Shifter Bound Read online

  Too soon though, the drive to go back and check on Eloise became greater than the drive to keep running. He transformed back into his human skin, threw his clothes on and returned. He needed a shower, but couldn’t help going straight to Eloise’s room. River—who was reading aloud to Eloise—looked up as he walked in.

  ‘Hey man. You look better.’

  Iain nodded, looking past the man who’d become his closest friend in the last six months, to the woman lying so quietly in the bed.

  ‘She’s fine. Has barely moved,’ River said, fingers splayed out on his book. ‘I’m happy to stay for longer if you want to take a shower. Or do something else.’

  Iain shrugged. ‘I might take a shower, but there’s nothing else I need to do.’

  ‘Not even making the bench and chair you promised me for the new garden?’

  ‘What’s the rush?’

  River snapped his book shut and stood. ‘No rush. It’s just been a while since you did some serious sculpture or carpentry. I know if it was me, my fingers would be itching to get dirty after all this time.’ He rubbed his hands on his jeans, as if he could feel the itch. ‘Besides, those sketches you did for me were so intriguing, I’d love to see the reality. And there’s all that wood Adam and Jason found on the beach just begging to be used. I saw how you were running your hand over the grain the other day. The way your eyes glazed over. I know that look.’ His lips hitched into a lopsided smile. ‘Have felt it on myself. I’m just a bit floored you can deny it, though.’

  ‘I’m not denying it.’ Iain pushed down the annoyance that flared at the other man’s pushing. He knew River meant well. Knew that if anyone would understand, it would be River. But for some reason, he still couldn’t tell the other Were what was stopping him from resuming his normal life. ‘I just haven’t felt the push, you know? Not like before. I was kind of waiting for it to come before I started. But you’re right, that wood is prime now. I should use it.’

  ‘Great. That’s great.’ River took a seat again and opened his book, The Call of The Wild—he insisted on reading it to Eloise, saying it would speak to the animal nature that was at the heart of any shifter. ‘I’ll come get you if she stirs.’

  River’s eyes were on him, questions there as Iain hesitated. Seeing them, Iain shot one more look at Eloise and then forced himself to leave. He stood for a moment outside the door, fighting the urge to go back in. No. He couldn’t let the others know about the pull he felt towards the shifter. Not until he understood it himself. He ran outside, through the garden, to his work shed.

  The sketches he’d made were on his drafting table, the wood River mentioned piled in the corner. Running his hands over the smooth flotsam, he forced himself to see nothing but the grain, the knots and twists that could be used to form the rough structure of the bench he’d seen so clearly in his mind. A bench he’d seen in his dreams, where he’d come upon a glade in the middle of a wood to see a woman sitting on a bench that looked as if it had grown from the twisted roots and branches of the trees around them. She’d been staring at the clear green pool of water at the centre of the glade, but turned as he entered, a blinding smile of happiness on her face as she’d seen him. That smile had filled him, made him whole in a way he’d never felt before. Then she’d held her hands out. He went to her, and it felt like home.

  A cracking sound snapped him from the dream memory. Blinking, he shook his head and looked down to see he’d gripped a piece of the wood so tightly it had crumbled in his hand. Cursing, he shoved the broken pieces aside. He really wasn’t in the mood for this, but he couldn’t return to the room. Not yet. Not with River there with that knowing look in his eyes.

  How could he explain the inexplicable?

  Lone Wolves did not get tied down. It was lore. And their lore had always held true. So, given that this pull he felt towards Eloise couldn’t be the mating bond, what was it? And why was he having dreams that were so vivid, they felt real?

  Smashing his fist against the bench, he gritted his teeth against the flare of pain and turned from the drawing. He couldn’t start on that bench right now—emotion was a savaging rawness in his chest whenever he pictured it—but he could make something else. A chair. Made out of this wood. He could do that.

  Picking up his tool belt, he strapped it around his waist, clamped a large piece of silky–soft wood onto the saw horse and began to saw. He didn’t need to draw the design out first because he could see it in his mind’s eye. See exactly the dimensions it needed to be. Dimensions that would be perfect for a woman who was five foot ten and too thin. Yes, he could see it exactly.

  The sun had begun its descent towards sunset and twilight when he finished and headed in to have a shower. He needed to thank River for making him use his hands. The tension locked inside him had been released for the time being. The runs hadn’t been enough to smooth out the kinks in his temperament, but creating that chair had.

  He couldn’t wait to see it being used. He knew exactly where it should be placed, but would have to wait while River finished what he was doing in that section of the garden—it should only be a few days.

  ‘I know that look,’ River said as Iain walked into the room after his shower.

  Iain laughed and clapped River on the shoulder. ‘Thanks man.’

  ‘My pleasure. Bronwyn kept me company for a few hours. She’s just gone to check on our other guests, but will be back later.’

  ‘Tell her not to bother. I’ll call if there’s any need.’ He took the chair as River stood, pulling it closer to the bed. ‘You two deserve some time alone.’

  River halted at the door. ‘You shouldn’t stay here all night.’

  ‘I’ll be right. I can sleep standing up if need be.’

  River chuckled. ‘Lone Wolf thing?’

  He shared his friend’s grin. ‘Lone Wolf thing.’ He nodded at the door. ‘Go kiss your mate. I’ll be fine.’

  ‘I’m going to do more than kiss my mate,’ River said, his mouth slanting, a glint in his eyes that was such a relief to see after the events of the year before.

  But instead of making comments about it, Iain covered his ears. ‘Lalalala. Too much information.’

  River’s laughter warmed him—it was a sound that had almost never come into being—and he waved the other man out the door then settled in for the night.

  The room darkened soon after as the sun began to dip below the hills, the curtains a red flare for a brief few minutes. Iain closed his eyes against the glare, the red a blaze behind his eyes. Slumping in the chair, drowsiness took him over and before he could stop them, images—vicious, blood–tinged images—tore through his mind. Desperation clung to the images, the sound of a pleading voice sobbing nearby, the vibrant tang of copper in the air as warm liquid splashed over his face, down his side, thick and viscous. The sounds of wet tearing followed by an ear–piercing scream that brought bile to his throat, choking him.

  He coughed, gagging, and sat bolt upright out of the nightmares that had plagued him since that night just before Yule. He shook, skin crawling, as he tried to shove down the terror that left a bitter tang in the back of his throat and constricted his chest. Helpless. He’d never felt so helpless.

  A muffled moan caught his attention and he spun, eyes glowing in the dark, piercing the gloom. Eloise was twisting against the sheets, her hands held in front of her as if protecting herself from a blow, her mouth working to hold in a scream.

  He was out of his chair in a moment, wanting desperately to touch her, but knowing somewhere deep inside that he shouldn’t. Not now. Not yet. But he had to wake her up.

  ‘Eloise.’ She moaned again and thrashed against the sheets, hands raised in claws. He ducked, avoiding their swipe, and tried again. ‘Eloise. Wake up. You’re having a nightmare.’ One to rival his nightmares by the look of it. ‘Wake up.’

  Her eyes fluttered and she stopped clawing at the air, her arms falling to her sides. ‘That’s it Eloise. You’re safe. It’s only a nightmare. Just
wake up.’

  Her eyes opened, focused on him, flared wide. She screamed.

  ***

  ‘She’s awake.’

  Jason looked up and smiled at Skye as she stood in the doorway. He lifted his arms and she walked to him, allowing him to gather her onto his lap. He didn’t have to ask who was awake—there was only one ‘her’. ‘I’ll call Marcus. He’ll want to know.’

  ‘Do you think he’ll let Cordy come down and see her? She’s going to need help. More help than Bron, Shelley and I can give her.’ She smiled that little lopsided smile he so loved. ‘We’re still learning ourselves.’

  He kissed her, loving the way she cupped his face when he did that. ‘You’re a fast learner, though.’

  She smiled into his kiss. ‘The best.’

  A cough made Jason pull from the kiss. His brother stood in the doorway, a glint in his eye.

  ‘Sorry for interrupting…’

  ‘No you’re not,’ Skye said, turning to face Adam.

  Adam’s smile widened. ‘No. I’m not.’ He sauntered into the room, leaned against the end of the couch. ‘I hear our little prisoner is awake.’

  ‘She’s not our prisoner,’ Skye said. ‘She saved River’s life. And Iain and Gareth for that matter.’

  Jason smoothed his hand down her back. ‘He knows that.’

  Adam’s eyebrow rose. ‘Yes, she did, but we don’t know why.’

  ‘River says she was sorry for what she’d done. She was trying to do the right thing.’

  ‘After spying on us and giving River up to Morrigan. What she did was almost destroy us.’

  ‘You sound like Shelley,’ Skye remarked.

  Adam’s brows rose. ‘You mean Kitten actually agrees with me.’ He snorted. ‘That’s one for the books.’

  ‘If you stopped riding her like you do, she wouldn’t be so keen to disagree with everything you say.’

  ‘I enjoy “riding” her.’

  Skye’s growl was as menacing as a wolf’s and Jason smiled. ‘Now, now, you two. We’re getting off topic.’

  ‘Yes, we are.’ Skye glared at Adam as she said to Jason, ‘So, we need to go down there.’

  ‘You’re not going down there.’ Adam snapped upright, his wolf so close to the surface his eyes glowed.

  ‘Yes, I am,’ Skye said. ‘We’ve had this discussion before, Adam. I’m your Pack Witch and the leader of our new little coven. I have to do what I feel is best for the pack. And going down to see Eloise is what’s best for the pack.’

  ‘Jason?’

  ‘Don’t bring Jason into this. He’s my mate, not my boss. Besides, I don’t know what you’re worried about. Eloise is hardly dangerous. Bron says she’s frightened more than anything else.’

  ‘But her powers—’

  ‘Are contained for now. We have to go down to see her. And don’t look at Jason that way. He agrees with me.’

  ‘Well, that’s just brilliant, isn’t it?’ Adam threw his hands up in the air. ‘You’re obviously pussy–whipped.’ He jabbed his finger at Skye. ‘And you’re too stubborn to see sense. I’m going to talk to Shelley. I bet she can talk some sense into you.’

  ‘Good luck with that,’ Skye called out as he stalked from the room.

  Jason chuckled. ‘You enjoyed that, didn’t you?’

  She grinned. ‘He’s so happy–go–lucky most of the time. It’s good for him to experience all of the emotions.’

  ‘He’s the pack’s Trickster. From what I’ve been reading,’ he tapped the old manuscript in his hand, ‘he feels more than we can possibly understand.’

  Her grin faded. ‘I know. I don’t want to lose him to that like others have been lost.’

  ‘Neither do I.’

  ‘Do you think he’s right? That it’s a mistake to go down to see Eloise?’

  ‘No. We have to. But maybe we should give her some time to get acclimatised first.’

  She nodded. ‘Bron said she wanted to spend time bringing her up to date, let her get used to it all. It’s going to be a shock for her to discover what happened and how much time has passed. Apparently when she finally woke up, it took Bron half an hour to stop her from screaming.’

  Jason shook her head. He couldn’t imagine what it must be like for the shifter to wake up and find her entire world had changed. ‘Waiting is probably best.’

  ‘Yes. Although Bron doesn’t want us to wait too long. The bracelet has helped dampen the power fluctuations, but Bron’s afraid it won’t last for long now she’s awake. She says she’s going to need help to dampen them while Eloise comes to terms with everything.’

  ‘What about Iain?’

  ‘Bron says he’s determined to stay. And while she’s worried, she also says that the power fluctuations aren’t as bad when he’s there. He seems to calm Eloise somehow.’

  ‘Was he there when she woke?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘The screaming must have been pleasant for him.’

  ‘Bron said he dealt with it really well. Which is kind of out of character, isn’t it?’

  Jason rubbed his nose against her neck, breathing in the scent that was nectar to him. ‘Not really. He’s a stubborn bastard when he gets his teeth into something, and for some reason, he’s decided he wants to help Eloise.’

  ‘I’m glad. She needs someone on her side. And he just needs someone.’

  ‘He’s a Lone Wolf, Skye.’ He brushed his hand over her hair. ‘It doesn’t work like that for them.’

  She smiled, a little secret smile. ‘We’ll see.’

  He shook his head then kissed her neck. She shivered and made the little sound he loved. He smiled against her skin. ‘So, when should we go down?’

  ‘Bron says next week.’ She sounded a little breathy.

  He ran his lips up her neck to her ear. ‘Next week it is.’

  Skye shifted around to face him. ‘Now, where were we before we were so rudely interrupted?’

  Her smile warmed through him, the glint in her eye making him laugh out loud. He still couldn’t believe this woman was his. ‘I think we were here,’ he said, as he cupped her face and brought her lips down to his.

  Chapter 2

  Eloise’s eyes snapped open. She sat up with a gasp, the nightmare still alive and roiling in her mind. Her fingers tingled unpleasantly. Her skin burned. Something had grabbed her in the dream and now the twisted muscles of her deformed foot cramped with a cutting cold.

  ‘Eloise?’

  ‘Iain.’

  His large frame was outlined by the lamp in the corner as he rose from his chair. She gasped in a deep breath, his scent filling her. The tingling in her fingers eased.

  He was here. Just as he’d been since she’d woken from her coma two weeks earlier. She’d woken from a nightmare then too, screaming, assuming he was there to kill her. But he hadn’t. And by the time Bron had run in, followed by River, she realised how ridiculous she’d been and had calmed down.

  These Were wouldn’t hurt her. She’d known it last year when watching them. Had known it when she’d gone to Morrigan to convince her to stop in her revenge because two of them were her blood. The scream had simply been a knee-jerk reaction. A lifetime of hearing stories of the Were’s savagery was hard to get over even when she saw the opposite was true. She felt it, knew she was safe with them in a way she’d never been with Morrigan, despite their strength and wild-tinged natures. They’d saved her, healed her, looked after her, kept her body nourished while she drifted in the coma even when they should have left her for dead. Should have hated her for what she’d done; who she was. Just like Morrigan now hated her. Wanted her dead.

  Morrigan had whispered to Eloise in her dreams over the last two months while she’d been in the coma. She’d appeared wearing another face, wrapped in darkness, eyes filled with madness, screaming of betrayal. And yet it was Morrigan who had betrayed them all. She’d betrayed the coven’s most sacred rule. And now Eloise was lost, belonging neither where she once had, nor where she now was. The
truth of this rushed in on her every time she woke; a splash of ice water to the face, a stab of ice-cold steel to the heart.

  And yet, if Iain was there when she awoke, it wasn’t quite so bad. And that made everything somehow so much worse.

  She dropped her head into her hands, pressing the heels of her hands into her prickling eyes. She couldn’t cry. Tears would do her no good. They’d change nothing. They certainly wouldn’t stop her foot from aching. Or her heart.

  ‘Eloise? Are you okay?’

  He sat down on the edge of the bed. Close. She jerked away, pressing against the headboard rather than give into that strange pull he exerted on her. She might not be afraid of him, but he still made her edgy. ‘I’m fine, thank you.’ Her voice sounded rough, full of sleep and stress. She looked up at him. ‘Don’t you need sleep?’

  He smiled. ‘Of course I do.’

  ‘Are you worried I’m going to do something bad?’ The thought that he might think she would hurt them made her stomach curdle.

  ‘No. I know you won’t. I just want to make sure you’re okay, that’s all.’

  ‘Isn’t that Bron’s job?’

  ‘Bron’s gone for two days with River. Don’t you want me to check on you?’

  ‘No, it’s not that.’ There was something comforting in him checking on her, protective, but it also made her chest hurt, her heart beat hard and fast. Iain was so big and male and… and… there. So unlike anyone she’d ever met before.

  She swallowed hard. ‘Thank you.’

  He tipped his head. ‘You should get back to sleep. We’ve got a big session of physical therapy tomorrow.’

  ‘But I thought Bron was away.’

  ‘She is. I’ll be taking the session.’