“My nakedness unsettles you,” she said without turning to them.
“Er.” Aaron coughed, glancing to Valen for help.
Valen mouthed, “Tell the truth.”
Aaron didn’t have a better plan. “It’s not just you. We— The people I come from, we keep covered unless we’re bathing or…or with someone for…for sex.” Gods, there went his entire face, burning hot with a blush. “I’m not used to it.”
“You think it’s wrong?” she asked him. Then she pivoted around and he made sure to lock his gaze on her face.
“No, it’s different from what I’m used to, is all, which doesn’t mean it’s wrong.” That sounded okay and inoffensive.
Lanaka laughed, and he felt like she was laughing at him, not with him. “Your mate is very innocent, isn’t he, Valen?”
Valen’s cheeks turned ruddy, something Aaron had never seen before. “Not so innocent, Lanaka.”
“We’ve had sex,” Aaron blurted out, much to his mortification. He slapped his hands over his mouth.
Lanaka laughed harder. She laughed until she had to wipe at her eyes and she was gasping.
Aaron was sort of offended.
Valen appeared to be amused.
“Come inside, and don’t pout, Aaron Olsen. I find you very charming and quite perfect for Valen. He’s lucky to have found you.” Lanaka led the way into her cave.
Mollified by Lanaka’s praise, Aaron entered her dwelling. He was surprised to see that she had colorful blankets and rugs on the walls and floors, as well as many pictures, painted and sketched, all over. The surfaces of her furniture—the tables and shelves—were covered in books and knick-knacks, some that were nothing more than rocks, but very beautiful ones.
“You expected a dull ol’ cave?” Lanaka tittered. “I’ve had years and years to collect my treasures. When I die, the next shaman can do what she wants with them.”
“She?” Valen asked.
Lanaka picked up a smooth-looking pink thing. “She. Don’t tell anyone I let that slip. She’ll find her way here.” She held the item out to Aaron. “It’s a shell, from the seashore. Would you like to hold it?”
Aaron almost couldn’t breathe, he was so excited. “The seashore? Which one? How old is it? Did you go yourself? Are you sure that’s what it is?” He had to bite his tongue to shut himself up.
Lanaka placed the shell in his hands. “Yes, I walked along the shore every day when I was a child. I collected shells. This was my favorite. It will be yours when I die.”
Aaron stared at her. “Oh, I couldn’t. It’s… It’s too much.” The shell wasn’t just pink—it had lighter and darker complementary shades to it, ranging from mauve to white. There was even a hint of orange on its spiky tips.
“I came from a very small pack that lived to the northeast of here. The winters were very cold. I loved the snow. Now I prefer heat to cold. And you will keep the gift I have given you, along with the book I have on shells. Its pages have been treated and sealed to prevent it from aging and falling apart. Good thing, too, or I’d never have gotten it. It’s quite old.” She winked at him. “Older than me, with fewer wrinkles.” Lanaka wiggled her arm, which made lots of her parts jiggle.
Aaron moved his attention back to the shell.
“Now let me see why you’re limping. That’s why you’ve brought him to me.”
Valen took Aaron’s cane. He’d dropped it when he’d reached for the shell. “That, yes, and some lubrication.”
Aaron squeaked in shock. He closed his hands around the shell. “You asked her for—” He was going to die, that was all there was to it. He remembered the conversation with Valen about why lubrication was needed. Valen wanted to fuck him. In my bottom!
“Calm down, Aaron Olsen. You aren’t the first man or woman to engage in such sexual acts.” Lanaka pointed to a chair. “Sit.”
“Women do it too?” Aaron asked, trying to make sense of that. Women had somewhere else for a penis to go. Besides their mouth. Aaron could suck Valen’s cock, but he didn’t have a vagina to take it into.
“So innocent,” Lanaka muttered. “Yes, they do, because it feels good for them. Maybe not exactly like it does for a man—I couldn’t say, not being a male—but anal sex is quite enjoyable when done right. That I can assure you.”
Aaron didn’t mean to squawk. It just slipped out because he couldn’t quite get his lungs to work right.
“Put his head down between his knees,” Lanaka advised Valen.
Then Valen was pushing on Aaron’s nape. “Deep breaths,” Valen ordered. His rich, warm voice calmed Aaron more than taking in air did.
“I think, if we will be interacting with humans, we might have to consider wearing a minimal amount of clothing,” said Lanaka, chuckling afterwards.
“Huh?” Valen stopped trying to soothe Aaron in order to respond to Lanaka’s proclamation. “Clothes?”
Lanaka gestured at Aaron. “Take his pants off, and yes, clothes. I am assuming Aaron Olsen will be living here. He has family. They will not want to simply let this fine man go.”
“It’s just Aaron,” Aaron said as Valen began to once again unfasten his pants. “Olsen is my last name.”
“Last name?” Lanaka gave him an arch look. “Is this your last life? I don’t foresee that as being a truth.”
Aaron shook his head then raised his butt up so Valen could pull his clothing down. Valen also removed Aaron’s foot coverings. “No, I mean… We have at least two names, sometimes three. The first name is what everyone calls us by if they’re our friends and family. The last name is what people who aren’t familiar to us are told to use. Middle names…” He frowned. “Well, those are only used by our parents when we get in trouble. Like, Aaron Eddings Olsen, make up your bed right now! If my parents ever used Eddings, I know I’m in for it.”
Lanaka scowled. “That seems complicated. I like Aaron Olsen.”
“Call me whatever you like, just maybe leave out the Eddings,” he requested.
“Eddings doesn’t fit.” Lanaka flapped her hands at Valen. “Scoot. Go sit on the stone bench outside while I examine your mate.”
“I thought we had to have a ceremony to be mates.” Kind of like a marriage ceremony, he supposed.
“There will be a ceremony,” Valen rumbled. “But you’re already mine, just as I’m yours.”
“It’s what’s in the heart that matters,” Lanaka added. “Now shoo, Valen. Don’t forget there will be a ceremony for you as our alpha. We can combine the two, if you’d like.”
Valen stood. “If Aaron would like that. I think it would also make a firm statement that he is not to be harassed.”
“It would. What do you think?” Lanaka raised her eyebrows at him.
Aaron wanted whatever would be best for everyone and said so. “It’s what works for you both. I’m happy to do that.”
Valen bent and took a quick kiss. “Don’t forget the lubricant, Lanaka.”
“As if I’d forget your precious lube,” she called to him as he left the cave. “The pink on your cheeks gives you a healthy glow, Aaron Olsen. No wonder Valen likes to bring the color up on you.”
She cupped the back of his knee. “This should have been stitched.”
“Our doctor is dangerous to our health,” Aaron told her. “At least I think he is.”
“Well, it’s too late to stitch it now. How did you do this?” She stood and gathered some items from a nearby cabinet.
Aaron explained what he’d done while she got her things together. “I can be clumsy when I’m distracted or tired.”
“Were you pining for Valen?”
“Maybe.” Aaron twined his fingers together. “Okay, yes, and I was worried because I… I had thoughts about dying.”
“Those kind of thoughts can drive a person into death’s arms, I know,” Lanaka said. “The mind is a complicated thing, too intricate for me to ever understand. Still, I’ve seen people who get locked into this dark place in their head. It doesn’t mean th
ey are bad people, or weak. It is a part of their life, for whatever reason, and they must deal with it how they can.”
“Yes, well, I thought of drowning myself because it seemed an easy way out,” Aaron confessed. “My people aren’t— I didn’t think I could be like them.”
Lanaka looked up at him, her eyes sharp and knowing. “Humans are still prudes about sex, are they?”
Aaron could happily dispel that myth. A little. “As it turns out, not so much as I believed they were. Things will hopefully be all right with them now. My father said he will be implementing changes, that he’d gone along with the rules for too long because it was easier.”
“Your father sounds like a smart man.” Lanaka knelt again. “I am going to clean this off, then bandage it. I’ll put this mix on it, and I want you to drink some herbs I have to prevent infection.”
Aaron had to ask the question burning in his mind. “Will it work on me? I’m not a shifter.”
“It’ll work just fine. You’re a person, and while we may call you a Human, in all reality, when we are in this form, we are basically all the same. Our shifter nature provides us with immunity to diseases we wouldn’t have otherwise,” she said. “Which is why we weren’t affected by the plagues and illnesses that caused so much destruction around the world. This will help you, in other words.”
“Thank you.” Aaron liked the way the mixture she rubbed over his cut cooled the whole area. “That’s nice.”
“Think I’ll give you a small bottle of something extra since you like that cooling sensation.” She said it in a teasing way that had Aaron puzzled.
“For my knee?” he finally had to ask when she didn’t offer further explanation.
Lanaka cackled and stood up, having wrapped his knee in cloth. “Oh no, Aaron Olsen. This is for…other parts.”
His dick twitched at the thought of some of that cooling mix on it. It’d be cold and hot at the same time.
“Yes, I see that you like the idea.”
Aaron put his hands over his rising shaft. “I’m so sorry!”
“Don’t be. Shifters often mate around others. Not the pups and kids, of course. We aren’t that animalistic. But when the young ones are kept in and the rest of us can play. It’s a very sensual thing, to watch those around you fucking and sucking and so on. You’ll enjoy it,” she informed him. “Now, let me get you the herbal tea. Valen, come in.”
“You just sent me out so you could talk dirty to Aaron, didn’t you?” Valen joked.
Lanaka sent him a silly grin. “Of course. I’m going to get you and him some special lube, too.”
“Oh, great.” Valen rubbed his hands together. “Also, he wants to go with us to hunt down the people responsible for the attack.”
“Then take him. He’s your mate, ceremony or not, didn’t we cover that already? You will treat him as an equal.” Lanaka walked to her cabinet again.
Aaron stuck his tongue out at Valen, but ruined his attempt at brattiness by laughing.
And Valen ruined it by kissing him and sucking Aaron’s tongue into his mouth.
Aaron’s cock was hard in seconds.
“If I had the time, I’d lay you out and make love to you for hours,” Valen said in a low, heated voice. “When we return…”
“Life is unpredictable,” Lanaka said, apparently unconcerned about the rudeness of eavesdropping. “I wouldn’t pass on today what you might not be able to do tomorrow.”
Valen began pulling Aaron’s pants up. “That’s…depressing.”
“She’s right. We don’t know what will happen from one minute to the next.” Aaron would say no more on the subject. Valen did have responsibilities.
“We’ll make it through this.” Valen fastened Aaron’s pants. He kissed Aaron then sucked on the spot just below his left ear. “And I’ll make you feel so, so good, honey.”
Aaron wanted to lie down on the cave floor, on one of the colorful rugs, and beg Valen to follow through with his promise. Instead, he took the tea Lanaka handed him once Valen stopped making Aaron crazy with lust.
“Drink it quickly,” Lanaka advised. “It will help with mobility and pain as well as fight infection.”
“Thank you.” The liquid was hot but not unbearably so. It tasted sweet with a tart aftertaste once Aaron had gulped it down. He handed the cup back to Lanaka. “I appreciate you accepting me and treating my injury.”
“You’re a good man, Aaron Olsen.” She touched him right between the eyes again. “With an old soul. I think we’ve met before, long ago. Go now, and— Wait. Here.” She went to a different cabinet and began chanting as she moved around.
Minutes later, she put a leather necklace around his neck. It had a pouch on it, much like Valen’s did. “As does Valen’s, this contains a blessed talisman to help keep you safe. Do not remove it.”
“I won’t,” Aaron vowed, clutching the pouch in his right hand. Then he gave in to the impulse that sprung up in him, and hugged Lanaka. “Thank you.” Maybe it wouldn’t be as hard to belong here as he’d feared it would.
Chapter Twelve
“Look! I think she likes me!” Rivvie exclaimed as he led Tentin over to them. “I slept by her all night. Well, not right by her, but close enough that she and I are now best friends forever.” He stroked her mane. “Do you think I could ever ride her?” he asked wistfully.
Valen liked seeing Rivvie so happy. It didn’t erase the pain of loss that would always be with Valen. His father, some of the friends he’d grown up with, they would be missed. There would be more than one period of grief for them. Even now, Valen could look at Rivvie and see their father in his build, the same shining eyes.
“I think she would.” Aaron held out his hand for the reins. “We can give it a try when we come back.”
Rivvie wove his fingers together and bent over. “Need a leg up?”
Aaron accepted the offer. “Thank you.” He was mounted easily then.
“You’re welcome.” Rivvie dusted off his hands. “You know what I realized this morning?”
“What?” Valen tapped one foot, though he really didn’t mind Rivvie asking a question. Beal was gathering and organizing the hunting party, and there were a few minutes to spare for Rivvie.
Rivvie’s smile dimmed, and grief shone his eyes. “I realized I’m your beta. This just isn’t how I imagined it happening.”
Valen gave him a slow nod. “Yes, you are my beta. You always were going to be from the minute you joined me, Rivvie. I wouldn’t want anyone else at my side. This isn’t how or what either of us expected. We are still going to do our best in the situation.”
Rivvie’s expression flittered between sorrow confusion and hope. Finally, he asked, “Do you mean I’m your only beta? Because you said you didn’t want anyone else to have your back, and that kind of implies I’d be the only one then.”
Which was a huge honor. If an alpha only had one beta, it was a sign of his trust in that beta’s ability to do all the tasks two or more usually handled. Granted, some alphas had numerous betas because it provided safety in numbers. Valen didn’t feel the need for such a grandiose following. “Yeah, just you.”
Rivvie tackled him, hugging Valen so tightly he could hardly breathe. “Leggo,” he rasped.
“Oh! Sorry, sorry.” Rivvie released him then grabbed his cheeks and gave him a sloppy, brotherly kiss. “You are the best.”
“I try.” Valen wiped off his cheek. “What’d you do, lick your lips first?”
“Slobber kiss,” Rivvie said proudly. “Now I have to be serious, and convince everyone else in the pack that I am the best beta for you. Most of them were there when Father said I was—” He darted a glance at Aaron, who was pretending not to listen. “Vapid,” Rivvie whispered. “I’ll make them see that I’m not. No more slobber kisses or pranks for me.”
Valen sighed internally. “Rivvie, be yourself. That’s what makes you the best shifter to have at my side as a beta. Anyone who thinks you aren’t up to the task can have their
ass kicked by you in a challenge.”
A howl rent the air.
Valen caressed Aaron’s calf. “Be careful. I think a pack of wolves will be too much for Tentin’s nerves, so if she is too stressed, pull back and wait for us. You can give one of those shrill whistles if there’s any problem, or you see something we should be aware of. Do you have your slingshot?”
“For all the good it will do me, yes, and a bag of rocks. I’d probably do better to just throw them at anyone threatening me,” Aaron said. “It was nice of Father to pack them in my bag, though.”
“It was.” Valen had other words that were on the tip of his tongue to say. Another howl cut them short. “Remember, whistle.”
“I will,” Aaron promised.
Valen and Rivvie waited until they were a dozen yards from Tentin, then they shifted and ran for the rest of the hunting party.
Normally, when they gathered as they were doing, it was to bring back food for the pack. Sometimes they had plenty, and stored it for later. Lanaka had some excellent recipes for dried meat. Other times, they caught just what they needed.
Today, they would take care of avenging their pack. It wasn’t about food, providing for one another. It was about ensuring that the humans who’d attacked them would never hurt anyone else again.
“I found their scents all over,” Beal said, “and I found where they ran like cowards once we were awake and out of our shocked states. They entered the stream.” She shifted, and looked to Valen for guidance. Beal may not have accepted Aaron yet, but she was honoring her new alpha.
Valen led the way with Rivvie beside him. He found the end of their scents—many of them familiar—at the stream, and knew where they’d likely come out of the water at.
By Aaron’s village.
Valen saw Lanaka drop back and knew she was keeping close to Aaron. Tentin had required rests on the trip over yesterday, and today she would likely be tired.
He should have demanded that Aaron stay with the pack. Then again, what safety did that guarantee?
Rivvie whined at him and Valen barked an order. No words, but enough feeling that his point was made. Rivvie turned back, yipping out directions. When he rejoined Valen, five of the shifters Valen deemed trustworthy had been sent back to guard Lanaka and Aaron. Since Valen had warned everyone against harming Aaron, and threatened them should they hurt Tentin, he knew they’d be careful.
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