Chapter 7
ROWAN
Ibundled myself in as many warm layers as I could manage before following Bexley outside. The cold air hit my lungs, but that wasn’t what made my breath falter. It was watching Bexley stop on the porch, searching my expression with a worried gaze.
“Are you sure you’re ready for this?”
I wrapped my arms around my torso. “I think so.”
He nodded. “Just remember, it’s still me.”
That reassurance shouldn’t have calmed me as much as it did, but most of my nerves eased.
Bexley exhaled slowly, then began removing his clothes, each layer falling away until nothing separated his body from the cold air.
Or from my stare. But I didn’t get the chance to appreciate all his bulging muscles—or the hard shaft that bounced against his six-pack abs when it sprang free—before he moved to the front yard and the impossible began.
His body shimmered, and his silhouette expanded, stretching upward and outward.
His spine lengthened, and his shoulders widened, the sound of bones shifting loud in the hush of falling snow.
I gasped, but I remained rooted in place.
Where Bexley had stood, an enormous white polar bear now towered. Snow dusted his fur, and his eyes were locked on mine with an intelligence that was impossible to miss. Bexley was definitely in there.
My jaw hung open, and I was filled with wonder at how amazing this was.
The bear dropped onto all fours, lowering his head until he was eye level with me. He moved slowly, as though he knew how easily he could overwhelm me.
My heartbeat thudded wildly, but my feet carried me forward anyway, crunching softly through the snow. I lifted a trembling hand, hovering for a second above the thick fur at his neck. Then I touched him.
He was softer than I expected. “You’re beautiful.”
His massive head nudged my palm, like he was telling me he heard every word. Acceptance bloomed warm in my chest.
The world as I’d known it was forever altered. But for the first time since arriving in Timber Ridge, I didn’t feel lost at all. I had the oddest sense that I was exactly where I belonged.
Bexley’s polar bear watched me for a moment, his breath puffing in soft clouds around his enormous head. Then he leaned forward and gently nudged my hip with his nose.
“Oh wow,” I whispered with a startled laugh, pressing a hand to his massive muzzle. “You’re really doing this.”
When I buried my fingers deeper into the dense layers of fur at his neck, he made a low rumbling sound. Something like a purr but bigger. And wilder.
Then he proved that giant supernatural creatures had a sense of humor by flopping on his side in a bank of untouched snow.
I yelped and jumped back as a wave of powder exploded upward, then I dissolved into helpless laughter. “Are you serious right now?”
His paws lifted, comically slow, like he was playing dead. A thousand-pound polar bear was attempting theatrics to entertain me. I pressed my hands to my knees, giggling so hard I had to catch my breath.
When I straightened, he lifted his head to look at me with unmistakable mischief.
I shook my head. “You’re ridiculous.”
Drawn to him, I stepped closer again, circling his massive body. Snow clung to his fur in uneven clumps, and I brushed them away as gently as I could. He stayed perfectly still while I touched him, trusting me without hesitation. That realization made something warm unfurl inside my chest.
“I can’t believe this is real,” I murmured, smoothing my palm along the powerful curve of his shoulder. “Any of it.”
My life had changed so much in such a short time. Part of me felt like the ground should be tilting beneath my feet. I’d never wanted anyone before, and now I was quickly falling for a guy who could change into a freaking polar bear.
My grandmother’s letter flashed through my memory, and I wondered if she knew about shifters and fated mates. Was that what she’d meant when she wrote about my dad never learning how important love was while growing up in Timber Ridge?
I dragged in a shaky breath, resting my hand in his fur.
He lifted his head and nudged my coat, then he looked toward the side of the house. The message was clear.
“Okay,” I whispered. “I guess we should head inside before I freeze.”
At least for me. I assumed polar bear shifters thrived in this weather.
He rose to his full size, snow cascading off him before the sound of bones reshaping echoed around us. I’d seen it with my own eyes, but I still could barely believe when Bexley returned to his human form.
I barely bit back a whimper of regret when he strode to the porch to pull his clothes on. Turning back to me, he asked, “Ready to go in?”
I nodded, and we stepped back inside to the crackling fire, my heart still racing from everything I’d just witnessed.
The warmth wasn’t enough to stop the trembling in my hands.
Some of it was leftover cold, but mostly it was from the remaining adrenaline.
Although I’d seen the man behind the bear in his eyes, I’d still been playing in the snow with a massive polar bear.
That was bound to get anyone’s blood pumping.
I stripped off my snow-damp layers near the fire, letting the heat prick at my chilled skin. Bexley stood a few feet away, watching me with a tenderness that made my breath catch in my lungs from heat instead of cold.
The certainty in his gaze made my pulse flutter. He looked at me like he knew exactly what I was to him.
It made me feel shy, but I wanted to know more about this incredible man. “Does it hurt when you shift?”
His expression softened, and he stepped closer. “Not really. It’s intense but not painful. Changing to my polar is natural to me. Almost like breathing.”
It was hard to believe that he could more than quadruple in size without pain, but there was no doubting the sincerity in his deep brown eyes. What was even more incredible was that he’d said he was born for me. “How do you know that I’m your fated mate?”
His inhale was quiet but betrayed his surprise at my question. “Your scent called to me all day. I kept getting the smallest trace of it, and my polar pushed me to find you. Only I didn’t know until you walked into the restaurant that that was what had him all riled up.”
I licked my dry lips, which made me think of his kiss…and want more. “But now you’re certain?”
“If there had been any doubt, it would’ve been erased when we touched.” Bexley reached for my hand and interlaced our fingers. “The spark of desire was unmistakable.”
I tilted my chin down with a frown. “I’m sure you’ve felt stuff like that before.”
“Never,” he rasped, tugging me closer. “Something you need to know about shifters is we don’t experience passion of any kind until we meet our fated mate.”
My head jerked back as adrenaline rushed back into my system. “I’m the first woman you’ve ever…”
His lips curved into a sexy smirk. “Yes, baby. You’re the only woman who’s ever made my cock so hard I could barely think straight.”
A sense of feminine satisfaction rolled over me, but my cheeks still pinkened when I asked, “Is that why I’ve…um…never been interested in a guy before?”
My question made his smile widen. “Yeah, it can be confusing for human mates who don’t know about shifters, but the same is true for you.”
“You don’t have to sound so pleased by that,” I murmured as I playfully swatted at his shoulder.
He gave me a pointed look. “Can you honestly tell me you weren’t thrilled to hear I’d only ever want you?”
“No,” I huffed, pressing my lips together in a flat line. “I guess I can’t.”
“Feeling territorial is normal, so don’t be embarrassed by it.” His eyes twinkled in the firelight as he winked at me. “I’m not.”
His reassurance went a long way, but there was still something important that I needed to know.
Especially since I was only in Timber Ridge for the weekend.
Our lives were literally worlds apart, which made it hard for me to picture where we went from here.
“What exactly does being fated mates mean for us?”