“Have you ever seen this much ice in July before?” one of the shifters asked as he looked around at the ice-covered ranch.

“I have,” Julius answered with a nod. “Three years ago. Epic Margarita night.”

Hadley laughed as Julius flashed her a grin. It was early morning now with the sun halfway up in the sky. They had spent a long, long, really fucking long night making fires, breaking ice, and melting the frozen shifters from their icy prisons.

It had been a lot of exhausting and grueling work, but Hadley had to admit that she also had a lot of fun. She loved watching the boys joke around, throwing insults as well as snowballs and teasing each other as they slowly broke each other free from the ice.

Julius had put a bra on Jax’s frozen lion as he thawed, and Axel kept his beer cold by placing it Slate’s open mouth.

Hadley helped for a bit, but everyone (especially Axel) kept telling her to sit down and relax. “You’re preggers,” Royal said, shaking his head as she threw a log on the fire that was thawing Hannibal out. “Sit back. Relax.”

They were all so nice, and Hadley really didn’t mind watching. It was quite a view with muscular shifters walking around naked, animals phasing into people, and a dead dragon in the middle of it all.

But with all of that going on, her eye was still constantly drawn to Axel. Her heart swelled in her chest as she watched him work and talk with the guys. He was so sexy and perfect. How could she not see it before?

This night had turned things around for her. She could now see how they were meant to be together. How they were perfect for each other. She could feel it in her bones.

They were soulmates.

She was no longer worried that a relationship with Axel would turn out like her mother’s loveless marriage. She knew down deep that she would love him completely until her final breath.

“That’s the shifter bond you’re feeling,” Axel had explained after they had snuck away for a quick make-out session. “As strong as it is for you, it’s even stronger for me.”

Hadley had a hard time believing that. It was pretty damn strong for her.

After the last of the shifters was thawed out, they turned their attention to the dead dragon.

“Shotgun his head,” Slate said. “I want to hang that thing over my fireplace.”

Zane shot him a frown. “That’s my alpha’s brother,” he said in a sharp tone. “We’re burying him.”

“Fine,” Slate said with a roll of his eyes. “It’s a bit too big for my cabin anyway and it will probably give Layla nightmares.”

Hadley watched in astonishment as the group of shifters all grabbed a hold of the fire truck and lifted it off the dragon. These guys were incredibly strong.

It suddenly dawned on her that the child growing inside of her stomach may be one of them. The second she could grab Axel, she did. “Is our child… going to be a shifter?” she asked after she pulled him aside.

He looked a little worried. “Would that bother you?”

She immediately shook her head. “Not at all.” If her kid was as brave and strong as these shifters had been, she would be honored for her child to be one of them.

“It’s possible,” he said, smiling in relief.

“Possible?” she repeated, raising an eyebrow.

“Most likely,” he said. “But it’s going to be okay.”

She wrapped her arm around his and smiled up at him. “I know it is.”

It took another hour or so for the boys to dig a large enough hole in the field and pull the dragon into it. They all helped bury it, and when the job was finished, there was a new hill on the side of the field.

“Subtle,” Julius said with a laugh. “That’s not noticeable at all.”

Hannibal shrugged. “The kids will enjoy sliding down it in the winter.”

Hadley stared at them in shock. They definitely did things differently here in Colwood, Montana. And she couldn’t wait to be a part of it.

They said goodbye and she climbed into the truck with Jax, Zane, and Axel. “Tell Draven to keep his family squabbles out of Colwood,” Thorn said as Zane started the truck. “I’ve seen enough dragons for one lifetime.”

“I think we all have,” Zane said with a nod.

Hadley was in the back with Axel and she waved to her new friends as they drove back home to the firehouse.

“Welcome to Colwood,” Jax said as he looked back with a grin. “The real Colwood.”

“You’re one of us now, Hadley,” Zane said, turning to her with a smile. “You’re going to fit in just fine.”

Her insides flooded with warmth. “Thanks,” she answered. “I think I’m going to like it here.”

She lowered her head onto Axel’s lap and looked up at his handsome face, unable to contain her smile.

“In fact,” she whispered only loud enough for her mate to hear. “I know I will.”

* * *

A bed had never felt so good. The sun was shining outside on the beautiful summer day, but Hadley was in the perfect place: Axel’s bed.

She pulled the sheets up to her nose, inhaling his rugged scent as she waited for him to come in. She was so tired after the long night that she felt like she could sleep for days, although sleep was the last thing on her mind.

Maybe it was from feeling so safe and warm after intense rushes of adrenaline, or maybe it was the pregnancy making her more aroused, but she was turned on more than ever and anxiously waiting for Axel to join her in bed.

She squeezed her thighs together and moaned as she remembered what it had felt like to have Axel between them. Every second was torture waiting for him to finish showering.

Just as her hand started sliding down her stomach, the door opened and Axel walked in wearing only a towel wrapped around his waist. His damp messy hair looked adorable after being towel dried, and Hadley had to control herself against the urge to jump up and sink her hands into it.

“How was that shower?” she asked, grinning as he shut the door. Her own hot shower had felt like heaven after the cold night.

“Best shower I ever had,” he said, giving her a contented smile. “I could have stayed in there forever.”

Her eyes roamed over his big naked chest and hard abs, making her heart beat a little faster. “I’m glad that you didn’t,” she answered with a grin. “I’ve been waiting for you.”

His eyebrows perked up and his eyes widened as he watched her. “Really?”

She smiled. “Really. I think it’s time for our second date.”

Axel grinned as he approached the bed, moving with the grace of a panther. “I was hoping you were going to say that.”

When he arrived at the bed, Hadley lifted up the sheets, revealing what she was wearing: nothing.

He swallowed hard as his eyes brushed over her naked body with an intensely hungry look. Her nipples ached as his gaze lingered on her chest. She wanted him so bad. She was already so wet for him.

With a flick of his finger, the knot on his towel unraveled and it fell to the floor. A little moan fell from her lips as she saw his long hard cock jutting out in front of her. She jumped to her knees and was on it at once.

“Oh, Hadley,” he moaned, closing his eyes as she took him in deep, sucking his long shaft with her greedy lips.

Hadley couldn’t tell who was having more fun, him or her. She moaned on his dick as he sunk his hands deep into her blonde hair, guiding her mouth along his thick length. From the base to the tip, he tasted so good that she never wanted to stop.

She pulled him out of her mouth and took a gulp of air as she stroked his length and looked up at him.

“Fuck you’re beautiful,” he moaned in a deep throaty voice as he watched her. “I can’t believe you’re mine.”

“Forever,” she whispered before taking him back in her mouth. And it was true. They would be together forever. She knew it down deep in a place she didn’t know existed until last night. They were meant to be together for all eternity.

“Lie down,” he said as he placed two fingers under her chin and lifted her head up until his dick slid out. She was breathing heavily, her pussy throbbing for him.

“It’s my turn to taste you,” he said as he gently guided her shoulders back down to the mattress.

Her clit was throbbing as she spread her legs for him, wanting to feel his warm tongue all over her. She thought she was ready for him, but when his hot tongue slid up her sex, her back arched, her hands gripped the sheets, and she let out a sudden gasp.

“Oh, God,” she moaned as his strong hands slid up her stomach and gripped her aching breasts. His tongue was everywhere—swirling around her opening, dragging across her clit, plunging in deep. It was all enough to make her legs start trembling as she pushed up against his mouth.

“Fuck me, Axel,” she gasped. She could barely speak. His tongue was pure perfection but his hard cock was pure heaven, and she wanted it now more than ever. “Please.”

Without a word, he climbed on top of her, wiping his wet mouth with his arm as he came. Hadley couldn’t breathe with the delicious anticipation of it. Her breath was caught in her throat, the only thought coming through the swirling heat in her head was of what was to come. She was shivering with need as he pushed the thick head of his cock into her wet opening.

“Ohh,” she moaned as he suddenly drove in deep, burying his thick cock in her aching pussy, filling it with one beautiful stroke.

She buried her face into his shoulder, clawing his taut back muscles as she adjusted to his massive size. She had almost forgotten how big he was, how he filled her completely.

Axel started off with slow steady strokes that got faster as her breath got quicker. It was better than before. The first time was just lust. This time there was a deep love simmering underneath the heat, an unworldly connection that she felt, but still didn’t fully understand.

He was the one for her and knowing that made it feel even better.

His pace quickened with faster, harder strokes. Their groans became louder as he plunged in deeper, hitting her with hard pumps that made her back arch and her toes curl.

Their orgasms came at the same time, tearing through them in intense waves of heat that had them clutching each other and screaming out loud.

“Fuck!” Hadley screamed as she writhed on the bed, clamping her legs shut around Axel’s trembling body. Her legs were shaking as she felt his body tighten as his warm seed filled her pussy.

This was how she wanted to go to sleep every night, with their naked bodies tangled up and with Axel’s big dick rooted deep inside her.

She knew now that she wasn’t going home. Maybe to introduce him to her parents, but as soon as she could get back to Montana, she would. This was her home now. This was where she belonged.

She belonged in Axel’s arms.

It was the only place for her.

The sexy polar bear shifter kept his hard body curled around her until they were both ready for more.

A few hours and many orgasms later, Hadley dropped her exhausted head onto her mate’s massive chest and fell asleep to the soothing sound of his heartbeat.

And there was no place she would rather be.