Who knew what other madness was taking over.
“Do your people know you’re missing? Will they send emissaries to negotiate for your safe return?” His brows lowered as he focused on cleaning her scrapes and asked in a more serious voice, “Or did you flee from them? Are they the ones that…did this to you?”
“I’m human, we’re just like this.”
“No one is just like that—twin legs.” He frowned. “Were you hexed?”
“Hexed?”
He nodded, expression serious, eyes searching hers before dropping to give one last swipe of the cool cloth against her torn skin.
“No. Humans are born this way. No hexes.”
He gathered up the soiled fabric and tucked it into another pocket of the pack and slid it back into the satchel.
“Te’acina, I must take you to the gathering place, or to my tribe leader, or the elder healer.”
“A’pone,” she said, putting firmness into his name. He narrowed his eyes at her and only when he arched an eyebrow in question did she continue. “My name is Veronica. Why do you keep calling me Te’acina?”
A smile peeked through and fractured his serious mask. “It is your title.” He motioned his hand upward in a flourish, presenting the tree to her. “Beloved, or chosen, of the Blessed Tree. Sometimes called the Elder Tree.”
“What does that even mean?” she asked, pinching the bridge of her nose before sneaking a look into red-brown branches. When she did, an acorn fell down and landed in her lap, as if it were a token of friendship.
A’pone glanced at the branch that had missed impaling him by millimeters and then turned back to her. “Each tree in this forest selects their own centaur. It is the decision of the tree whom they find suitable. Some still wait for their match, but few have waited as long as this one. I can see I’m overwhelming you with this information. We should go. The females at the gathering spot will be better able to explain.”
“Me?” She found her voice at last, the word coming out too loud. Probably because she wanted to scream. “Why me? I’m not Centauri.”
“The tree sees something in you?” The poor centaur looked uncomfortable, being put on the spot.
I wanted you and I claimed you as my own, the tree said in its soft tone. It is not complicated.
Veronica tapped her temples lightly. Only the fact that the new guest in her head seemed benevolent and even protective of her made this somewhat bearable. “Why couldn’t I have one of those dragonfly-dragon things to ride around on instead of an over-sized weed?”
A’pone gasped, looking deeply offended that she’d insult the tree.
The tree’s emotions were a muted amusement as it picked over the images Veronica provided of that particular movie. Having a dragon to ride really would be superior.
“What?” she asked A’pone. “Do you have a tree? Do you know what this is like?”
Pink crept into his cheeks and darkened the tips of his elegant ears. “No.” Looking sheepish, he turned his face away from her.
Only male virgins are allowed to be guardians of the grove, the tree whispered to her. Males do not seek out their tree until they have found, wooed, and claimed their life partner.
Poor A’pone.
Not just adorable but straight-up sexy as hell and still a virgin?
And way too young, she reminded herself. You dirty old woman.
The tree above her rustled and a handful of twigs rained down on her.
“A’pone, I’m sorry.” She picked a few curled bits of bark from her hair. “I can’t go with you. I need to find my daughter.”
It was the whole reason she was in this crazy place to begin with.
Still looking embarrassed, and greatly disappointed, the centaur gave a brief nod. “I will find her for you.”
“I don’t want you to do it for me. She’s my responsibility.”
“I will aid you then. We will work together to find her. You don’t know the forest or where you’re going.” He eyed her legs as if he doubted she could get very far on her own. It was true, she was hindered by her twisted ankle and the poor selection of clothing. His voice softened as he said, “Tell me of your offspring. Is she as clever and brave as you?”
A strange pang of jealousy pricked her heart. He didn’t ask about physical appearance first, which surprised her. Men usually were most interested in knowing if a woman was beautiful. Then again, A’pone didn’t seem interested in Veronica’s looks.
Her daughter was closer in age to him, though. He might find her more agreeable. “She’s smart, stubborn and determined. She’s also engaged. Urm, mated.”
A soft chuckle escaped him and he winked at her. “I will attempt to keep my hands to myself.” He extended his hand to her.
When she took it, he drew her closer with a small tug and gracefully straightened, drawing to his full height. He wrapped his arms around her, one arm sliding under her legs with a carefulness that suggested he was concerned about hurting her by supporting her legs with his forearm. When her knees bent he sucked in a breath and jerked a look at her face.
“Are you well? No pain?”
She smiled around the amusement trying to bubble up and shook her head. “It’s all right. I’m fine.” She was thankful she’d managed to keep most of the acorns in the layers of her tattered skirts. Who knew when she’d make it back to the tree.
It seemed an unbalanced symbiotic relationship so far.
His soft snort drew her attention back to him. “Nothing about this is fine,” he assured her, cradling her against his chest.
His very warm, naked and delicious smelling body.
The craving to bury her nose against him was too great. She pressed tighter, drawing in a slow, savoring breath.
She’d always loved the scent of horses. A mix of saddle soap, grain, sweet grass, leather and equine sweat. A’pone’s personal cologne was heady with that same musk but with a deeper note, and something spicy like cinnamon and vanilla tickling the back of her tongue each time she drew in a lungful of him.
When she slid her arms around his broad shoulders and nuzzled her face against his skin, his flesh shivered and he blew out an amused laugh.
“Do not tickle me, twin legs.” He wrapped her more securely, though, and murmured a pleased little sound. “I do not wish to drop your delicate self while we travel.”
Delicate.
That wasn’t an adjective ever associated with her. She was thick. Big boned. Curvy. Wide. The less charitable had simply labeled her fat. Clinically obese was a term her doctor savored. Veronica thought of herself as statuesque, her lifestyle was active and she was healthy, apple silhouette and all.
Never delicate.
But held by the giant centaur, who was built on the foundation of a massive draft stallion, she felt pretty damn small. And it was amazing.
And without question she was safe with him.
He held her as though she were a fragile, broken creature he needed to protect.
Despite his actions of less than an hour before, she trusted him. The way he treated her wounds showed his intentions were not to harm.
The tree concurred with regal silence.
“Where are we going?” she asked as he walked to the branch that had been driven into the earth.
“We are going in search of your offspring.” He plucked the small cluster of budding blossoms from the bough and tucked it behind her ear. “Tell me how you came to be here.”
She lifted a hand to touch the flower. The buds were cool under the tips of her fingers. A sweet fragrance rose from them. Cotton-candy, cherries and jasmine. “I was checking on my daughter, Tiffany, after a dinner party celebrating her wedding. Tomorrow she’s getting married, so the night before is a practice rehearsal to make sure everything runs smoothly.” Inwardly she cringed. Memories of the dinner were not pleasurable.
“I take from the way your body tightened, it did not go as planned,” he guessed.
He read so much from her. That wa
s unsettling yet pleasing.
“No. It didn’t. Unfortunately I overhead my daughter talking with one of her friends that she was calling the wedding off. I came across her fiancé, who was in quite an emotional state and told him that I would try to make my daughter see reason. They’ve been engaged for such a long time, you see. My daughter got distracted by a new, handsome face is all. She can be strong willed.”
A’pone uttered a soft sound of displeasure. “A bond should not be forced if it isn’t right.”
“Yes well, a shame you weren’t there at the party to call me off my scheme,” she said, unable to keep the edge out of her tone.
He didn’t respond, just stroked his big hand between her shoulder blades in a soothing manner. It should have pissed her off but instead the action was unexpectedly comforting.
Nick’s just your type, mother. Why don’t you face facts and admit that you want yourself a rich little boy-toy. Why do you keep deluding yourself? Stop trying to live life through me. I do not love Nick. The memory of Tiffany’s angry words bit into her.
It wasn’t like that.
She didn’t have a type.
Her attraction to A’pone screamed to the contrary, underscored by the wordless chuckle from the fucking tree, but she was happy to continue her denial.
“Anyway, my talk with her went about as you suspect,” she said, glossing over the details. “She left the party so I went to her house to try to fix things between us.” She didn’t say that she’d also intended to try to do more convincing to get her daughter not to give up on Nick.
Nodding, A’pone listened, his fingers stroking through her hair, curling a lock around them.
“She wasn’t home. Instead I found this stupid note. No, I didn’t bring it.” Or anything else. God, she should have. Sensible shoes to start with. “The letter said exactly what we’d had the fight about. Tiffany said she was canceling her wedding and leaving. Off somewhere better, she said.” Veronica pitched her voice in the way Tiffany sometimes did when she was being dramatic. Come to think of it, her daughter rarely used that voice. “It was unlike her to be quite that impetuous. She’s usually so planned and thoughtful. The note ended with a request that no one come looking for her.”
A’pone’s eyebrows lifted up and he drew his head back to regard her. “And you went against her wishes?”
“She’s my youngest daughter,” Veronica protested, voice rising.
“But she is not a child, is she? Your tribe does not allow child brides, do they?” He sounded a touch horrified by the idea. “It is rumored that some of the Jahtauri do.”
Heat burning her face and neck and volume still peaked, Veronica answered, “Of course she’s not a child. But she’s not acting like herself.”
“You said she was head strong.”
“Not like this. You don’t have children. How could you possibly understand?”
This phrase always silenced the unwanted advice of childless people.
He narrowed his eyes as though trying to focus on some new facet she’d revealed to him. “I tend to many of the youngsters of the tribe. I have sisters. My experience is different, but it is not without knowledge. A maiden on her search for a mate does not need her elders hindering her, or attempting to manipulate a bond. The life bond cannot be stopped if it is real. This future mate you see for your offspring doesn’t agree with her. Why does that fact upset you?”
Elders.
Ouch.
She’d tuned out everything else he said after that horrible word.
“Oh, right, so you’re an expert are you? No, you’re not. You’re practically a child yourself.”
She used the words as a weapon to silence him. If he was going to use her age against her, she could play that game, too. His advice pulled at her insecurities and fears. Maybe she didn’t know what was best for her daughter. Maybe she was trying to force Tiffany and Nick together because she did want to live vicariously through her daughter.
And her poor handling of the whole situation had driven the young woman away from her. The same way she wanted to drive A’pone’s insightful kindness away from her.
Instead of escalating into an argument, or dissolving into petulant silence, A’pone didn’t seem to notice her tone or the anger behind it. “I am still young, but I am guardian and I have seen battle. My choices keep my tribe safe, and I give my advice from my own experiences and with all the candor and honesty I’m able. I understand that your tribe does not respect the life partnership bonds, so I will try to take that into account.”
If anything, the disappointment under the quiet words cut deeper than if he had snarled back at her with equal volume.
She was the one who lapsed into silence then.
“I will help you find your daughter. I do not agree with your desire to bring her back to this mate she doesn’t approve of, but I can see you are worried for her wellbeing.”
“I’m not going to force her to do anything,” Veronica answered. The words were difficult to get out; she hated admitting how wrong she’d been. “I realized my mistake after that stupid device pulled me here. By then it was too late.”
“Device?” A’pone asked.
“I thought it was just one of Veronica’s new projects. She’s an engineer. Urm, she creates and improves equipment. Anyway, she usually has prototypes of all sorts in her house. This one happened to be in her living room. It looked like some super sized, next generation 3D printer.” Realizing he wouldn’t know what that was, she laughed humorlessly. It drove home the fact that they were from totally different worlds. Hers was full of technology, machinery and comforts. His was wild, dirty and primitive. He might physically appear to be exactly what she desired, but reality was that she already missed her cell phone, computer and the luxury that came with modern society. Like room service.
He regarded her in silence, waiting for her to clarify. “Just imagine a huge metal crate with various handles and knobs within. I was just reaching for a note attached to one of the switches and the world kind of swirled around me. Like going down a spinning vortex. Then I found myself here in your forest”
She wasn’t able to read the diagram on the note. It probably translated to, ‘Do not touch,’ in some quirky geek code, or techno babble that Tiffany enjoyed so much.
“I could feel the heat coming off the thing. I assume that means she got transported here, too, just before me except that she didn’t exactly leave a trail of breadcrumbs. That’s a plot device from a child’s story,” she added when he offered her a puzzled look.
“Strange…but we’ve already agreed that our tribes are quite different. I will track your steps back into the forest and find where you came in. Then I will look for her trail. Goddess willing, it will take you to her.” He spoke without emotion.
Veronica didn’t like the wall that had formed between them, but she needed to be there. She couldn’t let her attraction blind her to reality. She needed to return home, with or without her daughter. There was no space for a centaur in her life.
He picked up Veronica’s trail easily, pointing out where she’d blundered through the forest, bending fern fronds, disturbing underbrush and kicking up the otherwise fairly uniform forest floor. A’pone carried her easily, traveling at a jog. It was the sort of jaunty trot that should have jostled her.
It would have been a bouncy ride if she’d been astride him. The images of her straddling him were not with her perched on his back, but with thighs around him, grinding herself lewdly into his belly while his huge horse-cock nuzzled her backside.
Thanks, Tree.
Tree hummed happily.
The carnal fantasy was not only hot, it was downright debauched. She doubted it was physically possible. And why the fuck was she seriously contemplating the physics?
She closed her eyes and settled deeper into his strong arms. His strides were a jaunty, pleasant cadence and she focused on that instead of plotting sex with the centaur.
Except the feel of him was lik
e a drug.
She’d forgotten how great it felt to be held.
Fully embraced.
As though she were important.
Veronica’d had more than her share of lovers since the divorce. She’d fully celebrated the renewal of her sex life after almost fifteen years of forced celibacy. For the first couple years of her single life she’d gone a little wild. Those encounters were superficial by design. No one had ever spent the night in her bed and none included breakfast.
She couldn’t remember the last time she’d enjoyed pressing against a half-naked male. A lifetime it seemed.
Her former husband had only held her like that when they’d been dating, before she got pregnant. Her lovers touched her body, but never anything deeper.
A’pone offered her a comfort she didn’t know her spirit was starving for. A stranger. A half-man. A monster. A being that was more human than so many people she knew back home despite being half beast.
Her eyes stung with tears as her emotions tangled up in her throat.
“Oh, no. Twin legs, I have hurt you?” he whispered into her hair, pressing his cheek against the crown of her head. His pace slowed to a walk and he adjusted her. “Our healers must be able to do something. Do not cry, sweet little cheroush.”
His steps were slow and languid now, rocking her with each heavy hoof fall. And it soothed the torrent of emotions bursting the wall she didn’t even know she’d built around herself. When he began to hum a soft song low in his throat, she found herself resting her cheek against his massive chest. When she did so, his hand patted her hip in encouragement and the song deepened.
Closing her eyes, she drew in long breaths of the scent of him and let herself fully relax into him. The events of the day and the emotional outpouring had sapped the energy out of her and before she knew it, she was asleep in the powerful arms of her centaur rescuer.
3
Young Moon
It was night when Veronica woke. The darkness was unlike anything she could remember. No street lights, cars, stars or moon to illuminate the world around her. She sucked in a panicked breath as the events of the previous day flooded through her.
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