Jasper looked at me and grinned. “Doesn’t it?”
I kneeled at Shawn’s head and put my hands on him. Jasper sat on him to hold him still.
“You can hold his hand, if you want, Shay. This won’t affect you at all.”
She sat beside him and took his hand in hers. “Is he going to be okay?”
Jasper nodded. “Hayden is one of the best healers around. She’ll have him fixed up in no time.”
“It’s just a real bad concussion.” I pulled a green wave out of the air and concentrated it on Shawn’s head.
He jerked under Jasper and opened his eyes. “What…” He looked around. “Shay! Are you ok?”
Jasper got off of him and came to sit beside me. I snuggled into him.
“I’m fine. Are you alright?” she asked.
“Oh, god, I am better than alright.” He looked at Jasper and I and his eyes bugged out of his head. He got up quickly and stood at attention. “Captain!”
Jasper smiled and waved him down. “Sit. It’s just Jasper.”
Shawn twitched. He looked down at Shay, then back at us. “Does she know?”
“Not really,” I told him. “Just that we’re not where she’s from.”
He nodded and twitched again.
“What’s wrong Shawn?” Shay looked like an emotional mess.
“I haven’t been back here for two years. I just…there’s something I need to do. But I don’t want you to be scared.” He twitched again and his form blurred a bit. He turned and started to run past the waterfall.
Shay’s hand flew to her mouth as he shifted into a lion.
He leapt over a bush and disappeared.
I looked at Jasper. “Go talk to him. Bring him back. Shay’s tougher than she looks.”
He nodded. “I really don’t think he means to stay away. I need to shift and I’ve only been gone an hour. I can’t imagine how it would feel after two years.” He shifted before bounding after Shawn.
“I’m going to tell you a story,” I motioned for her to sit down.
She nodded.
I started at the beginning and kept nothing from her. She didn’t interrupt me once. When I was done, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
“Is it worth it?” she asked. “Leaving everything behind?”
“It was for me. Why are you thinking of staying? Why wouldn’t you go back?”
“It’s just…his eyes. When he opened them here. They were different. Better. I don’t know how to explain it. It hurts them to be over there, doesn’t it?”
I nodded. “The cat part of them needs magic to live. When they are there, it’s like half of them is dead.”
“I love him, Hayden. I can’t ask him to live in pain for the rest of his life.”
A blue bird landed between us.
“Do you know where Dodge is?” I asked her.
She bobbed her head.
“Is he nearby?”
Her head bobbed again.
“Would you mind getting him back here for me?”
She chirped and flew away.
I smiled at Shay. “I love that bird.”
She laughed. “This is unreal.”
“This is as real as it gets, actually. It’s quite the ride if you decide to come along.”
She looked up as Jasper and Shawn made their way back toward us. She stood and walked over to him.
Jasper sat behind me and wrapped me in a bear hug. “Just so you know, I’m never letting go,” he whispered.
I leaned back into him and looked back at him. “You better not.”
Shawn was standing awkwardly in front of Shay. “I’m sorry, Shay. I wanted to tell you. But after I was in your world for a bit, I knew you’d just think I was crazy. I mean, who in their right mind would have believed me?”
She smiled at him. “Not me, that’s for sure.” She wrapped her arms around him and gave him a hug. “I love you, Shawn, and even though this blows my mind, I’m ok with it. Hayden was explaining all of this fating stuff. How did you know where I was?”
“I was on patrols and happened to be at the top of the hill we just came up. You rode by and I saw you.” He bent down and kissed her softly. “I love you.” He took her hand and they walked toward us. “Hayden, thank you.”
I smiled at him. “I think I owed you at least that much after all the times you kept idiots like Dave away from me.”
“Yeah, well, it’s a pity you didn’t let Jasper finish him off.”
Jasper shrugged. “I told you. She’s stubborn. It’s easier just to go along with it most of the time.” He laughed and ducked away from my hand as I tried to slap him.
Shawn looked down the path, took a deep breath and shivered. “We better get back, Shay. They’re going to wonder where we are.”
Shay glanced at me, then back to him. “We’re not going back.”
“Don’t be stupid. You don’t want to stay here! What about massage therapy and horse shows?”
She shook her head. “I can tell the difference now that you’re here. I’m not going to ask you to live in pain for the rest of your life, Shawn.”
“And I’m not going to pull you away from everything that you know and thrust you into a life where fighting and killing is normal!”
“Hayden seems to be doing just fine! Are you saying I can’t handle it?”
“Well, in Hayden’s defense, she was born here.”
“But she was raised there. We’re not arguing about it, Shawn. We’re staying.”
Shawn stared at her with narrowed eyes.
Jasper burst out laughing.
I elbowed him. “What’s so funny?”
“You. Both of you. Do they raise you to be like that? By the moons, I feel sorry for every man that lives over there!”
“And what do you mean by that?” I mock glared at him.
“Stubborn.”
I smiled. “It has nothing to do with stubborn. We just know what we want.”
We were interrupted by the sound of hoof beats coming toward us.
I got up and wrapped my arms around Dodge’s neck. “Hey, buddy. Why aren’t you at home?”
Jasper translated for me. “He said he couldn’t stay that far away.”
Shay’s eyes popped out of her head and she looked up at Shawn. “Can you hear him too?”
He nodded. “I’m impressed, Dodge. I never heard you think one thing while you were over there. Never would have thought you one of the Winged Ones.”
Dodge snorted and looked in the direction he had come.
Jasper smiled. “Well, that’s good. Hayden will be wanting her swords.” He looked at me, his grinned. “It seems you managed to call your pack back to you.”
“What do you mean?”
“Hey, Hayden!” Tara came running into the clearing, followed by Ben.
Shay’s eyes bugged out of her head. “Holy crap! You weren’t kidding!”
I laughed. “I told you they looked different.”
Tara went to give Shay a hug. “You guys need to catch us up. Like most importantly, why Shawn and Shay are here.”
“Ok, but first, Jasper mentioned something about my swords?”
Dawn grinned at me and tossed me a bag she had just taken off of Peena. “I thought you might want some decent clothes as well.”
I smiled back at her. “I don’t suppose you brought any extra? Shay’s going to stick out like a sore thumb.”
She laughed. “You know me and clothes, Hayden. Of course I brought you extras. I couldn’t remember which ones were your favorites.”
“Perfect.” I turned to Shay just in time to be tackled by two small grey wolves. The two of them shifted and gave me hugs.
“Aunt Hayden!” Tyler gave me a peck on the cheek then turned to glare at his brother. “See! I told you she was going to come back!”
“I knew too! I just thought it would be longer!” Trent glared at his brother. “We’re glad you’re back, Auntie!”
I laughed. “And why is t
hat?”
“We came to see Uncle Jasper while you were gone and he is very cranky when you’re not here.”
Everyone laughed at Jasper’s blush.
“Alright, boys. How about you go get wood for a fire so we can have something to eat.” Luke was walking into the clearing.
“What did you get, Dad?” Trent got off of me first.
“We managed to get a deer.”
Zane and Brice were helping him drag it to the beach.
I took Shay’s hand. “Let’s go get changed.”
We stepped behind some bushes and got into the clothes Dawn had brought. I put my belt on, making sure my dagger was strapped into its scabbard properly.
“You use those?” Shay was looking at my swords.
I nodded. “Don’t leave home without them.” I took them from her and strapped them to my back. “Ahh. Much better.”
We walked back to the group and I wrapped my arms around Jasper.
He kissed me softly. “Better?”
I nodded.
We spent the better part of the night eating and talking, everyone catching everyone else up on whatever they might have happened to miss.
Long after everyone else had fallen asleep and the fire had died out I lay awake. Jasper pulled me tightly against him and I sighed. We had made our bed a bit farther away so we could let the twins get the last of the heat from the fire.
“You’re still awake?” he whispered.
“Yeah.” My hands found his and I smiled. “You put it on.”
“Of course.” He chuckled. “I was assuming that was why you got it for me.”
I laughed quietly. “Yes. It was.” I turned so that I was facing him and kissed him deeply.
He groaned. “You know, when I used to think about our first night together again, it never involved having this many people around.”
I smiled. “Me neither. I think that’s why I can’t sleep.” I kissed him again. “I would give anything for the feel of you taking me,” I whispered.
“Now that’s just cruel, Hayden.”
“What?”
“You can’t talk like that when I can’t do anything about it!”
I chuckled. “It’s not like you’re the only one suffering, here. I feel like I’m going to burst I need you so badly.”
His lips found mine and he pulled me against him. “Well, maybe we could take care of you, at least,” he whispered. His hand trailed down my side and over my hip.
“What are you doing?”
“Shush. Just remember to be quiet.” He started to undo the laces on my pants.
“Jasper…”
He covered my mouth with his and pushed his hand into my pants. His fingers slipped inside of me and I groaned.
“You have to be quiet, or I’ll have to stop.” He smiled at me.
He stroked inside of me knowingly and had my bones turned into melted butter with a few flicks of his fingers. My head spun and I muffled my moan in his chest.
“Better?” he asked.
“Hmm hmm. What about you?”
“I’ll manage.”
He pulled his hand away and I realized I wasn’t totally better yet.
I turned so that my back was to him and scooted my pants down lower.
“What are you doing?”
I reached back, freed him of his pants, and pushed myself back invitingly.
He caught his breath as I slipped him inside of me. His arms wrapped around my waist and pulled me closer to him. He kissed the back of my neck and shoulders.
“Oh, god, Jasper,” I breathed.
He was barely moving at all, but I could feel myself getting close to the edge again. I bit a mouthful of blankets and my whole body shook with feeling. My release set his off. Jasper groaned softly and held me tightly against him as he came in me. We stayed that way for a few minutes, enjoying the feel of our connection.
One of the twins whined in his sleep and we pulled apart to pull our pants back up.
Jasper turned me toward him and kissed me. “Not having you here, it was worse than being over there.”
“I was miserable. I’m not going ever again. You can’t make me.”
“No. I can’t do it again either. Do you know how I managed? It was at night. I would lay by the fire and wait, and then I would feel you.”
I smiled. “I hoped it would work. I wasn’t sure you’d be able to feel me if I was over there.”
He hugged me tightly. “It worked.”
“What were you doing over there today?”
“You wanted me there. That’s all I could feel. It was so strong I couldn’t even feel what I was feeling.”
I remembered sitting on the fence, aching to have him with me.
“And then it changed. You still wanted me, but you were scared. And by the time you started feeling ready to fight, I was already almost where you were.”
I took a deep breath. “I’m sorry.”
“Why are you sorry?”
“That you crossed over. I saw it in your eyes.”
“It was going to happen regardless. I had been seriously thinking about joining you for about week. I thought that if I was going to be in pain, I would rather be in pain with you in my arms, than be in pain because I couldn’t hold you. Feeling how much you needed me just sped up the process.” He kissed me tenderly.
“So if I had said I was going to my parents’ after the incident with Dave, you would have come along?”
“That had been the plan. Do you want to go back?”
He gazed down at me and I looked into his eyes. I shook my head. “No.”
He searched my face for a few moments. “Alright.”
“So what’s the plan for tomorrow?”
I felt him shrug. “I’m not sure. All I know is everything will be fine now that I’m with you again.”
I kissed him. “So long as we’re together. That’s all that matters.”
He sighed. “Good night, Shlova.”
“Night, hun.”
Sleep quickly set in.
*****
“Shay? Shay!”
I woke to the sound of Shawn’s panicked voice.
“Hayden! Something’s wrong with her!”
I bolted upright and ran to them.
“What happened?”
“I don’t know. She won’t wake up. Her breathing’s not right either.”
I knelt beside my friend and put my hands on her chest. I frowned. “That’s not right.” I moved my hands and put them on her shoulders.
“What’s wrong?” Jasper was kneeling beside me.
I shook my head. “It doesn’t make sense. Her energy…it’s not there. Not all of it anyway.”
Jasper looked at Shawn. “Did she say anything? This morning, or last night?”
“No. She just said she was tired and then we went to bed.”
“Where’s Fillian when you need her!” I looked at Shay and tried to decide what to do. “Could it be this place? Could it be taking her energy?” I was thinking out loud, trying to make sense of it. “But my dad moved here and that didn’t happen.”
I glanced up at Shawn. “I don’t know. But whatever it is, it’s here.”
He nodded, understanding what I meant. “Let’s go.” He saddled Doc and hopped on behind the saddle. Jasper passed Shay up to him.
I swung onto Dodge and grabbed Macho’s reins.
“I need your stone,” I looked down at Jasper. “I don’t know if she can cross if I’m not touching her.”
He nodded and handed it to me. “You’re coming back?”
I smiled at him. “Do you really need to ask?”
He shook his head. “Get her out of here before it’s too late.”
Shawn gave Doc a kick and I followed him on Dodge. We stopped when we reached the top of hill.
“Here, put this in her pocket.” I handed him Jasper’s stone.
We made our way down the hill.
Shawn stopped Doc on the main trail and laid Shayn
na on the ground. He looked at me. “Is she getting better?”
I lay my hands on her. “I don’t know. I can’t see like that over here.” I put my hand on her neck and felt her pulse. “Her heartbeat is better and she’s definitely breathing easier.”
“Shay, baby, wake up.” Shawn pulled her to his chest. “Please. I can’t lose you.” His voice caught in his throat.
Shay’s voice was almost impossible to hear. “Shawn?”
Shawn looked down at her and wiped the tears from his face. “Thank the moons,” he whispered as he bent down to kiss her.
“What happened?”
“We’re not sure, Love. But you can’t stay over there.”
“But you hurt here…”
“Nothing could hurt worse than not having you,” he whispered. He looked at me.
I took Jasper’s stone and stood up.
“Hang on. Take this one for a sec.” He handed me his. “Can you walk away?”
I walked toward the hill a ways and stopped.
He nodded and I went back to them.
Shawn put his stone back in his pocket.
“How are you feeling, Shay?”
She looked at me and smiled. “Better.”
I gave her a hug. “Good.” I glanced back up the hill and saw Jasper standing at the top of it.
Shay saw what I was looking at and gave me a squeeze. “You better get back to him.”
I smiled at her. “You take care of yourself.” I swung up onto Dodge and we started to walk away.
“Hey, Hayden!”
I turned at Shawn’s call.
“Catch!”
My eyes widened as Shawn threw his cross stone toward me. “But…”
“If I don’t have it, I won’t be tempted.” He looked down at Shay. “And she won’t be able to try and convince me to come back.”
“Take care!”
I gave them a final wave after I put it in my pocket even though I knew they couldn’t see me.
We trotted up the hill and Jasper smiled when we reappeared. I handed him both stones.
“That was a strange feeling, knowing that you were there, but not being able to see the path.” He put the stones in his pocket. He hopped on behind me and wrapped his arms around me.
“So what do we do now?” I asked.
“Let’s go home.”
“What about the queen’s guards?” I leaned back against him.
Crossover 'The Chosen One Trilogy: Book One' Page 25