You Will Be Mine (New Horizon Book 3)

Chapter 11: Jeannie

Simon suddenly halts his running, but we don’t seem to be in any sort of clearing, secret or otherwise.

“I’m sorry, Jeannie, but we need to figure out what’s going on,” Garrett says from behind me, which means he has shifted back to his human form. “Get down from Simon so he can shift back, and Gabe and I will check it out.”

“What's the problem?” I ask him, doing as he requested and dismounting my wolfy friend.

I don’t notice anything amiss, but I also don’t have access to the heightened senses that they do.

“I don’t want you to be scared because I promise Gabe and I will keep you safe, but something weird is going on. I can sense that there is a lot of wildlife activity in this area, and it’s closing in on us. It might even be following us. Which is bizarre, considering that they all usually run in the opposite direction when our wolves are out running around like this. We usually have to be sneaky to get this close to them. I don’t like it, and my wolf is uneasy about it too. We can’t tell what they’re up to, or what might be wrong further out that they could be fleeing from.”

“Look, there’s even deer approaching us,” Gabe whispers lowly, having shifted back himself.

Which means that I’m pinned between two naked men, but I also know it’s my fault.

“There’s nothing wrong,” I confess to my companions. “This is normal, at least for me. They're here because they're trying to get closer to me.”

Both Garrett and Gabe whip their heads around to stare at me in confusion, studying me as if I’m some sort of mysterious marvel again.

“Before, you asked what sorts of things I can do, and this is one of them,” I continue explaining. “I connect with animals and other living things, and they’re drawn to me. They trust me, so even though I’m with two werewolves, they’re willing to come nearer because they know I won’t let you hurt them.”

Gabe is still gaping at me in surprise, but Garrett seems to have recovered quickly.

“All of them?” he asks in disbelief. “Because my nose and ears are telling me that pretty much every woodland animal for miles is coming to see you. How do you connect with so many of them at once?”

“I don’t know,” I admit, somewhat embarrassed about that. “When I was little, I used to have to work at it. I could connect with an animal, or even a group of animals, but I had to spend some time focusing on them, maybe even petting them. But then after I turned sixteen …”

“Your full power awakened, and it became a passive ability,” Garrett finishes for me. I don’t know if it’s that he knows a lot about mages, or he’s just quick to process things. “Really, though? All of them?”

“Plants too,” I confess, suddenly feeling self-conscious. “And insects. And reptiles, amphibians -”

“All the living things, just as you said,” Gabe remarks with wonder, seeming awed and impressed.

He reaches out to capture a bit of my hair in the way I’ve kind of become used to him doing. He said earlier that he loves my hair, and it seemed like an empty, possibly somewhat flirty compliment, but maybe he really does.

“Wait, plants too?” Garrett questions in confusion. “How? Do they just uproot themselves and walk on over?”

“No,” I giggle, amused by his dramatic imagining. “Watch, I’ll show you.”

I step past Gabe, walking along the trail and making sure to stride quickly enough that they’ll see the reactions from the plants as I pass by them. They turn their leaves, their flowers, or whatever other structures they can manage to move in my direction, in much the same way that sunflowers turn to face the sun and tree leaves curl to catch the rain, only faster.

“Oh wow,” Gabe remarks at about the same time that Garrett comments, “I didn’t even notice that before. I heard all the rustling, but I assumed it was animals causing it. That explains why it sounds like there’s an entire army of our usual prey bearing down on us in all directions.”

“There is,” I confirm for him. “Just not as many as you think you hear.”

There are enough critters surrounding us that it’s likely overwhelming his senses and making it difficult for him to estimate how many any other way than by the sounds of their movement, but I can sense each and every one of them. It’s overwhelming for me too, but in an exciting way. Much like I’d imagine a rock concert would be for a music enthusiast.

“Are they going to chase after us and crowd into the clearing with us?” Gabe wonders, seeming almost annoyed by the idea.

“No. They’ll follow, but at a distance. They never come right up to me unless I invite them over,” I assure him. "It's almost like they revere me, or something. I don't know, maybe that's not the right word for it, but it's like they want to be close but also keep enough distance to show that they respect me and my personal space."

“Then let’s keep going,” Garrett suggests. “My wolf is still uneasy about it, but I can manage him.”

“Interestingly, Simon seems fine with it,” Gabe tells us. “He’s actually impressed and wondering if we can use this to our advantage during the next hunt.”

Simon’s probably fine with it because he’s so intensely connected to me, and I’m used to it. I never sensed it disturbing him in the least. He noticed, but he also knows he’s an Alpha wolf and basically the king of these woods.

Wait, he’s an Alpha wolf? I thought Mrs. Bentley was the Alpha. That seems like a thing to ask about when I get the chance.

“No,” I answer simply. “Not if you’re hunting for sport, anyway. I won’t help you there, but if it’s to feed yourself or your people, that’s a different story.”

Then I start focusing on Garrett, attempting to connect with his wolf. I can sense him, but I can’t access him. I step closer and touch Garrett’s arm, which surprises him so much that he flinches. I hear a threatening growl from behind me and turn to see that it’s Gabe. He’s growling at me like a wolf.

Simon’s jealous, I can feel it.

“I’m just trying to connect with his wolf,” I explain aloud. “People are the only animal I can’t access, and your wolves are buried inside of your human forms, making them harder to connect with than other animals. Except Simon. My connection with him is stronger than any other I’ve ever had with an animal, and he makes it easy for me to access him.”

“That’s because he likes you,” Gabe explains, and I can hear the smirk on his face without turning around to see it.

“My wolf likes you too, but the actual difference is that I can control mine. Gabe has never learned how,” Garrett comments, and I can sense the sibling rivalry there. It’s subtle, but he’s definitely gloating. I know because I can finally sense his wolf.

“Sebastian,” I declare the name I’m getting from the wolf.

“Yeah, that’s right,” Garrett confirms, seeming impressed. “I let him forward a bit since you seem interested in him.”

And here I thought it was me making the connection. He must not be exaggerating Gabe’s lack of control over Simon because it really does seem to be the biggest difference between my experiences of them.

“I hope Sebastian is feeling a bit more relaxed about my animal admirers all around us,” I say to him next, which was why I wanted to connect with his wolf in the first place. To soothe him, and to share a bit of my sense of the animals following us.

“He is, and thanks for that, Jeannie,” Garrett tells me appreciatively. “I don't know what you did, but it should make this a much more pleasant experience for us both.”

Gabe is already shifting again, Simon eagerly taking over because he wants to finish our run. Garrett helps me climb on his back again, and as soon as I'm holding onto him securely, Simon takes off running before Garrett even has a chance to shift. Racing is another rivalry these brothers seem to have, and they don’t seem to care if it’s a fair match.

I haven’t said it out loud, but if there’s one competition Simon can win without question it's his looks. His steel-blue eyes and rich black fur give him quite a striking appearance, while Sebastian is a dark gray and has golden-brown eyes. To me, he looks like an oversized but otherwise pretty normal wolf and doesn’t stand out in any significant way, while Simon seems almost exotic by contrast.

But I don’t plan on mentioning that to either of them. Gabe seems to have enough ego without my help, and I think they enjoy their rivalry.

I’m fairly certain that Simon is showing off as he leaps over a cluster of bushes that he could have just used the trail to walk through, but when we make it to the other side, we have arrived at what I presume is the clearing the guys were telling me about. It is kind of magical, surrounded by bushes that I imagine were heavy with berries and flowers not long ago, though they’re no longer in season.

The tall trees around the perimeter of the clearing seem to be reaching toward each other, providing a canopy of leaves and branches overhead that adds to the charm of the place. Just enough sunlight streams in that we can see comfortably, though it remains a shady, protected place.

Both guys shift back and immediately start searching through the bushes, producing shirts and shorts seemingly out of nowhere. I had wondered what their plan was for once we got here. I worried they might have assumed we could just continue talking while pretending like they weren’t completely nude, though I suppose with enough exposure to shifters I’ll eventually adapt to that part of their lifestyle.

While they’re changing, I decide to do a little showing off of my own, walking the perimeter of the clearing and tickling the bushes with my fingers as I go. Each bush I touch springs to life, sprouting blossoms and berries that add a welcome bit of color to this place.

“Do you believe me now?” Garrett demands of his brother, gesturing around. “She’s a mage. There’s no question about it, other than which kind.”

But he doesn’t seem upset or concerned. More like impressed.

“I see it,” Gabe responds in wonder, seeming stunned by what he’s watching me do. And watching he is, quite intently tracking my every move with his eyes.

I shoot him a smirk of my own, feeling surprisingly emboldened by the awe and acceptance I've received from these brothers. I’ve never revealed this much of myself to anyone before. Even my grandparents didn’t know this part.

“Do you see her eyes?” Gabe asks, still giving me that look of amazement.

I freeze in place, all traces of daring and boldness evaporating as quickly as they came.

I don’t know what he means, and that worries me. What about my eyes?