Chapter 11
If it wasn’t for the fact that his bastard of a sperm donor was on the loose and someone had tried to murder Olivia, Eli might have actually called the past three days relaxing.
There was nothing like waking up with Olivia pressed against his side, half asleep, her body soft.
Waking her up to make love to her was another highlight, then it was breakfast and coffee on the porch, enjoying the views of the rolling hills.
The afternoons stretched out in long, lazy hours, walking along trails or visiting with Isabelle, Ransom, and Evan at their cabin.
And of course, the evenings were spent tangled together in the cabin’s double bed, which was slightly too small for two people, one of whom hogged the covers and refused to stay on her own side.
They’d also met the rest of the clan. Aside from Snake, Axle, and Bo, there was Hardy, the VP, a fierce, no-nonsense single father whose two-year-old daughter Annie had taken one look at Olivia and asked if she was a princess.
There was Hawk, Snake’s brother, who was enthusiastic about everything and talked with his hands.
Ink, the youngest and still sported the probationary patch, ran errands for the full members and took his hazing with good humor.
The original MC had also expanded since they’d been recognized by the High Council.
A handful of new Lycans had trickled in, most of them Lone Wolves, drawn by word of mouth and the fact that for the first time, there was a legitimate Alpha in the region willing to take them in.
Though not part of the MC, they had pledged to the clan and they lived on the outskirts of the property, contributing where they could. Ransom didn’t turn anyone away.
It was a different kind of clan than anything Eli had known.
It wasn’t like New York’s stiff hierarchy and certainly not Boston’s tyrannical grip.
Over here, there were no crews or jobs, no bags of cash in black duffels bags or midnight trips to the docks.
Also, his wolf was calmer here than it had been in months, maybe years.
The air was clean, the territory was vast, and the constant cacophony of New York was gone, replaced by fresh, pine-scented air.
“You two should try the horses,” Silke said at breakfast that morning.
She’d gotten into the habit of stopping by their cabin with fresh pastries from the lodge kitchen, which Olivia inhaled before Eli could even take a sniff.
“We’ve got twelve and the trails around here are gorgeous. Logan can set you up.”
Eli expected Olivia to politely decline, but to his surprise, she said, “I’d love that.” Her eyes lit up.
“You ride?”
“Every summer, at my uncle’s ranch.” She gave him a saucy grin. “What? A girl can’t have layers?”
Silke grinned. “Ah, horse girl huh?”
Olivia laughed. “Not quite, but close enough.”
They walked down to the stables after breakfast, following the dirt path Silke had pointed out.
The stables were closer to the main lodge, near the individual guest cabins, but Silke had assured them they would still be far enough from the public areas.
Eli wrinkled his nose as the smell of horse sweat and dung overwhelmed his sensitive Lycan senses.
Olivia, on the other hand, gripped his arm and let out a tiny squeal the moment the she saw the long, wooden structure with a paddock to the side where three horses stood in the morning sun.
A figure leaned up on the fence, overseeing his charges.
Logan, Eli thought. And as if he’d called him out loud, Logan turned to face them.
He’d heard the other members mention him in passing and always with a cautious, careful tone.
Now he understood why. The man was enormous, yes; easily the largest of the clan, probably the same height and build as Cliff Forrest. A permanent scowl marred his face, and his keen blue eyes bore straight into them, all while giving nothing away.
But it was what Eli perceived beneath the surface that made him slow his steps.
His wolf, too, sensed it, and told him to tread carefully.
As a Lycan, Eli could sense others like him through their inner wolves.
It sat inside them, in the background, but always beneath the surface. But Logan’s was clawing at the walls.
The other Lycan’s eyes flashed with his wolf the moment they landed on Eli, and the wolf practically slammed its body into his human host, fighting to break free and lunge at Eli. His own inner wolf, on the other hand, reared back, fangs bared, ready to defend them and their mate.
“Logan, right?” Olivia’s sweet voice broke through the tension. “Silke sent us. She said you could help us with the horses? We’d like to go on the trail.”
Logan kept his eyes on Olivia. “You ride?”
“Here and there.”
He grunted and pushed off the fence. “I’ll saddle up Biscuit for you. She’s gentle but she’s got stamina for the longer trails.” He was already moving toward the stable doors. “The ridge trail ends at the lake. About an hour each way.”
“What about me?” Eli asked.
Logan stopped but didn’t turn around. His shoulders were locked tight. “Duke. He’s steady. Even if you don’t know what you’re doing, he won’t dump you.” He paused. “Horses don’t like Lycans. They can sense what we are. I’ll introduce you so they don’t spook.”
“Is that true?” Eli asked Olivia once Logan disappeared into the stables.
She nodded, then bit her lip. “Hmmm, maybe we shouldn’t ride. If you’ve never been around horses, then I don’t want you to get hurt.”
But he saw the disappointment in her face so he said, “I’ll manage.” Then added. “Any tips?”
“Well, Uncle Jackson—that’s the Shenandoah Alpha—told us that the first few times we were around horses, we had to keep our Lycan side suppressed.
Not held back, mind you because then that would make your inner wolf nervous or angry and then you’ll have two wild animals on your hands.
He said just relax, put your wolf deep inside you until it’s nearly asleep.
” She inhaled long and deep, closed her eyes briefly, and then exhaled.
Sure enough, Eli sensed her wolf lay down, its presence fading away. Not quite gone, but deep inside of her.
“Try it.”
Taking a deep breath, he did as she said. His inner wolf bristled, still wary with Logan in the vicinity. Eli urged it to stay calm and assured it there was nothing to worry about until it lay down and placed its head on its paws.
“There,” Olivia said. “You did it.”
“I did.”
Logan returned, bringing the horses out one at a time.
Eli observed him carefully, as for the life of him, he couldn’t figure out how the horses weren’t spooked by Logan’s practically feral wolf.
He placed his hand on each animal’s neck and murmured words Eli couldn’t hear, and the horses settled.
Whatever agitation they felt at having Lycans nearby, Logan smoothed it out with a touch.
He helped Olivia mount first. She swung up into the saddle with an ease that surprised the unflappable Logan.
Obviously, the other Lycan wasn’t expecting Olivia to be an expert horsewoman.
Eli, on the other hand, couldn’t help but admire her confidence and of course, her slender form as she sat atop the horse, gathering her reins and adjusting her seat.
For Eli, getting on Duke was less graceful. The horse gave him a look of disdain that Eli probably deserved. Logan showed him how to hold the reins without yanking on them.
“The trail’s marked,” Logan said, addressing Olivia. “Stay on it and you’ll hit the lake. Don’t let him pull the reins.” That last part was directed at Eli. “He’s smarter than you.” Then he trudged back to the stables without another word.
They rode out along a trail that wound through the pines and up a gentle ridge.
Olivia took the lead, and Eli was content to follow, watching the way she moved with the horse, her silver hair catching the light.
She looked happy. Actually happy. Her smile was easy, her body relaxed in the saddle, and she laughed out loud when Biscuit broke into a trot and Duke refused to follow.
“You’re a natural,” he said when she dropped back beside him.
“You’re a natural—disaster that is,” she said wryly. “But Duke seems to like you anyway.”
The trail opened up after about forty minutes, the trees thinning to reveal the lake below. The water was still and blue-green, with a wooden dock jutting out over the surface. The mountains were like a painted backdrop in one of Sabrina’s canvasses, perfect in every way.
They tied the horses to a post near the tree line where they could graze.
Olivia walked out onto the deck and stood at the edge, facing the water.
The breeze blew through her hair and she closed her eyes.
Eli watched her for a moment, then directed his gaze out at the forest surrounding the lake. His wolf stirred, restless.
“When’s the last time you shifted?” he asked.
Olivia’s eyes flew open. “Months. My jobs are always in cities. Paris, Hong Kong, Milan. There’s never any space.”
“There’s lots of space now.”
He saw it hit her, the realization of what he was offering. “Are you serious?”
“No one’s around for miles.”
She grinned at him. “Last one to change is a rotten egg!”
They raced to pull off their clothes and shoes, running toward the tree line before emerging on the other side in their wolf forms. Eli glanced back at the smaller wolf beside him with a silvery light coat.
Light violet eyes turned to him, unmistakably Olivia.
His own wolf growled in approval. Yes, their mate was beautiful as a wolf, too, he agreed.
In this form, his senses were heightened even more.
Colors appeared brighter, and a hundred different scents assaulted him at once.
Sounds were everywhere, too, but the only one Eli paid close attention to was that of the silvery white wolf’s paws pounding on the ground as she kept pace with his larger, black furred creature.
With a flick of her head, the female bolted forward.
Eli’s wolf lunged after her without a second thought.
She was fast, weaving through the pines, leaping over fallen logs and tearing through underbrush.
He was bigger and had the longer stride, but she was agile, cutting sharp turns that sent him skidding on the pine needles.
His wolf didn’t care about catching her. The chase was the point.
They ran for what felt like hours but was probably closer to twenty minutes, splashing through a creek bed, up a ridge, then back down through a meadow with grass that went right past their heads.
His wolf matched her stride as they looped back toward the lake, slowing from a sprint to a lope, then a trot.
They emerged from the trees side by side, panting and their coats damp from the creek.
Olivia’s wolf padded out onto the dock first and lay down in the sun, chest heaving.
Eli’s wolf dropped beside her, pressing his flank against hers.
They lay there until their breathing slowed and the pull to shift back became stronger than the urge to stay.
Olivia shifted first. She was laughing when her human form returned, breathless and flushed, pine needles in her hair. “God, I needed that.”
Eli shifted beside her. “Yeah.”
She was still catching her breath, her cheeks pink, her eyes bright. The breeze pulled at her hair and she closed her eyes, tipping her face toward the sun.
He reached out to touch her face. Her eyes opened, the violet orbs softening, the corners of her mouth tugging up before leaning over to kiss him. Her lips were soft as ever, and sweeter than ever. She moved around, shifting toward him until she lay on top of him, knees sliding down his hips.
“Olivia,” he groaned as she reached down to stroke his now-hardening erection. “We’re outside, someone might come and—”
She covered his protest with a kiss. “We ran for miles and didn’t see anyone. And yes, someone will definitely come.”
He held his breath as she sank down on him, her wet, warm pussy enveloping his cock.
She rode him like that last time at the hotel, and now in the sunlight she really looked like an angel.
Their moans filled the air, and Olivia shuddered with her orgasm.
He grabbed onto her hips, pushing up deep and fast into her, coaxing one more orgasm before he succumbed to his own.
Afterward, they lay on the dock, basking in the sun.
Olivia was on her back with her eyes closed, one hand resting on her stomach.
Where she nurtured their pup. Dizziness struck him at the thought.
It had only been over a week since they met again, and despite the time they spent alone, neither had brought up the fact that they were about to have a child.
In a couple of months, there would a living, breathing being that would be half him and half her, tying them forever.
The thought of being a father made him sweat buckets, but that didn’t compare to the other realization that struck him.
He was in love with her.
And he didn’t know what to do with that. Did she feel the same? She wanted him, that was obvious. Perhaps she even cared about him. But love was a different word. He’d never heard her say it and he wasn’t about to ask.
She opened one eye. “You’re staring.”
“Yeah.”
“Why?”
“Because I can. And you’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.”
“Flatterer.” Yet, a blush bloomed over her smooth cheeks.
I love you.
He wanted to say it out loud to her, but something was holding him back. Nausea crept up his throat and churned the contents of his stomach. There were other things he needed to say first, things she had to know. And they had to come from him.
Namely, Margaux Featherstone.
Every secret he’d kept from Olivia had blown up in his face, and the pattern was obvious enough that even his wolf growled at him about it.
But the coven was twenty minutes away by road and they mostly kept to themselves.
Silke had said so. They came by to refresh the wards and that was it.
As long as he and Margaux never crossed paths, Olivia never had to know.
He pulled her closer and told himself it was fine.