Anxiety coursed through Ella’s veins and she couldn’t sit still. She paced the small cabin, peering out the foggy windows at Tate every few minutes. He’d shifted back and forth between human and bear for the last few hours working on the boat.

He’d felled several trees and had constructed a boat rise where he could work on the vessel. He’d used his bear and some trees to pull the boat up onto land. The ground was still covered in snow and he didn’t bother dressing when he went back to human form.

After he’d built a fire and begun to melt rubber in a metal bucket, he put his clothes back on. She bundled Andrew up in his snowsuit and walked outside to where Tate stood beside the fire. The sharp smell of tar stung her nose.

“What are you doing?” she asked.

“There’s a hole in the hull. I going to repair it with what I’ve got on hand here. The tar will patch the hole enough to make it back to Juneau.”

“What did Brock say when you called him on the CB radio?”

“The radio is dead,” he said, picking the gray metal box from a rock. “I was going to bring it into the cabin to dry off. Might be able to fix it.”

The cold ran down her spine. They could be stranded here. Ella gritted her teeth and fear sank in her stomach. It was almost as bad as being on the run from the Glacier Wolf Pack. If they were stranded out here without supplies, it could get really bad really fast. It was a summer cabin. Not a place to overwinter.

“I’m going back in,” she said, her breath blowing out in front of her.

She turned back to the cabin and trudged through the snow. Tate was right behind her. He held the door for her as they approached. She went through and put the baby in his car seat. Ella felt frantic, but Tate looked at her with his searching, green eyes.

“Are you all right?” he asked her, setting the radio on the table.

“No. Not really,” she snapped.

“What?” he said, putting his hands up in a defensive posture.

“Nothing,” she said, turning away.

“Ella, I’m doing everything I can here. I’m sorry this isn’t turning out how you’d expected. No one asked you to disappear for a year and a half and return with a baby and a crazed pack of wolves at your heels.”

She gasped and her mouth dropped at the insult. She wanted to yell at him, but she couldn’t. He was right. The only one she had to blame was herself. All her sorrow and fear overwhelmed her all at once. She sat down on the bed and began to cry.

Tate stopped short, choking on his words. He walked across the room and sat beside her, putting his arm around her shoulders.

“Please, don’t cry. I’m not going to be able to handle it if you cry,” he pleaded.

“Why do you care if I cry? I’m a horrible person. I was horrible to you. I can’t even believe you are helping me right now.”

“Ella…” He brushed her hair back from her cheek and over her ear. The feeling of his hand on her skin awakened all kinds of sensations she though were long dead. She’d been on her own for so long. She’d shouldered the burden of her life on her own for so long.

She tilted her head down and nestled it against his chest, unable to help herself. The feeling of his hard pectoral under her wet cheek made her cry even harder. All this time, she’d longed for something like this, even though she’d tried to suppress her need. Tate wrapped his arm around her shoulder and held her tight.

Tears dripped down her face and soaked into his shirt. “Hey,” he said, cupping her chin in his palm. He lifted her face to look at him. She was so ragged and lost. She sniffed. Tate looked into her eyes, his face placid but questioning.

She didn’t know who leaned in first, but all at once, their lips were crushed against each other. Desire surged in her chest and her sex dampened between her legs. She moaned, leaning in closer.

Tate growled, holding her tight. His hands roved over her body, desire burning through her skin with each caress. He squeezed her breast, and she moaned deeply. Ella was so swept up in the moment, all she wanted was to feel him closer.

She reached for his pants, her hand grazing over his substantial hardness. It pulsed against her and her breath caught. Tate pulled back with a roar, holding the hand away from him.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” he asked.

“I don’t know. Yes?” she said, breathlessly. She didn’t want to think. She just wanted to feel something other than pressure and fear. The pleasure of Tate’s touch and kiss was just what she needed.

“That’s not enough, Ella.” He stood, growling angrily.

“Why not?”

“My bear. I can’t control him. He won’t let you go if we make love. I’m afraid of what I’ll do to you. I might claim you. Turn you.”

“Claim me?”

“You know what that means. You would be mine. Bound to me. You would become a bear and we would be linked for the rest of our lives.”

“When you put it that way…” she said, fixing her clothing. “I don’t know if I want to be a bear, let alone linked to anyone for the rest of my life.”

“I know. Okay? Believe me. I know.” He backed away, his face tortured.

“Tate. I wanted to kiss you. I’ve always loved you. You know that.”

“Loved me? Please, don’t start talking about how you’ve always loved me. If you loved me, you never would have left with my child inside you.”

He hurried to the door.

“I’m sorry,” she called, just as he closed the door behind him. A tear slid down her face. She didn’t want to hurt him or confuse him. She hated that his bear was torturing him because of her. She wanted to make love to him, she just couldn’t commit to being claimed. She was glad he’d stopped.

It wasn’t like he had to. Tate was six-foot-two and Ella was five-foot-five with her boots on. He could ravish her without breaking a sweat. He could force his bear inside her in more ways than one and assure that they would be linked body and mind for the rest of their lives.