Free A Lycan's Mate by Chandler Dee Page B

with
palms open and forward to show he had no weapons.
     
    "You caught me, little gray," he said in a
thick, eastern accent. "I am shamed."
     
    "I doubt you can experience any shame,
Feodor."
     
    He laughed, stepping closer. Jurisa edged
back into the water.
     
    "No further," she said.
     
    "I only want to apologize," he said with a
mock pout.
     
    "Apology accepted. Now leave," she said.
     
    "Oh," he said, tilting his head, "That is not
how we apologize back home. Let me show you."
     
    "No, thank you." Jurisa edged deeper into the
water. She was a strong swimmer and could rely on the current to
move her even faster if needed. Feodor didn't look as if he could
stay afloat, let alone follow her.
     
    "Feodor, have the same idea I did?" A man's
voice questioned as he emerged from the woods. Jurisa sighed
internally. It was another alpha. Broad-shouldered and golden
skinned, Dragos came from a community down in the valley, one that
dared risk living close to humans. She didn't know much about him
or his character. Jurisa hoped this wouldn't turn into a battle.
She wouldn't be able to stop it. Only run as fast as she could to
the village.
     
    Feodor grunted at Dragos, turning to face him
and blocking the man's view of Jurisa. Undeterred, Dragos walked
right up to Feodor and clapped him on the shoulder.
     
    "About a quick dip in the river?" Dragos said
happily. He nodded politely at Jurisa and turned back to Feodor.
"Looks icy. I wouldn't risk it if I were you. Too much of a
shock."
     
    Uncertain of his position in these new
developments, Feodor glanced back at Jurisa in the water. She'd
submerged herself up to the neck, treading water in the middle of
the river.
     
    "It does look icy," Feodor muttered. His
stance changed, and Jurisa could see him visibly standing down.
Relief flooded her.
     
    "Yes, it does. I'd rather head back and dig
into another roast," Dragos said.
     
    "Eh." The large man seemed unsure what to
say.
     
    "I'll walk back with you," Dragos
interjected. "Jurisa," Dragos said to her, sweet as you please,
before slapping a hand on Feodor's shoulder to urge him to the
woods.
     
    With one last look back at the submerged
Jurisa, he relented, stalking off with Dragos. Jurisa listened to
them leaving. If she didn’t know any better, she’d swear Dragos
just stepped into protect her honor. She slapped the water with a
hand. More likely he was protecting his chances with a potential
mate.
     
    Jurisa didn't get out of the water for a long
time. When she did, she changed into wolfen form and ran full tilt
all the way back to the village, berating herself the whole way. As
the only alpha in her community, she'd gotten used to walking
around freely. Her status and her mate meant she was protected from
unwanted attack. Having so much power made it easy to forget the
dangers inherent with being a rare fertile female.
     
    Now, she didn't have a mate and she didn't
have protection. It was stupid to be alone with so many alphas from
other communities around. They had different social codes. Some
didn't afford females much in the way of freedoms. She had to
remember that, especially now when things were so critical. Her
people were counting on her to find an appropriate mate and also
prevent their tiny community from being destroyed by the tense
relationships her community shared with other certain lycans.
     
    Jurisa slipped into her cottage with a sigh.
Home felt safe. It was the one place she could be herself. She
grabbed a leather cloth by the door and dried herself of the few
droplets of river water that hadn't dried during her run. Placing
the cloth pack in its spot, she went into her room to pull on a
chemise and loose dress. The dress would come off again later, so
no need to worry about looking her best. By the end of tonight,
none of them would look very good.
     
    Dragos convenient arrival by the river
bothered her. He must have also been following her, or at least
following Feodor. Given how suspicious