Waking to the hushed, yet aggressive voices around her Miranda slowly opened her eyes. The pain in her neck had returned, only she quickly realized it was because of the awkward angle she had fallen in against Braydon’s shoulder.  Still groggy from the sleeping pills, her mind was hazy and focusing on their words was only getting harder rather than easier. Stifling her yawn, it was her mother’s snappy words that broke through first and slowly sitting up, Miranda rubbed her neck to ease the tension.

If only everything was that simple.

“She will be coming home with us. I don’t know who you think you are if you think you can just order us around like we’re part of your staff!” Helen hissed and looking over the headrest of the seat in front of her, Miranda was surprised to see Jason on the receiving end of her mother’s tantrum.

Everyone was grim faced with fury filled eyes. This clearly wasn’t a new discussion and finding her father, he sat holding his head in his hands – trying to hold back his own words.

“It makes sense for her to stay with me. You’re being foolish thinking you can take care of both of them!” Jason didn’t back down, no longer keeping his voice lowered. He knew Miranda better than her parents, and being stuck at home with them wasn’t what she would want. He had enough room in his apartment for Braydon to come along too as he knew that part wouldn’t be up for discussion.

“Why can’t I just go home?” Miranda mumbled, loud enough for them to hear as she carefully stepped around Braydon, who was still asleep. She didn’t want them to fight over her like some new toy. She had a life; her own place and the sooner things went back to some kind of normal – the better.

“Honey, I just think you need to take it easy and if you come home, you can rest and fully recover!” Helen looked at her daughter, pleading with her to understand. She was happy about the steps Jason was taking to provide for Miranda, but she was still her mother. There was no way she was going to let him come in and take even more control over everything.

“I don’t need to fully recover Mum, I’m fine. Really!” Moving over to where her mother sat, Miranda put her arms around her shoulders and gave her a hug. She still felt sleepy and having her mothers touch was a nice comfort. “I’m going home, my home. Jason, you’ve gone above and beyond, but I just want things to go back to normal. I appreciate everything you’ve all done, and when the plane lands – I’ll be taking Braydon to my apartment.”

When the plane lands.

Her own words hit her then, she had been so distracted she forgot about where they all were. The drugs vanished in her system, yet it didn’t help clear her mind. Miranda’s knees went weak and it was Donald who noticed the first sign of her panic attack. He quickly got up and took her into a hug of his own. “We understand sweet heart, we’re just worried is all!”

He carefully guided her past the furious Jason and just as Braydon stirred, he sat his daughter back down in her seat. By now Miranda held her breath, closing her eyes and gripped her father’s hand so tightly it had the red imprint of her own embedded in it.

It took Braydon seconds to work out what was happening, gently touching her forearm, he silently begged her to open her eyes and look at him. A strangled gasp left her lips, yet her gaze soon found his. A weird calm settled over her then, her grip loosening so Donald was able to pull his hand away. It was almost like the comfort she had from hugging her mum had happened around her brain, removing the fear and pain from inside. A part of her was wary, unsure how once again Braydon had broken into her panic and destroyed it.

Braydon took her hand in his once more, “Not letting go.”

“Deep breaths sweet heart, you’re okay.” Her Dad instructed and looking at him she nodded. Her heart slowly began to return to a normal pace as air once again made it’s way into her lungs. “We’re getting ready to land, so buckle up guys.”

Standing from where he had squatted in the aisle, Donald patted Braydon’s shoulder before going back to his wife.

Miranda sighed deeply, doing as he said and leaving the lounge area to go to his own seat behind Braydon and Miranda, Jason stopped and took her fathers place. Leaning in, he helped check her seatbelt was secure and took her free hand in his – mimicking Braydon’s actions.

“You’ve been through so much, do you really think going home, with a stranger is a good idea?”

“Jason, it’s not up for discussion.” Miranda chocked out, fighting to keep hold of the calm she had seconds before.

“Not now Jason.” Braydon narrowed his eyes, not hiding the warning in his tone.

“This if your Captain speaking, could all staff and passengers please be ready for landing.” The crackling voice of the pilot had Miranda’s skin breaking out in goose bumps; the frantic cry over the PA had been one of the last things she had heard before blacking out. A light sweat broke out over her forehead and daring to look out the window besides Braydon, the cut in power to the engines had the steady roar of the cabin quieting slightly. The slight tilt of the downward trip had her stomach churning and this time when she looked out the window all she saw was lightning and the black pit below, silhouetted with the point of tree tops.

Dread filled her, making Miranda feel like she was made of stone; it was happening again.

“Sir, you’ll need to take your seat please.” The airhostess pointed Jason towards his seat, but he wasn’t going to back down.

“She needs help, Miranda! Listen to me!” He ordered, yet her trembling form didn’t hear him.

“Miss, are you okay?” The airhostess, pushed by Jason as Miranda’s parents turned to check on her. “Sir, please take your seat!”

“She’s fine, just feeling a little crowded.” Braydon listened to the voice in the back of his mind, guiding him with confidence he didn’t know he actually had. Jason only looked at him with suspicion now, not liking the change at all.

Closing her eyes all Miranda could hear now was the stupid tapping of Rory’s pen and as Jason reached out to touch her face, she could only imagine the breathing masks falling in front her.

“No, no, no!” She started to cry, as the woman struggled to get Jason back to his seat.

Undoing his seat belt, Braydon moved to kneel in front of Miranda. Luckily they were on the private plane instead of a cramped common domestic flight as his position would never be possible. Despite the luxury provided, it was lost of him as all he could see was Miranda. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she clutched the arm rest either side of her, lost reliving the nightmare as the plane continued to drop towards the ground.

Opening her eyes again, all she did was wrap her arms around his neck and letting her hold him seemed to be enough as she instead started to sob against his chest. The scene wasn’t lost on Jason who finally did as the airhostess wanted, glaring at the chairs in front of him as he did so. What he really wanted to know was what exactly went on out there between them and he was determined to find out.

“Sir, I’m going to have to ask you to take your seat too.” She smiled apologetically at Braydon, satisfied Jason wasn’t moving again. Somehow Braydon managed to shift to the side and clip his seatbelt back on while Miranda still held onto him rather awkwardly.

With everyone seated and safe, it wasn’t long until the plane was finally being moved through the runway to its docking station. Miranda realized how she was clinging to Braydon the second Jason coughed to clear his throat from beside her. Awkwardly she let him go; yet there was no judgment from Braydon as she looked up to meet his gaze. If anything, Braydon was more than happy with their arrangement and found himself looking over Miranda’s shoulder to return Jason’s deadly stare.

“Thank you. This had to be tough for you too, but instead I just freaked out.” Miranda wiped her face, still partly tucked under Braydon’s arm.

“It’s fine. I actually quite like flying.”

“Really?” Miranda asked in disbelief, making up her mind she was only going to be driving or traveling by boat from now on.

“Really!” Braydon smiled, already feeling his first victory hanging over Jason. Deep within his wolf was still watching the human, had he been the one there in body, the same smirk of satisfaction would be on his muzzle.

In a rather daring move, Braydon leaned forward to kiss her forehead and feeling her relax closer against him as he did so had Braydon glowing. Making eye contact once more with Jason, the message was clear - game on.

What Braydon didn’t expect was for Jason to move on to the next round so quickly and as Miranda shifted in her seat to get up, he was there. “Are you okay? I’m sure once you get home, to your place, things will get easier.”

“No more arguments?” Miranda was confused at how he could go from being so adamant about something to the complete opposite in such a short time span. That wasn’t like him at all.

“No. Not from me at least. After seeing you like this, being back in your familiar surroundings could be just what you need.”

It was a big worry off Miranda’s shoulders and as he helped her stand, letting the last of the stress work its way out of her system, she didn’t protest as Jason hugged her.  Braydon was now the one left glaring at his opponent. This human way of doing things was already getting on his nerves. The urge to simply challenge Jason was starting to dominate all his thoughts yet that’s not how things worked in this world.

“Come on, let’s get you home!” Jason stroked Miranda’s back gently, turning her towards the waiting arms of her parents. Looking back, the two men sized each other up and now it was Jason smirking. “Braydon, you ready?”

With a determine nod, Braydon felt the first tingle in his chest of a growl and he barely managed to silence it as he followed the group of out of the plane and down to the waiting car.

-x-

“Are you sure about this?” Helen asked for the hundredth time as Miranda ushered her parents of her apartment. It was nearly midnight and after her mother had insisted she cook them all dinner, leaving her daughter now was breaking her heart.

“Positive. I’m exhausted and will probably sleep for the next week! I’ll call you in the morning, but I’m fine. I’m home. We can all relax and let things go back to normal.” Miranda yawned, desperate to climb inside her own bed.

“If you need anything darling, just call!” Helen sobbed, hugging Miranda so tight she felt as she really might break a rib this time.

“I will Mum, thank you, but please believe me. I’m fine! Look after yourselves okay? Daddy, you look as tired as I feel!” Hugging her father, the old man nodded and yawned after his daughter.

“Good night sweet heart, don’t worry about us!”

As the elevator dinged shut, Miranda turned to find Rory slipping on his jacket. Despite all his annoying traits, Miranda had been in tears at seeing him again. His arm was still in a sling thanks to a fracture, but that was his only injury. He had opened up her apartment to get rid of the stale air and had a cleaner come in to freshen the place up when Jason had told them they were leaving.

Each person at dinner knew a different side of Miranda, and that included Rory. He had a feeling his boss would be coming home tonight despite being told otherwise. It was also how he couldn’t refuse her invitation to stay for dinner when he hadn’t managed to leave before they arrived

“Thank you for the flowers, I am so glad you’re okay!” Miranda hugged him, careful of his arm.

“Back at you, I was so scared you would be found, well, dead. God, I am just so glad you’re okay!” They hugged again and Miranda sniffed back new tears. The softer side of his boss was strange to see, and he wondered how long it would take before she was back to barking out orders to him. “So, you and Jason hey?”

“Really Rory? Get out of here!” Miranda teased, hitting the elevator button with a laugh.

“What? I gotta give those bitches something when I get back!” Rory defended, waving goodbye as the lift returned.

Miranda waited for the doors to close before going back inside and she practically walked into Jason as he hovered by the doorway.

“Ready for bed?” Jason pulled her closer and years of Rory’s teasing came to mind. How long had she wanted to have this kind of contact with him? Either way, she was to drained to linger on it.

“More than you know!” Miranda sighed, looking towards the kitchen where dishes waited to be loaded into the dishwasher. ‘Yup, it’s great to be home!’ She thought sarcastically.

Following her gaze, Jason smiled. “Why don’t you go have a shower and get ready for bed? I can clean up here.”

“Oh, don’t worry about it. I’ll do it in the morning.”

“I insist.” Jason purred, leaning down to kiss her he tried to hide his disappointment as she turned her head at the last minute so he was left kissing her cheek.

“Thank you, I’d be lost without all your help these past few days! You’ve been a great friend.” Miranda moved from the entry and down the corridor, past the kitchen and as she went by the living room, Braydon still sat hypnotized in front of the TV. “Hey, how are you doing?”

Looking over, Braydon smiled and Miranda moved to sit down on the floor beside him. The first thing he noticed was Jason’s rather strong scent all over her and frowning, he wandered what had been going on while he had been in there.

“Braydon?” Miranda asked worriedly as he only stared at her.

“Ah yeah, good. I don’t remember there being so many channels!” He laughed, stopping on one of the kids’ cartoons. Using a remote again had taken a few minutes to get used to. Rory and Donald had walked him through the set up Miranda had and now he was flicking through channels like he had been doing it forever.

“Well, you’ve got all the time in the world to catch up!” Miranda rested her head on his shoulder as they both went quiet watching a show about a little yellow sponge that lived under the sea.

The heavy steps of Jason had them looking up at the doorway as he paused seeing them together. “Cartoons?”

“Yeah, didn’t you ever watch this?” Miranda yawned, and as she moved from Braydon’s side, he longed to pull her back closer to him.

“No, I grew up.” He retorted, making Miranda roll her eyes. “Weren’t you getting ready for bed?”

“Oh right. Braydon, are you going to be ok?” Standing Miranda ignored the impatient huff from Jason. She had set Braydon up in the guest room and gone through the shower and other things with him. Plus he knew where the kitchen was. Thanks to Rory the fridge was stocked and left overs from dinner would be easy enough for him to eat, but that really wasn’t what she wanted the answers to. Putting him in front of the TV seemed to be making Braydon the happiest Miranda had ever seen him, but a lot had happened this week and she couldn’t help worry about him.

“Yeah I’ll be fine. Did you want me to walk you out Jason?” Braydon had a feeling Jason would be staying, but if he could make it as awkward as possible in the mean time so be it.

“Oh how rude of me!” Miranda went over to Jason, hoping he didn’t think he would be staying with her tonight. No matter the advances in their relationship, she really didn’t want it moving that fast. It also felt more like he was checking up on her already and it only left her feeling trapped. “You probably want to get home to bed too?”

Moving away from the living room and back to the privacy of the kitchen, Jason decided to put it all out the table. “I was hoping that, you would want me to stay tonight?”

“As friends?” Miranda asked dumbly, not sure if she wanted this conversation right now.

“No. Andy, I’ve known you for a long time and it’s hard for me to say this, but I really like you, more than friends. I really thought you felt the same.”

Inside Miranda groaned, wishing this had happened before the accident. Right now she was getting what she had been wanting for so long, only suddenly it didn’t seem like it. “Why did get you get me to fly out to you when the accident happened?”

If Rory had been right, it would have been part of a rather expensive booty call on Jason’s behalf and Miranda could tell her question wasn’t what he was expecting.

Jason stood there trying to work out if he should tell her the truth or what she would be wanting to hear. Being a businessman, he did what he had to do to close the deal.

“I missed you. I was used to seeing you in the office everyday and after being away that week, I really had to see you. Had I known everything that would happen, I would never have put you in that kind of risk!” He said sincerely, not actually lying. Problem was, he could see how guarded Miranda remained.

 “You missed me?” Miranda asked doubtfully, and Jason only nodded. “Why did it take so long? Not once did you even give me the slightest clue of how you felt!”

“It was work. We’d been through a lot and I never expected that kiss at the Christmas party. It’s haunted me for months and not having you around, I knew I had to change that. I want you around, god Miranda I want you!”

His lips were against hers before she could even process what he had just said. A part of her was moving on her from crush, and another was in seventh heaven, positive this was all part of a dream. Large hands moved into place, one around her waist, resting in the curve of her back and the other slipped through her golden locks to go behind her neck.

Jason felt Miranda hesitate, her body growing tense as his tongue brushed against her lips, begging for entrance while Miranda struggled to make sense of what was actually happening. Giving in to instinct, she found herself leaning into him as he held her tightly – deepening the kiss. It was easy to get lost in the moment. Thinking about everything he had done for her, past and present – she owed it both of them to see where this could go now it was finally happening.

The sound of the TV being turned off had Miranda pulling away, her cheeks were flushed and her lips tingled from his assault on them. A tiny smile appeared on Jason’s face and Miranda mirrored it, unsure what that all meant for them now.

“Andy, please-“

“Ah, Jason, that was – weird.” Miranda rambled, cringing as Braydon appeared in the corridor and went into the kitchen. Things had seemed so simple in the wild. Miranda left her real world behind and now it was back. Shaking her head, she realized she was only choosing to remember the whole thing out there like the story she had spun to those around them.

Braydon hadn’t found her after she wandered off. He had taken her and kept her from being found sooner than she was. Her heart ached for all her went through and she did want to help him, but as far as her feelings went for him she had to draw the line and remind herself of the facts and not some wild fantasy with a wolf shifter.

Jason was her reality.

“Weird?” He asked, looking more hurt than anything else.

“It’s just going to take some getting used to. Can we take things slow?”

Willing to do anything in order to claim her heart, Jason nodded. “Of course.”

This time when he kissed her, there was no resistance and turning on the tap offered barely enough sound to drown out the growl. Braydon had never known rage like what he was currently feeling; his own emotions were hurt and nothing more than a tangled mess. Knowing the sound, Miranda ignored it and Jason presumed it was something to do with the pipes.

“I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” Jason left Miranda with a final peck and closing the door behind him, Miranda took a second to try and gather her thoughts. What the hell just happened?

“Growling? Really?” Miranda sighed, hesitating as she saw how angry Braydon was.

“I don’t like him.”

“You don’t have to!”

Neither of them moved and giving in, Miranda was too tired to argue. “Good night Braydon.”

Braydon watched her without a word, and as her bedroom door shut he felt defeated. The distance between them felt like more than just the space in her apartment and making his way to his room, he didn’t feel tired now. Feelings he didn’t understand were back to bounce around in his mind and standing by the floor length windows, he stared out into the city.

All around buildings were lit up with artificial light and closing the curtains, he couldn’t block it out to the level of darkness he was used to being in. Even at the hospital he had managed to make it dark. The noise was much the same, the hum of traffic miles below with the odd car horn breaking out and the occasional wailing of sirens. Every part of him was on edge, unable to find a second of clarity in this new world.

The smug look of satisfaction on Jason’s’ face haunted him when he did close his eyes, infuriating him further to the point where he couldn’t stay laying down. He needed to run, his body aching with the need to burn off some energy as the wolf was itching to come out. Braydon didn’t know where he could go, he wasn’t even sure if he’d be able to work out how to get out of the building.

‘Don’t let him get to you. Trust me.’

It wasn’t the animal that felt trapped within the concrete walls, but the human. The elevator ride up to Miranda’s level had freaked him out more than he’d ever tell, but thanks to Jason being there he wasn’t going to show him any weakness. Just like how he made small talk during dinner, it was the wolf adapting to his surroundings, not the human returning to society.

Just like all the other times Braydon needed guidance, his conscious was there – loud and clear, but was now powerless as Braydon blocked it out. Trying to calm him down, the wolf fought for control and won. Braydon disappeared and instead the animal appeared. Whining, it began to pace the room forcing Braydon to deal with what was going on.

Miranda had only just climbed into bed after her shower when she heard the weird noises from outside her room. Cautiously she got up and slowly walking down the corridor to Braydon’s room, the whining sound became clearer. Rushing towards the door, she knocked once before opening it and her hands flew up to cover her mouth as the wolf turned to look at her.

“Braydon?” She whispered, struggling with the concept of a wolf in her guest room.

Moving towards her, the familiar perfume on her skin was a welcomed change from Jason’s scent. The smell was like what Braydon first remembered on her when he found her in the plane wreck and slowly his tag wagged. The large head nudged her stomach and instinctively Miranda’s hands ran through its pelt. Hitting a sensitive nerve on his back, the wolf shuddered slightly before shaking it’s coat and daring to lower herself to its level, Miranda took it’s head in her hands.

“Braydon, why are you in wolf form?” Her concern was obvious and guilt from their last conversation flared up.

The animal only tilted her head, not understanding. Her touch was welcomed though so as she stood with a sigh, he leant up against her again with his muzzle pointing up at her as it let out a howling yap. Rubbing under his chin, Miranda smiled down at the beast as he tongue lolled out of the side of his mouth. As nice as this all was, she still wanted to sleep. It was gone midnight now and it had been a long few days.

“Well if you don’t want to talk to me wolf boy, wanna come to bed?” Miranda yawned, causing the wolf to do the same thing.

Going back to her room, the wolf followed like an obedient pet and once Miranda got settled amongst the soft, familiar, cushioning of her bed she patted the empty space beside her and the animal jumped up and looked around. It circled four or five times, pawing at the bedding a couple of times before flopping down to take up more room than she expected it to with a loud groan. His head ended up on her abdomen, looking up at Miranda as she closed her eyes, leaving one hand resting on his neck.

It was exactly what they both needed to be able to fall asleep.