Thorne
The crisp air feels good against my face as soon as I step out of my stuffy car. A light breeze rustles through the trees, causing me to smile. This.Thisis why I booked a cabin here. Not only is it shifter-friendly, but it’s also surrounded by about five miles of wilderness on all sides. My lion swishes his tail in excitement. He’s restless and eager for me to take to my fur and run.
“I know, buddy. I want that too, but I have to unpack the car before the snowfall gets heavier.”
Pine needles and old snow crunch under my boots as I make my way up to the main lodge. A young omega man, human, if I had to guess, greets me from behind the reservation desk.
“Welcome to the Winter Wonderland Wilderness Lodge. My name is Branson. How can I help you today?” The omega is handsome, with a shy, yet flirty smile. For some reason, I think of my omega Papa. Goddess, he would absolutely try to push us together.
My lion huffs, bored.‘He isn’t our omega.’
Yes, yes. I know.
Suddenly, I remember why the name sounds so familiar. Branson is the man I spoke with on the phone and who sent me my email confirmation. I remember he mentioned there was a dining hall, recreation rooms, a gym, and a vending area in this lodge, and I also remember he mentioned a brochure with local businesses in the nearby towns.
“Ah, Branson. Yes, my name is Thorne. We spoke on the phone a few days ago.”
“Hi, Thorne. Let me pull up your information,” he says as he clicks around on his computer.
“Thank you. Hey, I have a random question. Am I allowed to decorate my cabin with Christmas decorations? I haven’t been in the Christmas mood for the past few years, but the bug finally hit me. I might not have company, but I want this year to be a festive one.”
I freeze as soon as the words are out. Oh crap. Did that sound like I was flirting? I might not have company…Why the hell did I say that?
Luckily, Branson doesn’t seem to notice my distress or take it as a pickup line. “Yes, you can definitely decorate your cabin. If you’re feeling really festive, I’d recommend visiting some of the local businesses. The town closest to us likes to host all kinds of holiday events.”
“I might just have to do that.”
“Ah, okay. Here we are. It looks like you’re in cabin number twenty-one.” He hands me a map and several extra brochures. We chat a moment longer about which places I might want to visit in town when someone walks in behind me. “Let me just get you your key, and you can be on your way.”
Branson spins around to reach for my key on the hook when he pauses. His hand begins to tremble; it’s very brief, but I don’t miss it. He glances over his shoulder nervously before finally snatching the key.
I arch a brow, but he ignores it. His smile returns, but it’s obviously fake. “I hope you have a wonderful stay, Thorne. Call me if you have questions.”
He reeks of nervous energy. Odd. I’m almost tempted to ask him about it, but my lion just huffs, clearly annoyed he isn’t going to be able to stretch and run today.
It only takes me two trips to get all my things into my cabin, including all the decorations I brought with me. I still don’t have any idea why I brought so much, but I have a feeling that it was because of my chat with Dimitri. Even though I don’t let most of my Pride see how down I get during the holidays, my immediate family has definitely noticed.
But not this year. Christmas used to be my favorite holiday, and I’m ready to reclaim it. Closing the door to my cabin, I glance around, noting the perfect spots for lights and even a nice spot to hang my wreath when something catches my eye near the fireplace.
What the hell? Are those someone’s clothes? I walk toward the pile of material, and sure enough, there’s a coat, a scarf, a long-sleeve shirt, and a pair of pants. There’s even a pair of boxer briefs.
That’s when something drifts in the air around me, tickling my nose.
Goddess, that scent. What is that scent? Something pings around in my brain. A tiny blip of a memory that’s both familiar to me and my lion. I gasp.
Cookies and coffee.
Suddenly, images of the pretty omega from all those years ago come to mind, and my lion sits up in interest, no longer bored. I stalk forward like a hunter on the prowl. There’s no way I’m smelling Hayden. It isn’t possible. After all this time, I still can’t get that omega off my mind.
I sigh. I’m losing my mind. Maybe I should have gone on a romance cruise instead. I’m never going to find my mate while pining for someone I’ll probably never see again. Sniffing the air, I pause when I kneel to examine the clothes. It was probably left here by whatever shifter rented the room before me.
I make a mental note to check the bed for clean sheets. This place was rated high, but maybe someone forgot to clean this room before I got here.
That scent slams into me again. Not just cookies, but snickerdoodles. My favorite. My lion roars in my head, and before I can stop it, an animalistic urge overtakes me.
I shift into my lion form. The next thing I know, I’m rolling around, pressing my body against those clothes and purring. Fucking purring. I can’t even stop my lion from doing this. Screwthe run. He would be happy to just roll on top of these delicious-smelling clothes.
I’m too stunned by everything to consider why this scent matters, so I don’t hear anyone approaching until a tiny gasp makes me freeze. Yup, I’m completely frozen like this, with me on my back, paws in the air, like a baby kitten playing with catnip for the first time.
