11. Chapter Eleven
“Goldie.” A low murmur sounds in my ear. Cole’s breath stirs my hair, and his beard tickles the side of my neck.
“Mmm.” I’d been having a delicious dream about frolicking in the wilderness, running wild, naked, and free through a forest thick with trees. At my side, an enormous beast with watchful eyes keeps me company. Keeping me safe and protected.
The muscled arm around my midsection tightens, and I snuggle closer into the soothing, rumbly wall of muscle behind me. Curling up together, I can feel the evidence of Cole’s arousal rub against the curve of my ass. I bite back a smile as he groans softly behind me.
“If you keep picturing yourself naked, that’s exactly what you’re going to be in a minute.”
A giggle bursts out of me as I turn over and take in the rumpled sight of the man who’s plagued my dreams. Cole’s eyes are near-slits as he gazes at me, and I slide my fingers through the coarse hair covering his chest. I still can’t quite believe how much has changed in a matter of days.
Mate, he’d said.
Fated to be together, matched on a soul-level with this grumbly, sexy shifter I’ve dreamed about.
At first, it hadn’t seemed possible. But when I consider the irresistible pull I felt toward Fable Forest, the inexplicable sense of belonging that’d come over me when I entered these grounds, and the instant attraction that struck me the second I laid eyes on Cole, I can admit that none of that’s really… normal.
“I think I spent plenty of time naked yesterday,” I say, ducking my head to hide my blushing face. I’d worked hard last night, propped up on the little chair Cole had handily fixed up for me after I’d broken it. The words flew out of me like a dam had broken, pouring from my head to the page through fast-flying fingers as if I’d been in some kind of trance. And when I finished a particularly spicy scene, feeling mentally spent and physically peaked, he was there.
White-knuckled grip clinging to the arms of the sofa, as if he’d been holding himself back. Like if he let go, he’d spring forward and tackle me to the faux fur rug and ravage me in all the ways I’d imagined.
The second the thought entered my head, he’d lifted his shining, pleading eyes to mine. And with the crook of one little finger, I’d granted him permission to come and get me.
Oh, boy, did he.
My clit still tingles with the memory of his tongue, and I’m still sore from taking his fingers and his monster cock. He’d rutted into me on the floor, poured his sweet release into my pulsing pussy while he bent me over the arm of the sofa. Then when he’d grown erect while showering off, he let me climb over him on that tiled bench and ride him until I saw nothing but stars.
But my hunger and lust aren’t sated by the earth-shattering orgasms he gives me. My desire for him comes roaring back with swift vengeance, and I find myself wanting to milk every drop from him. Wanting to feel my belly swell with his cub.
When we finally make it into the kitchen for breakfast, Cole fixes our coffees while I pull out an everything bagel breakfast casserole and pop it into the oven. Then, I rummage around the cupboards looking for flour, sugar, and chocolate chips.
“Your mom’s going to think I’m awfully rude. You shouldn’t have dragged me away from the house before dinner. I’ll have to make some apology cookies and bring them over to go over the stuff we were supposed to talk about yesterday. Think she’ll like triple chocolate?”
“Trust me, my mom will understand. She’s probably over the moon, praying that grand-cubs come sooner rather than later.”
“So, explain it to me again. You’re saying you can speak in my head because we’re mates.”
“Uh-huh. And you can speak in mine. We can communicate across our bond. Even across great distances. It’s near impossible to hide anything from your mate, but you can learn to shield your thoughts. Or, of course, something can affect the strength of our bond, temporarily affecting our connection.”
He polishes off the last of the honey-nut oatmeal muffins and eyeballs the bowl of cookie ingredients I’m throwing together into a bowl.
At this rate, if Rae keeps shoving her baked goods in my face, my bear and I will pack on the pounds in no time.
“Hey!” I exclaim, wagging a wooden spoon at him. “I’m not forcing you to eat my goodies.”
He grins at me and suddenly, my mind flashes to an image of me, splayed out on the bed, twisting in the sheets and moaning with his face between my legs. I jump, clap my thighs together and gape at him in shock when the vision clears.
“You can send mental images, too?”
His laugh bounces off the walls of the kitchen as he pulls me into his lap. “It works both ways, you know. You send me telepathic messages, too.”
He nips at the sensitive skin on my neck and presses a wet kiss to the mark he’d given me in the forest.
“I do? When?”
“All the time. Especially when you’re writing about Bruno.”
“No… Is that what happened last night?”
He nods. “For the record, I won’t stop you if you wake me up with your lips wrapped around my cock. And if you really want to mark me when I’m thrusting deep into that sweet pussy of yours, you can. With your nails, your teeth, your kiss. Just know I will give as good as I get, and I already know you liked it when I spanked your ass.”
I shove at his shoulder, spluttering.
“Is nothing secret? My first drafts are sacred! No one sees my raw work, not even Janelle.” Jumping off his lap, I fan my overheated face. “How could you?”
“Sorry, the mating bond isn’t something any of us have control over,” he shrugs. “I promise I’ll teach you how to shield your thoughts if you really want to keep Bruno’s bedroom activities to yourself.”
The timer sounds and I plate up a healthy portion for each of us. “So, after this, I’ll make the cookies and head over to your mom’s to discuss the convention. But other than that, I have no plans, and I wondered if you maybe wanted to show me around the forest? I’d love to see all those places on the brochure–the fairy houses, vampire caves, pagan altars, and shifter dens. Or maybe a place that has special meaning for you. And you did promise to take me.”
“That I did,” he says, nodding. “Let’s finish with these cookies and then get going. Don’t want it to get too hot before we get up the mountain.”
Hours later, halfway up the mountain, I now understand why Cole’s body is chiseled and toned. He scales the mountain easily while I huff behind him, trying hard not to fall too far behind as we wind our way through the steep, narrow trails.
Exercise has been one of those things I’ve never been able to consistently do in my life, not like my gym-obsessed siblings who all live in fear of having an unflattering photo plastered all over the internet. I always preferred to spend my time cozied up in a warm blanket with a good book instead.
Already, Cole’s taken me past awe-inducing views of the surrounding forest, pointing out pockets of the town laid out at its feet and a number of the sights outlined in the brochure. The land here is stunning. Lush and calming, totally opposite what it is back in the city, and it’s easy to see how I could settle into a life here with my mate.
With every step further into the forest, I feel more alive and grounded in myself. Easy to see why, considering I’m enveloped by the vibrant, lively reverberation of insects buzzing, the scurrying of quick-footed animals, the relaxing sound of rushing water as it makes its way down a stream. Even the thinner, clean mountain air, purified by the untouched greenery surrounding us makes me feel utterly connected with nature and with my own spirit in a way I’ve never felt before.
“You doing okay?” Cole asks, casting a dubious look in my direction. He’s grown more solemn the further up we’ve climbed, and I’ve marveled at the strength of his calves. His firm ass has been bent before me several times, and his strong arms have had to lift me up and around spaces where my footing was sketchy.
“Yes,” I pant, wishing I was less sweaty, more athletic, and somehow more… sexy.
Cole scowls at me as he reaches for my hand and helps me navigate the steep, rocky path. “That’s enough, Goldie.”
“Enough walking? Oh, thank God.” I grip his arms and offer up a bright smile. “I could do with a break.”
“Enough wishing you were anything other than what you are right now, in this moment.” He grips my chin in his fingers and tips my head up, forcing me to meet his intent gaze. “You’re perfect just as you are. I wouldn’t change a single thing about your body, your athleticism, or your sweet scent.”
I choke on a laugh and side-eye him. “You probably have to say that. Due to the whole mate thing.”
“It’s not lip service, it’s the truth. You’re so much more than I could’ve ever hoped for in a mate.”
“You mean it?”
“Yes,” he says simply, lacing his fingers with mine and tugging me along. “Come on, it’s not far now.”
“Where are we going?”
“To my sacred space. The place my family made our den, spent our best summer evenings bonding and playing and training.”
He leads me through, periodically sniffing at the air and switching direction. But my legs feel heavy and leaden with every step. The energy here is different, and the shade created by the canopy of tree boughs shivers through me a degree or two cooler than it was a minute ago.
The clearing comes into view like a summit, with the white-gray rocky face jutting up above me. My breath catches as my hand flies to my throat. Tipping my head back, my gaze is drawn up and up and up, to the place where water rushes over the edge and cascades down into a serene pool at our feet.
“You wanted to see the places I loved,” he says softly. “This place holds so many memories for me.”
I know it. I feel it.
“I’d like to show you so you can understand.” Cole extends his other hand to me and I take it. Then he places our linked hands over his heart and I feel the heavy thump of his heart as it gallops in his chest. Leaning down, he presses his forehead to mine and his eyes drift shut.
Then, I gasp as my mind is flooded with his flickering memories. Visions of him as a cub, running wild and rampant with his brothers. Tearing through the trees. Tumbling over the rocky precipice, earning a couple gashes here and there. The three of them wrestling by the mouth of the waterfall, splashing in the pool, competing to catch the most fish.
Cole’s hand grips mine tighter as he shares these moments with me, and through the shimmering edge of my vision, I see the broad, smiling face of a bearded man that must be his father. His arm is slung around a younger version of Melanie Osborne while they toast marshmallows on an open flame. The love and adoration they share sparkles like a golden thread—the mating bond.
But then the vision twists, burns to ash as I feel something ancient and powerful take hold of my sight. I open my mouth to scream, but no sound emerges as I feel the tether to Cole slipping from my grasp.
Above me, a full moon rises. It coasts above the edge of the waterfall, bathing the earth in shimmering silver light. A pained beastly roar echoes off the walls, and my attention flies to the injured young cub lying at the edge of the pool. On his shoulder, a deep, ragged gash glistens with the blood freely pouring forth, matting his beautiful fur coat.
Cole,I want to scream. Run!
But the wound is too deep. And he’s scared.
A blade glints in the moonlight as a woman moves out of the shadows, stepping before a hunting party armed with guns, spears, and arrows dipped in a toxic mix.
“That’s right, little bear, call for Daddy. Howl for him.” The woman holds up the knife, still wet with Cole’s blood. “His blood is what I need. The blood of one who’s tasted true love, the most powerful magic there is. Then, I can complete my spell and bring this child into the world. My chosen one, blessed by the Goddess.”
She shoves a vacant-eyed young woman out of the shadows. The moon glints on her feathered blonde hair, catching on the gemstones clutched in her hand and held against the swell of her pregnant belly.
But when the white-whiskered bear finally appears, teeth bared and snarling, he’s overwhelmed. The hunting party had set a trap and he’d been caught up in it, baited by the cry of his young cub.
I’m forced to watch, helpless, as the maniac wielding the knife plunges the blade into the soft, exposed belly of the beast.
No!
Gripping the hilt with both hands and grunting with effort, the woman’s hand glows with an eerie purple flame, and her eyes shine with madness as she drags the blade up and through.
From afar, through the thick pines, a gut-wrenching roar fills the air, filled with unspeakable heartbreak.
In horror, I watch as that shining golden thread of connection narrows, dangerously thin and close to snapping.
Then I’m physically cast out, shoved back into my own body with my eyes screwed shut against the sunlight.
Freed from the nightmare at last, I drop to my knees, gasping and sobbing.
“No, no, no, no.”
My hands delve into the earth, clawing at dirt even as Cole snatches me by the arms and shakes me.
“Rae! Rae, baby, it’s me. It’s Cole. You’re safe. It’s okay. Stay with me, baby. Stay with me.” His panicked voice finally breaks through as I open my eyes and see terror reflected back at me. He crushes me to his chest, cradling my trembling body and peppering kisses along my temple. “Jesus. What the fuck, Rae? Where did you go?”