Roman
It took Roman a lot longer than it should have to reply to the woman’s question.
He was too transfixed by her appearance to say anything at all, really: her dark hair was windswept and filled with tiny white snowflakes, and clung in tendrils to her flushed cheeks. Her wide green eyes were framed by thick, dark lashes, and there was a spray of delicate freckles across her elegant nose.
And that was before he even got to her absolutely killer curves, lush and abundantly visible even beneath her heavy winter clothes.
She was holding a bundle of… something in her arms, wrapped in a parka. Roman managed to tear his attention away from her face for long enough to take a second glance, and almost spit out the mouthful of coffee he’d forgotten to swallow when she walked in.
Shaking himself, he finally managed to get his brain and his mouth reconnected.
“I’m a vet,” he said, putting his mug of coffee down. “Can I help?”
The woman blinked, her eyes going wide in undisguised surprise. “You’re a vet?”
“Pretty sure I am,” he said, smiling – before hoping what he’d said didn’t make him sound like an ass. Being back in the hometown he’d rejected and knowing he couldn’t put off seeing his family again forever, combined with the strange fizzle of energy that had jolted through him the first time he’d laid eyes on this woman, was making him jumpy. He decided to focus on the bundle in her arms. “Did you find an injured animal?”
The woman nodded. “Yes. It was lost out in the snow.”
Roman stood, which gave him a better view of what the woman was holding.
While most of it was obscured, he could clearly see a little paw sticking up from the folds of her parka, as well as the tip of a feathered wing.
A griffin cub. She’s found a griffin cub.
Roman sucked in a quick, shocked breath. A little cub had been lost in the snow. His parents had to be frantic, and he needed to find them – quickly.
Of course, the woman couldn’t have known what she had really found. He could tell that she was human – his shifter senses would have told him immediately if she shared his griffin heritage. And then there was the expression on her face: flustered and confused, as if she had no idea what exactly it was she was holding in her arms.
Which, if she’s human, she probably doesn’t, Roman realized. Griffins weren’t exactly big on advertising their existence to the world – to say the least.
“Hey, little fella,” he said, reaching out to touch the cub’s head. “What happened to you? Did you get lost?”
The cub blinked at him, before yowling loudly.
That’s a yes, Roman thought. But how did he get away from his parents?
Griffin parents could be an over-protective lot, as he well knew.
Whatever happened, he had to make sure they knew their child was safe and sound, as quickly as possible.
He couldn’t know who this cub’s parents were – Roman could only take a guess at his age, but he’d very likely been born some time after Roman had left. He could belong to any number of Skyhaven families.
Lavinia and Horace will know, Roman thought. The best thing to do would be to take the cub back to their home. They would be able to identify him immediately and get him back to his family.
“It’s okay, we’ll get you home,” Roman said to the cub. “You’re safe now. Everything’ll be just fine.”
The cub mewed, and then began purring softly. He seemed content to stay in his griffin form for now – which, considering everything, might be for the best. He didn’t know how this lady might react if what she thought was an animal turned into a human child in her arms.
He glanced up into the woman’s eyes to find her regarding him curiously.
He supposed that was understandable – after all, as far as she knew, she’d simply found a lost pet – his comforting talk must have seemed a little odd.
Hopefully, she’d just think it was a symptom of his profession.
And speaking of...
“I should just give him a quick check for injuries,” Roman said, opening the folds of the parka. “If you wouldn’t mind holding him steady.”
“Of course not,” she answered, nodding, eyes still wide.
They were bottle green, flecked with gold. Roman knew he shouldn’t be paying attention to things like that at a time like this, but he couldn’t help it. She seemed to fill up his senses, overwhelming his brain and making it hard to think straight.
“I just found him in the snow,” she said, as Roman lowered his head, trying to ignore the way she affected him and focus all his attention on the cub in her arms. Gently, he pressed his fingers against its body, using his empathic powers as much as his sense of touch to gauge if it had any injuries.
Internal organs all seem okay. A little pain on his side, but it’s just a bruise. Wings are fine – thank goodness.
“Nothing wrong with him at all,” he murmured, removing his hands. “Seems like he just got a little cold out there. You did the right thing wrapping him up.”
Nonetheless, his parents needed to be found right away.
He took out his wallet and laid the money for his coffee and tip down on the table.
“My family lives just down the road. They’ll know who his pare – I mean, who his... his family is,” he finished awkwardly, hoping she hadn’t noticed his slip.
Her eyes when she looked at him were dancing with amusement, however. “His parents?”
Roman laughed a little weakly. “Uh, yeah. What can I say, you see so many people who love their pets like they’re their children – it can rub off on you.”
“And I guess this little guy must be... pretty rare,” the woman said, looking down at the bundle.
“Well… you’re not wrong,” Roman said, though he felt a strange twist in his chest.
She doesn’t know how right she is, he thought.
But she was human – and griffins could be secretive at the best of times. He didn’t know how anyone in the clan might react to this. Roman wasn’t sure whether a human had ever been to Skyhaven before. If they had, they hadn’t been invited to stay long, and they certainly hadn’t ever been back. It would probably be the same now.
At the thought of never seeing her again, however, his griffin lifted its head inside him, and let out a long, low growl.
Roman paused. Well, that’s never happened before, he thought. He’d met a lot of people over the course of his job, and his griffin had remained resolutely indifferent to all of them.
This woman, however…
This woman had caught its attention. And it clearly wanted to see more of her.
Roman swallowed.
Maybe if they’d met at his clinic, something could have come of his attraction to her. But here in Skyhaven, with a clan election about to happen, and surrounded by griffins who were adamant about keeping their ways, their very existence secret from humans…
“Maybe I could get your number,” he blurted. “So I could call you?”
Yes, get her number! His griffin leapt to its feet, prowling in his chest. You can call her once you’ve gotten out of Skyhaven.
Her eyes widened, and she pulled her full lower lip back between her teeth. She looked surprised, though Roman wasn’t quite sure why she should be. She had to know she was a beautiful woman, after all. She must have had guys asking for her number all the time.
“To let me know how he’s doing?” she asked after a moment.
Roman’s heart sank a little. Was that really the only reason she’d think he’d call her?
“Or… well, just to call you,” he said. “Though naturally I’d keep you up to date about, uh, this little one too.”
She bit her perfect lower lip, green eyes looking up into his. “I’d – I’d like that,” she said. “Here, let me write it down for you.”
She turned, grabbing a napkin from the table and pen from her purse.
Inside his chest, his griffin at last seemed content again. Good. We can find her again once this is over.
She turned to him again, holding up the napkin. On it, she had written Mia Braddock – found the exotic pet in the snow. Call me! with her phone number below.
Mia. Mia Braddock.
Something about the name sent a shot of warmth straight through him, settling in his belly.
“I’m Roman,” he said, feeling a smile tug at the corner of his lips, and saw an answering smile on Mia’s face. “I’ll give you a call. But… after Christmas. It’s a crazy time. I’m sure you understand. Family.” He rolled his eyes.
Mia laughed a little, nodding, though Roman thought he could detect some sadness in her eyes. “Yeah. Though in my case, it’s more about work.”
“Believe me, I get you,” Roman said as they began walking toward the door. How many times had he used work to avoid having to think about the fact he was spending yet another Christmas away from his family? Sure, he didn’t know if he wanted to see them after that last big fight with his uncle, but it didn’t change the fact that it made Christmas a lonely time for him.
“Well, I guess I’ll be seeing you,” Mia said, pausing with her hand on the door of the café.
She was hesitating – Roman could see that clearly. Maybe she’d felt the same attraction as he had. Either way, they stood in the doorway, both of them clearly reluctant to be the first one to move away from the other.
“I’ll call you,” Roman finally said. “I promise. Or… I could give you my number too? That way you could call me.”
A tiny smile began to creep its way across Mia’s face. “No, it’s okay – I’ll take it on trust that you’re a man of your word. You are a vet, after all. Would anyone who takes care of helpless animals lie?”
Roman laughed. “Well, speaking of, I better get this one back to my place.”
“Oh, of course!” Mia said, coloring. “I’m sorry, I’m holding you up. All right, I’m going.”
She finally pushed open the door –
– only to be greeted by a sheer wall of white.
They both stared out into it, open-mouthed with surprise.
Evidently, the storm had blown in while they’d been talking, and was even more ferocious that it had looked. Roman had seen it brewing as he’d made his flight over the mountains, but even he couldn’t have predicted it would come on quite like this.
“Oh, no,” Mia said, biting her lip. “I don’t think I can drive in this.” She turned to him, her brow knitted. “You don’t happen to know if there’s any motels in town, do you? It’s just… I have a long enough drive as it is, and trying to drive in this is just begging for trouble.”
Roman opened his mouth, and then closed it again.
A motel? There weren’t any motels or hotels in Skyhaven – there wasn’t anything at all that might encourage an outsider to stay longer than absolutely necessary. If any griffins who might have left Skyhaven to go to another shifter community were coming to visit, they stayed with their families. Other shifter visitors stayed in the clan leader’s mansion, or had some other arrangement made for them.
In any case, Roman’s griffin had pricked up its ears again. No. No. Tell her she can stay with us. She can’t go out in this. It’s too dangerous.
Roman frowned.
Take her home? Where my family is?
That didn’t seem like a good idea. But nor could he let Mia go anywhere in these conditions. Did he really have that much of a choice?
As much as his family mistrusted humans and didn’t want to live amongst them, they didn’t hate them. Surely, in this instance, they would understand? Mia was only here because she had been helping a lost cub, after all.
“No motels,” he said, once again feeling his lips move almost without his conscious will. “But you can stay with me – I mean, with my family, until the worst of the storm has blown over.”
Mia’s eyebrows shot up. “Oh – no, I couldn’t do that. I would never impose on –”
He shook his head. “It’s not an imposition.” Or if it is, I don’t care. My family can live with it. He lifted the little bundle in his arms. “But we’d better get going. I need to get this little guy home.”
Indecision chased itself across Mia’s beautiful features once more. She glanced out again at the whirling snowflakes being hurled against the glass of the door with a frightening level of fury, and seemed to make up her mind.
“All right,” she said. “I’ll come with you.”
***
The walk between the café and the mansion only took about three minutes, but that was long enough. Roman was already chilled to the bone by the time he pushed on the tall wooden door that lead into the reception area, the cub still bundled in his arms.
Mia’s teeth were chattering too – she was wearing thick winter clothes, but her parka was still being used to wrap up the cub. The house was warm, however – there was a dying fire still smoldering in the huge fireplace in the great room, but it gave off heat enough to make Roman quickly forget about the cold outside.
Or maybe that’s just because you’re standing so close to Mia, his griffin suggested, its tail swishing mischievously.
Enough, Roman told it sternly. I’ve already said I’ll call her. Leave it. It’s not the time.
He glanced across at where Mia was staring around her with undisguised awe.
He supposed the clan leader’s mansion was kind of impressive. The dark hardwood floors and the wide staircase leading up to the mezzanine level made a dramatic first impression, and that was before you even got to the oxblood leather-studded furniture, arched doorways with carved wooden filigree, and the deep green damask curtains.
Then there was the fact that at this time of year, the whole house was absolutely covered in Christmas decorations. Lights sparkled on the balustrade of the staircase, and red ribbons woven through boughs of holly hung over every doorway. The tree in the great room reached the mezzanine level easily, dripping with glass icicles and painted baubles. A golden star sat upon its highest bough. It was too high up and too far from the mezzanine to have been placed there by any human hand – Roman knew that one of the children must have shifted and flown it up there.
He felt a strange stab of nostalgia as he gazed at the tree. Once upon a time, he’d been the child who had flown up there to place the star.
Ruthlessly, he pushed the thought from his mind. It wasn’t the time for this – if it ever was. He was here for the elections. And then, he’d leave again. He and his uncle simply couldn’t see eye to eye on how he should live his life. And that was that.
“Could you take him for a second?” Roman asked, nodding at the bundle in his arms. “I’m just going to check if anyone’s home.”
“Sure,” Mia said, reaching out to take the cub from him. Again, their hands brushed as they made the exchange – and again, Roman felt the same fizzle of electricity between them. He blinked in surprise and glanced at her – only to find her eyes wide and her lips slightly parted, as if she too had felt it.
How strange, Roman thought – but he had no time to dwell on the strangeness of it right now.
Well, better get this over with.
“Hello?” he called, starting forward – and was immediately answered by the door leading from the great room to the kitchen bursting open.
“Roman? Is that you?”
Roman barely had time to recognize the figure barreling toward him before he was wrapped up in a massive hug that would have done any bear proud.
“Helena,” he laughed, returning the hug just as hard.
Helena was his uncle’s housekeeper – or, he should say, the clan leader’s housekeeper. She had been in the job since long before his uncle had been elected, and Roman imagined she’d stay long after he retired, too.
She was more than just a housekeeper, however. A clan leader’s duties could involve a lot of travel, and often late nights of work. Helena had helped to take care of him and Lavinia when they were children. She’d made sure they were up in time for school in the morning, and scolded them when they’d ruined their nice clothes climbing trees and running – or flying – around in the mountains.
“Roman, look at you, all grown up,” Helena said, releasing him and looking into his eyes.
“Helena, I was all grown up when I left,” Roman laughed, shaking his head.
Helena herself barely looked any different from how he remembered her: she still had the same bright blue eyes and steel gray hair. She was still almost as tall as him – age didn’t seem to have stooped her at all.
“I suppose you were,” she said, looking away – though not before Roman saw the hint of sadness in her eyes. “And... who is this?” Helena said, turning to Mia – before she gasped aloud. “Ayden Fullbright! You little scamp!”
Roman blinked, momentarily surprised – until he looked down to see the griffin cub in Mia’s arms peeping out of the folds of her parka. The expression on his face was almost sheepish. And perhaps a little scared.
“You know him?” Roman asked, trying not to look at Mia’s bewildered expression.
“Know him?” Helena cried out, reaching over to take the cub from Mia’s arms. “This little one has only had everyone in town rushing around in a panic for the past hour and half. Oh, just wait until your mother sees you.”
The cub – Ayden – yowled a little, as if in protest.
“I found him in the snow,” Mia said, but Roman could hear the confusion in her voice. “I thought I’d better – I mean, he seemed like he might –”
“I can’t tell you how grateful Kara and Jason will be,” Helena said, scratching her fingers over Ayden’s head. “And speaking of which, I better get Ayden home to them right this instant. I’ve been waiting here in case he came by – he comes over to play with Lavinia’s little ones after school, so we thought he might end up here. Kara’s been frantic, though. Not that I blame her, what with this weather.”
The names Kara and Jason rang a bell at the back of Roman’s mind, but it was a moment before he could place them. Kara had been a friend of Lavinia’s when they were young – she must have married Jason Fullbright, who’d been a couple of years ahead of him at school.
And Ayden must be their son, Roman thought, glancing down at the bundle in Helena’s arms.
“I’ll take you home right now,” she said, addressing Ayden sternly. “You’ve given your parents a terrible fright, I hope you realize that.” Ayden mewled apologetically, but Helena only shook her head. “Don’t give me that, young man. You were told not to go out in the storm.”
Roman glanced at Mia – apparently in her relief at seeing Ayden, Helena hadn’t taken the time to consider that she might not be a shifter. Hopefully Mia would simply think Helena was just a slightly eccentric animal-lover who anthropomorphized pets just a little too much.
Though I’ll have to tell her the truth at some stage, he thought to himself as Helena continued to fuss over Ayden while Mia stared. It would be wrong to hide what I am from her.
But that, Roman thought firmly, was a conversation for another time.
“Well, I’ll just run this silly little one back to his parents,” Helena said. “Everyone’s out looking for him, so I imagine it’ll take an hour or so to round everyone up and let them know he’s fine.”
“It’s snowing pretty hard out there,” Roman said. “I can take him, if you like.”
Helena shook her head firmly. “No – you’ve had a long journey. I want you to rest. Kara and Jason are only across the way on Anders Street – it’s a minute’s walk.”
Roman wanted to argue with her, but he knew how stubborn Helena was. She wouldn’t back down on this – and besides that, he could see Mia’s face out of the corner of his eye, and knew that if he left them alone together, Helena was liable to say something... strange.
Or something that would seem strange to Mia, anyway.
“Okay,” he agreed.
“Good boy. Now, I might be gone for a little while,” Helena said as she grabbed her coat. “I’ll help round up the searchers, so don’t worry if we’re not back for an hour, hour and a half.” Reaching up, she patted him on the cheek. “Make sure you get something to eat.”
And then, just like that, she had scooped Ayden up in her arms and bustled out the door. Leaving behind her a tremendously awkward silence.
“Uh...” Roman started, before Mia laughed.
“Wow, seems like that is one... very loved pet,” she said. “Nice of the whole town to pitch in to look for him!”
Roman swallowed. I should tell her now!
But tell her what? He argued back at himself. She already thinks it’s weird enough that the cub she found is a griffin! How’s she going to react when she finds out he turns into a child?
“It’s a close-knit community,” he finally settled on saying – which was true.
“I can see,” Mia said, smiling. “I grew up in the city. I always thought it’d be nice to live in a small town, where everyone knows everyone else.”
“It has its downsides, too,” Roman said, grimacing a little.
“I’ll bet,” Mia said. “I guess the bad thing about knowing everyone is that everyone knows your personal business, too.”
Roman let out a relieved laugh, glad she understood. “You could say that.”
But at least everyone knowing everyone had meant that Ayden’s parents had been found quickly, and he was safe.
Now that that was sorted out, though, Roman found himself wondering how the cub had come to be up the mountain all alone in the first place. If he’d had to guess, he supposed he would have put Ayden’s age at around eight – the age when griffins typically started getting more rambunctious and daring with their flying. Until then, their wings were a little underdeveloped, allowing only for clumsy fluttering and short flights between here and there.
Perhaps that was what had happened: he’d been testing out his new capabilities and gotten caught in the fast-moving storm, swept along by the wind.
Roman had done similar stupid things himself as a cub: one time he’d tried to fly off the garage roof and into the pool, but his wings hadn’t yet been strong enough to hold him and he’d fallen, missed the water, and broken his leg. Griffin healing being what it was, he’d been fine in a week, but it had taught him a lesson he hadn’t soon forgotten.
Well, here’s hoping Ayden won’t be doing that again either, he thought, turning to Mia.
He was about to ask her if there was anything he could do for her, when the room was suddenly filled with the sound of a gurgling stomach.
“Oh boy, excuse me,” Mia said, a pretty flush spreading over her cheeks. “I guess I haven’t eaten in a few hours, and my stomach wants me to know about it.”
Roman laughed. He couldn’t stop himself – her smile was infectious, and her red cheeks were too adorable for him to resist. “To be honest, I could eat too. Perhaps we should go see what’s in the kitchen.”
“That’d be great, as long as it’s no trouble,” she said.
Roman shook his head. “Not at all – I can’t bring you here and then not feed you, after all!” he said, leading her through the great room toward the kitchen.
“I hope you don’t take this the wrong way,” she said as she looked about, wide-eyed. “But is your family… rich, by any chance?”
Roman glanced over his shoulder at her. “Not… in the sense that they have a lot of money,” he said carefully.
Mia cocked her head. “Is there another sense?”
“My family’s… pretty old, I mean. They’re not as wealthy as this house might make them seem, but we’ve had roots here for generations. And generations before that. So they’re not about to up and buy Forbes magazine or anything, but they have a certain… prestige, I suppose you’d call it.”
Mia nodded, seeming to understand – though Roman felt another pang of conscience, knowing he was talking around the truth. But how do you explain your uncle’s the leader of a clan of griffins, and that you’re a griffin, and that your entire family are griffins?
Roman had never had to think about explaining these things to anyone before, but it did definitely seem like more of a third date conversation. If he told her now, the odds were frighteningly high that she’d think he was nuts and run straight out of the house and into the worst blizzard he’d seen in years.
Maybe I’ll just… keep it to myself for a while longer.
He pushed on the swinging door that led from the great room into the kitchens. They had always been huge – the clan leader had a lot of entertaining and hospitality responsibilities, after all – but Roman could see that they’d been remodeled since he’d last been here twelve years ago. The walls were still paneled in dark wood, but the counters were veined white granite now, and the appliances had been updated to stainless steel.
Mia let out a low whistle through her teeth. “Wow. Someone could cook up a storm in here.”
“Let’s hope someone has,” Roman said, heading for the fridge. Before he could make it across the room, however, a piece of notepaper sitting on the kitchen island caught his eye. Quickly, he lifted it up, reading it.
Roman –
I figured you’d probably head straight to the kitchen. Sorry we’re not here to greet you. Something urgent came up. If we can make it tonight in the storm we will. But if not, then help yourself to whatever’s in the fridge – though DO NOT cook and eat the turkey.
Thank you for coming back. We’ll see you soon.
– L.
Lavinia, Roman thought. She’d probably left the note in case Helena had had to leave to look for Ayden too. He wondered if it boded ill that his Uncle Horace hadn’t written him a letter himself.
It doesn’t matter, he told himself. He had no intention of staying long anyway. That went double if his uncle was still furious about his having left in the first place. At least Lavinia herself seemed to be trying to be hospitable.
“Come on,” Roman said, setting the note aside. “Let’s see what there is to eat.”