Forever Fated Mates: A Shifter Romance Collection

by Meg Ripley

  “Then what do we do?” I asked.

  “Isn’t it obvious?” Cooper asked, incredulous.

  After a moment’s pause when no one spoke, he went on.

  “You have to figure out a way to work together. To stop being jealous of each other and become what River needs. And please, do it before you tear apart the whole clan. Before long, they’ll start taking sides.”

  Max furrowed his brow. “How are we supposed to do that? You know how he is.”

  “I know how you both are,” Cooper corrected. “And I don’t envy you one bit. But there’s nothing you can do. She is fated to you both, and based on what I see, you’re each fated to her, too. The sooner you accept that and try to work together, the better it will be for everyone.”

  I exchanged glares with Max. At least he wasn’t ready to relent, either. Maybe we could work out some sort of shared custody-like arrangements. River spends one week with me, one week with him, and alternate every other holiday. That could work, actually.

  “What are you thinking?” River asked. She pointed at me, narrowing her eyes. “You have that look. You have an idea.”

  I lifted a shoulder. “I do. And I think it would work.”

  “What?” she asked.

  “Work out a schedule. You spend a week with me, then a week with him, or half the week with each of us. Something like that.”

  Her eyes tightened. “Like a custody arrangement?”

  “That’s exactly what I was thinking.”

  She huffed. “I’m not a child running from parent to parent.” She got to her feet and shoved her chair away from her. “I don’t see why you can’t at least try!”

  She stormed off and let the door slam behind her.

  Cooper looked to us again. “You see what your fighting is doing? You both know her better than I do, but I understand she’s been through a lot. Her ex won’t leave her alone, and it’s causing her a lot of stress. Plus, it’s not like she asked fate to bond her with two guys after a nasty breakup like that. What River needs right now is serenity. She needs to heal emotionally and just be loved. She’s been someone’s object for long enough; she’s not going to stand for being fought over like a toy.”

  “I hear you, and I hear what she’s saying, too.” I got to my feet. “All I can say is, I wish that, if all of this is true, fate would have made you and I better friends, Max. Cooper, I’ll give her time and see if she warms to the idea of a schedule, but until then, I don’t know what to do; I’ll keep thinking. I’ll try to stay away from you, Max, and it would be good if you tried to stay away from me.”

  “Fine.” Max stood, too, and Cooper followed.

  “Not fighting is a step forward. But it’s only step one,” Cooper warned. “You’re going to have to actively cooperate with each other if you’re going to make this work. If you can’t, all three of you are going to be very miserable for a long time. You can’t fight fate.”

  He put a hand on each of our shoulders, then walked away. The door shut behind him, and I looked at Max.

  “You really don’t believe it?” Max asked.

  “I believe what I feel for her is real and that it sounds like others have had a similar experience.”

  “But the shared part?”

  “How can it be true when we hate each other so much?”

  His face turned sad and he looked away. He swallowed hard, then looked back. “For the record,” he admitted, “I’ve never hated you. I’ve just hated the way you always one-up me.”

  “Well, I don’t always. You back down too easily. That’s your only problem.”

  “Maybe,” he admitted. “I love her, though. And I know you do, too. There’s no clear winner here.”

  “But losing her is a risk; for both of us, if we don’t figure this out.”

  He nodded slowly. “I need to get out of here for a while. I’m going for a run.”

  “I’m heading out, too. I could use some air, and I want to check on River.”

  “That was part of my plan, too,” he said.

  “I assumed it was. I don’t doubt you love her,” I confirmed. “I know you do. I just worry about her because of your past.”

  “You haven’t been in any long-term relationships, either.”

  “But I don’t go through women like you do.”

  “Did,” Max clarified. “And that whole time, I was looking for my mate. She’s the one. No one else could possibly take my attention from her.”

  “I know what you mean.”

  He walked toward the door. “See ya around, I’m sure.”

  “Not for lack of trying to avoid it.”

  We walked out, shed our clothes by our separate cars, and shifted. The clan link was quiet. Kind of strange, but it was early in the day. Most of the clan was probably getting their kids ready for school and heading to work. I’d be heading into work myself in a few hours.

  Even though Max was there, too, we were silent. We both knew we needed space and time to think. So did River, but I wanted her to know we were there for her. I wasn’t sure if she knew our neck of the woods very well and worried she’d get lost. I watched the sky to see if she had shifted and flown off.

  While I ran, I let the whole conversation play back in my mind. Shared fated mates? It was a bizarre concept for sure. But hadn’t I been the one to say that many strange things happened in the world? Wasn’t that why I claimed bears had a stronger spiritual side? Because we were more prone to magic?

  There was magic happening right in front of me and I was denying it. I was going against my own beliefs. When I’d realized that, I changed my mind. I would have to trust the undeniable connection we both had to her.

  River and Cooper were right. Max and I had to find a way to come together.

  For River.

  For all of us.

  18

  River

  It felt good to stomp through the woods, trampling the forest floor without a care. I wanted to destroy something in exchange for how defeated I felt. Twigs and leaves were my only options at the moment.

  I wanted to take to the air, but I feared Levi would be in his eagle form, primed to hear my thoughts and feelings, and I didn’t want to be anywhere near him. He was the cause of all this. Maybe I could have had a normal life if it weren’t for him. But instead, I’m so screwed up that one mate isn’t enough for me. I’m so high maintenance, I need two. No one had said it, but it’s what I was thinking. Why else would I have two fated mates?

  It didn’t seem to make much of a difference. My two mates were at such odds, I didn’t think they’d ever come around. As much as I’d hated it, Carson’s idea of a shared schedule was probably our best option. Being passed back and forth like that, though? Having two households instead of one?

  My older brothers were technically only half-brothers. Throughout my entire childhood, I’d seen them leave on holidays to go see their mother. They’d spent half their time with another family, in another house. When I was little, I couldn’t understand why I hadn’t gone, too. It was hard on everyone. And now it would be hard again, splitting myself between Carson and Max. Not having just one home, just one place to be. To constantly have to acclimate to a different place, switching between two lives. It sounded incredibly disruptive and dividing. Awful, even. But I had no choice with these two. Stupid fate. Doesn’t she know they’re rivals?

  I hiked for a long time, trying to resolve all angles of the situation. Could I somehow get them to get along? Could I force them together? Could I walk away from them both, at least until they figured it out? I didn’t know which way to turn.

  I was so lost in my thoughts, I didn’t register the sound at first. But when it sunk in that I was hearing footsteps, I froze; the steps continued.

  I turned and squinted to search through the trees. In the far distance, I spotted a figure walking toward me. Levi. He was following me. He must’ve been for a long time, getting closer and closer.

  I turned and ran. I waited for several seconds b
efore daring a glance back, but when I did, I saw him speed up. I wouldn’t be able to out-run him, so I jumped into the air, shifting into my eagle form without pausing to undress, taking to flight in an instant. My shredded clothing drifted to the ground like confetti celebrating my freedom. I soared high above the trees, fast and hard, wanting a clear shot with nothing in my way.

  For several seconds, I’d convinced myself that I could fly faster than him.

  But there he was, in my mind. Come back here, River.

  I pictured a wall and focused my attention on it. It might seem silly, but the technique did work for keeping someone out. Of course, it took a lot of concentration to do that.

  I turned my head to see how close he was. Shit, he’s gaining on me. I ducked down in the trees to take cover, but when I looked back, he’d swooped down, too, dodging trees as we soared.

  I flew back up over the treetops. Leave me alone!

  I just want to talk.

  Where was the rest of our clan? How was no one else in eagle form? I’d hoped they would see us flying, know something was wrong and come to help.

  I have nothing to say to you, I told him.

  Don’t do this to us, please.

  I put the wall back up. When I looked behind me, he was closer. I thought through some evasion flight patterns I’d learned in Ranger school—well, the shifter add-on portion of Ranger school—and started into one that involved a lot of diagonals, turning sharply and flying several hundred feet. When he was behind me, I abruptly turned again.

  He was still gaining, though.

  What do you want? I finally asked.

  I want you to know we belong together.

  No, we don’t.

  I will not let anyone else have you, do you understand that? If you won’t belong to me, you’ll belong to no one.

  The fear ran like ice through my bones and feathers. He’s going to kill me, I realized. He’s serious. One thing I could say with certainty was that Levi didn’t make empty threats. When he’d threatened to slap me, he did. When he’d threatened to choke me, he did. There was nothing he’d threatened me with that he hadn’t followed through on eventually.

  I tried starting a new evasive maneuver, but couldn’t remember exactly how it went. I turned once, then again. He’s so close. I turned back and made a sharp left, then cut across again. Closer still. My moves weren’t working. I zoomed to the right, hoping to swoop around a tree and go off in another direction.

  But instead of looping around the tree, I was too flustered and missed my path, smacking headfirst into a thick Sitka spruce.

  19

  Carson

  I’d found her scent and was following it, but with no real urgency. I figured she’d taken off because she wanted to think, so I wanted to give her some space.

  Max and I still hadn’t said anything, but every so often, he’d say whether he’d found her, and when I’d picked up her scent, I’d let him know the location. Being civil, I supposed. Who knew how long it would last.

  I heard a rustle in the trees and looked up to see a glorious bald eagle soar overhead. My lungs filled with her scent and my heart leapt.

  There she is, I thought to Max.

  I see her. Beautiful when she flies.

  Beautiful when she does anything.

  He chuckled. True.

  We used her as a guide and ran toward her. She dipped down into the trees, then back up. I wasn’t sure if it was a kind of eagle signal or not. The question rested in my mind, not fully thought out, but Max sensed it anyway.

  I don’t know. Is she just…playing around?

  I don’t think so. Let’s hurry.

  We picked up speed and had caught up to each other, running side by side as she dipped down again.

  What’s going on? I thought.

  Then we both heard it: another set of wings. The sweet scent I’d been following was quickly tainted by Levi’s pungent one. He was chasing River through the canopy of the forest.

  Max and I shared an exchange of intense emotions: rage, jealousy, frustration, determination. But we both knew we had to get as close to her as possible—as fast as possible. If anyone else from our clan had shifted in, I would have alerted them and sent for backup. But I had a feeling Cooper instructed them to give us some privacy. Nice timing.

  I looked up to check her position. Being stuck on the ground when my mate was in the air was infuriating, but she was captivating when she flew. Her flying had become erratic, though, zooming back and forth, making quick darts and circling around objects. It made me nervous.

  And, worse yet, her attempts at losing Levi didn’t seem to be working.

  If we’d had gear anywhere in the vicinity, I would have had one of us shift back long enough to radio for help. We needed eagles, right away. But we had nothing. I didn’t even have a change of clothes for when I shifted back, and my vehicle was at the cabin, which was by then, quite a distance away.

  I looked up again, and as I watched, I saw her fly toward a tree and turn, as if about to circle it. But she smacked right into the tree with a soft thwack. Then she fell.

  Max!

  I’d relayed to him what I’d just witnessed as I sped up, running faster than I’d ever run in my life. Max was close and just as panicked as I was.

  Let’s split up to cover more ground, he thought.

  I’ll go right.

  We divided and disappeared from each other’s sight.

  20

  River

  The ringing was so loud in my ears, it made my whole head heavy. I blinked, but my sight was blurred. My head pounded with the worst headache I’d ever felt in my life and I couldn’t move, so I closed my eyes.

  I heard twig crack next to me. My eyes flew open and a wave of pain crashed through my head as the light hit my eyes again. I squinted, but I saw him. He was still in eagle form.

  My eyes closed, heavy with defeat.

  Aww, little River’s fast asleep now, Levi cooed. So innocent and beautiful as she dies.

  Dies? I forced my eyes open. He was close to me, too close, and he continued advancing until he stood just in front of my face. He nuzzled his head against my chest and the action sent searing pain through my ribcage.

  He raised his foot, positioning his sharp talon much too close to my face and throat.

  No, I pleaded. Please.

  21

  Max

  I thought my heart would explode from running so fast. But I couldn’t stop now. River needed me. I ran harder, sniffed harder. Have to find her.

  Anything? I asked Carson.

  No! He was freaking out, too.

  If Levi so much as looks at her wrong, I’ll tear him to fucking shreds.

  I’ll help.

  It’s the only way she’ll ever have peace, I thought.

  Agreed.

  The determination washed over me again, and then, by some glorious miracle, I briefly picked up on her scent again. I alerted Carson immediately and he bolted to my position. We ran toward her as a unit and noticed the air grow full of her; of her fear, her pain—and blood. I swallowed hard, shaking off the sinking feeling in my chest. She needs us. Now.

  I saw Levi first. River laid on the ground in front of him, broken. My heart lurched, and I almost had to stop from the sharp pain at the sight of her. Raising his talon, Levi was ready to strike.

  Go high! Carson mentally shouted as he dove low, going for Levi’s left wing. I jumped up and grabbed his right wing with my teeth, pulling him forward as I continued my momentum. We leapt over River and landed hard on the ground in a tumble.

  I got a new grip on his right wing and Carson had his left.

  Now, he thought to me.

  I pushed my paw down on Levi’s head, holding him tight to the ground. With his wing deep in my teeth, I crunched down, his hollow bones shattering in my mouth. I pulled my head away and Carson did the same.

  Levi let out a terrible screech as we pulled his wings from his body. When Levi laid still, Carson
nodded at me.

  Good work, I thought.

  You, too. Much easier with both us working together.

  Just what I was thinking. Almost too easy.

  We turned to River and the vision of her tattered body made me cry out in anguish. Carson joined me.

  I don’t think we can carry her like this, Carson said. We’ll only end up hurting her more.

  And we have no way to get anyone here to help.

  Walk out as humans?

  I don’t see any other way.

  We shifted back and each bent down to slide our hands under her. We lifted her delicate body and brought her close to our chests as we stood side by side. Her incredible lightness shocked me; she couldn’t have weighed even twenty pounds. I wished she would have shifted back. I felt like I was carrying the most precious pillow in the world, and if a strong enough breeze came, it would have knocked her from our hands.

  But together, we were able to carry her with her wings spread, which had less potential for injury. I didn’t know enough about her specific anatomy to know how bad closing her wings would be, but I knew anytime someone was injured, the goal was to move their position as little as possible.

  And we were only able to do that with both of us working together.

  Maybe we were a better team than we’d thought.

  22

  River

  I woke to the sensation of pain throbbing throughout my body. I’d slowly shifted back to my human form, but it was too much; everything went dark again.

  The next time I’d started to come around, I heard sounds. Voices. At first, I was afraid, but then I recognized they were Max and Carson’s before slipping away.