Epilogue
Alice
Alice woke to sunlight filtering in through the window and playing across the bed. She stretched and then froze as yesterday’s events came flooding back. For a moment she thought it might have been a crazy dream, and then as she pushed her hair from her eyes, her fingers brushed across the cut on her forehead.
Not a dream, then.
Also, there was the fact that she’d never seen this bed before.
Wait, if she was in Grant’s bed…
She sat bolt upright, replaying yesterday’s events in her mind. She remembered Riggs kidnapping her, and she remembered crashing the car to escape—and hitting her head in the process, which possibly explained why she was absolutely convinced that Grant had shown up as abear, knocked Riggs out, thrown him in the trunk of the car and driven back into town.
Everything after that was a blur. Oh, God, had she… She pulled back the duvet and peeked beneath it, relief flooding her when she discovered she was still fully dressed. Not that the idea of hooking up with Grant was wholly unappealing—the opposite, in fact—but that was something she wanted to remember. She vaguely recalled telling Grant she didn’t want to be alone, and the drive back here, and then…
“Good morning, sleepy head.”
She started and shoved her head over the duvet to see Grant standing in the doorway, a tray balanced in his hands.
“I brought you breakfast,” he said, his lips curving in that delicious smile that drove all thoughts of food from her mind. “Hope you’re hungry.”
“For food?” She arched a brow, then blushed as her words caught up with her. Grant laughed and the sound sent a thrill through her. He set the tray on a table beside the bed and ran an eye over her.
“How are you feeling this morning?”
“Better,” she said. “But I had the strangest—”
Her breath caught in her throat as she met his eyes—his eyes which seemed to change shape and colored for just a moment.
“Not a dream, then.”
Grant cleared his throat.
“Sorry. My bear is closer to the surface when we’re this close to you.”
“But…” She shook her head, trying to work out where to evenbeginwith that. “Why?”
Grant glanced down for a moment, then perched on the edge of the bed.
“You already know that I’m a shifter,” he began, and she nodded. “Well, there’s something else about us, other than turning into animals. When we meet our mates, the one person in all the world who’s our perfect match, we know them on sight. Alice… you’re mine.”
She couldn’t miss the double meaning in his words, or the way his eyes heated with need when he said them. A shiver ran the length of her spine. Shelikedthe idea of being his. And the idea of this strong, kind, perfect man being hers.
“It doesn’t mean you don’t have a choice,” he said quickly, misreading her stunned silence. “We can get to know each other slowly, and if you decide you don’t want to be with me—”
“Grant?” she interrupted.
“Yes?”
“Shut up and kiss me.”
His mouth curved into a smile and he leaned forward, pressing his lips to hers, and she melted into him. His hands came up to cup her face and the kiss deepened until she thought she might melt away completely. It was as if time was standing still and all that mattered was the way his lips felt against hers.
When they finally broke apart, both were breathing heavily and Alice’s heart was pounding in her chest. Grant leaned back slowly, his eyes never leaving hers, and Alice could feel the heat radiating between them. He gently brushed a strand of hair away from her face and smiled down at her before leaning in for another lingering kiss.
Alice’s breath caught in her throat as he kissed down her neck before tracing circles around her collarbone with his tongue. He paused, looking to her, and she could only nod in reply. His hands roved up and down her body, setting fire to every nerve ending in its wake as he pulled the shirt over her head. She gasped as their skin met for the first time, and then she couldn’t hold back anymore, tugging his shirt loose and tossing it aside before running her hands over his taut chest. He groaned at her touch, and the sound lit a hungry fire in her.
“You’re beautiful,” he said, as he released her bra and let her breasts spill free. He kissed each breast in turn, then swirled his tongue across her nipples.
