Chapter Twenty-Seven
Six weeks later…
Hailey walked along, smiling up at the midnight moon, staying in a straight line by keeping one hand on Tim’s furry back. Well, close to a straight line, because bears tended to ramble, sniffing the faintest trails and sweetest flowers with their sensitive noses.
She flexed her fingers in his thick pelt, marveling as she always did. The outer edges were coarse, but the inner part was soft — especially up by his ears. She rubbed them absently, and he responded with a low, happy chuff.
“You like that, huh?” She giggled.
The first few times she’d faced him in bear form, she’d been as tense as a spring. But that felt like a lifetime ago, and she’d grown to love their moonlit walks. Tim went in bear form, and she walked along beside him, exploring the huge property. Even the sight of Tim dragging his claws down huge tree trunks didn’t faze her any more. Lately, she was even starting to wish she could do the same. It all looked so…so…satisfying. Shaking out a thick coat of fur. Stretching and then padding along with her nose to the breeze. Nuzzling her mate…
Tim circled around and rubbed his side along her legs then stopped to nuzzle her hip. Really nuzzling, nearly pushing her back with his weight.
She laughed and stuck a foot out to brace herself. “Watch it, mister. You’re too big.”
Tim looked up at her with shining hazel eyes that said, And you’re just right. You’re perfect.
It was amazing how quickly she’d learned to understand his bear expressions. But lately, she’d found herself wanting more. To be able to talk to Tim — and to the others — without speaking, as all shifters could. To be able to let go of the stresses of civilization and tune in to the natural world. Maybe even get in touch with her wild side and run her claws down the trunk of a tree from time to time.
Not that she had a lot to complain about. Other than a crazy week after the shifter fight, it had been incredibly smooth sailing. Yes, she’d had to meet the press, but Dell was right — the quarterback hot tub scandal was the big story, and hers quickly faded away. She’d had to face her mother too, and as hellish as that had been, she’d stood firm. Within a week, she’d let go of her agent, signed the lease on the condo over to her mother along with half the money in her accounts, and transferred the rest of her earnings to a new account — one in her name only. A few modeling offers still came in, and she referred them all to Joelle Parks, the model whose career her mother and Jonathan had sabotaged. Joelle was on the rise again, and Hailey was more than happy to leave the modeling world to her.
As expected, Hailey’s mother and agent had both flipped out, but even that had a happy end. Hailey’s “childish” and “regrettable” actions — their words, not hers — had pitted her mother and agent together against a common cause, and they’d ended up having a torrid affair. Within two weeks of Hailey’s departure from the modeling scene, her mother kicked off her own career as a mature model, represented by her new lover. She was doing jewelry, fashion, and had just announced plans for a nude shoot. Which ought to have made Hailey sick, but considering how happy her mother was — and how off her back — it was great.
As for Jonathan — she grieved for his family, but that was all. It didn’t take his father long to announce a foundation in Jonathan’s name — one Hailey hoped would truly do the good deeds it claimed rather than being a tax shelter of some kind. Tim had looked doubtful, and Connor had offered to investigate, but she’d shaken her head. The Owen-Clarke family was out of her life for good.
Her land in Montana, meanwhile, was all hers — and safe from greedy oil interests. She was letting the property lie untouched for the time being, but someday, she and Tim planned to fix up the cabin as their own little getaway.
“Lots of space for a couple of bears to roam out there,” Tim had murmured dreamily when they had talked about it.
Bears. As in, her and him. The more Hailey thought about it, the more she liked the idea.
When everything had gradually quieted down, she found a new bounce to her step, a readier smile — plus a few more pounds of padding around her ribs, which wasn’t a bad thing. She and Tim had thrown themselves into renovating his house — when they weren’t screwing like bunnies, that was. They’d finished off the patio with huge, earth-toned tiles and shored up the roof supports. She’d registered for an online course in architectural design and had started weeding out the nearest coffee grove. Her mind was already spinning with dreams of cultivating it on a bigger scale, though she hadn’t told anyone yet.
Tim had nearly turned down his first contracting job to help her design an addition for the house, but they’d decided to put that off for a while. He was still busy with his security job, and she’d insisted that his business come first, so he’d taken the offer of installing skylights on a nearby estate.
“Practice for our place someday,” he’d half joked.
It hadn’t taken them long to settle into a new rhythm, and their nighttime walks became her favorite. At those times more than ever, she had the feeling of controlling her life. A life she loved every part of, though one little detail still niggled at the back of her mind.
Tim was hers, and she was his, but they hadn’t actually mated yet. She’d needed time to get over the last vestiges of her fears, and Tim hadn’t pushed her. But lately…
She slid her hand over his back and tilted her head in the direction of his house. “Ready to head home?”
His eyes sparkled at the way she said home, and she could relate. Tim’s little cabin was the first place she’d truly felt at home for years. And tonight…
She hid a naughty smile. Tonight could well be the night they mated for good. She closed her eyes, imagining what it would be like. Would it truly be all the pleasure of sex times ten?
Times twenty, Jenna had assured her in a giggly, girls-only conversation they’d had not too long ago. The bite hurts — hurts so good, if you know what I mean.
Oh, Hailey knew all about that. Tim had been treating her to all kinds of good loving over the past few weeks, and the urge for more was starting to build in her.
So she put a little swing in her hips and led the way home, grinning at the appreciative bear rumble that sounded from behind. Within a few steps, the soft pad of his bear paws turned to the quicker rhythm of a man’s feet, and Tim took her hand in his.
“Oh,” she squeaked, not so much surprised as amazed at how smoothly he could shift.
She peeked back. His hair was spiky, as it always was after a shift, and a slightly musky scent still clung to his shoulders. But the leather-and-pine mix she loved so much was there too, along with every hard muscle she’d memorized over the past few weeks. Her eyes drifted down, and she couldn’t hide a grin at the other — ahem — hard muscle lower down.
“Men.” She faked exasperation. “Always thinking about sex.”
He grinned and pulled her close — close enough for her to feel his hard length.
“I was wandering along, innocently thinking of honey and flowers, when somebody started putting bad ideas in my head,” he teased.
“I can’t imagine how you got that idea,” she said, sliding her hands over his ass. She arched her shoulders back, letting her breasts push against his hard chest.
“So, I’m wrong?” He sniffed her ear. “You really just want to go back to bed?”
She laughed. “Oh, I want to go to bed, all right. But not to sleep.”
“I think I can help you with that.”
She crooked her fingers, coaxing him toward the house. “I bet you can. And I wasn’t just thinking of sex, you know. I might be in need of a bite too,” she whispered, watching for his reaction.
But Tim just looked perplexed. “You’re hungry?”
She nearly doubled over laughing. He thought she meant a bite to eat? The poor man. He must have truly settled in for a long wait if he didn’t catch on to her hint.
“Not that kind of hungry,” she chuckled.
They were nearly at the front door before Tim figured it out. She could tell by the catch in his breath and the careful way he reeled her back into his arms.
“You mean…?”
It was a whisper with a hint of a growl, which meant both sides of him were talking — the man and the bear.
She grinned and tilted her head, running her fingers along her neck. “I was thinking somewhere along here.”
Tim’s eyes brightened, and his nostrils flared. And, damn. His arousal jumped right over to her, and her skin prickled. It felt good just touching herself. How amazing would it feel to have him touch her there?
She didn’t have to wait long for an answer, because Tim laid his big, callused hand on her neck and slid it slowly around as if searching for a particular spot.
His voice dropped an octave when he finally spoke. “More like around here.”
She closed her eyes and leaned right, craving more of his touch. Her body swayed in a silent dance, and when Tim’s lips touched down on her neck, she arched in need.
“Right…about…here,” he whispered, homing in on the spot.
With his free hand, he cupped her breast, making her moan for more.
“No fair,” she whispered.
“No fair?”
“You’re already naked, and I’m still dressed.”
He grinned; she could tell from the curl of his lips around her skin. “Easily fixed.”
She caught his hands before he did something rash like scissoring her clothes off with one extended claw. “Wait! This is my favorite shirt.”
He pulled back to look at it with one raised eyebrow. “This one?”
She touched the middle section. “Sure. Recognize it?”
It was the T-shirt he’d bought her that first day in Waikiki, before she had an inkling of destiny, shifters, or mates. A pitiful existence, in retrospect, because her life was so much richer now. Every morning brought a promising new dawn, and every sunset crowned another satisfying day.
He grinned. “Now I remember it. But it still needs to come off.”
He helped her pull it off while pushing the front door open with his foot. A moment later, they were inside, where he tossed the shirt to a chair.
“These need to come off too,” he breathed, tucking his fingers inside the hem of her shorts.
She shimmied out of them, not too fast, not too slow. Anticipation might not be as good as the real thing, but damn, was it close.
“Now about these…” He cupped her ass with his two huge hands, one covering each cheek. For a minute, he toyed with her, dragging her panties around just enough to work the fabric against her most sensitive spot. Then he tucked his fingers inside the waistband and slid them off, kneeling as he went. When she stepped out of the panties, he caught her foot and made sure it was placed good and wide. A beam of moonlight sliced through the open door behind him, and when he looked up at her, she felt like a statue on the altar of a goddess.
A low, rumbling sound rose from his throat, and he leaned forward to kiss her stomach. Then he dipped lower, keeping firm hold of her ass. The wall wasn’t far behind, and she leaned against it, burning with anticipation.
“So beautiful,” he murmured, coming closer.
His breath puffed against her core, and his tongue followed. Gently at first, then harder. His fingers were next, and it wasn’t long before she was writhing and clutching blindly at the wall. Her hips moved in languid circles, heightening the pressure.
“Up here,” he whispered, hooking her leg over his shoulder.
Her eyes went wide first, but the second his tongue touched down, her head rolled back. It was one of those times she was glad they had no immediate neighbors, because it was impossible not to make noise. A lot of noise, and the more she made, the harder Tim drove her. Higher and higher until it felt like she was floating off the floor. Floating and crying his name, then clutching at his shoulders when she came with a desperate shudder.
“Yes…” she panted, slowly melting against the wall.
Only part of her mind noticed Tim inch his way up her body, discarding her bra as he went. The rest of her mind spun in a whirlwind of blurry pleasure until his lips covered hers. Her eyes flew open, because that taste was hers and his, all mixed together.
“You sure you’re ready for this?” he rumbled.
His chest heaved up and down like he was seconds from coming, and his iron-hard shaft jabbed at her side. She wrapped a hand around it and lifted her knee high.
“Does this answer your question?” she breathed.
He grinned and followed her unspoken command, lifting her clear off the ground. She wrapped her legs around his waist as he pressed forward, sliding smoothly into her.
She gasped at the stretch, burning for more. When he started thrusting inside her, she sang out in raw pleasure. And when he hitched her higher, pushing deeper at the same time, she tilted her head back helplessly and moaned.
“So good…”
He held her up effortlessly, one arm under her ass, the other massaging her breasts. His faint murmurs resembled the sounds his bear made when rooting around a particularly fragrant flower bed, and Hailey grinned. Well, she did inside. On the outside, her face must have been drawn in tight lines as she fought the urge to howl.
“My mate,” she whispered, trying the words out on her tongue. Weeks ago, they had sounded crude and foreign. Now, they felt just right.
Tim eyed her neck, making her blood rush. He slid a thumb over her skin, following instinct to the very spot he’d found earlier.
At first, she didn’t feel more than the usual arousal, but all of a sudden, a thousand little lights flared at the same time.
“Right there,” she gasped.
He nodded, looking more serious than she’d ever seen him before. “Right there. But not right here.”
He wrapped his arms around her and carried her away from the wall. Toward the bed, she supposed, but before they were halfway across the small room, she found her legs sliding down to the floor. Apparently, bears weren’t the only ones with instincts. Hers were suddenly calling out to her, loud and clear.
“How about right here?” she asked, pulling him to the floor. When they were both on their knees, she turned her back to him and nestled against his chest.
She couldn’t see his eyes glow from there, but the heat of his gaze warmed her neck, and when he slid his arms around her waist, she knew instinct had guided her well. Sex against the wall was a special kind of pleasure, but for mating — biting — she needed a more stable foundation, like on all fours.
“Perfect,” he murmured, sliding his arms around her once more.
They remained on their knees, and Hailey tipped her head back while Tim touched her. One hand caressed her breasts while the other explored between her legs, making her dance in place.
“So good…” she whispered.
Almost too good, really, and she wondered how she’d ever hang on.
“Tim,” she panted.
It was as if she were the one with an animal side, because she dropped to all fours first. She pushed back against Tim and practically yowled like a dog in heat.
“What you do to me…” she whispered, shaking her head. The man turned her to putty each time.
“What you do to me.”
His voice was a deep rumble as he came into position behind her. A position that promised exactly the kind of raw power she craved. He flattened a hand on the small of her back, then took firm hold of her hips and tugged her back. Then, with a sharp pump of his hips, he thrust in.
“Yes,” she cried, dropping her head low. Concentrating everything on the perfect pressure inside.
He murmured something unintelligible, pulling back slowly then hammering back in.
Hailey’s mouth hung open in an endless cry of pleasure as he pumped harder and deeper. Her necklace was the only item adorning her naked body, and it swung beneath her, rocking hypnotically in time with his thrusts. Her breasts jiggled, loose and free like the rest of her. How was it possible that a string of terrifying circumstances had led her to something so good?
They led you to your mate, something whispered in her mind.
She closed her eyes and rocked harder, suddenly desperate to complete the mating ritual. Living with Tim didn’t make him her mate. Only the bite did that, and she didn’t want to wait a moment longer.
“Please,” she groaned, turning her head to one side.
Her hair cascaded to her shoulder, and Tim combed the last strands aside, still moving inside her. A bead of his sweat fell between her shoulder blades, then another. He leaned over her, close enough for his breath to heat her neck.
“Yes,” she moaned as he scraped his teeth across her skin.
Weeks ago, a bite seemed terrifying. Now, it was all she desired.
The pearl swung back and forth, whispering to her of love and forever, all within her grasp.
At first, Tim’s teeth were a straight row, but the longer their bodies meshed, the more two points stood out. His bear fangs were extending. The rest of his body stayed all man, all muscle. All of it intent on pumping in and out of her. Driving her to wild abandon as she cried out again and again.
“Yes…yes…”
Mate, she swore she heard Tim whisper in her mind. Or maybe he shouted it. She couldn’t tell, because a split second later, he bit down, and her body jolted as if on fire.
She shuddered in the mightiest orgasm of her life, clamping her inner muscles down hard. An explosion of heat signaled Tim’s orgasm deep inside her. Her neck burned, and flames raced around her body, lighting every nerve.
Her mouth moved, but no sound came out as a dozen disjointed images crowded her mind. Deep, dark forests and rushing streams. Jumping salmon. Fragrant wildflowers that swayed in an alpine breeze. The taste of the earliest berries of spring, sweet and sour at the same time. A sky bluer than anything she’d ever seen. Primal, bear sensations, all underpinned by Tim’s voice, sounding clearly in her mind.
I will love you forever, my mate. I will protect and honor you to the end of my days.
She wanted to echo the words, but an aftershock of pleasure shook her, and she rocked back, begging his body for more. His teeth pulled at her neck, giving her yet another rush, and Tim stiffened, giving her one last, hard thrust.
“Yes…”
Her sharp cry faded to a moan until she finally drooped to the ground. Tim curled up behind her, panting hard. Hailey gasped for air and covered his hands with hers, keeping him as close as possible.
“That…was…amazing,” she whispered between breaths.
Tim let out a panting chuckle, keeping her tight against his chest. “Amazing is a good word. For you, at least.”
She shook her head. He was the amazing one, but she couldn’t think clearly enough to protest. She closed her eyes, watching the bear scenes continue to play out in her mind. Deep inside, she yawned and stretched.
Wait — that wasn’t her stretching in there, was it?
Everyone — even humans — has a hidden, animal side, Tim had told her early on.
She blinked hard, feeling transported to a different time and place. A different body. She was on all fours and slowly crawling out of a den after a hibernation that had lasted far too long. She blinked, half blinded by the sun, soaking in its warmth.
Then she blinked some more, and she was back on the braided rug on the floor, wrapped in Tim’s arms.
“Wow. Did you see that?” she asked in a whisper.
Tim nodded against her back.
“How long does it take?”
The question wasn’t all that clearly formulated, but Tim knew just what she meant. “Until your first shift?” He waited a second, placing a hand over her heart. “As long as you want. As long as you need.”
She reached for the pearl and pressed it against her chest, then pulled Tim’s hand over hers so both of them held it in place. The pearl felt warm and content, just like the vague sights, smells, and sensations that wandered through her mind.
“Something tells me that won’t be long,” she said, turning in his arms.
At first, she thought Tim’s eyes were glowing doubly bright, but then she realized they were reflecting her own glow. The glow of a happily mated shifter gazing at her mate. Then another surge of images washed through her mind, a little edgier than the rest. Images of teeth and skin along with a man’s voice, telling her Yes. Yes. Yes…
Her eyes went wide, but Tim just nodded like he’d expected as much.
“You saw that too?” she asked, staring at him. “Wait. What was that?”
He broke into a cheeky grin. “Your bite. The one you give me.”
She stared. “You mean we’re not mated yet?”
He laughed and hugged her closer. “Oh, we are, all right. One bite is enough. But you can repeat it anytime you want, and female shifters can bite too. Kind of like renewing wedding vows, I guess. You don’t need to…”
A low rumble sounded, and Hailey was shocked to hear it coming from her — or her inner bear.
“Oh, I need to,” she murmured, shifting her weight until she was straddling him.
Looking down at him gave her a ridiculous sense of power, and it was easy to imagine returning the bite. She’d ride her mate for a while first, driving them both to the razor’s edge of ecstasy and desire. Then she’d lean over his neck for her own bite, and…
“Wow,” she murmured, blinking the vision away. “Not that I’m going to try that anytime soon. But someday…”
Tim grinned a cheeky, boy-next-door grin. “Whenever you’re ready, my mate. I’ll be here.”
She leaned down for a kiss that ended up delving much deeper and lasting a lot longer than she intended. Mating woke all kinds of extra desires, it seemed. She dragged her hips over his and narrowed her eyes on Tim’s. Was it too soon to want him all over again?
His eyes sparkled, and his cock twitched, giving her all the answer she needed.
“I might not be ready to bite you yet,” she said, trying to play it cool despite the fact that she’d been a howling mess a minute earlier. “But I could practice.”
Tim slid his hands over the rise of her ass, locking her into place. “Practice always makes sense.”
She rose slightly then lowered herself, slowly taking him in. Then she leaned back and started rocking like a cowboy at a gentle lope. Outside, leaves whispered in the wind, and in the distance, waves rolled across the beach, reminding her where she was.
“Where are you?” Tim whispered, reading her mind.
She rocked a little harder, going deliciously hazy again. Soon, passion would take over, and she’d work herself and her lover to another blazing high, followed by another soul-warming cuddle in the shelter of her mate’s arms. So she spoke while she could, just a few words.
“Home. I’m home, my mate.”
* * *
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