The Amber Shift

Twenty-Nine

Noelle

After I heal Asher's wounds, he asks me to shift back so we can go inside and go to his room; apparently fighting with Elijah turned him on.

I won't lie; watching them fight over me was sexy, as cliché and shallow as that sounds. But I'm not really in the mood to fuck around. Plus, I like being in wolf form. It makes me feel more powerful than I ever have in my life, like I'm in charge of my fate for once.

He gives me a pouty face when I shake my head, but eventually just walks back to the house with me trotting next to him.

Corbin calls Asher into his office for a short meeting, and I start for my room, but something takes me in another direction, and I find myself in front of Elijah's door. Even with everything that has happened the past few days, I feel horrible about tending to Asher's wounds and ignoring Elijah's. It's not like he can shift and heal himself.

The door is cracked, so I push it open with my paw and slip inside.

Elijah is in his bathroom, shirtless and in his boxer briefs. Even when my wolf is dominant, I feel a stirring in my belly. But I push it down; Elijah's made it clear that he refuses to explore those feelings with me.

He's leaning over the sink, cleaning the cuts on his face, and my heart hurts with every wince as he pats the cut over his eyebrow with a wet washcloth.

My paws are silent on the carpet as I walk to the bathroom. I rub my body against the backs of his legs, and he looks down, his blue eyes wide and betraying his shock at seeing me in his room. In wolf form.

He's so tall, and most of his injuries are on his face. I'm not particularly agile with my new body yet, so I nudge his leg and jerk my head toward the toilet seat.

"It's not necessary. I'll take care of it," he says, his voice monotone.

I bite the bottom of his underwear, pulling him toward the toilet. The elastic at his waist slides down his hip, baring his hard, naked butt. For a second, I consider nipping at the smooth, tan skin, but he moves and sits. He rests his arms on his thighs and stares at me, his expression totally defeated. 

I've never seen him look this miserable, not even the other night when I was in the cell. Something else is wrong, but I can't talk to him in this form, so I do the best thing I can for him at the moment.

I stand up and put my front two paws on his knees and bend my head toward his. Before I lick the wound at his eyebrow, I nuzzle him just once, hoping I'm sending the message that I am here, and I care about him, regardless of whatever is happening in his head right now.

His eyes dart to me, and his breath hitches. When I lap at his wounds, a little contented sound escapes the back of his throat, and I immediately feel better. I drag my tongue along the wounds on his face and the ones on his chest, paying special attention to the gash across his brow.

"It all feels easier as a wolf, doesn't it?"

I nod and continue lapping at the small scratch on his jaw.

He scratches behind my ear and tilts his head to the side. "All I want is to run until nothing feels complicated."

Before I even know what I'm doing, I squat on my back legs and hop up to his lap so I can better reach his eyebrow. I don't know how Asher managed to cut him so deeply, but this one is taking longer than usual to heal.

Elijah's arms fall around my body, and he holds me on his lap, steadying me, gently stroking the fur along my spine and down to my tail. And it feels so nice that I lose myself in my thoughts.