Page 16 of Into the Lion's Den (Secrets of the Northland Shifters)

When I turned back toward the equipment building, I was surprised to see that Angel had indeed landed on his feet, and quite silently too.

“Oh!” I exclaimed. “Wow. That’s…”

“So,” Angel asked, “what’s your pleasure? Did you come up here to work because you like to canoe and hike? Or are you more into the winter sports?”

“Neither,” I said, resisting the impulse to say I’d come here to avoid getting killed. “I’ve actually never done any of those things before.”

Angel raised his eyebrows and glanced at his three siblings.

“Who’s got two thumbs and grew up in the city?” I hooked my thumbs back at my chest. “This girl.”

Toby laughed. “What in the world made you apply for a job way up here?”

I shrugged. “Adventure. Fresh air.”A place to hide.

Angel lowered his eyebrows. “Well, if that’s what you’re looking for, we’ve got it in spades.”

We continued on toward the stables. There were some hay wagons and a small tractor parked between the two buildings, and I couldn’t help noticing a set of deep scratch marks in the stable’s wood siding.

“What didthat?” I asked, conscious that my voice sounded a little panicked. “It looks like a bear.”

“Not a bear,” Toby said as Angel opened the stable doors and gestured for me to enter.

Inside, the air smelled like hay, musky animal bodies, and dust. Sunlight cut through the cracks in the walls like golden blades. One of the horses whinnied, and more than a dozen others replied.

“Oh! Can I pet one?” I asked. “I love animals.” Domestic ones, at least. I hadn’t forgotten about the scratch marks.

“Is that right?” Toby responded suggestively, and when I turned over my shoulder, he gave me a smile.

“Yeah, but my mother never let us have any.” My gut clenched at the thought of my mother. She had to be so worried about me.

Angel opened the first stall door and a large white horse with brown markings poked its head out.

“This is Jo-Jo,” Toby said.

I tentatively raised my hand, and Jo-Jo tossed head. Surprised by the sudden movement, I jerked my hand back and clenched it against my chest.

“It’s okay,” Toby said. “You don’t have to be nervous. He wants you to pet him.”

I tried again, and this time Jo-Jo pressed his nose against my palm. It felt like velvet.

“Have you ever ridden a horse before?” Angel asked.

“Oh my gosh,” I said. “No. Never.”

“Want to try?” Angel grabbed a halter from a hook on the stall door.

“Could I really?” I felt braver than I had in weeks, surrounded by Reese’s brothers. Even their little sister—quiet as she was—gave off the distinct impression of someone not to be messed with.

“I’ll grab a saddle,” Melanie said, and she disappeared into a room to our left.

Angel put the halter on Jo-Jo’s head and led him out of the stall.

I backed up to give them more room, and Jo-Jo’s feet made heavyclop, cloppingsounds against the concrete floor as he stepped out of the stable.

“You should have heard Sarah put Reese in his place a few minutes ago,” Toby said. “He called her kitten, and she let him have it.”

“Is that right?” Angel asked, sounding intrigued.

---