As Love Shifts (16 page)

As soon as Chirrot was gone, she needed to ask Kris about their wedding. Their plans had gotten put on hold and maybe it was a perfect time to reinforce her desire to be his forever mate. It might make him feel better and it would give them something to hope for. She really did want that kind of commitment to him.

As Chirrot had predicted, Charity was coming down the ladder as they walked into the tunnel. She smiled down at Ever and then at her son. Ever suddenly had a feeling that Charity had handpicked who to send on purpose. What better way to seal the alliance between shifter and were than to have her son living with the alpha
?
Did Ever really want to add another man to her collection? At the moment, she didn’t think that Kris would even consider it. She was supposed to have three mates, not four.

Charity waited for Ever to put the box down and gave her a hug. “It is so good to see you all. We had no idea if any of you were still alive. We saw the hatch open the other day, but we couldn’t land because of the fan.”

She looked at the two boxes of food. “You have no idea how much we appreciate this. I’m sure that Chirrot told you that we have amassed quite a collection of animals. It is so sad because they have no homes to return to. I suppose they are just like us.”

“Yes, but our homes will be easier to rebuild. Trees take years to grow.”

“Maybe. I’ve been wondering if you can do something about that, Ever. You have natural magic that can mimic the healing process. You may be able to grow part of the forest. Even if you only do a few trees a day, the result would be phenomenal.”

Ever hadn’t even considered that. She turned to look at Demetri and he shrugged. “I have no idea. I think there are some seedlings in the storage area. Someone had enough forethought to keep some safe.”

Curiosity overcame her, and Ever marched back to the room, looking around. Demetri was right. In the back corner, directly under the light, was a huge box of tiny winter saplings. There were all different varieties, from pines to maples, and she took one out, holding it in her hand. Within seconds, it grew taller, branches sprouting out from the sides like tiny arms. She immediately stopped and put it back in the box. In the few seconds that she had held it, it had gone from six inches to a foot tall.

Charity was right. She could do it. Ever was really beginning to wonder what other things she could do that she had never even considered.

The water continued to recede and within a week, patches of land began to be revealed. The forest lay flat in the mud, the trees broken and lying with their roots exposed to the sun. Kris pushed open the main door for the first time in almost two weeks and stepped outside. Ever was behind him and then Demetri and Liam with the children. The sight before them was daunting. They were going to need to clear the wreckage just to be able to build again.

Seren ran past her with Lash on his heels. They climbed up onto a huge fallen oak and stood looking around. “Everything is flat,” commented Seren.

Kris chuckled softly. “I would really like to build a shelter for ourselves so we can remain out here.”

“I think that sounds like a great idea. How do we do that?” asked Ever. He was still acting slightly odd with her and it was really bothering her. She had mentioned that they could have their wedding in the bunker. It would be fun and it would give everyone something to do. Kris had flatly said no. He refused to discuss the fact that she had been checking out Chirrot, and she was beginning to wonder what bug had crawled up his ass and died.

“Liam, can you go back down and get the axes from our room, please?”

“Sure.” Liam headed downstairs, against the flow of those trying to get outside. He was back a few minutes later with the full-sized ax and the three smaller ones for removing tree limbs. Kris took one of the small ones, which surprised Ever. Normally he would be using the large ax.

“We need to collect a pile of midsized trees and shave them down to make walls with. The ground is soft enough to simply shove them in and then we can lash them together and pack them with mud. It won’t be perfect, but it will do until we can build something better. I want to stay close to the bunker, but far enough away so we have some privacy. I think that you and Demetri should go look for something that we can use as a roof.”

Ever was hurt by his words. He was sending her away. Demetri sighed, and grabbing one of the small axes, he offered his hand. Ever took it and they walked away from the bunker, in search of some unknown substance to use for a roof. In a way, she was glad to be alone so she could think and maybe try to get an opinion without a hundred people around to listen. As soon as they got out of earshot, she turned to him. “Is it me or has Kris been like an ice cube with me?”

“Yeah, he’s been kind of different. I tried to get him to talk, Ever, but he isn’t talking to me. Maybe Liam would be a better one to ask.”

“That would require getting time alone with Liam and that hasn’t happened. What the hell did I do? He can’t still be mad because I looked at Chirrot. Can he?”

“I don’t know. It’s possible. Kris knows that you find Chirrot attractive, but maybe it is bothering him more now because of his eye.”

“I thought of that and I have done everything I could think of to assure him that I still think he is very sexy. I do. I don’t care about his eye or the small scar on his face. I love him as much as I ever have. Just because I looked at Chirrot doesn’t mean anything between Kris and I has changed. I adore him.”

Demetri nodded in understanding. “I know. Give him some time to adjust. Did you notice that he took the small branching ax?”

“Yes.”

“I think it’s because he is afraid that his vision is off and he will be unable to handle the regular ax.”

Ever released Demetri’s hand and closed one eye, continuing to walk forward. It was slightly disorienting, but it wasn’t like she had trouble seeing where they were going. If anything, it should be easier for Kris because his mind had time to adapt. “I feel like he is rejecting me and it hurts so much. Am I losing him, Demetri?”

“I don’t think that is possible.”

“I didn’t think it was possible for Mick to leave me either, but he did.”

He grimaced. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what to say. The best that I can offer is to let Liam know that you want to talk to him alone.”

“Thank you. I guess that is something. Maybe Liam can shed some light on Kris’s mind. I certainly have no idea what the hell he is thinking.”

They continued to walk what had once been a road, heading in the direction of their home. The large tree that had fallen in front of them was still there, but the water had turned it slightly and they were able to walk around it. Her SUV lay buried with mud almost up to the roof. She doubted that it would ever run again after being submerged for so long. Maybe they could get the gas out of the tank and use it for something. It was insured, but with all the cases that were going to be filed in the near future, she had no idea if it would help.

Ever suddenly had a desire to see if they could locate their house. “I want to go home, Demetri.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. I want to turn and run and go find what used to be our house.” A tear ran down her cheek and she swiped it away. “Please.”

He nodded and, looking around, walked over to a tree stump that was above the mud line. He put the ax on it and then began to strip. Ever did the same, setting her clothing on the stump with her sneakers. They turned, watching one another as their bodies shifted and morphed into were and then wolf. With a nod of acknowledgement, they trotted down the road, slowly building speed as they headed toward home.

* * * *

Ever stood in stunned silence, tears dripping down her face as she gently touched the engraved wood of what had once been the front door. It had gotten jammed under one of the large pines that lined the forest around their house, but the four wolves’ heads
symbol that represented their family
w
as
still visible. There was little left to distinguish where the actual house had been. The stove and the refrigerator were in the distance, glints of silver beneath stumps and mud. More mud. Everything was covered in the brown goop that the high waters had left behind.

Demetri stood behind her, his arms draped over her shoulders as he slowly rocked her back and forth. “I guess this brings it home that it is really gone, huh?”

“Yeah. I was holding onto an unrealistic hope that the house had survived. I figured we could repair the water damage and be done with it. I guess that was pretty stupid.” She tried to hold back her tears. One of Avia’s stuffed toys was dangling like a dirty pink corpse on a nearby branch. It was a sad representation of the life they had enjoyed two weeks before. The tears came, her entire body sagging against Demetri’s chest. He held her tighter, leaning into the top of her head until she turned to sob against his breast. There was nothing to say, no words to express her pain. She knew that Demetri had lost everything, too. Their house was gone, and his emporium was surely gone. The town was much lower than the clan property and it was probably still submerged under water. Ever broke from his arms, running over to a large tree that had fallen on an angle against its neighbor. She walked up the trunk, getting the highest lookout she could and then turning in a slow circle.

Seren had been right. Everything was flat. In the distance, the lake still existed, water lapping at the edges of the parcel of land that was clan property. As she had figured, the town was still underwater with nothing to even verify that she was looking in the right direction. She shivered and climbed back down, jumping into Demetri’s outstretched arms. He captured her, balancing her body before he completely released her. “What did you see?”

“We are surrounded by water, like castaways on a wayward island.”

“That’s what I figured. I don’t see anything that can be salvaged right now. Do you want to head back?”

She nodded, “I guess. Can I have some of your magic? I’ll return it if you want.” The comment sounded odd, but he obviously knew what she meant. Demetri wrapped his arms around her and she did the same. As he flowed soothing energy into her, she was able to muster a more positive attitude and give it back to him. Ever kept her mind on the good things, her men, her children. They were alive to start over and that was all that mattered.

* * * *

It felt so good to hold her tightly in his arms. The feel of her magic was incredible. It was softness and calm, but it was also oddly sexual and very arousing. They were exchanging, feeding off one another and with each passing second a sense of hope for the future grew within his mind. He loved Ever so much.

As he considered her, his mind drifted into the past. Demetri had been wandering through life on an empty pla
in
filled with regret and sorrow. He had kept himself apart from others, content in his solitude. He had the emporium and things to keep himself busy, and that had seemed like enough. It hadn’t been enough, and as he stood, considering all the warmth and love in his life, he knew that it was by Ever’s doing that he had found happiness again. So many things could have been altered by even a single change. If he had ignored Julius’s initial call, or not responded to the man’s request for help, he wouldn’t be here this day, sharing such enthralling natural power with Ever.

He remembered the first time he had seen her, a woman huge with child as she walked through the crowd who had gathered to welcome Kris as Alpha. The second time, she had been a displaced spirit. Her physical body had been bloated, but she was still amazingly beautiful. Her spirit had been a brilliant presence, staring at him with curiosity in her gaze. Even without a body to house her, her essence had been an amazing sight. Demetri often wondered if he had actually fallen in love with her in those first few moments of sight. He had known that she already had three mates. Julius had informed him of all pertinent information. Julius had also warned him that there was something extremely alluring about Ever. Julius had been right, and he had taken the warning to heart, but had still fallen into the web of her charm.

It was not a bad thing to be a fly in her web, captured helplessly to feed her enduring desire to be loved and cherished. It was a hunger that was returned with each passing second. Ever would do anything for him, or for any of them. It often seemed impossible that she could give so much love, but her ability to do was boundless.

She kissed his shoulder, his neck, tiny pecks of sensation working upward and inward until her silky lips brushed against his own. Demetri relished the embrace, her mouth demanding, her tongue caressing the inside of his mouth. He pulled her closer, crushing her flesh to his own with a desire that seemed inopportune, yet completely overwhelming. It was the shared magic. It was the nights of sleeping close to her in a room where privacy was not possible.

There was privacy here, between the fallen pines, a tiny piece of the world that offered them solitude.

Ever wrapped her arms tightly around his neck and he bent slightly, cupping her thighs as he lifted her upward. Her legs snaked around his hips, drawing her softness into his groin so that the short hair softly stroked his cock. The flex of her body was driving him insane, her mouth locked against his. Everything about her was taut perfection, her nipples brushing against his own as she demanded silently with her flesh.

His dick hardened, the blood drawn downward with each movement she made. There was nothing in the world but her, her softness, the sweet smell of her hair as if it had been freshly washed.

Moving his hand away from her ass, he reached around her and stroked the wet heat of her pussy with his finger. In the second of touch, he found what he was looking for, verification that she was more than ready. Demetri coerced his cock to the soggy opening of her cunt and slowly sank into her heat. His mind insisted that eternity had passed since he had felt the sweetness of her pussy. It was slippery, the inner muscles constricting around his engorged dick. Ever moaned against his lips and then broke the embrace, leaning back slightly to gaze at him with lust-laden eyes.