Becoming

  BECOMING

  A Reverse Harem Tale

  Mountain Magic

  Book One

  by

  Dakota Brown

  BECOMING

  A Reverse Harem Tale

  Mountain Magic, book 1

  All Rights Reserved

  Copyright © 2020 by Dakota Brown

  Cover Design © 2020 by Camila Marques

  All rights Reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Names, characters, places, and incidents are the products of the author's imagination and or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Published by Untold Press LLC

  114 NE Estia Lane

  Port St Lucie, FL 34983

  www.untoldpress.com

  PRODUCED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

  Dedication

  For Lizzy

  Go Scorpio Power!

  Acknowledgements

  Shoshanah, thank you for an amazing brainstorming session that no doubt made the characters and this series way deeper than I would have managed without your insight. Lizzy, thank you for the inspiration and encouragement while I wrote. Justinn, thank you for all the conversations. I think you know which ones. Jen and Sean, thank you so much for believing in me.

  Every book is an adventure, and every time I write one the process is a little different. This one poured from my fingertips so quickly I think I lit my keyboard on fire. I think my characters lit my keyboard on fire too. I'm in love with the series, the world, and the genre. I hope you enjoy reading this book as much as I did writing it.

  Chapter 1

  Sofia

  While I still had doubts about attending a small liberal arts college in the middle of the mountains in Sunnyglade, Colorado, the first breath of the local coffee shop reassured me of this choice. The aroma of coffee mingled with bergamot from the earl gray, and both caressed the buttery scent of coffee cake. Sugar tied all the scents together and caused me to stand, just inside the door, and inhale a few more times than necessary. It was a spiritual experience.

  A short line of people, young and old, waited at the counter to order. A few more stood waiting for their drinks. The rest sat at tables, reclined in comfortable armchairs, or sat on couches and talked with friends. Many worked at computers, some read, and others stared out the large glass window at the front of the store and admired the snow-peaked mountains in the distance.

  Once I had a chance to properly appreciate the ambiance, I got in line and studied the menu. They had a lot of options that I wanted to investigate in the future. This time, I decided to go with my old standby to start with. It would give me a good idea as to if the food and drink was as good as it smelled.

  "What can I get for you?" the barista–a shorter woman with bright blue hair and a friendly yet slightly sarcastic smirk–asked.

  "I'd like a vanilla latte and some of that coffee cake, please." I smiled.

  "Whip?"

  I nodded. "Thanks. Whole milk, and to go please. I need to get up to the college."

  "No problem." She rang me up.

  I paid in cash and dropped a tip into the bucket, then went to the other end of the bar and waited. Not exactly trying to eavesdrop, but wanting to get a feel for the town that would be my home for the next few years, I listened to the various conversations within earshot. One couple spoke of the best ski pass deals. Several younger people were talking about the semester starting shortly, and a few others tried to guess how much snow they would get that winter. Felt pretty standard.

  "Latte for Sofia."

  I turned at my name and collected my drink and the paper plate that held my coffee cake. They had put plastic over it and included a plastic fork. Inhaling the wonderful coffee scent that came out of the cup, I turned and ran smack into someone. Yelping as coffee sprayed out of my cup, I tried to back up, but it was too late. My coffee cake had vanished from my hand, and the stranger was wearing most of my drink. He had quickly pulled his white polo shirt away from his chest and the hot liquid soaking it.

  My cheeks heated. I wanted to melt into the floor, run away… something. "I'm so sorry." I looked up, and my cheeks heated more. Sapphire blue eyes, framed by short, curly blond hair and raised eyebrows met my horrified gaze.

  "It's…" He hesitated. "I'm okay. Are you?"

  "Oh, um, I missed myself." I couldn't believe I had run into the guy. He was about my own age, unbelievably handsome, and hopefully not burned by my coffee. Mortified, I dropped my gaze and looked for my coffee cake.

  "It's my fault. I was standing too close." He gestured at the small crowd that had gathered while I waited for my drink. It looked a bit more crowded than when I had first come over. And of course, they were now staring at me while I fumbled around for my missing coffee cake.

  One of the women standing near us, hopefully out of splash range, realized what I was looking for. She handed over the coffee cake, only slightly damaged.

  "Thanks," I said, just loud enough for her to hear. "I'm really sorry. I'd, uh, better go." I tried not to run out of the coffee shop, but I left much faster than I had entered. I didn't slow until I made it to the end of the block, short of breath. I'd lived at a lower elevation, so it would take a bit of time to adapt to living at seventy-five hundred feet.

  Once I had my breath back, I continued more slowly. The sun beat down on me, and I found a bench to sit on. I needed to finish the tiny amount left in my coffee before it cooled too much. My view overlooked the valley with a mountainous backdrop that took my breath away.

  I took a sip of the coffee, all that was left. It promised that my next latte would be divine, and the coffee cake melted in my mouth.

  "By the expression on your face, I should have gotten some of that."

  I choked.

  "Are you okay?"

  I nodded frantically, trying not to spit crumbs everywhere as I got my traitorous body under control. After a minute I managed, though I was sure my blush was visible, even over my naturally dusky colored skin. "I'm sorry." Why did the guy from the coffee shop have to follow me out here? I was so embarrassed, I never wanted to see him again.

  "It was my fault, as I said. Here." He held out a new paper cup. "Peace offering."

  "Thank you," I replied hesitantly. Then I frowned. His shirt was clean? I know I had soaked the white polo in coffee. Now it was just a white polo, no stains, no dampness where he might have washed it off.

  He noticed my attention, however didn't say anything about his shirt.

  "May I join you?"

  "Uh, sure." I pushed the mystery away for later. Maybe I wasn't remembering properly?

  "I'm Alex."

  "Sofia. Nice to meet you." I tried not to let my hesitation show in my voice. "Thanks for the replacement coffee."

  "Of course. Their drinks are fantastic. It would be a shame if you didn't actually get to taste one. Are you new here? I haven't seen you before."

  Great, a local even. Sunnyglade wasn't a large town, even with the college. Lots of ranchers and ski enthusiasts, along with the people who worked at the college. It was also a tourist town. Why didn't he ask if I was a tourist?

  "Yes. You live here?"

  He nodded, turning his attention from me to the mountain view I had recently admired. "I've lived here for a few years. Are you here for college?"

  "How did you know?"

  "You're not really dressed like a tourist, and it's a little off season. We'll get snow soon, but it's too early for the ski bums, and it's a little late for the hiking and vacationing crowd."

  "It is? Wait, d
id you say it would snow soon? It's mid-August."

  "Welcome to life at altitude." He grinned. "It's not that bad. Then you can ski and snowshoe. Freshman?"

  "Yes. You?"

  He nodded.

  Great, he went to Sunnyglade College, too. I'd never be able to live the coffee incident down.

  "I, uh, need to get over to the college, speaking of. I have a few appointments before classes start next week." I stood.

  "Mind if I walk you over? I am headed that way."

  Really? Damn it. "Uh, sure."

  He stood and fell in next to me. We sipped our coffees in silence, and I tried not to be too obvious about studying the guy next to me. He was tall, fair skinned, and his blond curls were rather adorable. He didn't seem to be especially muscular. If there was any extra weight on him at all, I didn't know where he was hiding it. Maybe he was a distance runner? His eyes grabbed me when I accidently made contact, and I quickly looked away. My initial impression of sapphire blue was correct, but I swear I saw a green shine to them this time when the sunlight lit up his face. Strange.

  Still, he seemed content to walk in silence, and we covered the short distance to the college admin building quickly.

  "This is my stop," I said when we arrived. The quarried limestone building was a couple of stories high, and stretched back from the road for a fair distance. I had been inside a few times now, and it was nicely appointed and modern on the inside.

  "I hope we run into each other again soon." He laughed. "Um, pardon the unintentional joke. Perhaps not quite so literally."

  I smiled. "Yeah, that'd be great."

  He gave a quick wave and continued on down the sidewalk, and I tore my eyes away before he turned and caught me staring. He was certainly athletic. It was almost enough to distract me from the mystery of his clean shirt. Almost.

  ∞ ∞ ∞

  I attached the fob to my keychain, looked at the map the counselor had given me, and contemplated the small microcosm that would dominate my life for the next four years. Though I hadn't declared a major yet, there was at least a year's worth of core classes everyone had to take. I had some time to decide.

  The map conveniently showed landmarks too and named the mountain peaks. I hadn't really realized the mountains would have individual names. Interesting.

  A breeze tickled my short bob haircut, and I absently pushed some loose strands behind my ear as I headed for the freshman girls' dorm. There was enough housing for everyone to live on campus, although only freshman were required to. I wondered if my roommate would be here yet. Today was the first day the dorms were open for moving in, and I wanted to check out my room and go through my class schedule.

  Most of the buildings on campus were the same quarried limestone as the administration building. Here and there I spotted brick, and I had heard that the library had a granite façade. St. Giles Library was high on my list of places to visit today.

  I turned off the main road and followed a sidewalk between two buildings. Even in a small campus in what should be a safe town in the mountains, I saw emergency stations at all the major corners. It wasn't busy yet, but still, many young people hurried about. Some wore orange safety vests with the words 'safe walk' across the back. Even here we had to worry. It made me a little sad, yet also glad that the campus took student safety seriously.

  The dorm I would live in for the next year wasn't far from the admin building, though nothing really was on this smaller campus. I went up to the front door and pulled. Locked. I'd heard stories about buildings that said they had a locked entrance but really didn't, so I was glad to see this was also as advertised.

  I scanned my fob on the reader, and the door beeped and clicked open. It entered into a lounge area with comfortable looking couches and chairs and low tables. The tables all had plugs for laptops. Big windows let in natural light and accented the mountain valley view. I saw stand lamps for when the sun went down, and while there were florescent lights in the ceiling, they weren't on.

  My room was on the third floor near the back. I hoped that meant we had a good view. Of course, there didn't seem to be a bad one so far.

  I found the stairs near the elevators and debated. On one hand, the exercise would be good for me, and using the stairs was a good habit to start. On the other hand, I had come from almost sea level, and I had accidently left my water bottle back at my hotel room. Drink lots of water was the number one piece of advice for living at altitude that I could find. Coffee had water in it, right?

  I smiled at the thought and headed for the stairs. Might as well get used to exercising up here, especially when I could take my time.

  About halfway up I regretted my decision as I gasped for breath and a light headache formed at my temples. I stopped, leaned against the railing for a minute, and then forced myself the rest of the way. At the top, I paused again, wanting to sit down and feeling a little weak in the legs. This was crazy. I was in good shape. I exercised and ran a lot. I hadn't felt this bad from climbing a staircase since, well, forever.

  After a few moments, I recovered slightly and opened the door. The carpet was clean, older, and dark blue. The hallways were painted light gray, and florescent lights lit the way. Though windows at both ends of the hallway let in quite a bit of natural light. I glanced at the numbers on the doors and turned to my right. Room 360 was down on the end. Victoria–I knew her name from the paperwork–and I had gotten lucky with a corner room. Extra windows.

  I stopped outside my door and hesitated. Was she here? I wasn't normally nervous about meeting people, but after dumping coffee on a random stranger this morning, I worried about what else might go wrong. Guess I couldn't do anything except dive in, so I knocked lightly on the door before scanning my fob.

  The door beeped, and I pushed it open.

  The room was painted light grays, and the carpet was a nicer lavender. The room wasn't large, but it was big enough for two people. The middle was divided by a half wall that had desks lined up on either side and a wardrobe style closet next to the desk. Each side had a window and a single sized bed with a small bed stand and a mirror.

  The bed to the left had a suitcase on it, and the desk already had some books. The bed to the right was against the outside wall and empty. I guessed that was mine. Victoria wasn't here at the moment, though clearly, she had been here recently. I didn't want to pry, but saw a couple of photos on her desk, and I didn't think she would mind me looking if they were out.

  The first showed an older black man and black woman who looked like a couple by the way they had their arms around each other's waists. Their bright smiles made me grin in reply, even though it was just a picture. The other picture showed the same older couple with a young girl about my age. Her smile was just as big and friendly. I hoped this cheerful person in the picture was my roommate. I thought we could get along, if she really was that friendly. She had a small poufy fro, dark skin, and wore a superhero T-shirt.

  While I wasn't especially into superheroes, I enjoyed the movies and thought we would at least have something in common.

  The door beeped, and I quickly set the picture back on the desk and turned. The person from the photo entered my room, and her face lit up with a smile.

  I sighed in relief. At least initially, she looked as nice as the picture made her out to be.

  "Sofia?"

  I nodded. "Hi. You must be Victoria then."

  If possible, her grin intensified. "Yep. In the flesh. I hope you don't mind that I picked a side. I didn't make the bed or anything, in case you wanted to trade."

  "No, that's fine. I was, uh, just looking at your pictures. Your parents?"

  "Yeah, Mom and Dad and me. I hope you don't mind, they'll visit in a couple of weekends, and I bet they'll want to meet you. You don't have to, of course."

  "Oh, no, that would be great. I'm not sure if my parents will come out or not. If they do, they'll certainly want to meet you, too."

  "So, where's your stuff?" She glanced to my side of
the room, seeing it still empty.

  "I left it at the hotel. I wanted to check everything out before I moved over. I still have about an hour before I need to check out."

  "Want help?"

  I raised my eyebrows. "Sure. Now?"

  "No time like the present. So, where are you from?" Victoria opened the door, and we went back out into the hallway.

  Both of us watched to make sure the door actually closed, caught each other doing it, and laughed. "We'll get along fine." She beamed at me.

  I nodded agreement. "Most recently, I'm from Nebraska. My parents move around a lot though, because of Dad's work. He's an engineer with the oil fields. How about you?"

  "Denver. Almost, but not quite a local. Elevator or stairs?"

  I sighed. "Down is easier than up. Let's take the stairs. I need to get used to the altitude sometime."

  Victoria laughed. "Even I'm going to take a few days to adjust. You know to drink a lot of water, right?"

  "Yeah."

  "And electrolytes. I've got some good sports ones I'll share."

  "Oh, thanks. I hadn't thought of that."

  We kept up some small talk as we went down the stairs and back out into the warm day. I tried not to show how out of breath I was, but every now and again, Victoria slowed her strong walk down and let me catch my breath.

  She winked. "You'll catch up. Next time you head home, you won't even have to breathe."

  I laughed.

  Collecting my suitcase and backpack from the hotel and checking out didn't take very long, and soon we were headed back.

  "So, uh, I have to ask," Victoria said before we reached the dorm.

  The hesitation in her voice made my stomach clench. What could possibly make her so unsure all of a sudden? She seemed to be a very confident person.