Fox Afield (Madison Wolves)

by Robin Roseau

  Fox Afield

  by Robin Roseau

  Table of Contents

  On Responsibility

  Honeymoon

  Climbing

  Diplomacy

  Phone Call

  Traveling Home

  Nine Years Ago

  Dog Walker

  Coffee Shop

  Roaming

  Finding The Car

  Mission Interrupted

  Prisoner

  Rescue

  Police

  Home

  So Long, For Now

  Several Months Later

  About the Author

  On Responsibility

  I vaguely remember an old movie involving a culture where, if you save a person's life, you are responsible for that person for the rest of her life. At the time, I thought that was odd.

  My life has been saved by others. I can't be sure how many times Lara has saved my life. Does it count when she rescued me from frigid Lake Superior when she was the one who pulled me in after her? To be fair, I pushed. When she saved me from myself, does that count? Does it count when she saved my life in a bar in Madison when the only reason I was there was to show her the truth from which she would save me? When Lara has pulled me from danger, does that count?

  Did Angel save my life without even knowing it?

  When Greg Freund taught me to juggle silver daggers, did he save my life?

  Has my life been inadvertently saved simply by Elisabeth's presence?

  I don't know the answers to these questions. I know my brother Tyler saved me once. I was six at the time.

  I have saved lives. I saved the lives of a family of werebeavers, Fred and Jane and their three children. I may have saved Lara's life from a crazed gunman, but it is not clear she would have died. I once saved David's life, although perhaps he would have survived, and also Rory's life.

  But the first life I know I saved was that of a teenage girl, eight years before my marriage to Lara. Her name was Bree Callahan. Bree's father, Robert Callahan, was a wealthy, influential man in Ashland, Wisconsin. Robert used his influence to thank me, finding me a job and a home. I will be forever grateful.

  I had become a sort of friend to Bree, although when she went away to college, we lost touch with each other. But I would always feel a certain responsibility for her. I couldn't explain why, but I knew it was true.

  When she called, frantic, I knew I would help.

  Honeymoon

  Who takes an entourage on a honeymoon? Well, when you are the mated alpha pair of a werewolf pack, you do.

  Lara surprised me with the honeymoon plan. In front of a fire one blustery winter night in Bayfield, we had started talking about places we'd never been. Ironically, I was more well-travelled than she was. It wasn't necessarily safe for a werewolf to travel through the territory of another pack, and as nearly every piece of Earth is claimed by one pack or another, there were few places to go.

  It hadn't been safe for me, either, but somehow I had done it.

  But the Madison pack had made friends, and those friends had other friends, and so Lara had made arrangements. I missed the mountains of my childhood and would have loved to visit other mountains.

  How convenient that Greg Freund was such good friends with the Boulder, Colorado alpha.

  * * * *

  I woke slowly, Lara's breath on my ear. I brushed her away. "No, I can't do it again," I told her. "You wore me out. You have proven your virility."

  "Wake up, Little Fox," she said.

  "Lara, please. I hurt."

  "Liar," she said. She tried to tug the covers off me, and I fought her for possession of the blanket.

  "Lara, stop it! You're insatiable."

  "Little Fox, I am entirely satiated. But it's time to get up."

  I cracked an eye open, glanced at the window, and jammed an elbow into her side. "It's still dark out, and it's Sunday. I have nowhere I need to be, and I've had a rough several days. You get up if you want to; I am sleeping in."

  "Have it your way," she said. She slipped from the bed, and I was three quarters back to sleep when I heard the sound of the shower.

  Imagine my surprise when the bedcovers were rudely yanked from my naked form. Before I could fully react, Lara pulled me into her arms, picked me up, and began to carry me to the bathroom.

  "No!" I screamed. "What is the matter with you? Lara, put me down! Right. Now!"

  She chuckled and carried me into the bathroom.

  "No!" I screamed again. "Lara! Stop it!"

  She stepped to the edge of the shower.

  "Don't do it, Lara! I promise I will make your life a living hell!"

  She looked at me. I had my arms around her neck, in spite of myself. But I was glaring at her, and if I were to have a new superpower, I would steal Cyclops' superpower from X-men.

  "Honeymoon," she said.

  I stared into her eyes. She was smiling, and it wasn't the sort of smile she wore when she was trying to anger me. It was her expectant, "I have a surprise for you" smile.

  "Honeymoon?" I asked in a small voice.

  "Yes."

  I sighed, laid my head on her shoulder, and said, "If that water is cold, I will scratch your eyes out."

  She stepped into the shower with me. The water was perfect. So were the kisses she gave me.

  There are advantages to being the alpha's mate. Lara is big, strong, and exceedingly virile, a fact of which I took full advantage. She would give me anything I asked; I never asked for things, I only asked for her. But she would, if I asked. She lived in a fine, comfortable home, one I didn't have to clean. We ate good food and slept between the softest of sheets.

  And she never ran out of hot water in the shower.

  She held me in her arms, the water running down both our naked bodies, kissing me as our hearts pounded for each other.

  We had been married for less than twelve hours, and I was so amazingly in love.

  "Put me down," I said, and she did, very gently. I moved back into her arms, clutching her toned ass, looking up into her face for a moment, then lowering my eyes to her firm breasts. I took a wet nipple in my mouth and teased it with sharp teeth. Lara in return lifted a finger to one of my sensitive nipples, and I gasped as she gently teased me, playing briefly with the piercings only a few days old.

  "You will keep these," she said.

  I looked up at her, a nipple still trapped between my teeth, and nodded. She gasped as I tugged on her sensitive flesh.

  "I like these, too," she said, fingering my ears. "We did not discuss them."

  "No promises," I said, releasing her nipple. "They'll catch the light."

  "I know. They're lovely."

  "They'll catch the light when I am trying to hide."

  That thought caused her to smile. "I believe you offered to keep any body modifications from your ransom night, if I asked you to. I want you to keep these."

  "I offered to keep the ones you hadn't seen yet. Don't push your luck, Lara. You're already ahead, three to one."

  "You called these a pair," she said, raising her fingers to play with the nipple piercings. I gasped at the sensations.

  "Stop that," I said. "You're not going to sway me that way."

  "Are you sure?" She tugged on them again. It hurt, just a tiny bit, but it sent a rush through my body at the same time. Moments later, she sniffed, and I knew she could smell my ardor. "Oh you like this," she said. "Promise to keep the earrings, and I'll make it worth your while."

  I pushed her hands away.

  "Stop it. We're not discussing something important this way." I turned my back on her, shoving my bottom into her groin and reaching for the soap. She wrapped her arms around me, her hands
searching for my nipples again.

  "Lara! Stop it!"

  "Little Fox?" she said. Her tone was soft, confused, and I thought perhaps I had hurt her.

  I turned around. "Lara," I said gently. "I loved what you were doing. I love you. I love your hands on me. Please don't try to use that to manipulate me into doing something I may not want to do. Right now, our lovemaking is beautiful to me, and I want it to stay that way."

  "I'm sorry," she said. "You're right. But please keep the earrings. I like them."

  I broke my gaze, looking down, and began washing her firm body. "I love your body," I told her. I really put myself into it, not just washing her skin, but massaging the muscles in her chest and arms.

  "Little Fox," she said gently. "Please keep the earrings."

  "I will consider it," I said. "But I am not convinced it is in my better interests."

  She didn't say anything right away, but when I glanced up, she was looking into the distance, and I thought perhaps she was searching for a suitable bribe. She found one.

  "What if I promise to never cheat on another wager with you?"

  I looked back into her eyes. She was looking at me with hope.

  "Is it really that important to you?"

  "Yes," she replied.

  "Turn around," I ordered. I washed her back and under her arms, then moved down her body, washing thoroughly. "Spread 'em," I said, slipping one leg between both of hers. She slipped her feet further apart, and I enjoyed washing her private places, the smooth skin still a surprise from the previous fur. She squirmed under my touch, but let me do what I wanted.

  I finished, kneeling behind her, washing one foot at a time, and helped her to rinse. When I was done, still kneeling, I ordered her, "Turn around".

  She did, and I slipped between her legs, kissing her stomach, then the crease of her pelvis, then bringing my mouth to her sex. She adjusted her stance, the position awkward but delicious. She was delicious.

  She had been the aggressor last night, but at least for a short while, it was my turn.

  I pulled her into my mouth and then did all the things I knew she enjoyed, and her panting and moans were music to my ear. I brought her to the edge, then held her there for as long as I could before pulling an intense orgasm out of her.

  "Oh, Little Fox!" she gasped as she came, her entire body clenching in her need. She tasted divine on my tongue, and I continued to lap at her, teasing her, until she relaxed. I slowed my tongue, teasing a second, tiny orgasm out of her. I think I surprised her with that one.

  I looked into her face, smiling, pleased with myself. "I love doing that to you," I told her.

  She reached down and pulled me to my feet, kissing me, sharing her own taste from my mouth.

  "Do you accept my offer?" she finally asked, taking the soap from me. She began washing me.

  "No funny stuff," I told her. "I'm sore." She began massaging my shoulders. "Oh, that's nice though." She had big, strong hands, and she had learned exactly how much pressure I enjoyed.

  "Please keep them," she said again. "I promise, I won't cheat again."

  "No," I said. "If I keep them it will be because I want to, or because I want to please you. If I do not keep them, it is because I deem them dangerous to me. I need to decide how easy they are to see in the dark."

  "Why does that matter?"

  "Because hiding is the only advantage I have," I told her. "Why won't you let me keep it?" I opened my eyes to look at her. "You are better than I am at nearly everything, Lara. You are bigger, stronger, run faster, and jump further. I have faster reflexes and some ability to hide, but I've taught you most of my tricks, and I bet if we played hide and seek now, I'd never get away from you."

  "Why is that important to you?" she asked.

  "Because you win at everything else. How do you think I feel losing all the time? I want to win sometimes, too."

  "It's not like that," she said.

  "It's not? How much choice did I have this morning when you decided I needed to take a shower?"

  "But! We have a flight to catch!"

  "And it doesn't even occur to you that forcing me into the shower is going to make me angry? It's not like I have any reason to have a recent fear of being helpless or anything like that."

  I scored my point with that.

  "Oh god, I'm sorry, Michaela."

  I put my fingers over her lips.

  "I'm not trying to fight," I said. "I'm not trying to yell at you. I'm not even trying to get you to stop. I like your strength. I wouldn't want you to give that up. I'm asking you not to ask me to give up my advantages."

  "You're right," she said after a moment. "I'm sorry. You're right."

  "Thank you. I'll keep the earrings for now while I decide if you promise to be honest about them. Lara, it's not just you that might see them in the dark, you know."

  "Right," she said. "Of course. I promise."

  "Then for now, I'll keep them. Now, kiss me, tease me just a little, then wash my hair."

  She smiled and did everything I asked.

  * * * *

  "Catch a flight" really meant "Lara chartered a plane". She refused to tell me a thing about where we were going. She assured me everything I needed was already packed. Francesca had breakfast waiting for us when we made it downstairs.

  We rode to the Dane County airport via the limousine. Eric drove for us with Elisabeth in the front passenger seat. Lara and I rode together in the back. More enforcers rode in an SUV behind us.

  Before we left the house, I asked, "Are we leaving Wisconsin?" Lara refused to answer. I sighed and said, "All right. If we are leaving pack territory, I want my silver back. All of it. If you refuse to answer my question, I want my silver back."

  She nodded to Elisabeth, Elisabeth made a call, and five minutes later I was strapping my silver in place. "Oh," I said, once it was all in place. "I suppose I can't get through security like this."

  Lara smiled and assured me I'd pass right through all the security required.

  During the drive, Lara said, "I want to say one thing about the earrings, and after that, I won't bring them up again."

  I narrowed my eyes at her but nodded.

  "I am not trying to take your advantages away. I just like the earrings. I couldn't explain why. That's all."

  "All right," I said. "Thank you for telling me. Please at least tell me how long we'll be gone."

  "Two weeks."

  I smiled. "All right." I curled into her and pulled her arm around me. "I expect lots of cuddling."

  "Count on it," she said.

  I had grown accustomed to flying the small planes between Madison and Bayfield. I had never flown on a commercial jet, but I am not completely ignorant. I knew about TSA and security and all the rest. So I was surprised when we arrived at the Dane County Airport, pulled through a gate, and drove into a hangar and right up to a small jet.

  I had learned over the past year to wait in the car while the enforcers did their job. Most of the time, I didn't even need to think about it. That didn't keep me from staring out the window at the jet.

  It wasn't a big jet, but it was a lot bigger than the planes we normally flew. "Is this yours, too?"

  "No," she said. "It's chartered, complete with a flight crew. Today we're all just passengers."

  "Are all the enforcers coming on our honeymoon?"

  "The women," she said. "Rory and Erik will drive the vehicles home and take care of things there."

  I saw Elisabeth, Karen, Gia and Serena. "Only four? Will we be safe?"

  "Yes," she said.

  Finally Elisabeth opened the door. Lara stepped out first, then drew me after her. A human woman wearing a pilot's uniform met us near the plane. "I am Kristin Nash," she said, holding out her hand. "I will be your pilot today. Our flight plan is filed and we're ready to go as soon as you step aboard."

  Lara introduced everyone. The pilot led us into the aircraft where we met a flight attendant named Pam. There was a copilot alread
y in the cockpit who we were told was Gwen Silverstein. We received a quick tour of the small aircraft. I could stand up straight, but the wolves all needed to duck, which amused me to no end. The seating was plush and comfortable, far finer than the seating in Lara's little planes. Lara directed me to the forward passenger seat on the right; she took the seat on the left. Lara insisted I strap in, then she went up front to talk to the captain.

  I listened in.

  "I do not want my wife to see where we are going," Lara told her. "We would like to watch out the windows during takeoff, but then we'll pull the blinds. Can we avoid turning onto course until we're past five thousand feet?"

  "Certainly."

  "When we get close, I'd like to give her an aerial tour, once we can see some of the more distinguishing features."

  "I'll let you know when to open the blinds," Captain Nash assured her.

  "Excellent, thank you," Lara said before returning to me. The aircraft held seven passengers; with the six of us and the flight attendant, all the seats were filled. Lara and I had the two front seats, side by side with a small gap between them. The seats immediately behind us faced backward, and the rearmost seats faced forward again. That meant the enforcers could easily talk to each other. But I was happy holding hands with Lara.

  "I heard all that, you know," I said.

  "I want to exchange promises with you," she said. "I will promise to be completely honest about your earrings if you promise not to listen to the flight crew during the flight."

  "You already promised to be honest, Lara," I pointed out.

  "I promise to not make you wear ear buds and bad music if you promise not to listen to the flight crew," she offered.

  It was an amusing threat, one she wouldn't actually enforce. I laughed. "I will not intentionally ruin your surprise, Lara, and will make no special effort to listen to them. I do not take responsibility for things I hear incidentally."

  I wouldn't have admitted it, but I was excited and very touched she had arranged all this. Lara had a history of being heavy-handed with me in fashions both big and small, and this was another example. But I knew her heart was in the right place when she did it. It was her way. I never liked being in the dark about anything. Not only am I fox, so curiosity is my middle name, but danger lurks in the unknown. But I knew Lara, and Lara knew me, and I knew where ever she was taking me would be amazing.