Ibit Hawk.
No, IbondedHawk. And to my shock, I immediately did not regret it.
The taste of his skin, his blood, filled my mouth, and the world tilted with a download of emotions and information.
Fear.
Relief.
Triumph. So visceral, it felt like a tidal wave crashing through me.
Gratitude.
And love. So much love.
But everything was tangled. I couldn’t tell which emotions were Hawk’s and which were?—
“Ours.”
Hawk’s bear voice erupted in my head with the answer—even rougher and deeper than his human one. “Everything you’re feeling belongs to us now, baby.”
He’d always been able to do this, I sensed then. Push into my mind. All of them could from the moment they bit me. But they’d each held back from doing so for various reasons, only one of which I knew for sure.
Hawk hadn’t wanted to invade my mind. He’d ached for me to let him in.
“Us. Ours.”
The words echoed in my head as I pulled back, my lips slick with his blood, my chest heaving. The bite mark glowed faintly, pulsing with energy that wasn’t entirely human.
Bear magic. I stared at the bite while Hawk stared at me, his expression a mix of shock and reverence.
“You…” Hawk swallowed in a way that reminded me of Leif—who I now knew he’d already come to adore like a little brother.
“You claimed me,” Hawk announced, his voice coarse. “You finally fucking claimed me.”
The words were somehow filled with both accusation and praise.
But his bear let me know I’d just made his day.
“My entire life,”Hawk corrected over the bond I’d just created between the two of us.
Before pulling me back to him for the kind of kiss that really did belong in one of those cheesy romance movies.
Deliberate.
Deep.
So full of love.
Mate…
For the first time, my bear purred the word as opposed to scream-growling it like someone on fire.
“Give her final claim.”I heard Koda’s voice nudge into Hawk’s mind, tinny and distant, via the bite I’d given my second. “It’s time to finish this.”
Hawk lowered me back into the nest of pillows and blankets and positioned himself between my legs.
“This is it!”another tinny voice exclaimed into his mind. Leif. His sweet heart was just about to beat out of his chest. He was so excited.
