AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“It is,” Piers said. “Now, I didn’t want to bother you with petty gossip, but…”
“I felt it was important to share,” Gilbert finished for his brother. “Everyone is on their best behavior whenever the Lunar Lord is around…if they allow themselves to be seen at all.”
Gilbert was correct. I’d been called “lord,” “sir,” even “your highness,” which was a particularly odd one. “No, it is best to share everything,” I said, nodding to the brothers. “Thank you for bringing it to my attention. I’ll figure out how to best address this before we leave for Peru.”
Unity and cooperation would be vital when this confrontation reached a fever pitch, and I’d need all these witches and warlocks to be able to work together. While I could use an alpha command on them, I suspected it wouldn’t go over well with those under command or their fellow coven mates.
I had better find Celeste.Unfortunately, we had no time for politics or to take this slow, and I suspected the witches would be more amenable to working with her than me. If not for my status, than because she was their fellow witch.
Fortunately, my mate wasn’t difficult to find. Celeste was within the camp, sitting with Kal and a few other bear shifters I did not recognize. They all sensed me approaching, each tensingand bowing their heads once I got close enough. It took much willpower for me not to sigh outwardly at the display.
Celeste didn’t turn, however, and kept talking. After a moment, I realized that she was explaining the solar eclipse.
“They actually happen roughly every eighteen months,” she was telling the young man sitting next to Kal. “But they happen all over the world, and they aren’t always total eclipses.”
The young man frowned. “What’s the difference between an eclipse and a total eclipse, then?”
Celeste just smiled. “A total solar eclipse occurs when the moon blocks out the sun in its entirety. A partial eclipse means it glances over the sun and shields part of it, but part of the sun remains totally visible through the entire event.”
“Oh. Okay.” He still looked confused. “So why is this one so important, then?”
“Because the eclipses happen in different places,” Celeste explained. “And while they happen every year and a half, it takes four centuries before they recur in the same location. If we were to miss the upcoming eclipse over the Moon Temple, we would have to wait another four hundred years, give or take a decade on either side, for the same event to occur again.”
The young man’s eyes went wide. “Oh man,” he said, leaning forward. “You know, it’s amazing they ever happen in the same place at all.”
“It is!” Celeste said excitedly. “In fact, there’s a specific reason why that happens.”
As she went into the more in-depth scientific explanation, I found a tree trunk to lean against, content to listen to my fated mate explain her expertise. Her enthusiasm for the celestial bodies above us was so infectious that the other shifters had already forgotten my approach, all hanging on to her every word as she gestured with her hands.
For once, I am eager for the eclipse, I thought as I watched Celeste. I’d be able to briefly shed my powers as Lunar Lord and claim her as mine. I couldn’t imagine my life without her in it.
Chapter 21
Celeste
Snowmass Pack Lands
Snowmass, Colorado
Time Until the Eclipse: 5 Days
I paused after I finished explaining the eclipses. Beau, the young grizzly shifter Kal had introduced me to, grinned—but suddenly, that grin fell away. He stood abruptly, mumbling stray words as a few of the other shifters followed suit. I could feel Fenris’s presence, even before Kal offered his condolences regarding his fallen brother, and then we were alone.
I stood slowly, giving my back a stretch as I turned to face Fenris, a smile tugging at my lips. “You scared away my audience. Everyone is all afraid the grieving Lunar Lord might snap for any perceived insult,” I complained, biting the inside of my mouth to keep from smiling as he approached. “Now I’m just going to have to tellyouall about eclipses.”
He wrapped his arms around me. “You act as if I don’t like listening to you,” he said. “But I believe that’s exactly how we met.”
A laugh bubbled up, and I allowed him to reel me in, giving him a butterfly kiss. “Did you know the earliest total solar eclipse we have a record of occurred in 1223 BCE over the city of Ugarit? That’s part of modern-day Syria. Of course, therewereeclipses before that, but they were never recorded.”
Fenris’s amber eyes sparkled. “You never cease to amaze me,” he murmured, leaning the rest of the way in to seal our lips together. I made a quiet noise, but he only deepened the kiss. I wrapped my arms around his shoulders, scratching my fingernails against his shoulders.
“We’re in the middle of the camp,” I murmured into his lips.
He growled in response, and a huge thrill zipped through me. My gut tightened, and I felt warmer all over as I leaned into his chest. Even my wolf stirred. A large part of me simply wanted to give in to the desire practically radiating through our bond. I couldfeelhis possessive urge, and it tugged on a part of my soul I’d neglected before.
Fenriswantedme. More than that, hewantedpeople to know I was his—and that thought made me squirm. My wolf stirred again, starting to push back. As much as I enjoyed the feeling of Fenris’s lips, I took a deep breath and took a step back, placing my hands on his firm chest.
“Take it easy, alpha,” I said quietly. The last thing I wanted was for my restless wolf to be dragged forward, only to slam against the invisible magical wall Zyanya had put in place when she’d commanded me not to shift until given permission.
