned sort of inward reflection, at least on my part, while I mulled over the thought I'd had about beginning to experiment. With the meal finished and my lunch hour at an apparent end, the three of us walked slowly back toward the overly large Shifter mansion and grounds, dreading the verbal lashing I was in for. Maybe having Jason and Al there would keep the queen from doing anything too crazy.
Hopefully.
When we arrived at the grand stone stairs at the front entrance, Jason didn’t break stride. Continuing up toward the doors, he heaved them open and marched inside. Allya and I shrugged at each other and followed in his wake. He knew his way around the opulent manor, turning this way and that without hesitation and ending up at the office suite I’d had to have a servant lead me to previously.
“My Queen.” Jason bowed slightly with the address.
“Why did you not allow Risa to bring her as ordered?” She wasn’t inclined to accept Jason’s intervention on my behalf.
“I’m sorry, my Queen. Risa came upon the three of us as we ate, and I simply informed her that I would escort Miss Randall to your presence once the meal was completed. I assumed you’d like the human to be fed when she reported in.”
The regal woman huffed, running her hand lazily across the back of a plush chair that sat facing the large desk in front of a wall of windows at her back. The afternoon light streaming through put her in stark shadow, her
glowing yellow eyes giving away the fury her ambling pace attempted to hide.
“Thank you for personally escorting the girl to my doorstep, Hunter. How are the rounds coming? How is Nick?”
“No perimeter breaches, and Nick is… feeling guilty? Readjusting? Honestly, I’m not entirely sure how he’s doing. He’d been given a week to get back into the swing of things before he’s expected to return to rounds.”
“Good, good. Is this Allya?” Her shrewd eyes found my friend and roved, the glow not abating. Allya’s eyes lit in response, Ebony inching toward the surface. “So you have the spirit and form of a wild wolf inside you? From a Witch ritual, yes?” Every royal pore recoiled, pushing further from where Allya stood.
A low growl was her answer, more Ebony than Allya at the moment. I held my breath, hoping she’d hold it together long enough that she wouldn’t shift and challenge the freaking Shifter queen. The lion’s answering smirk told me she was itching for a fight. I pleaded silently with Jason to stop this posturing before it escalated and something irreparable happened.
“Your Highness,” I interjected, throwing myself into the fire to break the tension, and possible death sentence, in the study of the Shifter royal family.
I wonder who would get the short end of that stick…
“Is Rory in the garden? Should I head there now? I believe I have an idea for how to proceed with desensitization.”
Like a switch was flipped, the light dimmed from the matriarch’s eyes, and her body unfurled. The lion had receded, gone back to sleep with the mention of aiding the young prince.
Something I’d unquestionably need to keep in mind while in her presence. Might come in handy to have an “off-button” I could push.
“Head to the garden. I’ll have my son meet you there. I need a moment with Jason and Allya.” While her words were civil, the show of teeth could only be described as warning. I didn’t like the idea of leaving my friend, hesitating to do as ordered, but when my eyes met Jason’s slight head bob and fierce expression, I knew he’d given me permission to escape. He’d take care of my friend for me.
He was much better equipped for the task, anyway. I guessed I’d leave her in his capable hands, and if anything happened to her, I’d just have to find a way to kill him. Humans could be very inventive that way.
Wandering off, I began the trek through the wide, cool hallways. The warmth of the garden did not breach the stone facade deeply enough to be felt within the corridors where I found myself. I thought I remembered the way out, but as each turn reminded me… I did not.
Rounding another corner in the labyrinthine mansion, I paused as a low rumble met my ears though I couldn’t pinpoint its origination. It sounded like it bounced off the walls and ceiling, echoing and disorienting. Looking both ways down the corridor, I didn’t notice anyone looming in the distance. The tension that had pulled my shoulders up to my ears released, and I blew out the breath lodged in my throat.
Air punched from my lungs when a heavy weight slammed into my back, forcing my body painfully into the stone wall. My neck pricked, pressure increasing when my assailant’s grip tightened. My cheek was pressed painfully into a crevice where the stones had been mortared together, causing grit to break the skin as more force was applied to the back of my head. Hot breath greeted my ear in angry pants without any words leaving my aggressor’s lips, but the long hair tickling my pinned arms and the swell pushing into my upper back gave me the indication it was a female.
My money was on the girl from the diner. She was the only one openly hostile to me… so far. “Risa?” I ventured with a muffled voice. My cheek protested the movement with a biting sting.
In answer, I was slammed into the wall with surprising force, considering I was already pretty well intimately acquainted.
“You better realize how fragile you are, human. How easily I could grind you to a bloody pulp against the stones beneath your face. You don’t deserve the company of our future king. That is meant for me.” I was right. It was the catty Risa at my back. Was she also a lion or just a Shifter who thought she deserved to be royalty?
Most teenage girls thought themselves royalty though, didn’t they? Looked like Risa wanted to assert her claim, alone and in a dark hallway.
“I’m just trying to make it so that Rory can be around people like you,” I ground out. My ribs began to protest being forcibly squashed making breathing as pained as my face. If I wanted to be released relatively unscathed, I needed to appease her enough to assure her superiority so she’d ease off.
She was right; she could grind me to dust without much thought or effort. I needed to be smart.
“This is how it is going to be, human,” she spat the word again. Like the repeated derogatory hissing of the word “human” would make me feel inferior and weak. I couldn‘t help the eye roll the cliché tactic evoked. “You will give our Heir whatever he needs to be… functional again, and then you will leave. He is not for you.”
“Did I give the impression that he was? I’m being forced to be here, by your queen, and like you, I need to do as she says. So you might want to make sure I’m able to do that.”
Another primal and rebounding growl answered, a sharp pain violating my neck in places corresponding with fingertips. Claws. Her claws had come out and were now embedded in the back of my neck and pricking my scalp. I couldn’t help my attempts to shrink away from the pain, to no avail.
I had nowhere to go.
An explosion of sound boomed through the corridor with such terrifying ferocity it made Risa’s growl sound like a fluffy kitten. A sound so resonant I felt it deep in my chest. Like a release button had been pushed, the pressure at my back ripped away, allowing my lungs to finally expand, the intake of air expelling the black spots that had been crowding my vision. The pulsing roar was so chilling, the sonority still reverberating through the tunneled space so penetrating that my legs folded, forcing me to sink to the cold stone floor. Then another pounding roar rent the air, leaving a dull buzz lingering in my ears.
“Mae.” A light touch accompanied the gravelly uttering of my name, giving me permission to turn my head even if the action burned my new wounds.
My eyes roved slowly up the body crouched before me, noting the golden skin. It bulged wherever the hidden muscles bunched beneath, every line straight, taut, and oh-so-tempting. Following those enticing lines to bright, golden eyes and shaggy, tawny hair, I realized several things:
Rory had defended me against Risa’s attack.
He was more glorious than my imagination could ever have conjured in its nightly REM state.
And he was completely, utterly, and gloriously naked.
CHAPTER 18
“What, you’ve never seen a naked Shifter before?” Rory chuffed flippantly, a half-grin pulling up a corner of his full lips even as worry clouded his eyes.
Straightening my skewed glasses—thanks, Risa—I composed myself and wiped a hand across my chin to mop up any wayward saliva. Covering my stare with a scoff and eye-roll that fooled no one, I reached out a hand to push the golden god out of nose-smashing proximity. Only, the intense warmth that suffused my hand was hypnotizing. The silkiness of the expanse beneath my fingertips pebbled in the wake of my exploration, and I couldn’t pull them away.
Beautiful.
“What in the world is going on here?”
Rory rolled his eyes, turning away and standing in one fluid motion. “Nothing, Mother. Just making sure Risa knows she cannot intimidate Mae.” He threw a quick wink over his shoulder. His attempt at reassurance? Where was the playfulness coming from? I’d yet to see more than fleeting moments of levity from him. Something had him in good spirits. Maybe the king was coming around…
I didn’t register anything being said after he stood. My mouth had completely dried of needed lubrication, making me feel like I was stranded in the desert, staring far and wide at only burning sand. My eyes were level with the perfectly shaped and dazzling globes of his gluteus maxi
mus, which was still within reach.
An echoed clack of a heeled step sounded just as every muscle in Rory’s sculpted Adonis body tensed, a menacing growl erupting in answer to the motion. “Don’t.” She must have halted because the muscles released, smoothing the lines that tension had formed along his body. Even his glorious rear. “Go. Once I am assured of Mae’s health, I will go and dress.”
“Leave her with me, and I w—”
“No. I will see her safely out. It was one of yours who assaulted her.” I peeked around my golden god to see an irate and fuming Allya attempting to push her way forward. There was no way she'd trust the queen now if she ever did.
Maybe now was a good time to intervene before things, once again, escalated.
“I’m good. I’m good,” I assured, using the wall to help walk myself up, making sure to avert my eyes as Rory turned to face me. I threw up a hand to block my view of the lower half, cheeks flaming. This whole thing would be bad enough with just the two of us, but with even more onlookers? Mortifying. “I’m just going to go wait in the garden. Allya, I’ll see you at the Archives this evening?” I made the comment as much to notify the hovering queen of my departure as to assure my friend of my returning faculties. I didn’t wait to hear the result of my proclamation, just crept along the wall, tugging free without my actions being too obvious when my clothes snagged on the rough stones.
Allya broke away from the tense crowd, her whiskey eyes glowing like lanterns, to make her way to my side. There were too many predators in our proximity. I couldn’t turn my back, but it wouldn’t hurt to throw out some bravado… “Oh, and bring a music player with you to the garden.” It helped that Al was there, gave me some spine.