“It’s…really you?” She took another step forward, and with another snort, the bear plonked its butt in the snow. A laugh burst from her lips, and she clamped her hand over her mouth, startled. The bear—Grant, somehow, if she hadn’t gone completely crazy—canted its head and regarded her with eyes that seemed worried. Probably about her sanity.
“Yeah, me too,” she murmured, and the bear twitched an ear. “So, um, you turn into a bear? That’s…new. You do turn into a bear, right? I mean, I’m not just talking to some random bear who’s about to eat me?”
The bear shook its head.
“Well, if you’re really a bear, you’re a convincing liar.”
With a final shrug, she tossed what was left of her caution and disbelief to the wind, and closed the gap between her and the bear, until she was looking into the animal’s eyes, and a man was staring back out at her through them. Whatever doubt might have been left in her mind faded away.
“It’s really you,” she breathed in awe, raising one hand and touching it to his furry face. “But how?”
Something shifted and changed under her hand, until her palm was no longer touching a bear’s face, but a man’s.
“I’m what’s called a shifter,” he said, watching her face carefully like he was waiting for her to scream and run away. Which, it occurred to her, would probably be a normal reaction. But how could she be afraid of him? This was Grant, the man who’d saved her life. Twice, now.
“I can turn into a bear…as you saw.”
“Do you turn into other animals, too?”
“No.” His lip quirked up into an adorable smile that made her heart beat faster. “Just the bear. You’re taking this very calmly.”
“Oh, you know, I’m kind of all out of shock.” She gestured vaguely to Riggs, and shot a quick glance at him to make sure he was still unconscious. When she looked back to Grant, she realized something else. He was naked.Verynaked. She cleared her throat and tried to keep her eyes above neck level. “Do you, um, have clothes?”
“Afraid not. I kind of left in a hurry.”
“How did you know I was in trouble?”
“Well, I figured the idea of kissing me couldn’t have beenthatbad that you’d run away.” His lips quirked up into that smile again, and she shook her head mutely.
“No,” she managed after a moment. “Not that bad.”
The amusement fell away from his face. “I’m glad you’re safe. I don’t know what I’d have done if you’d been hurt.”
“But…why? I don’t understand. You’ve only just met me.” And true, she hadn’t been able to stop thinking about him from the moment she’d first laid eyes on him, but he was tall, rugged, handsome, and kind, and she was…Alice. She’d rushed in with crazy accusations, and he’d been nice about it, but he didn’t owe her anything. Certainly not enough to face a man with a gun for her. “You could have been killed.”
“I would die for you in a heartbeat,” he said, and his voice was absolutely sincere. “Alice, you’re beautiful, brave, passionate…but there’s something else.”
“Let me guess, there’s a Mrs. Bear living in the forest?”
He laughed. “No. But…” He broke off and glanced down at himself, and she followed his gaze before she caught herself and wrenched her eyes upwards in time to find him giving her a wry smile. “It strikes me that this might not be the best time to talk about this.”
“You are a little distracting,” she admitted. “And we probably should deal with Riggs before he comes round.”
“Yes,” he said, his face darkening as he looked over at her unconscious attacker. “It would be better if I wasn’t around when he wakes up.”
Somehow, she got the sense that was more for Rigg’s benefit that for Grant’s.
Grant leaned over the unconscious man, quickly pulling off his belt and using it to bind his hands behind his back.
“I’ll put him in the trunk and we can take him back into town. We can stop at my cabin for clothes.”
“And then?” she said, barely daring to ask.
“Then the police will take care of him, and he’s not getting off the hook this time. We’ll make sure he goes down for a long time.”
She shook her head. “I meant about us. If, um, you want there to be an us, that is.”
He cupped her cheek gently. “There’s nothing I want more.” And then his lips closed gently over hers.
