Page 28 of Fur-Ever Home

Once all passengers had boarded, the bus's air brakes let out a hiss, and we rolled from the parking lot onto the open highway. I waited until everyone settled before breaking out the crackers, meat, and cheese spread.

"You should eat," I said.

He frowned at me. "So should you."

Instead of agreeing, I shoved a cheese-laden cracker in his open mouth. He took it as a challenge to shove a giant summer sausage my direction. Fortunately for both of us, the sausage was pre-sliced, so he only ended up grabbing two pieces of it.

"Mmm," I said. "I love sausage!"

He rolled his eyes at me, but his cheeks darkened a shade as he loaded another cracker with all the fixings.

It could have been our big breakfast, but we only ate half of the snacks. I tucked the rest away for later.

The bus was louder than I remembered from my early days of traveling from town to town, looking for any job I could find while also sniffing for my fated mate. It felt weird to be back on a bus. At least this time, I was with my mate.

Ben was right. The bus was slower than flying, but it would get us to Orange County before midnight.

Or so we thought. The rumbling noise up front grew louder, and the front of the bus filled with smoke.

"This sucks,"Ben said. "At this rate, I won't have a chance to go home and shower before my nephew's party. I'll roll up in a ride share like something the cat dragged in."

The bus had smoked to a stop on the side of the road not far from a Native American outpost.

"How long before we have a replacement?" I asked the driver when she opened the emergency exit window to let us out.

"We're about forty minutes from Vegas," she said.

Ben heaved a sigh and leaned his body against mine. If he were pack, he would be trying to assert dominance over me. I would have growled at anyone else, but I took this as a good sign from my fated mate. I wrapped my arm around his waist to comfort him and tucked him away from the brisk wind.

"Want to walk to the outpost?" I asked. "They might have a Wonderdog 3000."

"I doubt it," he huffed.

He took a step in that direction, pulling me along with him by lacing our fingers together at his waist. Awkward didn't begin to describe how hard it was for me to walk behind him like that, but I wasn't pulling my hand away for anything.

After I stepped on the back of his heel for the third time, he turned to face me with a grin, grabbing my hand in both of his and switching sides. My chest felt warm and light as we walked together to the outpost, our linked hands swinging between us.

The building was a relic from the early nineteenth century. It had probably started as a fur trading business, which made my skin crawl.

My pack told horror stories of wolves being trapped and hunted for their fur, only to watch us shift back to our human forms when we were dead. Now packless, I avoided shifting in open rural areas if I could help it. After the plane crash last night, I'd felt safe. No one in their right mind would attack a wolf with a dragon around. Either they'd run screaming, or they'd want the big lizard head mounted on their wall instead of mine.

Speaking of the annoying dragon, I pulled out my phone and texted Shen while Ben looked around."You back in Phoenix yet?"

Nothing. Not that I'd expected him to respond.

Ben frowned at the turquoise jewelry on the table. "Are these authentic?"

The kid behind the counter nodded. He wore rustic deerskin clothes and had brown hair and eyes, but his skin was as white as mine.

Ben picked up a trinket and showed me the back of it, the frown never leaving his face. The barcode sticker on the back read, "Made in China."

Ben carefully placed the item back on the table and backed toward the door. "Thanks."

Another group from the bus was on their way to the outpost, so I held the door for them. Ben frowned at me, like the small act of kindness offended him.

"What?" I asked as we walked back to the bus, our hands laced together again.

"Everything about this makes me angry," he said. "Shen stealing your wallet. Riding the bus, and then it broke down. Rip-off outpost. Not getting home tonight like I'd wanted."

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