Beck smiled at me. “Cal is just being polite, which is unusual for him.”
“I heard that!” the man yelled from the foyer.
I laughed, some of my anxiety fading.
“Cal and Everett know I’m home,” Beck said, rising and collecting our plates. “They scented me from the street.”
Footsteps sounded in the hallway, and then two men appeared in the kitchen doorway. I recognized Cal immediately. He was the blond Viking who’d spoken to me yesterday before welcoming me to Bear Cove. He was even more striking up close, with chiseled features and ice-blue eyes.
The other man was slightly shorter but no less impressive with dark hair, hazel eyes, and a muscular build. He offered me a warm smile as he shouldered past Cal.
“Hey!” Cal said, rubbing his arm.
“This is Everett,” Beck told me, gesturing to the dark-haired man. “He’s our town doctor.”
“And scientist,” Everett added, extending his hand. His grip was firm but gentle. “It’s good to finally meet you properly, Charlotte.”
“Likewise,” I said, his smile easing more of my nerves.
Beck gestured to Cal. “And you’ve already met this knucklehead.”
Cal shoved Everett out of the way and shook my hand. “He means head of Bear Cove’s search and rescue team. I’m also a paramedic andmuchbetter at starting an IV than Everett.”
Everett lifted his hands in a gesture of surrender. “I’m not going to argue with that.”
Beck waved the men into chairs. As he pulled his chair in, Cal sniffed the air. “Got any extra waffles?”
“Not for you,” Beck said.
Everett met my gaze. “How’s Bear Cove treating you, Charlotte? Is Beck behaving himself?”
More images of the night flashed in my head. My face flamed, and I waited for a hole to open in the floor and swallow me. “He’s an excellent host,” I said.
Both men grinned, and I resisted the urge to slide under the table.
“Glad to hear it,” Cal said.
Beck’s expression turned serious as he fixed his stare on Cal. “Any word on Margot’s arrival? I imagine she’s got more than a few loose ends to tie up before she moves.”
Cal’s face transformed, unmistakable infatuation spreading over his handsome features. “She’ll be here tomorrow. I offered to book her on a flight to Anchorage, but she said she couldn’t wait that long. She’s flying private. I’m picking her up at the airstrip in the morning.”
Beck smiled. “I’ll have a few of the men make sure the snow is cleared off the strip.”
Cal turned to me. “Margot is my mate. She’s a werewolf with just enough human blood to make her compatible. She just found out she’s pregnant.”
Half a dozen questions popped into my head, but I stuffed them away as I smiled at Cal. “Congratulations. That’s wonderful.”
“It’s a miracle,” Everett said quietly. He looked at Beck. “Two matings in one year. Two cubs. The clan hasn’t seen anything like this in decades.”
The men exchanged looks, relief and worry in their eyes. The clan’s population crisis obviously weighed heavily on them.
Everett turned to me. “I’ve read some of your scientific papers, Charlotte. The one on emergent wildlife in volcanic areas post-eruption was particularly impressive. I imagine you’re curious about bear shifter genetics.”
“Dying of curiosity, actually,” I admitted.
The men laughed. Beck stood and moved to the waffle maker. “Go ahead and walk her through it,” he said over his shoulder. “I’ll make more food.”
For the next hour, Everett explained the nature of his research. He was thorough, scientific, and patient with my questions, answering with wit and intelligence as he detailed the interplay between human and shifter DNA.
