Chapter 12 Bryden
brYDEN
“This is nice.”
Compared to sleeping rough or in rat-infested barns, it was a palace.
I glanced around the cabin that was pretty basic by most people’s standards.
It had a double bed, an old sofa and closet, a rug on the floor, an electrical kettle, and a small bar fridge.
The bathroom was tiny, but there was hot water.
If we didn’t want to go to the dining hall, we’d have to buy provisions at the small store I’d passed on my way here.
But sandwiches, cereal, fruit, and salads would be as much as we could manage without a stove or microwave.
Not that I expected the pack to provide those.
I’d also passed a library and planned to spend an afternoon there when I wasn’t working.
“Come here.” I held out his arms, and Roland fell into them.
Neither of us moved or tried to kiss. Roland’s now familiar heartbeat pattered against my chest, reassuring me we were safe for now. If I were Creven, I’d have doubts about allowing us to stay here. But we had perhaps three days where we wouldn’t be looking over our shoulder.
“Wanna go outside and walk beside the creek?” Roland pulled away and pointed out the window.
“Isn’t it a river, as in Stoney River?”
He giggled. “It’s a large body of running water, so whatever it calls itself, I’m good with that.”
“Let’s name it the river creek.”
My mate gave me a thumbs-up.
We’d been tramping around outside for weeks, and now when we had four walls, my mate wanted to galavant in the open air.
“Being outside without constantly scenting the air for danger is stressful. And this could be our permanent home. I want to enjoy it.”
I agreed, but we had to stay within the pack boundaries.
We held hands as we walked toward the river, now forever known as the river creek. Kids were splashing about in the water as their parents looked on. Roland had discovered that Torin’s mate, Otto, was an otter shifter.
I hoped to see him in his fur if we stayed here long enough. There was an otter den close to my den, and Emerson and I had otter shifter friends. Our bears used to stand in the water and act as goal posts while the otters dribbled balls and tried to score.
I breathed in the scent of wildflowers and fish drying on open racks beside the river creek. We wandered away from the swimmers and strode along the bank. The woods encroached on either side, and the tree canopy shielded us from the sun.
Up ahead was the fence that marked the end of Stoney River territory. I tossed off my clothes and dived into the water while Roland watched.
“Come in. The water’s so cool.” I looked at my hands under the water. “And it’s so clear.”
My beast asked to take his fur and catch fish, but I preferred to keep my skin and mess about with my mate.
Roland sat down and crossed his legs. “You have fun. I’m not a water babe.”
Huh? Did unicorns have an aversion to water? Perhaps they didn’t like their horns getting wet, as I recalled my mate mentioning rain and his odd reaction.
“Are you sure you don’t mind?”
“No, and I enjoy observing your beast.”
I heaved myself out because shifting in deep water often led to water trickling into our mouth and nose. It was similar to a human getting water in their ear when swimming.
Fur rolled over me, and I faded into the background. My beast stayed still as Roland gazed at him.
“You’re magnificent.”
My beast bobbed his head before sliding into the water. Stoney River had an orchard that interested him, but we didn’t know the policy regarding beasts being allowed to pick fruit. So, today was about fish.
My bear faced upstream. He was very still as he fixed his gaze on the water. If Roland was hoping for frolicking and playful antics, he was going to be disappointed and bored.
I understood when my bear sighted a fish. His head moved slightly, and his ears tipped forward. With no warning to an observer, he lunged forward and submerged his head. He pinned a fish with his paws onto the riverbed and dug his claws into the scaly body.
Standing tall, he brought the fish to his mouth, and I closed my eyes, not wanting to witness this bit. He snapped off the head before consuming the rest of the body.
Delicious. I want more.
This time he didn’t use his paws but dunked his head under the water, snapping the fish in his jaws.
I’m done. You can have your skin back.
He clambered out of the water and shook water off his fur before I shifted and pulled on my pants and shirt.
“As a vegetarian, it’s hard watching your bear tear the life out of a fish.”
But my beast only took what he needed, unlike humans who had desecrated the planet.
Plonking myself beside my mate, I shook my head and chortled as water sprayed over him.
“Hey, not fair.” He brushed off the drops.
I pointed out it’d been a couple of days since we’d showered, and he told me he’d get clean back in the cabin.
Now I was pleased that my mate had suggested a walk rather than secluding ourselves in the cabin, and I lay back and allowed the sun to warm my skin.
“I’d love to call Stoney River home.” Roland lay beside me but shaded his face with both hands. Unicorns had sensitive skin I’d learned.
“I’d like to work in the library if we’re allowed to stay.” I was a book fiend and read anything I could get my hands on.
“Working with the pack healer would be my choice, assuming they have one.”
“You could be the healer if they’re in need.”
He shrugged and told me he’d had no training. “Just because my horn has healing powers, that doesn’t mean I know what I’m doing. I just point and touch.”
“Interesting medical philosophy. Point and touch.”
Roland laughed.
“I’ve been thinking.” He turned on his side toward me.
“Oh no. That sounds dangerous.”
“Oh you.” He gave me a shoulder bump. “But I need us to be serious for a minute about marking.”
Huh? Why was he bringing that up when we didn’t have a permanent home or pack?
“That’s something for the future, right?”
“No. I’d like you to mark me, to make me yours.
” He explained he’d never belonged to anyone, not really.
His omega dad had been banished, and while his alpha father kept him in the herd, he didn’t even let him live in the Alpha house.
It was as though he needed a reminder of the pain his mate had caused.
“But being marked by a rogue makes you unsafe.”
My mate tapped his nose. “Nope. My horn does that all by itself.”
“But why now?”
“Because I want to belong to you. I don’t give a damn about the outside world. And poachers won’t care if I’m marked or not. They’re not going to have a meeting about my non-existent mark. They’re all about the money.”
This didn’t sit well with me, but I’d had family growing up, friends and a community. Roland never had that.
“Fine, but we should do it in the cabin.” I peered at the boundary fence, imagining bad guys with binoculars and maybe drones.
We held hands as we went back. People stopped us to introduce themselves, and Roland waved to two small children, saying one was Larkin and Creven’s son and the other little one belonged to Torin and Otto.
Stepping inside the cabin, my mate removed his shirt and told me to mark his shoulder.
“No.” Roland wasn’t a swimmer, but any time he stripped off his shirt, his mark would be obvious. “It needs to be somewhere that’s hidden when you’ve removed your clothes.”
My mate put his hands on his hips. “And where would that be, smarty pants? Inside me? I don’t see how that’s possible.”
“What about on the sole of your foot?”
Roland gave me a look. Yeah, it was unusual, but so was he. He was a freaking unicorn, a mythical animal of which only a few existed in the shifter world.
“But I can’t show it off. I can hardly shove my foot in someone’s face and tell them I’m mated.”
“And that’s a good thing.” I pointed to the shower. No way was I marking his dirty stinky foot after walking around all day. I thought unicorns were supposed to be really clean, but my mate wasn’t fussed about a bit of dirt.
I marched him toward the bathroom as he grumbled and called me a dictator, and when he emerged, he was naked. Say what you want about unicorns, they were well endowed.
Roland lay on the bed, and I sat near his feet and stroked them. “Left or right?”
“You choose.”
My bear’s claws extended, and he scraped the sole of my mate’s left foot. I mopped up the trickle of blood with my shirt before kissing his foot.
“Your foot is forever mine.”
“What about the rest of me?” He lifted his head and stared at his cock.