“We’ll deal with it if the time comes,” I said, trying to comfort him. It was difficult to do anything when all I wanted was for that phone to ring. Once it did, I’d go and pick her up, bring her back here and introduce her to Aster. Then we’d take her to Jonas’s and make sure she was situated in her cabin. Then…
Then what?
Shifters didn’t often get married, at least not officially. We just…mated. We connected and we claimed each other and the rest became history.
Would she hate us? Would she be upset with how this whole thing went down? I debated on flying out there to meet her first, but…a part of me worried that I’d click with her instantly and want to selfishly keep her for myself. If I did that, my brother never had any hope of mating with another shifter or having a cub of his own. And I think Jonas would’ve killed me, if I did that.
Aster’s mouth thinned, and he wondered aloud, “Do you think she’ll be pretty?”
I managed to laugh, although it came out sounding anxious. “I think so, yeah.” Shifters were usually in their own league, or maybe that was just our inner animals connecting. My brother and I were like supermodels compared to the rest of Fairbanks, and Jonas was in his own league entirely.
“I feel like getting sick,” Aster spoke, tossing me a frown.
“If you get sick,” I warned, “you better clean it up before she gets here.”
He nodded. Aster was obviously freaking out, and I didn’t blame him. This was the start of something new, something different. Once Holly got here, it was the beginning of the rest of our lives. Things were going to change, but hopefully for the better.
With any luck, Holly wouldn’t hate us.
I was about to say something more when the phone rang. I practically tripped on the chair as I hurried to stand and grab it. It was an old phone, not like the ones you saw on TV these days. We didn’t have caller-id, but I knew in my gut it was him.
She was here.
Lenny’s voice spoke through the phone, “Just landed.”
“Everything went okay?” I asked, knowing that if something had gone wrong, I would’ve heard it about it already. Maybe my brother’s nerves were getting to me. Maybe I wanted to be sick, too…
“Yes, everything went great. Miss Wyland is here and anxious for you to pick her up.”
“I’ll be there soon,” I said, hanging up. I glanced to Aster. “Well, I guess I’m going to get her. I’ll, uh, be back in a few.”
Aster nodded, not saying anything as he watched me grab my coat and head out the door before throwing it on. The bitter air hardly bothered me, but I put the jacket on anyway. It was easier to blend into human society than to display our differences all the time. Fewer questions that way.
I got into my four-wheel-drive SUV after trudging through the snow, starting it up.
Oh, yeah. I definitely wanted to be sick.
Chapter Three – Holly
Once we landed, the pilot, who I learned was named Lenny, conducted a post-flight inspection. I waited in the plane, not wanting to step outside. The world I was about to walk into, the one I had to live in forever, was full of snow and grey skies. And cold, because in order for you to have snow leopards, apparently there had to be snow.
Stupid, because I’d lived in a warm climate my whole life and I was fine.
Then again, I wasn’t a fully woken shifter, but still. I assumed what was cold would always be cold to me.
I had to put on gloves a little while back, and I rubbed my hands together, wishing I’d brought a warmer jacket. I didn’t have one of those heavy, puffy things. My winter jacket consisted of no padding at all. It was basically a windbreaker, which wouldn’t really help to keep any of the cold out.
I trembled a bit, but I didn’t think it was because of the cold seeping in through the plane’s windows. I was nervous, and I didn’t think anyone would blame me. I was about to meet my future, about to discover whether my future would be a nice, happy place or a dark and gloomy thing.
I really, really hoped it would be the former. Living the rest of my life while miserable and popping out shifter baby after shifter baby didn’t sound too appealing to me.
It was going to be up to them, I guess. My mates. I was here now, and I refused to take the selfish way out of this. I couldn’t run. All of this was for Lumi. If I had to be miserable for the rest of my life, I’d be miserable knowing she was taken care of. My mates had already sent a check to my parents, so I knew they were good for their word.
It was at least twenty minutes before Lenny poked his head through the small door on the side of the plane, giving me a warm smile beneath his thick, greying mustache. He wore a big wool hat on his head, along with a coat that put mine to shame. “Your cousin is here.”
Cousin? Okay, so that was our story. Huh. Interesting…did that mean I’d never be able to leave their house? If I never left their house, if I was locked away like a breeding mule, they wouldn’t have to worry about the humans of Fairbanks seeing us together.
Didn’t bode well for me, in my opinion. But maybe I was wrong. At this point, everything was up in the air.
I got up. Lenny had already grabbed my luggage—there wasn’t much, I’d packed pretty light, not knowing what I’d need—and had it sitting just outside the plane on the ground. The landing area was plowed, the snow pushed off to the sides. The sky was a light grey above me as I carefully stepped out of the plane, moving down the few steps until my feet hit the pavement below.
I shivered instantly, feeling cold.
“Don’t worry, Miss,” Lenny spoke, standing near his plane. “I’m sure Nik’ll take you to get a proper coat.” He let out a laugh. “You won’t last long in Fairbanks wearing that.”
I shivered again, thinking, no crap. And then I looked up, met eyes with the man standing fifteen feet from me. He stood near a big black car, and I could feel my heart practically stop. Even bundled up in his jacket, he was cute.
No, not just cute, but handsome. Cute referred to boys, but the male shifter across from me was definitely a man. A man that was my mate. One of them, anyway.
His hair was so blonde it was practically white, and his eyes were the clearest, cleanest blue. Bluer than mine, even. His face was clean-cut, his jaw square and his cheekbones pronounced just right. Everything about him was just right, actually.
The moment our gazes locked, he strode over to me, and the closer he got, the less cold I felt. Maybe it was my body heating up under his stare, or maybe it was something else. This was all new to me, and I didn’t have my parents around to guide me. I had to go on instinct, here—and my instinct said: me likey.
“Holly,” he said, his voice smoothing over me like honey. Warm, welcoming, sweet and inviting.
Oh, no. If I felt drawn to him this much before my leopard was awakened, how badly would I need him afterward?
Lenny stared at us, flicking his gaze back and forth between us as if he expected us to hug or something. Right. We were cousins. We knew each other, at least supposedly. He must’ve sensed he was only making things more awkward, for he leaped to my luggage, saying, “I’ll give you guys some help with this.” He grabbed two, rolling them to the back of the shifter’s car.
“Hi,” I said, sounding meek.
“Hi,” he said, not saying anything else. As Lenny packed the car’s trunk, we simply stared at each other, as if wordlessly daring the other to say more. He was the one who relented first, lifting a hand and gesturing to his vehicle. “Shall we?”
I nodded, biting my lower lip. As I did so, his gaze fell to my mouth, and I looked away.
This was not at all how I expected our first meeting to go. He didn’t seem bad, but then again, Lenny was human. He couldn’t go all dominant and controlling when Lenny was around. The true test would be when we got to his home.
I walked with him to the passenger’s side, and I was about to reach for the door, but the man stunned me by moving around me and grabbing the handle. He opened the door for me
, like he was some kind of gentleman. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say he was just as nervous as me. I…I thought it was kind of cute.
Hah. There went that word again, flying around all willy-nilly.
“Thank you,” I murmured, glancing at him before getting in. When our gazes met, I felt my cheeks flush. This man was probably the most handsome man I’d ever seen, and that included all the actors in the movies.
He shut the door, and through the rearview mirror, I saw him thank Lenny after he finished setting my bags in the backseat. He handed Lenny something from his pocket, a check, maybe, and I watched the shifter wave to him before heading to the driver’s seat. He got in, putting on his seatbelt before glancing at me.
“I’m Nikolas, by the way,” he said.
“Nikolas,” I repeated. “I’m…well, you already know who I am.” Duh. God, if I could hit rewind, I would totally erase what I just said. I didn’t want him thinking I was stupid—or maybe he didn’t care. Maybe he was just going to bend me over the bed when we got back to his house. Maybe he didn’t care at all what kind of person I was.
Because I was. A person, I mean. I wasn’t just a womb.
He gave me a smile, reaching over to me. He set a hand on my knee, and it took every ounce of self-restraint to not either pull away or crawl closer to him. I was a mixed bag of emotions right now; I didn’t expect to feel so drawn to him so quickly.
“I’m glad you’re finally here,” he said, his smile revealing perfect white teeth. He noticed my shivering body—and I had no idea if it was because he was touching me or because it was so ungodly cold outside—so he added, “Are you cold? Let me turn up the heat.” The hand on my knee left to adjust the temperature in the car, and then he started driving.
Thankfully, he drove with his right hand and leaned his left near the window. No more hands on knees. At least, not right now.
“You’ll get used to the cold,” Nikolas was busy saying as he drove us to the road. “I hardly feel it anymore.” His blue eyes darted to me. Just a quick, rapid look, but it made me squirm in my seat all the same. “Maybe once you shift. You haven’t, right?”
I shook my head. “No, I haven’t shifted yet.”
Nikolas nodded, as if he already knew. I suppose he did, it was just another way he could make me his. Theirs, technically. I was actually surprised the others didn’t come with him. So surprised that I had to say something.
“Where are the others?” I asked, my eyes on the snowy world around me. In spite of the cold and the snow, Fairbanks was a city with its own people, its own stores and houses. This was my home now, I might as well forget the warm weather now.
“We, uh, didn’t want to overload you,” Nikolas spoke. “You’re going to meet my brother next, then Jonas.” A pause before adding, “We figured to introduce you to us slowly. This is new for all of us.”
“Thank you,” I said. “I appreciate that.” It was so difficult for me to picture myself with the man beside me. Not because I didn’t find him attractive—I definitely did—but submitting to him, giving up my freewill, just didn’t sound like a happy life.
I had to do it for Lumi.
Nikolas’s house sat away from the city, half a mile off the road. As he turned into the driveway, he shot me a gentle smile. “Welcome to Fairbanks, Holly.”
Welcome to Fairbanks, welcome to the rest of your life.
Chapter Four – Aster
I heard them rolling up before they even got out of the car. I was pacing the living room, my boots dragging along the area rug. So many different thoughts fought to surface in my head, and I did my best to push them all back. I would not lose myself to worry or anxiety right now. Today was supposed to be a happy day, an exciting day. Today was supposed to be all about our mate.
Still, when I heard the car door shut, I froze and turned to face the door. Should I go open it? Should I be sitting down? Should I take off my shoes and look comfortable? What if she didn’t like me? I knew Nik had said sometimes the animal inside took over, but I didn’t think I could ever be like that. I didn’t want to be like that. I wanted to care for her, and I wanted her to care for me. That wasn’t so wrong, was it?
I spent so long worrying and lost in indecision that by the time I’d made up my mind to head to the door and open it for them, it was too late. The door swung open, and Nik stepped in, followed shortly by Holly herself.
She was small, maybe five foot three, and petite. My first thought, other than the obvious holy shit, she’s gorgeous, was that Jonas was going to break her.
She really was gorgeous, though. Her eyes were a deep azure, her skin without a blemish. She was tan too, which meant she’d come from someplace warm. Her hair was a natural blonde, ashy and without any traces of yellow. She put the word pretty to shame.
Nik went to close the door behind her, and Holly rubbed her gloved hands together, sluggishly meeting my gaze. The moment our gazes met, I felt myself fall for her right then and there. Some people didn’t believe in love at first sight, but I did. I was a lovestruck fool the moment those gorgeous baby blues looked at me, and I knew I would do anything for her. Anything and everything.
“Holly,” Nik spoke, the more eloquent one currently. Mostly because my inner leopard had my tongue and refused to let it go. If I tried talking right now, I knew I’d sound like an idiot—and that was so not the first impression I wanted her to have. “This is my brother, Aster.”
I noted her blushing cheeks, and she mustered up enough courage to say, “It’s good to meet you, Aster.”
God, I wanted to wrap her in my arms and protect her from everything.
Nik met my eyes, and the bastard thought it was smart to say, “Would you like anything to eat? I’m sure it was a long flight. Aster’s a pretty good cook.”
I was, but I knew I’d fuck it all up if she watched me do it. I had the feeling I’d fuck anything up if those amazing eyes were on me. Simply being in her presence, even though she was at least ten feet away from me, was intoxicating. How the hell was I ever supposed to have a lucid thought again?
“I am a bit hungry,” she said, sounding sheepish. She currently had gum in her mouth. “I…didn’t feel well enough to eat this morning.” Holly reached up, pulled off her gloves, and then ran a hand through her hair, messing up its lengths.
I wasn’t the only one enraptured. Nik was, too.
“Nervous?” Nik asked, and Holly nodded meekly. He touched her arm, and I instantly was jealous that he could touch her so freely. “Come on, have a seat. Anything we have is yours.” As he guided her to the couch, he shot me a look. I knew what that look meant: make her food, now. Our woman is hungry and it’s up to us to make sure she’s properly fed.
Jonas sure as shit wasn’t going to do it, so it was up to us.
It was a good thing I’d taken the next few days off, I think. Nik had done the same. We both worked at the local bar. We weren’t managers, but our regulars gave us decent enough tips. Plus, around here, the humans needed the booze to warm themselves up, and the cost of living wasn’t too high. We managed, and we’d continue to manage, even while sending money to Holly’s family.
I went into the kitchen, flipping on the light. I didn’t want to make an elaborate meal—maybe tomorrow night—so for now I settled for something simple and quick: pasta. It wasn’t the meal of kings, but it was enough for her to fill up her stomach and get her energy back.
Once the food was done, I arranged it for her on a plate, slapped some heated-up sauce on it, and brought it out for her. She sat on the couch while Nik sat on the recliner beside the couch. He could not keep his eyes off her, and quite frankly, neither could I.
She was literally the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen. The most gorgeous creature to ever walk this earth. Holly was everything.
“Thank you,” she said.
“Something to drink,” Nik reminded me, and I went to get her some water. I could’ve offered to make her some other beverage, but if she hadn’t
eaten today, she needed to replenish herself, and water was the best for that.
Holly smiled at me as I set down a glass of water before her, her blonde hair falling into her face as she began to eat. I stood there, staring at her for a minute or two, but Nik shot me a look that told me I was being a tad overbearing.
Right.
I sat on the couch near her, though I left a cushion between us. I wanted to sit right beside her, feel her leg touch mine, but I didn’t want to push her, didn’t want to frighten her off. Granted, at this point she had nowhere else to go, but still.
“How are you feeling?” Nik asked. He was leaning on his knees, eager to hear her response.
Her voice was entrancing, melodic and sweet when she replied, “Nervous.” Holly tucked some of her hair behind her ear, glancing at Nik and then at me. “Where’s the third? My other…” She gulped, as if speaking the word was the hardest thing she ever had to do. “…mate?”
Of course she wanted to know about her other mate. I couldn’t blame her, but at the same time, that brute didn’t deserve her. Hell, if anyone was going to lose control, it was going to be him. The bastard took on a grizzly with his bare claws for fun. Who the hell did that? Everyone in town knew to steer clear of him, and his intimidating height and stare stopped anyone else from trying.
We had to be nice to Holly, lest she start to think we were like Jonas. We were not like Jonas, even if we all shared the same species of shifter.
“His name is Jonas,” Nik started. “And he lives in his own house. We’re going to take you to him in a bit. We just wanted you to acclimate to us before you met him.”
Holly set her fork down, her back straightening as she asked, “Why?”
Promised to the Pride: A Shifter Romance Page 2
