Chapter 21
The very next morning, Shaw woke up in his bed with Robin in his arms. He took a deep breath, taking her sweet scent into his lungs. It did something to his brain each time he took her essence in. Like she was being cemented into him somehow.
Shaw had no idea how the process of finding your true mate went. He’d seen shifters go apeshit over a female before, never truly understanding what was happening to them physically. Now that he’d scented the female for him, he had a new respect for those he’d deemed ludicrous.
As he gazed at her, sleeping in his arms, he took in every little thing about Robin. The golden strands in her blonde hair looked as if she had a rare treasure growing inside of her that sprouted right out of her pretty little head. He nuzzled her hair, loving how soft and silky it always felt.
Shaw allowed himself to wonder what their children would look like. Maybe a boy who looked like him and a girl who looked like her. He didn’t care how they looked, he just knew he wanted as many as she’d give him.
The family Shaw came from was large. He’d love nothing more than to have a large family of his very own. He’d already built himself a home that could accommodate many people. He chuckled to himself as he thought that he had no idea he was building a home for a family when he began working on the massive log-cabin-style home.
Somewhere buried deep inside him there’d been the knowledge that one day his female—the one woman who’d been made just for him—would come along and he’d see the world in a new light.
When Robin stirred, he froze. It wasn’t his intention to wake her up. After all, she’d had one hell of a night. After their little tryst in the woods, he brought her back to his place, and they’d spent hours making love to one another.
She’d done so much with him, trusting him in a way he had worried she never would again. He had managed to keep his wolf reined in; neither wanted to freak her out and scare her off again. The wolf worked well with him, wanting to show Robin neither were the monster she thought they were.
When her emerald eyes opened, she found Shaw looking at her. With a moan, she stretched. “Why are you looking at me, Shaw?”
“Because I’ve never seen anything so beautiful in my entire life. Waking up with you in my arms is addicting, I can tell that already. I can’t seem to let you go, baby.” He kissed her forehead and groaned as he felt his male member growing. But he knew he had to pamper his woman a bit this morning. She needed a nice long hot bath and a hearty breakfast to get her strength back up. He’d worn her out with their nighttime activities.
She moaned as she moved. “My gosh, everything is stiff and aches.” She batted at his chest gently. “What did you do to me, babe?”
His laugh was deep, as he felt very pleased with himself for affecting her so much. “You weren’t complaining last night, now were you?”
“No, I suppose I wasn’t.” She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him on the mouth.
He kissed her back but then had to stop as his desire for her grew, and he wanted to show her what a good man he could be. Shaw wasn’t just great in bed, he could be great in so many ways. And he wanted to give her a taste of eternity with him as her mate.
“Okay, I’m going to draw you a nice hot bath, complete with rose-scented bubbles.” He winked at her. “I bought that and some other goodies for you the other day, hoping you’d come around and realize you can’t possibly live without me.”
Robin’s grin made him smile as she whispered, “You never gave up hope, huh?”
“Never,” he shook his head, making his dark hair bounce around his handsome face. “You were made for me. You just need to get that through your head. Anyway, I’ll get that bath going, and then I’m going to make you the best breakfast you’ve ever eaten.” He kissed her cheek then let her go before rolling out of bed.
Robin watched him stroll away from her. “Man, I hate to see you go, but I sure do like to watch you do it.” Her eyes were glued to his chiseled back features. “What an ass!”
Shaw felt a surge of pride as she ogled him. The girl was falling fast. In no time at all, he’d make her his. Christmas was only a couple of days away. Maybe that would be her Christmas present.
After getting her bath ready, he went back for her. Finding her splayed out over his side of the bed, he caught her taking in a deep breath as she nuzzled her nose into his pillow. She moaned a bit and moved her legs beneath the blanket. His scent aroused her, he could tell. Everything was working in his favor. Soon she’d be his, and the chasing would end.
She gasped when he scooped her up into his strong arms. Robin wrapped her arms around his neck as she laid her head on his chest. “How is it that you—a man who can turn into a wolf—makes me feel so safe and secure, Shaw?”
“I guess because I love and adore you.” He kissed the top of her head. “And one day you’ll be able to turn into a wolf too. If you play your cards right, that is,” he added, acting as if there was a chance in hell he’d drop her to take another female as his mate. The thought was laughable, and he found himself laughing out loud.
“What the heck are you laughing about? What you said wasn’t that funny,” Robin asked as she pulled her head up to look at him, confusion etching her expression.
“Oh, nothing.” He gently placed her in the water.
“Oh, baby, this feels and smells fantastic,” she moaned as she sunk into the sudsy hot water.
“Good. Now you soak while I wash your hair for you, then I’ll leave you to soak some more while I cook for you.” He sat on the edge of the old-fashioned claw-footed bathtub and poured some shampoo he’d gotten just for her into his palm. Giving her a little nod, he had her dunking her head under the water to get her hair wet then he massaged the strawberry scented shampoo into her wet locks.
Robin couldn’t help but smile as he rubbed his hands through her hair. She felt like a queen as he pampered her. She had no idea how nice a thing like this could feel. It was a thing she could get used to, and she couldn’t lie to herself about that.
But how could she ever get past the fear of being bit? The fear of dying? The fear of living life as a wolf-shifter? The fear of living a life without Shaw in it?
There just didn’t seem to be any way to turn that wasn’t cloaked in fear.
After rinsing her hair, Shaw kissed the top of her head. “I love you, baby girl.”
Robin ran her hand up, caressing his cheek before he moved away from her. “I love you, Shaw.”
He sighed and got up. “I’m going to throw on some clothes and go make breakfast. You can put on one of my T-shirts when you get out. I’ll put one on the bed for you.”
She turned to watch him leave, still loving to watch his naked butt as he walked away. She moaned as she said to herself, “Oh, those muscles!”
The man was built like a god. All muscular and all man.
Robin’s mind and heart were doing battle as she soaked in the tub. One wanted to rule over the other and Robin was left by the wayside as her internal organs had a fight, the likes of which she’d never experienced before.
Most of her wanted Shaw. But then again, a huge part of her, the part that controlled everything else, wanted to stay safe. Even if that meant losing the man she loved.
As she lay there, she felt like crying. She’d never known love before, and this felt better than she ever dreamt it would. How could she walk away from something this real, this much like heaven?