Druid Fox Chapter 16
Fox
Luke stood up to go. He grasped Fox’s forearm.
“Is there anything else that we need to do?”
“Vehicles are a must. We have to get more transportation.”
“I agree; we need to make some purchases.”
Fox needed a vehicle. Artie didn’t drive often, but if she had a need and there was only one vehicle, it could be a problem. Isabell might need one for herself, too.
“Sounds good. Come by tomorrow afternoon. We can discuss the finances and see how we need to deal with the eventual move to the retreat. Would it be okay if I took Artie to see it the day after tomorrow?”
Luke smiled down at his tiny Artie.
“Go anytime you want. It’s our future home. Isabell stayed with Javier when they finished shopping to take the grand tour. She’s good for him. He’s all smiles with her. Before, he was dark and moody sometimes. I hope our plan works.”
Luke winked at Fox.
“Duncan never got to explain. What’s the plan with Isabell?” Artie piped up.
“Well, Javier’s the primary plan. You were there when I asked her to consider a gallery at the retreat. We want to get her back into life. We want to stop her from fading. If you and Eli might invite her to the spa and go shopping? Do the girls-night-out thing on Saturdays or Sundays. That would help, too.”
“She’s part of the pack, so we have to help her. Eli doesn’t want her left alone. Javier’s the protection solution and the anxiety manager. Even he could use a bit of a break.”
She needed to know the plan for her friend was all legitimate. There was no sinister manipulation going on. Artie loved Isabell. That alone was enough to make her safety and healing a serious concern for Fox. He was ignoring the fact that he liked Isabell as a person. That was second to what Artie needed.
“Love, work, and fun equals acceptance, healing, and belonging. Got it.”
Artie smiled.
She always saw the bright side. She was the light to Fox’s dark. Fox got drawn into her. Luke hugged Artie goodbye and took his leave.
Fox picked Artie up and took her back to the bedroom to make love to his beautiful arctic fox. Punishment always left him feeling good.
Lovemaking let him be the gentle lover he wanted to be with her. It was more expressive of how he felt for her. He never got enough of the soul-deep connection which slow, deliberate lovemaking with her gave him.
It was almost as if he was as compelled to satisfy the shifter magic as he had the fealty oath magic earlier. Isabell and Javier wouldn’t be back until after five. They had two hours in which he intended to make her scream his name in sheer ecstasy.
He would have to speak with Luke about soundproofing the rooms at the retreat. He never wanted her to have to hide her pleasure from him, but living with the pack might embarrass her. That would be wrong, so very wrong.
*****
Luke
He wanted to speak with Eli about what Fox had told him. Damn it. He didn’t want to break his friend’s confidence. It wasn’t his business to share.
Fox had given him a rare glimpse into his friend’s inner personal struggles. He was seeking an answer to a very complicated problem. Fox wanted help.
Fox had been a king! He’d ruled over loyal subjects who’d sworn fealty to him. He’d known Fox led men in battle before, that he’d been military in his long life.
A king wasn’t something Luke would have guessed. It explained a lot though, like the lofty mannerisms and the crazy way he issued orders, as if he assumed they’d be followed.
Being a fox shifter had changed his future. He’d renounced his crown to protect his people. He’d left his home and his family and gone in search of answers. That wasn’t what he’d wanted.
Four and a half centuries later, the man was still looking for answers. He had more questions than ever and needed deeper solutions. He still wanted to be a king or something like one.
If Luke hadn’t known how powerful Fox was before, he knew after that. Fox suffered all those years in silence. His mate had died, and he’d turned her without her knowledge and bound her to him in such a way that the magic couldn’t destroy her. Had he heard it from someone else, Luke wouldn’t have believed it.
He was sure Fox had given the clean, pretty version of how things worked. Some of it had repulsed Luke. He let his friend skim over any details about the punishments. Luke couldn’t understand how hard it must be to cause pain to his mate to keep her with him.
That his friend had the mental fortitude to endure that for four hundred years was incredible. Fox may not have been as formidable as himself or even Javier, but he was smart. He was no stranger to taking life, and he’d admitted to no less than three counts of murder to keep Artie for himself.
Luke had dinner cooking on the stove as he mused over what Fox had divulged. Luke needed more information. He also needed to be sure that what Fox had revealed wasn’t any more of the threat to his pack that Fox admitted.
Shifters had existed since before history. What else was out there in the world that others thought of as legends, myths, or fairy tales? Could a proper witch or wizard or sorcerer who could wield magic exist?
He’d wondered before. Knowing that someone was hunting immortals, he believed his curiosity needed to become a quest for knowledge to rival Fox’s.
Damn, he must have spent too much time with Fox. He sounded like the man. Before Luke knew it, he’d smell like computer electricity and old dust and be raping Eli in the shower from time to time.
His wolf growled at that thought. Luke laughed and shook his head as Eli came through the door.
Thank you for your support! Welcome to the dream… Sincerely, -OK
Read the Draoithe Saga
Subscribe and Read it all as I Write.
https://opheliakee.com/order?link=KLJQS
Buy books:
Payhip https://payhip.com/OpheliaKee
Books2Read https://books2read.com/OpheliaKee
Share this post