Intuition

Eve awoke as the sun rose the next morning. She had passed out and remained unconscious for more than six hours. When she finally opened her eyes, her blurry vision fixed on the person seated beside her on the bed.

“Ugh... Punchy.” She groaned and rubbed her eyes. “Am I still here?”

“Are you okay?” Bastian asked quickly.

“No. I want to go home.” Eve gave him the same answer she had yesterday.

“The Alpha power is killing you.” He stated knowingly.

“Yeah, it is. Maybe you should have left me in GreenTree, where I stood a chance at surviving.” Eve sat up and moved away from him.

She felt light headed again.

“Then tell me what you were doing in GreenTree to fix it.” Bastian replied.

Eve didn’t answer. She began staring at the wall ahead with no expression. Bastian sighed tiredly.

“Do you take monkshood when this happens?” He probed.

“No!” Eve barked at him with furrowed brows.

“Okay, Evie. Okay.” He put his hands up in mock defense.

“I will not be separated from my wolf. Not ever.” She shook her head definitively.

“I would never separate you. I promise.” Bastian noticed how serious she was by the look of contempt in her electric blue eyes.

Eve examined him for a moment before looking at the wall once more. Several minutes of silence passed. Eve filled them with her thoughts.

If she were going to survive long enough to get home, she would need to let Bastian know how she coped with the Alpha power. Also, there was a chance she could use this to her advantage.

“I ran. A lot.” She eventually stated.

“What?” He sat up and looked at her curiously.

“At home. My wolf ran nearly every morning for a few hours.” Eve relinquished.

“And?” Bastian gave her a small smile.

“I need my prenatal vitamins too.” She rubbed her palm with her thumb, distracting herself.

“You can make me a list. I’ll get you your meds.” He nodded.

“I was eating a lot more often but even meat isn’t safe now.” Eve thought aloud.

“I have some thoughts on that.” Bastian stood from his seat on the bed and stretched his muscles.

Eve furrowed her brows at him.

“Come on. We’ll talk about it on as we run.” He opened the door.

She stood and followed him downstairs. In the living room she saw Onyx sitting on the worn, beige sofa. She was reading and she had her colorful hair pulled into a messy bun. She met Eve’s gaze as the Luna crossed the room.

Once out the back door, she took in the scene around her. There were two trucks with camper tops over the beds that had people sleeping inside. There were several tents spread across the grass. The bonfire had been out for several hours and the tables had been cleaned off.

Bastian pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it on the porch. Eve averted her eyes from his lean, muscular torso. She was getting more and more uncomfortable as he stripped his pants away. Bastian chuckled at the blush on her cheeks, as well as her tense expression. He shifted into his wolven form and sat with his back to her.

The Luna looked around, insuring there were no eyes on her, before she quickly stripped her clothes away and took on her animal guise. Bastian turned to face her only when her bones stopped cracking. His eyes swept over her. She was just as he remembered from his dream.

Her electric blue eyes had a fascinating intensity that seemed to pull him in. Her fur was blacker than the night sky with white speckles over her spine, chest, and down her tail. Her stature was small but she reeked of power. The bump her pup made in her stomach was distinct. Eve still seemed able to run and leap, should the need arise.

Without waiting for him, the Luna dashed into the trees. Bastian internally chuckled at her as he ran after her. Her mindlink was closed, meaning no one could speak to her wolf. But it seemed like her captor didn’t have to speak for her to understand him. He jumped over a log and landed in front of her with a sharp, curious look in his dark eyes.

He wants to play. Her wolf acknowledged.

He’s testing us. Eve replied silently.

Raise the power. Use the power. Hold the power. The animal stated.

I know what Flint says. But he’s not here right now. She remarked.

Where he is does not matter. We have to protect the pup. The she-beast had already decided.

Fine. If he wants to play, let’s play. Eve growled internally.

The larger gray wolf continued to watch her. She pounced in his direction, accepting his challenge, before she ran past him. Bastian followed her but he’d only taken a few steps before he realized all signs of her were gone.

He inhaled the air. She was close by, but the changing of the wind concealed her direction. Eve had dove into a pile of fallen leaves. She waited for Bastian to step closer but he hesitated just out of her reach. He was listening intently for Eve. The Luna held her breath, refusing to allow even a muscle to twitch.

Bastian finally took that single step toward her. Moving with incredible speed, Eve jumped to her feet. She headbutted his ribs and hard as she could and pushed her nose under him. She used all her strength to pull her head upward, flipping him on his side.

Eve lunged at him to pin him to the ground but Bastian’s jaws grabbed her front paw. She tumbled to the ground beside him.

He began to shift back into his human form. Eve again turned away from him. Even her wolf was uncomfortable looking at a man’s nudity, when that man wasn’t her mate. Bastian walked over to a nearby dead tree and he reached inside the hollow center. He retrieved a plastic bag that had a pair of gym shorts in it.

“You learned that trick from Flint.” Bastian noted as he stepped into the shorts.

Eve didn’t answer, she simply continued to stare at the woods away from him.

“How are you feeling now?” He sat on the forest floor. “Better?”

The black wolf met his gaze and glared at him.

“I know, I know. You’re not okay. You want to go home.” Bastian sighed heavily.

Eve growled at him and averted her eyes again.

“Come on. I have a few ideas that might help.” He shrugged at her and walked toward camp.

She shook her head and followed him. As much as she wanted to flee, she knew this would put her pack members in danger. Instead, Eve followed along behind him on her paws.

She refused to turn back into her human form out in the open. Not only would she be nude; Eve also felt more secure having her sharp, animal teeth and crushing jaws poised for a fight.