Wild Flight: A BBW Paranormal Eagle Shifter Romance (4 page)

Summer held Brandon's hand as they hiked the trail toward the clearing.  Summer tried to let go of her nerves and instead be cheered by all the laughing and joking going on around her.  Twelve of Brandon's family members were here with them: his parents, his two brothers, his great-aunt Margaret, and seven aunts, uncles and cousins that she couldn't keep straight yet because they kept turning into an assortment of hawks, falcons and owls.  Brandon, his mother and his brothers were the only eagles.

His older brother Eli was shorter than Brandon and almost as muscular as a body builder.  His younger brother Joshua was taller and thinner.  Not that Summer loved Brandon for his looks, but she had that Goldilocks feeling that her man was just right.

When they reached the clearing, Brandon and Summer took a spot in the center while the rest of the family formed a circle around them, widely spaced at the edge of the clearing.  Great-Aunt Margaret started to strip down.

“Seriously, Aunt Margaret?” asked Brandon's mom.

“Hey, nobody's embarrassed by a naked falcon, why should this be any different?  I do things the old-fashioned way.”

Summer liked Great-Aunt Margaret.  She liked all his family members.  They were all so warm and welcoming.  That was another gift Brandon had given her: a big happy family.

“Are you ready?” Brandon asked her.

“As ready as I'll ever be,” she said with a nervous smile.

She'd seen him transform many times in the past months, but it always took her breath away.  As they had rehearsed, Brandon shifted and flew up to perch on her outstretched arm. Eagles might be light for their size, but it was still enough weight that she had to focus to keep her arm steady.  She held out her other hand and the eagle struck swiftly, leaving a neat little bite.  She gasped and flinched, even though she had tried to prepare herself.

Immediately Brandon flew up, shifted, and landed as a human. He took her hand and said, “You're going to want to sit down now.”

Summer began to feel woozy right away.  She closed her eyes and leaned against Brandon.  Conversation washed over her.  After five minutes, Joshua said, “I guess I'm up.”

He took off his shirt, “Just so you can get a better view of the details,” he said, and changed his arms slowly, slow enough that she could actually see the feathers appearing.

“The arms are the easiest,” he continued.  “That might be all you can change at first.  And you can always stop the transformation here if you want.  It's a neat party trick.”  He winked at her, shifted the rest of the way, and flew off.

Every five minutes another family member gave her a piece of advice and then flew away.  Great-Aunt Margaret was short and direct: “Don't overthink it, kid. You'll do fine.”

As time passed, a ferocious itching started, as she'd been warned.  She scratched at her skin but it only made the maddening sensation worse.  She curled into a ball on the leaf-covered ground and just tried to endure it. Finally it was time for the last family member, Brandon's father. “I made it through just fine, and I know you will too.  The shifter intuition's never wrong about these things.  The love between you and Brandon is true, and that means that this is who you were meant to be.” He turned into a hawk and disappeared into the sky.

“Now it's our turn,” Brandon said gently.  “It really is easier without clothes the first time. Do you need any help?”

“No, I've got it,” Summer said, managing to get to her feet. Her skin felt like it was on fire now.  It was actually a relief to get her clothes off.

“Okay now, just like we said: stretch your arms out wide and stand tall, then just relax and let the change take over.”

That's what Summer did.  It was almost agonizing to stretch; it pulled her skin tight and made the fiery itch intensify even more, but then the relief when she relaxed was so amazing that at first she didn't notice the weird shrinking, folding feeling.  She just breathed and trusted as it felt like she was being turned inside out.

When it was over, the world was a different place.  Every leaf and pine needle stood out with astonishing clarity.  Some plants had shimmering patterns that had been invisible to her before.  And when she looked out over the mountains, she could see so far away that she felt as if she was somehow being pulled there.  It was all so wonderful she didn't even think of looking at herself, until Brandon said, “Hey.”

She looked at him and saw a huge smile on his face.  “Look, you're an eagle too.”

Summer stretched out her wings (
her wings!
) and saw dark brown feathers with subtle stripes.  As soon as her wings were out she felt the tug of air currents.  The sky was calling.

Brandon changed too.  With a few slow wingbeats he was up in the air.  Summer did exactly what he did and felt the ground disappear.  In seconds they were out of the trees, soaring over the valley.  The endless sky welcomed her and her mate, and she knew that finally she had found the home that would be hers forever.

A note from Zoe Chant

Thank you for buying my book! I hope you enjoyed it. If you’d like to be alerted by email when I release my next book, please
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              Please consider reviewing
Wild Flight
, even if you only write a line or two. I appreciate all reviews, whether positive or negative.

              The cover of
Wild Flight
was designed by Laura Shapiro.

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