“What pain, my shuarra?”
“My skin was on fire. It was so bad I wanted to rip it off. And then my head hurt. Pounded so hard, like something was bashing it in with a rock. Then I fell and it all disappeared.”
“You didn’t realize you had shifted?”
“Not until I tried to move around a little.”
Col nuzzled her neck again and squeezed her tighter.
“Forgive me. I wouldn’t have—”
She stopped him with a soft finger across his lips. Her eyes held only love for him. No hatred or disgust or anger. “You already have my forgiveness, my mate.” Naomi shook her head. “There is nothing else that must be said. I know you would’ve given me a choice if you had known. And if I’d had that choice, Col, I would’ve chosen you. I will always choose you.”
His heart slowed in his chest. Air came more easily.
She didn’t hate him. She wasn’t angry that he’d turned her into a dragon. She wanted him. Naomi was his mate in every way.
A smile curved his lips and he claimed her mouth. Hers were warm and soft and damp. Wanting. Needing.
She welcomed his tongue and claim. His heart thudded against his ribs like a war club. His. She was intoxicating. A soft whimper came from her throat and he growled against her mouth, taking the kiss deeper. Harder.
Mate. His dragon crowed from within, pleased that Naomi was safe. That she was in his arms. That her familiar taste and scent covered his lips.
“I never thought I was going to see you again.” Emotion poured down her cheeks in rivers of pain and relief and hope. “I thought—”
“You are safe now. Sefa is gone.” Col gestured to the three large cats standing off to the side a short distance away. “They helped me find you.”
“So, the new tribe is a go?” she asked, a twinkle of pleasure in her brown eyes.
“A go?”
“It’s happening. We’re not going to go off and live in a cave all by ourselves? We get to have other people around. Like a family.” The tone of her voice was filled with excitement.
He had been prepared to isolate her. His beautiful mate who’d told him so many things about her own large family. How important they were to her.
She’d practically ordered him to allow Kann and the others inside the cabin to talk. How had he not seen it?
Had he been so blinded by his own problems that he couldn’t see the way she’d been begging to not be alone? Even still, Naomi would’ve chosen him. She would’ve lived in a cave, alone and sad, with him if that’d been what he’d asked of her…guilt bloomed in his chest like a fire out of control.
“Shuarra, yes.” Col looked at the shifters again, still in their animal forms. Still waiting. “We will work together as a tribe. We will not be alone. I will never let you be alone.”
“I love you, Col.” She nuzzled her face against his chest. He’d just given her everything she could ask for. They’d have other Reyleans around them.
A tribe all together.
Naomi didn’t have to be alone and isolated. Especially now that she was one of them. She wasn’t Reylean, but she was a dragon shifter now. Whatever came along with that. It would be good to have other shifters around besides just Col.
“You are my heart, Naomi. I love you more than I have loved anyone or anything in my entire life.” He hugged her closer.
Kann shifted and came forward. He removed his coat and held it out to Col. “For your mate.”
“Thank you, brother,” Col said.
Kann’s eyes widened and a smile curved his lips. “Brother,” he returned, and gave Col a quick nod before returning to where Tor and Saul stood, still in animal form.
“We really shouldn’t be animals during the day. This is a national park. There are campers and hikers all over this park. If they see a lion or tiger on the slopes we would be in all kinds of trouble. Dragons are definitely a no-go until dark.” Naomi took the coat from Col and slipped into it.
She was short enough that all the important bits were covered. All the way down to her knees. No shoes and no pants would still be suspicious to any passing humans. Plus, the fact that she was traveling with four dudes who were dressed like Dothraki warriors from Game of Thrones.
“My wings are still healing, but I should be able to fly by the time night falls again. The sun is not right here. The days seem shorter.”
“Yeah, we are really far north on the planet. The daylight is really skewed here. Changes with the seasons. Sometimes there is no night. And other parts of the year, no day.”
Col’s eyebrows scrunched together, but he didn’t say anything just nodded and helped her tie the last of the fasteners on the coat.
The other three men had come closer, and Kann spoke again.
“If it is not safe to travel during the day, should we look for shelter and then head for the cabin once the sun sets again?” The lion shifter rubbed his arms and gave the surroundings a cursory glance.
Naomi felt really guilty about taking his coat. She didn’t need the warmth, but she also couldn’t walk around buck naked around other dudes.
Col wouldn’t let her, even if she was willing.
“They aren’t going to last long dressed like that. The temps when I arrived were falling to negative thirty at night. Day isn’t going to be much better.” She glanced at Kann and the others again. “We need to dig a shelter. And get a fire started.”
“How do you know to do this?” Col asked her as they walked over to Saul and Tor.
“I read a lot before I came. I was scared if I got stuck outside I’d freeze to death, so I read a bunch of survival guides.” Naomi scanned their surroundings.
They weren’t off the mountain yet, but they were low enough that some of the foothills had created a rise. Which is why she’d stopped rolling, at least, that was what she assumed.
She pointed to a flat area. “We need to pile snow there. Into a big mound. Pat it down and then hollow it out like an animal would for a burrow. It needs to be big enough for all of us to fit inside and to light a fire in the center.”
The three men looked around then shifted into their cat forms.
Naomi gulped. They were big. Not like Jurassic Park big, but certainly bigger than the average lion or tiger she’d seen in the zoo.
The lions and tiger bounded down the hillside a few dozen yards and began digging. They used their large paws to move the snow into a central mound between them.
“I should help.” Col pulled her along toward the growing mound, and then sat her on a fallen tree before shifting into his dragon.
With his enormous claws, he shoveled snow onto the mound until it was taller than Saul. All four men shifted back to human form and started patting down the snow until it was firm enough to walk on. The resulting mound was easily ten feet tall.
“The entrance should be as narrow as possible. Less wind. Then dig it out once you’re in the center. We need a branch to poke down through the top, so you know where the middle is when you get there.”
The men nodded and continued to work on firming up the mound.
Naomi wandered over to the area where she’d crawled up out of the snow. There were lots of broken tree trunks strewn about. She yanked at one and was surprised to find that it moved several inches.
Look at me all super-strong-dragon-lady.
She pulled again, and the trunk moved again.
“Naomi.” Col was at her side a few moments later. “Why are you over here? By yourself?” he asked, his tone a mixture of worry and annoyance.
“I said we needed a branch. I just wanted to help,” she answered. “It’s not like I was out of sight or even earshot.”
He batted the tree trunk away and pulled her into his arms. “I just got you back. Don’t wander. Not yet. When I turned and didn’t see you, it felt as though someone had stabbed me in the heart.”
She started to argue then she saw the pain and worry reflected in her mate’s eyes. He wasn’t trying to be controlli
ng, like her brothers. It wasn’t that he didn’t want her help or think she was incapable of helping, like her dad who thought women only belonged in the kitchen.
Col was worried about her safety. She couldn’t fault him for that.
“I can help,” she said slowly. “I’m strong now.”
He kissed the top of her head and then rumpled her curls. “Of course, you are my shuarra. You are Dragon Tribe. But I need more than an hour to settle my dragon and assure him that you aren’t going to disappear or be stolen away again.”
Naomi smiled up at her dragon man. “My big barbarian. I love you. You know that.”
“Yes.” He gave her a smug smile, stole a quick kiss, and then grabbed the end of the tree trunk she’d been excavating with one hand and her with the other. “What is the next step for the snow tent?”
She laughed and hurried ahead of him a few steps to the edge of the enormous mound of snow. “You have to drive it down in the middle. Then dig toward it from the very edge.”
The men considered her for a moment, and then hurried to follow the instruction.
Kann and Col drove the trunk down the center from the top.
Saul started to dig an entrance and Naomi helped by moving the snow from behind him each time he pushed an armful out.
“We need short sticks, about two feet long.” She gestured the size with her hands. “They go into the roof, so you don’t clear out too much snow and have it fall in.”
“You stay.” Col growled a warning before she could leave the entrance to go look. “Kann and Tor will get them.”
The two other men nodded and hurried over to the closest grove of birch trees. She returned to pushing off the snow Saul was clearing out as he tunneled toward the center trunk.
“Got it!” Saul backed his way out and turned to face Naomi.
“We need the sticks next.” She pointed to Tor and Kann who were walking back to the snow mound each with an armful of sticks. “They need to be this long.” She motioned the size again, showing Saul and Col.
Kann and Tor dropped the sticks at the base of the mound.
All five of them broke them into the desired length and Naomi showed them how to stick them into the mound all over.
A smile broke out on Saul’s face. “The ends will poke through if we dig too far,” he exclaimed, moving even faster.
They quickly had the snow tent staked and ready.
Saul crawled back in first and went to town clearing out more of the mound.
Naomi and the others moved pile after pile of snow from the narrow entrance.
“Two can fit now,” Saul called out from inside.
Kann dropped to his knees and crawled inside.
She and Col and Tor continued at a brisker pace to clear away the loose snow shoved out to them.
It would take a while to clear out enough space for all five of them to fit comfortably inside.
18
They worked steadily for another hour, probably two. Finally, Kann called from inside that they’d reached all the sticks coming through the dome.
The two lion shifters crawled out, Saul was first with his loose golden hair hanging over his shoulders, nearly trailing the snow when he was on all fours. The parka made him look even bulkier than he was.
Kann, bare chested since he’d given his coat to her, followed him out, his hair still neatly arranged down the back of his head.
Tor stood next to Col. Both wore their hair loose, no braids, no decorations. Maybe that was just how it was when they’d left Reylea.
“What is it, shuarra?” Col asked, his eyes watching her intently. “I see the question dancing in your mind.”
“I—It was silly.”
He shook his head. “Ask.”
“Your hair, do you always wear it loose?” She gestured to Kann and Saul. “Or do you change it depending on what you’re doing?”
Tor chuckled next to Col and followed Kann and Saul up the side of the dome to pull out the large trunk they’d used as a center post.
Col moved closer to Naomi and pulled her to his side. “Do you prefer their hair?” His tone was gruff and laced with just a hint of jealousy.
“No of course not, I was merely curious if it was a tribe thing or a personal style.” She threw her arms around his neck.
“Kann’s hair is prepared for battle in the style of the Lion Tribe. He is a warrior. Saul’s hair would likely look the same if he pulled it up, but he has it loose at the moment, covering the shaved sides. The cords and feathers indicate his rank,” Col spoke softly, but not enough so that the others couldn’t hear.
“And Tor?”
The tiger shifter leaped down from the dome of the shelter and walked to Col’s side. “My people wear their hair loose. No braids.” He bowed his head slightly to Col. “The Lion Tribe truly do like to preen and strut. Perhaps it is because their cats are so vain as well.”
The tiger jogged off trying to avoid being caught. He was unsuccessful.
“Vain!” Kann leaped at Tor and knocked him to the ground. “Tigers sleep in the trees above the rivers so they can lounge and look at their reflections all day long.”
Naomi couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled up from her chest. She covered her mouth and watched the two men wrestle in the snow.
Saul stood to the side, shaking his head, but he too was smiling. For a few moments, the horrors of the last day slipped away.
For a few moments they were just a group of friends goofing off. They reminded her of her brothers. The way they’d fight and argue and dog-pile on top of each other, then when they finally came up for air they would all be laughing.
It would be nice having them all around. Would feel less like she’d lost her big crazy family. Now, it was looking like she was gaining a new one, complete with crazy protective brothers.
“And you?” she asked, looking back up at her mate.
“Braids are common among our females, but not males,” Col answered.
“I don’t braid my crazy curls.” She ran her fingers through the brown locks hanging just past her ears. “Will that bother you?”
Col gave her a shocked expression. He shook his head. “No, of course not, shuarra.” He guided her toward the small tunnel entrance to the snow shelter. “Go inside, I will be right behind you.”
“What about the others?”
He sighed. “When they get cold enough, they will return.”
Naomi knelt down and crawled on all fours through the short tunnel into the center of the igloo-like shelter.
It wasn’t an igloo. No ice bricks. Once through the entrance, the dome rose quite high. She could easily stand up in the center, closest to the vent hole.
Col was right behind her, having just a little more trouble crawling through the small opening.
“Do you want some help,” she asked, offering her hand and a teasing smile.
He grumbled and growled and finally shoved his way into the domed area. It was light enough to see, but not too bright inside. “Will a fire not melt the walls?” he asked, running his hands along the inside edges of the dome.
“It supposedly will melt it just enough so that it refreezes into ice and becomes stronger.” She sank to the ground and drew her legs up under the coat so only her feet were touching the snow beneath. The coat was long enough to completely cover her, so no one could see beneath it. It was more than a little uncomfortable being completely naked around four men. At least Kann had offered the coat or she’d just be sitting buck ass naked in front of everyone.
That would be more awkward.
Noise outside made Naomi dip her head to peer out the entrance.
Col moved to stand between her and the noise. She could hear his dragon rumbling and his shoulders were tense.
When Tor’s red hair showed through the opening, he relaxed and moved to crouch on the ground next to her.
“We brought firewood.” The tiger shifter crawled the rest of the way into the shelter and dropping an armful
of snapped branches in the center of the space. “It’ll be hard to get a flame started on these big logs, and we couldn’t find anything that would work for kindling.”
Kann and Saul were right behind him, each carrying an armful of firewood.
“I will light it.” Col released a heavy sigh. “Come outside.” He gestured to Tor.
He and the tiger shifter crawled back through the tunnel.
Kann and Saul moved to the far side of the open space, away from Naomi and leaned back against the dome wall.
“So how does it feel to be a dragon?” Kann asked, leaning forward so that his elbows rested on his crossed legs.
“I don’t really feel that different. I mean. I’m warmer. Stronger. There’s this voice sometimes in my head. Almost like it has an opinion and feelings. So, I guess that’s strange.” Naomi rubbed her chin against the place where her knees were hidden by the parka. “I don’t think we’ve known each other long enough for me to truly have an opinion yet. What about your animals? Do they speak to you?”
“They do not typically speak the way you or I would, but yes, they do use short phrases or words from time to time to convey feelings or urges. Usually when we’re doing something they either disagree with, or really like. There’s not much middle ground.” He chuckled softly.
That information aligned with what Naomi had experienced so far. She focused her attention on the entrance tunnel again.
A bright flame came through first.
Col was holding a large log, flaming on one end and completely charred all the way down. It would’ve burned anyone else, but her mate was able to carry it as if it were nothing.
He set it down in the center of the mounded firewood and coaxed the flame to catch on several logs before returning to her side.
“Where’s Tor?” she asked, watching the tunnel.
“He’s on first watch.” Col tugged her from the ground onto his lap. “We will take shifts. I do not want to be surprised if the Wolf Tribe comes around again.”
Kann and Saul nodded their agreement and scooted closer to the slowly growing campfire in the center of the shelter.
Knock Down Dragon Out: Soulmate Shifters in Mystery, Alaska Book 1 Page 15