He buckled his jeans and crept down the stairs. She would need sleep. He left Whitney under the covers.

He saw the boxes in every corner of every room. It might take some time, but he’d help her unpack them. She wasn’t going to have to sell this place. It would be their home. The perfect place to raise their cubs.

He smiled. His bear had been right. This was what he should have done all along. He never should have left her. It took almost dying in the ambush to realize the most important thing in his life was Whitney.

He opened the fridge in search of food. He was starving.

The wind howled outside and the wind pelted the windows. It was too dark to see which direction the storm came from. Kyle had lost track of time. He had taken one look at Whitney on the porch and his bear took over for a while. All the lust and primal need for her broke free until she had been claimed.

The second round was for her. She needed to know he could take her to bed in more than one way. Rough and wild wasn’t always his style. He could love her with slow strokes, pushing her to her limits in a whole new way.

He grabbed some butter and cheese before searching the pantry for bread. He wasn’t a cook, but he could whip up a few grilled cheese sandwiches.

Within minutes the kitchen smelled like grilled cheese and he heard footsteps overhead.

“Hey.” Whitney appeared in the doorway.

“Hungry? It’s not gourmet but I was starving.” He grinned at her.

She crossed the room, throwing her arms around his neck. The sobs were light at first, but as he wrapped his hands around her waist her body began to shake.

“What’s wrong? What is it?” He felt the panic. The fear was spreading through him. He didn’t know what to do.

She sniffed, trying to regain control before she could look at him. He looked down at her. The tears rolling down her cheeks. “I woke up and thought you were gone.”

“Oh, God.” He pulled her to his chest, pressing her against the skin on his chest. “No. I’m not leaving. Never.” He tipped her chin toward him. “You’re mine, baby. You couldn’t get rid of me if you wanted to.”

She smiled. “Never leaving?”

“No.” He kissed her lips gently. “You’re mine. I’m yours. It’s a forever thing now.”

She loosened the grip on his neck. “What do you mean?”

He had learned a lot as a Ranger. He had learned how to read his enemy. How to anticipate danger. How to train. How to prepare his body for combat. But it took losing his best friend and almost dying a second time to learn time was fleeting. Nothing was guaranteed.

He had hidden his true identity from Whitney long enough. They needed to start their future now. She had to know the truth about who he was.

“We need to talk.”

Her eyes widened. He could sense the fear.

“I’m not leaving. That’s not it.” He led her to the kitchen table.

“All right. What is it?” She waited for him to answer.

“Here’s the thing.” He rubbed at the scruff on his jawline. “I have no doubt you want all the same things I do.” He pulled her into his lap. “I want a future with you. I want to live here with you. I want to raise our children here.”

She swallowed hard.

“You want all that don’t you, Whit?”

“Yes. It’s everything I want. It’s all I could think about when you were gone. I thought it would never happen.” Her voice was quiet.

He squeezed her to him. “I knew you did or I wouldn’t have taken you the way I did.”

She looked confused and he knew he had to explain.

“Baby, you’re mine now. Upstairs in your bed, I claimed you and made you mine for life.” He felt her pulse quicken. “You’re my mate. The one woman made for me. The only one I’m supposed to spend my life with.” He inhaled. “I knew it the minute I laid eyes on you. But I had to leave again. And I couldn’t promise you I’d make it back.”

“I was scared you wouldn’t come back.”

She lowered her eyes and he felt the sadness from the memory. It was enough to bring any man to his knees, but separating a bear from his mate was a living hell.

“Hey.” He tilted her gaze to him again. “I didn’t want to leave you. I hated it. But my mission wasn’t over. I made a commitment to those men that I would get them out alive, and I had to do it. I had to do for them what I couldn’t do for Sam.”

His heart pounded. All the pain was still there. The pain of watching Sam die. The pain of leaving Whitney. It never left him.

“Keep going,” she whispered. “I want to understand.”

“You and I couldn’t be together until I finished the mission. I swear I wouldn’t have left you if I hadn’t given my word. But I don’t break a promise. I never break my word.” His throat tightened. “The past month was absolute hell without you. But I’m back for good. I won’t leave. Not you. Not our children.” His hand moved to her stomach.

She gasped. “Children? We didn’t use protection this time.”

“No. I had to give you my magic.” Just talking about it stirred a sensation in his cock. He wanted her again. He didn’t know when it would be enough to leave him satisfied.

“What I’m trying to tell you is I’m a bear shifter, Whit. And you’re my mate. And we’re going to spend the rest of our lives together.”

“Holy shit,” she whispered. Her eyes darted back and forth across his face. Her grip on his shoulders tightened.

“Yeah. Exactly. Holy shit.”

He waited for a question. A comment. A slap. But she stared at him.

He had faced burning buildings. Gunfire. Kidnapping. But nothing scared the shit out of him like the silence he was holding in his arms.