The second shrugged.
Like hell. I refused to let our story end like this.
“Come on.” The coyote shifter shoved Laurel forward.
Fury rushed through my veins, and I sprang into action, throwing the contents of my pocket. Four small stones flew through the air and pegged the fleabag in the face.
“Laurel!”
Upon hearing my voice, Laurel ripped the hood from her head. She kicked the stumbling coyote shifter, knocking him into the pit beside mine.
The other coyote shifter tackled her to the ground.
I paced back and forth, helpless.
The pole that had been used to bash my head fell down over the ledge.
I grabbed hold without hesitation and climbed like my life depended on it, because my mate’s life did. Over the edge, I found her on the ground, her attention flicking back from me to the man attempting to wrangle her. He had her pinned and struggled to capture her arms.
She had pushed the pole down for me.
A smile crossed her lips just before the coyote shifter flipped her over onto her back.
“You’re going to regret that, bitch,” he growled.
I charged at him, seeing red. “She won’t, but you will.”
The coyote shifter looked up, and his eyes went wide as he noticed me. Too late.
I shoved him off of Laurel, and it felt good. He tumbled back and in a glow of white light shifted into his beast. It didn’t matter.
I threw a punch into his fur-covered ribs. Then again.
The coyote snarled and whipped his fangs toward my arm. He was too slow.
My third punch was met with a yelp.
“Cypress.”
I punched him again. This time, the coyote didn’t make a sound.
“Cypress, stop.” There was a soft touch on my shoulder.
It was Laurel. I turned and found my mate wearing a concerned expression.
I threw my arms around her and pulled her against my chest. She was okay. Nothing else mattered.
“We have to go.” Laurel squeezed her fingers into my back. “More of the coyotes will come.”
I breathed her in a moment longer. But I knew that she was right. We had to leave. She wouldn’t be safe until we did.
To let go of human form, I had to let go of Laurel first. It wasn’t easy. I wanted to hold onto her and never let go. Reluctantly, I forced myself to release her and take a step back.
“Wolves?” she asked.
I nodded. “We go as wolves.”
We stripped off our clothes. It was not the first occasion I’d been privy to her beautiful bare form. As shifters, being naked together didn’t have to mean anything. With Laurel, everything meant more. Her breasts were pert, her hips wide. She was both toned and soft.
Every time I saw her shift, I couldn’t help but be in awe of her beauty. A fleeting glimpse was all I could get before her form was overtaken in luminescence.
But her wolf was just as stunning. She was petite with a gray coat so fair it appeared as a shimmering shade of silver. I would never grow tired of looking at her, no matter the situation or her shape.
I loved her. I always had, and I always would.
Without wasting time, I reached to my inner wolf and relinquished control. The transformation was fast, and I hit the ground running on four legs instead of two.
“This way,” I said in the shifter tongue, and started off in the direction of our village. Laurel kept pace, easily matching my strides.
As wolves we were faster and more in tune with our surroundings. Sounds and sights were sharper, as were our teeth.
The air carried the dry earthiness of coyotes long past where their scent should have faded if they weren’t following us. It was difficult to tell where or when they would reappear, but they were definitely close.
We needed distance. We needed them to lose our trail, if only for a short time.
I turned off the well-worn path and forged ahead through low branches and brush. We trudged across rough terrain, making our own way through the forest.
Still, the scent of our pursuers remained strong.
Under a fallen tree and around a thorny bush, I turned onto a narrow passage, following deer tracks. There was more space and less resistance, so we could run faster. I glanced back. Laurel was still with me.
I turned back around, just in time to see a coyote skitter out into the path. He was big and domineering, clearly an alpha.
“Herrik,” Laurel gasped.
I skidded to a halt and took a step back. We couldn’t run back the way we had traveled. But maybe I could buy Laurel enough time that she could escape.
“Seems I was right.” Herrik bared his teeth at us. “Serpent in wolf’s—”
Quick as current, a mass of gold and black scales appeared from the shadows. Before I could react, the huge jaw of a serpent stretched wide, showing fangs as long as my arms. The fathach snake snapped its jaw around Herrik, swallowing him whole. I put myself between Laurel and the head of a giant reptile. The snake turned its face toward us, and its forked tongue shot out. Just as quickly, it sucked its tongue back in, then turned back to continue on its path down the game trail, sparing us.
My heart hammered in my chest, and I let out a slow exhale.
Perhaps the coyote alpha would survive. Likely not. Either way, when the tail of the snake disappeared into the forest, we were free. A weight lifted as the scent of coyotes faded into the distance and we returned to wolf territory.
The others weren’t coming. There had only been Herrik.
A few miles from Lycaon Village, the sun began to rise, casting a soft radiance over the forest.
I continued down the path, only to realize Laurel had stopped. I turned back and found her staring into the distance. I followed her gaze.
Standing between a cluster of saplings was a man I didn’t recognize. His back was turned to us. I watched as a set of huge green wings appeared from his shoulder blades and spread out between the trees, flexing. My breath caught.
Dragon. I’d never seen one with my own eyes, only heard the stories.
“Celedon!” Laurel barked in the shifter tongue.
That dragon.
The sense of awe of such a rare glimpse of one of the guardians soured in my gut, leaving a bad taste in my mouth. The end of our journey brought us to the man Laurel had sought, the man she’d fantasized about, the man she’d wanted all along.
After everything that had happened, I wanted to believe she’d changed her mind. But standing here, watching the delight overtaking her features, I wasn’t sure.
She wagged her tail and looked at me, then back at the dragon.
“Let’s go.” Laurel bumped my side with her shoulder, then took off. I followed her toward the dragon.
The air was heavy as we drew closer. There was an oppressive quality, an intense version of the energy Thorn and Herrik put off. Instinct told me to lower my gaze and bow my head, but somehow I couldn’t look away.
The dragon tucked his wings in so they curved around him like a protective shield, and he turned to us.
“Hi, Celedon,” Laurel said. “I mean, Lord Guardian of Land.”
His jaw ticked and his brows lowered as he looked first at her and then at me.
“I don’t know if you remember me,” she said. “We met once in the northern woods. I’m Lycaon’s historian.”
“I remember you,” he said before turning his attention to his hands. Between his palms, swirls of green light danced. He laid his hands on the trunk of a mature tree, one whose bark had taken on a gray quality. The bark around his fingers turned brown and the cracks smoothed. The color spread, like a balm healing its skin.
“Oh,” Laurel said. “Well I just wanted to say hello and introduce you to my mate. This is Cypress.”
The dragon nodded and we exchanged pleasantries, but all of it faded beneath the fullness in my heart. My dreams had finally come true—the woman I’d loved since I was a boy had cho
sen me as her mate.
Epilogue
Laurel
Thirty moons had passed since my misadventure. Thirty moons since I’d realized the truth that had been in front of me all along. Thirty moons since I’d proclaimed my undying love to Cypress.
But our union wasn’t official until today.
Most modern couples chose not to cement their bond with a public ceremony, but I had my own ideas. As historian, I’d read tales of huge gatherings that united all the shifters of the island. I’d read about small gatherings of close friends and family.
That’s what I’d wanted, the opportunity to share our bond with our pack.
We stood before our alpha, surrounded by our people, in Lycaon’s great garden. The evening glow made the pops of colorful blooms appear brighter.
Though Cypress and I lived together already, and shared every aspect of our lives together, my hands were shaking. Heat rose up to the tips of my ears, and everyone else faded away as I stared into my mate’s chestnut eyes.
Cypress smiled. “I promise to never stop chasing you.”
“Even if I run?”
“Especially when you run.”
My cheeks hurt from smiling so hard.
Thorn let out a dark chuckle from his place before us. He took Cypress’s and my hands and joined them together.
“I promise that you will be the hero of all my stories,” I said.
“I promise you my loyalty, my love, and my life.”
Tears of joy pricked at the corners of my eyes. “Same.”
Thorn conjured a sprout from his palm. It glowed in ethereal light as it took shape. The vine coiled around my arm as it grew, down over where my fingers entwined with Cypress’s, and up to his elbow. Tiny buds opened, covering our arms in golden blooms.
The beautiful display was like our love, ever growing for all to see. But like everything else, it was in my periphery. The only thing I saw with clarity was Cypress, standing in front of me.
“The flowers of the passion vine represent your thriving bond,” Thorn said. “Place it by your front door and it will take root. As the years pass and your love grows, so will the plant.”
I squeezed Cypress’s hand, and he squeezed back.
“May the pack recognize Cypress and Laurel as mates.” Thorn took a step back and lowered his voice. “Congratulations.”
Cypress scooped me up off my feet and cradled me in his arms. His hold on me was slightly awkward with our arms still connected by the vine. I laughed as he started running, carrying the two of us through the village toward our home.
“Slow down,” I laughed.
“Can’t,” he said.
“Why not?”
“Since the moment I saw you in this dress, I’ve been dying to peel it off.”
“Oh.” A flash of excitement pulsed through my veins.
He skidded to a stop in front of our front door. I uncoiled the vine from our arms as he popped open the door, and dropped the plant down to take root.
I expected Cypress to take me to the bedroom, but instead, he stopped just inside the door and set me on the table where I worked on my maps and stories. He stepped between my legs and lifted my chin so our gazes met.
“You’re so beautiful,” he said, then crushed his lips over mine.
I tore at his pants, still in awe that this was real. We were real.
His tongue was soft and insistent, parting my lips. His hands roamed over my dress, settling on my shoulders. He hooked the straps of my dress in his thumbs and slid them down over my arms, baring my breasts to the cool air. I shivered, dropped his pants, and grabbed the thickness of his cock.
He tilted into my palm and groaned.
He pulled my dress up, and moved his kisses down, claiming my neck, my collarbone, my breasts. I arched into him and wiggled my way out of my underwear.
As desperate for him as he was for me, I wrapped my legs around his hips and pulled his tip to my entrance.
“Please,” I begged.
He reached around to my ass and guided me to the edge of the table, teasing before scraping his teeth over my shoulder. I moaned and bucked my hips, needing him, all of him.
He thrust hard, shooting an intense pressure through me. I gasped and clenched around him, my nails in his shoulders. He eased back and lifted his gaze to mine.
“Too much?” His eyes were fire.
I shook my head no. “More.”
He obliged, this time going deeper. I cried out and grasped desperately to the desk and his shoulder for something to hold onto.
His retreat was deliciously slow, leaving me hungry for more.
When I thought I’d starve for him, he pressed back in.
Being with him was a dream I never wanted to wake from. Now that we were forever, I knew I didn’t have to.
The hard rhythm built, growing more intense with every thrust.
More, harder, faster.
I could hardly breathe, hardly think, as I let myself succumb to the sensations of the expression of our love.
A rush of pleasure hit me all at once. I fell back, reveling in the pulse of my core.
My eyes were heavy, my breathing jagged. I lay on my back, lost to the sedation of absolute contentment. Cypress eased out of me, bent down and kissed my forehead.
I could have lived just like this, stayed in a state of bliss floating forever.
“That was—” I exhaled and looked up at him. “I love you.”
“I love you, too.” His smile was proud, his gaze hotter than before. “Always have. Always will.”
I looked down to where he pumped his huge love python in his fist. He was nowhere near ready to stop.
My lady bits tingled at the thought.
I rolled over to my stomach and dropped my legs down over the edge of the table. Then I looked back at him.
“You can’t stand, can you?” he asked, a pleased look still glued to his face.
I shook my head. “Probably not. But with you, I can never get enough.”
He lifted my skirt and slapped my ass.
It was a delicious sting to complement the pleasure.
“Yes,” I cried out.
He gently rubbed where he’d slapped, and I leaned back, aching for more of his touch, more of his cock, more of everything.
He reached around and found my clit, touching the tender nub with two fingers. Shots of pleasure coiled through me and I knew I wouldn’t last long.
In one hard, fast motion, he filled me. A few rocks of his hips, and I careened over an invisible cliff, pulsing in pleasure. He laced his fingers in mine on the table. I was safe with him, loved, cherished. This time, I felt his body tense as we came together.
Any energy or strength I’d had left washed away, and I was happy mush.
Cypress lifted me in his arms and carried me toward the bedroom. I looked up at him, content against his chest.
How had I gotten so lucky?
I spread my fingers over his pecs, enjoying the hard, masculine the feel of him. My forever. My mate.
His voice was a rumbling promise. “I’m going to rub you down, so every muscle is languid, and when you’re ready, we can act out whatever fantasy you want from the pages of your scrolls.”
“You think so?” I asked, wiggling so he dropped me to my feet. I wobbled a little, but he steadied me with his strong yet tender touch.
“Anything you want.”
“Those stories are the past.” I shoved his shoulders, knocking him down onto the bed. “I have an endless imagination, and plenty of new ideas of what to do with you.”
He smiled up at me and lifted me gently onto his lap. “I can’t wait to find out about whatever naughty fantasies you concoct.”
The End
WANT MORE DRAGON ISLAND? Grab Celedon’s story Dragon Guardian of Land here!
About the Author
KEYBOARD NINJA, LATE-blooming bibliophile, proud geek, animal lover, eternal optimist, visual artist.
USA Today Bestsell
ing Author Keira Blackwood writes steamy urban fantasy and paranormal romance full of suspense, action, and a dash of humor. No cheating. Always a happily-ever-after.
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Also by Keira Blackwood
Alphas & Alchemy: Elemental Shifters
With Eva Knight
Dragon Guardian of Land
Wolf Warrior of Land
Dragon Guardian of Water
Alphas & Alchemy: Fierce Mates
With Liza Street
Claimed in Forbidden
Fated in Forbidden
Bound to Forbidden
You can find all of Keira’s book on Amazon here.
WOLF’S BANE, BEAR’S BOND
North Star Bears ~ Book 1
Niobe Marsh
About Wolf’s Bane, Bear’s Bond
I’ve had enough of shifters. I thought that being a mate meant ‘forever,’ but that was all a lie.
Danika Jackson hadn’t been looking for anything more than a good time when she met Gideon Ray, but when he told her that she was his mate, and that they were meant to be together, she believed him.
But five years later, the life she’d built for herself with the Quickthorn Pack fell apart, and the only thing on her mind was getting as far away from Texas as possible.
The best place to cool off and sort my sh*t out? Alaska... obviously.
Bracken Quinn was used to being solitary. Estranged from his family and everything the North Star Clan represented, he’d set up his own tattoo shop and made his own way in the world—and that suited him just fine. The last thing he needed was an interruption to his routine.
The last thing he needed was a brush with fate.
Wolf’s Bane, Bear’s Bond is a contemporary standalone shifter romance featuring a no-nonsense heroine, a growly polar bear who would rather be left to his own devices, and plenty of steamy shifter action.
Prologue
Bound to Change: A Limited Edition Spring Shifter Romance Collection Page 51
