Chapter 6 #2
Many of the guys rode with their earbuds in, blasting music so loud I could hear it ten yards away.
That wasn’t me. I didn’t need the noise or distraction.
Music, podcasts, even audiobooks weren’t part of my everyday life.
I kept a cellphone for emergencies, not that I’d get a signal out here anyway, but otherwise I had no use for technology.
I didn’t mind every now and then when someone would bring a guitar out to play around the campfire.
It was usually Travis. He loved to play and sang well enough.
He didn’t seem to mind carrying the extra weight either.
I never knew the words to the songs he sang, but it was nice to feel the connection with my fellow cowboys.
It made those moments and our relationships with one another special.
People say music does that, it elicits emotions and brings people together. But I’ve never really had much interest in it. Not too many emotions I want to conjure up. Contentment was the only emotion I needed in my life right now and that wasn’t gonna come from some stupid song.
I sighed happily.
It came from moments like this.
I love my life, and I love my job. And when you love what you do, it doesn’t feel like work. It isn’t daunting or a chore. It’s contentment. I love it.
I slowed as a small patch of trees came into view. It was the sign I had been watching for.
Looking up to the sky, I realized I’d made good timing. I was already judging whether I could finish up here and make it back to our last campsite or not. But when I saw a tree had fallen on the fence just down from the weak spot I already knew about, I huffed in frustration.
This was not going to be the quick and easy fix I was hoping for.
The one thing I was very happy about was there were no cows anywhere in sight.
I sniffed the air and checked the ground, trying to see if there were any signs they’d been there recently.
Mate, my wolf growled in my head.
I froze and then looked around. The only living thing I saw was the horse I rode in on—Clementine.
I gulped hard.
This was the same Clementine that Brady had convinced himself was his mate. I rubbed my eyes and stared at the horse, but I felt nothing.
I sniffed the air again.
Mate, my wolf insisted.
I whipped around as a low growl came from behind me.
“Who’s there?” I demanded, ready to shift and fight if I had to.
A small female gray wolf crept out of the den I had planned to hole up in if the storm came in too fast. Apparently, it was already taken.
“Shift and show yourself,” I ordered.
She just growled back at me.
My jaw locked and returned her growl, even though I was still in my human form.
She seemed a little surprised by my actions.
Our eyes locked, and there was zero doubt. This little wolf was my one true mate.
Mine, my wolf howled in my mind.
I just stood there staring at her in complete shock. And for just a moment, I prayed she was actually a shifter and not just a wolf.
The second I thought it I wanted to kick my own ass. It was stupid, but Brady really had convinced himself he was destined to be mated to horse. And James’s true mate was a human woman. Weird shit like that happened sometimes. I didn’t want my mate to be an anomaly like that.
Wait? Mate? I had a mate?
Mate, my wolf growled once more.
“Uh, hi. It’s okay. I’m not going to hurt you,” I told the wolf.
She nodded with her head, and somehow I knew she wanted me to turn around. So I did.
I could hear her rustling around, and she barked at me when I started to look back.
The second she shifted into her skin, I knew it. I wasn’t sure how or why I knew it, but I did with certainty.
“You can turn around now,” she said.
When I caught the first real glimpse of my mate, my heart stuttered. She was gorgeous.
It all felt more like a dream than reality, and I wanted to pinch myself to make sure I hadn’t fallen asleep or something.
“What are you doing here?” she asked me.
“I’m Cruz. You’re on Collier land.” I sniffed the air again. “But you aren’t a Collier wolf.”
She grimaced. “I’m sorry. I needed a place to sleep for a few hours. I didn’t expect to find anyone out here.”
I nodded my head toward the fence. “I have some repairs to do before the snow comes in.”
“Oh.”
I took a step toward her, and she stumbled backwards. She was a skittish little thing.
Pointing, I explained to her that the tools were near the den. We had boxes with supplies buried all over the property. It made life easier not having to lug everything out every single time. I knew there was at least a hammer and some nails along with a handsaw stored in there.
When I opened it, I found a few packs of smoked beef and some cans of beans there too.
“Are you hungry?” I asked, pulling out the beef and opening the package to help myself.
I could have sworn I heard her stomach grumble, so I held out the bag to her before she answered.
She hesitated a second, then quickly snatched the bag and backed away with it. She ate like she was starving.
“When was your last meal?” I asked her, making conversation as I pulled out the supplies I needed and immediately got to work on securing the loosened wire to the fence post.
I glanced over at her, and she shrugged in response to my question.
“Are you aware there’s a major snowstorm coming in?”
She shook her head, but her eyes looked terrified.
“I can’t do anything about that tree if we’re going to make it back before the storm. Are you okay riding with me? It’ll be a hell of a lot faster than walking or even running in your fur.”
She gasped like I’d said something wrong.
“I-I don’t know. I can just stay here.”
I growled. “Not in this storm.”
“I-I’ll be okay.”
“No, you won’t. Not if it’s even half as bad as they’re calling for. You’ll come back with me.”
“Where?”
“Home.”
It really was as simple as that. But a part of me still thought I might be hallucinating. Why the hell would my one true mate be out here in the middle of absolutely nothing, and then I just happen to stumble across her exact location?
Either someone was punking me or I was dreaming. I didn’t really think there was any other explanation.
“You aren’t freaking out?” she confused me by asking.
I assumed she meant over our mating.
I shrugged. “I’m sure I will later, but it hasn’t fully hit me yet.”
“I get that a lot,” she muttered.
“Get what?”
“The starstruck reaction.”
I snorted. “I’m not starstruck, just very confused right now. What the hell are you doing out here?”
She sighed. “It’s a long story.”
I put away the stuff, grateful the job was done quickly, though I was now going to have to return to chop down the tree and do an even bigger repair. For now, I was at least satisfied with it enough to head home.
“Gather your things, and let’s go. You’re going to have to hold on tight. Holding two of us will slow down the horse, but I think we can make it if we hurry. Every second counts right now.”
“Uh, okay.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I’ve just never met anyone so calm before. Usually, people are throwing themselves at me.”
I was even more confused now than ever. What the hell was she going on about?
For a moment I feared she was a witch, maybe even a siren like Emmett’s mate. I wasn’t sure I was strong enough to handle that. Did men just throw themselves at her the way they did Paige before she mated?
“Don’t you know who I am?” she asked.
“I know exactly who you are—you’re my mate.”