The Lion and the Unicorn (Lionsville Shifters Book 1)

by Dara Fraser

  “I was giggling at something else, but then I saw it.” They were now barreling down the road. “Wait, but why are you speeding down the road after pulling over?” His actions seemed so contradictory to her.

  “I pulled over so I could make sure that you saw what I sent without crashing us into a tree.” She had to admit that made sense. “We are speeding down the road now, because I need to get you home and at the very least, hold you close. In the truck, that would be uncomfortable at best.”

  “Truth, but do you really feel the speeding is necessary?”

  “Yes.” He sounded less human than normal. “My lion is riding me hard.” Lions were so different from unicorns. Sure she would love some cuddle time, but she could hear the need in his voice. Maybe it was a predator thing. Thankfully they were turning up his drive in only a couple of minutes. Fast on the highway was one thing. Fast on these bumpy sort of kind of roads was another. Her stomach was starting to rebel as they pulled up to his house.

  “Your house is in the book.”

  “It is, although it wasn’t mine when Granny painted those pictures. She was barely an adult herself at the time.” He jumped out of the SUV and popped the back, probably grabbing her new clothes and the rabbits.

  Samantha climbed out before she realized her bag was still at Zara’s. Leo was right, having a safe place did put her at ease. She was always focusing on where her bag was and if her things were safe. Today, her bag was nowhere near and she couldn’t care less. It was only a little thing, but it helped solidify that he really was meant for her. It felt nice.

  “What is that smile for?” True to her instinct, he had the dead rabbits in one hand and her purchases in the other. She snagged the shopping bags from him.

  “I was just thinking how nice it was that I forgot my bag at your sister’s house.”

  “She would want you back even without the excuse. You didn’t give her up on the tea and she will see that as you being an ally. With me, she never knows what I’m going to do. It’s fun to mess with them both.”

  She’d witnessed his playfulness with them both on numerous occasions already. Pairing that with the way he had been treated at the diner, she guessed that he only got to be that carefree with them because they were family.

  “It was nice that I wasn’t in a stone-cold panic because I lost it. I didn’t realize how much that bag controlled all my actions until you pulled that necessity away from me. Thank you.” He beamed. “Maybe later tonight you can explain the whole clan structure. We never got to that today.”

  “You’re welcome, and can do. Let’s get in the house and I’ll get the rabbits ready to cook.”

  She was glad that wasn’t her job. Maybe in the future, but for now she was ready to let him take care of all of that.

  “Could I use your washer and get the new clothes ready to wear?” She knew a girl in college who used to buy new underwear so she didn’t have to do laundry, but just the thought of not washing anything before she wore it creeped her out.

  “Our washer is in the mudroom off the front of the kitchen. Not sure if you saw it this morning or not.” Leo wasn’t taking this mating thing lightly.

  “Sorry, I didn’t mean anything by that. This is all so new to me…I haven’t really had anything to call my own in a long time. After we get my IDs, though, I do have money, unless the accounts have been inactive for too long. Not sure how that all works.” Samantha watched multiple emotions cross Leo’s eyes. She hoped one day she could read them all.

  “No, I’m sorry.” He looked like he was trying to figure out what to do with the rabbits. She hoped he was not thinking of hugging her with rabbit guts on his hands. It hit her just then that he killed those with his mouth. Ewww. She wrinkled her nose and shook her head, willing the image from her mind. “I was trying to make you feel more at home, nothing more. We can figure out all of the money and ID stuff later. I have enough for us, so that doesn’t need to be a top priority.”

  “Thanks.” She knew that compromise, no matter how small it was in actuality, was huge for the alpha that would be her mate.

  “Sure.” He stepped closer. “So what was that face for?” He smirked. “And don’t think of saying you have no idea what I mean because I just saw it.”

  “When you were standing there with our dinner, or tomorrow’s dinner? I’m not sure how long the whole rabbit thing will take… Anyway, I may have realized you killed them with your mouth and paws and that you have not cleaned up since.”

  Bellows of glorious laughter filled the air. “You do know that my teeth are not the same in lion form as the one’s you see all shiny and bright before you now.” He smiled wide, showing all of his teeth, as if posing for a toothpaste ad. “Do you have hay in your teeth after grazing in unicorn form?”

  She’d never considered it before. They just did what they did in either form, and it didn’t seem to really cross over in that kind of a way.

  “You just realized I’m right.” He was smug but correct.

  “Yes I did, but more importantly, I realized I have been neglecting my unicorn too much. She needs to get out more. I shouldn’t have to think so hard about the last time I grazed.”

  “Tomorrow I’ll call out and we’ll spend the day running.”

  She loved the sound of that.

  “Now, I’ll get the rabbit ready and you get your clothes started.”

  “Sounds like a plan, Stan.”

  She had all of the clothes in the washer before Leo was done with the rabbits. Samantha figured she might as well watch so that when he came home with more, she could help. He was no stranger to this and it seemed only minutes before the skins were in one pile, the rabbit was in the Crock-Pot, and the undesirable pieces were discarded.

  “With the Crock-Pot ready to go, we can put it on in the morning and have a delicious supper tomorrow. Even if I cooked it on the stove top, it would be too late for tonight’s dinner.” He added spices and chopped veggies to the pot. This was not a new recipe for him and she couldn’t wait to try it. They were cleaned up in no time. The skins were rinsed and put in a bucket of water with salt and who all knows what.

  “You hunt rabbit a lot, I see.”

  “I do. It is tasty and keeps them from eating in my garden. Also, tanning the skin is easy, and I give them to a few of the older women in town who make things out of them to help supplement their income.” Being an alpha had so many more facets than she had initially thought.

  “I don’t need gloves, you know.”

  “You will living here, but I’ll give these to the women and ask them to make you gloves. They already know I can’t sew and will be excited about the commission. They could really use the money and would never just accept my help. It is a win-win for everyone.”

  “I hope you don’t plan to be all sorts of sneaky with me like that.” She knew he would, but putting it out there felt like full disclosure. “I’m kind of used to being self-sufficient.”

  “As have I, but we don’t need to be anymore.”

  “Why, Mr. Alpha, I do believe you are trying to woo me.” She gave him her sexiest smile, which probably looked more like she had a toothache than anything else. Maybe he would at least give her an “A” for effort.

  “I believe you are right, miss.” He winked, and she lost almost all her self-control. “Now go clean up and I’ll whip us up something to eat.”

  “I can cook us dinner, you know.”

  “Wooing, miss. Let me do my wooing.”

  “Fine.” She tried to add some false indignation into her voice. “You can do all the wooing today, but one day soon I will subject you to my cooking. If it were me, I would want to know if my mate could cook before the biting, but eh…it’s your stomach.”

  “Go, woman, let me woo in peace.” She smiled and nearly flitted all the way down the hall.

  The shower felt amazing. She was able to relax under the pelting water with no anxiety. She had been looking over her shoulder for so long that she reveled in
the safe feeling she had in Leo’s home. Their home.

  It wasn’t until she got out of the shower that she realized her fail. All of her new clothes were in the washer, her clothes from earlier were in a pile in the dirty laundry hamper, and she forgot to ask for new ones. A towel it was. He was her mate after all.

  The smell of food hit her the second she opened the bathroom door. How could the man whip up something that yummy smelling in the time it took her to take a shower? It was impressive. If it tasted even half as good as it smelled, she was a lucky, lucky gal.

  “What is that amazing aroma?” Samantha asked as she walked into the kitchen.

  “Stir fry. I was hoping for something…”

  “Quick?”

  He nodded, turning, and his eyes nearly popped out of his head. Lost in the thought of eating the yummy goodness she was smelling, she had forgotten about her attire.

  “Umm, sorry. Do you have some clothes I could borrow until my new ones are clean?”

  He nodded but didn’t speak or move.

  “Should I go in your room to get them?”

  He nodded once again and she scampered off. If nothing else, tonight she learned how easily she could seduce her mate. No fancy planning. No makeup or sexy talk. A plain old bath towel around her body and a small towel wrapped around her head. Done.

  Samantha was surprised by how sparse Leo’s room was. A bed, a dresser, two night stands, and that was it. No pictures. No books. No curtains. She easily found a pair of shorts and a T-shirt, careful not to pry into anything. She knew he called it their home, but she still wanted to be respectful. Dropping the towels off on the way back, she reached the table just as he was plating the stir fry.

  She was hungrier than she thought and they ate, chitchatting about the area and where they would run in the morning. She was looking forward to the time with him and time with her unicorn. She had been suppressing that side of her for a long time.

  “Okay, silly or at least maybe silly question for you.” She looked at him. He was curious. Too bad the question actually was silly. “When I am a unicorn, I can make people see me as a horse and can blend in. How can you, as a lion, blend in?”

  “I don’t blend in.” The glint in his eye told her there was more to that statement than met the eye.

  “I believe that.”

  “You’ll see.” He brought the fry pan over to the table and refilled their plates as she let that roll around in her head. Would seeing his lion be scary? She doubted it since they were mates and all, but they were predators and she was not, so the possibility was there.

  “You’re thinking too hard.”

  “I am.” She shoveled her mouth full of stir fry.

  “About?” Method avoidance—fail.

  “Fine, but remember you asked me.” She put her fork down and took a deep breath. “I was wondering, and it’s of course over the top silly with you being my mate and all, but for a moment I wondered if seeing you as a lion might…well…scare me.”

  “You really have no clue?” He looked bewildered.

  “Enlighten me?”

  “Unicorns kill lions, not the other way around.”

  “Huh? That makes no sense.” She considered everything she knew about lions. Nope, she was right. “Lions are big scary cats who hunt, kill, and eat other animals. We eat grass.”

  “I never said unicorns eat lions, just that they kill them.” He took a deep breath. “I wish I knew other unicorns to introduce you to because I only know through our history. Basically, your horn heals, but it also can be a weapon.”

  Samantha had known that the Theron wanted her horn to make weapons, but she never thought about using it as one herself. Had she been running the whole time she could have been fighting? Could she have saved Frank?

  “I didn’t know.”

  “I see that.” He reached for her hand and she reluctantly let him take it. She needed a clear head to process this, but the call to allow his comfort was too great.

  “I would never…”

  “That thought never crossed my mind. Just, you should know. That you thought you might fear me means you have no idea of your power, and that’s not safe for anyone.”

  “You speak the truth.” She started to clear the table. “So in other topics, what should we do tonight? I was thinking we might want to research this disappearing thing?” She hated the unknown.

  “I think when I introduce you to the clan formally as my mate we can talk to the elders about that. They probably know more than we would be able to find out.” He helped her load the dishwasher.

  “When should we do that?”

  “Well, that depends on you.”

  “How’s that? You’re the alpha and all.” She closed the dishwasher and saw his eyes for the first time since this part of the conversation had begun. The lust dancing in them sent a chill down her spine.

  “You see, an alpha formally introduces his mate after they…”

  “Mate?”

  He nodded as he took a step closer. The predatory stare of his eyes filled her with lust, not fear.

  “So the order of things is you bite me, we get all official, and then we research?”

  “Yes. So the question really boils down to…” He leaned in close to her ear. “When do you want me to bite you?”

  Chapter Nine

  To Bite or not to bite? Maybe just a nibble?

  His words echoed. It was all she could do to not beg him to bite her right then and there. They were, after all, fated mates. It wasn’t as if taking their sweet time meant avoiding a potential mistake and winding up with the wrong person.

  Yet Samantha had a nagging feeling that climbing him like a tree and begging him to do it then and there was a mistake they would both regret, and instead she did what any reasonable unicorn would do: she ran outside, stripped off her clothes, and began to run. She ran and ran, not taking any time to enjoy the area. She needed to clear her head without the lust pressing so hard on her.

  Initially, she feared he would follow her like the lion and the unicorn in all the stories. The lion chasing the unicorn in an endless game of what she now suspected was foreplay. Leo must have sensed she needed this run, and for that she was grateful.

  Dusk fell. The expanse of wilderness behind his house was stunning. Samantha reached the river in time to watch the sun set. The colors were magnificent. No wonder Sybil had painting her story using her own backyard.

  Samantha knew she couldn’t stay here forever. It was rude of her to leave the way she had, but at the time, flight had taken over and she had been on auto pilot. Samantha twisted her ears back toward the house. Was he angry? Was he waiting for her? Did he let his lion out and run also? Not hearing him, she walked up to the nearest tree and began to scratch her back against the bark. Her mother used to tell her it was crass, but she always loved the feel of the tough bark against her coat.

  She was feeling calmer than only a half hour before, but the question still nagged her: when should he bite her? She kept going back to the story. Something about it was picking at the back of her mind, but she couldn’t quite figure out what it was. Deciphering a prophecy told as a children’s story felt nearly impossible.

  As guilt of her leaving took root and grew, Samantha started her short trip home.

  “Better?” Leo was close. How had she not heard him?

  She turned back into her human form, not even pretending to care about her nakedness, wanting to respond. “Yeah, sorry.” She couldn’t see him even though he sounded only a few feet away. “Where are you?”

  “Turn back and I’ll show you.” He had on his alpha voice. Maybe seeing her naked was frustrating him. She really wanted to be able to talk, but she had caused the poor man enough agitation for one evening. She turned back into her unicorn. Still not seeing him, she let out a neigh. Goodness gracious, she was communicating with her mate in neighs.

  “Samantha, remember that you are the powerful one.” That sounded foreboding. She still couldn�
�t see him, but she could feel him getting closer. She spun at a rustle in the leaves to her left. Instead of coming face-to-face with her mate as she knew him, she came face-to-face with a lion.

  Leo was not just a lion though. His coloring was not the typical tawny gold she saw at the zoo. The lion before her was dark, so dark, she would have called it black if she had seen it with her human eyes first. Oh goodness, she’d just likened her mate to an animal at a zoo. Thank goodness he had no idea of her thoughts. It was bad enough that he saw her actions.

  “I’m alpha.”

  She heard him speak, but the lion’s lips didn’t move. Had she been that terribly wrong and thought some other lion was her mate? She stunk at this mating thing. She couldn’t decide if she should turn back and call to Leo or run. Instead, she froze like a deer caught in the headlights.

  “My coloring is an indication of my rank, nothing more.”

  The lion had not moved, yet it was his voice and the words were about the lion she was staring at. This not talking thing was not working for her. She turned back into a human hoping she wouldn’t regret it by becoming the prey.

  “Leo?” she began cautiously. When the lion didn’t move, she strengthened her voice, not wanting to seem weak, which was actually all kinds of silly; since a mate was given to complement you and help you become who you were truly meant to be, not to make you someone you are not. “Please come out and explain all of this.”

  “Samantha, I am right here.” The lion morphed back into her Leo, causing her confusion to escalate, partly because his voice sounded the same as it had as a lion, but quite honestly it was probably more because he was standing there completely naked. She gave him a quick once-over before chastising herself, working hard to avoid all the places she shouldn’t be looking.

  “Explain.” Her voice was husky. Darn her hormones.

  “I’m your mate, so you can hear me even when I am in my animal form. My sister didn’t explain any of this, did she?”

  She shook her head and he sighed.

  “How exactly does that work, Leo?” She would not let her eyes wander. She would not let her eyes wander.