Mate.His reindeer’s voice screamed through his head, but even without it, there was no way he could have possibly thought she was anything else. They were made to be together, and she was the missing half of his soul calling to him.
Shift back,his reindeer urged him. He could feel it wanting to spring free from inside him, to gallop around and demonstrate his impressive speed. It wanted to show off his magnificent fur coat, as well as the sheer size of his…antlers. Chase wanted to facepalm.
You can’t gallop around here, you stupid moose, he chided the animal.You’ll end up squashing her kid.
I’m not a moose,his animal huffed at him.
He shook himself out of it. This was no time to be arguing with his animal. He had a mate to comfort. He felt his reindeer’s absolute agreement with that intention, and tucked his gun away, heading back inside to grab the kid. Once he had the boy safely in his arms, he stepped back outside.
“Excuse me?” he called out. She turned to him, and it was almost like she was moving in slow motion, a light breeze rippling through her hair and carrying that intoxicating scent right to him, so that he could think of almost nothing but taking hold of her, pressing his lips against hers, and then claiming her right there and then.
This close, Chase could clearly see the resemblance between mother and son. Sure, his mate’s brown hair was a shade darker or two than her son’s, making it appear almost black in the darkness, but they had the exact same eyes. They were big, gray, and round, almost like moonlight.
Unfortunately, those eyes were currently wide with Chase could only imagine was fear. Which made absolutely no sense to him. She should be relieved to see her son was safe, so the terror spreading across her perfect face was completely illogical.
And then he realized what this must look like to her. Of course she was frightened. A stranger had seemingly kidnapped her child. With his free hand, Chase pulled out his ID.
“Sorry,” he said, offering her a smile. “I’m Chase Langley. I didn’t mean to scare you. I’m working security here.” It was the truth, technically speaking, but he felt his reindeer’s irritation that he wasn’t telling her thefulltruth. Clearly, it felt that an uncover cop who blurted that he was an undercover cop within a minute of meeting someone was more impressive than a security guard.
Not just anyone. Mate. Tell her everything.
Right now, he was pretty sure all she wanted to know was that her son was safe.
“When I saw your son wander too close to the reindeer, my first instinct was to pull him to safety. I didn’t see anyone around him, so I assumed he was a lost child.”
There. That would have to be a good enough explanation for now. Chase didn’t want to tell her about the kidnappings. She seemed frightened enough without the added knowledge that several children had been taken from this exact same spot recently.
“Ah, I see.” The woman seemed mostly reassured by this, though he noticed her smile was a bit wobbly. He quickly handed her son back over to her, hoping it would alleviate the last of her fears. “Thank you, Mr… Sorry, what did you say your name was?”
“Langley,” he supplied, “but please, call me Chase.”
“Chase,” she repeated with a smile. His heart leaped at the way those words sounded coming from her lips. “I’m Hailey. Hailey Somerton.”
“Pleased to meet you, Hailey.”
Which had to be the understatement of his entire life.
“Likewise.” Hailey tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, ducking her head and smiling at the ground. Then she reached out her hand to shake his.
Chase met her halfway, enjoying the brief tingle as their skin met for the first time. It was as though he’d never felt anything before this moment, and he had to force himself to release her before she could wonder why this stranger was clinging to her hand like he wanted to take it as a souvenir.
As subtly as he could, he looked round to see if anyone was with her—like the boy’s father, but it looked like wherever he was, he wasn’t with Hailey.
Of course not. She’sourmate.
He smiled warmly towards the boy who was now nodding off in his mother’s arms. Chase had absolutely no idea how his reindeer thought his mate had given birth to the boy without having had a previous relationship, but he was intrigued to discover that the animal’s desire to protect the child was as strong as its desire to protect Hailey.
He’s our mate’s calf. He’s our calf.
“Umm,” his mate suddenly spoke up while he was trying to wrap his head around that one, gnawing her lower lip. Chase couldn’t help but stare, and the sudden desire to reach out and work it loose from behind her teeth gently with his thumb raced through him. “Sorry, but would you mind if I borrowed your phone? Mine’s dead. I got into an accident not too far from here and my car needs a little first aid.”
“I don’t mind lending it to you,” he flashed her a quick smile, “but how about I take a look at the car first? If it’s just a flat, I can probably fix it. Might as well save yourself the expense. Plus, the town only has one real mechanic, and he’s away for the holidays.”
“Thank you,” she replied. She was biting her lip again, and he found himself transfixed all over again. “But I think I’m going to end up needing a tow. I don’t have a spare tire on me.”
“Hmm.” He considered a moment, rubbing at his chin. “Let me check it out anyway. I have a spare tire on me, it might be a fit.”
“Really?” she asked hopefully, and his chest tightened to see it. Nice as it was to see her happy—and ‘nice’ was an understatement—he couldn’t bear the thought of her rushing off into the night. Leaving. He wanted her to stick around. Forever.
