⛰️ Shifter Mountain: Hearts of Stone, Book 1, Chapter 4
Heaven.
I am holding heaven in my arms, and it’s sweet and soft, and fuck me, I don’t deserve it.
Mine, his Mountain Lion chuffed happily with his mate in his arms.
Keeton had walked through the familiar forest with the sweet smelling woman in his arms, and yes, he took the long way home just to prolong the contact. It was the most content he’d ever felt his inner beast.
It was slightly overwhelming to think a single female could render his powerful and solitary inner animal as docile as a fucking kitten. But there it was. The cat was purring, for fuck’s sake. Lying belly up in that metaphysical plane where he dwelled until Keeton called his fur forward, deep within his mind’s eye.
He’d never, ever seen the beast do that before. And it wasn’t like there were other Eastern Mountain Lion Shifters around to help with this sort of thing. Loners in the wild, and unlike many other Shifter subspecies, his kind did not dwell in large groups or Prides. Fact was, there weren’t very many of them around.
Occasionally, they teamed up with other Shifter groups, like he did with others in the military and after in the mercenary groups he worked for. Callan and Landry were an Alpha and Omega pair who’d allowed him to heal some with them on Moongate Island, and yes, it had helped his cat.
But the need to retreat from the world had been strong. His sense of betrayal too deep to rejoin humankind, he sought refuge here. The very last place he’d ever expected to run into a female, let alone his mate.
She was his. He knew it from the moment he first caught her scent. But she was human. Knew nothing of Shifters and fated mates. And he was a fucking hermit. She’d be much better off without him.
Rrroooaaarrr!
His cat really did not like that thought. The beast scratched and clawed at him from the inside out, but he batted down the animal and turned to help the female hobble over to the sofa.
“I don’t suppose you have a phone.”
“Have a cell phone, but you can’t get reception here.”
“Then why do you have it?”
“There’s a spot about eight miles down the trail you were on. I can get reception there when I need to.”
“Well, I am still grateful for your help. Especially now that it’s raining.”
“I’ll see about calling in some help for you once it lets up. That alright?”
“Uh huh. Ooh.” She winced, and he moved to steady her as she lowered herself onto the cushions.
“Let’s see that ankle,” he said.
He might not be willing to trap her in the mountains with him as his mate, but he could help her. If it was broken, he’d carry her down the mountain himself once the storm passed. There was no way he’d risk a single thing happening to her.
Should’ve bought that quad, he cursed himself silently for not purchasing the all-terrain vehicle one of his contractors had suggested after construction was complete. But Keeton was a Shifter, he needed no help to move up and down the mountain. He just never counted on guests.
“Ouch.” She bit her lip as he undid her laces and tugged gently on her ankle high hiking sneakers.
The things were brand new, expensive, not the footwear he expected a seasoned hiker on the expert trail to wear. In his gut, he knew she was no experienced backpacker. Her skin was too fair, her equipment still had tags. This was one hell of a trek for her to take on her own.
What is she doing out here?
Marilena sucked in a sharp breath as he peeled off her sock to reveal her swollen ankle. It was turning a deep shade of purple, worrying him for the moment. His cat hissed. The creature did not like her injured at all and was ready to lay waste to the entire mountain for damaging his mate. Keeton hushed the silly beast.
Focusing instead on every nuance of movement the female made, he turned her foot slightly. Careful not to cause her further pain, he was sure to keep his movements steady and slow so he could assess the damage. As a soldier and mercenary, Keeton had experience with rendering first aid in the battlefield. And he’d never been more grateful for the experience than he was now.
“It’s bruised, but it’s not broken,” he grunted.
“Oh, thank God!”
“Let me get you some ice.”
He released his hold on her foot reluctantly. Practically had to force his fingers to open. Nodding slightly at her wide-eyed stare, he left the room. He hurried to the kitchen to grab some ice and then to the bathroom to get the first-aid kit. Catching his face in the mirror, he stopped and stared.
What the fucking fuck is wrong with me?
Too many things to count, for sure. He looked like a crazy person. For the first time in his life, his beard was over six inches long and his hair hung down to his shoulders in a shaggy mess. She must think him some kind of savage.
Fuck it.
She’s better off without me, anyway.
Mine, snarled his cat, and he shook his head to quiet the sound of his inner beast.
He was not about to take advantage of an injured woman under his roof. Could not find a single reason why she would benefit from being with him. But maybe, just maybe, he could offer his animal a taste of being near her. Something to remember while he lived out the rest of his days deep in the mountain and away from society. Now that was a compromise, if ever he heard of one.
Keeton walked back to the living room to find Marilena had removed her other shoe and sock, her jacket and sweatshirt as well. She was unbuttoning her pants when he made some noise to alert her to his presence.
“Oh,” she said, blushing a pretty shade of pink. “I wanted to get changed. I hope you don’t mind. I sort of tore my jeans when I fell.”
Keeton frowned and walked over to her, eyes intent on the two tears he somehow missed at both knees. He placed the first aid kit on the coffee table, then moved it back so he could get closer to her.
“Are you hurt anywhere else?”
“I don’t think so, but these jeans are cutting into my waist. I have a pair of yoga pants in my backpack.”
He grabbed the backpack and opened it, finding the black stretchy pants among her things. She sure had packed lightly, and not at all for the rough terrain. Definitely a novice. Again, he wondered what had made her climb up this way.
“If you could hand me that blanket...” She pointed to the crocheted afghan that sat on the armchair facing the fireplace, and he moved quickly to grab it.
He waited as she draped it over her waist, not telling her it was useless since not seeing her didn’t stop him from scenting her, and it was her scent that drove him wild with need. He swallowed down his baser instincts and concentrated on helping her get comfortable.
“How can I help?”
“I think I can lift myself up if you wouldn’t mind, tugging down my jeans? I am so sorry to ask—”
“It’s no trouble,” he cut her off, waiting for her nod as he reached beneath the blanket to hold on to the denim at her waist.
He closed his eyes, praying for patience, and pulled the material carefully so as not to rip it clean off her. Fuck, he’d never had his control tested like that before. The sound of her pulse racing when he put his hands on her, the warm breath that tickled his ear lobes as he leaned in, and her honeyed scent that increased with his nearness.
She wanted him. Keeton cursed the Fates even as the knowledge made his chest, and other parts of him, swell with pride. It was the way of these things he’d often heard from other Shifters, even if he never experienced it himself. When the Fates matched up a pair, desire and need would often increase until they consummated the relationship and claimed one another.
Mating fever, or so it was termed between Shifters. He never realized a human could feel some of the effects as well.
Why else would this beautiful woman even consider him?
A whimper escaped her lips as she lifted onto her elbows and her one uninjured foot, and the leash he held on himself broke.
“Let me help,” he grunted and wrapped one arm around her waist, lifting her and tugging on the jeans the rest of the way past her hips.
“Sorry,” she whispered.
“No need. Better now?” he asked as he slid the fabric carefully off her bruised ankle.
“Yes.” She nodded and grabbed for her other pants.
“Wait. Let me make sure you aren’t cut first.” He waited for her assent, then lifted the blanket to her thighs.
Keeton frowned at the myriad of scrapes marring both her knees. He grabbed the first aid kit and cleaned them first with antiseptic wipes before applying antibiotic ointment and one large bandage on each.
“That should do it,” he murmured.
“Thank you,” she said, and he noted her breathing was easier.
Next, he helped her guide her legs into her pants, but she stopped him before he could lift her again. He frowned, but did as she asked, turning around to give her some privacy.
“I’m so sorry for all this, and I can’t thank you enough. Maybe I could write you a check?”
“You want to give me money for helping you?” he asked, a little shocked.
“Well, in my experience no one does anything for free—”
“I don’t expect a reward for simply being decent.”
“Most men I know would,” she replied, and his beast came roaring to the surface once more.
“What men do that?”
“You’d be surprised.”
“Men like who?”
“My ex-fiancé, for one. He’s a slimeball attorney.”
“A lawyer? No wonder,” he murmured.
“I know, right? My mom introduced us. I should’ve known better.”
“How did you get engaged to him?”
“I don’t know. He asked, and I was so surprised I said yes. I think I thought it was my only shot. Doesn’t matter now. It’s over. I, uh, caught him cheating.”
“Fuck. Look, I’m sorry, but it seems like his loss.”
“Yeah, right.” She snorted.
“I don’t know who you’ve been dealing with, but real men don’t take money from women just for helping them out. And they don’t cheat. Not ever.”
“I suppose you’re right about that. Still, I feel like I should do something for all you’ve done.” She shrugged, still blushing prettily.
“How about you rest here a minute? Let me fix you dinner, Marilena. Afterward, we can talk.”
He handed her the ice pack before leaving the room. Keeton was sure it wasn’t her intention to flirt, but that vulnerable look on her face as she asked him if there was something she could do for him damn near set him off. The bulge that was hopefully hidden behind his zipper and flannel was begging him to take her up on her offer, but he cursed himself ten times a fool.
She wasn’t offering to sleep with him, for fuck’s sake. Even if she was, he would not treat her that way. Besides, if Keeton allowed his desires to take over, there was no way he could guarantee he wouldn’t claim the female.
Keeton was too fucked up to inflict himself on anyone permanently. Look at him. Like a fucking coward he ran to the mountains, hiding away from the entire world because some asshole discovered his secret and blackmailed him.
No. That was only half the reason. It was the disdain on the now dead man’s face, the way his lips had curled, and eyes filled with hatred when he spat the one word guaranteed to pain any Shifter.
Animal.
He’d called Keeton an animal while demanding money to keep silent.
The Shifter secret was too big to let pride stand in his way. And it was not his alone to keep. So, he paid, then told his commanding officers about the situation, fully expecting to be kicked out of the unit. But he wasn’t, and the other man had died in battle, not trusting Keeton to keep him alive cause he was just an animal.
No, he would not inflict himself on this beautiful woman. He couldn’t live with the possibility of her rejecting him. He was man enough to admit that, even if only to himself. Not a chance. He would simply have to content himself with feeding her and tending her injuries.
It was all he had to offer the lovely human female.
