She grabbed his arm and turned him until Dasani faced her. Her brows dipped in a frown as she studied him, and then her lips formed an O. “He’s not Shadow elf, is he?”
Dasani’s shoulders stiffened. Now he was the one acting as if Egbar would magically appear in Dasani’s bedroom and strike him down. He glanced around and settled his gaze on his bedroom window, looking out over the forest that had brought him great joy growing up. He’d wandered the marshlands for hours when he was younger, pretending to explore different worlds, wondering what life would be like when he was older.
If only he’d known how badly it would suck. “No, he isn’t.”
Her grip tightened. “Oh, this is bad.”
“Thanks, Captain Obvious.” He pulled his arm free. “I already know my mating is doomed. If father finds out, he’ll skin me alive.”
“And that’s if he’s in a good mood,” she replied. When Dasani narrowed his gaze, she shrugged as her eyes widened. “Sorry, but it’s the truth.” She smirked. “But at least he can’t force us to mate.” Her face soured as she shivered. “Like that was ever going to happen.”
They both jumped and turned toward Dasani’s bedroom door when they heard Egbar in the other room. It sounded as though he was slamming things around. The man was in a foul mood.
Which never boded well for either of them.
Chapter Three
“I say you should storm the village and toss the little blue guy over your shoulder and then haul ass,” Chauncey said as he leaned against the wooden fence. “We’ve done it before.” The bear shifter scratched at his chin. “Well, I didn’t toss anyone over my shoulder, but we went there to help Ahm when he was trapped there.”
“Rakeym is ruler now,” Winter reminded the guy as he tossed the large wrench into the tool box. “His ruling is already shaky. If I do that, his tribe will pull out their pitchforks and torches. I can’t bring that kind of trouble to him.” Besides, what if Dasani didn’t want to come? Winter didn’t want to contemplate that thought. His mate had rejected him, and although he would take Ahm’s advice about letting Dasani come to him, the waiting was killing him.
“The blue guy is Ultionem. I doubt he’ll stand in your way.” Chauncey grinned. “We can dress like ninjas and go in all cloak-and-dagger style. They’ll never know we were there.”
Winter glanced at the bear. “You’re not slim and stealth. They’ll spot your big ass a mile away. Besides, from what I hear, you weren’t all macho, he-man when it came to your mate’s dads.”
“Don’t clutter this conversation with unimportant details,” Chauncey said.
“You were scared of them,” Winter teased as he wiped his oil-slicked hands on a shop rag.
“Correction,” he said. “I respected them.”
“There’s a difference,” Winter argued as he shoved the rag into his back pocket. “Curtis’s dads were only looking out for him. Egbar”—Chauncey snickered and said Egbar’s name comically—“isn’t looking out for Dasani’s best interests. He doesn’t believe the Shadow elves should mate outside their race.”
“Outside their family.” Chauncey shivered. “If I had to mate one of my hairy brothers, I’d be celibate. I’d also have my pa dragged into therapy.”
“I don’t think I can drag Egbar into therapy,” Winter said as he glanced toward the tree line where he’d been with Dasani earlier.
“Please,” Chauncey said as he chuckled. “Stop saying the guy’s name. I can’t take this conversation seriously.” He pushed from the corral fence as his expression grew solemn. “Look, I watched how miserable Bryce was when Ahm refused to be with him. It wasn’t pretty, and I wanted to kill the elf. But one thing I learned was never to interfere when it came to matters of the heart. But don’t let yourself be miserable. Go get what belongs to you, or you’ll regret it.”
Winter smirked at Chauncey. “Since when did you get so smart?”
The bear shifter puffed out his chest and tapped his temple. “I’m smarter than the average bear.”
“Okay, Yogi Bear,” Winter shook his head and smiled. “Go find Boo-Boo while I finish with this snowplow.”
“All right, wise guy.” Chauncey wigged a finger at him. “But don’t let Dasani go. Do the whole Officer and a Gentleman thing and whisk that little Keebler off his feet.”
Winter watched Chauncey strut back to the house. There was no way he was going into Shadow elf land to whisk Dasani away. He’d follow Ahm’s advice and—Winter turned and frowned as he scented the air. Now that he knew what his mate smelled like, he scented the like fragrance on the wind. He’d smelled that scent before, many times before, but had never known the source.