by Viola Grace
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Epilogue
Author’s Note
About the Author
Will a long-time attraction amount to more than a swan and elf passing in the night?
Ida has had her eye on Dromer for years, but the restrictions against shifters and elves having relationships have kept them on a business level. If she can’t have him, she didn’t want anyone.
When she returns home one day to find that her parents have arranged her mating with a swan shifter she doesn’t know, she does the only thing she can. She runs.
Dromer used to take solace in the weekly appearance of Ida in his diner as a client. In between his other customers, they would exchange pleasantries and crack jokes. It was a harmless flirtation that managed to wedge itself into his psyche.
When her family told her it was inappropriate, it left a gap in both their lives that closed with a wave of hope the day she ran and ended up in the Crossroads.
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Pathway to Love
Copyright © 2016 Zenina Masters
ISBN: 978-1-4874-0637-0
Cover art by Carmen Waters
All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher.
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Pathway to Love
Shifting Crossroads Book 34
By
Zenina Masters
Chapter One
Ida finished her deliveries and drove her truck home. The sun was heralding a bright day, and it was time for her to get back to the dairy.
She hauled the extras out and stowed them in the refrigerator. Two of the shops didn’t have anyone answering the door, so she had skipped them. If they needed a delivery, they would call the dairy again.
Ida hung the clipboard up on the peg and moved out of the concrete and stainless steel structure that they did their work in. Her family was busy processing the morning collection and separating it into cream while others were working on cheese in the curd room.
Ida’s work as delivery woman got her away for a few hours every day, delivering local dairy to the businesses, houses and markets. Now that she was back, she had to find the head of her clan and answer the summons.
Her parents had been getting restless of late, and since Ida was the last of their children without a match, she was now a target. She had never considered matchmaking a deadly pursuit, but when her parents stared at her and started making notes, she had the sensation that they were measuring her for a wedding dress or possibly a coffin.
At this point, her parents were tired of her constant excuses not to pick a mate. She couldn’t tell them that she already had, but he wasn’t a swan and not even a shifter. The elf who ran the Night Star Diner was the only one that her heart beat faster for.
Dromer had been part of her life before she became the delivery woman for Black Swan Dairy. Now that she saw him on a daily basis, delivering fresh milk and cream to his diner, her initial fascination and affection had taken on a deeper tone. There was simply nothing to be done about the feelings. Shifters and elves didn’t mix... ever.
Ida entered the house, put on her indoor shoes and walked into the dining room where her parents were waiting.
Eva and Gavin Shwartz smiled and waved for her to sit down. The stranger gave off waves of human magic, and Ida suspected that this was not going to be a normal conversation.
“Hello, Mum, Dad, stranger.”
Her mother blinked and blushed. “Ida, this is Danielle Velling. She is a transporter.”
“Well, that is nice. What is she transporting?” Ida was getting a bad feeling as she took her seat at the table.
Eva leaned forward. “We have found you a husband. He will take you based on your photos and family history.”
Ida froze. “What?”
Gavin reached out to pat her hand. “We want you settled, Ida. That means family. You have been alone too long, and it has taken all of our efforts to find Steven for you.”
Her heart thudded in her chest. All she could hear was her own heartbeat.
She saw the transporter speaking, saw her parents answering, but all she could hear was the roar of her heart.
A soft whisper came from her lips. “When?”
The transporter smiled. “I can send you off within the hour. Your parents have already packed for you, and your groom is waiting.”
Ida got to her feet. “I need to change clothes. I will be right back.”
Her mind whirled, but she came to a conclusion as she headed upstairs. Going through the transport wasn’t in the cards. She was leaving, and there was nothing her parents could say about it. She wasn’t going to tell them.
She headed into her room, closed the door and quickly stripped off her clothing. The Juliet balcony beckoned, and she opened the doors, backed up and launched herself out the opening in her black-swan form. Heavy wingbeats carried her up into the sky.
There was no one below to call a greeting; everyone was inside and at work.
She flew as hard as she could, her mind screaming for whatever spirits watched over her kind to help her and keep her from making a huge mistake. Swans mated for life, and this was not a lifetime she could look forward to.
* * * *
Teal lowered her arms as the transport of the happy couple back to the human world was completed.
She looked at her mate. “Did you hear that?”
“What?”
“Someone is calling me.”
Teal tilted her head, closed her eyes and listened. The soul calling her was panicked and in pain. Fear was ruling them.
Without saying anything to Tony, Teal raised her arms and opened a portal in front of her at a forty-five-degree angle to the call she was hearing.
She felt the panic as the portal opened in front of her relative, and when the black swan shot up and out of the portal, it kept going straight into the sky of the Crossroads.
“Tony, get a dress. We have an emergency.”
Teal shifted and took off, flying through the open roof to get her kinswoman and guide her to safety. It was amazing. Over a decade without a call, and now, she was chasing a freaked-out, young woman through the bright blue sky of the Crossroads.
Days like today made her post as guardian of the Crossroads and embodiment of the spirit of the black swans worthwhile.
* * * *
Gavin looked at the heap of fabric on Ida’s floor. He stalked back to the dining room. “She’s gone.”
His wife looked at him in s
hock. “What?”
“She flew out the window. I am going out to look for her.”
The transporter frowned. “She took off in broad daylight?”
Gavin felt like smiling when his wife said, “We aren’t movie werewolves. We can shift whenever we like.”
Danielle blushed, and she started stammering.
Gavin grabbed the car keys and stalked for the door.
Eva called out, “Where are you going?”
“I am starting with the diner. That elf might know what is going on.”
He headed out to his truck and started it up. Damn. He thought that her obsession with the elf was a passing fancy. If he caught her hiding in the diner, he didn’t know what he was going to do.
* * * *
Dromer was serving pie to two customers when the Black Swan Dairy truck pulled up.
He headed toward the door as Ida’s father stalked toward him.
“Elf, do you know where she is?”
“Has something happened?” Worry flared in Dromer.
“She is gone. That is what happened. Flew off half an hour ago.”
Dromer shook his head slowly. “I haven’t seen her since the delivery this morning. Why would she run off?”
“None of your business.” Ida’s father glared at him and looked past him into the diner. “Are you sure she isn’t in there?”
Dromer shook his head again. “No. Just Charlene on the grill and Tomas washing dishes. You are welcome to look.”
Gavin Shwartz shook his head, and his black hair slowly lay flat against his skull after a moment. One of the telltale signs of a shifter was hair that acted on its own.
“No, it is fine. I just hope that no one has been poaching over the woods. Any drunk idiot could shoot her out of the sky.”
“I won’t ask you to tell me if you find her, but if you could ask her to call in the next time she is in town, I would appreciate it.”
“She is moving. We have found her a mate, and she is leaving here as soon as we find her.” Gavin turned and stalked away.
Dromer stood there for a moment before he turned and nearly sprinted back to his office.
“Tomas, you are taking care of the front of the diner.”
Tomas nodded, put on a clean apron and headed out with a smile. It was his first year out of the elven courts, and he was enjoying his human exposure.
Dromer picked up the phone and called Metzker. His questions were short and to the point. Was there a black swan who just entered the Crossroads, and if the answer was yes, how fast could Metzker arrange a reservation at the Open Heart?
While he waited for the call back, he made the arrangements for staff to cover all the shifts he normally took on, and he had his household ghost pack his bags.
The whisper of magic that he had felt in the air had not been human or fey. It had been something else, and the only circumstances that made sense was if Ida had been taken to the Crossroads.
If she was there, they finally had a chance to do something about the attraction that had been pulling at them.
Dromer wasn’t going to miss the chance.
Chapter Two
Ida followed the other black swan, and they returned to the building she had shot out of. It had been odd to go from horizontal to vertical flight in a burst of light.
When they landed near a Zen-style garden, the other swan transformed into an elegant woman with long white hair. Surprisingly, she was wearing a black outfit that shifted with her.
A man was nearby, smiling with all of his features, the dancing expression in his eyes was welcoming.
Ida shifted into her human form, and he handed her a dress in a soft grey. It was an easy Grecian style, and she managed to wrestle it into even lines in under a minute.
The white-haired woman smiled. “Welcome to the Crossroads. I am Teal; this is my mate, Tony.”
“I am Ida Shwartz. Um, I am guessing that my arrival was unexpected.”
Teal came forward and put her arm around Ida’s shoulders. “But very welcome. Are you looking for a mate of your own choosing?”
“I am, but I can’t have the man I want, so I would like to have the man I choose.”
“Well, come with me, and we will get things sorted out. I am making Tony do the paperwork.” Teal winked at her mate, and Tony took the hint. He walked over to a desk and started filling documents out.
He raised his head. “Can you name your parents?”
“Sure. Eva and Gavin Shwartz. Black swans of the avian guild.”
“Excellent. I will put you down for the Open Heart. The other B and B’s are all full. Busy week.”
That made Ida nervous, but she let Teal lead her out into the street, and her bare feet registered the crushed gravel on her soles.
The scents ranged from blooming flowers, a hint of seaside and fresh bread.
“How did I end up here?”
“You called for help, so here you are. I must say. No one has thought to call for me in a decade. It was fun to catch you.” Teal grinned.
“I called?” She remembered a dozen thoughts of panic, but a direct call wasn’t one of them.
“Sort of. I am the black swan prime. A link to the ancient powers. You were in desperate need, so I came to find you.”
Desperate described her, so Ida continued to patter along at Teal’s side.
“As you are here as my guest, you are welcome to whatever you like. You can stay until you find a mate.”
“Do I have to?”
Teal paused and turned with a smile. “Have to find a mate? Yes. Based on your thoughts when you summoned me, you are fleeing an arranged mating. The only way to get out of that is to find one before you return home.”
Ida felt her shoulders slump. “Right. Of course.”
She walked with Teal until they reached a charming Victorian building with a blue woman standing on the porch to greet them.
“Ida, this is Teebie. Teebie, Ida is here as my guest. I will get her some clothes and shoes. Can you show her to a room?”
The woman grinned. “Please, come inside. I am sure we can find you something to wear until Teal raids the General Store.”
Ida fought the urge to stare, and Teebie caught on.
“You haven’t met a djinn before?”
“Um, no. I thought you were just something out of fairy tales.”
“But you know of elves.”
“Of course. There are some that live locally.” She smiled slightly. “One even runs the local diner.”
Teebie widened her eyes. “Does he?”
Ida blushed. “How did you know it was a he?”
“I see a lot of women in love around here. Your face gave you away.”
Ida backpedalled. “I don’t think it is love. We get along. That’s all. He is always charming and cheerful when I make my deliveries, and that is rare at that time in the morning.”
Teebie nodded. “Of course. Well, come this way. I will have to key the door to you until Teal brings you the charm that you will be able to use around the Crossroads.”
“What is it for?”
“To pay for your purchases and meals. Only those who work here get stuff comped.”
Ida was worried. “I don’t have any wallet on me.”
“Teal will take care of it. I just wanted you to know how it works when you go to the café, restaurant or the store.”
“Oh. Is it weird? I mean, that Teal caught me and brought me here.”
Teebie laughed. “Oh, sweetie, this isn’t weird. This is a weekday.”
Her hostess led her to a room that was luxurious and had a gorgeous balcony. “Teal will be along soon. Go ahead and freshen up. I will bring some refreshments.”
Ida nodded and smiled. “Thank you. I am still a little disoriented.”
“It is understandable. I will be right back.”
Ida nodded, and the woman left her. With a deep sigh, she explored the bedroom, the bathroom and the balcony. She was in a new place. This wasn�
�t home and her parents weren’t in the next room waiting with a transporter. She was safe until she went home.
She laughed to herself. Home used to be where she felt completely safe. Now, it was the most dangerous place in the world. She couldn’t refuse her parents’ right to find her a mate. They were her family, and family looked out for family.
Ida headed to the shower, shucking her dress as she walked. She muttered, “Sometimes, family can be avoided, and I hope that this is one of those times.”
* * * *
Teal came into the Open Heart with a bag full of clothing and Ida’s charm in her pocket.
Teebie was heading upstairs with a loaded tray. “Did you find what you needed?”
“I think she will be happy with this. I don’t believe that there will be an issue with her finding a suitable match either.”
Teal watched as the tray started floating up on its own so that Teebie could walk with her. “Why is that?”
“A few of the fey saw her walking with me, and they asked after her. Apparently, while her curves are unusual for a swan, they are right up the alley of the fey. The word fey-bait was thrown around.”
Teebie snorted. “I have only heard that a handful of times since coming here. Since the fey have a weakness for human females with curves, the shifters with those attributes are highly sought after. Usually the shifters end up on the athletic side of physiology.”
Teal snickered. “Ida does look soft, doesn’t she? I swear, I nearly stared when she first shifted. The swans are usually tall and elegant, not short and curvy. The only thing that is typical is the black hair and amber eyes.”
Teebie sighed. “I hope she can manage to find the one that she loves. Her heart is as visible to me as those curves are.”
Teal nodded. “I hope so, too. Now, let’s get her dressed so that she can try some of the guys on for size, metaphorically speaking.”
