Then I remembered something.
Wasn't this exactly how my parents met?
I'd only heard the story about a thousand times. My alpha father, Dax, was hunting in his wolf form. His prey turned out to be my omega father, Morgan. It was a big misunderstanding because they didn't realize they were both shifters.
What if my hunter was a shifter, too?
Starry's words echoed in my mind:You'll find your fated mate sooner than you think.
My racing heart skipped a beat. Could the beast on my trail be my fated mate? Maybe all I had to do was turn around and say something, to let it know I wasn't just a piece of prey.
Hope flowed through me. I wasn't in danger after all—in fact, this could be the best day of my life.
I skidded to a halt, dirt flying from my hooves. Before getting a good look at my attacker, I opened my mouth and yelled, "Wait! I'm a shifter!"
Then I saw it.
Huge fangs. Claws like giant needles. Piercing yellow eyes with narrow black slits. A distinct tawny coat.
It was a mountain lion.
And judging by the lack of recognition in its eyes, it was not a shifter. It had no clue what I just said and it didn't care. All it knew was that I had suddenly become a much easier target.
It instantly became clear why I didn't notice it before and I mentally kicked myself for being so dumb. After my talk with Starry, who was also a mountain lion shifter, I'd become desensitized to the scent.
Terror drenched me. I scrambled to get away, but my stupid hopeless romantic plan ruined everything. The mountain lion was faster.
It leapt and landed on top of me. Claws raked my side. Pain shot through me, making me rear and cry out. I slammed my body into a nearby tree trunk to dislodge the cat, but it clung like a burr, sinking its claws deeper into my flesh.
I'm a goner.
Was I really going to go out like this? Eaten by a mountain lion because I had a tantrum and stormed off from a family gathering? If I wasn't so scared, I might've laughed at my idiocy. Of course this would happen to me.
But I wasn't going out without a fight. I bucked, kicked, threw myself at trees, did everything possible to get the lion off my back, but the predator was tenacious. It literally had its hooks into me and it wasn't letting go. The struggle wore me out and hopelessness started to set in.
So I did the very last thing I wanted to do: I begged.
"Help," I called out weakly. "If anyone's there, please—"
A guttural roar shook the forest. I froze. Even the mountain lion stopped.
A massive dark shape exploded from the thicket. The creature was bigger than me and my attacker put together. It was a giant made up of pure muscle covered in a shaggy, impenetrable coat of dark brown fur.
Oh, great. A grizzly bear.
Yep. I was done for.
I was almost sorry I was going to miss the following battle royale over my body. Two apex predators fighting over my scraps. Now that would be a real sight to behold.
The grizzly surged forward, raising a vicious paw to strike.
I closed my eyes and braced myself.
The blow never came.
Instead a weight was lifted off my back.
I gathered the courage to open my eyes and what I saw confused the hell out of me.
