Page 24 of Billionaire Wolf Needs a Pilot
“No.”His voice had dropped to a near growl.“Something bigger.Stay inside.”
“Tanner—”
“I mean it, Felicity.”The fierce protectiveness in his expression stopped my protest cold.“Stay in the cave.I’ll explain everything later, I promise.”
Before I could argue further, he moved toward the entrance.
“What are you doing?”I demanded, torn between fear for him and frustration at being left behind.
“Protecting what’s mine,” he answered, the possessive declaration sending an inappropriate thrill through me despite the danger.
I followed him to the entrance, watching from the safety of the cave as he stepped out into the swirling snow.The storm had eased slightly, and the visibility improved enough that I could see the clearing around our shelter.Tanner stood motionless, staring at the tree line.
That’s when I saw it, a massive shape moving through the trees.The grizzly emerged into the clearing, reared up on its hind legs, and bellowed a challenge that echoed off the mountainside.It was enormous, at least eight feet tall when standing.Even through the falling snow, I could make out its claws.They were long enough to disembowel a man with a single swipe.
“Tanner!”I screamed, terror freezing me in place.No human, not even a man as muscular as Tanner, could face such a creature and survive.
He didn’t run.Instead, he stepped forward, squaring off against the bear in a display that defied all survival instinct.Then, he began to strip off his clothes, until he was naked in the cold.
“What are you doing?”I whispered, though he couldn’t possibly hear me.
Then everything I thought I knew shattered.
Tanner’s body contorted, bones visibly shifting beneath his skin.His face elongated, shifting into a canine’s snout as a terrible cracking sound filled the air.His form expanded, dark fur erupted from his skin.Where a man had stood moments before, a massive wolf now crouched, larger than any natural wolf.The creature had silver-streaked black fur and soulful golden eyes I recognized instantly.Tanner’s eyes, intelligent and fierce, now glowed with amber fire in the wolf’s face.
My mind refused to process what I was seeing.This couldn’t be real.It couldn’t be.Tanner was a shifter, a werewolf.Creatures that I knew walked among us, but only a select few ever saw with their own eyes.I had to be hallucinating from the concussion or exposure or sheer exhaustion.Yet the scene unfolded with terrible clarity as the wolf launched himself at the grizzly with a snarl that shook the valley.
The battle was fierce and brutal.The bear’s massive paws slashed through the air as Tanner darted around it with supernatural speed, his teeth bared in a savage grimace.Blood splattered across the snow.Whose it was, I couldn’t tell.They tore at each other in a dance of teeth and claws.I watched, paralyzed, unable to look away from the violence before me.
Tanner moved with the tactical speed of a sniper, evading the bear’s strength while targeting vulnerable points, attacking the rear legs, and tearing at the throat when opportunity allowed.Even in wolf form, I could see his calculating intelligence.
The bear landed a vicious blow that sent wolf-Tanner tumbling through the snow.My heart stopped as the massive creature charged after him.But Tanner recovered impossibly fast, lunging upward as the bear descended.His jaws clamped around the grizzly’s throat in a killing bite.
They collapsed together in a tangle of fur and blood.For one horrible moment, I couldn’t tell which massive body was still moving.Then the wolf staggered to its feet, muzzle dripping red, standing victorious over the fallen bear.
Tanner began dragging the enormous carcass toward the cave, gripping the creature’s skin between his teeth.His movements were labored, and halfway across the clearing, his legs gave out.He collapsed onto the bloodstained snow.
My paralysis broke.Whatever impossible thing I’d just witnessed, whatever Tanner actually was, he’d just risked his life to protect me.I rushed from the cave, stumbling through knee-deep snow to reach him.
“Tanner!”I dropped to my knees beside the massive wolf, hands hovering uncertainly over his bloodied fur.His eyes, those familiar dark eyes, locked onto mine, recognition shining in their depths.
Before I could touch him, another transformation began.Bones shifted beneath my hands.Fur receded into smooth, tanned skin as the wolf’s body contorted back into human form.Seconds later, Tanner lay naked and bleeding in the snow, his breathing ragged but steady.
“We need to get you inside,” I said, my voice surprisingly calm.
His laugh was more cough than humor.“Not afraid?”
“Terrified,” I admitted, pulling off his down jacket to drape over his exposed body.“But not of you.Can you walk?”
With my help, he managed to stand, but not before grabbing his abandoned clothes.He leaned heavily against me as we made our way back to the cave.I noticed with detached fascination that some of his wounds were already closing, and the bleeding had already slowed to a trickle.
“The bear—” he started.
“Will still be there once you’re not bleeding out,” I interrupted.My focus was solely on getting him inside to safety.
Inside the cave, I helped him to our sleeping area, wrapping him in thermal blankets before tending the fire to raise the temperature.He watched me work with cautious eyes, as if expecting me to run screaming at any moment.
“You’re handling this unexpectedly well,” he finally said.
