Wolf Creek Enforcer (24 page)

“Have a seat, the Queen wil
l be with us soon,” Robert motioned towards the sofa.

Melanie timidly sat on the middle cushion, leaving room for Ian beside her.  David sat on her other side, leaving the chairs for Rafe, Lisa and Devlin.

The room was humming with anticipation, practically vibrating with their nervous energy.

Robert chuckled quietly, “Relax.  My Queen is not an ogre.”

“I should hope not, I’ve met a few and they are not very nice.  Welcome to Faery, my beautiful children.”  The Queen was suddenly there, sitting in one of the chairs that moments before had been vacant.

They all jumped to their feet, surprise etched on their faces. 

“Sit, sit, no need to stand on ceremony here,” her voice was musical, soothing their unease. 

She turned to Rafe, smiling as she reached over to pat his hand.  “Rafe!  I haven’t seen you since you were a babe.  You’ve grown to be a fine leader for your pack.  And Lisa, what a blessing you have been to both your pack and to the Faery realm.”

Both Rafe and Lisa mumbled their thanks, too much in awe to say more.  She was so breathtakingly beautiful they could only look at her for short periods before looking away again.

Her fiery red hair rolled in waves down her back, down to her hips where she had pushed it aside over the edge of her chair. 

Melanie stared at her Grecian style dress, an emerald green that matched her eyes.  At least she thought it did.  She found that she could not look into her eyes for any length of time.  The Queen’s very presence was mesmerizing.

“Ian, my child.  I am happy to finally meet you in person.  Your parents must be so proud of you.” 

“Thank you, my Queen, I am honored.”  Ian stood, pulling Melanie up with him.  “I’d like to present my mate, Melanie.”

Ian bowed formally while Melanie curtsied,
feeling grateful for Ian’s helping hand as her legs trembled when she locked eyes with the Queen.

“Melanie my dear, welcome.”  They both sat back down, feeling comforted by her kindness.

“And then there’s Devlin, my, my my.  Mack and Elizabeth have been very blessed.  No mate for you, dear child?  I’ll have to work on that,” she told him mischievously. 

Devlin’s smile dropped to one of horror.  “
No!  Um, thank you, my Queen, but I’m good.  I mean, I’m not lookin’ or anything right now,” he stuttered. 

The Queen laughed, the sound sending relaxing vibes throughout the room.

David stiffened in anticipation as the Queen turned and smiled at him.  He immediately rose and bowed respectfully. 

  
Robert made the introduction. “My Queen, this is David, the druid who recovered the book.”

She rose gracefully and placed both hands on his face, gently pulling his head forward and placing a kiss on his forehead.

“You are a friend to the Faery people, you are now welcome in this realm forever.  Wherever you go, my gates are always open to you.  Thank you David, and everyone in the Faery realm thanks’ you also.”

David was
astounded, not having the words to express his gratitude.  Trying to pull himself together, he thanked her for her generous gift as she sat back down.  David leaned back against the cushions feeling as if the wind had been knocked out of him. 

He looked at the table, intending to hand the book over to her, but instead watched as it slowly disappeared in front of him. 

David shook himself when he saw the Queen rise and quickly stood along with the others.

“I have some business to take
care of, please stay awhile and see Faery while you are here.  I know Robert will take care of you,” she vanished before their eyes. 

“Unbelievable.”  David whispered.

“Come along lads, I’m starving. We’ll eat and then I’ll give ya a tour before we head back,” Robert slapped David on his arm, breaking his trance. 

Leaving the castle, they followed a cobblestone path into the village.  Melanie veered off towards a booth that had paintings floating against the wooden walls.  She stared in awe at the landscape scenes, then moved on to one titled ‘Infinite Universe’ with stars seeming to float out from the canvas. 

Melanie excitedly reached out towards the painting, watching as the tiny lights danced around her hand.  “This is beautiful!  How much is it?” she asked, turning to look at the petite fae woman.

“There is no charge, my paintings speak to whomever they are meant for.  This is Faery, I have no need for coin.”

Reaching over and grasping the painting, she looked at her work and smiled before turning to Melanie.  “Yes, this painting belongs to you, druid.  I know I leave it in good hands.”

Melanie was thrilled, she turned and handed the painting to Ian so that her arms were free to wrap around the artist.  “I can’t thank you enough.  I promise to cherish this gift you’ve given me.”

“I thank
ye Merna, for honoring my friend,” Robert led them outside and down the path to a small tavern. 

Sitting at an outside table, David set his drink down and ran a finger
around the rim.  “So tell me Robert, what do these ‘gates’ look like?”

Robert took a long dr
ink before setting his mug down. Keeping a straight face, he replied,  “A gate.”  The table was silent for a fraction of a second before they burst out laughing. 

Robert grinned, “Really lad, tis just a gate.  Usually arch shaped, sometimes covered in vines or flowers.  But something in
side of you will recognize it.”  He shrugged his shoulders, “Tis a fae thing.”

David thought about this unique gift from the Queen.  It could come in handy if he needed to
leave a place quickly.  But there was the added burden of hauling a lost human through it and trying to explain where they were.  Rubbing his temple, he decided to put that worry aside.

“What happens when I suddenly appear in Faery?  Will those twin guards show up and gut me?”  David paused, “And where will I end up once here?”

Ian coughed into his fist, “assholes.”

Robert swiped a hand across his face, trying to hide his grin.  “Weel, you’ve been blessed by the Que
en, so no one here will harm ye.  As fer where you’ll end up, could be anywhere, it all depends on which gate ye enter.”

“Wonderful, I could be lost in Faery with no clue which direction to take,” David
complained. 

“Weren’t you a marine?” Devlin asked.  “Stop being such a wuss.”

David discreetly saluted him with his middle finger, which no one at the table missed. 

Clearing his throat, Robert spoke to Lis
a and Melanie.  “Would you lasses like ta see a unicorn?  I’ll take ye ta the meadow where they like ta gather if ye like.”

Arriving at the meadow, they stood in awe watching the beautiful creatures as they grazed.

“Oh look, there’s a colt, how adorable.”  Melanie clasped her hands against her chest, amazed when the little fella darted from his mother and made it’s way over to her. 

Melanie held her palm
out for him to sniff, laughing when he exhaled softly.  Reaching out, she gently stroked his forehead while keeping an eye on the mother.  She paid particular attention to the nub where his horn barely protruded from his head. 

Sending the mare loving energy, Melanie wa
lked over to greet the mother.

Ian followed, ready to pull her out of the way if the equine made any threatening gestur
es.  He’d been around horses all his life and knew they had different temperaments.  Just in case they became aggressive, he wanted to be ready.

The mother
stood placidly as Melanie stroked her, paying special attention to her neck and breastbone.  Making her way back, she massaged her shoulders in a circular motion, giving the mare a good rubdown. 

The corners of Melanie’s mouth turned up slightly when she felt
the serene vibration from the mom as the colt nuzzled between them. 

“We should prob
ably head home,” Rafe ran his hand down the mother’s flank.  “I don’t want to get back and find out several months have passed.”

“And I need Melanie to complete our bond when we get home.  I’ll feel better knowing she has the protection of her wolf and the gift of longevity,” Ian said.

Lisa linked arms with Melanie and winked at Rafe, “And I’ll show you what it’s like to be a real bitch.” 

Epilogue

“Are you ready?” Ian stroked Melanie’s hair as they stood beside the pond.  The family gathered around, waiting for the moment when they entered the pond together. 

“Yes, I can’t wait to see what it’s like to be a wolf.  Come on!”  She dropped her robe and grabbed Ian’s hand, showing no modesty. 

Ian groaned and quickly stepped behind her, trying to hide her nudity from his family.

“God, I do not need to see that,” David had turned away as soon as Melanie had shrugged the robe off her shoulders.

Devlin let out a wolf whistle and felt a slap on the back of his head. 

“Behave son,” Mack pulled Liz close and gently wiped the tears off her cheeks. 

“This is so cool,” Lisa stood in front of Rafe, almost knocking his head back when she bounced in front of him.  “I didn’t get to see the magic from a bystanders view.”

Ian and Melanie faced each other as the magic encircled them both.  With the lights forming around their bodies, they stood in awe watching the twinkling stars zoom through Melanie. 

She felt amazing, magically charged and revved like a Ferrari Enzo.  Waist high in the water, she gripped Ian’s shoulders and tried to jump up and wrap her legs around his waist.  Ian helped by gripping her bottom and lifting her up against his chest.
  Melanie lifted her head for his kiss and Ian leaned down, placing his lips on hers. 

Noise
on the bank interrupted their embrace.  Melanie released Ian’s lips and looked toward the house.  Grinning, she waved at the onlookers that stood applauding at the ponds edge. 

Ian smiled and turned, showing his back to everyone waiting.  “Go away, we want to come out now.”

“We’re shifters, we all run around naked,” Devlin yelled.

“Not my mate,” Ian declared.

Laughing, family and pack left them to their privacy.  Ian glanced over his shoulder, checking the area before leaving the water with Melanie wrapped around him. 

Ian started stripping the
wet clothes from his body, “You know, if you’d waited half a second I could have gotten my clothes off,
before
entering the water.” 

“Hurry up!  I can’t wait to see what it’ll be like,” Melanie tugged at his shirt, hindering instead of helping.

Ian had his boots and socks off and was working on his pants.  Pushing the soaked jeans down his thighs, he grumbled, “I hate wet denim.”

Straightening, he dropped his jeans with a plop.  Taking her hands, he gently squeezed and pulled her closer.  “This part is easy, no pai
n, no joint popping.  Think of it as a magical change and not a physical one.  Call to your wolf and bring her forward in your minds eye.”

Melanie scrunched her eyes shut.  Ian smiled as he watched her brow furrow in concentration.  A moment later her hands slipped from his and a beautiful
golden brown wolf stood before him.  Sitting back on his heels, he ran his hand over her coat.

“You make a beautiful wolf, babe.”  Ian grinned when she playfully nipped at him.

He shifted and nudged her side, pointing her towards the woods. 

Melanie was in heaven.  Having
had an empathetic connection with animals all her life, she now had one inside her.  She sat on her haunches and lifted a paw, staring in awe at the huge appendage.  

At Ian’s urging she stood and loped off to run with her mate.  Each scent caught her attention, making her stop and explore before she would move on. 

Ian let her lead, following behind and keeping alert for any dangers.  She ran for miles, weaving in and out amongst the trees. 

Coming upon an open meadow, she shifted back.  “I can feel the universe still.  I didn’t lose my druidness.  I was a little bit worried about that.”

Ian shifted and scooped her up, “I don’t believe druidness is a word, babe.”

“It is now, Toto.”

The End

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jo Ellen is a stay at home mom with a daughter and son in college and another son still in high school. She loves reading romance books in any genre. She has wanted to write for years and now has the time since her children are (almost) grown.
  Being a huge baseball fan, she loves going to the Ballpark in Arlington to watch her Texas Rangers play.

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