“Are you military? I’ve never seen tattoos like that before.”
“Very obscure,” he answered. “I’m not with them anymore.”
“Oh,” Penny answered, scooting to the edge of the bed. She grabbed her first shoe and slid her foot inside the fur lined rubber boot. “You never did tell me how you ended up in Mystery. I told you my story.”
“It’s…” he trailed off and looked away from her. “Not that pleasant. I don’t usually talk about it.”
“And mine was?” she asked, sarcasm dripping from each word.
He gave her a half smile. “I’ll tell you on the way.” He gestured to the door and waited.
Penny groaned but got up and took her coat from his hands. She pulled it on and then pulled on the donor hat and gloves Naomi had also sent with him. Talk about really going above and beyond. She didn’t know these people. She barely knew Kann…granted they’d now slept together so that changed the dynamic a bit. But really, it’d been less than twenty-four hours.
“Are you sure they’ll be okay with us just showing up?”
He nodded. “They are expecting us, although I had originally planned to keep you in bed until noon.”
Penny felt heat flush her cheeks. Kann smiled, and leaned down to give her a kiss. Not just a peck, he gave her a solid sweep-you-off-your-feet kiss. She had to stand still for a moment just to catch her breath. Her whole body was tingling and anticipating more, but he was walking toward the door. Waiting for her.
“Alright. Alright, I’m coming. I’m warning you now, I’m not much of a hiker. This is going to be the longest walk ever.
Kann laughed. He took her hand and pulled her out the door into the clear morning air. So cold. It bit her face and her eyes teared up. “Kann, it’s freezing!”
“Come on,” he said, stepping down two stairs. “I’m carrying you.” He patted his shoulders.
“For a quarter mile,” she squeaked. “Through that?” She pointed to the expanse of white ahead of them. The truck, parked not far from the cabin door was all but completely buried.
“Yep, trust me.” He patted his shoulders again.
“You just want my body on yours again.” A small laugh slipped from between her lips.
“You figured me out,” he said, laughing out loud with her. “Come on, Penny. Trust me.”
“You know you say that a lot. You require a lot of trust.”
“It’s part of my charm.” He gave her that killer smile and her insides did that melty thing again. “Come on.”
She stepped forward and put her arms around his neck, pressing her chest against his back. He reached at his waist and slipped his arms under her legs, hooking his elbows right where her knees bent, locking her into the first piggy-back ride she’d ever taken.
He continued down the steps into snow that road up nearly to his waist. “You can’t walk in this. Not carrying me,” she wriggled, trying to get down.
“You’re fine. Quit worrying.” He pushed into the drift and started up the closest hill.
Penny shook her head and frowned. No way. He couldn’t possibly think he was going to carry her for a quarter of a mile up and down hills in three feet of snow. But they were. And he was walking at a brisker pace than she would’ve been able to on her own two feet, behind him, with a trail already broken.
Damn.
How was he doing this? Sure he was tall and built like an ox, but still… She watched the landscape pass them by. Trees and perfect white snow, undisturbed by anything other than them.
“It’s so quiet and beautiful out here,” Penny whispered against his neck.
“My home was hot. Mostly desert and jungle. This is a big change.”
Penny stiffened. Desert and jungle? “Where are you from? Africa?”
Kann didn’t answer. He just kept pushing through the snow. Up one hill. Through a clump of trees and now down another hill. Penny caught sight of a cabin in the distance and then a flash of…orange? She could’ve sworn it was an animal. But other than a fox, what would be orange? It’d been much bigger than a fox. And it’d had black stripes like a… No. It was impossible. This was Alaska and there wasn’t a zoo for hundreds of miles.
Kann came through another clump of spruce and Penny felt a scream catch in her throat. “K-Kann, th-there’s a—”
“Shit,” he snarled. “Tor!” he shouted. “You asshole, she’s my mate. Change back now!”
“It’s a t-tiger, but—” She clutched Kann’s neck tighter. It was a tiger, but it was bigger than average and its top fangs looked longer than normal. She sure didn’t remember the tigers at the zoo having sabre-teeth. “Kann,” she whimpered again.
“It’s fine.” He released her legs like he was going to put her down. “I’m sorry, I really wanted to explain things differently than this.” His chest was rumbling loudly, almost like a cross between a purr and a roar. What the hell?
“No,” she squeaked, locking her feet around his waist and tightening her hold on his neck. Wait? What? Explain what? The last thing she wanted to do was be put on the ground.
“Tor, change dude! I can’t hold,” Kann shouted at the oversized tiger.
The tiger opened an eye—a golden eye—and then slowly climbed down from the massive spruce it’d been lounging in. It took a couple of steps, and Penny watched, mesmerized by the power rippling beneath its hide. It was beautiful and frightening, and she couldn’t look away. Surely this was it. No need to worry about Jake. She and Kann would die together—food for an overgrown tiger.
Kann ripped her from his back and set her down. He spun to face her, and she gasped. His eyes were gold…just like the tiger.
“I’m sorry,” he said, his voice more of a growl than word. Then he hurled himself toward the approaching predator.
“Kann! No! Please don’t leave me!” she screamed, she didn’t want him to die. She needed him. More than she could explain in words. “Kann!”
A second later Kann wasn’t a man.
Her mouth dropped open as his body and clothes and everything just changed right in front of her eyes, into a giant African lion, complete with massive mane and roaring and elongated fang teeth just like the tiger. What was with the big sabre-tooth shit? Who were these people? Animals? She was so confused.
The two animals slammed into each other with a vicious fury that made her fight or flight response scream—flight! She scrambled back the way she’d come with Kann. The path was broken. She could make it to the cabin, right? Lock the door. Figure this out.
She ran through the snow, huffing and puffing the cold air. She shouldn’t be running. It wasn’t healthy to suck in so much cold air so fast, she risked her lungs freezing. But every time she tried to make herself slow down, she would hear one of them snarl or roar. The sound was deafening. Terrifying.
Keep going. One foot in front of the next.
“Penny!” Kann’s voice rang out through the stillness of the morning.
Penny gasped for another breath. He was calling to her.
“Penny, please,” he called out again.
She turned her head and glanced over her shoulder. He was at the top of the hill with a redheaded man. The stranger was close to Kann’s size. He had hair past his shoulders with braids in it that reminded her of Kann. His eyes were blue. And he wore nothing but jeans. His chest was bare except for very familiar markings on his arms. Tattoos just like the ones she’d seen on Kann’s arms this morning.
Penny stared. What was she thinking? She couldn’t possibly still want to stay with Kann—after…everything she’d just seen. How was what she’d seen even possible. Was she hallucinating? It wasn’t real. She was just hungry. Seeing things.
“Sorry,” the redhead shouted. “I didn’t think you’d be headed this way until noon. The weather was too nice. My tiger wanted to stretch. Naomi says we’re getting another damn storm blowing in tomorrow.”
Kann was making his way down the hill through the snow toward her.
She stayed r
ooted to the spot, unable to decide if she should run or stay and listen to whatever crazy explanation he was going to try and spin.
“I’m sorry, I wanted to explain at the right time, but I just couldn’t find the right time.”
“Explain what? That you have a friend who turns into a tiger and that you turn into a lion.”
Kann reached for her hand and she swatted it away and backed up a few more steps. She couldn’t think when he touched her. And she needed to think, needed to process all the crazy coming at her right now.
“You’re an animal. Your friend is an animal. And you thought that wasn’t important to share before we slept together!” Her voice continued to rise as the panic escalated. She couldn’t get away. She couldn’t run in the snow. Not fast enough that Kann wouldn’t easily be able to catch her.
“Penny, please,” Kann said, reaching out again. “I would never hurt you.”
She sucked in a quick breath. “Oh really?”
Kann’s face was so downcast, like she’d broken his favorite toy in the whole world. Her. He felt strongly about her. She knew he did. Innately she knew he wasn’t dangerous. That he wouldn’t hurt her.
“What are you?”
Kann ran his hands through his long blond hair and sighed before glaring at Tor and growling again. The redheaded man frowned and then disappeared from view, leaving her alone with Kann. What had she gotten herself into? Why had she ever agreed to let Kann into the cabin? She had terrible taste in men. Now she hadn’t even picked a man. But what was he?
“I don’t even know where to start.” Kann’s tone was pained. “Will you at least come with me to the cabin and get out of the cold.”
“Not only are you not human. Your friend isn’t either. And you just tried to eat your friend’s face off!”
His head hung even lower. “I couldn’t let him get close to you. You’re my mate. My lion lost it when he started walking this way.”
Penny sucked in a breath. He’d reacted. Protected her. Which meant his friend might’ve been a threat. Or maybe it was just the animal instinct coming out. Good grief, now I’m giving him the benefit of the doubt because he’s a lion.
“I can’t stand seeing you so terrified, Penny. Please, you have to know that I would never hurt you. I adore you. You are my mate. I want to love and cherish you for the rest of my life.”
Penny gulped. Not only was he crazy and very possibly an animal man, he was already saying he loved her. Professing that he wanted to be with her for the rest of his life. Leave it to her to find the one guy in the world who would fall in love and kind of but not really propose in less than twenty-four hours.
“You did what!” A woman’s shriek pierced the quiet surrounding them.
Both Penny and Kann turned toward the hill where the tiger man had disappeared.
A minute or so later a small woman with bouncy brown curls came flying over the ridge. She flashed Kann an exasperated glare. She was wearing a t-shirt and a pair of yoga pants. No shoes. No hat. No gloves. Just tromping through the snow like it was a white sand beach on the Gulf of Mexico. She kept coming until she was right next to them.
“Hi, you must be Penny.” The small woman gave her a warm smile. “I’m Naomi. And I hear that you were rudely introduced to Tor’s tiger without any sort of warning. And then Kann’s lion lost his shit.” She flashed another glare in Kann’s direction.
Penny couldn’t help but feel as though she wanted to defend Kann. A part of her cared deeply for him, no matter how much her brain told her it was a fucked-up mess. She still didn’t want anyone else mad at Kann. She could be mad at him, but not this woman.
“Did it not occur to you to say something, you Neanderthal,” Naomi hissed out the side of her mouth.
“I was going to,” Kann said, squirming in his skin.
Naomi held out a hand toward Penny. “Why don’t you come inside and let Kann explain everything like a normal human being.”
“But they aren’t human…” Penny started. “Are they?” She turned to look up at Kann. “When I asked you about your eyes, and the way they turn gold. You said you’d tell me later. This is what you were going to say. That you’re not human? That you’re a lion.” She ignored Naomi’s hand and stayed put. If she went with them, she was accepting that they weren’t human. That she hadn’t been hallucinating.
Was she prepared to do that?
12
“Yes, I was trying to figure out how to tell you I was a lion,” he blurted out. “I was trying to find the right time to tell you. I was hoping you would get to know everyone first and like them and then somehow there would just be a perfect time…and now it’s just a fucking mess. Please, just tell me how to fix this.”
Penny stared up at him unblinking. “How could you think I would be okay with this? What kind of person would be okay with this?”
“Naomi was,” he murmured. “That’s why I wanted you to meet everyone first. So, you could see who they were before you saw what they were. What I was.”
“You’re human?” she asked, directing her attention back to the spritely, lightly dressed woman with a bouncing halo of ringlets.
“Well, technically yes, although I’ve undergone some changes that differentiate me from your average homo sapiens. I’m from New York. Naomi Parker,” she answered, extending her hand again. “Seriously, you can come inside. I swear no one will hurt you.”
“Technically?”
“I’ll explain inside, over a stack of pancakes…which Saul is probably burning by now. Come on.” Naomi stepped closer and Penny noticed the way the snow melted around the woman’s feet, leaving Naomi standing on bare brown earth. Naomi followed her gaze and laughed. “Yep, that’s one of my upgrades. I don’t really get cold anymore, courtesy of my mate Col.”
“You’re melting the snow,” Penny said, still not really believing what she was seeing. But this woman said she was human. Said she was from New York. Maybe all of this was just some elaborate hoax.
Maybe this was all a dream. Maybe she would wake up in the cabin back in Kann’s arms and none of this had ever really happened. She held in a laugh…even after all the crazy she’d seen or dreamed or whatever—the only place she wanted to be was back in Kann’s arms. She hated the broken look on his face, the way his eyes would barely meet hers. He felt so much guilt. So much regret. It was painted all over his face.
“This is all a lot.” Penny refused to take Naomi’s hand, but she moved forward anyway. It was time to face whatever was coming. No way were these people worse than Jake. She knew Kann wanted nothing more than to keep her safe. Every cell in her body was screaming that he was her safe place. That she’d never truly felt loved until he’d touched her.
“I get it. Kann gets it. We all do. Tor probably not so much,” the other woman said, her voice filled with a hint of amusement.
Penny couldn’t help but chuckle at the joke. No, the tiger man had not seemed phased at all.
“I really worry about that man when he finally finds his mate. He’s just going to stroll up to her and purr. Maybe lick her face. Rub against her leg. No tact whatsoever,” Naomi continued.
Penny covered her mouth and stared at Naomi in shock. The image she’d just painted was hilarious. She was describing the man like he would act as if he were a cat. Not an enormous tiger with teeth as long as her hand. No, she’d just described him like he was a common housecat.
Wait. Purr? She turned her gaze on Kann again. “You purr.”
His cheeks flushed a light pink and he nodded. “It’s difficult to control.”
“The growling too. It all sounded so…real.”
He nodded again.
“So, are you good to come on in and have breakfast with us?” Naomi had crossed her arms over her chest and was tapping her foot. “We’ve got things to discuss. Kann said you have someone possibly coming after you. Your boss?”
Penny nodded. “How do you—”
“Where do you think the poor man went after yo
u told him to leave?” Naomi turned on her heel and waved. “Come on, my ass is warm, but you two are turning into blueberry popsicles the longer we stand here in this lovely arctic air.” She didn’t look back. Just kept walking. Up the hill and disappeared from view.
Penny looked at Kann again. They followed in Naomi’s footsteps. At the top of the hill, the cabin was visible again.
“Inside. Now,” a male voice bellowed from the door.
“Yes, Vraka,” Kann answered, jumping into action. He had an arm around her waist and was propelling her forward. Down the hill and then up the stairs to the cabin door before she could process past the scary-authority-filled voice that had ordered them inside.
“Who the hell?” she whispered.
“Col is…our chief.”
She looked up at one of the largest men she’d ever seen. He was so much bigger than Kann. By at least fifty pounds and six inches. He looked like a barbarian. He was bare chested and wearing some kind of half-fabric-half-leather…kilt? He had similar tattoos to Kann’s on his arms and shoulders, except many more and everything was filled in.
“Don’t mind my mate,” Naomi called from inside the cabin. “Col, back up, honey, so they can come inside.”
“I was tired of the door being open.”
Kann pushed her right up to the doorway and stopped. Her whole body trembled. She wasn’t really going to go inside with all these strange people…was she? Then Kann growled and Col’s eyes turned gold. Bright gold. And the air around them was suddenly a lot warmer. More growling rumbled from him too. They were growling at each other.
Then, as quickly as it had happened, it stopped. Col’s eyes went back to a regular brown. And he smiled. He wasn’t nearly as frightening with a smile.
“Fate has brought you a beautiful mate, Kann.” Then he looked straight at her. “Welcome to the tribe, Penny.”
Penny kept waiting for a handshake, but it didn’t happen. In fact, he backed out the doorway completely so that she and Kann could enter without any touching whatsoever. “Tribe?”
“They’re used to calling groups, tribes,” Naomi hollered from the kitchen area across the cabin. “You’ll get used to it. It’s the same as saying welcome to the family.”
I'm Not Lion To You: Soulmate Shifters World (Soulmate Shifters in Mystery, Alaska Book 2) Page 10
