“Full moon? Really?” he frowned. “Is that myth real?”
“It is,” she sighed. “There’s more I need to discuss with you about who I am and about who you want to become.”
Booker worried about Aspen, but he knew her safety was secure. The black bears had made a truce with the Ward pack, and they’d admitted to a lot of things no one knew.
It was confirmed that they’d worked with the government to round up rogue wolves, but they were sent off to Colorado and Montana where alphas were there to basically rehabilitate them. There was a lot of information, and Booker kept up as best as he could.
The black bear clan was much bigger than the Ward pack had known. Isaac Duncan was grateful for the monetary help from the government, but they’d decided to sever their ties and move to their new home just on the edge of the Ward pack’s territory. At the time, they didn’t know the white wolves existed, but in the end, it was a good thing they’d found each other.
Aspen had talked animatedly about the presence of other white wolves in America, and she’d talked about how she wanted to meet them, but everyone knew that would most likely never happen. It was too dangerous for them to leave Nash and his leadership over them.
Without an alpha, they could perish, but Aspen had given him a bit of information that gave them hope. She was of alpha blood, and with that, she didn’t need her brother to survive. As much as she wanted to stay connected with her family, she really didn’t have to, and Booker sensed she was torn between moving to his cabin or asking him to stay at her cabin next to the terminal.
But why couldn’t they do both?
She’d said herself that she was training Isabell, Nash’s mate, to take over the office. It wouldn’t be a problem for Aspen and Booker to spend their time between the two locations. She needed to be there for them during the summer, and he had enough money to pay for her flights to and from work when she needed to be there. However, he doubted her family would make her pay for a flight.
So, why not?
He could see it working…if she was prepared to split her time. He’d talk to her when she arrived that night. They had plenty of time to discuss their future over the weekend. She had to return home for the full moon, and after a lengthy conversation, he understood that, too.
It was better if she stayed with her brothers during that time of the month anyway, because Booker didn’t know how to make sure the wolf didn’t stray too far, and since he was still human, it wasn’t his place to follow her all over the mountain range.
Regardless of their decision, he had to get his cabin prepared for the winter. And his task for the day was to cut some firewood.
There was an old field of standing dead trees about five miles from his cabin, and he made his plans to spend the day out there cutting wood for his home. By the time he was back, Aspen would be there, and they could take it easy for a few days until she had to return home.
He hooked up a sled to the back of his ATV and grabbed his saw along with food for lunch and a canteen full of water. He could get more by a small stream close to the spot where he would be spending the day.
Only, he didn’t make it that far.
About three miles from home, Booker came around a corner and didn’t see the massive moose barreling out of the forest. With the green overgrowth and overpowering sound of his machine, there was no time to stop before the animal collided with him, knocking the four-wheeler over, rolling it down an embankment.
The moment the machine stopped, he felt the pain in his chest, and it was then he knew he was in serious trouble. There was no one out there to help him. He was alone, and from the appearance of blood on his abdomen, he was fucked.
There wasn’t a lot of time to get himself back to his cabin, but it was the only way. If he had to crawl, he would. There was a sat phone in his ATV, but the machine was a broken, scattered mess down the small hill. One glance at the machine and he knew the phone wasn’t going to be easily found. His supplies were scattered everywhere.
The tall forest grass and vines covered the ground, and the phone was as dark as the dirt around it. Booker used his hands to pat the undergrowth, praying he could find his phone as the pain in his gut flared.
“Fuck, where is that phone?” he growled.
His mind went to Aspen, and he had to push that away. He wasn’t going to go down without a fight, and he sure as hell wasn’t going to die out there off the trail where she would find his body.
His body was weak, and his mind was covered in a fog. There were sounds around him, but with the loss of blood, he couldn’t tell if he was imagining the sounds of branches cracking. Was it a wolf? A bear? Natural ones or supernatural?
He blinked a few times as the sound of footsteps came closer. Sniffing and huffing.
His name was called, but that could’ve been his imagination. The warm blood leaking from his body was turning cold and sticky against his skin. Aspen’s name fell from his lips, but the sound was gone…and so was Booker.
Chapter 10
Aspen zipped up her backpack after double checking everything she’d packed for her trip to see Booker. She was ready to get on the plane to see him. Although their relationship was new, it’d moved fast. There was no doubt in her mind that she was deeply in love with her mate.
“Aspen!” Nash’s voice echoed through her cabin as the door flung open. Her heart stopped in her chest for a split second when her brother’s eyes were completely hazed over.
“What’s wrong?” She felt it…she knew it.
“I need you to get your things and get on the plane with Charlie,” he growled. “Booker has been hurt, and the bears found him.”
“What?” she cried. “What happened?”
“Come with me and I’ll explain,” he ordered, reaching for her hand. She grabbed her pack and ran with him toward the terminal.
“Isaac and his clan were on a run,” he began. “They smelled the blood miles away and knew it was human. They found him down an embankment. His ATV had crashed. He’s not in good shape.”
“No!” she screamed. “I have to go.”
The sound of Charlie’s plane firing up spurred her on. She hugged Nash for a split second before running toward her awaiting ride.
“I can’t leave here just yet, but Isaac will help you,” Nash promised as she ran.
Charlie had the back door to the plane already open, waiting for Aspen to arrive. She tossed in her pack and climbed in her seat, donning the headset as Charlie began to taxi out.
“What do you know?” Aspen asked.
The crackle of the communication with Isabell at the terminal paused her, but Charlie looked over as she gave Isabell the all clear to take off.
“Charlie?” Aspen pushed.
“The bears are with him, and his is alive, but barely,” Charlie said, fighting back tears. “I’m going to get you there as fast as I can.”
Aspen covered her face and cried softly. She didn’t have to ask for any more information, because she knew what she’d find there wasn’t going to be a simple injury.
“I’ll do everything I can to help him,” Charlie added.
“I know you will,” Aspen said as she tried to get her emotions in check.
Charlie was a trauma nurse for humans before giving it all up to become a full-time pilot with Ward Air & Transportation. She would be able to at least tell Aspen if Booker’s injuries would require medical attention in Anchorage, and thankfully, she could fly him to the hospital.
When they landed, she didn’t wait to grab her things, dropping out of her seat and running with every ounce of speed she could muster. The moment she approached the cabin, two of the clan were waiting outside. They stepped aside and allowed her to pass.
The moment she saw him, she cried out from his injuries. His body was bandaged, but that did nothing to keep the blood from coating the white sheets they’d torn up to use for first aid. He was on his couch with his eyes partially open. He moaned softly, but there was no reco
gnition of her arrival.
“What happened?” she snarled, her eyes pinning the clan leader.
“We were out on a run and scented the blood,” Isaac began. “We knew it was human and went to investigate. When we got within a mile or so, I realized it was Booker. His scent is strong, because it’s mixed with yours. We were able to bring him back here, but he’s in really bad shape, Aspen.”
“How bad?”
“You’re going to have to make a decision,” he pressed. “I don’t think he will make it to Anchorage.”
She dropped to her knees in front of the couch, touching the side of his face. He whispered her name and closed his eyes completely. The sound of his heart was faint, and she knew Isaac was right. Booker wasn’t going to make it much longer.
“I can change you into what I am,” Aspen hurried to say when Booker gasped from the pain. The males were keeping him stable as they waited for Charlie to get her medical bag from the plane. She might be able to help him, but the bleeding was getting worse.
“Booker?” Liam barked as he shook her mate when his head turned to the side and his eyes closed. He looked peaceful, and that scared Aspen. “Booker, hang on, man!”
“You’ve got to make a choice, Aspen,” the leader of the clan barked. “He’s losing too much blood, and I don’t think he’s going to make it to Anchorage.”
Aspen leaned over him when the bears moved away to give her space. Their gazes locked, and his beautiful blue eyes were fading. A sheen of death began to cover them, and she knew then and there that she couldn’t lose the male she loved. And she did love him…even more than her own life.
“Booker, you have to drink my blood until it starts hurting,” she hurried to say while she ripped at her sleeve to expose her skin. “Don’t stop until I tell you to.”
He gave her a short nod as his eyes closed again, but she was there to shake him back awake. The pain of her own bite to her wrist wasn’t even felt. She was only focused on Booker…not the bears…not the sound of them moving around the room…nothing.
Just Booker.
“I love you,” she cried as she pressed her wrist to his lips. When he didn’t swallow her blood, she begged, “Don’t leave me. Please. I need you here…I need you to drink my blood.”
His pulls on her wrist were weak at first. “You have to fight for me…us. Come on. Drink more.”
His body jerked, but he didn’t scream.
“Aspen!” Charlie gasped, dropping to her side. “What can I do?”
“I need a sedative,” she ordered, feeling her alpha powers rattling inside her body. Her own magic was stirring, and she wanted to raise her head to the sky and howl from the power of it. “He’s about to be in a lot of pain, Charlie. I hope you brought medicine with you.”
“I did,” Charlie promised. “It’s right here.”
“Get it ready,” Aspen said as she used her free hand to make a fist and rub on Booker’s sternum. “He’s going to start screaming any second.”
Charlie worked quickly to get the medicine from the vial into the syringe, and the bear clan made a protective barrier at the cabin door. A change was coming, and Booker would be vulnerable for a while. The bears were being protective, and Aspen wanted to cry from their respect.
The moment her blood took in his body, Booker’s head fell back and an unhuman sound ripped from his throat. Aspen wanted to comfort him, but she knew it was time for Charlie to inject him. “Charlie!”
“On it,” she replied and swabbed Booker’s arm, sticking him with the needle. She pushed the sedative in right as Booker’s body began to thrash. Charlie moved just in time to keep from being touched by a male that wasn’t her mate.
“Give it a few minutes,” Charlie urged. “Can we move him to a bed now?”
“We can,” Aspen replied, looking up to see the three clan members. They gave her a nod and waited for her to back away. As soon as she was clear, all three males knelt beside her mate. Each one took care with Booker as they lifted him as one, carrying him as if he weighed nothing.
“Where’s Nash and Mason?” Aspen fretted as she followed them with Charlie in tow.
“They’re less than ten minutes away,” Charlie said.
“Damn it!” she growled. “I don’t know what to do, Charlie.” All the emotions of seeing her mate broken and dying sent Aspen to her knees.
“Breath, Aspen,” Charlie cooed. “I don’t know what’s going to happen now. Your brothers will be here any minute. Booker is going to need you to be strong.”
The three bears laid Booker on the bed in the room she’d used the first time she had been there. His large body filled up the small bed, but it would be enough to keep him comfortable during the next few days.
“Have you ever turned a human?” Isaac Duncan, the bear alpha, asked.
“We turned a human female,” Aspen sniffled. “Our alpha’s mate was human. We didn’t know what to do, and we only had our memories of a story from my cousin’s husband. We’d already given her a sedative, and it worked throughout the three days she was going through the change. I don’t want my mate to be in pain.”
“Come,” Isaac ordered. Aspen narrowed her eyes at his bluntness but held her tongue. “I hear your brother’s plane. We need to talk to you and Nash. I’ll leave one of my brothers here to watch over your mate.”
“I don’t want to leave him,” she replied. A foreign feeling bubbled up inside her chest. The magic that made her who she was built so quickly, she was sure she would go feral from it. “He’s my mate!”
“Aspen,” Nash barked from the doorway. Her brother’s voice shocked her, and she felt a little of his calming powers, but it wasn’t enough. It wasn’t enough to stop the need to protect her mate while he was in distress.
“Aspen, you must stay calm,” Mason called out, pushing past the bears to come closer. She saw the leader whisper something to Nash and back out of the cabin.
“What’s going on, Nash?” she asked, feeling her canines thicken in her mouth.
Nash lifted his chin, relaxing his pose…but it was all a ruse. The moment Booker started screaming, Mason was on her, taking her to the ground.
“You’re going feral over your mate being in pain, Aspen,” Mason snarled in her ear. “Your alpha powers are stronger than Nash’s right now, and he can’t calm you. You’re going to have to dig down deep and control yourself, or Charlie will sedate you.”
“No!” she screamed, fighting her own brother. Nash was there to hold her to the ground, but it was Charlie who came to her mate’s side.
“I’m sorry, Aspen,” she whispered as the needle entered the back of her arm.
Booker opened his eyes, seeing the room in a hazy yellow. He blinked a few times to clear his vision, but instead, he felt his mind being pushed by something wild.
“Booker, it’s going to be okay,” Aspen whispered as she touched his snout.
Snout?
“I don’t know how much you remember, but you were dying,” she began, leaning as close as she could. “I changed you into a wolf to heal you. It’s going to be a little strange until you get used to it, but I need you to listen to what I tell you to change back.”
Change back?
Her words were clear, and as he looked at the white fur on what should’ve been his arms and legs, Booker realized that she really had done as she said. He was a wolf, and he was…happy. Being the same as Aspen meant they could have a true life together. She was his mate, and the animal taking up space in his mind rumbled from the realization.
“You need to use your human mind to push the animal one away,” she ordered, and he felt a push of power…like she was controlling him. Was this the alpha genes she had told him about? “Tell your wolf to make you human again. I need to see you are okay.”
He understood her every word, even though he couldn’t speak to her. With her instructions, he dug down deep, thinking hard about his human body. The pain started in his joints when the wolf’s mind gave up and allowed
the human side to take over. He moaned softly as his body reformed, taking on the shape of his former self.
“Hi,” she breathed when he curled in on himself. “I know it hurt, but it won’t the next time.”
“What happened?”
“You lost control of your ATV, and the bears scented your blood,” she cried, stroking the side of his face. Her touch was magical, and he closed his eyes to just feel their connection. His teeth ached again, and he used his tongue to touch the sharp points of his canines. There was a desire there to take her into the bed and mark her.
“You were there,” he remembered. “You and Charlie.”
“Yes,” she nodded. “We were with you the entire time. Nash and Mason came soon after.”
“Come here,” he ordered, reaching up to cup her face. “I need you, Aspen.”
“Are you sure?” she asked, pulling back just the slightest when he gave her a moment to take a breath. “Your body has been through a lot.”
“I’ve waited long enough to complete this mating,” he growled. “I’m a wolf now, and I understand it more than ever. We are mated, and I would give my life for yours. Now, I feel my wolf stirring. He wants to make it complete.”
“I do, too,” she said with a smile.
His cock twitched when she lifted her shirt over her head. They were in the small bedroom downstairs at his cabin, and he listened for the sound of anything that might be a threat to him or his mate, and when he found none, he rolled her over on her stomach.
“I’m going to fuck you and bite you now, Aspen,” he promised, knowing exactly what was required. The new wolf that lived inside him instructed him on what needed to be done.
“Please, Booker,” she begged. “I’ve waited forever for this moment.”
When he wrapped his hand into her long, brown hair, pulling her up so her back met his chest, he used his tongue to lick the spot where he would mark her. She shivered and moaned when he wrapped his arm around her waist, anchoring her body against his.
Her Protective Mate (The Ward Wolf Pack Novella Series, Book 3) Page 6
