His voice was so deep it seemed to boom and echo all around.
“Who are you? Where do you come from?” he asked.
Olivia opened her mouth then shut it again. She gulped loud enough for them to hear. Her eyes slid over to the other lion, the air shimmering and waving as he changed from beast to man. This male wasn’t as tall or muscular as his friend, his body sleeker. He had rippling muscles, but he was not as intimidating as his counterpart. She quickly lifted her gaze and looked at him again.
“Wh–Who are you? What do you want?” Olivia croaked out, her throat and mouth dry.
Olivia’s eyes slid from one to the other continuously. They looked at each other, totally silent, but their eyes seemed to be speaking. Finally, the shorter of the two stepped forward. He hardly needed to tilt his head to look into her eyes, and she was at least five feet off the ground.
“I am Lucius King, and this is my brother, Liam. We are of the pride clan. What is your name?”
“Olivia, Olivia Hammond.”
“What are you doing out here all alone? Where do you belong?” Liam asked.
“My friend April is mated to the Alphas Gage and Saxon Kian who are panther-shifters, as well as Ben Koku, a bear-shifter. I want to go back to her home. Unfortunately I lost my way when I decided to take a stroll,” Olivia stated belligerently, practically daring them to refute her claim.
“Shit, if the Alphas from the panther clan catch us with you, we are dead. Our two clans have been rivals since long before we were born. We will take you back close to the Panther lair and leave you. You can come down now, little one. We will not harm you,” Lucius reiterated.
“So you say. But how the hell do I know if you’re telling the truth? I think I’ll stay where I am, thank you very much.”
“You do realize we are lion-shifters, right?” Liam asked rhetorically. “Do you not know lions are very adept in trees?”
“Well, of course I know. I just felt better sitting up here, out of reach,” Olivia replied facetiously. She bit her lower lip then swung her legs a couple of times and launched herself from the tree branch. She landed heavily, not used to jumping from such a height. She had nearly jumped the height of her own body. She stumbled, took a couple of side steps to regain balance, stood with her legs shoulder-width apart, her hands on her hips, and looked up. God, they were so tall it actually hurt her neck to see their faces.
“All right, I’m ready. Lead the way,” Olivia stated, waving her hand for the two men to precede her.
The two men looked at each other then back at Olivia and turned around. The sight of their muscular buttocks flexing as they walked had her snapping her eyes up to their heads. That was the last thing she had wanted to see. She stumbled constantly, much to the amusement of the two men in the lead. They had been walking for a long time when the two men stopped abruptly, and since Olivia had been lost in her own thoughts, she didn’t see them halt and crashed into them. She would have fallen if Liam hadn’t steadied her with a hand at her elbow. Two ostensibly furious feline roars filled the air and echoed throughout the forest, making Olivia’s skin break out in goose bumps. She tried to contain the shiver but wasn’t successful. Her whole body shuddered.
“We will leave you now, Olivia Hammond. You will be back with your friend soon,” Liam said, the air around him already shimmering. The two men changed from man to beast within a blink of the eye. Turning to her, they gave her feline grins and took off. They bounded away amongst the trees, disappearing from sight.
“Well, that’s just fucking great. What am I supposed to do now?” Olivia muttered. She had no idea which direction would take her back to April. She took a few steps and plopped down, her back leaning against a large tree trunk. The sun was beginning to set, and she knew if she didn’t get back soon, she could end up mated to
Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman