Page 42 of Wanderer

“Come in. I won’t be long.” He stepped hesitantly into the foyer. For a moment, I watched him take it all in. I had to admit that my house was beautiful. It had taken me a long time to get it just right. The house was spacious, with large skylights and a lot of floor‑to‑ceiling windows showcasing the backyard space. What walls I had were lined with groaning bookshelves. There were even a couple of piles of books stacked on the hardwood floor I hadn’t gotten around to finding places for.

Riley perched on the edge of one of the overstuffed sofas. I had a TV over the fireplace, but I was pretty sure I’d lost the remote somewhere. The thing mainly gathered dust unless Tatsuya was over. I hadn’t had him over since he paid for my pizza, though. Not for any reason other than Tatsuya being too busy with all the winter events to hang out with his best friend. He likely knew where the damn remote was. It was probably in his pocket.

I rushed to get some comfortable walking shoes and a thick, waterproof jacket. I vaguely wondered about a scarf and picked up my fleece-lined leather gloves. A spare pair went into my pocket, just in case Riley wasn’t prepared.

Seeing that I was ready, he led the way outside toward Fen’s all-terrain vehicle. I let out a low whistle at the sight of it. “Wow. How did you get the keys to his baby?”

Riley flushed red, and I felt a faint prickle of jealousy flow through me. “Get that idea out of your head,” Riley demanded as he opened the passenger side for me. I got in and took my seat quietly, chastised. Riley sighed when he took his seat behind the wheel and turned the engine over. “I told him about being a metamorph. He promised everything apart from his firstborn—though I think I could have had a dragon egg if I’d asked—just to see me shift.”

“Seriously?” I was a little taken aback. Though there was still a thread of envy. Riley hadn’t shifted for me since that first time when he was explaining it.

“Yeah, he’s fascinated by rare shifter types. I think he knows more about metamorphs than I do. Did you know he’s been collecting histories?” Riley pulled away from my house and headed toward the outskirts of Greyhaven. He appeared to be taking particular care to drive alongside the inner barrier.

Of course, if he leaves Greyhaven now, he won’t get back in, I mused. Then Riley’s words registered and made me raise an eyebrow. “Wow! No, that’s great, though. Important.” Riley had truly struck up a friendship with Fen if he knew things about the dragon that I didn’t, even after all the years Fen had been here.

“Yeah, so I asked Fen out for a beer so I could pick his brain about a surprise for you.”

“For me?”

“Yeah. When I asked you for space the other day, I was relieved you came back with a counteroffer, because you’re right, we went a little fast and there are so many things happening in my life. I wanted to show you that you’re important to me. Getting to know you better has been a gift. Hell, finding a fated mate is something I never thought would happen to me, yet here we are.” Riley’s face reddened. He took a hand off the wheel to scrub at the back of his neck. “This is me showing you that I’ve been thinking about you and I do want us to date while we figure out this curse.”

“I’ve been working on—”

“Not today, okay? Let’s leave the curse talk for another day.”

“But you don’t have much time,” I protested.

“I’ve got enough to spend one day with my mate, not thinking about anything other than him.”

It wasn’t long before we came out at the lake. Riley parked the car while I took in the sights. Over the years, I’d been to this lake so many times, but somehow this felt new. Maybe it was because I was with Riley, or perhaps because of the way the jetty was decked out with lights, a heater, comfy throws, and even a picnic blanket. Riley and his helpers had constructed a tent of sorts to keep the wind out on three sides.

“Oscar used some magic to make it safe. Fen did all the heavy lifting.” He took my hand and led me over to the nest of blankets. “You know, it’s weird.”

“What is?”

Riley sat and tugged on my hand until I dropped gracelessly down next to him. He smiled at my awkwardness. “Having friends here. I stopped trying after a while, but I care about what they think about me. Oscar doesn’t really know you, but Fen is a big fan. I think it helped to have his perspective. Having friends for the first time in ages makes me happier, knowing this is where we’ll settle. Pax is even thinking about staying, and he hasn’t seen the place yet!” He leaned into me.

I soaked up the contact while I wrestled with what I wanted to say. Part of me didn’t want to be too eager to keep him here. I needed to offer him his freedom, not from me, but from Greyhaven. “I love Greyhaven, but—”

“No. I’m not taking you away from your home. We can see how it goes. For now, though, it is where I want to be.” He closed his eyes, looking serene in the early afternoon light. The sky was clear, the weak sun casting its warmth onto the surface of the peaceful lake. I wrapped an arm around him, grateful for this beautiful moment.

“I’m glad about that. If it changes, you need to tell me, though. We can visit other sanctuaries. Some of our people do that to offer their skills elsewhere.”

“We should do that if we can’t break my curse. See if there are other warlocks in other places who can do it. Pax can wait here for us and start building a life once you break his curse. It’ll be a relief for him not to be an outcast.”

“Yeah, I can’t wait to break his curse for him, but at the same time, I hate that the thing that makes you feel safe also makes it impossible for me to help you. It makes me feel powerless.”

“I don’t. It makes me feel safe around you. Safe enough to do this.” Riley backed away as he stood. He dashed to the end of the jetty and shifted into a tall black horse. He tossed his head at me and pawed the ground.

Standing slowly, I moved closer to him until I could reach out a hand and touch his velvety neck. “You’re just stunning in all your forms, aren’t you?”

Riley kept craning his neck and looking behind him. It took me a minute to get what he wanted. “You want me to ride you?” I raised an eyebrow. He made a snickering sound with an almost amused expression—a weird look from a horse. “Fine, as long as the other type of riding is on the menu for later. I might need to work up an appetite.” I winked at him. He whinnied and shook his head exasperatedly.

He was patient as I settled on his back, taking a firm grip of his mane to steady myself. Riley started at a slow walk before working up to a trot. I rose and fell in time with him, squeezing my thighs around him as he picked up his pace into a canter around the lake. It was exhilarating to share this experience with him. I’d been on horses before, hell, I regularly flew with Tatsuya in his dragon form, but this was extra special. This was Riley opening up, showing me his other form, trusting me.

Together, we raced around the lake before Riley stopped at the end of the jetty again. I slid from his back and stumbled to his head, my legs unsteady. Resting my forehead against his, I took a deep breath and just let the feeling out. “If you carry on like this, Ry, I’m going to fall so in love with you. I feel like I’m almost there.”

Riley shifted and kissed me. “Same.” He backed away sharply and shifted—this time into a barn owl—and took to the skies. I watched him shift between different birds: a gull, a crow, an eagle, then finally, a tiny sparrow. He flew a loop, then returned to my side. Back in his human form, he kissed me swiftly before breaking out a basket of goodies.