“There,” Vali whispered. “Your shivering stopped.”
I sighed and let my head fall back against his neck. Vali’s hands tightened around my waist, and I realized for the first time we were both naked under the thick, dark fur covering my body. I flushed with a different kind of heat. I moaned and shifted, arching my back to press closer to Vali’s chest. Vali flinched and scooted backward, but not before I felt the hard heat of his erection.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “I’m not trying to seduce you. You were so cold, I thought the warmth of my body—” His voice cut off as I rocked my hips against his.
My stomach tightened in a familiar way and heat rolled down my body, coating the inside of my thighs. His cock pulsed against the small of my back, and his hands trembled against my stomach.
“Karen. I didn’t mean to—I mean, we don’t have to—”
I wrapped my fingers around his and pulled his hands up to cup my breasts. My nipples tightened under his palms. His hands were so warm; they left trails of smoldering embers across my skin, like my entire body ignited under his touch.
Vali groaned as his hands brushed my nipples. “Oh, you have no idea how hard it is to resist you,” he said, his voice thick.
I pressed into his chest, my hips rubbing his cock. “Don’t,” I moaned. “Don’t resist me.”
His chest shuddered and he turned, lowering me to the furs. I spread my arms above my head, offering my entire body to him. Our lips met in a soft kiss as his hands followed the curve of my breasts and stomach, his touch setting me on fire. He was still kissing me when his hand spread my legs and pressed against my sex, his thumb circling my clit. I gasped into his mouth as my hips rocked against his hand.
Vali pulled back, smiling. “I really did only want to warm you,” he whispered.
“I’m warm,” I gasped.
“Are you?” His fingers pressed harder, and the waves of pleasure crashed through me, leaving me gasping for air.
“I’m warm!” I cried. “Oh, I’m warm!”
He grinned and lowered his body to mine, his chest hair rasping against my tight nipples as his hips pushed my legs apart. I moaned when his cock slid inside me, hard and hot, filling me almost to the point of pain. He sank his fingers into my hair and kissed me deeply, pressing me into the fur. I held still for as long as I could, feeling him pulse inside me, his heat and sweat covering me as our tongues intertwined and our bodies joined.
But it wasn’t enough; I wanted more. I tilted my hips, pushing him deeper.
“Oh, yes,” he groaned.
He caught my bottom lip in his teeth, then moved to my neck, nipping my skin and sending explosions of heat and pleasure skating through my body. I closed my eyes, surrendering to him, drowning in him. His hips matched my rhythm, first rocking slowly and then, as the heat between us built, moving faster and faster. The flames of the fire leapt and danced as our bodies came together, and oh God, he made me feel good, he made me feel so good—
I cried his name, sinking my fingers into his back as the orgasm burned through my body, blurring my vision and singeing every nerve ending. Vali stiffened above me, gasping as his cock shuddered deep inside me. A heavy, wet exhaustion rolled over me in waves as Vali shifted, wrapping his arms around my waist and pressing his body against my back, enveloping me in his warmth.
Closing my eyes, I let sleep take me.
I WOKE TO BIRDSONG, although it took my brain a moment to place the familiar sharp de-de-de.
Chickadee. It was a mountain chickadee.
I opened my eyes to the soft, gray light of early morning. A chickadee hopped from a low branch on the nearest lodgepole to the snow-covered ground, tilting its head at me. What are you doing here? It seemed to say.
I rolled over and pressed my palms to my eyes, trying to remember what I was doing in the woods.
“Something wrong?”
I turned. Val was lying next to me. My heart surged, and for a moment I thought I might actually cry. He was so damn handsome in the pale morning light, with his eyes soft and his hair messy from sleep.
“You’re still here,” I whispered.
He grinned. “Of course I’m still here. You didn’t think I’d leave you, did you?”
I swallowed, not wanting to admit that was exactly what I’d expected. “But you’re still...I mean, you’re not a wolf.”
The shadow of a frown passed across his face. “No. I’ll not be a wolf again, I think.”
“You can’t change?”
He shook his head. “I’ve never been very good with magic. And that spell was...Well, it took three of them to cast it, and you saw what it took my father to break it.”
I shivered as I remembered Loki falling to his hands and knees in the meadow with blood trickling from between his lips. And that was before Diana shot him.
“Your father,” I said. “Is he going to find you, now?”
Vali shrugged. “Diana slowed him down. I’ll have time to prepare. Don’t worry about me.”
An insane idea blossomed in my consciousness. “Come with me!” I cried. “Vali, if you’re not going to be a wolf again, then come home with me! I’ve got plenty of room, I’d love to have you—”
He shook his head. Disappointment cut through my gut like a knife.
“It’s not that simple.”
“But you could hide in Bozeman,” I said, knowing full well I had no idea what I was talking about. “I mean, there has to be a way to protect you from Loki. We could figure it out!”
“It’s not just that. It’s here, it’s this place. Can’t you feel it?”
His golden eyes met mine, and he looked almost pleading. I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and listened. I could hear my heartbeat and Vali’s deep, even breathing. The cold air smelled of snow and pine. And maybe something else, some flicker at the edge of my consciousness. Like a hint of smoke in the air.
“See,” Vali said, lowering his voice until I could hardly make out his words. “There’s a monster here.”
I opened my eyes, and whatever I’d felt vanished in the sparkle of early morning sunlight on the snow.
“Isn’t that a very good reason to leave?” I asked, trying to keep my voice light.
He smiled. “Perhaps. In another lifetime. But not now. Not when I have something to protect.”
I reached for his hand and wove my fingers through his. Our lips met for a soft, lingering kiss. When he pulled away, his eyes glittered strangely in the growing light.
“I’m so sorry,” he said. “I’m no kind of lover for you, beautiful Karen. I can’t even offer you a proper meal.”
My stomach cramped uncomfortably at the word meal. I tried to ignore it. “You saved my life last night.”
He shook his head. “All I could give you was a moldering bear fur and a fire on the snow. Any proper Æsir could have done better. Shit, my brother would have brought a four-poster bed.”
His voice cut off, and he sat up, turning away from me. Cold air rushed into the furs, filling the space between us, and I shivered.
“I wouldn’t say the fur is moldering,” I said, feeling stupid. “And the fire was nice, too.”
Vali’s dark curls swirled across his back as his head shook. “Diana,” he called. “Diana!”
“I’m here.”
Diana appeared at the foot of the bear fur. The train of her dress brushed the ashes of the fire. I jumped, pulling the furs up to my chin.
“Will you?” Vali asked in a low voice.
“Of course,” Diana said.
Vali turned to me. His eyes shimmered in the pale light. “Karen,” he whispered, “go somewhere safe.”
“Wait, what? No! Vali, I don’t want to lose you again—”
Diana knelt before me and touched my arm under the furs. The forest disappeared.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
I opened my eyes in Diana’s living room. I was on the couch, still clutching an enormous, black fur to my chin. A fire roared on the hearth, and sev
eral dogs sprawled across the floor, snoring. Diana stood next to me in her blue dress.
“You’ll want breakfast,” she said briskly. “Perhaps a shower first?”
I nodded, trying to keep my tears from splashing over my cheeks.
“Twenty minutes, then.” Diana turned and left the room.
I couldn’t quite force myself to say thank you.
My neatly folded clothes were waiting for me in the bathroom, next to a clean pink towel. I took a very long shower, trying to think of nothing more than the rush of hot water against my skin. When the shower began to sputter and turn lukewarm, I turned it off and wrapped myself in the pink towel. I stood in Diana’s bathroom, naked and dripping wet, for a long time. It seemed like admitting defeat to put my clothes back on, as if I was admitting defeat by re-entering the real world, the Vali-less world, and pulling on my flannel-lined jeans. But as the steam dissipated and the bathroom slowly filled with the aroma of frying sausages, and I finally decided I was hungry enough to surrender to reality.
“Elk sausage, scrambled eggs, and coffee,” Diana said, pointing to the counter as I entered the kitchen.
I nodded and filled a white plate with a mountain of eggs and sausages.
“You’ll be tired today,” Diana said. “Recovering from hypothermia does that. Take it easy, okay?”
“Sure,” I said around a mouthful of sausage.
I ate in silence as Diana leaned against the kitchen counter, her arms crossed over her chest. “The roads are clear,” she said, once I’d finished off my second helping of eggs. “You can go home.”
I closed my eyes, willing myself not to cry again. “And Vali? Is he...Is he going to be okay?”
“I’ll do what I can,” she said.
“If you see him, can you tell him...”
My voice trailed off as I realized I had no idea what to say next. Tell him to forget about being chased by his father, and whatever’s going on in the park? Tell him to come to my place so I can fuck him senseless?
I sighed and poured myself another mug of Diana’s coffee. I already felt exhausted. The drive from Cooke City to Bozeman was going to take everything I had; I couldn’t afford another stupid sobbing breakdown.
“I’ll give him your regards,” Diana said. She gave me a small, sad smile which made me feel about ten times worse.
“Thanks,” I said, pushing back from her kitchen counter. “I’ll see you around.”
“I hope not,” she muttered.
I decided to pretend I hadn’t heard her.
FIRST THING MONDAY morning, I got an email from Professor Caroline Laufeyiarson.
Thank you so much for your help, she’d written. I wish you all the best. If you need anything, please don’t hesitate to ask.
“Fuck you,” I told my computer. “You used me, you and your creepy husband. You used me to get to Vali.”
I hit the delete button so hard I hurt my finger.
“You okay, Boss Lady?”
I jumped in my chair and spun around to see Zeke leaning against the doorway to my office.
“Or do you always cuss out your computer on a Monday morning?” he asked, with a slow grin.
I smiled, feeling a little better now that Caroline’s message was in the little electronic trash can of my inbox. “Honestly, me cussing at my computer’s not that unusual. You’ve got something for me?”
Zeke’s smile faded. “Yeah, in the lab.”
I pushed back from my desk and followed him across the hall. Colin was sitting in front of a computer in the back corner, his feet on the desk in front of him and weird electronic dance music pouring from his headphones. There was an open Red Bull can and a half-eaten tuna sub sandwich on his desk, in direct violation of the “No Food or Drink” signs posted on every single wall. Zeke pulled a rolling chair to his workstation, sat in it backward, and typed frantically.
“Here it is,” he said, tilting the monitor to show me the map of Yellowstone. A constellation of yellow dots appeared, ringing the edges of the map.
“Shit,” I whispered. “Is that...?”
“Yup. Boss Lady, the caldera basin is officially empty. The wolves have left the building.”
I sat down heavily in the chair next to Zeke. It squeaked in protest.
“They’re headed out of the park,” Zeke said. “All of them. We’re looking at, hell, at least half the packs in Yellowstone are at or possibly even over the borders of the park right now. I mean, it’s winter now and things are quiet, but once those fucking beef cattle start popping out babies and the wolves gobble ‘em up, it’s gonna be a double-D shitshow.”
“What did your friend say?” Colin asked from behind me, making me jump. He was so damn quiet, I hadn’t heard him leave his desk to join us.
Zeke took the bait. “Yeah, sexy naked wolf man. What’s he got to say about the situation?”
“Nothing. He said nothing.” I glanced from Colin to Zeke. They had almost identical grins plastered across their faces.
“Ah, you two don’t do much talking, is that it?” Zeke drawled.
“Stop it,” I said, standing up. “I do sign your paychecks, you know.”
Zeke held his hands up in front of him, shaking his head. “It’s cool, it’s cool. I don’t judge, Boss Lady.”
I FLEW TO MAINE ON Christmas Eve, even though I could only spare three days for the visit. In our five years of marriage, Barry and I had never once spent a Christmas in Maine, and I felt like I owed my parents at least another five Christmases just to make up for that. Besides, the idea of spending Christmas by myself in Bozeman was just depressing. And my crazy idea of spending Christmas in a West Yellowstone hotel, hoping my dreams could still pick up on Vali, was even worse than depressing.
My dad met me at the airport in Bangor. He was on the sidewalk outside baggage claim, standing next to his ancient Chevy pickup with the wooden canoe rack on the top, his breath steaming above him. He hugged me with one arm and grabbed my suitcase with the other.
“Thanks for picking me up,” I said as I climbed into the cab. It was warm and smelled vaguely of tobacco and motor oil, scents I would always associate with my dad and the afternoons I’d spent as a child in his mechanic’s shop.
“Ayuh.” He nodded as the engine started with a roar. “Didn’t want you to have to rent a car.”
I smiled. Barry and I had only come to Maine a handful of time, and he’d never quite understood my parents’ obsession with saving us money on rental cars. He was appalled when Dad pulled up to Boston’s Logan airport with a chainsaw and a pile of coiled, rusty wire in the bed of his pickup, and his entire face turned beet red when Dad thumped Barry’s brand-new leather-sided suitcase on top of them. Barry fucking Richardson, I thought, would have made a shitty Mainer.
Unexpectedly, Vali surfaced in my mind. His high cheekbones and long hair. His sweet, animal scent, his soft touch and hungry eyes—
“You okay?” Dad asked.
“Huh?”
“You’re awful quiet,” he said.
I laughed. It came out sounding awkward and forced. “Yeah, I’m fine. It’s just been a long semester.”
My dad nodded in the fading December light. “Well, you’re home now. You can sleep if you need to.”
I yawned and leaned back against the headrest, cocooned by warmth, the rocking of the cab, and the dull and distant hiss of tires along the interstate. My eyes closed.
I DREAMT OF YELLOWSTONE. The sulfur smell of geothermal features hung low and heavy over the snow, and the bare aspen trees cast long shadows in the late evening light. I looked around, trying to orient myself. The sulfur in the air meant I must be in the caldera, the heart of Yellowstone’s massive supervolcano, but I didn’t recognize the slumped, rolling hills in the distance. They were stained red with the setting sun, like distant fire. I shivered. There was another scent beneath the sulfur and the swirling snow. Distant, acrid smoke.
Footsteps crunched across the snow behind me. I turned to see Vali. I t
ried to call to him, but my voice made no sound. His eyes glossed over me to focus on the distant red-tainted hills. He walked quickly, and a great, black cloak flared behind him. I followed, silent and distant. When he turned, I saw the sheath of a great broadsword strapped to his back, beneath his waves of dark hair.
Vali stopped before the great yawning black mouth of an enormous cave. His breath steamed into the evening sky. That acrid burnt smell was stronger here, so strong I almost choked. The last of the day’s light flickered red and golden on the snow surrounding the cave.
Something is wrong here, I thought, my heart hammering against my chest. Something is very wrong.
Vali pulled the sword from its sheath on his back. The enormous blade glimmered blue in the fading light. He swung it in a great loop over his head, and it hissed through the frigid air. My stomach clenched violently. A sudden gust of wind swirled frozen crystals around Vali, lifting his hair from the back of his neck, filling the air between us.
I tried to scream, but the words caught in my throat. Vali strode into the darkness of the cave, his back straight, his head held high. He did not look back.
I JUMPED AS A HAND closed on my shoulder.
“You okay?” Dad asked.
“Yeah,” I muttered, fighting the adrenaline surge flooding my body. “Sorry. Fell asleep.”
Dad gave me a strange, measured look. The car had stopped, and I recognized the metal walls of McDonald’s Auto Repair through the windshield. The yellow glow of the floodlight outside the garage made my dad look old and tired. I smiled to show him I was fine, but my entire body felt cold and my hands were trembling.
“It was just a dream,” I said, half to myself.
But it was never just a dream with Vali, was it? I fumbled with the latch on my door. Cold air flooded the inside of the truck, stinging my cheeks.
“Let’s go in,” I said, trying to give my dad a big, reassuring smile.
Together, we picked our way up the ice-slick driveway from Dad’s shop to the house. Christmas lights shimmered along my parents’ porch railing. It was so cold the snow squealed under our boots. Dad held the door open for me. The house smelled exactly like I remembered, a heady mix of wood smoke and moose roast, and some of the panicked fear from the dream began to fade from my body.
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