Page 84 of Bear Facts

“All of it.” Freya’s eyes stung. “I don’t know what’s going on with me, or what’s happened to my brother, or why I’m falling in love with you. It’s all … very confusing.”

“Falling in love with me?” Shane tilted her face up so she’d have to meet his eyes. His expression was shocked. “With me? A big goof of a bear no one wants?”

“How could no one want you? You’re wonderful.” Freya’s tears came then, her body quivering with them.

Shane stared at her for another stunned moment, then dragged her up to him and covered her mouth in a long, fiery kiss.

Freya’s need for Shane surged, pushing aside her fears. With that longing came a more intense heat that wove around her heart and began to still her shakes.

The kiss went on, warmth in the brisk winter evening. Freya lost herself in it, letting the chill of the night wash her clean her as she sought the goodness of Shane. Shane’s large hands on her back warmed her through the jacket, the heat of his mouth intense.

A sharp gust made them both jump, laughing a little as they came apart. Freya thought Shane would turn her and steer her back to the house, but instead he guided her around the corner of the cinder block wall, which cut the wind somewhat.

There was nothing in the dark beyond the wall but desert, where dried grasses whispered in the steady breeze. Moonlight outlined bare stud walls of the new houses across the field and the mountains beyond that. No one to see them. No one to watch.

Shane had Freya against the wall before she could take in much of the scenery. He slid his hands under her coat, tugging her to him for another fierce kiss.

She felt her shirt stretch as Shane got his fingers under it, then the loosening relief of her bra opening. Freya had noticed other Shifter women not wearing bras—Iona, Cassidy, Lindsay—and she wondered if she should follow their example. Her hesitation about that told her she’d been living as human too long.

Shane cupped her breasts with his large hands, the bra no longer a barrier. At the same time, Freya sought the warmth inside his jacket, then his bare skin under his sweatshirt. A wild tingle opened her, hot liquid pooling between her legs. Freya recalled every detail of the crazed lovemaking at the cabin, and her excitement flared.

Shane ran his tongue down her throat, trailing fire. He paused to taste her, as though enjoying the fact that her neck bore no Collar. After that he bent to take each of her breasts in turn into his mouth, suckling, teeth lightly scraping.

Freya let out a groan as she fumbled at his belt buckle, struggling to unfasten his jeans and find him inside. His cock pressed the fabric of his underwear, hard and ready, and she enjoyed herself running her hand up and down it.

Shane made a raw noise in his throat, and he returned to kissing her mouth, the kisses now savage. The more Freya played, the more fierce his kiss grew, until he grabbed her wrists and yanked himself free of her touch.

They stared at each other, rapid breaths fogging in the cold air. Shane’s eyes held desire but also a question. Freya’s desire answered, and she gave him a slow nod.

Shane’s smile lit the night. Excitement flaring, they managed to remove each other’s clothes in a blur that Freya didn’t remember. In a few moments she was up against the wall, her padded coat shielding her from the harshness of the concrete. Freezing wind slid around the corner to join the already frigid desert cold, but Freya barely noticed it.

She did notice Shane parting her legs, drawing them around himself while he slid straight inside her. Their faces were close together, Shane’s softening in passion, his eyes like darkness itself.

Everything connected within Freya—the stars, the cold, Shane deep inside her, the giddy possibility of mate bond. Shane’s thrusts shattered her, Freya melting into incandescence.

She cried out as the wild heat burst through her. Her wails rose into the silent sky, no one to hear it but the stars.

Shane’s voice joined hers as he suddenly came, his hot seed scalding. Freya wound herself around him, the two of them one, mates, bonded.

The moment was the most perfect of Freya’s life.

Freya loved him, and she knew that this love would never die. Shane had touched her life, her heart, and embedded himself there forever.

Her thoughts scattered as he pulled her up for another kiss, this one less frantic, afterglow embracing them.

“I want you to stay,” Shane whispered. “Damn, I want you with me, Freya. But I won’t trap you.” His next kiss was rougher. “Like I said, you take all the time you need, and if you want to go, you go.” He broke the kiss and traced her cheek, his fingers shaking. “Offer stands for me to go with you.”

A very tempting offer. Freedom of the world, with Shane by her side. Sharing life by day and a bed by night. Joy for the taking.

Happiness so acute it made Freya shake.

“I’ll stay for a while,” Freya promised, her voice trembling. An easy pledge to make, because every day she remained with him made it harder to go. “Though maybe we’ll find someplace warmer when we do this again?” She wasn’t cold at all, but she couldn’t resist the quip.

Shane’s gaze sharpened, and Freya realized she’d said when, not if. “I’ll take you up on that,” he rumbled.

In the next kiss, fiery threads wrapped Freya’s heart, and her wolf let out a whispered howl of triumph.

Keira had said she’d seen the mate bond—not simply sensed it in her feral state, but seen it. Freya didn’t know whether that was possible, or whether she truly felt what she hoped she did. Mate bonds were tricky.

---