9. Malachi

Chapter 9

Malachi

I hover above the treetops, my wings slicing through the air in near silence as I scan the forest below, waiting for Poppy to make her move. She’s clever, though—biding her time, blending into the dense shadows without so much as a twitch. Moments drag on, the forest unnervingly still.

You have to show yourself sooner or later , I tease, letting the thought drift to her through our new connection. Did you shift into a mouse to make hiding easier?

Her response is immediate, sharp with playful defiance. No cheating with these telepathic messages. Play fair, Malachi.

A flicker of motion catches my eye—a quick dart of movement just beyond a fallen log. Gotcha.

With a smirk, I dive, releasing a harmless spray of fire behind her trail, meant to rattle her. The flames vanish as quickly as they appear, but the moment my feet touch the forest floor, I stop cold. My breath hitches, and the teasing dies on my lips.

A majestic red fox sits elegantly on a massive boulder, licking the whites of her paws.

The brilliant sapphire of her eyes tells me it’s Poppy, but she doesn’t take off as I approach in my dragon form. Heat surges through me, the throb of the golden arch above my heart aching as I near.

Aren’t you worried I’m going to eat you? I joke. You look absolutely delicious.

Her lovely eyes peek upward, and she raises her snout.

What do you think? She asks, preening her shoulders. Do you like my new form?

Very nice. Who is a fox shifter? Who did you touch to take on that form?

Gracefully leaping off the rock, she ambles closer to me and nuzzles under my chin, rubbing the top of her head under the scales of my neck.

Nobody, she answers through our telepathic connection . I do believe this form is mine.

Stunned, I shift back into my human body, our little game of tag over for the moment. My bare hands stroke her velvety fur, allowing her to curl into my lap, the glow of her arch pulsating through her chest as our bond intensifies on contact.

“You’ve been a fox all along?” I murmur, cupping her face in my open palms.

She nods, her snout morphing into her beautiful, high cheekbones.

“I guess so,” she murmurs. “I just shifted today for the first time. It feels so right, Malachi.”

“Cheaters!” Warrick’s voice booms out from the thick of trees before his body materializes. “We’re supposed to be on a hunt, and look at you two, curled up and out of the race. The least you could have done was invite us along.”

The soft rustle of leaves reaches my ears as Asher pads around the corner, his lion’s mane tangled with sticks and leaves from the race through the woods. He also shifts into his human body when he realizes we’re done with our little chase.

“Poppy has an announcement,” I tell them proudly.

She looks at me uncertainly, and I nod encouragingly, noticing the steady throb of my brothers’ heartbeats in tandem with mine and Poppy’s. Our mate bond is fully enacted, the birds around us tweeting louder and stronger now that we’re all in one place. The sun shines brighter overhead, spilling golden light directly over us like an altar.

“I can shift,” she blurts out.

“We always knew that,” Warrick chuckles.

“No, she has her own form,” I explain, holding her closer. “Tell them, Lost One.”

She tips her head back and smiles at me. “Am I still the Lost One if you found me?” she asks.

“I thought you found us,” Asher quips, flopping down on the ground beside us. “Tell us, Poppy. What are you trying to say?”

“I’m a fox,” she says excitedly.

“I could have told you that. And not just because of your shift,” Warrick jests and joins us on the forest floor.

Poppy swats at him gently, dropping her head against my chest, and I stroke her long, strawberry blonde waves gently.

This is what it feels like to be loved unconditionally, to be part of a bonded pack. All that power I thought I craved, that leadership I’d believed was rightfully mine, but lost by the luck of birth order, would have never made me as content as this.

I’ll want for nothing ever again as long as I have Poppy. I see that now.

“Wait,” Asher says slowly, sitting up, and I glower at him for breaking the spell among us. Eyes narrowing, I wait for him to finish his thought, but shoot him a warning thought.

Don’t ruin it. We have a good thing here.

He ignores me and looks at our mate, his head twisted. “Are you still able to shift into other forms if you have your own?”

Poppy’s eyes widen as she considers the question worriedly. “I don’t know,” she breathes honestly, biting on her lower lip.

Suddenly, she lunges for Asher and tackles him, rolling him over in the leaves and pine needles as she shifts into his lion body.

Releasing him, she lets out a ferocious roar, which sounds more like a laugh to my ears.

She bolts toward the tree line again. I guess that answers that question! Poppy taunts us before disappearing into the woods. Catch me if you can!

Rolling my eyes, I jump to my feet and scowl at my brother. “You just had to go and ruin it, didn’t you?” I scold him as Warrick chortles and takes off after her.

“Last one to the bedroom has cleanup duty!” Warrick cries, transforming into his white wolf body, and I can’t help but laugh as I follow after them.