Of Flame and Promise by Cecy Robson Page A

once-in-a-lifetime experience,” I insisted. “I can’t give you much, but please let me give you this memory.”
And hopefully erase the one with my ankles fastened around your son’s waist.
    Gemini stalked to my side. It was clear from his expression that he was humiliated, but I also saw a small speck of pride. He slipped his arm around my waist, holding me close. “Honorable Father and Mother, despite what you may feel, and the doubts that plague your mind, my mate only means to please you.”
    Momma and Pop considered me, very much the way feral dogs consider the rotting possum on the side of road—not too tasty, but necessary nonetheless. Both bowed in stone-faced and unimpressed unison. If I didn’t know they were husband and wife, they’d make one freaky-ass set of twins.
    “Very well, Tomo,” Pop agreed.
    A young man with strands of dirty-blond hair spilling from his beanie jogged over. “Hey, folks,” he said. “I’m Lex.” He sniffed and grinned. “Wolves?” At Gemini’s and Momma’s nods, he turned to me, his smile widening. “And something else.” His smile lessened at Gem’s growl. “Ah, sorry, boss. But you can’t blame a coug for looking.”
    “You’re wrong. I can,” Gem snarled back.
    “Um, yeah. This way,” he said.
    I wasn’t sure why Gem growled as ferociously as he did. I
was
“something else.” Probably a tramp in his parents’ world, but in his defense my poor wolf wasn’t in the best mood.
    “Shall we?” I asked, tilting my head where Lex was motioning. “A picnic, and maybe some climbing if you’re up for it?”
    “We make no promises,” Pop said.
    Gemini tossed the pack over his shoulder and linked his bare hand with my gloved one. Like Pop, I was dressed in full arctic wear since neither of us possessed the furry inner beasts of our partners. We started out at a fast walk, which Lex quickened to a trot.
    For an old man, and a non-
were,
Pop kept pace behind us well enough. Gemini snaked his arm around me, helping me maneuver up the steep path that led out of the lot and further up the mountain.
    As the incline grew more severe, I gripped the back of Gem’s light ski jacket. It wasn’t just the harder terrain that caused me to hold him—he would never let me fall. What I needed most at that moment was to feel close to him.
    I wasn’t scoring points with his folks—I knew that. I worried how it would affect us during their visit, but more importantly, what would become of us once they were gone.
    I glanced over my shoulder. Where Gem held tight to me, his mother did the same for his father. The grace with which she plowed through the thickening mounds was as natural as the steady leaps of her inner beast. I smiled. For all their sternness as rather stoic personalities, their love was as pure as the surrounding snow.
    They didn’t return my smile, but yeah, that didn’t surprise me. Still, their closeness was something to see. I’d like to think my parents’ love would have held strong. But having lost them so young, it wasn’t something I would ever know. If nothing else, seeing an elderly couple this devoted was a gift. Claiming and marriage aside, I wanted this with Gemini. But it scared me to want it. Mostly because I knew too many things could take it away.
    Love, peeps, didn’t guarantee forever.
    Gemini leaned into me, reminding me he was still very much there. “I’m going to lift you,” he said.
    The air thinned with every step I took. I wasn’t outdoorsy by any stretch, but I did Zumba, and more recently my share of strip aerobics. I was in good shape. That said, I never shook my ass this high up. “No,” I said.
    “What?”
    He’d practically laughed at me. I couldn’t blame him. My breaths were labored and the stomps through the heavy drifts caused my thighs to burn. But I needed to push past it and keep going. “I said no,” I insisted.
    For once in my life, I didn’t mean to be difficult. But seriously, the thought of looking