The two moved side by side in silence for a good quarter of a mile before Emmie noticed that Virgil was walking strangely. She focused her attention on his movement until she was sure that he was favoring his right leg.
“You were hurt, weren't you?" Her voice sounded betrayed as if he'd intentionally kept important information from her.
"I'm fine," He didn't look up at her and she knew that he was trying harder now to overcompensate for his injury.
“You’re not fine.” Emmie watched Virgil as he stubbornly continued forward, “I will walk and you take Red.” Emmie leaned forward, ready to slide off the saddle but Virgil put out a hand to hold her in place.
“You are in no shape to be walking either,” He paused and exhaled. Then, grabbing the horn of the saddle so that his arm wrapped tightly around Emmie, he swung himself up on the horse behind her. He adjusted his body but there was no way for them both to sit atop Red without their bodies touching.
Emmie felt acutely every place where her limbs made contact with his. His breath touched the back of her neck and the side of her cheek. She could feel the warmth of his body heat radiating into her own skin.
“Do you know what happened to my friend?” It was easier for Emmie to ask while her eyes looked out away from Virgil. She felt him stiffen for a moment behind her then he took a breath and let it out slowly.
“I don’t really know, I wasn’t there at the moment but Otis said that your friend accused Max of being a cattle thief.”
Emmie sat with the new information running through her mind. It made sense, Kate wasn’t usually so outgoing with her opinions so she must have had good reason to think so.
“I guess something happened on her family’s ranch and we’re new in town so…” Virgil’s voice drifted off.
“So you didn’t take them?” Emmie heard herself ask before she had time to reconsider.
There was a heavy pause behind her but she refused to speak until he’d responded.
“I heard from someone else that there’s an animal problem, not a human problem.”
Emmie’s brow furrowed. “You’re right, I saw a pack of coyotes… wolves maybe… harassing our cattle.” Admitting it felt like a betrayal of Kate. “But you think that’s a good enough reason for your friend to hurt my friend?”
“Of course not, don’t put words in my mouth.”
Emmie and Virgil sat in a heated silence as Red moved on toward the ranch.
“I’m really sorry about your friend,” Virgil’s voice came clear and soft and immediately began to melt down Emmie’s hardened feelings.
Emmie let herself lean back the slightest bit into Virgil, “Where are you from?”
The two walked slowly into the moonlight as Emmie told Virgil about growing up the only daughter of a widowed rancher. She even got to hear Virgil laugh, his low voice sounding like music when it came out. As soon as she heard the sound she knew she wanted to make him laugh again.
Virgil told Emmie the story of the four men working their way across the West. Otis one of the other men was Max’s brother, and Levi was the one with the injured foot. They’d all grown up together more like brother’s then friends and now they were following Max who had an idea of wrangling cattle and eventually making their way out to California.
They talked half way to the Ward Ranch then decided to take a detour to let Red have some water and graze a bit. They could easily have made the trip three times over but there was something nice about ambling forward in the dark with Virgil at her back.
Emmie wondered if her father was still awake if he was waiting for her, but she thought better of it. Silas had always let Emeline do her own thing. He would be worried if she wasn't at the breakfast table but she would be back long before then.
The night got later and later as the two talked. Emmie had never met anyone who had traveled or seen so much of the country as Virgil had. He was different from anyone she’d ever met, yet familiar in some ways too.
When they got back on Red to make the final distance to the ranch Emmie felt something stir within her. Her body and all her senses were alive. Virgil’s physical presence, so close behind her, made her feel something she’d never felt before.
“When will you leave?” Emmie finally summed up enough courage to ask the question she’d been thinking. Virgil paused again and she felt his absence as if he’d already left.
“In the morning.”
Emmie felt a different sort of panic begin deep in her stomach. “You have to?” It was a stupid question but the panic had bubbled up in her and she felt greedy for Virgil’s presence.
Virgil didn’t say anything for a long time then Emmie felt the whisper of his fingers across the back of her neck. She sucked in a breath and waited to release it.
“You’ll be safe again with Max gone,” Virgil’s voice came at last but it wasn’t what Emmie had wanted to hear.
After another few paces, Emmie pulled on the reins and brought Red to a stop.
“Is everything ok?” There was a tinge of worry back in Virgil’s voice and Emmie felt him look around.
Emmie sat very still for a long moment before turning halfway around in her saddle.
“Are you—”
Before he could finish the words, Emmie’s mouth was on his. He tasted perfect, his lips left open with surprise. She paused as she pulled back from the kiss, worried that she’d offended him, that she’d been too impulsive, that she should have just gone home like a normal girl. Then Virgil’s mouth found hers. She felt the hunger within him.
His fingers and hands moved to her face as he pulled her closer. She felt a deep dragging longing for the man in front of her, a longing she’d never experienced before. Her heart was thudding fast. She leaned into his neck and kissed around his wound.
Her fingers slipped under the collar of his shirt and she felt the hairs that were scattered across his chest.
Virgil pulled back and looked into Emmie’s face.
“We should get you home,” He held her gaze as her breath heavily lifted and lowered her chest.
Emmie slowly shook her head, her eyes sparkling in the night, “No.”
Virgil held her gaze for another moment before jumping down from Red. Emmie leaned forward again but Virgil was too fast for her. His hands held her waist as she leaned in, but he merely held her in place for another long moment.
“You’re sure?” His fingers almost touched as they circled around her waist.
Emmie bent boldly and took Virgil’s mouth in her own, showing him her answer. He lifted her, slowly lowering her feet to the ground, her body settling into his. Her fingers moved around the buttons of his shirt and he moved them back off of the road.
As her dress slid off her body the cold night air hit every inch of her skin. Her nipples hardened and Virgil lifted one nipple in his mouth. He kissed her skin like he was worshipping her. The warmth of his body pulsed into hers and she pressed herself against him, trying to melt into him.
They lay their clothes on the cold ground. Emmie felt Virgil’s eyes on her like a heat. He was devouring her with only his look. When he pulled her toward him she opened for him, craving him, needing him to be one with her.
Her eyes were locked on his as he slid inside of her. Emmie sucked in a sip of air but she couldn’t take her eyes away from his.
His body moved over hers, her head lifting off the ground, her breath pulsing in short pants. Virgil adjusted to her reactions.
Emmie’s body was throbbing, new sensations flooding every nerve. She gasped and his lips plunged down for her.
A deep quiver began within her. With every movement, it grew and her body became less and less her own. Control left and a new wave of feelings overtook her.
Another gasp dragged through her throat. Virgil's rhythm changed to match her rising intensity. Emmie's eyes locked onto the pure gray of his eyes as her body lifted and an explosion burst through her cells.
Virgil’s mouth opened part way as his body cont
racted and the two froze together, barely moving as surges of energy ran through them.
It was a few minutes before Emmie remembered the cold around her, her clothes lying chilly beneath her. She turned and curled her body into Virgil’s not ready to give herself up to the reality of the cold that was even now moving in.
Chapter Six
Emmie got no sleep after Virgil dropped her safely at the Ward Ranch. She couldn't stop seeing his gray eyes and feel his hands on her. The prospect of Virgil leaving and her body and mind continuing without him seemed an impossible thing.
The day dragged on. She made her rounds and thought she saw the same pack of coyotes or wolves that she’d seen before, but they were gone before she even remembered her missing rifle.
Every moment was filled with thought and she couldn’t manage to keep her mind focused on any task for more than a few seconds. She wondered where Virgil was, how far away, if he’d made up with Max or if something bad might have happened to him. When she finally crept into bed that night her head was so foggy and her eyes so heavy that she slipped into bed and into a full sleep within only a few minutes.
She was so heavily and deeply asleep that she could not understand what was happening as she woke in the middle of the night. There was a pounding sound, it was dark, and she could barely make sense of it until she looked out her window and saw Virgil’s face.
It was a moment before she could conceive that she wasn’t dreaming and was able to get up and open her window. Her smile disappeared when she saw the serious look on his face.
“What’s wrong?”
“Max, Otis, and Levi are on their way over. I tried to reason with them earlier, we even made it out of town, but Max is stubborn and dangerous.”
Emmie put her hand on Virgil’s arm, “It will be ok. We have another rifle inside, and another in the barn, we’ll be safe here.”
“No,” Virgil’s face went tight and Emmie watched him closely. “There’s something you don’t know about me… about the four of us.”
Emmie felt a sinking feeling creep through the pit of her stomach. The way he said it and the look on his face were telling her that any or all of her worst fears were most certainly true.
“Emeline,” Virgil braced himself on the side of the house. “You know how I told you that the cattle were taken by animals?”
Emmie nodded waiting for further explanation but nothing came.
"That was you? You're telling me that you did steal the McGilligcuddy cattle?”
“Yes, and the other morning too,” Virgil squinted his eyes.
“Other morning?”
“The morning you came out—”
“—No,” Emmie interrupted. “I saw wolves remember?”
“Exactly,” Virgil exhaled the word slowly.
“I don’t understand,” Emmie’s face screwed up. Whatever her worst fears had been they hadn’t revolved around Virgil stealing cattle and for a moment she had felt vaguely relieved.
“Remember you shot one in the leg?” Virgil lifted his brows as if this would be the final clue, but Emmie shook her head without understanding. “You shot Levi.”
“But I didn’t… I shot…” Emmie’s thoughts drifted by as she saw the look in Virgil’s eyes. She was looking at two pieces of a puzzle that made no sense. Unless…
“You are telling me—”
“—Yes, that is exactly what I’m telling you. That is why they are so dangerous, why we need to get you out of here.”
Emmie stared at him for another long moment.
“Emeline, please.” Virgil’s voice was so full of conviction and momentum that she felt she had no choice but to move.
“Ok,” She nodded at him before running to get her boots.
“You should get the extra rifle too,” Virgil turned to look out over the land behind him.
“I can’t leave Silas without one, I’ll get the one in the barn,” Emmie instinctively understood that there was no time for more explanations, no time for changing out of her night dress, no time to think twice.
Emmie shimmied out of her window while Virgil gripped her arm, then the two of them made their way down to the dirt and grass below.
As soon as her feet hit the grass she knew something was wrong. When she turned, she saw all three of them before her. She had no weapon, only Virgil and they didn’t stand a chance against three.
Emmie tried to calculate how long it would take her to get to the barn but it was impossibly far.
“You’re becoming rather predictable these days,” Max looked at Virgil.
“You should leave,” Virgil’s voice was strong and Emmie guessed that his voice was showing a strength his mind could not be so sure of.
“I’ll leave when I get what I came here for,” Max walked forward with an arrogance he certainly hadn’t earned from his last fight with Virgil.
A crack came from Emmie’s left. The front door of the house swung open, slamming against the wood behind it. Silas stood in the doorway with a shotgun lifted to his shoulder.
“You should stop right there,” Silas spoke slowly and Emmie watched as Max’s smile grew larger.
“Dad,” Emmie had to warn her father that at any moment a wolf could be attacking him but just as she finished the word Max shifted with a leap into a full-grown wolf. A crack rang out into the night and Emmie began running toward her father.
A shriek came from her other side and she turned her head to see Virgil shift and pounce on Otis. As her head spun back to her father another flash of color moved in front of her and Emmie found herself rolling on the ground, long, sharp teeth snapping at her face.
Emmie put both feet up to the belly of the wolf then pushed with a great effort. It didn’t last long but just long enough for Emmie to see the place where she’d shot him a few days before.
Gathering all her strength Emmie kicked at the back leg of the animal. Her foot made contact and a yelp of pain went up.
She looked up again to see Virgil jump on Levi as Otis lay in an unmoving heap on the grass.
A loud growl issued from the front porch and Emmie turned to see Max as he took notice of his brother’s lifeless body.
Max turned from Otis to Virgil and lunged at him. Just as Max made contact with Virgil, Levi also turned to make it two against one on Virgil. Emmie stood and ran with all her might at the injured wolf. They tumbled over closer to the front porch where Emmie could vaguely see her father’s body laying broken. She looked up as Levi lunged for her.
She saw the movement as if in slow motion, the seconds drawing out, Levi jumped for her and Virgil turned from Max striking out at Levi with such force that the injured wolf flew through the air and thudded unmoving against the house.
Max jumped again but Virgil was ready for him this time. Within a few seconds, it was over. Emmie ran to her father's body trying without success to find a pulse. Her eyes filled over her only parent, now dead.
Emmie turned toward Virgil who had just changed back into himself. His eyes were full of everything she felt.
“He’s gone,” Emmie looked at Virgil pleading for him to contradict her.
Two heavy tears rolled down her cheeks, then without a moment’s thought, Emmie picked up the discarded gun still on the porch, cocked it, and fired. Virgil swung around to see Max sprawled out on the ground just as he’d been before Emmie had taken her perfect shot.
Chapter Seven
The graveyard in Cool Water Gap was not in the center of town with the church. It was out ways but Emmie had always gone there regularly to visit her mother's gravesite.
Now as she stood over her mother’s grave she looked at her father’s grave too.
“I miss you,” She whispered the words to both her parents who now, after all these years, were together again.
Pushing a tear off her cheek she turned back toward the ranch. Virgil stood with his serious eyes and mouth, his body tense and set, waiting for her, watching over her.
He walked her out past th
e small makeshift gravestones, some good and some rudimentary. Red was just outside the small enclosure and Emmie swung herself up onto his back in one fluid motion.
The sun was shining down on her skin and she lifted her face up to it, closing her eyes for a moment.
When she opened her eyes again she turned them to Virgil.
"I'll race you home," Before she'd finished saying "race" she'd given Red a signal and begun off toward the ranch. Red was strong beneath her, his hooves thundering along the ground. The wind brushed across Emmie's face and she looked back over her shoulder to see the sleek gray wolf easily keeping pace with her.
She shook her head wishing that for once she and Red stood more of a chance to win. When Emmie pulled up to the ranch first she shook her head at Virgil.
“What?” He raised his hands. “You won. You must be happy with that.”
Emmie pushed her lips together and studied him, “No. You let me win. That’s not the same thing.”
Virgil feigned ignorance of his rigged race and Emmie walked past him into the house to set the table for dinner.
They slept with the windows open as the summer came on and their bodies intertwined as the easy summer breeze flowed over them both.
As the sun began to break, Emmie woke. She walked free and naked to the window, standing in awe at the beauty of something that happens every morning. She leaned her head against the windowsill and breathed in the fresh air of a new day.
Emmie turned to watch the man sleeping soundly in her bed. His body was strong and lithe, his face perfect in the grip of a deep and dreamless sleep.
She felt an overwhelming sense of love flood her senses as she watched him. She walked to the edge of the bed and looked down into his face, wishing she could see his gray eyes once again.
“I love you,” Emmie whispered down to the sleeping man.
She crawled back into bed and pulled herself close to his body.
Emmie’s mouth found Virgil’s and they fit together perfectly.
“Good morning,” Virgil smiled a sleepy smile as his hands slid over Emmie’s warm skin.
“It is a good morning,” Emmie smiled back. She rolled herself on top of him, her thighs fitting around him as if they’d been made for just that purpose.
Sheltered by the Alpha Bear: Alpha Werebear BBW Interracial Shifter Paranormal Romance Page 20