Lily took her time stretching her body out on a thick bed of twigs and leaves. The sun was shining as the forest came to life around her. She closed her eyes and opened her senses. Forty feet away she scented a chipmunk digging in the ground hiding his stash of nuts. Overhead, birds sang welcoming the dawn, while her visitors remained a respectable distance away, having learned the penalty for coming too close.
Momentarily distracted by the moth hovering overhead, she swatted at it with her front paws before standing up on her four legs. Perhaps she’d take a swim in the lake today or venture over to the Northern Ridge to do a bit of hunting. Whatever she chose made no difference as one day blurred into the next in a never-ending cycle. Life was simpler this way. She and her wolf liked her newfound freedom, and had no interest in the affairs of the world around her.
With a quick shake, she dislodged any remaining leaves from her fur and plodded to the opening of her cave. It wasn’t so bad, living like this. If given the choice, this was where she would stay. Looking off into the distance, she noted Marcus and Aldric at their post on the ridge overlooking her valley.
Lily had only been gone a few hours before the Black Ridge pack began looking for her. After their initial attempts to convince her to return to the pack house, they’d decided on a wait-and-see kind of approach. Little did they know, Lily did not intend to ever return to her human life.
Her paws swiftly carried her over the uneven ground, as she dodged trees, fallen logs and rocks in her way. The wind ran its warm fingers through her fur as the sun guided her. Her trailing party made noise to alert her that they were a couple yards back pacing her, but never coming any closer. Of course, it wasn’t exactly as if Lily had welcomed their visits, growling whenever someone came too close, but they kept coming back. She wondered when they would finally understand there was no life for her to return to.
Increasing her speed, she tried to lengthen the distance between them, but to no avail. Why would the alpha bother? Sure, send out a warrior or two. But to come himself and bring Marcus, Jensgar’s son, along was disconcerting. Why wouldn’t the pack leave her alone? It wasn’t as if she were a viable omega anymore. True, she still had her gifts, but she wouldn’t be sharing them with anyone.
The lake gleamed and sparkled in the distance calling her forward and leaving her thoughts where they belonged, behind her.
***
Jensgar sat in shock as the word raged through his mind: feral. It stabbed at his heart and took his ability to speak as he stared at the occupants of the office. Dedric, Laura, Helena and his daughter, Amalia, all sat waiting for him to respond to the news that the woman he’d lost his heart to had turned feral and retreated into the forest.
“General,” Helena called him back to the room. “We need your help.”
Before he could answer, Ceva stormed through the door and declared, “If you don’t help us save Lily, I swear to all that is holy that I’ll turn you into the fungus that feeds on the cow dung in the pastures.”
Jensgar stood to face off with the white witch, but Laura placed herself between the two of them. He and Ceva had known each other for hundreds of years, since he took his position as the General of King Leonidas’s army. But, apparently all that history of camaraderie and saving each other’s hides now counted for squat. He didn’t want to fight Ceva or anyone else. He needed information so he could understand, and then solve the problem. General, think.
“Is she hurt? Is she safe? Is she eating? Does she even have shelter?” Jensgar asked, unable to hide his concern and need from everyone in the room. He didn’t care. His only concern was that he had to get to Lily. “Take me to her.”
Ceva took a few steps back. The scent of her anger began to fade, leaving only confusion. “You rejected her.”
Jensgar didn’t miss the venom in her tone, but it had dropped a couple of notches down from a few moments earlier. “I had to. It’s my duty to protect Lily even from herself. I am no mate to an omega. She deserves better.”
Amalia rounded Dedric’s large, ornately decorated desk. “Father, you wanted Lily as your mate?”
Jensgar couldn’t lie to his daughter, and only hoped she’d understood. “Yes.”
Amalia stood silent, staring at him for a few moments. He wasn’t sure what his daughter was looking for in his eyes, but he waited for her condemnation. He figured she would see his desire to take a new mate as a betrayal to the memory of her mother.
What he got certainly wasn’t anywhere near what he’d expected. Amalia shoved Jensgar in the chest without moving him before asking, “Then why the hell did you send her away?”
“Because it was the best option for her and her future. Can’t you see that?” How was everyone but him blind to this?
“All I see,” Amalia shouted, “is my father behaving as if he were the god Fenrir himself.” That came out of nowhere, leaving Jensgar a bit shocked. She had always been calm and respectful. Now her hands were slicing through the air like knives as she yelled, making Jensgar thankful she didn’t have real blades. “You believe you know what is best for another person? You have the ability to see the future? You know of the gods’ plans?”
“Don’t you see there are no ‘plans’ for me? I’m a middle-aged wolf shifter that has lived a good life. I count myself lucky for the blessings I received the first time. I have no right to ask for more. I am neither an alpha nor a landowner. All I have to offer is a life filled with work and responsibilities. A life I would never subject Lily to. As an omega, Lily deserves to care for her own pack where she could help so many more shifters than she could if she was shackled to me. And given the wonderful person she truly is, Lily deserves much finer things than I can provide for her.”
Jensgar hadn’t realized how loud his voice had gotten until he too was pretty much yelling. He felt sure his voice has carried and that the pack heard him outside the walls of this office. His frustration and concern was getting the best of him. How could they not see that everything he’d said was the absolute truth? “Now will someone teleport me to that damn forest? Lily needs me.”
No one moved. All of them staring at him as if he’d grown a second head. This certainly wasn’t fast enough for his liking. “Let’s move.” He used his well-honed general’s bite. If that’s what they needed to get moving, he was more than happy to put that helmet back on.
Ceva stepped forward and grabbed him by one arm and Amalia by the other. “Hold on tight, lover boy.”
The room swirled, causing his stomach to do the same but Ceva was giving him what he’d asked for, even if it seemed to be taking longer than usual. When the winds finally receded, he could see the Black Ridge pack house directly in front of him. He tore his shirt over his head in preparation for his shift when his former charge, Helena, stopped him. Jensgar had been the head of the princess’s royal guard since she was a young child.
“My general.” She touched his arm. “My friend. You’ve spent your entire life in the service of others. It’s time you did something for you. And for her. You deserve the love Lily is offering.”
Amalia jumped into his arms, giving him a strong hug before saying, “Mom would have been happy for you. It’s been over one hundred years. It’s time. Marcus and I don’t want you to be alone for the next six hundred. Your heart is big enough to love us all.”
Jensgar held her tight, letting her words sink in. Did he deserve the right to have more? Is this part of the gods’ plans? He’d never have the answers until he took the first step.
“That is if Lily even accepts him back,” Ceva stated. “She’s been in the forest for over two months living as a wolf. There’s a good chance she might not shift back to human.” Ceva looked up into the sky before continuing. “Don’t go near her if you are still undecided about what it is you want, Jensgar. It will only drive her deeper into her wolf.”
True to her nature, Ceva wasn’t pulling any punches, and he respected her for it. The powerful white witch was watching out for Lily’s best interests, as he thought he’d been doing when he sent her away. He still had nothing to offer her, but, it seemed, it no longer mattered. The only thing of importance was convincing Lily to shift back to human.
He’d deal with the rest as it came.
“I will bring her back.”
“And after that?” Ceva growled.
“After that, it’s up to Lily. Obviously, I’ve been making decisions for her long enough. If she’ll still have me, we will return to the Newton pack together.” Jensgar wasn’t going to bare his heart to anyone other than Lily. Therefore, that was as good as they were going to get. If they wanted heartfelt reassurances, they were looking to the wrong man.
Jensgar didn’t wait for anyone’s response, he simply walked into the forest and shifted, tearing his remaining clothing to shreds. His wolf was larger than average but that still didn’t make him an alpha. And he no longer cared. If Lily gave him a second chance, he’d never question the wisdom of accepting her love again.
His wolf cheered at the declaration, happy his human half had finally caught up with the rest of him. Jensgar had known his wolf had claimed Lily, but his human side, his rational side, hadn’t been ready to accept a claim he thought he had no right to. Honestly, he wasn’t sure he would ever have a right to Lily, but there was no doubt, she was his, if he wasn’t too late.
The trail leading away from the pack house was marked with multiple scents, including Lily’s delicate floral one. He increased his pace until he was flat-out running in his mate’s direction. Yes, as stupid as he had been, he knew in his heart she was his mate. He’d no longer fight it. The further he travelled, the more concerned he became. Lily had taken herself a fair distance from the safety of the pack, signifying she’d intended not to return to Black Ridge.
Another slice to his already bruised and bleeding heart. He’d caused her immeasurable pain in his effort to protect her. He’d been a fool for not listening to his heart, and he hoped the damage was reversible.
Eventually, he broke through the trees and ran into a small valley he recognized from prior security checks when he belonged to the Black Ridge pack. Movement on a parallel ridge immediately caught his attention and he zeroed in on it. He recognized Alpha Aldric’s wolf as well as Jensgar’s son, Marcus. It made him proud to know that his son had been part of keeping Lily safe.
The three wolves regarded each other from a distance before the other two turned and ran into the forest. Jensgar presumed they were returning to the pack. He was thankful for all the people watching out for his mate when his dumb ass dropped the ball.
The sun was setting and he was running out of time to find Lily in the daylight when it was less likely he’d surprise her. Of course, she would scent his approach, but if she didn’t want to see him, he didn’t relish chasing her. He wanted to give her a lot of distance to get used to his presence before moving in closer. Following her scent, he tracked her to what appeared to be a series of small caves. Had Lily been living in one of them? Her angry growl was his answer.
Jensgar froze to the spot checking and rechecking the thick foliage around him. How had he not realized that this small section of the valley was lusher than the rest? Obviously, Lily’s magic was working on the plants in the area, creating large blooms and thick green leaves. It was gorgeous, but frustrating. It limited his ability to scan the area for his mate.
A second growl sounded, helping him to narrow down the spot until he finally caught sight of her omega jewel flashing in an array of colors. None of which were happy and bright.
Lily was pissed and Jensgar couldn’t blame her. He lowered himself to the ground, indicating he would submit to her will. With her wolf already agitated, he didn’t want to appear to be a threat.
Her blue eyes shone bright against her pure white coat as she inched out of her canopy of green. He lowered his head to his paws, hoping she would come closer, but she stopped several yards away.
As they remained unmoving staring at one another, he desperately wished he could hear what was running through her mind.
Then again, perhaps he didn’t want to know.
***
What for the love of the gods is he doing here? Lily wondered whether this would be the final nail in the coffin of her humanity. She hadn’t completely given up the idea of shifting back, but now that he was here, her wolf was running the show, and she was more than happy to allow it. Her wolf saw things more cut and dried than her human side. Case in point: love, betrayal, pain, anger, and joy warred for supremacy inside her broken heart. Her human side would’ve tilted in favor of love and joy.
Her wolf went with anger.
She growled deeply, flashing her long, sharp canines to get her point across. Jensgar wasn’t welcome here. Over the past couple months she’d carved a new life for herself in the forest. Sure, it was cold at times, and lonely, but it was hers, and no one was going to take it from her. She’d lost her entire family, her home, and the man she’d chosen as her mate.
She would lose no more.
If he’d come here to convince her to shift back and return to Black Ridge he was sorely mistaken. She refused to go through that pain again. With her decision made, she charged forward, claws and teeth bared. This was her home and she’d defend it, mate or not.
As she moved, Jensgar stood and retreated further back into the forest before she could even get near enough to attack. Would she have if he hadn’t gone? Honestly, Lily wasn’t sure. All she knew was that he had to stay away, and she would make certain that happened by any means possible.
Once he was out of sight, Lily returned to her cave assured that she’d gotten her point across. However, that still didn’t answer the question of why he’d come here in the first place. He’d made his choice and she’d been the one forced to live with it.
Lily would never allow her happiness to be dependent on someone else ever again.