Page 26 of The Rabbit's Foot
Then the next instant his body exploded with wave upon wave of bliss and joy. He wasn’t sure how it felt for Mal, but Alp knew his mind was being… reconfigured. Mal was pushing his way in, setting up residence, letting Alp know he was no longer by himself. The spark in his mind became a flame as his and Mal’s minds merged, becoming one. It was the most intense and life-altering thing Alp had ever experienced. When Mal slumped on top of him, Alp stroked his hair and crooned softly in Mal’s ear, letting him know he’d never be alone again.
He tried to put the enormity of it all into words so that he could make Mal understand how everything in his world had turned on its axis. Things he’d believed were scorched away and replaced by the seeding of new thoughts and ideas. New pathways opened for Alp, especially as Mal’s presence in his mind settled in, filling Alp with a warmth that he never experienced before.
“Alp,” Mal ground out, his lips against Alp’s neck. “I’m sorry. I tried so hard to stop—”
“Shut up,” Alp whispered, hugging Mal tighter. “For the first time in my life, I’m… settled. I loved my family, but was always one among many. Then I wanted to get out, and I was too alone. Now? I’m one with you. I’m not by myself, and I’m not lost in the crush of others. You can’t know how that feels.”
“I do,” Mal corrected. “When I left my pack, the link between us was severed. The voices I heard, the emotions I sensed, all of the things that made us pack? I allowed them to be ripped away. For weeks, I had to force myself not to go back and beg to be allowed to return. My head was empty, and it scared the crap out of me. Now? I have this twinkling light in there, shining like a beacon and calling to me.” He kissed Alp’s neck, again lingering on the bite. “I’m no longer adrift.”
He rolled, dragging Alp with him. This moment was right, and Alp knew it. Nothing could be more perfect, at least as far as he was concerned.
“Sleep, my bunny,” Mal ordered, stroking Alp’s hair, and this once, Alp was happy to comply.
“Alpin?”
Alp tried to open his eyes, but he was so warm and comfortable. And why the hell did Mal sound like his mother?
“Alpin Dawkins! I know you’re here.”
This time he jerked awake. No way! It couldn’t be them. He sniffed and let loose with a whine. “It’s my mother.”
“Your… oh, shit.” Mal pushed Alp aside, bouncing him off the mattress and onto the floor. He landed with a grunt and a death glare. “Get dressed,” Mal hissed.
“Why?” Alp whined. “I wanted to sleep. Tell her to come back later.”
He squeaked when strong hands jerked him up from the floor. “Get dressed. I am not telling your mother you’re in bed when she came all this way to see you.” His voice softened. “And you know you want to see her.”
He truly did. Alp put on Mal’s clothes quickly, then flew toward the door of the room. He jerked it open and found his mother peering up at the building, her hands cupped over her mouth.
“Mom,” he said upon laying eyes on her.
She squinted against the bright sun, and then her eyes went wide. “Alpin?” She dashed for the door that led to the room and launched herself at him, wrapping him in an embrace. “Oh, Alpin,” she cried, burying her face in his neck and inhaling deeply. “I never thought I’d see you again.” She kissed his cheeks. “They told us you’d abandoned the car and caught a ride with someone else. We wondered what we’d done to make you leave.”
“No, Mom. It wasn’t you, I swear to the Maker.”
“Alp?” His father’s voice, older. Wearier.
“Dad?”
And then another round of hugs, where Alp wanted nothing more than to sink into the warmth that only his family could provide.
“Alp? I have coffee started. If you and your parents would like to come in and—”
His mother’s eyes widened as she took in Mal’s form. If he thought she’d be wary, he was wrong. She stalked up to Mal and jabbed a finger in his chest. “What have you done to Alpin?” she demanded.
Mal glanced over at Alp, then back to his mother. “Nothing that the two of us didn’t want,” he said, his voice hard.
“I can smell you all over him.”
“Because I was all over him, Mom.”
She whirled on her heel. “You what?”
“I wanted him to claim me.” Alp pulled the collar of his shirt down, showing off where Mal had bitten him. He stroked a finger over what was now a scar. “I’m his.”
She puffed up her chest, then spun back toward Mal. She fixed her gaze on him, her nose twitching. “I want you to remember one thing, wolf. If you hurt him, we bunnies know how to bite and kick.”
“Mom!” Alp cried.
