Page 67 of The Bear's Christmas Wish
Sarah sighed, closing the door behind him. “And what did he say?”
Michael clenched his jaw, remembering Liam’s words, the arrogance in his tone. “That he’s going to put his family back together again.”
“And you believe him?” Sarah asked, her voice soft yet challenging.
Michael shook his head, stepping closer to her. “No, because I won’t let him.” The words came out fiercer than he’d intended, his bear’s possessiveness bleeding through. “I’m the one you’re supposed to be with.”
Sarah’s lips twitched. “Is that right?”
“Yes.” Michael held her gaze, unwavering in his certainty despite the vulnerability coursing through him.
The smile that spread across Sarah’s face was like a sunrise breaking over the mountains on a summer day. She moved toward him, closing the distance between them. “Good, because that’s exactly what I told him.”
“You did?” Michael’s heart leaped.
Sarah shook her head, amusement dancing in her eyes. “Did you think I would choose a letdown like Liam over you?”
Michael shrugged, trying and failing to suppress his smile. “Not really.”
Sarah rose onto her tiptoes and pressed her lips to his in the sweetest of kisses. When she pulled back, her eyes glittered with emotion. “I believe in this mating bond, Michael. And I believe in you.”
A wave of intense relief swept over him as he stroked her cheek with his thumb. “You made me believe wishes can come true.”
Their lips met again, this time with a hunger that left them both breathless. When they finally parted, Michael reached intohis pocket, fingers closing around the velvet pouch he’d been carrying since their visit to the Wolf Valley Christmas market.
He dropped to one knee, looking up at Sarah’s startled face. “I don’t have a ring,” he said, pulling out the gift-wrapped bracelet, “so this will have to do. For now.”
Sarah’s hands flew to her mouth, her eyes widening as she stared down at him.
“Will you marry me, Sarah?”
Sarah sank to her knees in front of him, her hands framing his face as she peppered it with kisses. “Yes,” she whispered against his skin. “Yes.”
Relief and joy surged through Michael as he unwrapped the bracelet, revealing the delicate silver chain with its bear charm. He clasped it around her wrist, a symbol of their love and belonging.
“I love you,” he said, the words simple but loaded with everything he felt for her.
Sarah’s smile was radiant as she leaned in, her lips a breath away from his. “I love you, too.”
Their kiss deepened as the first snowflakes fell outside, dusting the world in white. Michael’s bear rumbled in satisfaction, finally at peace now that their mate was truly theirs.
This bear’s Christmas wish had finally come true.
Epilogue
The snow crunched beneath the bear’s massive paws as he carried Emmy up the ridge, her small hands buried deep in his thick fur. Michael’s bear moved with surprising grace for a creature of such size, finding sure footing on the snow-covered trail that wound through the pines behind his cabin.
Our family,his bear rumbled inside him, a deep well of contentment spreading through Michael’s chest as he glanced back at Sarah walking beside him. Her cheeks were flushed pink from the cold, her dark hair peeking out from beneath a knitted beanie—the same one she’d worn a week ago, when they’d first met at North Peak Pines.
How much had changed since then. How perfectly everything had fallen into place.
Like magic,Michael added.
Christmas magic,his bear corrected.
“Are we almost there?” Emmy called from her perch on his back, her voice bright with excitement.
“Almost, Sarah replied.
