Ranger Griffin

by Zoe Chant

Emily looked down at her coffee to hide the tears that prickled at her eyes. She’d been an idiot to think that a man like him would ever want anything to do with a woman like her. Men like him dated women who were skinny, successful, and soft-spoken—the opposite of her.

  Well, she wasn’t going to embarrass herself and put him on the spot by asking him what was wrong—again. She knew what was wrong. It was her. The best thing she could do for both of them was to get out of his life as fast as she could.

  She was about to ask if he could get through to the ranger station on his snowmobile now when Gabriel cleared his throat. She jumped, her gaze jerking up to look at him.

  “There’s something I need to tell you,” he said. His jaw was set and his eyes were bleak as a midwinter sky. He looked determined and doomed, like a soldier making his last stand, and so unhappy that she had the strangest urge to comfort him.

  “You don’t need to say anything,” Emily said. “I get it.”

  “You do? How could—” He broke off, and the briefest flicker of a smile pierced his sorrow. “No, I really don’t think you do. But maybe it would be better to show you than to tell you. Would you mind coming outside with me?”

  Emily couldn’t imagine why he thought she’d rather be dumped outside than in, but at that point all she wanted to do was get it over with. It was obviously just as painful for Gabriel to say “I’m just not that into you” as it would be for her to hear it. “Sure.”

  He fetched a warm coat and scarf for her, then led her outside. The bright morning sunlight dazzled her eyes, and the sight of the winter landscape briefly lifted her heart. Snow covered the ground in deep drifts, and icicles hung from every tree. The air was so clear that she could see the snowy mountains and even a frozen waterfall, caught in its cascade like a bridal veil. Rays of light glittered on the snow and gleamed on the ice. It was a landscape straight out of a fairytale.

  Emily drew in a deep breath of the crisp, pine-scented air. The sky was incredibly blue. Like Gabriel’s eyes.

  I am not going to cry, she told herself fiercely. I’m not!

  But he didn’t speak. Silence stretched out between them until Emily felt like she was going to lose her mind.

  “Go on,” she said. “I can take it.”

  The delicate skin at his throat moved as he swallowed. “It’s not easy telling a secret you’ve kept your entire life. What I’m going to show you is something I’ve never let anyone see before.”

  Emily was baffled. “What? What are you talking about?” Then she remembered their conversation from the night before. “Oh! You’re going to tell me that secret we had the conversation about last night?”

  He looked equally confused. “Yes, of course. What did you think I meant?”

  A blush rose to her face, burning hotter and hotter until she was surprised it didn’t melt the nearest icicles. Unable to get her voice to rise above a mumble, she admitted, “That you wanted to break up. Though we were never really together, so I guess that you don’t want to see me again.”

  The astonishment and horror that widened Gabriel’s eyes told her how wrong she’d been even more than his vehement “No!”

  He clasped her hands, his grip as tight as if he was trying to convey his sincerity with sheer force. “Emily, no! I love you!”

  “You do?” Her words seemed absurd in her own ears, but her head was spinning. Gabriel loved her? How could he? But she could hear and see and feel the truth of it. He loved her. This astonishing man loved her.

  “I do,” he vowed. His deep voice shook slightly as he said, “I wasn’t going to tell you before I showed you my secret. I know it’s too soon—”

  “No.” Emily didn’t have one-tenth the strength in her hands that he had in his, but she squeezed as hard as she could. “Or if it is, I’ll join you in the too-soon boat. Gabriel, I love you too. I thought you didn’t feel the same way about me. That’s why I didn’t say anything.”

  “Oh.”

  They stood on the porch, looking into each other’s eyes, watching the smiles of surprised delight dawn on each other’s faces. Then he bent down, and she stood on her tip-toes, and they met in the middle in a passionate kiss. He held her tight, and she closed her eyes, surrendering herself to love.

  Emily could have stayed like that forever, safe in the arms of the man she loved. The man who loved her. It was everything she’d ever dreamed of, come true at last.

  When they finally, reluctantly, broke apart, she saw something in his beautiful eyes that she’d never seen before. It was a new light, a brightness like a sunny sky.

  Hope, she thought.

  “Do you trust me?” Gabriel asked.

  “I do.”

  “You know I’d never hurt you, right?”

  “Yes, I know.” She stroked his soft hair. “Gabriel, whatever it is, just tell me. Give me a chance to understand.”

  “All right. Don’t follow me. Just stay here and watch.” Gabriel stepped off the porch, then began backing up, slogging deeper and deeper into the snow, his gaze still fixed on Emily. He stopped in a drift up to his knees, squared his shoulders, and said, “One more thing. It wasn’t me who attacked your car.”

  Baffled, she began, “Of course it wasn’t. That was a condor, or a...”

  The clear air began to sparkle. Emily blinked, trying to clear her vision. But there was nothing wrong with her eyes. All around Gabriel, a cloud of golden sparks winked into existence, gathered, and thickened until he vanished within a million points of light.

  The sparks winked out. Gabriel was gone. In his place, a griffin stood.

  She stared at the magical beast, astonished. It was part lion, with tawny fur and great paws and a long tufted tail, and part eagle, with folded wings, a hooked beak, and brilliant golden eyes. But it didn’t look like two creatures joined together, but like a single perfect being, huge and strong and magnificent.

  Emily stealthily pinched her own arm. Nothing happened. She wasn’t dreaming. She really had seen Gabriel transform into a griffin. And the griffin really was standing right in front of her, close enough for her to see every feather of its beautiful wings.

  Magic did exist.

  An incredulous grin cracked Emily’s face. After all those years of telling herself that fairytales weren’t real and dragons didn’t exist and she was never going to meet a prince, she’d walked straight into a fairytale. Maybe there weren’t any dragons, but there sure were griffins! And her very own Prince Charming could turn into one.

  The griffin moved a little, scuffling snow beneath its clawed eagle’s feet and lion’s paws. Though it was clearly a predator, she felt no fear. It was Gabriel, the man she loved—Gabriel’s other self. She could never be afraid of him.

  She extended her hand. The griffin slowly walked toward her, moving effortlessly through the snow, until he was within touching distance. Then he stopped and bent his great eagle’s head. Her reaching fingers found his soft feathers, warm despite the cool air. She stroked them, and he made a low sound of pleasure.

  “It’s really you,” she murmured, not even realizing that she’d spoken aloud until she heard her own words, sounding loud in the silent landscape. “My Gabriel.”

  At that, the griffin cocked his head, meeting her gaze with his fierce golden eye. He stepped back, and sparks lit the air around him. Once again, they gathered until they hid him from view, and then vanished. Gabriel stood in a snow drift, once more a man, his ocean-blue eyes filled with both fear and hope.

  “Now you know,” he said, his voice rough and low. “I’m a monster.”

  “A monster?” Emily exclaimed. “What are you talking about? You’re not a monster! You’re amazing—magical—beautiful!”

  He blinked, startled. “I turn into an animal.”

  “A griffin,” she corrected him. “A mythical being. Though I guess it’s not so mythical after all. I wonder if the legends of griffins were actually about people like you.”

  He shook his head, his eyes shadowed with o
ld pain. “There are no people like me. I’m the only one. I think.” Then, for the first time, he seemed to take in her words. “Doesn’t it bother or scare or weird you out that I’m a... a...”

  “That you’re even more incredible and wonderful than I realized?” Emily inquired. “No, Gabriel. It really doesn’t. I’m surprised, sure. Amazed. Astounded! But that’s it. Come here, and I’ll show you exactly how not-scared I am.”

  He walked out of the snow and stepped on to the porch. When she reached up to put her hands on his shoulders, she could feel in the steely tension of his muscles that he couldn’t quite bring himself to believe her. But he bent anyway and let her kiss him. And when their lips met, Emily felt him relax and give in to passion. The heat of his mouth melded with hers, and he caught her in his arms, lifted her, and held her like she was his own heart.

  “Believe me now?” she asked.

  He still held her tight to his chest. “I do. I don’t understand why, but I believe you.”

  Emily stroked his soft black hair. “Gabriel, why do you think you’re a monster?”

  His long lashes fluttered in a startled blink. “Well, I’m obviously not human. Or not only human, anyway.”

  “You’re more than human,” Emily returned. “Gabriel, would you think a lion was a monster? Or an eagle?”

  Slowly, he shook his head. “I remember what you said last night, that secrets seem worse to the person who has them than to the person who hears them. You were right. I always knew I had to hide what I was, so it seemed terrible. But the way you looked at my griffin wasn’t like the way anyone would look at a monster. It was like the way people look at the mountains and waterfalls in Blue Oak. Like I feel when I look at them. They’re so beautiful, they take my breath away.”

  “That’s exactly how I felt,” Emily said.

  Gabriel looked down at her, and she heard the truth ring out in every word when he said, “And that’s how I feel every time I look at you.”

  “Oh,” she said in a small voice. For no reason that she understood, tears stung at her eyes.

  He frowned. “Did I say something wrong?”

  “No. I guess I’m just not used to hearing that.” Then, forcing herself to be honest, she said, “Or believing it. When I was a tiny little girl, I liked fairytales about girls who slew dragons. When I was a slightly bigger little girl, I was a tomboy who liked to play soccer and climb trees and catch lizards. When I was a teenager, I got seriously into softball. Then I grew up, and I still liked sports and hiking. And eating. Men say I’m funny and tough. But they never say I’m beautiful.”

  “It’s true, though. And I’ll keep telling you until you get used to it. You’re funny and tough, and gorgeous and sexy. If dragons were real, I bet you could slay them. And if you did, I’d tell you how strong and brave and awesome you were. I feel like the luckiest guy in the world to be holding you in my arms right now.” Gabriel kissed her, then set her down lightly on the porch. “It’s a beautiful day. Would you like to go for a ride?”

  Puzzled by the change of subject, she said, “In your snowmobile?”

  He laughed. “On my griffin.”

  “Oh!” She laughed too, then eagerly exclaimed, “Yes!”

  Gabriel stepped off the porch and once again became a griffin. It was the second time she’d seen it, so it was less shocking. But, if anything, it was even more astonishing and marvelous.

  On one level, it was hard for Emily to wrap her head around the idea that magic really did exist. On another, she realized that she’d always secretly believed in wonders beyond ordinary life, just as she’d always secretly believed that some day her prince would come.

  Her prince had come. He’d saved her life in the nick of time. He loved her. And he could turn into a griffin and fly away with her. Everything she’d always dreamed of had come true, but even better and more wonderful than she’d ever dared to imagine.

  The griffin that was Gabriel stepped majestically forward and knelt at her feet. There was a hollow in his great feathered back, in front of his wings, just the right size for her to sit in. Emily settled into it. His feathers were warm and soft.

  She tried clasping her arms around his neck, but it was far too big. Instead, she gripped the feathers in front of her in both hands. “That doesn’t hurt, does it?”

  He shook his head, a gesture so incongruously human coming from that great beast that she giggled. Then he let out a cry that rose in a questioning tone.

  Guessing what he probably meant, she replied, “I’ve got a good grip. I’m ready to go. And if I do fall off, you could catch me, right?”

  His eagle’s beak opened and he cried out again, this time with a confident tone that she interpreted as “Yes, don’t worry.”

  “Then let’s fly!”

  Gabriel spread his wings. They stretched out, pure white and magnificent, even bigger than she’d realized. Emily felt his powerful muscles bunch between her legs as he tensed. Then, in a great upward leap, he was aloft, his wings beating the air.

  She gasped in amazement as they rose above the cabin and into the sky. Within moments, they were soaring high above the treetops. Blue Oak National Park spread out beneath them, a winter wonderland of snow and ice, mountains and valleys, frozen streams and waterfalls, dotted with the dark green and brown of trees and the gray and black of boulders. The air was crisp and clean and cold, and the sensation of flight was the biggest thrill she’d ever felt.

  I’m riding on a griffin above America’s most beautiful wilderness, Emily thought. A griffin who’s also an incredibly sexy man who loves me!

  She laughed with sheer joy, her heart light as Gabriel’s snow-white feathers.

  Gabriel swooped low, skimming the treetops, and Emily spotted the bright coppery red fur of a family of foxes as the kits tussled in the snow. The adults let out warning yips as the griffin neared, and the entire family vanished into a hole in the snow.

  “Aww, they got scared,” Emily said. “Too bad they don’t know you wouldn’t hurt them.”

  Gabriel’s shoulders rippled as he gave a shrug, then tensed as he soared aloft. They rose higher and higher, nearing the clouds. He caught an updraft and glided, his wings still, carried by the wind. The entire world seemed spread out beneath them.

  She leaned forward and pressed a kiss into the feathers of his neck. “This is the greatest moment of my entire life.”

  His beak opened, and he gave a piercing eagle’s cry. She was sure he meant to say, “Mine too.”

  Peace stole into Emily’s heart as they floated and drifted on the wind, far above the troubles of the earth below. It was silent, so high up. Below was nothing but white, and above nothing but the blue sky.

  And a black shape arrowing down toward them.

  “Gabriel!” Emily shouted.

  But he had seen it at the same time that she had. Even as she spoke, his wings came down in a powerful clap, sending him veering out of the way of the black thing. Emily clutched his feathers tight, craning her neck to see what it was. As it got closer, she could make out more details. Like Gabriel, it was winged, but its body was long rather than compact, its wings batlike, its skin scaled.

  A dragon.

  Chapter Six

  Gabriel

  Gabriel could barely believe his eyes. After an entire lifetime believing that he was a freak of nature and the only one of his kind, he was face to face with another monster.

  No. He wasn’t going to believe that about himself any more.

  Another mythical creature. A dragon.

  But Gabriel only had a moment to take in that knowledge. When he’d veered out of the dragon’s way, he’d been acting on instinct, to avoid a collision. He hadn’t assumed it was attacking them. But the dragon corrected its course, his black wings slicing the air, and again flew right at them.

  Gabriel again avoided it, crying out a warning. Then his sharp eagle’s eyes saw the dragon’s chest expand.

  Dodge!

  Gabriel’s griffin sh
outed in his mind, but Gabriel’s instincts were already driving him. He folded his wings and dropped like a stone.

  Emily screamed. And a burst of orange flame enveloped the space where they had been.

  Gabriel extended his wings, arresting their fall, and flew away as fast as he could.

  Protect your mate!

  Gabriel didn’t know if the thought was his or his griffin’s, or both of theirs at once. He only knew that Emily was in danger, and he had to do whatever he could to protect her. He couldn’t risk fighting a fire-breathing dragon while she was on his back.

  He darted a glance upward. The dragon was coming for them again. It was faster than Gabriel, not to mention bigger. As he watched, its chest once again expanded.

  “Look out!” Emily yelled.

  Gabriel again veered out of the way of the blast of flame. It came close enough that he could feel the heat, and smell a brimstone stench. His heart was pounding. He had to get his mate to safety, then defend her from that beast. That monster.

  His first thought had been to take her to his cabin, but they were too far. He’d never make it in time. Anyway, the cabin was wood. The dragon could simply burn it down.

  Gabriel took in his surroundings with a single sweeping glance. Below lay an expanse of snow at the base of a mountain, and a dense forest nearby. He dove low, scanning for anywhere Emily could take shelter, zig-zagging to avoid any attacks by the pursuing dragon. At last he spotted a dark crack in the mountainside: a cave, and one too narrow for a dragon to fit into. It would have to do.

  He arrowed down toward it, tilting his wings to avoid the trees, and then backwinged and landed in the snow in front of it. Emily leaped off his back and bolted for the cave. But just as he was about to take flight again, she turned around at the entrance.

  “Gabriel!” Emily shouted. “What are you doing? Change into a man! It can’t get us in here!”

  He shook his head, hoping she’d understand. Then he leaped into the air, ready to fight to save his mate.

  The dragon was spiraling down out of the sky, a black fragment of night against the clear blue sky. It was coming straight for the cave.