The Isle (Chronicles of the Irish Princess Book 1)

The river was so clear, you could actually see the bottom. That was one of the perks of living so close to reservation lands. Everything that ran though it was preserved from one end to the other. The sun was high in the sky by the time we’d decided on going, got changed and made some lunches and snacks to take.

As I stood at the edge, I was amazed to see some small fish swimming upstream. I noticed a few crawfish hanging around the shallow spots too. The Red Rock Creek split my family’s land from the rest of the farms. During mid June the water was still warming up so I was curious as to just how cold it was. I quickly found out that it was freezing as Kai snuck up behind me and pushed me in. Luckily I had left my phone in the truck. However, my tank top and shorts were now soaked.

“Jerk! It’s so cold.” I climbed out and peeled off my shorts and tank top. “You’re gonna pay for that one day.”

“That was funny,” he chuckled more. “You really ought to have learned by now girl.”

With a huff, I wrung out my top and hung it on the branch next to my shorts to dry. It was currently 85 outside so it wouldn’t take them long to dry. There was next to no humidity in the air for once. It meant the farmers were looking at a couple days without rain. It also meant possibilities of tornadoes. Living in tornado alley wasn’t ideal this time of year, but having lived here my whole life I could only count a handful of times our part of the state was greatly impacted by one.

Having now been standing in the warm air in just my suit for so long I was covered in goosebumps. My insides had long warmed up but it didn’t matter. I was wet and not in the water.

“Malakai Lee Jeffers, you are possibly the most terrible person. If I didn’t love you I would think you were just always an ass.”

“My whole name huh,” his voice was behind me. “Maybe if you weren’t so pretty I’d throw you in more often.”

He placed his hand on my hips and pulled my body flat against his. This was a side of Kai I hadn’t seen before. My goosebumps resurfaced all over my body and my stomach did flips. I could feel his breath on my neck and the scent of his deodorant was intoxicating. Slowly he wrapped his arms around my middle and held on to me.

“Are you going to throw me in again?”

“No. I’m showing you that you’re mine. No one else can touch you this way. Only me. Because I’m the only one who makes you feel this way.”

“You got that right.” I turned in his arms. “You’re the only one Malakai. Who makes me laugh, smile and feel the way I do when I’m with you.”

Part of me was hoping he’d kiss me the other part of me was hoping for a little more than that. But my body knew what it wanted; and that was Kai.

“Leah.”

“Kiss me Kai, please kiss me.” I begged.

Slowly he lowered his lips to mine never taking his eyes off me until our lips touched and they closed. Or maybe it was mine that closed. All I knew at that moment was that he was kissing me and life was perfect. He was so gentle and soft with me. His tongue slowly slid across my lips until I let him in. Then it danced around in my mouth. I was more amazed when my tongue slipped into his mouth and tasted him. He tasted like peppermint. It was my new favorite taste.

When we finally pulled apart, we were both out of breath. I rested my forehead to his, hoping that the connection worked both ways.

Kai?

Yeah, baby…

That was amazing.

Mhmmm…. I think we should get in the water right now.

Why…. can’t we just keep doing that.

Baby, did you like it that much.

I blushed. Yes.

Can I carry you to the water and then kiss you?

Please.

When he picked me up I realized just why he wanted to get in the water. Once we were waist deep his lips landed back on mine. My legs were still wrapped around his. I could feel the space between them become really warm. I ignored it and pulled back some.

“What’s wrong?”

“Where did all this come from Kai?”

“It’s been there for a while, we just tiptoed around it. We avoided it for as long as possible.”

“Does our connection make it stronger,” I ask nervously.

He nodded. “A little yes. But you have to realize I’ve loved you since you were 14 and I’ve been dying to kiss you since the day we met.”

My eyes widen as the reality of what he said solidified in my mind. Frantically I pulled away from him and dove into the water. I needed to cool down. It was all too much too fast. But a big part of me wanted it all and told me to shut up and take things as they come. When I finally resurfaced Kai was nowhere to be seen. I let go. I cried my eyes out because once again my stupid human emotions were screaming the abnormalities of my situation in my face.

“Luca’s right I’m not ready. I’m not ready at all.”

I pulled myself out of the water and saw just how close to the property line I was. I looked up to the sky and saw how dark it was getting. I knew all too well that we needed to get back to the house. Oklahoma storms were nothing to mess with.

“Leah let’s go!” Kai yelled over to me.

I ran back to the truck and hopped inside. My Aunt was waiting for us with dry clothes and some to-go meals. Just to be safe we waited things out in the storm cellar. There were a few small beds built into the side. Malakai made a point of pulling me next to him on one and laying down. I refused to look at him and let everyone else see. I was a private person, he knew that. I felt his forehead touch my temple and knew what came next.

Luna, relax. They don’t care. They get it.

Our life together is supposed to be just that. Ours. Malakai, you are pushing some big boundaries.

He planted a kiss to my shoulder. Leah, look around. Does it look like anyone is looking at us. No. Luca and Sarah are asleep. Em and Don are checking up above to see if it’s safe. We are basically alone.

“All clear,” Don shouted from the stairs.

I got up and charged back to my room. I knew that Kai was hot on my heels but I didn’t care and practically slammed the door in his face. I needed to be alone. I needed to breathe. I needed space. Before he could wedge his way in I found myself five minutes into a hot shower. I was trying to get the river stink out of my hair. There was a knock at the door.

“Who is it?”

“Your aunt. May I come in please.”

“Sure.”

The door creaked and she stepped inside. “Please don’t be mad at Kai, but he asked me to talk to you. Something about being upset. Care to tell me what’s up.”

“I am still adjusting to everything. Who I really am, my past, my current life changes. On top of all that he is trying to push our feelings into the vast unknown and I don’t know what to do. I’m scared something is going to happen and he’s gonna leave.”

“I was at first too. Though I knew about my powers my whole life, your Grandpa wasn’t good at secrets. He wasn’t a twin but he wanted things to be open. Your uncle took that as a good invitation to be open with me also.”

“Oh… what happened?”

“It was never a secret to me what he was. Or when he was having a rough day. But the first time he kissed me in public, I was a lot like you. In my day, it wasn’t exactly okay to make a scene like that and I quickly reacted like you are now. But I forgave him. Because I loved him.

“It’s okay to be anxious about this new life. But don’t let it control you. Don’t let fear run you down. Take things as they come. Set some boundaries. But don’t upset his wolf. You’ll learn to work with each other. But it won’t happen overnight. Besides, you two have almost six years of built up tension. It was bound to explode. At least you can let it out slowly.”

“Thank you Aunt Em. Really you’re the best.”

“You’re welcome. Now hurry up so your sister can shower. Sarah is dying over here.”

I poked my head out to see Sarah standing there with my aunt on her FaceTime. I rolled my eyes and laughed as the call ended. “You gonna make me go in that room with him naked?”

“No, I just want to say, he’s just trying to show you what you’ve been missing.”

“If all I’ve missed is a horny werewolf then I guess that isn’t much.”

“Kai loves you, his wolf is trying to do what he was born to. And that is claim you as his mate. Don’t get upset at him. He is doing his best to control the beast.”

“How do I calm the beast?”

“Sleep with less on.”

“Sarah.”

“I mean like a crop top or your sports bra and shorts. Not naked. Ewwww. I won’t even let Luca sleep without his boxers on.”

“So you’re the reason he stopped sleeping naked.”

She sighed. “Leah, I’m just saying. Wolves need physical touch. It calms them. It tells them you are safe. Skin to skin is the quickest way to do that.”

I nodded. “Alright. Can I get dressed now?”

She obliged and I dressed. Kai was laying in bed with the covers pulled up. Though I was thinking of how crazy she was, I knew Sarah was right and I pulled off my shirt to sleep in my sports bra. I got in and was immediately met with warmth from him. I couldn’t help but to nestle into his back side. As my bare stomach touched his back I could feel the shock in him. He quickly turned around.

“Leah,” he groaned, “are your trying to torture me?”

“No. It’s hot and I’m tired. Now snuggle me so we both sleep.”

“If you’re hot why am I gonna cuddle….”

“Kai, please just hold me.”

He smiled and rolled me so that my back was too him. Then he pulled me back and rested his arm over me. The sound of the summer rain outside my window lulled is to sleep.