4 comments/ 15262 views/ 18 favorites Into the Woods Ch. 03 By: vividcolours With every step I feel the wanting, the desire for her running through my blood like an extra heart beat. It drives deeper than the pain, than hunger. I hide the backpack in the collapsing carriage house and drop a couple two by fours over top to hide the colour. Shifting on our porch I pull on my jeans before she opens the door. "You're in big trouble," Claire says her eyes scrunched up with glee. "Getting better at that," I say nodding to her fiddle. "Really?" "Yeah, it only sounds like one cat being skinned instead of three." "Asshat!" she yells at the same time I hear, "Jax! Where have you, oh my God! It was him wasn't it?" "Yeah," I say wincing in pain picking up my shirt. "Don't put that on yet, wait until your father hears about this." She takes my uninjured arm and steers me into the kitchen. "That man is terrorizing this pack and we won't let him get away with it any longer," my mom says snapping a towel off the rack and knotting it around my arm. The blood has already made a large puddle on the floor. Drip, drip drop; there's my life slipping away, or it would be if I wasn't a shifter. "I want to know exactly what happened," my father says sitting across from me. He's even called the alpha of the pack over. I quickly glance at Dominic and then away. I'm a fair size for a shifter and big by human standards but Dominic's got to have four inches and sixty pounds of muscle on me. The guy looks superhuman and he'd definitely stand out on a supply run not too mention the fact he's the pack's alpha. My lie is going to need to be airtight. "I had a cow on the chase when I caught a human scent." Might as well stay as close to the truth as possible. "Humans? This far out?" My mother says pulling on her hair. "Hikers. Yeah. I followed to see what they were up to, in case they were poachers or..." I let the sentence trail off. Our family's lived here a long time and there's always been the threat of exposure from a particular brand of hunter. Cops, park rangers and developers we can deal with or at least bribe, these guys, the Cavars have a bug under their skin about us. Can't seem to leave well enough alone. "And was it him?" Dominic asks. "No, just three hikers." "Where's the hunter come in Jax?" my father asks. I can't tell if he's more pissed that I went and got myself shot or that humans were so close to seeing me. "I was following the hikers to make sure they didn't find anything they shouldn't, he must have been out hunting or something." "So he just started shooting at you?" Dominic leans forward. "Did he see you first?" "Must have," I shrug. Enough of this shit, I want them to leave me alone so I can search that bag. Even now the smell of it, of her is still in my nose. Surprised they don't smell her on me. "Where did you first smell the humans?" the alpha asks. "I was up on the ridge, by Slough Lake." "Did they see you?" "No, I don't think so." "What'd they do when they heard the gunshots?" "They ran. I lost the hunter back at the lake and unless he can track through water I didn't lead him here." Would it make me juvenile if I asked "Can I go now?" Their conversation fades out, "Think we dodged a bullet this time Dominic." "Nothing we can't handle. Now we take extra precautions, no hunting except in pack land. Take care of that arm Jax." "Yeah thanks, I will." By nightfall my arm has almost healed, the bullet totally dissolved. Thank you hyper active white blood cells. My mom's been fusing over me all night and frankly after 79 years you'd think I'd have learned to take care of myself. All I want to do is search that bag. A name, just to know her name. She looks like she'd have a feminine name. Lily, Violet, something delicate. "I think I'm going to bed," I tell her mid sentence and drag myself up the stairs. Shifters may heal fast, but it takes a toll, there's a definite recharge period afterwards. Outside the fall rains have started and I open my window to let in the cool air. I breathe deep and wonder where she is right now. What she's doing? Is she home? Who are you? Who are you and why did you cross my path? I wake later in the night, my face and shirt damp from the rain coming in the window. Shutting it I creep to my door and open it a crack. All the lights downstairs are off. Perfect. In the rain I want to shift like you want to stand and stretch after you've been sitting for hours on end but it's an itch I can't scratch right now. Heading out I keep an eye on the house for any lights, and within seconds I'm drenched, my shoes squelching in the mud. Finally, the bag. It only takes a second to calculate the risk of bringing it inside or standing out here in the rain. Having a human's possession caught in mine is a serious pack no-no. They won't find it, it's not like my mom cleans my closet. Back in the dry comfort of my room I set the bag on my floor like it's some kind of holy grail. I unzip it and open it wide. On top is a bagel sandwich in a zip-lock. Looks edible enough I think setting it aside for later. More food, bottles of water, a bunched up coat, a bag of clothes, a sleeping bag and some camping gear. Still no id. I rifle through the pockets and pull out a notebook and pen. Fuck, this ain't looking good. Not even a cell phone. Maybe she had her wallet and phone in her pockets? I think back trying to remember what she was wearing but all I can think about is that wet sweater. Jeans? Yoga pants? I search all the pockets of the bag again and reach into the bottom. Nothing. Dammit. I shove it all in except the notebook and stuff it into the back of my closet behind old sports equipment. Her writing is damn near illegible. It's a book of sketches and the only writing throughout the whole thing is the messy signatures at the bottom of each drawing. No if lost return to so and so at this address. I toss it back under my bed. Dammit. If I close my eyes I can still feel her, the dampness of her clothing pressed to my stomach, the way she shivered and didn't pull away when I held her tighter. And her smell. God, the thing that started it all. Flowers, girly soap and that undeniable female scent she carried on her skin and hair. Others had something similar sure, but there was just some kind of magnet between us. I wanted her like nothing else. I picked up a shirt and crushed it to my face. God no. This is wrong. Something is very wrong here. I fling the shirt away. What am I thinking? Shifters and humans? Who thought of this sick cosmic joke; not to mention it's forbidden, completely forbidden. Shifters and humans have no more contact between them than strictly necessary. The first time I even saw one was on a supply run. Freaked me right out. Waifish beings drifting around, ugly and frail. If they even found out I'd exposed myself to them let alone saved one -- I'd be in my own one man pack. The bad blood between us runs long and deep. But. But that scent, the nose doesn't lie, and I smelled a mate. It doesn't matter, nothing matters, rules don't apply to this. Stop thinking Jax and just find her. I pull the coat off the floor and press it to my face, inhaling her scent. No way could I forget it, I'll be able to find her if she's in a 100 foot radius. I begin stuffing it in the bag when my hand brushes a bulge. God, the pockets. I didn't check any of her pockets on her clothes. Jackpot. I pull out a wallet and a cell phone. Thank the Gods. I touch the phone and a screen with dots in a grid appear. I press one but all it does is turn from blue to red. Figure that out later, I decide slipping it under my mattress. Please have a driver's licence with a home address. I pop the clasp and pull out all the cards she's got. Hello, Olivia King. Into the Woods Ch. 04 I may have her name and birth date but the driver's licence is otherwise useless. British Columbia is on the other side of the continent. Olivia King. Why don't you write it on a notebook already Jax? The drawings aren't any help either; kind of a shitty artist really, I hope she isn't considering making a career out of this. Gods, it's been three days since I saw her and I've been scouring the online papers for a whisper of an animal attack. Googling her name turns up a random handful of blogs, and accounts on social media sites. It takes a whole day to sift through them and still nothing. I need another tactic. The only other clue her wallet gives is a student card. This house is too small and with the pack on lock down I know I won't be able to wander far. I want to be out there physically tracking her down but the next supply run isn't for two weeks. I can't wait that long. She could convince herself it was all some trip or something, try to put the incident behind her. I need to act now while the memory's still fresh. Following her trail is out of the question. I traced it back as close as I dared to the Cavars' place then lost it on the road where she got in a car. I settle on staking out the campus library in the weak chance we'll cross paths. Day one of the stakeout yields no results. Dammit, there's got to be a better way to do this. I was asked to sign up for a dozen stupid clubs and student societies, and pressed for cigarettes so much I think the entire college population has taken up the habit. I sit until my ass aches from the hard chairs and I've pushed my time limit for making curfew. For days I do this, eating overpriced bagels and listening to the cacophony of conversations with my eyes glued on the entrance. The more time passes the more time I have to think and worry. My family's probably getting suspicious, I've never spent so much time off "hiking" before. Every time I do this I feel like I'm about to be busted. Betraying my pack, doing all this to see a human, exposing us, it's a long list of laws I'm breaking. I just want to find her, it's like the longer I'm away from her the more I want her and I'm afraid little details are going to slip away. I need to see her and soon. Once you've met your mate you'll be miserable if you're separated, all you'll think about, dream about will be her. There'll be no sleeping, eating, watching TV, or playing X-box in my underwear to get rid of her. At first I was uneasy around humans, they're creepy you know? It's almost like I'm afraid they'll smell that we're different, that something in our eyes will give us away and they'll haul us off to some lab to run tests or shit. At least that's what I picture. You can't trust humans, that's what everyone says. They've got fragile minds and need everything to fit neatly into their scientific rationale. Us well we can't be explained, we just are. Being on the supply run team has helped. The first time we went I didn't say a word to the cashier at the market. One of them bumped me on the shoulder and I nearly jumped a foot. How can I want her so much but find the others as similar to me as alternate life forms. On a rainy Thursday fate steps in and gives me a bit of luck. I don't see her but I smell her. The half eaten sub drops and I look around the entrance. I can't see her, everyone's in coats and hoods. But the scent isn't that strong, almost like she brushed against someone. Tossing the rest of my lunch in the garbage I follow it into the computer lab. The door shuts behind me and the only sound is everyone clacking away at their machines. I inhale deep, it's not exactly like I remember it. Scanning the lab for her I see a brunette with her back to me. That's it, that's her. The closer I get the stronger her scent gets even though it's a little off. "Excuse me," I say touching her shoulder. The girl swivels to face me on her chair a surprised look on her face. "What?" she asks pulling out an ear bud. "Sorry," I stutter. She can't have the exact same smell as her. "Do you -- are you Olivia King?" "No, she's my roommate." "Oh, do you know where I can find her?" I ask lowering my voice after getting a few dirty looks. "Why don't you just text her," she says starting to put the ear bud back in. "I don't have her number, but it's important I get in touch with her." The eyebrows go up and she folds her arms. "How come?" "I have something of her's that she'll want back." "I can make sure she gets it." "I need to give it to her myself." "SSSSShhhhhhhh!" "I'll give you her number," she says holding out a hand. I hold out my hands and shrug my shoulders. She makes a sound in her throat then turns back around ripping off a piece of paper and scribbling something down on it. "Here." "Thanks." She presses her lips together in a strange way and nods curtly then spins back around and grabs her phone. I find the nearest pay phone and dial the number. It rings fives times until I hear "Hi there! Record your message after the beep," in a computer voice. Groaning I hang up and try again. Still the same thing. I hang the phone back up and press my forehead against it closing my eyes. When I open them I see feet moving quickly past. Humans. Hundreds of them streaming past me. Some even lean against the box smoking. I'm completely surrounded, the air is constricting but I don't open the door. I dial the number until I'm down to my last few quarters. She's got to answer. Why isn't she answering? I can't call from home. It needs to be here. Now. There's knock on the door. A man wearing some kind of security uniform. No gun on his belt though. "Everything okay sir?" I nod and hold the phone to my ear. "What's in the bag sir?" I shake my head and gesture to the phone. I must be doing something wrong because he gets an even more sour look on his face. "I'm going to ask you to step outside the phone booth." "What?" "Step outside the phone booth, sir." "I'm making a phone call." He steps away and speaks into a radio attached to his shoulder. I see two more men in uniforms coming down a sidewalk to the right. "This is the last time I'm going to ask for your co-operation sir." "Look there's nothing in the bag!" I say opening it up to show him the contents. I hang up the phone and open the door. "Hey!" The man reaches for something in his belt, making a move toward me and I step back dodging him. The other two are closing in fast and we're starting to draw a crowd. I could run, easily, or fight them off but that would cause an even bigger scene. "Sir we'd just like you to come with us and answer a couple of questions." "About what? There's nothing in the bag!" I tell them again holding it open. "Just the same." "Am I -- are you arresting me?" One grabs my arm and I fight every instinct not to shake him off. The second does the same to the other side and they take me into a large building. I still have the bag clutched tight. They take me into an office and as soon as the door closes a light snaps on. Doesn't one of the Carvers work for the university? Not one of the ones that tries to encroach on our land, but a cousin or something. I look from officer to officer trying to figure out which one it might be. They take the bag and rifle through it. It makes me clench my jaw to watch them touch her things. "Satisfied? Don't I need to be read my rights?" One sits on the edge of the desk. "You know exactly why you're here." "Am I under arrest or something?" I've seen enough cop shows to know how this is supposed to go. "Give us a minute," he says to the other two. They give each other a look then leave. "I don't know what you think you're doing this far off the reservation wolf boy. But if I were you I'd best turn tail and run on home." I open my mouth but he interrupts holding up a hand, "And don't insult my intelligence but trying to deny it. You're one of them. Now me personally well I say live and let live, but you're coming into my town. What do you think you're doing with some girl's bag? Thought your kind kept to themselves?" I keep my mouth shut tight. "You know what I bet? I bet you were the one that attacked that girl out there." "How dare you-" "Sit down and shut up. So what happened? These hikers get off the beaten trail a bit? See something they shouldn't have?" He sits down across from me folding his hands. If this is his good cop routine it needs some work. "Got nothing to say? I'll leave you here to think on it." "You can't keep me without cause, not to mention you're just campus security." His nostrils flare but he knows I'm right. "Next time you come into this town, you won't leave it. We clear?" "Yes." The only thing we're clear on is next time you won't see me coming. By the time I leave the office the sun's gone down and the campus is nearly deserted. Finally it feels like I can breathe again. I've more than missed curfew and I try to run through a few options of excuses. Got lost? Weak. Lost track of time? Better. Was pinned down somewhere by a Cavar. Not even a lie. I slow as I pass the phone booth. The phone's still dangling from its cord. I pat my pocket and feel a couple coins in the bottom. Opening the door the light turns on and I pick up the receiver. One last time's worth a shot ain't it? I put my last quarters in and punch in each number real slow. Please pick up. Please be there. It rings and rings. I swear and pull it away. There's a small click, then "Hello?" Into the Woods Ch. 05 I drop the phone in surprise. "Hello?" she says again and I press it to my ear. "Hello, Olivia King?" "Yes." Her voice sounds tinny and far away on the line. "I have something of your's. Your backpack. I found it." The line gets quiet. "Olivia?" "My bag? How did you find it?" "I – I uh, well it's a funny story actually," I say setting down the bag and leaning against the door. The line stays quiet. "I was out hiking, I work in the park, blazing trails and I came across it." The lie slips out easily enough. "My bag wasn't near any trails." "I know, that's why I was so surprised to find it, we're actualy in the process of expanding the trail system so I was scouting out a possible route." Alright enough of my fake job. "I was wondering if I could bring it by for you." I hear her sigh and some rustling. "Gimme your number." "I'm uh actually between phones right now." Another sigh. "Can you meet me tomorrow? The Queen Street Cafe at 2pm?" "Yeah sure, 2pm." "Alright see you then," she says and the line drops. I sit in the cafe and keep switching my position hoping I look calm. The place is mostly empty at this hour, even though the sign says cafe it's more of a bar. I've got a seat facing the door but away from the bartender, a guy with a mustache I thought they only let carnival workers wear. The idea that I should have made a photocopy of her picture pops into my head. At least something to remember her by. The bells above the door ring and her scent floods the room. She's here. I fight with everything I have not to get up and press her against the wall right here. Kiss her lips, down her neck, slipping her shirt off her shoulder, trailing a path down between her breasts. Focus Jax. Reaching forward I take a sip of my beer instead. Every nerve is tuned tight and the hair on my neck stands on end. I get the urge to shift right here and now. The familiar tattoo of wanting drums through my blood as she gets closer. Her bag is on the table, all the contents back inside. She slides into the booth and pulls the bag toward her. "Hello." "Hello." I can't help but stare at her, she glances away quickly to break eye contact. She squints and studies my face, there's no way she could recognize me could she? She's more beautiful than I remember. Cleaned up her hair is shiny, and dark. Tilting to the side it falls in a smooth curtain. Her eyes are dark and bright like a bird's. "Have we met before?" Christ. "No, I don't think so," I say picking up my drink to give my hands something to do. "I'm Jax by the way." Her hand is small and smooth when I shake it in mine. And her skin a few shades lighter, I follow it up her arms, across her neck and down to the tops of her breasts before I politely try to bring my attention elsewhere. "Olivia. But you already knew that." I nod trying to keep my eyes from wandering."So ou're a park ranger. I didn't know that place had those." "We're few and far inbetween." "Another thing I've been wondering, how did you find me?" "I uh, your wallet had a student card in it." "But that doesn't say where I live," she challenges. "No, but I just -" "You what?" "Followed a hunch." I turn around in my seat. "Do you want something to drink?" The bartender has vanished. "I want answers Jax." "I told you-" "I know what you told me." "Maybe this was a bad idea," I say getting up. I should have figured this is how it would go, that she wouldn't feel the same. The mutual connection probably only works when it's two shifters. There's only questions that I can't answer. Not even if I wanted to. I can't believe I'm even here talking to her in the first place. "Wait," she orders and grabs my arm. Skin to skin contact, it's too much for me to handle. Suddenly I've got both her arms in my hands and I've pulled her close. Our lips are inches apart and they're the only thing I can see. I can smell her surprise now then a small flare of anger. I take a breath and step back. "I'm sorry. No more questions. Don't go back to those woods again. They're dangerous." I release her and turn to grab my jacket. "Then you know about them. The wolves. Please." "I don't know what you're talking about." "But you do! You must. You've seen them too, that's why those woods are so dangerous. We were never supposed to be that far off the trail. And I know we saw something we shouldn't have. That – that thing could have killed me. But it didn't. It acted almost – human or something." Her hand is still latched around my wrist. It's all I can feel. Like tiny electric currents pass from her into me. This is bad. This is really bad. I've got to get away. "They're not human. And the next time you do see one, it will kill you," I say shaking her off. "Jax! Please! You're the only one that believes me. Even my friends have convinced themselves it was a bear. You must know something." "No." The cafe is strangely empty like all the tension made the others leave. "Why won't you say anything!" she calls after me as I open the door. "Maybe you're one of them then." Her voice has turned sour now. I pause at the entrance. "And you're just here trying to cover your tracks." "Don't be crazy." I try and make it come out like a brush off and laugh it off, but I can see she's not convinced. "Giant wolves running around the woods? No one's going to buy that." "You're the one that contacted me," she says slinging her bag over her shoulder. "I guess you're just a liar – or afraid like the others." She passes me and her scent reaches out to me. It's a calling I have no power not to answer. Something deep inside me just takes over. There's no rationale or logic here. You need her. Claim her as your mate, this is how it's meant to be nature and laws be damned. I block her path with an arm."I'm no liar," I say lowly afraid the bartender will reappear. "I just don't want to see anyone get hurt here." "But I'm curious Jax. I'm curious about you, and where you've come from," she says leaning closer. "Why you've contacted me. You must know something and I want you to tell me what it is." I swallow, she's so close I can see the flecks of yellow around her irises. "So you do know what I'm talking about." I look deeply into her eyes. I wish I had some kind of hypnotic power over her to make her forget this line of questioning. "No. It doesn't matter, we're done here." She doesn't grab me when I leave this time. The biggest part of me wishes she had because I don't think I'd be able to refuse her twice. Outside I breathe deep trying to rid my senses of her scent. But I know there's nothing I can do, not now, not ever to get her out of my head. The bells on the door chime again and the feeling of her over takes me again. "I get that you don't want to talk about it." I turn towards her ready to tell her off again. "Maybe you can't for whatever reasons. But I wouldn't forgive myself if I didn't try." She holds out a piece of paper. "My number, in case you change your mind." I take it and put it in my pocket. "Goodbye Olivia." Something I can't name passes over her eyes, like disappointment or sadness. "Goodbye Jax, I hope we meet again." She just had to go and add that didn't she? I exercise with more vigor than I've ever shown. "I hope we meet again." I keep replaying the line, that moment again and again. Lift, the scent of shampoo in her hair, down, the caramel of her skin, lift, I hope we meet again, down. I'm in love with a girl and she thinks I'm a liar. I'm mated to a girl and she isn't even a shifter, our relations would be an abomination. Don't humans even have laws against coupling with animals? Although I wouldn't exactly call myself a wolf. I've got to see her again. I was kidding myself to think otherwise. Now whether she sees me is a different matter. Olivia's curious by nature and stubborn. I don't even have to really know her and I already know that. She won't let this drop. So really it would be better if I contacted her. If only to keep her from contacting me. I can't leave it like this that's for sure. What if she were to go poking around in the woods again? Who knows what or who she would run into. Not that'd she be likely to find the house. Still they can't know about her, they'd see my reaction to her, know she's my mate. Banishment, death neither option looks good. So the only real option I have left is to contact her again. But what will that do? Either I tell her everything or I tell her nothing. I don't see a way of half assing this. My story about being a park ranger, who knows if she bought that. How can I be with her? Tell her what she wants to hear without implicating myself and the pack? On the way out of town I did buy a prepaid cellphone, just in case, for an emergency or something. I take the paper out of my pocket and flip it up. I swear I've got the numbers memorized. "Hey man!" a voice says slapping me on the back. "What you got there?" he asks snatching it out of my hand. "A number!" "Give it back,"I say reaching for it. He laughs blocking me. "Must be important." Cal. Been my closest friend since we were kids. He's also the next prospect for Chief. It doesn't really get between us yet. "I said give it back," I say crossing my arms. I've got a couple inches on him but he's got more muscle. "You got some secret girl from another pack I don't know about?" he asks grinning. "Maybe." He slaps the paper in my palm. "Dude you gotta share. The pickings around here are like seriously slim." "I don't think she'd be your type." "So there is some girl. That where you've been disappearing to? People been noticing man." Shit. I'll have to postpone our meetiing for a while, can't have any suspicions. Maybe I should just forget the thing all together. As soon as I think it I get a bad feeling in my gut. It'll hurt but it'll be what's best. I can find someone else. This is just lust. "There isn't much to tell, I don't think it's going to work out." "So soon Romeo? Aww my boy needs some cheering up. Come to Smithy's tonight, Charlie will be there, she can ease the sting," he says laughing. I wince, Charlie ain't got a thing on Olivia. She's a nice girl but she's got a reputation for easing everybody's stings. "Yeah, it's not like I got something better to do." Even though it's been weeks since the incident the lock down is still on the pack. Everyone's getting a little stir crazy so Chief's letting everyone blow off a little steam at Smithy's tonight. It's a cabin the pack's taken over and converted into a bar/pool hall. Too bad the only people that ever go to it are the ones from our pack. What I wouldn't do some days to see a different face. Olivia's immediately comes to mind. I focus on remembering how her lips moving as she talked. They were a pink shiny colour like the girls on TV, but it looked more real on her. I remember the scent of her hair as a bit off wind blew it when we stood outside. I remember her eyes, dark and giving nothing away but confusion and anger at me. And I remember the wanting. It surges through me now. This isn't a good idea. I can't let a human have this kind if power over me. I'm only torturing myself more by thinking about her. I've made my decision. I let the paper drop from my fingers into the toilet and flush before I can do something stupid. Goodbye Olivia. Into the Woods Ch. 06 Turns out I didn't have it memorized. The first numbers I called weren't hers and I gave up after that. That was two weeks ago. I can't stop thinking about her. And it's not my fault. Living in a secret shifter compound in the middle of nowhere is boring as hell. I see the same people everyday, have the same conversations everyday. But Olivia, she was this change, she made everything in me race. How can I forget that? I'm tempted to go visit her again, but what good would that do? I'd be some creepy stalker guy who keeps popping up. People have noticed something's wrong. Cal hasn't said anything yet and I hope he doesn't. Not much hope there for long though. He's kind of a loud mouth especially after drinking. The stories I'm trying to keep straight are all starting to get tangled in my mind. Shifter. Park Ranger. Wolf. In love with a human. Pretending to be sore over an unknown shifter girl from another pack. Maybe I've been spending too much time wandering out in these woods, hoping she'll just reappear. I'm turning into one of the solitary, moody thinkers. Pulling off my shirt goosebumps rise on my skin. I toss my clothes behind a tree and let the change over take me. The familiar tingle in my bones and muscles as they lengthen and change excites me. It's been a while since I've shifted and gone for a good run. I shake out my fur like a dog when it's over. There. This. This skin is where I feel most connected to what's right. The trees are little more than green and brown blurs with rock and roots as my hurdles to jump over. I relish the feel of my muscles working. The air coming into my lungs in and going out in pants. I've got no course in particular only where my feet lead me. Within the next two hours I'm further from the pack lands and closer to the park entrance than I've ever dared go before. I've never wanted to go down there and be normal, become human, but for her I would. For one of the few times in my life I actually wish I wasn't what I am. Laying down on the pine needles I must have fallen asleep. I dream of her. The smell of her is so strong, like she's right in my arms. I keep trying to grab the bottom of her skirt to catch her but it keeps slipping through my fingers. The faster I chase after her the faster she goes. Laughing, teasing me, her hair bouncing as she stays just out of my grasp. My eyes snap open when I hear a beep and click. Growling I jump to my feet and bare my teeth. My jaw drops when I adjust. I shake my head back and forth to make sure I'm still not dreaming. Olivia. She's here standing in front of me. And since she's holding her phone up I'm guess she just took a picture of me. I growl again and advance on her. Oh shit. There's no way she's getting out of these woods with that phone. "Hey easy now boy, I just want to talk. You can talk can't you?" she asks holding her hands up the phone in the right. I growl again, I can't attack her I've got to get her to drop it. "I know you're the same wolf that pulled me out of the water." I growl again taking another step, drop the phone Olivia you don't know what you're doing. "Relax I'm not going to show this to anyone – if you give me some answers. Nod for yes and shake for no, understand?" I lower my head a bit still not breaking eye contact. "I'll take that as a yes." "Do you know that guy you sent to talk to me?" I nod and take a step closer as she takes one back. "Who is he? A park ranger who looks the other way?" I shake. "Are you – do you belong to somebody?" Only to you baby. God what does she think I am somebody's genetic freak pet? I shake. "What are you then? A wolf?" I shake. "Something else?" Nod. This could be much easier if I just shifted, then she'd be in for a big surprise. Hell she's already got proof of me on her phone she can send out with just a tap. "A mythical -," her words break off in a gasp. My fur ripples back into skin and I look up at her from kneeling. I've never actually stood in a mirror and watched myself change and since I grew up in the community seeing people change has always seemed normal. From her expression it's like I'm something that's stepped out of a sci-fi movie. The phone clatters onto the rocks. "Oh my God," she whispers her hands covering her mouth. "Hello Olivia," I say and reach for the phone. "No!" she yells and kicks it away from me. It skids off the rocks and drops into the leaves. I lunge for it at the same time she does. I lean over to grab it and the toe of her boot catches me in the ribs. I groan and roll away from her still searching for the phone. She jumps down kicks away the leaves. My fingers close around smooth metal and I roll away from her getting to my feet and whip the phone against the rocks. It shatters the screen and back cracks off, the little green chips popping free. "No!" she yells. "Why did you do that?" I rub my bruised ribs and advance on her. "You really shouldn't have come back here." My heart is still racing not with fear now but something else. Backed up against the rock she takes in my nudity and I can see the fear in her eyes. Seems the positions of power have turned. She moves to run past me and I hook an arm around her waist bring her around her back against my front. She struggles kicking back and throwing elbows. I have to admit I'm impressed by her fight. "Stop it," I say taking her wrists and crossing them over her body. I don't want to hurt her but I need to subdue her. "Stop it, listen!" I command and give her a little shake. "I'm not going to hurt you." "Let me go!" she screams and struggles more. "Stop it," I say and bring us to the ground. "I'm going to let go and we're going to be calm, okay?" "Stop it get off me! Or I'll scream!" Can't let her do that we're too close to the trails someone could hear. "Look we can do this the hard way or the easy way, I don't want to hurt you Olivia," I hiss into her ear covering her mouth with my hand. "Nod if you understand." She nods and I take my hand away. Immediately she scrambles back and away against the rocks. "What the hell are you?" Olivia asks wiping her mouth. "A shifter." "A what?" "I can change my form into a - well you've seen it." She studies me with her eyes narrowed like I'm a freak, a dangerous freak that's going to pounce on her. "You're a huge fucking wolf, that's what you change into." "Yes, but you've got to promise to keep it a secret, I can't have anybody knowing about us." "You mean there's more of you?" Christ. "No, no, I'm the only one." "How did this happen to you? I mean I still can't believe you're even real," she says starting to reach out a hand then dropping it half way between us. "I'm real and so is the danger you could put me in if you told anyone. There are already people that suspect. You must promise not to tell and in exchange I'll answer your questions." And do anything else to be with you a little longer. A blush starts to rise in her cheeks and she's trying very hard to keep her eyes on my face. "Where are your – your clothes?" "Miles from here – unfortunately and awkwardly." "I have a small blanket in my bag," she says hopping back up on the rocks and getting her bag. I notice her hands are shaking as she unzips it and pulls it out. "Here." "Thanks," I say wrapping it around my shoulders and draping it over me. She relaxes visibly and her eyes wander over me now. "You promise not to tell anyone you about me?" "I promise. But people have seen you – my roommate, we should make up a lie." Great, but what's another to add to the pile? "It doesn't matter," I say waving a hand, "say we met when you were out for a walk by yourself." "Okay. You're just another hiker. So how – have you always been this way?" "I first shifted when I was probably sixteen or so." "Why? How do you do this?" "I don't know really," I say holding out my arm and turning it over to look at the skin. "I just do. It comes naturally." "Does it hurt?" "Oh no, like a tingling feeling in all your bones and muscles, then like stretching but no it doesn't hurt." I want to touch her, to stroke her face. She studies the skin on my arm then reaches out to touch it. Her fingers are cold and soft and they tickle a bit as she runs them over my arm. "Feels normal enough." "You'd never suspect right?" "This is very strange Jax. I can barely still believe it myself and I've seen you change. I almost rather believe I've gone mad and perhaps you're something from my imagination." I grab her fingers and bring them to my face. "I told you, I'm real." This is real, what I feel for you is real and I can feel it coursing through me now more than ever. I'm glad for the blanket. Scooting closer now she's on her knees in front of me running her fingers over my face. "Why did you scare us so much that day, I thought you were going to kill me." "I need to be protective of my land, usually people that come that far out don't have good intentions." "And do you usually have to scare people away?" "No, almost never." "I was so scared I thought you were going to eat us." You have no idea Olivia. "I don't know why, but I just felt I had to come try to find you." Music to my ears. "If only to try and make sense of this all. But now that I know for sure – well it hasn't really cleared all that much up." I take hold of her fingers again and kiss the tips before bringing them down but still keep them in mine. "I wanted to look for you too." "But you didn't." "I wanted -" "If I hadn't come here today would I have ever seen you again?" The closeness between us is broken and she pulls her hand back, bringing her knees up and wrapping her arms around them. "I wanted to tell you the truth, but it's just so out there." "Yeah, I'm still trying to wrap my mind around it," she sighs and combs her fingers through her hair. It gives me a fresh wave of her scent and it's so good I can almost taste her. "You okay?" "Yeah, yep I'm good. It is tricky to think about." "So do you live out here then?" Should I tell her? I nod. "Just by yourself? All alone?" "Yep lone wolf." "Doesn't that get lonely?" Maybe it's my imagination but I think she's leaned a fraction of an inch closer again. All I can see, all I can think about are her lips. "Yes, it does," I say softly and close the distance between us. The kiss ignites a fire in me, in both of us, we can feel it like a humming electricity coursing through our veins. Our hands fumble to find each other then I lace my fingers through her's. She pulls back for a second and presses her lips together and looks up at me through her eyelashes. I want to tell her everything, about my family, the real story about how I got this way and how much I need her. "Jax I-," "Don't," I say and lean in again. This one starts soft and sweet. I bring her arms around my neck and she tangles her fingers in my hair pulling me closer. I shift positions bringing her closer between my knees and pulling her down on top of me. We kiss some more before I feel her pull back. "Jax I don't think this is a good idea." "Then don't think," I say my hands sliding up her thighs. She puts her hands over mine stopping them in their tracks. My shifter side is trembling to take over, flip her and bury myself inside. Feel that tight heat and make her mine for real. "I mean this isn't the time or the place to be starting something." "What exactly do you think we're starting, maybe I just want to kiss you," I say coming up on my elbows and looking her dead in the eye. She blushes and turns away. "Hey," I say making her turn back to me. "We don't have to start anything." What is that sound? Possibly the massive crack she just made in my chest? Maybe she's got some dumb jock boyfriend or something. The thought that someone else touches my mate makes me see red. My fists clench and I only come out of it when I feel her shift. "But you are going to have to kiss me at least once more," I say my hand on the back of her neck bringing her close again. This kiss is all intensity. I kiss her desperately, roughly trying to pass on whatever's ignited in me to her. And maybe a bit of it does because I can feel her fingers back in my hair. My hands slide up her hips over her back and around to her breasts. I know I said I wouldn't start anything but how can I not try? She moans and tries to pull back but my hands stop her. She sits back panting and pushes her hair back. I lie back and drink her in thighs splayed open straddling my waist. God I want her, need her. "What's the matter?" I ask. "I shouldn't be doing this." "There some other guy?" "No. Because you're not even human. I'm not even entirely sure I'm not crazy still." "I told you, I'm real," I say grabbing her hand again. "I'm not going to just disappear in a cloud of smoke." "I should go, keep the blanket," Olivia says rising and picking up her backpack. "Wait, you're just going to leave?" "Yeah I need to go." "Hey," I say going after her and stepping in front. "What's the rush, I thought you wanted answers." "Yeah I did." "Did or do?" "Look I got what I came out here for, I'm not crazy, I know what I saw now." "So what you're just going to put it behind you now?" "I guess so, let me pass." I move and block her again. "Jax, I'm serious." "I told you the truth Olivia, do you have any idea what that means?" I say taking hold of her arms. "And I promise I won't tell anyone about you, I'll leave you alone from now on." "See that's just the thing, I don't want you to leave me alone. I want to see you, I feel like we're connected, meant to know each other somehow." I fumble with the words not wanting to give away I want to mate with you right now, tomorrow, the next day and everyday after that for the rest of our lives together. She stops and just stares into my eyes, I feel like she's reading my thoughts as soon as they cross my mind. Stepping close she stands on tip toes and kisses me pressing hard against me. "I know, there's something between us and I'm glad you see it too. But I'm not going to just have sex with you in the woods. I mean I don't even know your last name." "It's O'Connor." "Right, good to know," she says breaking away. "When will I see you again?" I ask reluctant to let her hand go. "That all depends on you." "Oh?" "Thought you wanted me to stay away from these woods?" "I do," I say stepping closer. We're dangerously close to the trail now. Someone could look up through the trees and spot her jacket. "Then we seem to have a problem," she says raising her eyebrows. "So I'll come to you." "So we can go on nice ordinary human dates to get to know each other?" "If that's what you want." She laughs, "Why do I get the feeling that nothing with you will ever be ordinary?" I laugh too, oh and she doesn't even have the faintest idea yet. I step forward to pull in her for one last kiss when it hits me. The smell of another male, but there's no sound of movement. Somebody's watching us. I pull her close into a hug my hand against her head turning it so I can look like I'm kissing her as I whisper into her ear. "Don't look or react, but somebody's watching us." I feel her stiffen. "Another hiker?" she mouths. "No." The Cavars. "Just walk calmly back the way you came, they're not interested in you." "But what about you?" "I'll be fine. Just get out of here." I watch her until she disappears back down the trail. Scanning the woods I can't spot him even though his scent tells me he's close. Heading deeper into the woods I shift the blanket sliding off me. I consider leaving it before picking it up, but it has her scent on it and it's not something I'd leave behind for the Cavars to find. I head for home quickly being careful not to leave a trail. Thoughts of Olivia race through my mind. I know I've got to have her for my own. Fuck the laws, fuck everyone that would try to keep me from her. I'll have Olivia one way or another I just have to figure out how. Into the Woods Ch. 07 How long am I supposed to wait before calling her? Two days? Three? And who the fuck created this rule anyways? Desperation of the male party should be inversely correlated to the length of time, because let's be honest here, I'm pretty desperate. The next Sunday finds us in a canoe out on one of the secluded lakes in the park. With all the leaves about to drop it's beautiful from our viewpoint. I even brought wine to help loosen us up a bit. Girls like wine, or at least that's what most shows on Netflix lead the male population to believe. I row us out to the middle so unless somebody has a telescopic lens they won't be able to tell who we are. "Some wine?" I ask peeling off the wrapping with my teeth. "Sure, where are the glasses?" she asks. I nod to the basket and she pulls out two glasses. "You won't believe what I had to do to get that basket here." "Oh?" Oh shit. Backtrack. "I mean carrying it - was hard." "I see," she says pressing her lips together, her other hand clasped between her knees. We clink glasses and take a sip. "You're very strange you know." "Am I?" Well besides the obvious. "I just-," she begins then stops and slides her watch around her wrist again and again, "get the feeling there's a lot more." I take a large mouthful of the wine that makes me cough. "We don't need to worry about it right now do we?" "Can I ask you something?" she asks leaning forward her arms wrapped over her knees. I nod studying all the freckles on her face. I never really thought about them before, how they're like brown paint flicked on her face. Makes me wonder if her whole body looks like that. "Why did you reveal yourself to me -us, you could have just stayed hidden that day. Why come out?" I'm going to need some more alcohol. "I -uh-," No answers pop up dancing out of the water saying here, yes, I'm what she wants to hear, "I just - wanted to see you." More like needed. "But why endanger yourself? I could have told anybody, newspapers, tv." "But no one believed you did they?" "I didn't-" "I know you didn't, but people - humans they have to rationalize everything. There's no myth, no magic to the world. Just science and anything that's not proven - just doesn't exist," I say. "And you're the only one out here? I mean where are your parents, do they know about you?" "It's just me, my parents are - dead," I say after too long a pause. She gives me a flat look with her eyebrows raised. "Alright Oliver Twist, you keep your secrets and I'll keep mine." I scoff, "You don't have any secrets." "Well, you'll never know will you?" she says smirking and downing the last of her drink. Like hell I won't. We eat the food I brought but before too long she turns her face toward the sun starting to get low in the sky. The light of it sets her hair afire picking out red and gold strands. "You should probably start rowing us back." "If that's what you want," I say leaning forward my eyes on her lips. We're not moving an inch until I kiss those. "Well I'm certainly not going to stay out here all night with you am I?," she says leaning forward to match and wiping the grit from the bottom of the canoe off her hands. "You know - sometimes you get the northern lights from here. And the stars, way more than you could ever see in the city." "Really?" she asks leaning in closer. "Stay." Before she can say anything else I kiss her. My hands slide up her arms and hold her face. Coming to my knees I push her back and guide her under the wooden brace. "Jax," she says in a warning tone but I snake under to be beside her. We laugh as the canoe rocks as we adjust. I grab her hip and tilt her onto her side so I can look at her. She lets me do it for about four seconds then blushes and ducks her head. "What?" I ask. "I like to look at you." I lean in to kiss her again and run my fingers through her hair. How do girls get it so soft? I start kissing down her neck and she says my name again. I ignore it since she isn't pushing me off and move the collar of her jacket open more. "Jax," she says again putting her hands on my shoulders. "Stop for a second." I kiss back up to her face and whisper, "What?" into her ear. I run my hand down her side and along her hip coming around to rest on her thighs. "I just want to be clear about where this is leading," she says ending this statement by lifting her hips towards me. "And where's that?" "It's just that I - I don't want things to get too far." "You mean like sex," I say leaning on an elbow now. "Yeah like sex." "Alright we won't have sex then." Right now. How about now? I swallow before asking the uncomfortable question. "Have you -had sex before?" She screws up her face, "Yeah, I mean it's just usually with my boyfriend -" "You have a boyfriend?" I ask sitting up and banging my shoulder against the brace. I swear and rub the spot. "No, not right now. But just in the past it was always with someone I knew." "I see." There is no quicker way to kill a boner than talk about other men you've fucked. "And we just - well we just met." "Yes we did. Alright we won't," I say trying to sound nonchalant. She sits up beside me, "Yeah? Some guys can't really handle a boundary." "It's fine," I say sliding out from under the brace, the grit crunching under my boots. I face her open legs and raise an eyebrow. Would this really be considered sex? A snapshot of it flashes in my mind, the taste and feel of her. The pressure of her legs on my head, how will she sound when she cums? I want to find out. I place both hands on the tops of her boots. "Jax?" "Olivia." I slide my hands from her boots up her legs to her knees. "Have you ever-?" She snorts, "This? Oh. Oh! Well a few times." "Lay back." She does sliding her hands down her thighs. I pull her forward so her hips are out from under the brace. Her jacket and sweater have been pushed up just a slit and I can see a strip of white as milk skin. Running a fingers over it her muscles jump. "I don't remember tickling being part of the experience." "I'll tickle you all you want," I say and lean down to kiss her there. Her breathing is tight and small. Rubbing her thighs I tell her to relax and that she can tell me to stop if she wants. She shakes her head but presses and hand to her forehead. Shit I'm making her nervous. I know I can make her feel good, and I want her to trust me. Lifting her hips I slide a balled up blanket underneath. My fingers follow the inside seam of her jeans all the way up. "What if someone sees?" "Lucky for them." "I'm serious." Spreading her legs I settle between them, "Trust me, no one will see you. And if they do, I'll eat them." She gives a little laugh. "But it won't be as good as this." I stroke and kiss along her thighs through her jeans until her legs relax. Wrapping my arms under them I reach around and undo her button and zipper. She inhales and holds her breath. Better blow those other fuckers out of the water. Bringing her legs back together I pull the jeans down to her knees and goosebumps rise over the muscles. Tilting my head to her inner knee I kiss her softly my other hand stroking up her inner thigh. I feel her take in a breathe of air and hold it then release when I take my lips off her skin. Going to the other leg I repeat and despite the nip in the evening her skin is feverish under my fingertips. "Just relax," I murmur against her skin, "I'm not in any hurry." Her muscles jerk when I trail my fingers behind her knees, back down and up again. My lips follow placing wet kisses until I'm at the seam of her hip. This close the smell of her invades me. Musk. Girly soap. Something undeniably female. But what will she taste like? I kiss to the side of her lips before taking each in turn and kissing it like I would her mouth. Soft as a ripe peach. This time I run the tip of my tongue along the top seam as I keep the lip trapped in my mouth and she gasps and her legs rise up a bit, the muscles clenching. Back and forth running my tongue lightly along her I build her up until she's slick with it. Pulling back a bit I shift so I can lay down in front of her. Admiring my work I reach around to spread her further to find her inner lips have become the same pink as the lips on her face were after the last time we met. "Jax?" she asks her voice sounding out of breath. "Are you stopping?" "Not a chance. Just looking." "Enough teasing." "Yes ma'am," I say and press my tongue in a wet, slow lick from the slippery softness below her pussy, through the lips and up to her clit. Following the pattern I blow a stream of air along it and her legs tense up again as a little moan escapes her. I lap her clit a few times before lifting her up a bit and pushing her forward exposing her cute rosebud. This time I start my tongue a little lower just at the edge before running it up again. I pull back a bit to see her reaction but she doesn't try to push her hips back. Bolder this time, I start my lick right in the centre swirling it around before sweeping over her lips. She gasps and sucks in her breath in an, "Oh my god don't stop." Wetting my tongue I reach around again opening her further to expose that beautiful clit. My turn to say oh god. Flattening my tongue I lick her with broad strokes across it an I can feel it roll under me. The next pass up I make on her I enter pussy a little more, pointing the tip of my tongue to stroke just inside it. She's as tasty as I thought she'd be and I breathe in deep to pull her into me. "You taste so good." She moans something in response. Following up a series of slow licks I start to trace two fingers around and across her lips before bringing them to my mouth and tasting her. She watches me do this and then licks her own lips. Two fingers slide into her pussy and she sucks in a breath as I turn them, slowly pulling them out again. Pulling her apart again I lick around her clit in a circle before sucking on it gently. Her thighs start to move and I tightened my hold on her leg. Inside her I hook my fingers up and slide them around in circles stimulating the little spot of roughness. Olivia starts pushing her hips up and her fingers thread through my hair holding me tight to her. "Don't stop, oh god don't stop," she says her voice breathy, her head tipping back. Her thighs tighten around my head and she lets out a little oh all her muscles clenching. I feel the pulse of her blood pounding around my fingers and tongue and smile with satisfaction. Gradually her muscles slacken and I pull out of her and give her one last suckle making all her limbs shudder. "That was - god that was - I've never -" "Glad you liked it," I say, a smile on my face. She reaches out and I place my hand in her's giving it a squeeze. Unsteady as a new born moose she closes her legs and sits up pulling her jeans back up. Maybe it's just hopefulness but there's a dreamy look on her face as she smiles at me and plays with our interlaced fingers. "So these northern lights, when do they come out?"