Crack.A twig broke behind me. I cringed and held my ground. I didn’t turn around, not wanting to look aggressive.
Heavy footfalls padded across the mossy rocks. Wrapping my arms around my middle, I squeezed my eyes shut, wanting everything to go away. A huff of breath left him, almost like a sneeze. I flinched. He crept closer and closer, each footstep louder than the last.
My legs shook with fatigue and fear. He was right beside me now. I could feel the heat of his body and hear each of his exhales. Swallowing around the dry lump in my throat, I opened my eyes.
God, he was big. On all fours, his shoulders were at the same level as mine. I didn’t turn my head and look at him directly but kept him in my peripheral vision. His fur was a mix of red, brown, and in some areas, black. His long snout angled toward me, inhaling my scent. His paws were three times as wide as my feet. Long claws stretched outward, streaked with blood.
My arms tightened around my middle. Why wouldn’t he shift back to his human form? I could reason with a human, but right now, it seemed as if all of his humanity had left him.
He circled in front of me, blocking my path, then stopped.So big.I’d never been in the company of a bear shifter before and had only seen black bears once at a zoo. I hated zoos. They were cages for animals, no matter the zoo’s good intentions. But those bears had been half the size of the grizzly in front of me now. Were all of them this big?
Dropping his head, he sniffed the ground in front of me.
“Kane?” His name came out like a croak.
He met my eyes briefly, and his nostrils flared. I was still in heat, but with all the adrenaline pumping through my body, it had become a secondary thing. He’d be able to smell it, especially in animal form. And with his head in line with my pelvis, he’d be getting a front-row seat to my breeding fragrance. The realization made my stomach tighten. I clenched my teeth.
A loud breath huffed out of him, then he circled me. I stood perfectly still, not wanting to make him angry. He lumbered behind me, then to my right. It was a deliberate movement. When he completed a full circle, he looked at me, then did it again.
Every fine hair on my body stood on end. What was this? What was he doing? When I tried to swallow, my throat clicked with dryness.
The grizzly stopped behind me, and my whole body tingled in awareness. My hands moved of their own accord. Like I lived in slow-motion, I took the bulk of my hair and swept it over to the side, exposing my neck. I didn’t understand what I was doing. I wasn’t a submissive person. I liked being in charge, but my instincts told me this was important. My fingers brushed the metal of my collar before I tugged my T-shirt down my shoulder, revealing as much skin as possible.
His big body settled behind me. My heart thudded hard in my chest. He was so close now I felt his breath on my neck. I stiffened. Even though a big part of me shouted for me to run, my instincts told me to hold still.
His snout nudged me, and I held my ground. I turned my head enough to see his face, then held my breath when he opened his jaws.
Massive teeth closed on my flesh. I gasped from the pain of it. He had the bulk of my shoulder in his jaws. After piercing the skin, he held still and unmoving. My shoulder pulsed. A bit of blood trickled across my collar bone. It hurt, but a primitive satisfaction ignited in my stomach from the act. Whether I wanted to acknowledge it or not, my body craved this.
After holding motionless for long moments, he released me. His tongue swept out, cleaning the trickle of blood from the wound. Then he moved away, circling me again. This time the circle was tighter, the sides of his furry body brushing up against mine.
He’s marking me.
While my shoulder throbbed, my body shook from mixed emotions, confusion warring with a strange sort of satisfaction. I stood immobile and waited for what he would do next. When he completed his circles, he stopped in front of me.
I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to do now.
His forehead against my hip, he nudged me in the direction of the cabin.
“Okay, okay,” I muttered, turning. I limped forward. Adrenaline coursed through my veins, but I felt all my wounds at once: my ankle, the pine needles in my feet, the new wound on my neck—everything twinged. I wanted to rest. I wanted to find a nice flat, mossy rock to lay on and have a quick nap. I wanted some ice for my ankle. I wanted for this day to be over.
My legs like jelly, I concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other. Anytime I stumbled, he nudged me.
Finally, the cabin came into view, along with it, the bodies of the cougar and the two tactical guys. Nothing had changed since we’d been gone except it looked like the helicopter had sunk farther into the lake.
I averted my gaze from the bodies and focused on the door of the cabin. It remained open from when the cowboy had snatched me. What if Kane didn’t return to human form? What if he was stuck this way forever? If he could change back, why hadn’t he? Something was wrong with him.
Despite the burning in my ankle, I picked up my pace and tried to put some distance between us. The bear jogged to keep up. My ankle howled, but I ignored it. As soon as I was through the door, I slammed it. It smacked into his face and bounced at me.
He roared. The force of it pushed me back. I stumbled, falling on my ass. “Oh, God.”
The bear stopped. His shoulders got stuck in the doorway. He was too big. He couldn’t come inside.
As soon as I had the thought, his form rippled and shifted. The fur disappeared, his features flattened, his limbs lost their bulk and turned into muscled strength. It only took a few seconds for him to transform, then Kane stood in front of me, naked, his thick cock bobbing between his legs.
He was a man again. Relief made my limbs shake. He’d be reasonable. We’d be able to talk this out. Or I’d talk and he’d listen, and we’d be able to figure out what was happening here.
He growled low in his chest, and I stiffened. The cognac eyes that stared back at me didn’t contain the man I’d gotten to know over the past two days. His eyes held the same predatory look they’d held since he’d shifted.
