Before the women could react, Mia heard rustling leaves. Someone or something was coming closer. The sounds of crunching leaves were all around them. Then a series of low menacing growls.
“What the hell is that?” Carissa asked, rising to her feet.
Mia pressed her index finger over her lips, shushing Carissa.
“I will not shush! What the fuck is happening?” Carissa asked, her voice quivering with fear.
Carissa huddled around Linda and Tatianna, whimpering and mewling. Mia was on the other side of the fire, gripping the straps of her pack. She was trying to think. The car was a mile down the road and the sounds of the wolves were drawing in faster and faster. There was only one option.
“Run! Run now!” Mia yelled, backing away.
The women were frozen, absolutely paralyzed by fear. Mia kept yelling, urging them to follow her but it was no use.
“Behind you!” Mia yelled, jogging backward.
Where there was once a dark blanket of trees, there were now yellow eyes peppering the woods. Mia was looking in the face of not one but ten, maybe more, of the largest wolves she had ever seen in her life. One of them, a large black wolf with a round spot on his forehead, rose to his hind legs and roared a loud growl in Mia’s direction. The other wolves rose to their hind legs and seemed to be over eight feet tall. They were grabbing the other bridesmaids.
The wolf stared at her and laughed in a low demonic voice. Licking its lips, it fell forward on all fours and stalked towards Mia.
“I’ll give you a head start,” it said.
*****
Branches scratched and pulled at Mia as she tore through the woods. Her breaths sounded ragged and she could hear the massive wolf chasing her. Her brain was rattled with confusion and fear. She could not understand why the wolves could talk. She could not understand why they were here and why one of them was the size of two large men.
“Leave…me alone!” Mia yelled, gasping for breath and waving branches out of way.
“Where…is…the…fun in that?” the wolf said, nipping at her heels.
The problem for the wolf was the deeper she went into the woods, the tighter the pine trees were together. It was like trying to run through the weave of a loom. Mia’s slender frame and her natural athleticism made it a cinch. The wolf, though faster in the open forest, was having a lot of trouble.
“You’ll only make it worse when I catch you!” the wolf yelled, clawing futilely at the dense trees.
Mia took a deep breath and charged forward. Her head was spinning. Nothing made sense. There were no wolves in Florida. And then there was the talking happening behind her. Mia was sure if not for the adrenaline propelling her forward she would pass out from shock and exhaustion. The forest was clearing and she needed a plan. She looked around her for anything she could use as a weapon. There was nothing. She had no weapon. No hope of escape.
“Shit!” Mia yelled, running out to the clearing.
Behind her was the woods and ahead of her was a steep cliff, leading to the ravine. Mia looked back at the wood to see the wolf burst through into the clearing, covered in dead leaves. It shook its massive head and its yellow eyes zeroed in on Mia.
“I hate chasing my food. If I have to take one more step, I will chew slowly,” the wolf said.
Mia backed up to the edge of the cliff, hearing rocks fall behind her.
“I’m warning you,” the wolf said.
Before Mia could speak two other wolves, one tawny and the other gray, jumped out of the woods and tackled her assailant to the ground. The wolves wrestled, clawing and biting at each other. Mia kept trying to inch around them, but the giant bodies were kicking up dust and rocks and blocking the path.
“You two have no idea who you’re messing with,” the black wolf said, spitting out a mouthful of blood.
“Get out,” the tawny wolf said, bearing its teeth.
The black wolf howled loudly and ran back into the woods. Mia exhaled loudly and the two wolves turned to face her. They rose onto their hind legs and leaned their large heads towards her and sniffed. The grey one licked his lips, bearing his teeth at Mia.
“Shit, shit, shit,” Mia said, trying to inch away.
“Let’s see,” the tawny wolf said, blocking her path, “are you as delicious as you look?”
*****
“What do you want?” Mia asked, staring up at the two large wolves.
“That didn’t sound like a thank you,” said the tawny wolf, looking hungrily at Mia.
“Well, I don’t know what you plan on doing with me so forgive me for not being grateful. And I don’t understand. How is this even possible?” Mia asked, holding her forehead.
“The short story is magic,” the gray wolf said, looking behind them and sniffing the air.
“What’s the long story?” Mia asked, cautioning a look around for more wolves.
The wolves looked at each other, cracked their necks and then they seemed to shrink in front of her. The tawny wolf was now a tall, muscular tousled haired blond. The grey and white wolf was now a dark-haired man, also muscular. The fact that they were men in real life made Mia’s mouth fall open. They were wearing only torn jeans and were barefoot. They were about Mia’s age in their human form and if the shock of them being shape shifters was not startling enough, they were gorgeous.
“What the hell?” Mia asked.
“Come we should walk. We don’t know those wolves and once they get done eating, they will come after us,” said the dark-haired man.
“Easy, Micah. No need to scare the lady. I’m Brutus by the way,” the blond said, touching his chest.
“Mia. Eaten? You think they ate—oh my God,” Mia said, covering her mouth in horror.
“You can’t think that a pack that large would let all of that meat go to waste,” Micah said flatly.
“Meat! Those were my friends…sort of,” Mia said, marching away from them.
Brutus grabbed her arm, making Mia jerk backwards.
“Look, as fun as this dramatic banter is, we should maybe move in the opposite way of the killer wolves,” Brutus said, winking at her.
“We’re taking her with us?” Micah asked, balling up his fist at his side.
“Don’t worry, tough guy. I don’t want to go with you monsters anyways,” Mia said, jerking out of Brutus’s grasp.
“How exactly do you plan on surviving in the woods with wolves passing through? And what do you mean sort of your friends?” Brutus asked, narrowing his eyes at her.
Mia took a deep breath and bit her bottom lip. She was terrified and running out of options. The other bridesmaids were likely dead by now and she was at the mercy of two werewolves.
“Well?” Micah asked, shrugging at Mia.
“I…I just met them on this trip. We’re all friends with Cora. She is my friend from high school and the other women were her friends. None of us knew each other before this trip. This is all my fault,” Mia said, ringing her hands together.
“How is it your fault?” Brutus asked, looking confused.
“I suggested the woods. We should have just gone to a casino. I just thought nature would do us good. Are you sure we can’t save them?” Mia asked, looking backing in the direction of the campsite.
“No, and we’re not checking,” Micah said, combing his inky black hair back off his face.
“Be nice, Micah. Mia, it’s not your fault. It’s the circle of life. I’m sorry you have to see that. Some of us eat animals. I personally love bears. Micah here loves deer, but other packs hunt humans. It’s sick since you know we can turn into humans but they don’t care,” Brutus said, his lips thinning.
Mia paced, trying to think. There was no way to go back to the car because the other wolves were blocking that path and the sun was going to be rising soon. She needed to rest so she could make good of the daylight when it came.
“We should move,” Micah said, walking down the steep hill.
“You heard the man. Want a piggy back
ride?” Brutus asked, winking at Mia.
Mia smirked at him and followed Brutus down the hill. Mia was not a delicate woman. She knew the woods because of her and her dad’s many hiking trips. Now that her adrenaline had subsided and her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she would be fine. There was still the matter of not losing daylight later. It was nighttime and if they marched on all night, it would throw off their sleep schedule.
“Should we get some rest before the sun comes up? I don’t want to be sleepy in the morning,” Mia said, catching up with Micah.
“No,” Micah said. His handsome face was contorted into a scowl.
“Are you always so charming?” Mia asked, scoffing.
A slight smile spread on his face, but he quickly composed himself.
“Oh, so your friend can smile?” Mia asked, looking at Brutus.
Brutus had a face-splitting smile on his handsome tanned face. His disposition seemed a lot more kind than Micah’s. Micah seemed to have a chip the size of a mountain on his shoulder and was leading the way. When he wasn’t scowling, he was sniffing the air and making slight adjustments left or right. Brutus seemed content with following Micah.
“Where are we even going?” Mia asked, speeding up to keep up with Micah.
“Eventually North Carolina. Far enough away from the pack we will sleep, but not now,” Micah said, stopping dead in his tracks.
“I smell it. Be right back, gorgeous,” Brutus said, collapsing on all fours.
His body bent and twisted until he was covered in fur and was back to being a large, tawny wolf.
“What? What’s happening?” Mia asked, backing into Micah.
“We have company. It’s just dinner. Calm down,” Micah said, smirking at her.
“Oh. Do I even want to know what’s on the menu?” Mia asked.
“Venison. You can let go of my arm now,” Micah said with humor laced in his voice.
Mia looked up to see she had both her arms around Micah’s defined bicep.
“Oh, sorry. I’m just freaking out. I’m usually a lot better than this,” Mia said.
“Look, I think you’re doing fine. It’s not personal. It’s the animal instinct thing. I just want us to get to safety. Brutus is my best friend, but he’s a goofball. I’ve gotta keep him straight,” Micah said, wincing.
“I see. Well, you two together seem to be doing alright. Thank you for saving me.”
“Don’t mention it. We would have saved your friends too if we had more time.”
Mia nodded, understanding.
“What are you two even doing here? Why are any of your kind here?”
“Most wolves roam. It’s usually to avoid humans, or for food, or for fun.”
“Fun? I can’t exactly imagine you having fun. You seem…stiff.”
Micah whipped his head around to look at her and he seemed affronted.
“I’m fun!”
Mia laughed, amused by how angry he got by her simple observation.
“Brutus seems fun. I mean you’re cute, but you need to lose the serial killer face.”
Micah went to speak but the sound of rustling in the underbrush drew their attention. Brutus was behind them holding a large buck by the neck.
“Um, I’m assuming we’re cooking it,” Mia said, swallowing nervously.
*****
Mia sat around the fire with Micah and Brutus. Both men were looking at the cooked meat with downturned expressions.
“Try it. You might like it,” Mia said, picking at her cooked chunks of venison.
“It’s so dry. Where’s the blood?” Micah asked, sniffing the meat in his hands.
“No blood. Blood is weird and not good for you. If I had some seasoning it would be even better,” Mia said, chewing on the last of her share.
“It’s too dry,” Brutus said.
“Next time, leave mine raw,” Micah said.
Mia rolled her eyes and inched closer to the fire.
“You cold?” Brutus asked, rubbing her shoulders.
It felt good and it helped reduce the chill that felt like it had sunk into her bones. She could not help but take in Brutus’s smell. He smelled so masculine and woodsy. Mia was sure this is how nature intended for men to smell. His body was also radiating heat. Mia inched closer to him and cautioned a look up at Micah who was watching them.
“I think we’re making Micah jealous,” Brutus whispered in Mia’s ear.
Mia smirked and looked up at Micah again. Micah shifted uncomfortably, but did not say anything.
“So what’s the plan?” Brutus asked loudly.
“I thought it was for you two to make out,” Micah said bitterly.
“Hey, I’m right here,” Mia said.
“I think we should sleep up there in the branches. We will sleep on either side of you so you don’t fall,” Brutus said.
Mia looked up, craning her neck to see the top of the tall pine tree. It was one of many enormous pine trees in the canopy.
“Great,” Mia said, feeling a lump in her throat.
“Are you sleepy?” Brutus asked.
Mia shook her head. Her nerves were still rattled and she still was not sure what she would be doing to get home. Not the she had a lot going on at home. She worked at a hardware store and besides that spent her days mountain biking or hiking. There was not much going on in her life but Cora’s wedding. Mia was the girl who never left her home town and never took chances outside of testing out a new bike trail.
“Mia? Did you hear me?” Brutus asked, squeezing her hand.
“What? Oh, no. I can’t sleep yet. Still thinking about Cora’s wedding,” Mia said.
“I see,” Brutus said.
“Maybe I don’t remember how this human stuff works, but why is Cora not here?” Micah asked.
“She doesn’t like the woods,” Mia said, shrugging.
“Still, shouldn’t she be here with her bridesmaids?” Brutus asked.
“She’s the bride. She can do what she wants,” Mia said absentmindedly.
“Do you have a cell phone?” Micah asked.
“I’m surprised you even know what that is,” Mia said, patting her pockets, “I must have dropped it back when that other wolf was chasing me. Great.”
“Well, we can stick together for now I guess,” Micah said.
“Hey, what’s you guys’ story anyway? I mean, how did you became like this?” Mia asked.
Brutus looked at Micah and nodded.
“We’re born this way. When we become old enough for human middle school our parents give us the option of joining humans or staying in the wild. Teen boys can’t stay in the pack because it’s competition for the alpha. I tried the human world, but it wasn’t for me,” Micah said, throwing his cooked venison into the fire.
“What he said,” Brutus said, nudging Mia.
“Interesting. So, you two live out here?” Mia asked, scanning the forest.
“Yep,” Micah said.
“Enough boring talk. We should play a little game,” Brutus said, clapping his large hands together.
“You want to play a game after the night we’ve had?” Mia asked, raising an eyebrow at Brutus.
“Why not?” Brutus asked, pursing his lips, “Look, Mia, we live this everyday. People live and die. Animals live and die. In fact, around the world people are dying horrifically right now. It’s the circle of life. That being said, let’s play truth or dare,” Brutus said, rubbing his hands together.
“Oh boy,” Micah said.
“What?” Mia asked, looking at Micah.
“He’s just looking for an excuse to kiss you,” Micah said, scoffing.
“Hey! Way to ruin it, man,” Brutus said, throwing a rock at Micah.
Micah dove out of the way and laughed.
“Well, is that how werewolves meet were-women? You play truth or dare and that actually works?” Mia asked, giggling.
Truthfully, it was so flattering to even have Brutus take the extra effort with the game. They were both ver
y hot. She would have kissed either, no truth or dare needed.
“In our world we just go for it,” Micah said.
“Just go for it?” Mia asked.
“Yea. There is no awkward humanness,” Brutus said, caressing her cheek. “Just instinct.”
Mia leaned into his hand and decided she wanted to take on some of the werewolf way of life. Mia leaned in and kissed Brutus. He was stiff at first, but then he cupped her face. Mia felt his tongue swimming into her mouth. Mia climbed onto his lap, kissing him deeper.
“Looks like you have some werewolf in you,” Brutus said, pulling off Mia’s shirt.
“I’ll give you two a minute,” Micah said, walking away.
“No, stay,” Mia said, turning to face him.
All that was on Mia’s mind was the conversation she and the ladies had before the wolf attack. She may never have this experience again. She may not even live through the night. She may never even find another person in the world that even believed she had this moment. If no one would ever believe her, she wanted to smile every time she thought about this.
“You heard the lady,” Brutus said, kissing Mia’s neck and breast.
Brutus pulled her bra off and teased her nipples with his tongue and fingers. Micah walked over and stood behind Mia.
“I’ll be back,” Mia said, kissing Brutus quickly.
Mia turned around and kneeled in front of Micah. She looked up at him and nervously unzipped his pants, keeping her eyes locked on him. Something on his stony face was softening and something in his pants was hardening. Mia pulled his jeans down and held his long, thick cock in her hand. She wanted to know she could have an effect on this stone-faced man. She slipped his dick in her mouth and sucked slowly. Micah swayed on his feet and his hands found her hair. He guided himself deeper into her mouth. He was swelling in her mouth and moaning.
“Stop, Mia. I’m going to come,” Micah said, stepping backward.
“That’s fine,” Mia said, feeling braver.
“I’ve got an idea. Lay down Micah so the lady doesn’t hurt her knees. God, I’m gonna bust my load just looking at you two,” Brutus said, pulling off his jeans.
Micah lay on his back and Mia eased out of her shorts and panties. Mia crawled between Micah’s legs stroking his dick in her hands.
In Time to Love Page 106
