The jet-black wolf climbed the steps in front of her, and apprehension picked up again in Jennifer's weary body. Her instincts told her to back away from the predator, covered in the blood of countless kills.
She'd watched him rip apart dozens of those strange little creatures ... the ones that had attacked her.
The wolf saved her and Arabelle, as had the tiger and those other wolves.
But this wolf was different than the others. Jennifer wasn't afraid of him ... his eyes were so warm and familiar, the green of deep forests, the eyes of the man she loved and married.
How was that possible?
He sat on the step below her, lowering his head. Waiting.
Jennifer hesitantly reached out, running her fingers through the glossy fur. His ears twitched just like a dog's when she scratched behind them. With a smile, she realized for certain that this wolf wasn't a danger to her at all—he was her protector.
White light spread from the crown of his head, turning his black hair into thinner hair. The wolf's head flattened into that of a man's, and Mark's familiar, loving face looked up at her.
As his arms and legs reshaped into those of a human, Jennifer's eyes moved up and down his naked, muscular body, sticking to the red, bleeding cuts along his sides.
Her lip trembled to see that it was him after all. Joy that he was safe, alive ... and all of this was over.
"Mark, you're hurt," she said as she reached out to brush her fingers along the cuts.
"I'm all right. They're already healing," he murmured, taking her hands in his. He was right: beneath her touch, the wounds sealed over, leaving nothing but dried blood.
Jennifer didn't realize her hands were shaking until Mark squeezed them. He pulled her against him, and a sob escaped her throat. Just feeling safe in his arms again ... it seemed so impossible.
"Oh, Mark," she cried. "I was so worried. I ... had to go out, and if I hadn't, my mom ..."
"Shh, shh, it's okay. Everyone is safe. It's all over now."
Jennifer's mind was abuzz, just her being so afraid and confused left her feeling overwhelmed, but now that Mark had her in his arms, everything seemed like it was going to be fine again.
Slowly her mind began to settle, and her breathing calmed, and her thousand other questions about the events that had just passed came to the surface.
What were those creatures? What was Mark ? What was with the tiger, and the other wolves?
What kind of madness had she gotten involved in by moving here and marrying Mark?
After a few minutes, she slowly peeled herself from Mark's hold, and they sat together on the steps, hand-in-hand.
She couldn't stop thinking about how he was naked, his muscles still rippling with the adrenaline of a fight .
.. but Jennifer had too many questions to let that train of thought get too far.
"You have a lot of explaining to do," Jennifer said.
Mark ran a hand through his hair, sighing deeply. "Where should I start?"
"With you."
He blinked tired eyes at her, but that infinite green always had a way of making her feel safe. She knew that, based on what just happened to them, whatever he said was going to sound crazy ... but Jennifer had no reason not to trust him, especially after he'd saved her life today.
"I'm what is known as a wolf shifter," Mark said. "I can take the form of both man and wolf at will. And the other wolves that were here, helping us, they're like me."
She noticed how his voice changed when he mentioned the other wolves. "Who are the others?"
"I thought they were all dead. Ten years I've lived thinking I was the only one who survived the goblins that attacked our pack .
.. but here they are. They came out of nowhere.
And without them we wouldn't have ..." He shook his head, reining in his rambling.
"They're my pack, Jen. The family I thought was dead. "
Jennifer squeezed his hand, realizing just how shocking that had to be for him. "That's ... Mark, that's good news, isn't it? You have your family again."
"Of course it's good news, but you're my family now." He smiled. "Are you worried about what I am?"
She shook her head. "I knew who you were when I saw you in the woods. I don't know how, I just knew. It was scary, but I know you were trying to protect us. And you did. I couldn't ever be afraid of you."
Relief washed over Mark's face, and Jennifer couldn't help but smile.
"I'm more worried about everything else that happened," Jennifer said. "What about the tiger? The gross-looking creatures?"
Mark became quiet for a moment, nervously rubbing her fingers. "The world is a lot more complicated than you've been led to believe. The wolves like me and my pack, we're far from the only shifters out there. Wolves, bears, lions, and yeah, tigers. But also dragons."
"D-dragons?" Jennifer stuttered.
He chuckled. "After watching us almost get mauled by a horde of goblins, you're questioning the existence of dragons?"
"I was kind of hoping the murder gremlins in our yard were the extent of it, actually," she joked. "So that's what they were? Goblins?"
They didn't look anything like the goblins depicted in various fantasy shows she'd seen over her lifetime.
"Treasure goblins, specifically," he said.
"Ah." That started clicking pieces of the story together in her head. "So these treasure goblins, they were the ones hunting you down, trying to take your fortune."
He nodded. "Now that you know that part, you might as well know the rest of the story: the treasure was theirs to start with.
Our pack made a mistake, thinking that it didn't belong to anyone.
But it turned out that the treasure was cursed, making us easy targets for the goblins when they came looking for it later on. "
A curse did not sound good.
Mark must have noticed the alarm in her expression because he immediately said, "the curse isn't in effect right now, it's okay.
What happened today was a long-awaited result of what happened to my pack ten years ago.
" He looked out into the trees, where, far in the distance, they could hear the faint sound of howling wolves.
"It all ends today. We get to return to our lives.
And you and I ... we get to start ours, if that's what you still want. "
It was a lot of information that was thrown at her all at once. Goblins and dragons, as well as presumably other types of creatures. People who could turn into wolves and bears. A cursed treasure. Mark's long-lost pack, returned.
But in the end, even though it was a lot, it wasn't enough to scare Jennifer away. Now that she knew the truth, so many more things started to make sense about Mark and his strange behaviors.
And none of that changed how she felt about him. If anything ... it made her love him more.
For days, she'd been worried about whether it was too soon to fall in love. But after all the craziness that just happened, she didn't want Mark to go another second not knowing how she felt about him. She was ready to hear how he really felt about her.
Jennifer leaned in close, wrapping her arms around Mark's neck. She stared into his dark green eyes, and they glittered like gemstones in the light, curious and so full of love.
She smiled. "I love you, Mark. You being a wolf shifter doesn't change a thing. You're my one and only. No matter what's happened, or what happens in the future ... I want you."
Mark tightened his hold on her, dipping his face closer to capture her lips and breath. She gasped under the ferocity of his mouth, so hungry for her. A wave of heat rose inside her to match him, ready for more. For him to make her his all over again.
"I love you too," he murmured against her lips. "Ever since you came here, I've been drawn to you ... you're the one for me, Jen. You're my mate."
He traced her jaw, rubbing her cheek when she drew back. She didn't know what that meant—to be a wolf shifter's mate. But she had an idea ... and she liked it.
They kissed again, and Jennifer crushed his mouth against hers, eager for more. Just kisses weren't enough.
"Why don't we go clean up first?" Mark said. "I think we'll have a lot more fun that way ..."
Jennifer peeled away from Mark, remembering how he was covered in the blood from various slain goblins, as well as his own, and she gave an embarrassed laugh.
"That sounds like a good idea," she said.
But still, he swooped her up in his arms, carrying her up and into the house.