Rabbit Creek Santa (11 page)

"I do. I really, really do."

"
Then I guess I'm not the only one who's crazy around here."

"I told you. You'll never be alone."

And for the first time in a long time, Lindy's wolf laughed with her.

Travis and Lindy were the last to arrive at the Home Place
for the wolver's last full moon run of the year. As Marshall predicted, the crowd was small, but Maggie was there, bundled up in coat, mittens and scarf, holding out her arms for Joey.

"Give him here. He can snuggle in with me and Roy tonight. You can pick him up tomorrow. When you have time," she said significantly to Travis. There were no secrets in Rabbit Creek.

"Fuck," Joey said clearly as he reached for his foster grandma.

"Joey!" Lindy cried and her cheeks turned redder than the cold air had already made them.

"Best offer I've had in years, Joey, but you're way to young fer me!" Maggie laughed and those that were close enough to hear the pup laughed, too. "You're going to have to teach that wolver a few rules about rearing a pup," she chided Lindy.

"Come on, Lindy. You can run with us," offered one of the younger women
who hadn't heard the exchange, but before Lindy could answer, Travis grabbed her hand and pulled her to his side.

"Lindy's running with me," he said loud enough for the whole assembly of wolvers to hear. "And she'll be running again next month for our mating. You're all invited to the party beforehand."

Amidst the cheers of congratulations, he looked down at his intended mate who stared up at him with those wide angel eyes. "We're not waiting. My lease is up at the end of the month, so our folks can stay at my place. Spend some time with their grandson," he said significantly. "It only makes sense. Joey needs a father. You need me and I need you."

Lindy nodded her agreement
because she couldn't speak. Wolvers called their transformation to wolf 'going over the moon', but for her, tonight's run had a double meaning. She was over the moon with joy.

Marshall raised his hands for the flash of Alpha power that was needed for the women to change
and then they were off and running.

Lindy's wolf made two circles in the snow, chuffing up a cloud of the cold white stuff with her nose, before she ran after the others.

"
Free. Free. Free
." It had been so long since her human had allowed her to run and the pure pleasure of stretching her body and legs out was almost more than she could bear. She flew through the snow, tumbling and rolling in it, snorting with laughter when some went up her nose. It was several minutes before she realized Travis wasn't beside her.

He wasn't far off. Loping along a few yards away, he, too was chortling with laughter at the antics of his mate. And she was his mate, body, heart, and soul. The ceremony was a tradition to satisfy their human side. His wolf needed no o
fficial sanction. What was, was. Lindy was his mate and she was beautiful. Round and fluffy with her winter coat, she was light grey with a cap of darker color that ran the length of her body. As was her human, her wolf was shorted than his, with powerful legs and a firm stride. He thought they fit together perfectly.

When she saw him, she woofed an invitation to play and he obliged. He charged her, not hard enough to hurt, but with a lift of his head at the last moment, hard enough to bowl her over. He waited, front paws outstretched, rear end and tail high in the air, to see what her reaction would be. She met him head on, but instead of tumbling into him, she leapt over him and when he turned, she caught him with a faceful of snow thrown up by her hind paws.

Shaking away the snow, he ran after her, a little surprised by her speed. He caught up with her and nudged her with his shoulder, a gentle reminder that he should take the lead. She chuffed at him and nipped at his shoulder and then took off at a ground covering run.

The she-wolf chuffed and snorted. "
I am strong. I am fast. I don't run behind. I run beside.
" It was something she-wolf had tried to tell her human a long time ago, but her human wouldn't listen. In anger and frustration, the wolf had gone to sleep, but she was awake now and this time, she was heard. "
Don't let wolf rule human. Bah! Wolf knows mate when she sees him, smells him, tests him. This male good mate. Strong. Fun. Show him we're strong and fun, too. Run beside, not behind.
"

Travis got
Lindy's message and was delighted by it. If a wolf could say 'I told you so', that was the message his was sending now. This was the she-wolf his wolf had seen when others could not. She wasn't weak, only afraid and that could be overcome.

They ran and ran, veering off from the pack to run alone together. This was what courting and mated pairs did. They ran together.
The wind was strong and the night was pitch dark. Clouds of impending snow covered the sky. Travis didn't need the stars or the moonlight to guide him. He knew when they crossed the Rabbit Creek pack boundary, but he wasn't worried. This was forest land where humans wouldn't be found in this weather. He scented no trace of man.

They played, pushing and shoving each other and rolling in the powdery snow, skirting the tall trunks of trees, playing a wolf game of hide and seek and then ran some more until the
y came to a small clearing where Lindy skidded to a stop.

The trees were smaller here and a short length of rotted fence told Travis that this had once been someone's homestead that had fallen back to nature. That little bit of fence was
the only sign that remained. The boughs of the trees were laden with snow except for one lone fir that stood in the center of the clearing. That was the one at which Lindy cocked her head and stared.

Where snow should have been, tiny icicles hung from the branches. None of the other trees showed evidence of melt. Lindy had never been this far from pack land before and yet this crooked little fir looked familiar. She crept closer, curious and yet cautious of this forest oddity. She sniffed at the icicles hanging from one of the lower branches
and jumped back, startled when some of the icicles tinkled to the ground.

She heard Travis' deep wolf-snicker behind her and she turned to him to glare her that's-not-funny look
, but her gaze caught something moving through the trees and her look turned to one of alarm.

"
Look!
Run!
"

Travis
looked, but he didn't run. He curled his lip and snarled at the approaching wolves. The wind was strong and blowing into the oncoming trio and he'd had no hint of their approach. He flicked his head and chuffed at Lindy to run without him. They'd been running for most of the night, and as fast as she was, she would be tired after so long. Her body wasn't used to the demands of running on four legs.

When he was sure she was moving away, he turned to face the approaching animals. They were wolves, not wolvers. He was sure of that. They were too small and they looked ragged and hungry. He'd never heard of wolves in these parts, but the plentiful deer and the conservationist's reseeding of elk herds in these mountains were bound to bring more predators
sooner or later. He'd scented no boundary markings other than Rabbit Creek and Wolf's Head, a friendly pack on the other side of the mountain, but that didn't mean there weren't others in the area.

His hackles rose as the approaching wolves began to trot. His tail dropped and he spread his forepaws a little farther apart to let them know he was ready for a fight. From what he'd heard, most wolves would back down from a wolver, instinctively recognizing the superior size, strength and intelligence. But not always. Perhaps they thought their numbers would give them the advantag
e or perhaps they were so hunger crazed they didn't care.

No matter. His mate was first and foremost to his human and his wolf. Her safety was his only priority. He stood his ground in the small clearing and waited
as the wolves broke into a charging run.

Lindy ran a good distance before she stopped, overtaken by fear not of the attacking wolves, but of losing Travis. Her wolf snarled, ferocious at the thought.

"
Beside, not behind. Your mate. Your man. Fight!
"

She turned and ran back. Hearing the snarls and growls and a screech of pain spurred her to greater speed and when she entered the clearing, she charged the nearest of the three wolves surrounding her mate. She caug
ht him in the hind quarters, sank her teeth into the meatiest part of his leg and quickly moved away. Females never fought in her parent's pack and there had never been a need in Rabbit Creek, but her wolf was blessed with the primal instinct to fight and the human Lindy withdrew and gave her wolf free reign.

Lindy fought as she never thought she could.
She stood her ground beside Travis, each guarding the other's back. She snarled and lashed out viciously, keeping the two weaker wolves at bay while Travis went for the largest that appeared to be the leader. A yelp, a cry of pain and it was over. The invading wolves turned tail and ran.

Sides heaving, Travis and Lindy nuzzled each other, searching from
muzzle to tail, checking for injuries and assuring themselves that the blood they smelled was not that of their mate. Only after they were sure of each other's health and safety did they sit, side by side, leaning one against the other.

Travis snarled a little and nipped at her ear, showing his displeasure that she didn't follow his orders. Lindy nipped him right back. She'd lost one mate. She wouldn't lose another, not when she had the chance to fight beside him.

As they sat and caught their breath, the sky behind the icicle tree began to lighten with the coming day. The clouds parted and the lowering moon showed fully, setting the icicles gleaming like twinkling lights. One bright star showed itself at the very top of the crooked little tree and, from where they sat, it looked as if the heavens had sent Lindy and Travis a personal Christmas tree for their enjoyment. It was vaguely reminiscent of an angel.

*****

Later, in the sparkling lights of their Christmas tree and the warmth of the blazing wood stove, they lay together on the sofa, sated from their lovemaking and snuggled together.

"You're going to like my mother," Travis told her, "Did I ever tell you about Mom and the bear?"

"You'll like my Dad," she laughed, "He has the same snarky temper when he orders Mama around."

"But she listens to him. Right?" he asked, still a little miffed that Lindy didn't.

Lindy laughed. "Oh, she listens all right and then she does what she think's best."

"Don't think it's going to be that way in this house," he warned.

"Yes, sir," she said, but from the way she said it and the pursing of her lips, Travis knew she didn't mean a word of it.

W
hile he never would have wished for it, he was glad they'd fought together. Lindy was bolder and brighter and already more confident. It showed in her face and even in her lovemaking and she was the more beautiful for it.

He kissed her nose. "My father says when it comes to women, you just can't win, but I think I proved him wrong when I found you. You're the best Christmas present ever."

Lindy kissed his nose back. "Does this count as our first Christmas?"

"It does for me. We'll have to see if we can find an ornament in the after Christmas sales."

"We already have one," Lindy cried, leaping up from the sofa and running to the front door, stark naked.

"Are you crazy woman?" Travis yelled for the third time, unsure of what he was getting into with this woman, but sure he was going to enjoy the hell out of it.

"Oops." Lindy ran back and grabbed his coat which was much too large and slid her feet into his big boots. "Be right back."

She returned a minute later with the wooden tree he'd carved dangling from her finger.

"We can't have that pitiful thing as our first ornament," he protested.

"We have to. Look at it, Travis. Look really hard."

He did and she was right. It was their miracle tree from the forest.

"We've been blessed, Travis. Joey's all right. You're all right. I'm all right. Together, we're all right," she said as she hung their ornament on the tree where it would be the
centerpiece of all their future Christmas trees; a beacon for all the memories they would make together.

"Merry Ch
ristmas, Travis," she said as she bent to give him a soft kiss.

"
Merry Christmas, Lindy," Travis said before he pulled her down beside him and kissed her back.

*****

Marshall and Lizzie were once again standing out on their front porch, their silhouettes outlined by the blue and white lights Lizzie had hung just so. The twins were tucked in bed, sleeping peacefully and the Alpha and his Mate finally had a quiet moment to themselves.

"You're going to say 'All's well that ends well', aren't you, Lizzie mine."

She laughed a little and snuggled closer to her mate. "Shakespeare does seem to cover every occasion, but no, I wasn't going to point out how I was right in the end. Travis and Lindy did that for me."

"Then what are you thinking,"
Marshall chuckled knowingly, "I can see those wheels turning in your head."