Chapter Eighteen
Asher lifted his nose in the air. For the fifth time, he detected the scent of something strange, something he had never smelled before. He and Caleb had left Brady's house that morning after staying in Riverside. Asher was happy to go if only because it meant Brady couldn't tell Caleb anymore embarrassing stories about him as a teen and young adult. Asher didn't need any more reminders about how awkward he had been.
He didn't like the idea of traipsing through the forest with his mate while the coyotes were still not dealt with. He could handle them, but couldn't promise no casualties on their side and that would cause more problems. He was hyper aware as they ran through the forest which was how he had sensed the odd smell. It was familiar enough that he didn't feel the need to call Caleb closer to him, but was different enough for him to notice on multiple occasions.
"Spill it," Caleb said, turning to him with a hand on his hip. "What do you sense, because I don't hear, see or smell anything."
Asher kept on forward until he was close enough to give Caleb a kiss on his nose. Caleb wiped his face and peered up at him, frustration making his eyes shine. He must still have been mad that Asher wouldn't allow him to pull the sled. Asher knew he would be able to, he didn't doubt Caleb's strength. He simply liked taking care of his boy. He'd comb Caleb's hair, dress and bathe him every day if Asher thought Caleb would let him.
His mate needed to be a little independent, Asher could accommodate that. But he wouldn't let him pull a heavy sled, weighed down with survival items, through the forest. Especially not when there was a weird smell that seemed a little familiar, but also new.
His eyes got wide and he looked at Caleb's body. He had on cargo shorts that he'd gotten in Riverside and a short sleeve blue and green plaid shirt. Asher inhaled, he could detect the clothes' previous owners but those smells were faint. If anything, this new one was growing stronger.
"You are being so weird," Caleb said. "Are you worried about the wolf? I saw her, not ten minutes ago, running ahead of us. They are probably already at the homestead by now."
"The what?"
Caleb's ears turned pink. "I, er, started calling it that, better than that spot in the forest where we live."
Asher reached his arms around Caleb and lifted the smaller man off the ground as he hugged him. "I like that you call it home. I want you to feel as much ownership of the land as I have." He nestled his face against Caleb's neck and inhaled deeply. The smell was even stronger now, for some reason, it pleased him greatly. A scent that was a little like him and a little like Caleb, but new.
He set Caleb down and pushed back to look at him.
"What?" Caleb wiped at his face self-consciously. "Is there something on my face now? If there is something there, you put it there!"
Asher dropped to his knees, his head at face level with Caleb's stomach. If he hadn't been sure before, he was now. The scent was even stronger. "You're pregnant," he said reverently.
"I'm what? How do you know?" Caleb asked, his tone rising as he spoke. "Can you...can you smell it? Him? Her?"
Asher chuckled and held the side of his head against Caleb's tummy. "I can't smell the gender, but I can definitely smell the baby."
"That's impossible," Caleb said, not like he really didn't believe Asher, but more like he was shocked. Understandable, since he just discovered he was pregnant. Asher figured that not living among other people had seriously limited the number of smells he faced in a day, so much that when a new one was introduced, he was much more sensitive to it than someone who grew up around more stimuli. It had been partly why he was able to sense Caleb the moment he'd stepped on his mountain.
Asher slid up Caleb's body, kissing away the pretty tears that had begun sliding down Caleb's cheeks. He was smiling so Asher knew they were happy, shocked, in awe tears. "I thought I was feeling really great this morning. Like, complete."
A twig snapped and Asher stepped between Caleb and the noise, snarling at the tiny bunny that popped out of the trees, probably too small to notice the predators looming further up the path.
"Thank you for saving me from the witty bitty bunny," Caleb said.
Asher laughed but inwardly, his gears spun. They were in the middle of the forest. Hours away from the homestead. He couldn't expect Caleb to run but the sled was full. He thought about leaving the sled, carrying Caleb home and then coming back for it but leaving his now pregnant mate for that much time was too long.
"Stop, stop it," Caleb said his soft fingers were on Asher's cheeks, forcing his attention on him. "I see your gears turning. I'm fine. We'll make it back. If we run into coyotes, we will deal with them, so put away the mental bubble wrap you are trying to wrap around me." He stretched up on his tip toes to kiss him. "Let's go." Slipping his hand into Asher's they walked through the forest as a new family.
By the time they reached the clearing of the homestead, it was dark out. Asher whistled for the wolves, having not seen them for the rest of the trip.
"Huh," Caleb said, sitting down on a log. "Maybe they went out hunti—"
Asher crouched in front of him, his snarl cracking through the air like lightning.
Sensing the danger but not seeing it, Caleb stayed below his mate who stood between him and whoever was there.
"Step away from him," a voice demanded and Caleb gasped. Asher shifted, standing over Caleb's frail human form. Caleb reached for Asher's leg, but Asher couldn't let his mate help him defend their home, not now that he knew what he carried inside. He stepped over him, pushing him back between his body and a tree. If Caleb's actions were any indication, he was going to be very upset with him, but at least he would be upset and alive.
Asher spotted a flash of fur coming in his direction and he snapped at it. These aren't coyotes, he realized as he jumped back to avoid a slim russet colored wolf shifter's jaws. Are they a warring pack?
A line of wolf shifters appeared in front of him, hackles raised, growling and snapping. Asher heard his wild wolves join rank beside him, but he didn't dare look away from the intruders. A small figure sailed over head and Asher's stomach dropped to his paws when he realized it was his mate, in wolf form, shifting mid-air to land gracefully in the dangerous space between the two groups. "Stop!" he cried flashing each side a flat hand. Amazingly, the wolves listened to him, but Asher couldn't ignore the overwhelming instinct to protect. He shifted into his human form and grabbed Caleb, lifting him up before depositing Caleb behind his body.
"That's my pack," Caleb said, reaching around Asher. "Don't hurt them, please."