chain. Pressing her hand to the door for a moment, she hoped she wasn’t making a mistake.
She drove to Ashland and parked on a street that ran alongside the wooded area. She picked her way through the trees and brush using the GPS program on her phone, but as the light faded, she’d had to take her time so she didn’t trip and hurt herself. An hour later, as the last rays of the sun began to disappear from the sky, she heard the soft sounds of music filtering through the noise of the woods and knew she was close.
Slowing even further, she inched her way carefully toward the music. Finally, she was able to see through the woods to the yard behind the big house. She settled behind a massive tree and pulled out a small pair of binoculars. Keeping herself hidden in the shadows, she looked through the lenses and watched the proceedings. Two young males, who reminded her of her cousin Dag, stood in front of her other cousin Hanai, who was probably presiding over the bonding ceremony. The twins looked nervous, and she smiled, remembering that Dag had looked that way when he mated Dionne.
Chairs had been set up in rows, and there were so many people that all the chairs were filled and people stood in rows behind the seated attendees. Many of the people she recognized from her family and other clans, but some were strangers to her. The music faded, and a handsome man escorted a pretty blonde girl down a center aisle. Rue couldn’t take her eyes off the man. The torches and twinkle lights emitted enough light so she was able to tell that the man had dark blond hair shaved short on the sides and a little longer on top, and the suit he wore fit him like a glove. She could stare at him for hours.
Or so she thought, until she shifted her weight from one foot to the other, and the binoculars swung slightly to the left. She found herself looking at another handsome male. He resembled the other male, but his hair was darker, and he wore a dark shirt under his suit instead of the crisp white one like the other male. They were both clearly well-built, but the suits impeded her from seeing any more.
What I wouldn’t give for some X-ray glasses right about now, she thought and stifled a giggle. The dark-haired male’s eyes met hers through the binoculars and she froze. She was in the shadows and quite far from the gathering. He couldn’t possibly see her. Could he?
A cheer rose up from the crowd, and she swung the binoculars from the piercing gaze of the second male to the trio at the front of the ceremony. The twins each took turns kissing the blonde girl. The crowd was on its feet, and she saw her cousins, and then she saw her parents in the row behind them. Her heart squeezed in her chest. She hadn’t seen them in years. All the anger and hurt from her banishment rose to the surface, clouded a bit by the loneliness and hurt she’d suffered for so long. Kids weren’t supposed to be banished by their parents, kicked out like trash, and left to fend for themselves. She both hated and loved them.
Sweeping her binoculars across the crowd, she realized that neither of the handsome men were where they’d been before. How long had she been staring at her parents?
A twig snapped nearby and she stilled. Dread pooled in her stomach as she lowered the binoculars and prepared to run.
* * * * *
James tugged on his tie to loosen it as he walked through the woods with John. The woods were dark, but he was letting his beast guide him, and the cat inside him was anxious to find the source of whatever the hell was bothering him. In all his life, he’d never felt so compelled by some base need as he was at this moment. John was silent, and James wasn’t sure what to say to him anyway. They were both feeling the pull of something, but what it was, he didn’t know.
As they wove their way deeper into the woods, James’ heart pounded and his chest tightened. He
She drove to Ashland and parked on a street that ran alongside the wooded area. She picked her way through the trees and brush using the GPS program on her phone, but as the light faded, she’d had to take her time so she didn’t trip and hurt herself. An hour later, as the last rays of the sun began to disappear from the sky, she heard the soft sounds of music filtering through the noise of the woods and knew she was close.
Slowing even further, she inched her way carefully toward the music. Finally, she was able to see through the woods to the yard behind the big house. She settled behind a massive tree and pulled out a small pair of binoculars. Keeping herself hidden in the shadows, she looked through the lenses and watched the proceedings. Two young males, who reminded her of her cousin Dag, stood in front of her other cousin Hanai, who was probably presiding over the bonding ceremony. The twins looked nervous, and she smiled, remembering that Dag had looked that way when he mated Dionne.
Chairs had been set up in rows, and there were so many people that all the chairs were filled and people stood in rows behind the seated attendees. Many of the people she recognized from her family and other clans, but some were strangers to her. The music faded, and a handsome man escorted a pretty blonde girl down a center aisle. Rue couldn’t take her eyes off the man. The torches and twinkle lights emitted enough light so she was able to tell that the man had dark blond hair shaved short on the sides and a little longer on top, and the suit he wore fit him like a glove. She could stare at him for hours.
Or so she thought, until she shifted her weight from one foot to the other, and the binoculars swung slightly to the left. She found herself looking at another handsome male. He resembled the other male, but his hair was darker, and he wore a dark shirt under his suit instead of the crisp white one like the other male. They were both clearly well-built, but the suits impeded her from seeing any more.
What I wouldn’t give for some X-ray glasses right about now, she thought and stifled a giggle. The dark-haired male’s eyes met hers through the binoculars and she froze. She was in the shadows and quite far from the gathering. He couldn’t possibly see her. Could he?
A cheer rose up from the crowd, and she swung the binoculars from the piercing gaze of the second male to the trio at the front of the ceremony. The twins each took turns kissing the blonde girl. The crowd was on its feet, and she saw her cousins, and then she saw her parents in the row behind them. Her heart squeezed in her chest. She hadn’t seen them in years. All the anger and hurt from her banishment rose to the surface, clouded a bit by the loneliness and hurt she’d suffered for so long. Kids weren’t supposed to be banished by their parents, kicked out like trash, and left to fend for themselves. She both hated and loved them.
Sweeping her binoculars across the crowd, she realized that neither of the handsome men were where they’d been before. How long had she been staring at her parents?
A twig snapped nearby and she stilled. Dread pooled in her stomach as she lowered the binoculars and prepared to run.
* * * * *
James tugged on his tie to loosen it as he walked through the woods with John. The woods were dark, but he was letting his beast guide him, and the cat inside him was anxious to find the source of whatever the hell was bothering him. In all his life, he’d never felt so compelled by some base need as he was at this moment. John was silent, and James wasn’t sure what to say to him anyway. They were both feeling the pull of something, but what it was, he didn’t know.
As they wove their way deeper into the woods, James’ heart pounded and his chest tightened. He
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