by Sophie Stern
Micah looks happy.
Satisfied.
Confused?
He pulls back and stands up.
“I’m sorry,” he runs a hand through his hair. “This shouldn’t have happened. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have let it happen.”
“No, it’s fine. I mean, I kissed you, remember?” I laugh awkwardly, trying to make light of the situation. I don’t know what’s happening, though. Everything seemed to be just fine, and now? Now it’s just…not.
“You’re beautiful, Evelyn. You’re beautiful and sweet and I would really, really love the chance to get to know you. You’re an amazing kisser. You’re adorable.”
“Let me guess,” I say, my voice strained. “You’re not looking for a relationship right now.”
“I’m sorry,” he says again. “You should get some sleep. There are snacks in the cupboards and water bottles in the mini-fridge. Bathroom is through there. I’ll come check on you in the morning to make sure you’re okay. Just…get some sleep, okay?” He jerks his head to the right, then he turns, shoving his hands in his pajama pants pockets, and walks out of the door.
And I’m left wondering what the hell just happened.
What did I do wrong?
Only this time, I know it wasn’t me. He was completely into that kiss. He was into it just as much as I was, maybe more.
No, Micah’s rejection of me isn’t about me. It’s about something else. Maybe he has a girlfriend or maybe he just needs some time. I don’t know. Instead of crying about it, though, I’m going to take his advice.
I’m going to get some fucking sleep.
Chapter 7
Micah
I start running toward the woods the second I’m out of the cabin.
My clothes shred as I shift into my bear form, unable to hold off the change even a second longer. I just hope I was out of Evelyn’s sight before I shifted because I don’t want her to see me like this. I don’t want her to see me out of control.
It’s been years since I lost control and had to shift immediately, but I know it’s normal. It’s normal. When you find your mate, when you find the person you want to spend your life with, you go crazy.
It’s normal.
I don’t know if Evelyn is my mate. I don’t know if she’ll even look twice at a big ol’ bear like me, but right now, I have to run. I have to run until I can think straight, until I can see further than the end of my nose. Right now? Right now I’m going crazy inside. My blood is boiling and my heart is pumping and all I want is to hold her.
All I want is to tell her it’s going to be okay.
So I run. I head for the mountains. I’ve got a bit of a run ahead of me, but I’ve got all night. What’s to stop me? I move swiftly for a bear. Even though I often feel bumbly or big and bulky, the truth is that I can be agile when I put my mind to it.
Tonight, I weave through trees and jump over streams and soon the air gets colder.
Soon I’m climbing.
I make my way to my favorite spot: an overlook near an empty cave. It takes me another twenty minutes, but soon I can see out over the land around me. I can see the forest. I can see the lakes. I can even see the very edge of our property.
I can see everything.
And it gives me the perfect chance to think about how I may have screwed everything up tonight. Even though it’s cold, I shift back to my human form and sit on the chilly stone. I cross my legs and lean back, looking up at the stars.
I should have kept kissing her.
I should have.
What must Evelyn be thinking? Is she worried I don’t want her? Is she worried she’s not the one for me? Is she worried I stopped things before we even had a chance at getting them started? What thoughts are running through her mind?
My own thoughts are interrupted when I hear the flapping of wings. A bird? No, these wings are much too loud for that. I look up and see the tell-tale outline of a dragon’s wings, and I smile. We don’t get too many dragons in Honeypot, Colorado.
The beast lands, then shifts.
“Hello, Colton,” I say, not moving from my spot.
“Micah, what a surprise,” he says, sitting next to me. “What brings you up here?” Colton is the resident dragon. He ranches and farms and rounds up cattle with the best of ‘em, but he’s the biggest beast of us all by far. Most people in Honeypot don’t know what kind of shifter Colton is. He keeps to himself and doesn’t make trouble.
“Just thought it was a good night for a run,” I say, lying through my teeth, but the dragon doesn’t buy it.
“It’s after three in the morning.”
“So it would seem.”
“Insomnia?”
“Something like that.”
“Does it come in the form of a redhead?”
“How the hell would you know anything about that?” I ask, and he shrugs, looking up at the sky with me. Colton isn’t likely to tell me how he knows anything about Evelyn or that she’s staying with me. Maybe Jason said something, but I doubt it. It’s more likely that Colton was roaming the night skies, enjoying a bit of peace, quiet, and freedom, and saw her at our place.
“Lovely night,” he says.
“She needs a place to stay.”
“I’m not judging you.”
“Her boyfriend beat the shit out of her because she dumped him.”
“Sounds like a real winner.”
“He’s a piece of shit. She deserves better than him, better than…”
“Better than you?”
“Yeah,” I admit. “Better than me.”
“You aren’t the badass you pretend to be, you know,” Colton says, and I bristle at the strange accusation.
“What does that mean?”
“You’ve never fit in,” he says. “I get it. I don’t fit in among my kind, either.”
“Is that why you don’t live at Dragon Isle?” There’s an island of dragons that’s famous in the shifter world. It’s exclusive. Only dragons and certain humans are allowed to live there, but they have their own little world. To me, it sounds magical. I want to visit and I’m not even sort of a dragon. Why Colton doesn’t go is beyond me.
“That’s part of the reason. I have different goals than other dragons, Micah. I have different interests. Most dragons want wealth, privacy, big houses. Most of them want to live these magical lives, but me? I just want to be one with the land.”
“How poetic,” I say drily.
“Fuck you,” Colton replies. Then I notice that he’s smoking. He’s got a fucking cigar on a mountain top.
“Where did you get that?” I ask. Once again, he shrugs. This time, he offers the cigar to me, and I accept it. It’s been a long time since I smoked, but it’s been a hell of a long day. I could use a little reprieve.
“You don’t fit in, either, Micah. I know that. I’ve known you and your brothers a long time, my friend. You’ve always been your own man. Sometimes that’s hard. Sometimes that’s the hardest thing you’ll ever do.”
“I’m no good for her,” I say. The words float out of my mouth and seem to hang around me, locking me in my own, silent prison. No good. How long have I thought that way, I wonder? How long have I felt like I was no good because I wasn’t as good as my brothers?
Maybe it’s because I’m the youngest or because my interests were just always so incredibly different that we always struggled to connect. Maybe it’s because I wasn’t as good at ranching. Maybe I didn’t try hard enough.
What I know is that I’ve often felt like a failure.
What I know is that Evelyn is the sweetest thing I’ve ever seen, the kindest girl I’ve ever met. She just seems genuine and real. I’ve never met anyone like that before. I’ve never met anyone who could just be themselves. I’ve never met anyone who was comfortable in their own skin, not like her.
“Besides,” I say, handing the cigar back. “She’s been through hell.”
“Maybe you could be good for her,” Colton says. “You won’t know
until you try.”
“What makes you think I should try?”
Colton stands, stretches, and smiles at me.
“Call it dragon’s intuition.”
Then he leaps off the side of the mountain and my breath catches. A second later, I see him rising up into the clouds: a gorgeous, giant dragon. He turns back to me, and I swear I see him wink. Then Colton disappears and I’m alone once again.
I have a choice to make: a big one.
I can be lame and weak.
I can be scared and afraid.
I can be horrified and worried.
Or I can be everything Evelyn needs me to be.
I can be brave.
I can be strong.
I can be kind.
I can be her man, if she’ll only let me.
And I know without a doubt that I want her to let me.
I shift back, slowly changing my body from its masculine one to its furry one, and I start climbing down the mountain. I need to get home to Evelyn. I need to tell her I want to give us a chance, no matter what that might mean, no matter how long that might take.
She’s been through a lot and chances are it’s going to take her a long time to get over what that prick did to her. She might never get over it. She might hurt forever, but I know that I want to be there with her if she does. I want to be there with her.
I want to be by her side.
I want Evelyn.
Chapter 8
Evelyn
I’m not sure how long I sleep for when I hear the gentle knock at my door.
Micah.
He came back.
I jump out of bed and yank my clothes back on. I had pulled them off to sleep. Honestly, I should have gotten my duffel bag out of my car, but after Micah left, I was nervous about walking out into the darkness on my own. Isn’t that silly? I have no problems running away from my abusive ex-boyfriend, but walking outside to my dark car freaks me out.
Go figure.
“Just a second,” I call out, worried he’ll think I’m still sleeping and leave. I’m not mad he ran off in a hurry earlier. I’m just confused. What the hell happened? I’m honestly just not sure. Part of me thinks that with his body and eyes, he’s probably got a girlfriend already. Maybe he even has two. I don’t know.
All I know is that I want to talk with him. Even if we have to keep things platonic, even if we have to keep things chill, I want him to know that I appreciate what he’s done for me. I appreciate him letting me stay here.
I finally manage to get all the way dressed and I head to the door. Unbolting the deadlock, I swing open the door and smile, only to immediately realize that I should have peeked through the peephole before I opened the door, and that there are worse things in life than being rejected by a man.
“What…what are you doing here?” I manage to ask. I try to close the door, but Dustin slides his foot between the door and the doorframe.
“I’m here for you, of course,” he says with a sneer.
“I left you, Dustin,” I say, growing braver by the second. “I left you, and now you need to leave this place.”
“I’m not going anywhere, Evelyn. You’re coming with me, and you’re coming now.” He pushes the door open the rest of the way and grabs me, but presses his hand over my mouth before I can scream. Fuck. I need to scream. I need to let someone know I’m not okay. I need to let Micah, or anyone, anyone who might be here, to know that I’m in danger. I’m in trouble.
Flailing around, I move my arms and legs to try to knock something down, to try to make some noise, but it’s pointless.
Dustin found me, came for me, and now he’s got me.
“I’m sorry about all this hassle,” he says, and then I notice he’s holding a syringe in his hands. Where the fuck Dustin-the-accountant got a syringe, I don’t know. Apparently there’s a lot about him I don’t know.
He sticks the needle in my arm and everything begins to get really fuzzy.
Everything starts to spin.
Then the room goes dark, and I begin to fall.
Dustin doesn’t catch me.
***
When I was a little girl, my father used to call me his princess. We used to pretend that when I grew up, I would marry a wonderful prince who would love me no matter what. For some strange reason, I never grew out of that idea that somewhere, somehow, I’d find this imaginary prince and fall madly, dashingly in love.
Then I met Dustin.
It wasn’t all bad, not at first. There were times when we had fun together. We’d go to parties or bars or restaurants and laugh and laugh, but as time went on, our dates became more reclusive. Our dates became more isolated. We became trapped with each other.
I didn’t realize Dustin was doing it on purpose. Everything shifted so slowly over the months we were together. As I stopped planning events and activities with my mom and girlfriends, I didn’t immediately realize it was because of Dustin.
Oh, maybe we were going to grab a coffee, but then I found out Dustin had planned something for us to do already.
Oh, maybe we were going to go to the movies, then I found out Dustin needed me to be home because he was expecting a phone call or a package.
Oh, maybe we were going to have dinner, but once more, I couldn’t go.
The list goes on.
Over time, I finally realized he was keeping me from my friends on purpose. He basically told me, anyway. He said they were no good for me. He said I deserved better. He picked a fight every time he found out we were hanging out together, so I stopped seeing them. It seemed easier that way. It seemed simpler.
Now, as I lie on the smelly, dusty motel comforter, I wonder what I ever saw in him. I wonder why I ever got involved with him. I wonder why I ever thought it was okay for me to fall in love with someone who was such a fucking loser.
He hasn’t noticed I’m awake yet, which is just as well. It’s better if he doesn’t notice, if I can delay the inevitable a little bit. I’m not sure how long I was passed out for, but chances are it wasn’t as long as he expected. Drugs always work really fast on me. It’s one of those medical mysteries no one really has an explanation for.
I realized right away where he’d taken me: the abandoned motel. It’s genius, really. He probably parked and dropped me off, then moved his car somewhere else to avoid attracting attention. If no one sees a car at the motel, what are the odds they’ll think to search the rooms?
Even if Micah ends up missing me, maybe he’ll think I went for a walk or something. Maybe he’ll think I went for a fucking hike and got eaten by a bear. Fuck. Just my fucking luck. As soon as I find a guy I’m compatible with, as soon as I find someone who really seems to like me, who seems to enjoy being around me, I ruin it by getting kidnapped and held captive.
Isn’t it just lovely?
Dustin’s back is to me and I take a second to look at my surroundings. I’m on the bed, which is in the center of the small room. The windows are boarded up. I can see that. The door seems to be fine, so I’m guessing he either stole the key from the office, which means he broke in, or he picked the lock.
With Dustin? It could be either one.
There’s really no telling.
My hands are bound in front of me, which is lucky for me. It means they’re easier to move, but he bound me tightly, so there’s no way the rope will be coming off.
That’s another thing: rope? Really? Who is he, a wannabe cowboy? Fucking rope? Don’t most murderers and kidnappers use zip-ties these days? I mean, if you’re going to be a sadist, at least get with the program.
I test my bonds once more, quietly, trying not to move, but it’s no use. I’m not going to slip these things off. Apparently, he’s strangely good at tying knots. Maybe he was in the scouts: I’m not sure.
My legs are tied, too, at the ankles, which is strange to me. I kind of expected him to rape me, but my clothes are still on and my ankles are roped like my wrists. I’m lying on my side, facing the front of the room, facin
g the door.
I’m not sure what’s behind me. I imagine there’s a bathroom and maybe a desk or dresser over there, but I can’t tell. Above my head is the television, which is turned off, and if I twist my head, I can see my reflection. I look scared, messed up. My eye is still swollen. I look bad. I twist back, quickly, hoping Dustin didn’t hear me move.
Judging by the sun streaming through the cracks in the plywood, I would guess it’s around dawn. I wasn’t out too long at all: maybe just a few hours. Still, it peeves me that Dustin managed to get me. It pisses me off he snagged me.
Furthermore, I’m surprised he hasn’t noticed I’m awake. Maybe he’s just that focused on whatever he’s staring at. His back is still to me and he’s facing the door. His hands are at his sides: he’s just standing there, staring.
Finally, he turns, and I close my eyes quickly before he sees they’re open. I don’t want to deal with him at all, but if I can buy myself some time by pretending to be asleep, I’ll take it. I focus on making myself look as relaxed as possible, but it’s only a matter of time. Soon I won’t be able to fake it anymore. Soon I’ll have to pee, or he’ll shake me to wake me up, and the gig will be up.
What’s going to happen to me then?
Will Dustin hurt me?
Will Micah come to save me?
Will I die a damsel or be rescued a princess?
My world could go either way, but one thing is for certain: everything changes today. Everything changes.
Chapter 9
Micah
When I arrive back at the ranch, I hurry over to Evelyn’s cabin. Alex is there, staring at the front door. Alex lives in Cabin 2, right next to me. He’s a cat, and although he’s moody as fuck, he’s a good man. He’s a good person.
“Something’s wrong,” he says without turning around.
“What do you mean?”
“Smell.”
I sniff the air and sure enough, I scent what Alex is talking about. The air is filled with the distinct scent of fear and anxiety.
