Page 4 of Not Your Ordinary Shifter

“We need more soldiers if we are going to protect this stronghold. What will a bunch of needy mouths do to help us?” He crossed his arms, and I tilted my head to take in my friend.

“If I remember rightly, it wasn’t that many years ago that your old herd would’ve been considered the needy bunch, and look at you now.” He rolled his eyes, his finger tapping the top of the massive broad sword he kept at his hip.

“Fine, I concede. But winter is coming. We need more food in storage and still need to deal with the Southern Wranglers. They are getting closer, and their Alpha is said to be comparable in size and strength, but he has one thing over you….”

I waved my hand at him. “Yes, yes, I know. He’s mated.”

“Don’t wave it off, Sol. You know that a mated Alpha gains strength from his female, up to three times the strength. It is why mated Alpha’s herds are never attacked until their female dies. If he comes here….”

“Stop,” I commanded, my thoughts going to the woman in the back of the wagon on its way here. “The Goddess is not going to pair someone like me with a destined mate. We’ve been over this. I’ll figure out another way to defeat Alpha Wrangler. Anyone who names their herd after themself must be a blow-hard, right?”

Chase shook his head at me, but the trumpeter gave a short blast, letting us know that the wagons had arrived. The long precession of my men came first, and then the new members. Crossing my arms, I waited for everyone to be brought before me. I scanned the group for prospects but also looked for the little female that had affected me.

Once they were out and lined up, I walked the rows and sniffed the air, but with each footfall, I knew she wasn’t there, and every instinct screamed that I needed to find her. I marched over to those who had been guarding the wagons.

“Where is the missing prisoner?”

The guards looked at one another. “They were all placed in the back of the wagons, Alpha,” Cedar said. I jogged to the back and looked inside, but they were empty. I sniffed the wagon that held the female, and her scent was on the edge of the wood. I spun around and looked at the tall gates. She had jumped out.

“Are you looking for the female you were going to kill,” Shale asked as he walked up to me.

I pulled the tie around my throat. “Yes.”

“Let her go. Who cares if she took off? She was a prisoner for a debt. It’s not some great loss.”

He was technically correct, but it didn’t feel that way. I sucked in a deep breath and thought about just giving my speechand going to bed, but my stomach churned with the thought of her out there alone. Fuck, what the hell was with this girl? Could she really be my mate?

“This is going to sound insane, but I need to find her.” Shale’s face contorted like he’d eaten a mouthful of sour berries.

“Say what now?”

I let the cloak drop to the ground. “Do the speech. I’ll be back.”

“Wait. Do you want guards,” he called after me.

“No,” I yelled and then shifted.

I ran for the gates and the large wall that protected the castle. There was only one other way in which I’d used to arrive, but it was tough going and would take longer to get around to the main road. One of the gates opened for me to storm through, and I ran with my head down and nostrils open, looking for her scent. With each stride, my fear for her notched up another level. This was wild country, and there were other threats in the area besides the Southern Wranglers. Careening around a corner, I skidded to a stop, tossing stones and dirt into the air as her scent filled my nose and stirred the desire in my chest.

Wheeling around, I backtracked and sniffed the edge of the road until I found where she’d hidden from sight. The fog and tall grass would’ve made it easy for her to slip out and hide. Smart.

Sniffing the ground, I tracked her steps into the forest and knew where she was heading as she made a straight line west. The river wasn’t far off, and I’d bet that was her destination. Not wanting to spook her, I took off at a trot, keeping my strides light so that she wouldn’t hear me sneaking up on her. Her scent slowly got more robust, and as it did, so did the wild need inside me. I fought the carnal urge as my cock tried to drop from its sheath, and the same ache as before returned. Maybe Shale was right, and I should turn around. But if she was my mate, thenChase was right, and I needed her. I’d laid eyes on her for all of a minute, and my head was already a mess.

The sound of water rippling as it traveled downstream was louder, but it was the soft humming that had my ears pricking forward. It was her. I was sure of it. Reaching the edge of the forest, I stood in the dark shadows, transfixed to the spot at the sight of her. She was in the middle of the river, up to her shoulders, humming as she rubbed at her wet hair. The mud and grime were gone from her face, and her scent was no longer tainted by other males. The water had to be freezing, but she didn’t seem to mind or care as she stepped into the shallows and held her arms up, turning in a slow circle.

No matter how hard I concentrated, my massive cock pushed free of the sheath. It rubbed against my stomach, making me shudder. It had been so long, and I could feel the urge to come already threatening. Flexing my hindquarters, my cock rubbed against my body again, and I held back the grunt.

The female turned waist-deep in the water, and my eyes locked on her breasts and hard nipples. That was all it took for me to lose control. My cock rubbed feverishly against my stomach as I pictured breeding her. What would she smell like in heat? There was no holding back the groan or soft snort as I came. The load was agonizing in its relief as jet after jet of come shot from my cock and landed on the ground. Fuck, I’d forgotten how good it felt, but I stumbled to the side with the rush of pleasure, and the female sucked in a sharp startled breath.

I couldn’t seem to stop the release as more was forced from my cock and almost brought me to my knees. Maybe I was wrong, but I didn’t feel like this the last time I had sex.

She lifted her nose to the air and sniffed. I was upwind, not worried about concealing my presence. She tried to bolt from the water like a scared deer but stumbled and fell. Then shescreamed and froze. I couldn’t see what she was looking at from my angle, but the loud growl was one I recognized.

I burst from my hiding spot and charged the grizzly as it stood up on its hindquarters and roared at my female. She tried to push herself backward while the grizzly lurched like it was going to attack. A battle cry ripped from my throat, and the bear turned, its dark eyes going wide as it recognized the danger. The bear raised its paw to strike at me, but it was too late. I was on top of it and slammed my rack into its side before it could take a swipe. I didn’t normally mess with the other animals or shifters who lived in the forests, but nothing and no one would hurt her. The impact sent the bear flying sideways, crashing to the ground and tumbling into the forest. Standing over my female, I pawed at the rocky shore and watched for any sign that the bear would return. If it was alive, it decided it had no interest in messing with me. Wise choice. I would’ve ripped it apart if it tried again.

Looking between my legs, I watched as my female slowly pushed herself back into the water like she was going to sneak away. Her eyes were wide and terrified, and she was noticeably shaking. Now that she was clean, it was easy to see the numerous bruises that coated her body and the handprints of whoever had attacked her. Some were very old, and others were fresh. As shifters, we healed much faster than humans, so I didn’t understand why she wasn’t healing like normal.

She looked up at my now flaccid but still dripping cock, and licked her lips. I’d never seen a sexier act in my entire life. But there was more than desire in her stare. There was terror. I could smell it in the air. I forced my cock back up into my sheath and carefully stepped over her.

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