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No, I needed… I needed…
Expungement.
I felt it the moment my magic understood what I needed, channeling itself around me in an invisible field. Even thoughit couldn’t be seen, I knew it was there, forming a shimmering veil before shrinking down tighter and tighter, until it just barely hovered over my skin.
Now I was willing to bet my scent couldn’t make it out of the spell. Grabbing my basket once more, I quickly shrank back, crouching as low as I could in a thicket of leafy bushes.
Just in time, too, because a few moments later, a large, brown wolf arrived, his coat lustrous in the moonlight.
Goodness. He was a powerful looking creature; there was no denying that. His wolf form was almost as tall as I was in my human one, with thick fur and yellow eyes that sat above a strong muzzle. He was formidable, that was for certain, and my inner wolf practically howled.
But my encounter with his wolf form didn’t last long. As he stepped toward the creek’s edge, he shifted back into his human body, his frame shrinking and expanding in a smooth ripple until he was in a standard athletic uniform.
I didn’t know what it was about shifting magic that largely allowed us to keep our clothing on, but I sure did appreciate it. Young shifters just going through puberty were known to accidentally burst out of their clothing, their own transformations still so new to them. But other than that, usually our outfits remained untouched, no matter how many times we changed forms.
But that convenience faded quickly when Kai began to strip just a few feet away from me.
Holy shit!
I knew that it was wrong to watch him without consent, but jumping out and announcing myself would negate the whole spell. If it were anyone else, I wouldn’t even have cared. It was just that it wasKai.
It was one thing to ignore him within the walls of the fort, where the structure helped to keep my heart and hormones incheck, yet another thing to contain myself in the wild, with nothing but the pitch-black velvet of the night sky to bear witness.
It was stupid, really, what I was doing, but what choice did I have? Being seen by him would most certainly lead to a longer interaction, and that could quite literally cost him his life. What was the point of suffering and being in pain for three years if I gave it all up for one moment of foolishness?
No, the best thing to do would be to hide and remain hidden. Point blank.
Except… maybe I should close my eyes instead of watching the inch by inch of deliciously carved muscle being revealed to me. After all, I didn’t want to be a creep.
Ugh, it was such a mess, and I could feel my cheeks reddening for the second time in a short while. Finally, my body moved while my mind remained locked in conflict.
“Stop!” I announced as I stood up suddenly.
Oh gods and goddesses, did I really do that?!
Yes, I most certainly had. Kai snarled, his teeth going sharp and thick nails extending on his hands, so I held up my own in surrender. He calmed down almost immediately, though I didn’t miss the way his partially shifted nostrils fluttered, no doubt trying to figure out why he couldn’t smell me.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you, but please,pleasekeep your pants on.”
I liked to think I was a woman who generally understood consent and didn’t really want to infringe on anyone’s bodily autonomy, but I also didn’t want to test myself for how I much I’d hold out when confronted with full frontal nudity of the man I was irrevocably drawn to.
“You,” he murmured, straightening up as all of his features returned to neutral humanity. “You’re one of our healers.”
I nodded, dutifully keeping my eyes on his face and not on that sculpted chest of his. It was like he was methodically created to be as scrumptious to me as possible. Fate definitely had it out for me.
“What are you doing out here?” he said, a slow smirk spreading across his face as if he knew just how hard I was struggling to avert my eyes.
“I couldn’t sleep so I decided to gather supplies,” I answered honestly, presenting my basket. “I wasn’t sure if you were the enemy or not, so I hid. Once I realized that you were, well,you, I jumped out to…” I trailed off, feeling like my cheeks were a flaming neon red.
But the captain, my dear captain, seemed more amused than anything. “To protect my modesty?”
I nodded, not trusting myself to speak when my tongue felt so heavy in my mouth. What was there even to say? I was torn into two compulsions: one that would protect Kai by fleeing immediately, and one that really,reallywanted to lick him.
Everywhere.
But even in my panicked state, I knew I shouldn’t treat my superior officer like a lollipop, so I just stayed quiet.
“You know, I don’t think we’ve been formally introduced in all of our time here. Usually, I like to greet new recruits to make sure everyone feels welcome.”
