She came up to the edge of the sparkling falls within a couple of hours. She followed the trail as it wound around the riverbank and put her out in the grotto behind the falls. Jennifer sat on the algae covered boulders to remove her sneakers and strip down. This time she had worn her swimsuit.
Staring through the curtain of rushing water in her black string bikini, she found herself daydreaming. There were several nights she put on her own little movie in her head about being back here at the falls with Luke. There in broad daylight she turned her imagination loose in the hopes that sending her hopes into the universe would pay off.
She said a silent prayer and leapt forward in to the icy river in front of her. As she hit the water, a shockwave from the cold shot through her body, rendering her dumb for just a moment. Jennifer paddled back up and broke through the surface with a whoop. After the initial shock wore off, the chill felt amazing on her sweaty and sun beaten skin.
Paddling around, she let her mind wander again. The same what if scenarios about Luke rolled through her mind. He was becoming an obsession for her now. At times the images were so strong and so realistic, she thought she could hear his voice.
“Can I join you?” Asked a baritone through the trees.
Jennifer spun around in surprise. She thought her mind had finally cracked. There he stood, all six and a half feet of muscle. “Luke?” She blinked several times to clear the sight away, but he was real.
Luke Robertson materialized out of the trees. His blue eyes glimmered with warmth and softness for the woman in front of him. He squat down at the edge of the water and watched her. She was more beautiful than he remembered.
“I’ll come out. Give me a second.” Jennifer waded over to the bank and squeezed the water out of her hair. “I’m so glad to see you.” A mass of wings flapped in Jennifer’s stomach. She couldn’t tell if the nausea was due to nerves or the hormones.
Luke reached out and took her hand. “I’m happy to see you too. Sit.” He gently tugged on her hand, pulling her on to her knees. His free hand cupped her cheek. “I am so sorry, Jennifer. I wanted so badly to stay away to protect you from JP, but I can’t stop thinking about you.” Luke mustered up every ounce of sincerity he could before continuing. “I want to give us a chance. That is if you would have me.”
Jennifer studied the intensity in his face. She saw the need in Luke’s eyes tugging at her most intimate places. “I’m pregnant.” She blurted out. You stupid cow! Jennifer thought for sure she had just scared him off.
Luke’s thick eyebrows shot up. He opened and closed his mouth like he wanted to say something, but no words came out. Instead, a huge grin stretched across his face. He was so elated at the news he couldn’t contain himself. He pulled Jennifer into him and crushed her lips to his. Luke tangled his long fingers in her soaking tresses to hold her to him.
Jennifer had stiffened in surprise, but quickly softened against him. The kiss grew and changed, growing hotter and more passionate. Jennifer tangled her tongue with his. Her instincts took over as she climbed on to his lap to straddle him. She had never been so hungry for another person in her life.
Jennifer pressed her pelvis against Luke’s growing erection. She needed him inside her like she needed air.
Luke disengaged. “We need to stop.” He declared in a deep, husky voice. He didn’t want this to go any further until she knew what she was getting herself into.
Jennifer sat back and pouted. Her body had been all worked up and clearly so had his. “What’s wrong?” she asked.
“Let’s get you dressed first. I’m not going to be able to focus on anything else until you cover up.” Luke knew if she stayed in what little clothing she was wearing, he wouldn’t be able to keep his hands to himself or say what he needed to. He found every curve of her body to be the sexiest thing he’d ever seen.
Jennifer stood up in silence and dove into the water. Swimming back to the grotto would be faster and be the equivalent of a cold shower. Maybe it was better they actually had a conversation instead of just getting physical. But the skill of his hands was hard to ignore. Even in the icy river the nerves between her legs pulsed at the memory of what he could do.
She swam up on the rocks with Luke close behind her. As she was climbing out an arm snaked around her waist and pulled her back in.
Luke drew her back to him for another kiss. This time his hand slipped inside her bikini top to fondle her breast. His mouth opened and his tongue conquered hers while he played with her breast beneath the surface. He had given in to impulse and it took every shred of control he had to pull back again. Especially when she started moaning into his mouth.
“Go get dressed.” He ordered. Luke boosted her out of the water. He stayed behind a minute to calm down. Jennifer had bent over to dig in her pack, giving Luke the full view of her ass. He forced himself to look away.
Jennifer dressed quickly. Whatever Luke wanted to talk about had to have been important to put the brakes on the make-up sex. As she turned around, Luke had climbed out of the water. He was tying is long dark hair up off his back. She couldn’t help but stare at the way his shoulders flexed and his stomach tightened as his body shifted and stretched. The way Luke moved was so fluid and easy.
“Come sit.” Luke squat down on a rock and made himself comfortable. He reached his hand out to Jennifer.
With a shrug Jennifer accepted his assistance down to him. “Considering the circumstances.” Jennifer laid her hand on her belly. “I think we have a ton to talk about.”
Luke placed his hand over hers. The little miracle growing inside her was his. Shock, nervousness, and something he couldn’t quite place, something primal unfurled inside him. Deep down he knew he would put his body and life on the line to protect his growing family.
“I need to tell you what you’ve got yourself into.” He turned his gaze on Jennifer’s face. “I am part of a very different group of people. We have a special set of abilities that allow us to change our appearance.” Luke paused to study her face. When her expression didn’t change he continued. “I’m the head of a group of shifters in the Chico area. I am able to turn myself into a wolf.”
Jennifer just blinked at him. The information hit her brain, but was just swirling around not being processed. “You what?”
“I can shift into a wolf.” Luke went on guard. He shifted his posture away from her and hugged his knees to his chest. He just stared at Jennifer, hoping she wouldn’t freak out.
“A wolf. Like the dog with big sharp teeth that roams around the Sierra Nevada? Is this a joke?” Jennifer crossed her arms over her ample chest.
“Uh, no. This is my life.”
“You are a lunatic. I need to be going now.” Jennifer quickly stood and moved to collect her pack. She could hear her heartbeat quicken in her ears. This was not happening to her. And she was pregnant with his child! Jennifer touched her belly.
“Wait. Don’t go.” Luke jumped in front of her, blocking the trail. “I can prove it. I need you to please stay. You aren’t safe. Especially now!” his gaze dropped to Jennifer’s belly.
“You just told me you turn into a dog. That’s insane. Please let me by.” Jennifer wrapped her arms around her torso.
Luke held up a finger and moved to strip his pants off. Within seconds he stood stark naked in front of Jennifer, fully vulnerable and with nothing to hide.
Jennifer shielded her eyes. “Luke, this is really inappropriate.” What is with the men in this town? Can none of them control themselves?
“I promise I’m not going to do anything sexual. Just watch me.” As soon as he had eye contact with Jennifer again he flipped the switch. Fur sprouted from his skin as his bones shifted and reset. His nails and teeth elongated to claws and fangs, within minutes a big wolf had been where a man once stood.
Jennifer froze, mouth gaping to the floor. Maybe she was the crazy one? She did just witness a man turn into a wolf. She wanted to say something, but all she could manage was a squeak in the back of her throat.
Luke padded up to Jennifer and sat down. The scent of fear rolled off her in waves. He wanted to engage her, but thought it best he wait for her to make the first move. The battle of emotions behind Jennifer’s eyes unsettled him, what if she decided to run? What if she never wanted to see him again?
Jennifer blinked at the huge wolf in front of her. Curiosity tangled with self-preservation. Her feet itched in her sneakers with the need to turn and run, while her hands ached to touch the figure in front of her to make sure it was real.
In the end, curiosity won out. With shaking hands she reached out to the magnificent beast. She yelped when her fingers indeed touched something solid.
Luke tensed, but didn’t move a muscle. He just kept repeating to himself, “Let her do it,” to keep himself from growing impatient.
Jennifer took three deep breaths and tried again. This time she stroked her hand along his velvety pelt. Such a powerful creature spellbound her, the fact that this was really a gorgeous man made her even more so.
Luke nuzzled his head against her hip. The drumbeat rumbled in his chest and rolled through his body. He was so relieved Jennifer didn’t run screaming from him.
Jennifer stood back and knelt down. She just wanted to observe Luke, but the big animal strolled up and rubbed his cheek against hers before backing off and shifting back to human.
“If you want to run away and change your name I would totally understand.” Luke’s mouth may have said he was okay with that, but his eyes showed the truth. He never wanted her to go.
“No. I don’t want to run. This is amazing! No wonder you were so excited when you found out I was training to be a vet.” She ran her hand up his now very manly forearm. She paused, furrowing her brow. “What does this mean for our baby?”
Luke had to ponder that question for a moment. “Well, I’m not sure. I’m a shifter and you’re not. It could go either way. We won’t know for sure until he or she hits puberty.”
Jennifer nodded still zoned out. She was carrying a shifter’s baby, so what did that mean for the pregnancy? “Do you know anything about shifter pregnancies? I mean your mom has to have some insight, right?” With a million and one questions zipping through her mind, Jennifer needed to go to a source that could help her. The library would be mostly useless. She could look up the pregnancy and gestation of big dogs and that’s about it. The internet may have something, but she’d have to sift through a lot of bad and joke information to find anything.
“Obviously.” Luke started walking towards the exit. He sensed it was time to leave. “I would have to call her though. She moved to Florida a couple of years ago.”
Jennifer fell in behind Luke as he led the way out to the parking lot. “How much do you remember about growing up as a shifter? Did you have brothers or sisters? Think back to when your mom was pregnant with them.”
Luke chuckled. He didn’t have any experience with babies of any kind. “I have two brothers, but they’re much older. Scott is ten years older than me and Josh is twelve. I was the oops baby.”
That would be no help to her. His brothers were so much older as to practically make Luke an only child. Researching her condition would prove to be difficult. “Do you think you could take me with you to Chico? I’d like to meet some of the women of your group. Maybe they could help me.”
That was the only avenue she could think to get the clearest and most immediate answers. And maybe find a doctor who had experience in this sort of thing. Her OB/GYN would have a difficult time understanding the sudden turn her life had taken and would probably have her committed if Jennifer explained.
“Of course. When did you want to leave?” Luke laced his fingers with Jennifer’s. A surge of happiness and pride coursed through him. It took a while, but finding his mate was worth the effort. And getting her with child so quickly! A smile tugged at his lips. They could have a whole bunch of kids – or are they cubs? – if they were that fertile.
“I’d need to tell Tiffany what was going on. How about tomorrow morning?” Tiffany would have a heart attack if she found out just how much Jennifer’s life jumped the rails.
“Sure. We can do that.” The pair walked along in silence for a few minutes just enjoying each other’s company.
The sun was sitting lower in the sky. The afternoon had a touch of déjà vu to it being in the canyon with Luke, surrounded by the pink sky. Jennifer huddled a bit closer to Luke, a chill settled in the air around them.
Suddenly, Luke tensed and stopped walking. He held his hand up as Jennifer opened her mouth to speak. He was focused on finding what disturbed him.
“Well look what the dog dragged in.” called a familiar voice from behind. Jennifer spun around as Luke glanced over his shoulder. He had found the cause of alarm. JP sauntered out through the trees flanked by two men who were close to Luke’s size.
The one on the left was a thin, Aryan looking man, who couldn’t have been more than twenty, but had the hard look of a man who had been through hell.
The man on the right was the shorter of the two, but not by much. He wore his dark hair in a buzz cut and wore clothing more suited to the golf course than a biker gang.
JP stood with his arms crossed over his chest and a smug look on his face. “It’s so nice to see you two love birds out in this neck of the woods. I suppose congratulations are in order. I happened to overhear the good news, daddy.” JP sneered in their direction.
Immediately, Jennifer’s hands went to her belly and Luke pushed her behind him. A prickle of fear skittered up her spine. Back in the apartment, the run in with JP seemed like no more than a pissing contest. Being out in the open and JP having backup intensified the situation well beyond what Jennifer thought it might be.
“You fuck off, Levesque. Take your stooges and go before I make all three of you wish you were dead.” A vein had risen to the surface of the reddening skin in Luke’s neck. His jaw muscles tensed as he tamped down the urge to kill a man.
“Oooo! Big talk, Robertson, but last I checked you were a stand by and do nothing kind of guy.” JP commented. He snickered at his next thought. “But seeing as you’ve knocked up the chubby girl I suppose you can actually do something after all.”
Jennifer’s belly roiled and she felt her cheeks go hot as embarrassment and self-consciousness reared their ugly heads again. JP had called her chubby, which was just a cuter way to say she was fat. The disgust in his voice also made Jennifer feel like a total slut.
Luke stood rod straight and refused to answer. He was not about to give the three assholes in front of him the satisfaction of knowing they got under his skin. He knew they would be dealt with in due time. He just wasn’t stupid enough to attempt it two men short.
“Awe, come on Robertson.” JP called as he paced closer. “You don’t mean to tell me you’ve gone soft now? What would your second say?” JP tapped his index finger against his chin in mock thought. “I know what he would say. He would call you a pussy and try to take you out himself. You get a little tail and suddenly you’re Mr. Sensitive?” JP bowed up at Luke. "I want to finish what we started all those months ago. What do you say?”
Without hesitation, Luke replied, “I’d simply repeat what I said before; go fuck yourself.” Luke reared back and through a lethal looking right hook. His fist connected with the bridge of JP’s nose, making an audible crunch and knocking him out. He stared down the two goons, daring them to make a move.
The two men moved close enough to grab one arm each of their leader and drag him away.
Luke watched them disappear back into the woods. His breathing came heavy and loud, he kept opening and closing his fist to shake the pain of connecting with bone away.
Tentatively, Jennifer touched his shoulder, readying herself in case he still felt froggy. “Luke. They’re gone.” She told him softly, “let’s hurry back to the parking lot before they come back.” She gave his hand a tug, but he still wouldn’t budge. In a final effort to get him to move, she moved around to face him and, standing on tiptoe, pressed her lips to his to pull his attention away.
At first he didn’t respond. It wasn’t until Jennifer clasped her hands behind his neck that he finally reciprocated. She was providing an outlet for his pent up energy and a distraction for his anger. Being so close, he could smell the testosterone rolling off of his body. It was intoxicating.
She slid one of her hands down his muscular torso to between his legs. She groped his very erect manhood, excited at the prospect of taking it on again. A low growl rumbled in Luke’s throat as she pet him through his jeans.
Luke groped for the button of Jennifer’s jeans and slipped his hand inside. He cupped her and parted her lips to find the sensitive nub inside and began to rub her. He was pleased to feel her growing wet in his hand.
Jennifer pressed her breasts against him, the urgency growing inside her to have him again. She abandoned second base and was ready to steal home. She tore at the button and fly of his jeans and shoved the fabric down his hips to free him. She clasped her hands around him and stroked up and down, picking up speed with each pass.
Luke’s kiss grew rougher the hotter he became, until he couldn’t take anymore. He broke away to jerk Jennifer’s jeans off and drag her to the ground on top of him. He grabbed her hip with one hand to position her over his lap and steadied his erection with the other, plunging himself into her.
Jennifer gasped at the speed in which he took her. When she didn’t respond right away, Luke flipped her so he was on top and could take control. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he took her fast and rough. She moaned as his thighs slapped against her ass and the slick length of him passed over her g-spot.
In a moment of passion, Luke bit down on Jennifer’s shoulder. Her cry as the pain and the orgasm hit her all at once pushed him into his own. Luke tossed his head back in a howl and shuddered as he came inside her. In one motion he pulled out and rolled off of her on to the ground.
Jennifer was panting and shaking. Her orgasm rocked her and left her whole body tingling. What caught her off guard were the conflicting emotions. Luke took her so roughly; she wasn’t sure what to make of the experience. On one hand she had the biggest orgasm ever and Luke turned her on so much, but on the other she was scared of his intensity.
She had to remind herself, she initiated it. She took on the beast when he was worked up and angry. She gingerly touched her swollen private parts. They were already tender and feeling raw, she worried how she would feel in the morning.
Without warning, the tears started to flow. Emotion bubbled up inside her and spilled out once it hit the surface.
“Fuck. Jennifer, I am so sorry I hurt you.” Luke gathered her up in his arms and held her to his chest. He felt like a shit for what he did to her.
“No. I’m fine. Really. I mean, you scared me a little, but I think it’s mostly hormones.” She responded with a hiccup.
“It doesn’t matter. I was too rough with you. I’ll be more careful next time.” Luke berated himself for not having a better handle on his temper, but when she kissed him a switch was flipped. He had to have her, claim her. His deepest animal instinct told him to mark her. The primitive mammal brain thought this would keep her safe.
The primitive mammal brain didn’t take into account that Luke was six and a half feet tall and well-hung.
“Luke?” Jennifer lifted her head to see his face. “We should be going now. It’s getting dark.” Jennifer struggled to her feet. The pants around her ankles were proving to be a hindrance. Luke climbed to his knees and helped her up.
They both quickly readjusted themselves and set off back to the parking lot.
“I see you found him then.” Tiffany stood in the middle of the living room glaring at Luke and Jennifer. “I know you both are grown ass adults, but I want so badly to give you a piece of my mind, Luke.” Tiffany wagged her index finger at him.
When she hadn’t heard from Jennifer all day, she had begun to worry. All she could imagine was a pregnant woman wandering around the woods lost forever. Finding out she had met up with Luke had been a relief, but also dredged up everything she had wanted to say to him since finding out Jennifer was pregnant the night before.
“Believe me, Tiffany, there is nothing you could say to me that I haven’t already said to myself or worse. There needs to be warning labels put on the backs of alcohol bottles, Warning: May cause pregnancy.”
Tiffany whooped at Luke’s little joke, “Fine then. You guys have fun. Although, I am more than a little curious as to how you two will work this mess out.”
Jennifer rolled her eyes. ‘Oh, honey, you and me both.” Jennifer gazed lovingly at Luke, “Somehow I think we both will be alright in the end.” Luke met her eyes and smiled.
Tiffany had witnessed the tender moment and screwed up her face. “You two are giving me a cavity.” She turned on her heel and disappeared into her room, leaving Jennifer giggling in her wake.
“Come on and help me pack.” Jennifer grabbed Luke’s hand and led him into her bedroom. She was as giddy as a teenager. To think this striking and powerful man chose her. She had been the woman he zeroed in on in the bar the night they met. Despite JP’s comments, she felt like the most alluring woman in the world.
“How long do you think we’ll be gone?” Jennifer asked as she pulled her overnight bag from her closet.
“We can stay however long you need to. When do you have to get back to work?” Luke took a seat on the edge of the quilt-covered mattress.
“Uh… about that. I kind of quit last night.” She wasn’t ashamed per se, but she can imagine how an unemployed pregnant woman might look to him.
“Oh. Why?” Luke asked, tilting his head.
“Because the sexual harassment was becoming a little too normal in that place.”
Luke stiffened. Jennifer was a very attractive woman, even a blind man could see that, but no one should just be able to touch her. “What happened to you?” he growled through his teeth.
“It was a nightly barrage of pats on the ass and comments about my tits. When I brought the problem to my manager’s attention he basically blew me off.” She shrugged and turned back to rummage through her disorganized closet.
Luke saw red. Not because he felt possessive or protective over her, but because the liberties some men would take with women made him sick. He never understood the reason why some men thought they could behave the way they did and simply get away with it.
After taking a few deep breaths to calm himself he responded, “I’m so sorry that happened to you. This may be a stupid question, but is there anything I can do?”
Jennifer’s shoulders shook with suppressed giggles. Folding a t-shirt, she turned and shook her head at him. “No. It’s over and done with. I saved almost all of the money I made this summer so I’ll be okay for the next two weeks.”
“Two weeks?” Luke asked. “What about after that?” Would she be all right? If she only had enough money for that long, what would she do after?
“After that I’m going to be in Arizona at school. Believe me, moving day cannot come fast enough.” She tossed a few pairs of shorts on the bed. Chico was only twenty minutes from Paradise so there was no need to over pack.
Luke nodded. The motion was automatic. His thoughts were a million miles away.
Jennifer stood in front of him and waved her hand in front of his face, “Hello? Anybody home?”
“Huh? Oh, sorry. I was just thinking.” Absentmindedly he rubbed her leg. The motion helped him collect his thoughts. “I didn’t realize the fall semester came up so soon. How are we going to handle this?” Of course, he was referring not just to the pregnancy, but their blooming relationship as well.
“I’m not sure yet.” She answered. “I may just have to be gone for the fall. I don’t know if I’d be able to participate in the spring since the baby would be due in April some time. I’d have to work that out with the college when I get there.” Jennifer combed her fingers through Luke’s long brown hair.
Tenderness for him filled her heart. The relationship was super new, but she already felt safe and secure with him. It may be because he can shift into a massive and dangerous predator, or it may be the newness of their union causing it, but she felt like she would be protected as long as he was close.
“Are you still going to like me when I’m swollen and waddling?” she couldn’t help it. That thought was a common one pregnant women have and it crept right up on her. She was already a little chubby, she couldn’t imagine how big she would be in another eight or nine months. Oh, lord. I’ll be huge!
“Of course. What did I tell you about hiding yourself from me?” he pushed her hands back down to her sides.
Jennifer hadn’t realized she was trying to hide herself. “You told me not to.” She fretted. Old habits die-hard.
“Right. I promise you will still be as beautiful then to me as you are now. There’s just something about a pregnant woman, especially one that’s mine.” He assured her with a wink.
Jennifer threw her arms around his neck. His words were reassuring since she could feel a mood swing coming on. The emotion was so overwhelming she began to cry. “Ugh. I am so sorry. I don’t even know why I‘m crying. Stupid body.” She declared with a giggle.
Luke squeezed her back. “You have nothing to worry about with me. I’ll take care of you. I promise.”
The tears came harder and she started blubbering into his shoulder. “Crap. I can’t stop crying!”
Luke chuckled. “Don’t worry about it. When you’re done we’ll get back to packing your bag. Just don’t wipe your snot on my t-shirt. I really like this one.” He smiled as she shook with laughter on his lap. Another emotion stirred inside him too, but it was an inappropriate moment to act on it.
After a moment Jennifer slid off of Luke’s lap and hid herself in the bathroom to clean herself up. It didn’t matter what he said about not being embarrassed or hiding around him. She didn’t care for him to see her with a swollen face and snot bubbles.
Splashing cold water on her face did wonders for her composure. It served as an icy dose of reality to ground her from her weird hormonal upheaval. She had heard the early stages of pregnancy were rough, but the stories had nothing on the actual experience.
With one last glimpse in the mirror she pulled herself together. There was a very attractive and virile man sitting on her bed that very minute and she wasn’t about to let that go to waste. She patted her skin dry with a towel and gave her hair a fluff.
When she reentered her room Luke was up and staring out the window. “Penny for your thoughts?” Jennifer asked as she came around the bed and sat down.
“Nah. I was just enjoying the evening.” Luke turned around to face her. “I love this time of the night. The air is cooling the sky clears up and you can practically count the stars. It’s just beautiful,” but not nearly as beautiful as the woman in front of him.
The sparkle in her eyes when she looked at him could shame the night sky. Jennifer had leaned back with her hands behind her in a pose Luke found incredibly alluring.
In one motion he spread her legs and knelt between them. There was a little guilt still remaining for being so rough with her earlier; he wanted to make it up to her.
He ran his hands up her inner thighs to massage her hips. Luke watched as Jennifer closed her eyes, a slow smile spreading across her lips. That was all the encouragement he needed.
His hands crept to the crotch of her jeans where he pressed his thumb against the most sensitive part of her. He quickly became aware of how aroused she became. The scent of her became stronger with each pass of his thumb over her. Luke was suddenly seized by the urge to taste her. She smelled so amazing, how could he resist.
He unfastened her jeans and urged her to lift her hips so he could slide her pants off. He rubbed over her now bare clitoris with his thumb, smearing her wetness over her until she was sighing at his touch.
Luke parted her and flicked his tongue over the sensitive nub, causing Jennifer’s breath to hitch. He teased her a few more times until she was begging. “Luke, you’re killing me!”
Jennifer leaned back on her elbows for support so she could watch Luke in action. The sight of him staring up at her from between her legs was so hot. With fervor, he licked and kissed her, pausing occasionally to suck on her. When he slipped his fingers into her hips rose off the bed. “That feels so good.” She gasped as he pressed and caressed her g-spot.
But it was his mouth that really did it. Jennifer fisted her hands in her quilt as he fed on her, driving her crazy. The pressure built quickly in time with the increasing thrust of his fingers. “Fuck, Luke.” She threw her head back and cried out, “Oh, god!” as her orgasm slammed into her. He laced her fingers in his hair, pushing his head closer to push up over the crest of a second one. Finally she collapsed in a heap on her bed.
Luke rose to his feet and crept over her prone body. Jennifer reared up to kiss him. She could taste herself on his mouth, something she found to be more erotic than she would have thought it would be. Her body already started responding to his again.
Jennifer reached between them to unbutton Luke’s pants and slide them down his hips. As his erection bobbed freely, she wrapped her hand around his girth and started stroking.
Luke groaned into her mouth as he positioned himself between her legs. “I don’t want to hurt you again.” He paused with the tip pressing against her opening.
Jennifer made a noise of frustration. “I’ll be fine, just start slow.” She read the apprehension on Luke’s face. With a huff he gripped his ass, bridged her hips, and pulled him into her. “Just fuck me already.” She demanded with a smile. And that he did.
Nausea had woken Jennifer before dawn. She slipped out of bed so as not to disturb Luke to go prowl the kitchen. Sickness seized her as soon as her feet hit the floor. It was a mad dash to the bathroom to make it to the toilet before her stomach turned inside out. She gripped the seat as vomit turned to dry heaving.
Leaning back against the vanity, Jennifer wiped the sweat from her forehead. She waited a minute to see if anything else would happen, but her guts seemed to be mellowing.
With slow, controlled movements Jennifer hauled herself to her feet. When nothing shifted, she tiptoed to the kitchen to find crackers or something that might settle her stomach.
The cabinets were woefully empty. Too many double shifts meant too little time for the grocery store. She pulled open the fridge door and found a lonely can of Sprite tucked in the back corner. The soda was flat, but soothed the monster in her stomach for now. She made a mental note to stop and grab a snack. The trip was short, but there was no breakfast in the house.
With can in hand, Jennifer slipped back into her bedroom. There were a couple more hours until daylight, and to not be sleeping would be a waste.
Riding on the back of a motorcycle would never get old. The wind whipping through her hair and the purr of the engine under the seat made Jennifer feel alive. The nausea didn’t return when she got out of bed for the day, but the thought she might yak again was never far from her mind.
Luke was sweet and swung by the convenience store to pick her up a mini box of Cheerios to munch on if she felt queasy again. He felt bad for how she was feeling so if he could find a way to help ease the discomfort, he would.
The drive from Paradise to Chico was short. Luke and Jennifer had pulled up to Luke’s house less than thirty minutes after leaving. Luke’s home looked smaller from the outside. The cedar shake on the exterior had been stained a soft grey-blue color. An idyllic little porch greeted them as they walked up to the front door.
“Just so you know, you are free to make yourself comfortable.” Luke explained. “I’ll show you where everything is kept, after that treat my home as yours.” He turned back and unlocked the front door.
The inside was just as charming as the outside. The living and dining rooms had a thick, grey colored Berber carpet that ran throughout. The décor definitely screamed bachelor with the motorcycle memorabilia and leather furniture placed around the living room.
“Awe. Your house is so cute. I feel like I’m in a little cottage in the woods.” Jennifer set her bag down on the couch for Luke o give her the grand tour. The house was as tiny as it appeared on the outside so the tour was very brief.
“If you’d like I can call a couple of the women in my gang and we can meet up with them for lunch?” Luke had picked up Jennifer’s bag and carried it off to the master bedroom.
“Sure. Let’s do that.” Jennifer answered. It would be interesting to meet another shifter and not only that, gain insight into the new developments in her life.
“Great. Give me a minute and I’ll call them. There’s a great little diner up the road that makes the best sandwiches.” Luke walked out to the porch to make his phone calls.
The ride in had worn Jennifer out. She plunked herself down on the oversized couch and put her feet on the armrest. After closing her eyes for a second she had drifted off to sleep.
Luke hung up and reentered the house. He was about to call for Jennifer when he found her curled up on his couch asleep. Instead of waking her, he draped an old quilt over her and let her sleep. They had a few hours to kill before they had to get to the diner.
While he was alone and the house was quiet he would get in touch with his muscle and figure out what to do about that nuisance, JP and his stooges. It was only a matter of time before he retaliated in some way. Hell, Luke knew if he got knocked out by some big bastard he’d want to find a way to get him.
Sneaking into his bedroom and shutting the door behind him, Luke would spend the next couple of hours rallying the troops.
“So, these women are friendly, right?” Jennifer had the image of a stereotypical biker woman stuck in her head. All she could picture were a couple of hard looking women with blown out tattoos wearing cut off t-shirts that were curt and rough with other people. She knew it was wrong to assume, but her brain wouldn’t let the idea go.
“Yes, they are actually really good girls. Melanie is twenty-eight I think and has one child. Zara is thirty, married to my new second and they have two kids; a boy and a girl. Twins I think.” He furrowed his brow. “No. Not twins. Anyway, they were the closest to your age and with their kids still being so young, they’ll have fresher memories to help guide you through this.”
Jennifer nodded. Meeting new people always gave her a bit of anxiety, she hoped she could keep the awkward hidden and not make a fool of herself.
Luke held the door open and let her in first. Luke tapped her on the shoulder and pointed. Two very pretty women sat at the back of the café near the window. They saw Luke come in and waved him over.
“Hi, Luke! How have you been?” The taller, blonde woman stood from her chair and threw her arms around him in greeting. “Is this her?” the woman pointed.
“Yeah. This is Jennifer Armstrong. Jennifer this is Zara. And the one feeding the baby over there is Melanie.”
Zara stuck her hand out, “I am so happy to meet you! Luke mentioned you a few times. It’s great to finally put a face with the name.” Zara was friendly and exuberant, without a trace of irony in her voice as she spoke. She seemed to tower over Jennifer and had a mane of enviable golden-blonde hair the fell to her waist.
Melanie leaned away from the table to see around Zara and waved. She was the quieter of the two and definitely the most striking. Her straight black hair was tied back off her face. She had the high, angular bone structure that hinted at Native American roots. The baby at her breast couldn’t have been more than a couple of months old and had a full head of fuzzy, jet-black hair.
“Hello, Melanie, Zara. It’s nice to meet you both.” Jennifer twiddled her thumbs for a minute, unsure of what to do with herself. A light press on the small of her back by Luke, was the cue to sit down.
“I hate to just bail on you ladies, but I have to meet Trevor and a few of the others to talk about a pest problem.” He turned his attention to Jennifer, “You okay with me taking off?”
Well, no not really. I just met these women! “I’ll be fine. Go do what you gotta do.” Luke bent down and kissed Jennifer on the cheek and waved goodbye to the other two.
“Oh man, Jennifer. You have no idea how bad he’s had it for you. And now! You’re pregnant with his baby? He’ll never let you go.” Zara stated.
Jennifer felt the blush creep up her cheeks and another wave of nausea growing. She quickly waved down their server to order some tea. Once they all placed their drink orders, the conversation quickly turned back to Jennifer and babies.
“Um, that’s really reassuring. Thank you.” Jennifer fiddled with her silverware set while she figured out where to start. “So, are you both like Luke?”
“Yeah, exactly the same. All of our parents were also in our group. You could say we were born to this.” Melanie answered.
“So it’s hereditary, not like the movies where you get bit and suddenly you change?” She tried to keep her voice down and be as vague as possible.
This time, Melanie spoke, “Right. It’s a special trait that runs in the bloodline of the Achomawi people. Only a few other tribes have the ability to do what we do and the animals are all different.” She smiled sweetly before continuing. “And since the ability is passed down by the father, your little bundle should be like us too.”
Zara bounced up and down in her seat like a kid on sugar. “I just love babies. And I’m so happy for Luke that he finally found somebody. And after Paige – Oof! What was that for?” Melanie elbowed Zara in the ribs to shut up.
“Who’s Paige?” Jennifer asked.
“It isn’t our story to tell. You’ll have to wait until he’s ready to tell you about her… if he’s ever ready.” The baby at Melanie’s breast had fallen asleep. Gentle snores were coming from the little burrito in her arms. She popped the baby off and adjusted her tank top. “Don’t worry about that though. Luke asked us to guide you through this time in your life and I am so happy to do it.”
Jennifer was touched. These two women were so welcoming and warm to her. She may have found the sisterhood her sorority couldn’t give her. “Is this going to be like a normal pregnancy or is there anything special I need to do or be aware of?”
Zara nodded, “There are a few things. Instead of being pregnant forty weeks, ours go a little longer. You’ll be pregnant closer to eleven months because of the extra, uh,” she waved her hand trying to think of the right word, “just the extra that needs developing.”
Jennifer’s jaw dropped. This was going to be the longest year of her life! “Won’t my doctor be suspicious? I feel like no sane OB/GYN will just let me go eleven months.”
“You don’t go to a regular doctor. Next week I’ll take you to the reservation to see ours. She’s a wonderful woman and an amazing midwife.” Melanie explained. “You’ll be expected to have a drug free birth. Our people don’t respond well to the drugs used in delivery.” She watched Jennifer’s eyes grow wide. “Don’t get me wrong, the babies born that way live, but some complications and reactions happen. They are often sick for months after delivery and always have something lingering as they get older.”
Jennifer put her head in her hands. A drug-free birth? An Eleven month pregnancy? What the hell did she get herself into? “That’s sweet of you. We’ll set up a time for us to go before I leave.”
“Where are you going?” the two women asked in unison.
“I have to go back to school. I go to college in Arizona and classes start again in less than two weeks.” She explained. “Apparently, I chose this life without realizing it because this is my last year before veterinary school. I’m going to specialize in big dogs.”
Melanie and Zara exchanged a look. Jennifer could have sworn they just communicated without speaking.
“You can’t leave.” Melanie declared.
“Yes I can and I have to.” Jennifer fired back.
“No, you have to stay here with Luke and our doctor. You can’t be so far away because of the baby.” Zara told her.
“I kind of have to. This is my last year before grad school. I can’t lose my momentum now or I may never finish. Isn’t there someone in Arizona your doctor could refer me to?” Jennifer was annoyed. These two women she only just met were ordering her around, which made her really cranky.
“Probably, but you have to be protected.” Zara reached out and grasped Jennifer’s hand. “I don’t know if Luke explained this to you or not,” she lowered her voice and leaned in closer, “The rest of the world doesn’t know about the shifter community. You seem like a smart girl. Tell me, don’t you think you might raise some suspicion on campus by having the longest pregnancy ever?”
She had a point. “Maybe. But don’t your babies come out looking perfectly human? Melanie’s baby has a crazy amount of hair on his head, but otherwise looks normal.” Jennifer was about ready to go.
“Just see what the doctor has to say. Zara and I will be here for you and will coach you through anything you need help with. Maybe talk to the school and do the distance learning thing this year.” Melanie suggested.
Jennifer mulled it over for a moment before answering. “I can look into it, but I have some hands-on lab stuff I have to complete this year. I’ll probably have to go.” Zara’s face hardened and Melanie blanched. The two women were no longer looking at Jennifer, but through her. “What’s the matter, guys?”
A familiar and dark voice chimed in from behind Jennifer. “I’m sorry to burst your bubble, but you aren’t going anywhere.” Jennifer whirled around to discover JP hovering over her shoulder. “Hello, ladies. So good to see you.” JP turned his focus on to Jennifer alone, “Especially you, curvy girl.”
All Jennifer could do was stare. No good could come of JP being there.
“You say you’re going to leave, but I just can’t let that happen, because I need you to stand up and come quietly with me. If you don’t I’m sure your lovely little friend, Tiffany would be very upset.” His voice was placid and soft, but had the weight of nothing but malice in his words. “Come with me now. We have things to do.”
Jennifer stared, wide eyed at the other two women. She tried to communicate silently with them to get in touch with Luke as soon as she left. “Don’t hurt her, please.” Jennifer begged.
“Come with me and I’ll let her go. Scout’s honor.” JP held up two fingers and crossed his heart.
With a nod, Jennifer rose and followed JP out of the diner and into the waiting Chevy Tahoe. “You’re going to let Tiffany go now, right?” Jennifer asked as JP pulled away from the sidewalk.
“Huh? Oh yeah, her. Don’t worry about her, she’s fine.” JP answered, waving his hand. “I’m so glad you came out with no fight. I never had anyone watching her, but if you resisted, one quick phone call and a cut brake line was all I needed to make things happen.”
Jennifer sat back in shock. She had been under the impression that they already had Tiffany with them. She could have run and warned her and Luke about JP. Snakes uncoiled in her belly. What was going to happen now?
“Where are you taking me?” Jennifer’s eyes darted around the interior of the SUV searching desperately for a way out. JP caught her in the rearview and hit the child safety lock on his door.
“I’m taking you to a very special place. I find it to be rather cozy and I hope you will too.” JP’s eyes focused back on the road. The next several hours into the mountains would be difficult. He needed to get enough of a head start that Luke couldn’t possibly follow them. He pressed the gas to the floor as the light changed to yellow.
He wanted to ruin that asshole. JP didn’t really want to hurt Jennifer. In fact, he thought she was rather fetching, but since he got the news earlier that day that Luke knocked her up he knew immediately what he needed to exploit.
The sun was hanging low in the darkening sky as the car pulled up to a shabby looking cabin. One of JP’s goons tried to manhandle her into the house; an issue she only made worse by struggling.
She stomped on his foot and made a break for the woods. Jennifer only made it to the tree line before she was tackled and dragged back towards the cabin.
“Tie her up!” JP commanded, “I can’t risk her pulling anything.” He tossed a bundle of rope to the blond haired heavy and stomped off towards the cabin. Jennifer cried out as she was knocked to her knees before having her wrists and ankles bound.
She could not believe this was happening to her. Not two days ago, her life was ordinary to the point of being boring and now she was staring down the barrel of the proverbial gun. She screamed in terror as she was dragged into the cabin.
A mile away a trio of very large, very tense wolfs prowled the mountainside. The largest of the three perked his ears up. That sound was exactly what he needed and didn’t want to hear. He cocked his head to one side signaling the two lions behind him to move towards the sound.
Their pace accelerated. Who knew what awful things JP would want to do to her. Luke would never forgive himself if Jennifer got hurt or worse.
“Come sit on my lap, baby.” JP gripped the rope around Jennifer’s wrists and hoisted her up onto his lap. With a grin he stroked up her inner thigh. “A girl like you can do so much better than a piece of shit like Luke. It’s a shame you’ve been tainted.” He patted her belly. “But that can easily be remedied, I think.”
Jennifer cried. The thought of potentially losing her baby was so much worse than anything else that could happen to her own person. She pulled away as JP nuzzled her neck.
JP hooked his hands in her ponytail and jerked her back to him. The shriek of pain she cried excited him. He inhaled deeply the scent of her, lavender, sweat, and his favorite aroma, fear. “Oh, baby I am going to be so good to you.” He declared as he grabbed a handful of her ass.
Jennifer took her molestation in silence. She sent a silent prayer up that soon, someone would figure out where she was, and follow her.
The sound of a howl echoed in off the mountain. Every man in the room was suddenly on edge, and straining their ears to pick up where the sound came from. Jennifer held her breath in the hopes it was her wolf announcing his arrival.
“You and you get out and see where that noise came from. When you find the source, kill it.” The two heavies started stripping off their clothes as they headed out the door. Their bodies shifted as they hit the ground from the porch.
“I’m sorry darling, but it’s time we get a move on. I have lots of plans for you and I can’t have you getting taken from me.” JP nipped Jennifer’s earlobe.
A shiver of disgust ran through her. She bit her lip to keep from speaking. She couldn’t jeopardize herself or anyone else by saying something stupid. She nodded and removed herself from JP’s lap to let him up.
“Hold on.” JP crushed his lips to Jennifer’s. She pressed them together and screwed her face up. The violation and the wetness were just too much.
As JP herded Jennifer out towards the Tahoe another scream cut through the still mountain air. A very large and angry wolf cruised out from behind the big black truck. Its eyes passed over Jennifer’s body before zeroing in on JP.
“Hello there, Luke. So good to see you’ve showed up.” He shoved Jennifer behind him, “I’m afraid I don’t have time for you.”
Luke bared his teeth and hissed; an open challenge for JP. Luke was determined to end this insanity once and for all.
JP dragged Jennifer back towards the porch and shoved her through the door and locked her in. She needed to be there when he was done killing her boyfriend. He tossed his leather jacket aside and quickly stripped. JP shifted into his own wolf form and leapt on Luke.
Jennifer tugged and banged on the door, “Help me! Someone let me out!” she screamed. She hollered and banged and kicked, all the while forced to listen to the shrieks and growls of the big dogs fighting in the yard. She dashed over to the window and peeked through the curtains.
She couldn’t tell the two apart. Both dogs were the same color and nearly the same size. Teeth and claws flew, ripping into furry flesh and delicate ears. Jennifer gasped when one wolf climbed on the back of his rival and bit down on his neck.
The suffocating wolf slowed, stumbling around trying to get his bearings to get away. Jennifer watched the top wolf adjust its grip on his rival’s neck and bear down harder. She had never felt so impotent in her entire life. All she could do was wrap her arms around her growing waist, and pray that Luke wasn’t the one dying.
She allowed herself to mourn for the fallen wolf as it hit the ground and stopped moving. Hot tears streamed down her face as she stared at the winner, who didn’t move for several minutes.
When finally, the wolf let go he shook himself and shifted back. Jennifer’s heart leapt when she recognized Luke’s strong form limping towards the house. The doorknob jiggled and rattled, still firmly locked. A moment a heavy bang struck the door, followed quickly by a second, then a third. On the fourth, Luke’s oversized frame tore the door off its hinges.
“Luke!” Jennifer cried as she ran to him. The man was a little wobbly on his feet, but scooped Jennifer up into his arms anyway.
“You’re alive!” Jennifer kissed Luke hard while wrapping her arms and legs around him. She refused to let go for fear he wasn’t real.
“Jennifer. I can’ breathe!” Luke forced the words through his teeth.
“I’m sorry. I’m just so happy you’re alive.” She loosened her grip and slithered off of him.
“Did JP hurt you?” Luke’s hands traveled over her body searching for any signs of injury.
“No. I’m fine. How hurt are you?” Jennifer stepped back to look him over. Luke’s body was decorated with a few welts and bruises, but was otherwise physically okay.
“Just a few scratches.” Luke peered out the window. The corpse of the big dog had shifted back into the form of a very battered and broken man. The body didn’t move, but from the distance the body lay, they couldn’t tell if he was breathing. Judging from the angle his head was hanging, they assumed not.
“How did you find me?” Jennifer asked.
“Melanie told me. She and her husband came with me to find you. I left them to take out JP’s cronies. Zara had taken off with the third guy waiting in another car. Mel told me everything. I guess Zara was the one that filled in JP about you.” Luke cast down his eyes, “I am so sorry, Jennifer. I should have known. I put you in danger… I should have just left you alone.”
Jennifer smacked his hand, “Leaving me alone would have been the most stupid thing you could have done. You’d have left me to raise this baby myself?”
“You’d have told me?” Luke seemed surprised.
“Of course I would have, dummy.” Jennifer took a deep breath to collect herself, “Look. Don’t blame yourself. I’m okay and you survived your fight, can we just go home now?” Exhaustion had settled deep in Jennifer’s bones. She really needed to lie down in her own bed.
“Of course. Grab the keys to the Tahoe and we’ll head out. Melanie and her husband will be joining us in a designated meeting place.” Luke wrapped his arm around Jennifer’s shoulders and planted a kiss on her head, “I’m glad my two babes are safe.”
The End.
Wild for the Wolf
Chapter 1
“You promised you would come back!” Raven shouted into the shortwave radio. She knew they had to be out of range. Somebody would have said something by now. The radio tower was the highest point for miles in any direction. Raven peered out over the trees looking for smoke from their campfire. She knew that they wouldn’t stay close by, but she scanned the trees every day, looking for Travis, looking for anyone.
The tower had once been a part of the Tillamook Airport. A collection of sheds beside a runway, airport was a fairly generous title. After the first wave of infections the whole town had moved to the airport. “It isn’t worth the risk.” Travis had said when Raven fought to stay in her family’s home. There was no way to disinfect the homes, many of which still housed dead bodies. The survivors left everything, even the clothes on their backs, behind.
Ignoring the obvious devastation it had actually been a fun day. It was the first time in months that people had come out of their homes. The mayor, Tom Hodgkin had organized the move to the airport driving around town in his SUV with a megaphone. Everyone brought soap and a smile to the splash zone in Danbury Park. Travis and Raven had even held hands as the survivors looted the stores downtown for clothes and food.
Travis had never been Raven’s boyfriend. In fact when people asked she introduced him as her complication. They were never really together, but never really apart either. Except for now. He hadn’t even looked back as they shut the large rusted tin doors of the Tillamook Air Museum. Raven had been locked up with everyone else that had been infected in the second wave. It had started right after they had made the decision to burn the houses of Tillamook. No one wanted to stay at the airport forever, but in hindsight it seemed like a bad idea. Raven had been the only person in the second wave to survive.
The virus moved fast. In the first two months 10,000,000 people died. The people of Tillamook weren’t worried. There was no way a virus was going to spread somewhere so remote. By the third month Tillamook had its first case of the lumps. It’s a weird name for a virus, but it made sense when you saw the deformed bodies of its victims. The virus had been released from the Russian permafrost by mining companies. They were strip mining gold and other resources that had been trapped under the Earth’s surface by ice and snow. They had no idea what else they were going to release.
All of the scientists who were trying to cure it had died. All that anyone had found out for was that it was highly adaptable. The lumps immediately adjusted to any environment. They could infect any living creature. Raven had even heard that they were infecting buildings and inanimate objects. It didn’t really matter if it was true, there was no way to get rid of the virus once it reached an area. There were even stories about the people who survived the lumps and walked the earth as monstrous contortions of their former selves.
“I am fine,” Raven yelled into the mic, “It was allergies, or a cold, I can’t believe you left me!” Letting the mic fall from her hand, Raven sat in the tower fighting the urge to cry. She didn’t know how, but she knew that no one could hear her words. She started moving down the stairs. It was her new philosophy. Raven had been in a rut since graduating from high school. She was going to take a year and make a plan for her life. That had been almost 4 years ago. “It only took a worldwide pandemic to get me to move out of my parent’s house,” she laughed to herself.
When a second wave of infection struck the Tillamook Airport Commune, Raven thought her life was over. Of the 300 survivors living in the airport 200 were laid out on cots under the vintage planes of the Air Museum. Raven was sweating and nearly delirious for what seemed like days. The only thing that she could see in the dark was the silver fuselage of the Fouga-CM 170 Magister. Raven didn’t know much about planes, but Travis had worked a summer at the museum. He had given Raven the official tour, just before the museum had become a tomb.
Then it was like a switch went off in her head. She heard a voice telling her to stand up. At first Raven didn’t believe it, she had already died in her own head. Slowly she tested her muscles. She looked down at her arms expecting to see lumps and welts, but they were smooth. Raven got up and ran to the bathroom mirror. The lighting was very dim, but she could see that her skin was actually nicer. Before getting sick she had had acne scars on her face and black heads. Now her skin was smooth. Her long black hair had its shine back, even though it hadn’t been washed in weeks.
Raven remembered moving slowly. She didn’t want to step on anybody and risk getting infected. She would never forget the bodies she saw that day. They didn’t even look like people any more. Motionless mounds of stretched and bruised skin lay scattered all over the cement floor.
Raven found a small man door and left the airport behind for good. She ran straight for the radio tower. Travis had shown Raven how to use the short wave radio when they first got to the airport. Travis had always loved tinkering with things and he had tried to communicate with other groups. The people of their town were all hoping that there were other groups. It seemed like a waste of time to Raven, but Travis thought short wave radios would be the only lines of communication still open.
Cell phones were getting no signals and the internet was not working anywhere in town. Tillamook had always been remote, but since the first wave hit it truly seemed like the people of the town were on their own. No one more so than Raven. She realized as she reached the bottom of the tower that she couldn’t stay at the airport. She was nearly out of food.
Bam! Klunck! It was coming from the makeshift kitchen they had built in the main building. Raven grabbed a bat that was lying discarded by the tower and went to investigate. “Screeeee!” The deformed racoon reared up and started to run at Raven. She was going to fight for the food, a few boxes of crackers and granola bars, but at the last second she chickened out and ran. She didn’t want to hit any living creature with a bat, especially not one that was going to infect her with lumps.
“I guess that settles it,” Raven said to the wind. She had packed a small bag the day before. She didn’t need much. Lately she had only been changing her clothes every couple weeks. It wasn’t like she had a way to get them clean. Raven had grown immune to her own stench. All she needed was food, and to be as far away from the smell of rotting corpses.
There were no land vehicles left at the airport and there was no way Raven was heading back into town. She headed through an empty field toward Highway 101. She stood on the asphalt for only a second taking in the scene. Then Raven started walking south, away from Tillamook, and hopefully away from the virus. Her backpack slung across one shoulder and a walking stick that she had made out of a broken shovel handle. Raven could sense that she was heading in the right direction.
It was midday already. The sun was hiding behind the clouds, but it was still very hot. Raven had taken off her long sleeve shirt and rolled up her jeans. The t-shirt she was wearing had been white when she stole it out of Grubner’s Department Store. It was grey now and dotted by darker grey blotches. Raven could hear her mother telling her not to go outside looking like that as she walked. It was comforting. She hadn’t heard her mother’s voice in months. Both of Raven’s parents were taken in the first wave.
In those first few months there was still hope. Bill and June Hepford smiled and air hugged their daughter, to avoid passing germs, as they boarded a bus for the Recovery Center. The centers were opening all over the country and it was against the law to stay amongst the general population once you started showing symptoms. Raven remembered smiling back at them. She wanted to be brave and show them that she would be okay. In her heart she knew they were never coming back.
As Raven walked down the middle of the two lane highway everything seemed very surreal. It was completely empty. There was no traffic and no movement in any of the houses that she passed. Raven had travelled this road many times. Her aunt lived in Cloverdale. No one in Tillamook seemed to know anything about how other communities were dealing with the virus. Raven hoped that she could just walk down the road for maybe a day or two and find a thriving community of survivors, and maybe even catch up with her friends.
Her head cocked to the left as a low humming came from off in the distance somewhere. It was coming from the North. It definitely wasn’t any of the vehicles that Travis and the others had taken. The military collection of the Tillamook Air Museum didn’t have any small quiet cars in it. Raven could still hear the deep rumblings of the heavy trucks that had left her to die in the dusty old hanger that was now a museum.
The compact car was whining under the weight of a metal trailer. Raven wasn’t sure what she should do. There had been reports of looters roaming the highways. She had personally never seen any of them, but she really wasn’t ready for that to change. Raven felt much better than she had days ago, but she was still feeling weak. Her body was running mainly on crackers, she had granola bars too, but she was trying to conserve them so she only ate one per day.
As the car got closer Raven decided to get off the road and take cover in the trees. There was a small farm house in sight and she could see the winding Tillamook River was just to the south of her hiding spot. As she weighed her options in her head, Raven dropped to the ground when she heard the brakes squeak in front of her. Three men got out of the small car. Two were all big men, over six feet tall and well-muscled, their faces were covered in bumps and weird scars. A shorter man with a screeching voice was barking orders. The men all had the same splotchy, reddened skin.
The driver’s dark, scraggly hair was blowing in the breeze as he walked up to the farm house. He kicked the front door in without even breaking stride. The looters made quick work of the house. Raven cringed with every crash of broken glass as the fast moving crew slammed and banged their way through the small house. The thieves loaded their treasures onto the wagon before pulling away.
As they pulled away Raven decided it would be safer to follow the river. She didn’t want to run into any more trouble. She waited for a while after hearing the car pull away. The sun was high in the sky as she finally stood up from behind the bush. The river bank was covered in thorny brush that cut at Ravens jeans and shirt. She was trying to find a clear spot to walk, but the path was not often travelled. Raven could feel the tiny cuts all over her body as she pushed through the brush.
The smell was the first thing that Raven noticed. It was hard to really see the dark brown cabin in the dim light of the woods. It was pine burning in that fire. Raven had always loved the smell of a pine fire. The brush seemed to disappear the closer you got to the cabin. Raven wanted to go and get some food, but she wasn’t sure what was going to come up against if she knocked on that door.
“Grrrrr!” The snarling sound of an angry dog caught Raven’s attention. She had risked walking closer to the cabin to avoid the thorns, but Raven had given herself away. She turned around to talk to the dog and found herself face to face with the long snout and greyish fur of a timber wolf. It was the biggest she had ever seen.
Raven had been through outdoors training. Her parents had sent her to take survival courses in Portland. They thought that living so close to nature their daughter needed to know how to take care of herself in the woods. Raven knew what to do. First you should make a lot of noise. Second you never turn your back to the wolf, and don’t try to out run it. The third thing to remember is that you never show fear. Raven knew all of this.
Raven couldn’t remember any of her training as she ran for the door of the cabin. It was 30 feet and the wolf should have caught her, my fear must have super-charged my legs. Raven thought as she slid down the inside of the door and sat on the floor of the cabin. The door had been left open, but the heavy steel door had nearly taken off Raven’s leg as she ran past it. The pain had been delayed by fear. It wasn’t until Raven got the door closed that she realized what had happened to her leg.
It was purple and swelling fast, Raven tried to put pressure on the knee, but the shooting pain was heading right up her thigh and into her back. She moved across the floor trying not to move the leg. There was a fridge in the kitchenette. Hopefully I can find some ice, Raven thought as she slid along the plywood floor.
“Ahhhhh!” Raven screamed as she tried to stand up. The freezer on the top of the fridge was too high to reach any other way. She took a few deep breaths. Then in the middle of a really deep inhale Raven pushed herself up and opened the door. She grabbed the door of the fridge for support and grabbed some ice out of the freezer. Raven grabbed a tea towel that had been left out and put the ice inside.
On one leg with the injured knee up off the floor, Raven started hopping over to the bed. The cabin was all one giant room. Even the bathroom was open concept. There was a little oriental blind in front of the toilet. Raven was hopping for the bed when her shoe caught on a rough spot in the plywood.
“Got you,” Raven felt the strong arms wrap around her. She tried to scream, but her voice was gone. She stared wide eyed at the dark hair and bronze skin of the cabin’s owner. She was trying to read his face. He didn’t seem happy to see her. “Are you okay?” He had lifted her into his arms and was carrying her toward the bed.
Raven tried to avoid eye contact with the man who was so easily carrying her across the room. He was at least 30 with a little wisp of grey behind his right ear. He set Raven down and helped her get the ice into place. “You’re cut,” he said as he looked at the lines running through Raven’s jeans. The blood was seeping through the fabric. None of them were very deep, but they were starting to sting.
“It’s nothing,” Raven mumbled to her feet as the man went to the cupboard in his bathroom and pulled out alcohol and band-aids.
“You have to stay to the trails around here,” the man said. He seemed concerned, but also annoyed. “Those thorns will get you every time.”
“I think it will be fine,” Raven was trying to stop the man who was now rolling up her pant legs. As she did he grabbed her arm and rolled up the sleeve. He poured the rubbing alcohol right on to her arm. The pain was nothing compared to her knee, but Raven tensed her face and started blowing on it like her mother used to when she cleaned out Raven’s cuts.
“It hurts because of the infection,” the man laughed. “You don’t need to fight me, I am just trying to help.”
“I don’t know you,” Raven answered. She still could not meet the man’s gaze.
“My name is Jordan,” The man said as he rolled up the other sleeve and poured more rubbing alcohol onto his guest. Jordan didn’t seem to mind that his bedroom floor was getting covered in rubbing alcohol. Raven wanted to move away, but her knee was still very sore. She was still feeling very shaken up from the wolf and everything else that had happened that day. Jordan didn’t seem deterred, he just kept treating Raven’s scratches.
“Oww!” Raven yelped as the alcohol spilled over her shin.
“Sorry,” Jordan smiled. He seemed to be enjoying Raven’s reaction to the burning fluid.
“What’s so funny?” Raven finally found her voice. She was starting to relax as she watched the kind stranger padding her wounds.
“This is funny,” Jordan shrugged. “I haven’t seen another person in almost six months, and now I am here treating the wounds of a woman who won’t even look at me.” Raven’s eyes shot up at Jordan’s. The young woman was embarrassed by how scared she was in that moment. The whole situation made her feel like a wildebeest being nursed by a lion, or maybe a deer and a wolf? Either way the whole situation made her feel uncomfortable. How had Jordan even gotten into the house without her hearing him?
“I’m sorry,” Raven tried to maintain eye contact. This was the first time she had really looked at Jordan. He was older than Raven, but the man had a lean face with broad shoulders. His eyes were the colour of sea ice, and with his dark hair looked as if it were shining. Raven was mesmerized for a moment by his striking features. “I was startled by a wolf, and I am a little worried that you are going to kill me.”
“Ha!” Jordan burst out. “I could see that.” Jordan had finished cleaning the cuts on Raven’s shins and he looked at the beautiful young woman before him with a little smile. “Now, how are we going to get to those cuts?”
Raven looked down at her thighs. The jegging she had stolen from Maclaren’s department store were too tight to raise the legs any higher and there were was all kinds of blood seeping through cuts that ran almost as high as her waist. Raven looked back at Jordan who had a very wide smile glide across his face. “I can take care of that.”
Jordan smiled and handed Raven the bottle of rubbing alcohol. “You can use the bathroom.” Raven felt like a toy with the way Jordan could carry her around. He simply picked her up and put her down in a claw foot bath tub that was over near the bathroom.
“I can’t do it here,” Raven looked at Jordan incredulously. There was nothing blocking her from the stranger’s view.
“Don’t worry,” Jordan said. “I need to take myself for a walk anyway.” Jordan walked over and grabbed a pair of jogging pants from a shelf. “They have a draw string.” Jordan shrugged. “Alright holler if you need me.”
Raven watched Jordan disappear out of the door. Isn’t he worried about the wolf? Raven wondered as she eased her tight pants down over her stinging cuts and massively bruised knee. The jeggings had actually been providing some support and constriction on the swelling knee. Taking the pant off it seemed as though Raven could see her own knee doubling in size. She got the ice right back in place.
The young woman treated the cuts on her thigh and then looked at the pants. The bottom of the tub was covered in alcohol and she really couldn’t get herself out of the tub to put them on. “Alright come in.” Raven heard a loud thud against the side of the cabin. It sounded as if Jordan had been a little too eager and forgotten to open the door before trying to walk through. Raven couldn’t help but laugh. Jordan walked in holding his head. He had also managed to lose his shirt.
“What, why would you have even taken it off?” Raven knew that it wasn’t too hot outside and the woods were lousy with mosquitoes at this time of year. Jordan just shrugged and bent down to lift Raven out of the tub. She could feel the blush rising in her cheeks as his skin rubbed against her thighs. Jordan’s toned arms and chest led down to an eight pack of muscle on his stomach. Raven had put her arms around the man’s neck and she tried to be casual as she let one hand fall along Jordan’s chest and down onto his chiseled abs.
Jordan didn’t say a word about it. He knew what she was doing, he had misplaced his shirt on purpose, but as he saw the look in her eyes and felt her hand running along his skin Jordan started to feel a wave of nerves come over him. It had been a long time since he had been in contact, let alone in any type of relationship with another human being. The sickness, even in this remote location had taken its toll. Jordan was not the man that he used to be, and he was not sure that he could control himself around another human being. Jordan eased Raven down onto the bed.
“I’ll grab the pants,” Jordan walked away. Raven followed with her eyes. She was starting to feel much more at ease.
“I think I’ll be okay,” Raven said as she took the ice from Jordan’s hand, but not the pants. It wasn’t cold in the cabin. The warmth from the fire made the small room seem deliciously cozy. “I am so sorry about barging in like this,” the young woman still had red in her cheeks as she started to explain. “There was a wolf outside.”
“Yeah, he’s always around,” Jordan shrugged. “He seems pretty harmless.”
“Well, I’m sure he doesn’t bother you,” Raven felt like a southern debutante as she heard the words coming out of her mouth. All she needed was a big hand fan and a corset crushing her ribs. I do declare, you are the manliest man that I have ever seen, Raven thought to herself in a southern accent the whole sequence in her mind ended with her falling on to a fainting couch.
The whole situation reminded her of “How Long,” a game that Raven and her best friend from high school Lucy Carmichael had made up. They would take turns suggesting scenarios and then they would decide how long you had to wait to sleep with the guy before you were labelled easy. They had decided that in war time it was at least a weekend, on the front lines, while if you were on a sinking ship you could just choose whoever you wanted and go at it. They had definitely talked about virus outbreaks, but Raven was having trouble remembering how long she was supposed to wait.
“I have some ointment,” Jordan said. Raven cocked her head to the side. “For the stinging…in your legs, the stinging in your legs.” Jordan walked over and sat on the bed with a cookie tin in his hands. He took the top off and released a horrid stench into the air. “A Pawnee shaman made it for me.”
Raven could tell the ointment was going to take the pain away, because the smell was going to make her pass out. As Jordan rubbed the cream onto the cuts the stinging subsided almost immediately. Starting at the ankles and working his way up the leg. Raven was watching the way Jordan moved the whole time. The young woman liked to watch his large hands moving gently along her legs. Jordan looked up to ask a question and Raven lunged at him. She grabbed the back of his neck and kissed him furiously. She bit down on his lip, a little harder than she had meant to, because of the pain in her knee.
Raven ran her hands all over Jordan’s muscled body. He was shaped like a nail with broad shoulders and a small waist. Jordan used one arm to lift her and move Raven further onto the bed. She could feel his muscular thighs against her very sensitive legs. Raven could also feel Jordan’s manhood growing against her as he held her close.
Jordan moved his hand off her thigh and went to grab Raven’s neck. “Whoa!” They both yelled as the smell hit them. Their eyes were watering as Jordan put his hand back on Raven’s thigh.
“Sorry,” Jordan laughed. “I forgot what I was doing.” Raven laughed too. Jordan sat up and finished putting the ointment on the cuts and then helped Raven get the jogging pants on. He stood up and went to put the ointment back in the cupboard. What are you doing? He wondered to himself. There was no way that he could start a relationship, not with everything that had happened to him.
“They just left you?” Jordan said as Raven finished her story. She was a little upset that Jordan had not come back to lay beside her after washing the ointment off of his hand. They had been talking for hours about the epidemic and life, but Jordan was sitting on the other side of the bed.
“I was really sick too,” Jordan admitted. “I came here, because I didn’t want to infect anyone else.”
“But you seem fine,” Raven could tell that Jordan was healthy. The sick and dying that she had seen had turned awful colors and were disfigured by the virus.
“The shaman who gave me that ointment told me how to get over the disease.” Jordan looked nervous as he told the story. “He told me too find a wolf and stab it,” Raven seemed shocked, but really with all of the people she had seen die, killing a wolf didn’t seem like a huge deal. “I had to drink the wolf’s blood while his heart was still beating. It was horrible.” Jordan was making a gagging face even as he told the story. “It seemed to work though.”
“So why haven’t you gone back?” Raven wanted to know. She liked being in the woods, but she wasn’t sure if she could ever live in them.
“There are some complications,” Jordan said. Now he was the one that couldn’t meet Raven’s eyes. “Once I get everything under control…” Jordan just let his voice trail off. Raven knew she wanted to know more, but she could see the subject made Jordan uncomfortable. For the rest of the night Raven could see something was eating at him, but he wouldn’t talk about it.
“I am sure we can share the bed without sleeping head to foot.” Raven protested as Jordan got ready for bed. He was turned towards her, but he chose not to respond. Jordan closed his eyes. He could feel Raven roll over and he started breathing easier. Then she started rubbing herself against Jordan. The slow rhythmic motion was driving him crazy.
Jordan tried to hold it together. He had gotten over the virus weeks ago, but he was still getting used to the changes that it had brought on. Getting too worked up, whether it was excitement, anger, or lust, it all seemed to have the same result. When he lost control the wolf took over. He didn’t want to hurt anyone. That was why Jordan had stayed away from people. Now this beautiful young woman was lying in his bed, and Jordan wasn’t sure if he could stay human through the whole experience. He wanted to find out, but he knew that was selfish.
Jordan watched Raven’s hips as they moved. The beast was stirring in the man’s chest. He traced the curve of the hip with his fingers. Raven could feel shivers running down her spine. She let out a moan as she continued to grind against Jordan’s thighs. He sat up. Raven turned and tried to sit up. Her leg was still bothering her when she tried to move fast.
“I have to go,” Jordan said as he took off out the door. He almost didn’t make it. The wolf was busting free as he reached the door. Jordan was pretty sure Raven hadn’t seen him shift. The door was most of the way closed when it happened.
Raven hadn’t seen anything. She had laid back on the bed in a huff as soon as Jordan had walked out the door. The young woman thought that her companion was trying to be chivalrous. Or maybe he just isn’t into me? She thought to herself lying alone in the dark. Raven tossed and turned for a while before finally falling asleep.
When she woke up Raven was still alone. Her knee felt much better. The cuts on her legs had already started to heal. They were very itchy, but it was a huge improvement over how they felt the day before. Raven got out of bed and tested different amounts of pressure on her leg. It was still a little sore, but she could limp around and get to where she needed to go just fine.
Jordan came in carrying a load of wood for the fireplace. He could barely look Raven in the eye. “How are you feeling today?” It looked as though he was asking the wood.
“Much better thank you.” Raven answered coldly. She wanted to make sure Jordan knew that she was angry. Jordan didn’t respond, he just put the wood down and went outside to get more. As he walked out the door Raven noticed that his shirt was ripped along the back. She knew that it hadn’t been torn the night before. It was not a clean tear. The fabric was stretched and torn open in a couple of different places.
When Jordan came back in with another load of wood he dropped it and turned on Raven with a very serious look in his eyes. “I need you to leave,” he said taking in a deep breath as though it hurt him to say the words. Raven gasped and tried to respond, but Jordan talked over her. “It isn’t safe for you to be here,” Jordan wasn’t making eye contact. He had grabbed the back of a chair and he was staring right at the floor. “I might still be carrying the disease and…”
“I have already been left for dead,” Raven couldn’t wait any longer to have her say. “There is nowhere to hide from this virus. I am as safe here as I am anywhere else.” Raven started to walk away, but then she turned back and said, “I’m staying!”
Jordan walked back outside. He was clearly frustrated, but he knew that he couldn’t kick Raven out yet anyway. She was not well enough to walk. She needed at least another day to heal up before she could start walking again. Jordan was scared. He didn’t want to hurt her. He also knew that Raven was right. There weren’t many safe places left in the world. The virus had spread everywhere and there was no escaping it. Jordan walked down to the river and cast a few lines into the water.
He had fish nets set up down river. He checked them every four hours, but they couldn’t hold the bigger fish that swam the Tillamook. Steelhead, Sturgeon, and Coho Salmon, Jordan had caught them all from his little dock. He looked out on the water and tried not to think about the girl who had brought all of this drama into his life.
“Well, if you are going to give me the boot, you better teach me how to survive.” Raven could tell that she was bothering Jordan. She really meant it, she wanted him to teach her how to fish, but she liked that it was bothering him. “Is this how I hold it?” Raven had purposely grabbed a spare rod by the thin fiber-glass at the top. The pole nearly snapped as she waited for Jordan to correct her.
“What are you doing?” Jordan laughed as he watched the rod bounce in front of Raven’s face. “Alright, well let’s start with bait,” Jordan reached down and got a worm out of a small wooden box that he kept by the dock. Raven flipped the pole around and took the worm right out of Jordan’s hand. She had no trouble touching worms. It was the rusty hook that really grossed Raven out. She felt the little bits of oxidized metal coming off on her hand. Her fingers were a reddish brown as she pulled them away from the hook.
“Thanks,” Jordan said as Raven wiped her hand on his shirt. “Now just…” Jordan watched as Raven cast the worm out into the middle of the river. “Just cast perfectly into the water like that.” The older man smiled realizing that he had been had.
“You’re a good teacher,” Raven’s voice was laced with sarcasm as she adjusted her line and set the pole in one of Jordan’s homemade rod holders. The dock was set up so that he could have five rods on the go fishing with bait. Jordan also went fly fishing in the shallows further down river. Raven had a big smile that slowly faded as Jordan continued to stare at her. “What’s wrong?”
Jordan put his hand over Raven’s mouth and turned her around. A white tail deer had wandered very close to their camp. Jordan reached down under the dock and pulled out his lever-action Marlin 336. “Just stay quiet,” Jordan tried to move past Raven, but she took the gun from him.
“I have a better idea,” Raven whispered. “You stay quiet.” Raven looked through the scope. The deer seemed completely unaware of their presence. Raven pumped the lever and then carefully lined up her shot. She wanted to hit the deer right in the head and take it down quickly. Raven had never shot a deer before, but she wanted Jordan to see how much help she could be. She was looking for the perfect shot when she lowered the rifle.
“What’s going on?” Jordan knew that the deer was going to smell them soon or get spooked. He kept the rifle right there for a reason. You always had to ready.
“Look at his neck,” Raven said as she passed the gun over to the panicking man. Jordan grabbed the gun and looked through the scope. “It could just be a tumor, but I think the deer is infected.” It was horrifying to see how far the disease was spreading. There was literally no way to avoid it.
“Yep, the deer is a lumper.” Jordan said as he fired a shot off into the air. The startled deer took off, but he was moving so slow. He was clearly very sick. “Good catch.” Jordan said as he put the gun back. “I haven’t seen any fish with lumps yet, but I’m sure that’s next.” Jordan sighed. “I miss meat.”
“I miss my parents and living in a place where everything isn’t trying to kill you.” Raven said trying to make light of Jordan’s carnivorous lamentations.
“I know there’s a lot worse things in the world,” Jordan smiled, “I get that, but I have been eating nothing but fish for months now, and I need a break.”
“Try living on granola bars and crackers,” Raven laughed.
“I’ll stick with the fish.”
They fished and laughed for hours on the dock. Raven even volunteered to clean the fish after they had hauled their catch into the cabin. Jordan went off to check his nets. Raven watched him disappear through the trees before she started making the gagging faces that she had been wanting to make the whole time. She had no problem with worms, but guts was a whole different story. Raven’s father had been a fisherman and this was not the first time that Raven had cleaned a fish.
“Why would I ever volunteer to do this?” Raven wondered aloud as she dug her knife into another fish belly. There were still three fish left to clean when Jordan dumped five smaller fish into the bucket. He smiled as he sat down next to Raven and ripped into a one of his new fish. “This seems like a lot of fish.” Raven said trying to keep a straight face and breathe through her mouth.
“You have to catch whatever is running,” Jordan said as he tried to dig out a small piece of fish gut with his finger nail. “If you don’t keep everything then you are in trouble when they stope biting. Raven understood, but it didn’t make things any easier.
She managed to make it through the fish cleaning without throwing up, or even making too many gagging sounds. Jordan seemed impressed. It was hard for Raven to understand what was going on. They clearly got along very well. She could feel his excitement the night before, but Jordan was definitely keeping his distance.
“So am I invited to stay for dinner?” Raven asked. She was not making things easy for Jordan. He had after all tried to kick her out earlier, but she felt like she could sense a change in his attitude. She had shown him her skills and they had been laughing and talking all day. As mad as she had been with Jordan at different points of the day, Raven could feel herself falling for the enigmatic man.
“Of course,” Jordan smiled, “You can wait until your leg feels better.” He could tell that Raven was disappointed by that statement. She walked into the kitchen and started looking for the pots and pans that she needed. Raven was not trying to further ingratiate herself to her host. She was past that. If Jordan couldn’t see how much help she would be than forget him. Raven liked to cook.
Angry cooking always made the food taste better. It was something that she had noticed over the years. Being in the on again off again whatever you want to call it with Travis and many other relationship woes, it somehow seemed to help with her skills in the kitchen. This bout of angry cooking was made even worse by the pain in her knee. Raven was still limping a bit as she walked. Most of the swelling had gone, but the knee was still a bright purple. Raven slammed a frying pan down onto the counter, it was time to cook.
The fish was delicious. Jordan had brought in what he called a “Scrounger’s salad.” It was a mix of roots and leaves that grew naturally in the area. It was horrible. Jordan had run out of salad dressing months before. The crunchy, leafy tasteless mass was loaded with vitamins and minerals, and Raven tried to keep reminding herself of that fact as she tried to swallow the bizarre salad.
“This is actually the root of a sapling,” Jordan said as he explained the different parts of the salad. It really didn’t help with the taste, but Raven wanted to learn everything she could about living off the grid. It seemed like the best idea, considering the grid was not really an option anymore.
Raven sat across the table half listening to what she really saw as the perfect man. He was strong, handsome, he knew how to live in the forest, and he was not covered in strange lumps and deformities. The worst part was that clearly they were compatible. They had just had a great day together. The only problem was that for some unknown reason Jordan wanted Raven to leave. Raven needed to know why, it was driving her crazy.
“I will clean,” Jordan said as he grabbed the plates and walked over to the sink. Raven watched as he carefully scrubbed the plates and soaked the pots and pans. It was her dad’s favorite part of doing dishes, leaving things to soak. He would always say that. Raven would come into the kitchen a few hours later and see her mother doing the dishes. It wasn’t too long before Raven started doing it to. Dishes became a game of chicken, “Who can go the longest with dirty dishes in the sink?” Her father would ask with a devilish smile on his face.
“Are you okay?” Jordan’s voice brought Raven back to reality. She could feel the tears running down her face. She had been staring into the soapy water and crying, but it felt so good. She had been so focused on the bad memories lately. Raven threw herself at Jordan and wrapped her arms around him. She didn’t care who it was, she needed a hug. To her surprise Jordan wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. Raven could feel a real warmth in the hug.
When she finally let go Raven looked at Jordan, but he was already moving out the door. It was hard to tell because he had moved so fast, but it looked like he was crying. Raven wiped her eyes and started washing the dishes. As she washed the dishes she actually felt a closer connection to her parents. It was a disturbing trend. She was already doing all the cooking and cleaning. I better leave this cabin before I become his maid, she thought.
Jordan returned with another load of firewood. The tinder box beside the fireplace was overflowing already when he dropped the new load beside it. Raven smiled to herself. She knew that he had been crying. “I think we have enough now,” Raven smiled, but Jordan didn’t even respond he walked over to finish the dishes.
“I would have done them,” Jordan said as they argued about the true intentions behind letting the dishes soak. “I also believe in letting things air dry.” Jordan said with a little laugh. “Thank you,” the dark haired man sat down and rolled his neck back and forth. He was clearly trying to work out a kink I his neck.
Raven slid her hands onto Jordan’s shoulders and started to knead at the muscles. Likely carrying too much firewood, Raven chuckled to herself. Jordan relaxed his muscles and leaned his head back against Raven’s chest. Raven decided to stop worrying about the mixed signals. They are very comfy, Raven had C-cup breasts, and they seemed to work well as pillows. She had noticed that many men had laid their heads against her breasts over the years. Raven focused on the back rub.
“Do you need one?” Jordan asked when Raven moved away from the chair.
“I wouldn’t let you touch me with a ten foot pole,” Raven said playfully as she started walking away. Jordan leaned over backwards and grabbed the young woman’s slender waist without getting off the chair. Unfortunately, he had stretched too far backwards and the chair tipped over. They landed in a pile on the floor. They were face to face. Inches from each other, Raven wanted Jordan to make the first move.
“I could use another back rub,” Jordan said as he tried to get up off the floor. Raven pushed his hands away and used the fallen man to push herself to standing. When Jordan tried to get up the second time Raven stepped over him to walk outside.
The stars were alive in the sky. Even through the thick forest canopy Raven could see them twinkling brightly in the night sky. The moon was high in the sky as well. “Full moon,” Jordan said as he walked up beside Raven. It was an amazing sight to behold. She allowed herself to rest against Jordan’s muscular chest. She could feel washboard abs through the tight t-shirt.
Shooting stars crossed the sky. It was almost possible to forget that there was a virus out there that seemed to be eating the world from the inside out. The giant viruses that had been released from the permafrost, and spread on arctic winds were now even effecting the animal populations. It didn’t seem too far fetched since most of these viruses came from a time before human beings existed. They were clearly very adaptable. The viruses had survived for millions of years. They had simply been waiting for some moron to come along and disturb their slumber.
Raven thought about the colossal stupidity that had caused their current situation, it came as no surprise to her that it happened. As she stared at the vast cosmos before her, Raven could see the complexity of the universe around her. Man was forever trying to prove that he is the master of nature and nature was forever standing right there to prove him wrong. How could anyone believe that there wouldn’t be consequences for destroying an entire ecosystem?
Raven tried not to think about it. It was not like she had done anything to try and stop what was happening. Raven had always laughed at her friends who got involved in causes. She had never been politically active or socially aware. Raven knew that she was part of the problem, and that she should have done more, but it all seemed pointless now. There was no going back, Raven decided she needed to focus on what she could control.
Raven watched a white trail dart across the sky and smiled. Nothing ever mattered when you stared up at the stars. Raven was always in awe when she looked at the night sky. She wanted to ask Jordan about what was bothering him and why she couldn’t stay, but she didn’t want to ruin the perfectly good moment that they were having. Instead she grabbed Jordan’s arm and wrapped it around herself. Jordan took his other arm and put it around Raven as well.
As it got later Raven could feel a chill in the air. She headed inside the cabin. “Are you coming?” She asked Jordan who didn’t move.
“No, I am going to sleep out here.” Jordan said as he pulled out a canvas chair and plopped it down on the porch. “I’m okay out here,” Jordan reassured his guest. “I am just going to take a little run. I have to check my nets and stuff.”
“Yeah, okay,” Raven said as she walked back inside without turning back. She was trying to remind herself that she was done worrying about what was going on with Jordan. The fact was that Raven was a strong, independent woman. There was no way that she needed a man, or anyone, to help her survive. Raven took off her shoes and then wrapped herself up in the blankets. It was time for sleep.
The wind was starting to pick up and it sounded like rain was just starting to fall. Raven wasn’t used to the noises in the cabin yet. She tried to drown everything out and just get some sleep. She started thinking about Jordan out on the cold rainy night. Raven knew that he would be back in an hour or so, but she would sleep a lot better when Jordan got back.
The door burst open and Raven looked up to see, three strange men coming in the door. “I told you I saw a fire back here,” a squeaky voice was saying as they started to look around. There was no place to hide. Raven tried to get under the bed. It was futile, but she had to try. She was sure that they had seen her.
The short man who had been speaking saw her first, “How are you this evening?” The man sounded very polite for a home invader, “Boys we have company.” Raven watched the feet in the room as they moved over toward her. A big pair of hands pulled her out from under the bed and dropped her onto the mattress.
As they moved closer Raven noticed the bumps and stretched skin. These men were clearly infected. The lumpers were already scary to look at, but the way they walked toward Raven and the looks that passed between the three strange men made the young woman feel as though she could sense their stares crawling over her skin. She wrapped herself in the blanket.
They had the exit blocked off. Raven knew that there was no escape. Even if Jordan got back, there wasn’t much that he could do about it. He was only one man. Raven laid back on the bed and got ready to kick the first man who stepped into range.
“You got this all wrong sweetie,” the short man seemed to be the leader. He looked as if he thought he was going to convince Raven that she was going to enjoy this experience. The other two men didn’t make a sound. They were each about a head taller than the talker. One had short mouse-brown hair, he had a hugely distended abdomen, but his arms solid muscle. The other man had red hair, and was built a lot more like Jordan, his biggest lump was what looked like a giant mole, the size of a softball, popping off of his arm.
Where are you Jordan? Raven thought as the men got closer. She started to think about things that she could tell the intruders. Like that the place was owned by a biker gang and they would be back any minute. She was still thinking as the two taller men lunged at her. Missing the brown haired man entirely, Raven donkey kicked the red head. He went flying backwards grabbing his nose. The fat man had been expecting his buddy to grab the other arm, but the skinnier man was trying to put pressure on his bleeding nose.
Raven used her free hand to smack and punch at the fat man. The short man was laughing too hard to be of much use. “I told you guys this would be fun,” the short man laughed. His sickening voice was really starting to grate on Raven’s nerves. As she rained down blows on the intruders head, Raven kept focusing Jordan. She didn’t know why, but she felt like she was really communicating with Jordan.
“Will somebody grab her other arm!” The fat man shouted. The short man laughed as he climbed on top of Raven and put a knee onto her arm. As the short man started to undo his pants a familiar low rumbling growl came from behind.
“Uh, guys,” The red head sounded frightened as he tried to get someone’s attention. The fat man turned around first.
“Whoa,” he yelled as he let go of Raven and backed away. “Who left the door open?” The brown haired seemed more annoyed than scared, but his face gave away the fear that he felt.
“Okay, so we are all going to move forward.” The short man said. “If we stick together everything will be fine.”
“Awwwoooooo!” The wolf let out its baleful wail. The short man was the only one who seemed committed to the idea of sticking together. As soon as the wolf cried out the taller men ran. The short man was left to deal with the snarling wolf. Fur standing on end the wolf looked much bigger than the first time Raven had seen it. The shorter man was looking all over the room for something to help him deal with the wolf. He saw a broom near the end of the bed and he stood up to grab it.
In the confusion the short man had forgotten to do his pants back up. As the belt dragged the jeans down to the floor, the short man found himself falling and rolling. The wolf just continued to snarl. The man had forgotten all about the broom and was just trying to run as fast as he could out the door. The wolf followed him to the door snapping at his heels.
As they reached the door the wolf started to stand on his hind legs and his fur started to recede. Raven found herself staring at a naked Jordan. He was watching the thieves run away through the tiny window in the door. Jordan watched to make sure that they all left, and then he turned to check on Raven, but she was already right beside him.
He wasn’t sure how she was going to react. He had never shifted in front of someone before. He was about to try and explain everything to her when she grabbed his face with both hands and kissed him. It was overwhelming for Jordan. He was ready to face many different reactions, but this one he had not anticipated.
Raven led Jordan to the bed and threw him down on the low mattress. Raven got on top of Jordan and started to kiss her way down his body. She stopped to bite at his nipples until they got hard. Raven could feel another area getting hard as well. She kissed down Jordan’s stomach and his waist. Raven licked at his inner thighs. She could feel Jordan positioning himself. Trying to move her to where he wanted more attention, but Raven was only kissing around the aching appendage.
“I need you,” Jordan whispered, “You will be mine.”
Jordan took off her pants with one hand. He stood up with Raven in his arms and her legs wrapped around him. Jordan felt even bigger than he looked as Raven felt him push past her lower lips, deep inside of her.
“Ahhh!” She moaned as she ground herself against her lover. Jordan was holding her effortlessly in midair with his face buried in her chest. Raven had a fist full of Jordan’s black hair as she felt herself nearing completion. Their cries filled the room. She could feel Jordan starting to twitch as well.
The lovers collapsed on the bed. Exhausted and out of breath, they stayed locked together just enjoying the feeling of being with each other. Raven ran her fingers through Jordan’s hair. Jordan was running his finger along the curve of her hips. They didn’t talk for what seemed like hours, but in the very best way. Raven didn’t want it to stop, but she had too many questions.
“So eating a wolf made you a werewolf?” Raven asked when she couldn’t keep things together any longer.
“Yeah, I guess so,” Jordan shrugged. “As soon as I got over the virus I started to feel different, but I didn’t know what was going on. I was along the dock trying to catch some fish. I hadn’t been well enough to fish in a while so I was pretty much out of food. I walking between my lines trying to keep up with the number of fish that were biting that day when I all of a sudden I was in the water.
The worst part was that I wasn’t ever human anymore. I was doing a real doggy paddle. I got to the shore and it took me over a day to figure out how to shift back.” Jordan was staring up at the ceiling. “I have been getting better at it, but I am not really able to control it one hundred percent. Yesterday I shifted on the porch twice, in fact almost every time I left the house yesterday I turned into the wolf.”
Raven was smiling as she watched Jordan’s face going through its tortured motions. “I don’t care about that,” Raven traced the side of the werewolf’s face with her finger. He was stunning in the dim light of the cabin, and most importantly he really cared about her. “You’re still human, even as a wolf, you didn’t hurt me.”
Raven wrapped Jordan’s arm over her as she snuggled up with her back against his chest. She could tell that Jordan was still worried, but now that she knew what he was worried about, Raven knew that they could get passed this. There was a good chance that there was no place on Earth to escape this sickness, but she felt like she was already where she needed to be. She could feel Jordan’s heart beating and she could feel him breathing. For the first time in months Raven felt safe, she felt like she was home.
The sun crept through the cabin window and it crawled across the floor. Raven was already up. Her leg was feeling much better. It didn’t even bother her as she set the table. Raven had made breakfast, she felt like she was getting the hang of using the small, testy gas range. Jordan rolled over, “What are you doing up?” He asked as he put his feet on the floor and started looking for pants. “I don’t mind doing some of the cooking,” Jordan was pulling on a pair of baggy sweats.
“I know,” Raven smiled as she moved toward him. Raven kissed Jordan before handing him a mug of what she hoped was coffee. Raven had never made it without a coffee maker. Jordan made a horrible face, but he forced himself to swallow it.
“Chewy,” he said as he stuck his tongue out and wiped it off. His tongue was covered in loose grounds. The rest of the breakfast went much smoother. Pancakes and pan fried fish were easy enough. “Well what should we do now?” Jordan asked.
“I thought we could take a walk by the river,” Raven said as she watched Jordan trying to strain his coffee. Raven got up and started moving things around like she was looking for something.
“What are you doing?” Jordan was giving Raven a cock-eyed glance.
“I’m just trying to remember where I put your leash.” Raven started to laugh as she ran for the door. Jordan was hot on her heels.
“Woof woof,” Jordan barked as he wrapped both arms around Raven and started walking her toward the river.
“Don’t do it!” Were the last words she yelled before she hit the water.
THE END
A Bride for the Wolf
My Boston home passed before my eyes, and I squirmed impatiently, wishing the train could move just a little bit faster. I had the unpleasant concern that my parents would rise from their slumber and know exactly where I was. They would somehow be able to come after me and drag me back home, kicking and screaming, to marry that awful Mr. Plumb. I shuddered at the thought of him – he was an old, wealthy man, uglier than sin and meaner to boot. My mother had been determined to see us wed for the past year and now that she had Father on board, it seemed there was nothing left to stop them from sending me off to my doomed fate.
I clutched the newspaper in my hand and looked down at the ad I had circled. It seemed to have been placed there just for me. I'd been desperate to escape the wedding my parents had been planning without my say. Father and Mother had been busy setting up details when I saw the paper lying on the doorstep, perfect and crisp. I normally don't read the paper, but for some reason I felt compelled to pick this one up. Lucky thing I did, too, otherwise I would have been Mrs. Plumb, wife of Mr. Robert Plumb of Boston, Massachusetts within the next few days.
The ad was mysterious and straight forward.
Wanted: Mail Order Bride
I need a wife, but there is no requirement for love or child birth, and you have the ability to do what you please. All that I ask is that you grant me the same. My business is my own.
There was an address listed in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, and I read and re-read the peculiar ad over again, my brain working fast. If I married the man who had placed it, then I couldn't be married to anybody else. My doomed fate to Mr. Plumb, who had known me since diapers and always made me feel a little sick when he looked at me, would be nonexistent. I would be able to make my own way, wife of a man who didn't seem to care what I thought of him or what he did.
I knew Mr. Plumb was much different. He was always seeking attention and approval from the people around him, especially women like Mother and I. He, and everybody else it seemed, thought she and I were the prettiest women they'd ever laid eyes on. It would have been flattering but for the slew of marriage proposals that I received, setting my parents on a quest to make sure I was betrothed to Boston's most eligible bachelor.
Unfortunately, Mr. Plumb was the wealthiest, and he had known my father for many years. When Father was just a boy, Plumb had apprenticed him as a banker and done him a great kindness, launching him into a wealthy career. I grew up in a fine, luxurious home with a wealthy father and expensive tastes because of Mr. Plumb's interest in my father. And so when he asked for my hand, Mother thought it only appropriate to return his kindness by handing me directly over.
I could tell Father was reluctant, but soon he agreed with mother's logic. Mr. Plumb would officially be a part of our family, elevate our level in society, and see to it that I was well-kept. Poor Father would be devastated when he realized I was gone, but maybe he would understand how much I hated Mr. Plumb. He hadn't liked the idea of sending me off to marry him at first, we all knew of the man's monstrous habits, especially toward women. I doubted he would question my reason for wanting to escape. The whole thing gave me a headache the longer I thought about it. Instead, I turned my thoughts to my destination, a wind of excitement fluttering in my chest.
The Sierra Nevada Mountains. I had heard many tales of the west as a girl growing up and had dreamed of going there ever since I was a child, but I had been so sheltered from anything outside my town that nothing could prepare me for the realities of country living. I knew it would be rough and tumble, but that was all part of the allure. I was excited and confident even though I knew it could be difficult for me to adjust. Either way, I knew that a life of adventure and mystery would be better than a lifetime of living out the role as Mr. Plumb's obedient little wife. That's not the life I imagined for myself. Instead, I had always longed for adventure, and a chance to move out from the restrictive life I lead for an opportunity to finally live on my own terms. That's what the ad had promised.
I had to take the chance that a new life in the mountains would be better than the life I lived at home. The man I was meant to marry there might just be better than Mr. Plumb – chances were low that he could be any worse. I was eager to live the types of stories I had always heard from travelers and friends of the family who had been able to enjoy areas of the countryside that I could only dream of, and decided from that point on to keep my focus on the trail ahead of me and to never look back.
Chapter 2
I wakened from a deep, unsound sleep to discover that the train was pulling to a stop in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. My heart thudded quickly, and I hoped that the man, who signed his letter with the mysterious initial, “B.,” had received my correspondence telling him I'd bought the ticket and was on my way. He had mailed me a letter with the fare for my train ticket and a generous amount as a stipend, claiming it would be dangerous to travel with any more money than that and that I would receive my full payment upon arrival. He was right, of course. A lady traveling alone was just asking for trouble. I kept to myself and tried to ensure that I wouldn't stand out, keeping the curtain on my compartment drawn.
Now that I had finally arrived, I felt nervous and briefly reconsidered the safety of my actions. I had just enough money for a return ticket back to Boston, but there awaited an even worse fate. I could take up with a group of hobos and run away, where I didn't know, but my looks were certain to attract danger to myself in that scenario as well. I had one last chance to change my mind, or change my life forever.
I took a shuddering breath and stood on shaky legs, walking toward the exit of the train with the small suitcase of belongings I had packed. “B.” had told me I would be provided with plenty of outfits if I wanted to travel light, and so I'd only chosen the best two dresses I owned and a few personal affects to bring along with me on the journey. The bag was light but burdensome, and the conductor tripped all over himself to help me carry it off the train, setting it tidily beside my feet as he walked off to tend to other passengers. His eagerness brought attention once again to my attractiveness, but I had no time to think anything of it, good or bad, as I was nearly sick with nervousness.
Suddenly, a clear voice rang out from the crowd.
“Daisy Adams?” he asked, with an intoxicating southern drawl. Gooseflesh on my arms stood out, though I couldn't put my finger on why.
I nodded dumbly, unable to locate the face that belonged to the voice in the crowd. Soon, I was looking into the broad chest of a tall man in flannel. He looked down at me and I gaped in disbelief at his kind, handsome face. His eyes were narrow, the brightest shade of blue I had ever seen. He had a strong and philosophical look about him. I imagined he spent a lot of time working with his hands and exploring the stunning scenery of the mountainside. Of all the people I had imagined meeting when I answered that ad in the paper, this exceedingly masculine man wasn't even on the charts.
He tipped his hat to me and I saw black locks of hair brushing his forehead. He wore his hair pulled back in a ponytail behind his head. He offered his hand to me and I reluctantly took it, unsure of what to expect. He brought my gloved hand to his lips, and I felt their warmth press through the fabric. It sent a private little thrill through me and I felt a flush creep across my cheeks as his face creased into a smile.
“Name's Blake, ma'am. Blake Turner. I'm sure glad you got here safe and sound. Was your trip all right?”
He didn't wait for me to respond before he lifted my suitcase easily and began moving through the crowd, expecting me to follow. My eyes roamed his lithe body, thoughts of what brides and grooms are meant to do on their wedding night fluttering through my mind. I'd heard plenty about it back home from a bold old woman named Mabel. My parents didn't much like my keeping her company, but I loved listening to her sordid tales every chance I got.
“Trip was fine, thank you,” I said, a little frustrated that he didn't turn around to face me when I spoke to him. It was as if he had no manners. Still, I could tell he was focused on the task at hand, and I exhaled deeply, telling myself to try to take everything one moment at a time.
“Nobody tried to be indecent with you did they?” he asked, his long strides pausing for a moment.
“No, I kept to myself,” I answered, looking around now that we had gotten out of the crowd. I froze in my tracks, unable to believe my eyes. The last twelve hours of nightfall had been too dark to see, and around six in the morning I'd fallen into my fitful sleep. It was about four in the afternoon now and suddenly the sky had opened up to reveal the most incredible landscape I had ever seen. The beauty of the Sierra Nevada Mountains against a bright blue sky and the fresh, crisp air suddenly brought tears to my eyes. He hadn't noticed, thankfully, and I attempted to compose myself as he led me to his wagon.
The horses stirred when he saw us and he greeted them cheerfully.
“There's my girls,” he said privately to them, a bright smile lighting up his face. He put my suitcase in the carriage and helped me into the seat before climbing in beside me. As I gazed around, I realized that everybody in the crowd had suddenly gone quiet, and for some reason they were all watching us. I gave them a confused but friendly smile, unsure of what to think about their attention. Blake tipped his hat mysteriously toward the townsfolk, his face blank, almost challenging. They all avoided his gaze and scattered back to their own business.
As he stirred the horses into moving, I noticed him shake his head to himself. He seemed to sense me watching him and turned to face me.
“You'd think they'd never seen a pretty lady before,” he laughed. “More to the point, they've never seen one with me, that's for sure. In fact, I'd never planned on marrying to be honest.”
We rode quietly together as I mulled this over. Finally I couldn't help but ask.
“They...so do they think you're...strange that way?”
“In what way, darlin'?” he asked.
“You know...” I had heard the word before secretly from Mabel but had never said it aloud myself. “Homosexual.”
He looked at me for a moment, a puzzled expression on his face, and then laughed loudly.
“Well aren't you bold? Shoot no! But they do think it's awfully suspicious that I keep turning down the women folk out here. I'd like to keep to myself but can't have that happening with everybody checking in on me all the time, bothering me about my personal business or asking me when I'll settle down.”
I wondered what exactly his “personal business” consisted of. I figured that as his wife I would find out soon enough. The thought gave me butterflies and I pursed my lips expectantly, waiting for my answer. He had grown quiet for a moment and squinted toward the horizon before turning back to me.
“Some of the men here don't like me. They see the way their wives or daughters look at me. Treat me like some kind of a threat. I figure that with you here, their worries will simmer down some. Maybe they can put their hackles down and stop worrying I'll snatch up one of their girls and stop targeting me for their anger quite so much.”
Looking at Blake I could see why the men would be fearful. Not only was he was unbelievably good looking, but beneath his ruggedly handsome looks he also seemed to have a gentle tone and temperament that any woman would love. But he didn't want love, that's what the ad had said. I was just there for appearances, and I could keep to myself and do as I pleased. It was an arrangement I could certainly be happy to work with.
I began to look forward to the journey ahead of me, and leaned back in my seat to enjoy the open air as we rode in Blake's wagon toward his home.