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Chapter Fifteen

SUNNY

S unny looked around the kitchen.

It was spotless besides a leaky faucet she put on the list for Asher to fix.

But she was packing a picnic lunch, hoping Asher would want to go with her. He seemed to have turned a page this morning, but she had thought that yesterday.

But it was fine. She was prepared to do whatever she needed to do to prove she was here for him again and show him how sorry she was for leaving him the way she did.

As she opened her front door, picnic basket in hand, the sight before her was just about enough to melt her on the spot. There was Asher, his dark curls pulled back, his shirt off, showing tattoos, while he wiped his brow with the back of his hand.

Damn. He had always done it for her. But it would seem like the years had been kind to Asher. She took a breath, trying to steel herself against this man’s heat but then he turned and smiled at her. An audible sigh left her lips at the sight.

The grin turned into something with a little more bite to it... and it had her wishing he would take a bite out of her.

“How’s it going, Sunny?”

“Oh, ummm...” She shook her head, trying to shake off the spell he seemed to have her under. “Sorry. Are you hungry?” She held up the basket.

“Famished,” he said in a growl, the wolf making himself known.

“Do you want to go to the spot? I thought it was a nice, warm spring day. It might be nice.”

Before she even finished her sentence, Asher was at the foot of the stairs, offering a hand to help her down.

“Let’s do this, Sunshine.”

The mere touch of his hand sent a zip of desire up her spine.

Fuck. She loved this man. She loved how desired he made her feel, loved how safe he made her feel, and even loved that he was the only person to use her full name. No one ever called her Sunshine but him.

As she took his hand and descended the stairs, he plucked the basket from her hold. “To the spot?”

“Yeah, let’s go.”

To her immense satisfaction, he didn’t let go of her hand. They made their way to a path at the back of the property.

“Do you think the trail is still clear after all these years?”

“There’s only one way to find out.”

They set off down a path that connected their houses. They had walked this path almost every day while growing up. All of them had.

Their mothers had been best friends. Esther and Abe were like brother and sister to her.

But then there was Asher. He was everything to her. He always had been.

As they made their way down the path, it was a pleasant surprise that it was still there. Sure, some spots were a bit overgrown, but it was almost as if another animal had been walking this path. She had a hunch it was a wolf. That thought both made her smile and broke her heart.

As they came to a section of the path that had a bit of a climb, Asher helped her over the roots resembling a ladder.

“Did you ever look at the offer from the suit yesterday?” Asher asked.

“Yes, it’s ridiculous. They really are offering double what the property is worth.”

Asher nodded as they walked quietly down the path. The birds sang over their heads as they crossed the property line onto the Blacks’ mountain. The familiar wave of magic fell over her.

“I love that feeling,” she said, squeezing Asher’s hand.

“What feeling?”

“Just the feeling of being on this mountain. There is something magical about it. I missed it so much.”

“It’s a pretty great feeling. I’ve been thinking, do you think they are going to try and get our mountain again?” Asher asked.

Trouble with the coal company was nothing new in these parts.

“What do you mean?”

She looked up at him. They were strolling hand in hand.

“I remember when we were growing up my parents were fighting with a coal company because they were trying everything they could do to get my parents to sell, but clearly, we never were. We are protectors of the mountain... but ya know, when I think about it, I’m not even sure what we’re protecting.

I mean, we love the mountain, and there is clearly magic, and the woods are different from any other mountain, but why? ”

“You don’t know?”

He shook his head. “It’s just what we’ve always done. I mean, maybe my parents knew, but it’s not like we can ask them.”

“Have you talked to Abe about it?”

“No. I haven’t been super open to talk about magic since you left... and Abe is never one to talk. Well, until Julie, anyway.”

Sunny chuckled. “I’ve noticed. She seems good for him.”

“She’s the best. He’s still a grumpy motherfucker, but Julie really softened him. I never thought I would see him doting on someone the way he does on her.”

“And she’s a witch?”

He nodded. “She’s a white witch. And when she came to stay with Abe, she was on the run from a warlock.”

“I remember her mentioning that. I didn’t even think warlocks were a thing anymore!” Sunny exclaimed.

She’d heard stories of warlocks from Asher’s mother, but she had never seen one or even heard of one. That wasn’t great. Warlocks fed off the magic of witches.

“And to make matters worse, before Abe gave him over to the woods, he was ranting about the warlocks and the witch hunters joining forces.”

“Wow,” said Sunny. “And now there’s a coven again?”

She was speechless. It wasn’t often she found herself like this.

Between warlocks and witch hunters, most witches had been driven into secrecy. Nowadays, people believe witchcraft to be hokey, few knowing of the actual practices.

Asher just nodded with a pensive-looking draw of his dark features.

“What is it?” she asked.

“I’m not sure, but whenever Bridget gets ominous like that... it’s never anything good.”

But before that thought could spiral, they came to the meadow where they had spent so much time.

The sun cast a golden glow on the little yellow flowers. Stopping, she took it all in and gave a contented sigh.

Asher rest his hand on the small of her back. The gentle touch here in the magic of the mountain sent a spark of energy up her spine.

“What is it?” he asked, gazing down at her.

“I’m just happy to be back in this spot with you... We’ve had a lot of good times here.”

Heat flitted across his face as he cocked an eyebrow, smiling down at her. “Some real good times.” He chuckled.

She couldn’t help the laugh bubbling up inside of her. This was one of the rare moments since she’d returned that things felt like they used to. In this moment, she had the old Asher back.

She set down the picnic basket. After opening it, she picked up the plaid blanket and flicked it across the grass.

Asher fixed the corner before sitting.

A nervous, giddy feeling Sunny hadn’t felt since she was a kid fell over her as she sat next to Asher. From their first kiss to the first time he took her under the full moon, memories washed over her.

She opened the basket, pulled out a thermos of lemonade, and poured them each a glass before setting out two turkey sandwiches, a bag of sour cream and onion chips, and marshmallow treats.

“Wow, Sunny, this looks great.”

“It looks fine, but I’m just happy to be with you.”

He took a long drink from his lemonade, and his throat bobbed.

It undid her. How was it that someone who she had known her entire life and had seen naked more times than she could count could make her feel this way?

As they ate, Asher cocked his head to the side as if listening for something.

Then the branches of the ancient oak tree next to them swayed.

The only thing was... there was no breeze.

The tree line started swaying, too. While she was used to the forest covering this mountain to behave in peculiar ways, she’d never seen anything like this.

“What is it?” Sunny asked.

“I don’t know... Something feels... off?”

If you didn’t know about magic or that Asher was a shifter, you wouldn’t be able to tell, but Sunny could easily see the wolf in the man.

“I’ll be right back.” He stood, slipped his shirt over his head, and toed out of his boots.

Next thing Sunny knew, Asher was slipping off his pants.

Damn .

Desire coiled deep inside of her.

He walked over to the edge of the meadow before stooping and shifting into the big black wolf she’d come to know.

The wolf sniffed before trotting into the woods.

As he did, a breeze blew her hair around her face.

As the wind died down, so did the motion of the trees.

That was odd. Hopefully Asher would know what that was about.

As she waited for him to return, her thoughts wandered. She wished she knew what he was feeling and hoped the easiness of the way she was feeling around him was a good sign.

She tipped her head back and let the warmth of the sun fall on her face, the trickle of a distant stream calming her.

This meadow had been her favorite place for most of her life. She was pulled out of the peaceful moment by a cold, wet nose nudging her arm.

She turned to find what others would be terrified of, but this massive black wolf flopped on the blanket and put its head right in her lap. As she gave it a good scratch behind the ears, it lifted its head and licked her nose.

“I’ve missed you, Puppy,” she said as it rolled to his side, offering its belly. “Oh, you want belly rubs.”

She gladly petted the massive animal before it got up and trotted back to the forest.

Next thing she knew, Asher was coming out of the forest. Naked.

Nudity in this group of people was nothing. They were stashes of clothes all over for when they randomly became a wolf—or a bear, in Abe’s case. But having had not been around it in a long time, she wasn’t quite as desensitized.

“What was it?” she asked as he made his way back to the blanket.

“I still don’t know. It’s weird.”

He stood there, naked, like it was nothing, and Sunny was about to explode.

“Are you okay?” he asked, looking at her with a puzzled expression.

“Oh... umm, yeah... I guess I’m just not used to this anymore,” she said, gesturing to his body before looking away.

“Oh,” he said, shaking his head. “Sorry.”