Read Online Bear With Me (BBW Paranormal Shifter Romance) by Jasmine White - Free Book Online
Authors: Jasmine White
Ads: Link
to my death down the sharp, rocky mountain.
But, to his credit, David did his very best to make my ride a comfortable one; his gait was steady, almost sensual, and even when he did break into a run I found that already I was so used to the loping motions of riding a bear that I hardly noticed our increased speed.
We ran through the forest, the trees practically springing back to make way for us. Elevated a good six feet above the ground with the liberty of time to look around, I had a queen’s view of the woodland as we passed through. Sunlight dappled through the trees, flashing across brooks and streams, and reflecting off the eyes of the forest-folk as they followed us – rabbits, badgers, foxes, they all stopped what they were doing to stare at the girl and the giant bear galloping through their home, kicking up mud and leaves in their wake.
My long hair flew behind me, my leather cloak billowing out like something out of a medieval movie. I felt invigorated, like we could keep going forever, until we reached the end of the Earth.
But it was not the edge of the world that brought us to an abrupt stop; rather it was a wall of rock that seemed to have risen suddenly out of nowhere. I craned my neck to peer upwards, shielding my eyes from the blinding needles of sunlight, and could just about make out the vague impression of a path winding its way around the side of the mountain, although I could not for the life of me work out how we were going to get up high enough to reach the path.
David padded up and down, his eyes roving the wall of rock, searching and searching for something invisible to my own eye. Then we stopped. The breeze in the air rustled the few leaves still left on the trees and stirred my hair, causing it to fall across my eyes in a thick curtain. I waited patiently as David sniffed at the wall, nudging a protruding stone here and there until, suddenly, there was a great grinding of rock so loud that I had to clap my hands over my ears to protect them from the unbearable grating sound.
“ Oh my god!” I whispered, my eyes widening.
Carved into the very stone of the mountain itself was a door – a huge door – which swung open on carved stone hinges to reveal the slimmest staircase that I had ever seen. There was no way a bear, small or large, would be able to fit through it.
I swung my legs around and slid down David’s long, sloping side, examining the peculiar door with drifting eyes and soft fingers tips whilst, behind me, David shrank back down into human form.
“Beautiful, isn’t it?” he murmured, slipping to my side and following my gaze. “Ingenious design. Centuries old. And, so far, completely unbreached.” He stepped back with a sigh and ran a fretful hand through his mane of hair. “This door provides sanctuary for the werewolves and all who they invite into their midst. That trust has never once been broken. Until now.”
I reached out with a tentative hand and rested it on David’s arm. “Are you okay?”
He nodded, although unconvincingly. His voice when he spoke, however, was strong and filled with conviction. “They murdered my mate,” he said flatly. “This retribution is long overdue and well-deserved.”
My heart gave an uncomfortable and unexpected lurch at the mention of his past love, but I did not have time to dwell on it as David, with a brief motion to me to follow him, slipped through the doorway and began the long ascent up the stone stairway.
*
The further we climbed, the darker it became and the more damp it smelt. There was not a single living organism, aside from myself and David, all the way up – no moss, no spiders, not even a weed that had managed to go unnoticed. It was a dead place, this tunnel inside the mountain. I trailed one hand along the cold stone wall as we wound our way along the never ending staircase whilst, with the other, I clutched tightly onto David’s hand as he pulled me up with him. I
But, to his credit, David did his very best to make my ride a comfortable one; his gait was steady, almost sensual, and even when he did break into a run I found that already I was so used to the loping motions of riding a bear that I hardly noticed our increased speed.
We ran through the forest, the trees practically springing back to make way for us. Elevated a good six feet above the ground with the liberty of time to look around, I had a queen’s view of the woodland as we passed through. Sunlight dappled through the trees, flashing across brooks and streams, and reflecting off the eyes of the forest-folk as they followed us – rabbits, badgers, foxes, they all stopped what they were doing to stare at the girl and the giant bear galloping through their home, kicking up mud and leaves in their wake.
My long hair flew behind me, my leather cloak billowing out like something out of a medieval movie. I felt invigorated, like we could keep going forever, until we reached the end of the Earth.
But it was not the edge of the world that brought us to an abrupt stop; rather it was a wall of rock that seemed to have risen suddenly out of nowhere. I craned my neck to peer upwards, shielding my eyes from the blinding needles of sunlight, and could just about make out the vague impression of a path winding its way around the side of the mountain, although I could not for the life of me work out how we were going to get up high enough to reach the path.
David padded up and down, his eyes roving the wall of rock, searching and searching for something invisible to my own eye. Then we stopped. The breeze in the air rustled the few leaves still left on the trees and stirred my hair, causing it to fall across my eyes in a thick curtain. I waited patiently as David sniffed at the wall, nudging a protruding stone here and there until, suddenly, there was a great grinding of rock so loud that I had to clap my hands over my ears to protect them from the unbearable grating sound.
“ Oh my god!” I whispered, my eyes widening.
Carved into the very stone of the mountain itself was a door – a huge door – which swung open on carved stone hinges to reveal the slimmest staircase that I had ever seen. There was no way a bear, small or large, would be able to fit through it.
I swung my legs around and slid down David’s long, sloping side, examining the peculiar door with drifting eyes and soft fingers tips whilst, behind me, David shrank back down into human form.
“Beautiful, isn’t it?” he murmured, slipping to my side and following my gaze. “Ingenious design. Centuries old. And, so far, completely unbreached.” He stepped back with a sigh and ran a fretful hand through his mane of hair. “This door provides sanctuary for the werewolves and all who they invite into their midst. That trust has never once been broken. Until now.”
I reached out with a tentative hand and rested it on David’s arm. “Are you okay?”
He nodded, although unconvincingly. His voice when he spoke, however, was strong and filled with conviction. “They murdered my mate,” he said flatly. “This retribution is long overdue and well-deserved.”
My heart gave an uncomfortable and unexpected lurch at the mention of his past love, but I did not have time to dwell on it as David, with a brief motion to me to follow him, slipped through the doorway and began the long ascent up the stone stairway.
*
The further we climbed, the darker it became and the more damp it smelt. There was not a single living organism, aside from myself and David, all the way up – no moss, no spiders, not even a weed that had managed to go unnoticed. It was a dead place, this tunnel inside the mountain. I trailed one hand along the cold stone wall as we wound our way along the never ending staircase whilst, with the other, I clutched tightly onto David’s hand as he pulled me up with him. I
Similar Books
