by Sophie Stern
Contents
No Fox Given
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Epilogue
Author
Books
Hybrid Academy
No Fox Given
Sophie Stern
Copyright © 2020 by Sophie Stern
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Are you a shifter looking for love? It's time to take your dating to the next step with TEAM SHIFTER: the best dating app for bears, wolves, and yes, even dragons. Start swiping to find someone and get your happily ever after.
Foxy has been on her own for years. That's the way she likes it. She works as much as she wants, she plays whenever she likes, and no one is around to tell her otherwise.
Until she meets someone on the Team Shifter dating app, and everything goes wrong.
Suddenly, she has a stalker, and nobody seems to know who it is. Nobody can help her. Nobody can save her.
Except for the one person she promised herself she'd never run to for help.
Is Foxy brave enough to ask Brendan for a second chance?
“I feel light, even in my darkest hour.”-Tori Amos, Darkest Hour
Prologue
Foxy
Five years ago
We’re kissing in the darkness of the forest, tucked away from everything that can hurt us. Nobody knows this is our secret place: the special spot where we come to be alone. When we’re here, nothing else matters.
Not work.
Not friends.
Not relatives.
No small-town drama.
Nothing.
Here, it’s just me and Brendan. The two of us can do anything when we’re locked in each other’s arms. We can conquer the world when we’re here alone, if only in our hearts. In this place, Brendan makes me feel safe and perfect, and I know that I do just the same for him. Our special place is like a haven from the rest of the world.
This is the place where our dreams come alive.
And tonight, this is the place where our dreams come to die.
This is the night that I’m saying goodbye to him.
This is the very last night for the two of us, and he has no idea. He doesn’t know that I’m about to give him his freedom, that I’m about to let him soar. He doesn’t have any clue that I’m about to let him go because that’s what’s best for him. I love him so much, but being with me? Well, I’m holding him back. What’s worse? I know it.
Part of me wishes things could be different, but I know the truth about Brendan. I know that he wants to go off and have some magical career. I know that he wants to leave Claw Valley. I know that he has big dreams, and I know that I’m holding him back from being able to live his very best life, from being able to do all of those things that he needs to do.
So I’m going to say goodbye to him for his own good.
Even if I thought we could do the long-distance thing while he goes off to graduate school, there’s no way his family would approve of us staying together. We all know that I’d be a burden to him, and I hate that. It’s horrible to know that the reason he can’t succeed is me.
I don’t want that.
This guy deserves to succeed. He deserves to be with someone who supports him and loves him and encourages him, and he deserves to be with someone who takes care of him. He deserves to be with someone perfect: someone who makes him feel complete.
So I kiss him a little more deeply knowing that in just a few minutes, it’s all going to be over.
His mother made it clear I’m not to tell him about her involvement. After all, if Brendan thinks she interfered in our relationship, it’ll hold him back. He won’t want to go to grad school, and that’s where everyone wants him to be. He’s supposed to go off and study business and learn how to make money because at the end of the day, that’s what makes the world go ‘round.
“I love you,” he whispers, and the words almost make me cry.
I’m going to miss hearing him say this to me.
I’m going to miss it more than anything else.
“I love you, too,” I manage to choke out the words, and he’s so turned on right now that he doesn’t even notice how much it’s completely killing me.
He kisses me over and over again, and in the darkness of the caves, we make love to each other like it’s not the last time. We kiss each other, teasing one another like this is what we were made for, and part of me believes that it is.
When it’s over, we hold each other for a long time. I put off the inevitable as long as I can, but finally, I realize that I’m just stalling. Waiting isn’t going to make this any easier.
“I need to go,” I tell him. I stand up, totally naked. We shifted before we came here. There are no clothes in this place. We came in our animal forms, the way that we always do. That’s how we’re able to get here unnoticed. Nobody looks twice at a couple of creatures jaunting around the forest. They definitely don’t look twice at a little fox like me.
“What’s the rush?” He asks, stretching out lazily. I look at him closely, taking him in. I don’t want to forget a single thing about what I’m seeing. His hair is messy, and his face looks calm and relaxed. He looks like he doesn’t have a care in the world. Brendan smiles, staring at me like he can’t believe how lucky we are to have found each other at such a young age.
Then I take a deep breath, and I say the words his mother made me promise to say.
“Brendan, we need to take a break.”
Suddenly, there’s silence in the cave. While it was quiet before, this is something else. I can’t even hear Brendan breathing anymore. He’s holding his breath. He’s going to faint if he’s not careful. I say the rest of the words in a rush. Somehow, I manage to spit out the excuses.
“We’re all wrong for each other,” I say.
It’s a lie.
“We’re too young to feel this way.”
Another lie.
“I’m not ready, and neither are you.”
One more lie to seal the deal.
Then I turn, just the way she told me to, and before he can say anything, I shift into my fox form and start running. I leave the cave, wiggling out of the narrow opening, and I run off into the forest. Before I’ve gone very long, I hear him. There’s a roar that fills the entire forest, and I know that he finally realized exactly what my words mean.
He knows that we’re over.
Forever.
Chapter 1
Foxy
Present Day
The forest isn't supposed to be scary in the middle of the day, so why do I feel so afraid? I actually skipped work for this. I canceled my tutoring sessions today, moved all of my classes to tomorrow, and skipped out on my actual, literal job. Now I'm standing in the center of the woods like a huge dork. Well, more correctly, I'm shaking in the center of the woods because I'm scared out of my mind.
It wasn't supposed to be like this.
Team Shifter is supposed to be a fun, interesting app where you can meet people you care about, and hopefully, you can form some sort of connection or relationship. You're supposed to be able to connect with people who are intere
sting and special and wonderful and...
Well, people who make you feel alive.
I’m supposed to feel good, sexy, and wild when I meet someone from this dating app. That’s the entire point of dating, right? You’re supposed to feel incredible and wild: wonderful and sassy. When someone sees you from across a crowded room – or in my case, a small woodland field – they’re supposed to lock eyes with you. That’s when it hits you: you’re attractive as hell, and they’d be lucky to get with you. That’s what I thought I’d be feeling right now, but I don’t. Something is wrong here. I'm not supposed to feel scared or alone or upset.
I'm definitely not supposed to be wondering what's lurking in the forest.
But then again, I'm desperate.
Or lonely.
Or perhaps…perhaps I'm just bored.
Either way, I know that what I'm doing isn't the smart decision, but I couldn't help myself. It’s been a long time since I was in a relationship with anyone. Years. It’s been years. The tiger shifter I've been chatting with on Team Shifter makes me feel special and sexy and naughty, at least when we’re actually chatting with each other. I like that. I like feeling like I'm a little bit of a bad girl, even if I'm not.
Even if I have nothing else to offer right now, I like feeling like I'm not just the goody two-shoes teacher.
I like feeling like I'm still sexy.
Right now, though, I’m beginning to see why some people don’t like this app so very much. The thing about Team Shifter is that you’re supposed to meet in your animal forms before you decide if you actually want to date each other. Maybe that weeds out the posers who aren’t actually shifters, or maybe it just cuts down on mistaken first impressions. I don’t think meeting in the middle of a forest was the best choice, though. What exactly was I thinking?
Suddenly, I sense something changing in the air, and I realize that I'm no longer alone. I'm in my fox form, and I spin around, looking carefully toward the source of the energy I'm sensing. I wish I knew what this person looked like beyond the fact that they’re a tiger. That's the problem with Team Shifter: you have to meet the other person in your animal form first. There are no pictures exchanged. There are no hints given. You meet the person as an animal and then you can find out whether or not you really connect. That's how it's supposed to work, anyway. I've only used the app a few times, and I've always skated out of meeting people. I always had legitimate excuses for not following through with the dates. One time I had the worst migraine of my life. Another time I felt really tired. There was one date I backed out on because I had too many papers to grade, but now...
Well, now I'm going through with it.
Only, when the tiger shifter comes out of the darkness and I see him, it’s not what I expected. My best friend managed to find herself a dream guy on this app, and even though I’ve been using the app for a long time, I get the feeling that this isn’t really how it was supposed to go. The tiger is beautiful, big, and fierce-looking, but I instantly feel uncomfortable. Something is wrong here, but I don't know what.
Hello, I want to say, but my words come out in a squeak. I am in my fox form, after all, so it's not like I can talk to him. Still, my body is yearning to say something - anything - to express how I'm feeling and what I'm thinking. I want to ask him if it’s really him, and part of me wants to blurt out that I’m feeling a little unwell. Maybe we can reschedule. Perhaps next week would be better.
He approaches, and I can't help but feel like this is something from a nightmare. I don't know why I suddenly feel so anxious and uncomfortable, yet I do. Run my inner-voice seems to scream at me, but I don’t. Instead, I double-down, planting my paws firmly in the ground. They sink down a little bit into the dirt and grass, but I don’t feel any safer or stronger.
The tiger comes closer and closer. His big body seems to sway with every step. Even though he’s in his animal form, he doesn’t seem surprised to see me. He doesn’t seem impressed, either. I guess I thought he’d pause and look me up and down, and then maybe…I don’t know. Maybe he would nod with approval, or perhaps he would bare his teeth in a sort of awkward shifter-smile. He keeps walking toward me, and I sniff the air quietly.
Anger.
Stress.
Tension.
These aren't emotions I should be scenting. I should notice that he smells happy or excited or nervous: even horny. Literally any emotion would be better to scent than tension. Why is this guy stressed? He might be slightly uncomfortable or nervous about meeting a new person, but we’ve sexted. We’ve talked dirty. We’ve flirted and it’s gotten really downright nasty and fun and wild. He should be feeling anxiously excited to finally get the chance to see me in real life. That’s how he should be feeling.
Not angry.
Before he gets any closer, I realize it's time to nope on out of here. Maybe it was too soon to meet. A few more days of talking, maybe. He comes closer, closer, and before I can second-guess myself, I turn and start to run, but I'm already too late.
The tiger leaps, tackling me, and knocks me to the ground.I land on my side, and instantly, everything hurts. My head hits the hard dirt and I see stars, but I don't shift. My body desperately wants to shift back to my human form, as though that will offer some sort of reprieve from what's happening.
My body seems to think that if I can just change, then everything will be okay, but I know that's not true.
In my shifter form, I can heal the minor cuts and scrapes that are undoubtedly already showing up on my body. If I change to being human, I won't be able to do that. He's got me pinned down and I have no idea what the tiger wants to do to me.
He growls, roaring at me, and I know that the sickly-sweet smell of fear is now filling the air because I am so very afraid right now.
What the hell is this beast going to do to me?
What's he going to do?
Why did I have to go on a date in the woods?
And why, oh why, is this monster coming after me?
I wiggle, trying to escape, but all that happens is I end up on my belly with him pressed hard on my back. Shit.
Shift, I silently urge my body to listen to me. My own form doesn’t seem to get the memo, but the crazy guy’s does. He shifts to his human form, but I can't see his face. I’m wiggling so hard, trying to get away. His breath is hot against the back of my neck, and I feel the pressure on my body change. He’s definitely in his human form now. I can just tell. Sure enough, he starts speaking.
"Pretty little fox, aren't you?" He says. "Change back."
Now I won't do it.
I thought, for just a moment, that changing into my human form would be an advantage, that it might trick him somehow, or throw him off his game. I could use anything at all as a way to get away, but now that he’s shifted, I know that I can’t.
If I do, he'll be able to do anything to me.
I won't shift.
I urge myself to hold it together. I have to. He doesn't have a weapon or anything on him. He has nothing. He can't force me to change back into my woman form. All he has are words. I just have to remind myself of that.
He adjusts his hold on my neck. I'm face down in the mud and I can barely breathe, and he's pushing down on me. My entire body is covered with his, but I do have one advantage now that he's shifted back.
Claws.
I have my fucking claws.
I'm nervous as hell, but I'm even more scared about what's going to happen if I don't fight. This isn't some sort of fairytale. There's no one coming for me. There will be no valiant rescue.
Nothing.
It's just me against the tiger, and I have to do whatever I can to get away from him.
As soon as he adjusts his position, even the slightest bit, I can take my shot.
“Change,” he hisses again.
I shake my head, but I don’t say anything. I couldn’t if I wanted to, but I don’t even give him the satisfaction of making noises. I just remain silent, and still, and then it happens
. He changes his position just a little, shifting his leg a little to the left, and then I go for it.
I shoot my fox leg back, claws extended, and I scratch his human leg. It's not a lot. I probably don't even break the skin, but it's enough to startle him, and the man loosens his grip on me.
I wiggle out from beneath him, and I run.
And I don't look back.
I scurry quickly, racing through the woods. I leap over fallen logs. I clear bushes and brush. He screams from somewhere behind me, and I know he's shifting. He's probably going to chase me in his tiger form and try to capture me, but I can't let him.
I can't.
I have to keep moving, no matter what happens. I have to keep going and I have to get to safety.
Claw Valley is the closest town to where we’re located right now in the woods. We're only a mile outside of town. Maybe slightly more than a mile. It’s not that far at all, and I can make it, I know, if I’m quick enough.
And so, I run until my heart feels like it's going to explode.
The tiger might be big, and it might be fast, but I know these woods like the back of my hand. I spent time here growing up, and I spend time here now, and a little fox like me knows exactly where to hide.
I'm almost to town when I realize that it's time to stop running and seek shelter. He's gaining on me, but I'm almost to the cave where I used to hide with my old high school boyfriend. It's still there, and it's small enough that a tiger won't be able to get in.
If I'm lucky.
I turn sharply when I reach the cave, only to see that the entrance is overgrown with grass, but it's fine. I’ll be fine. I push the grass and brush aside, wiggle in, and move as quickly as I can to the back of the cave.
I hear the tiger pass only seconds later, and I realize just how very close that was. Had I kept running, he would have caught me. The thought is sobering, and it also makes me feel a little bit nauseous. He almost had me. He was that close.
