Page 16 of Cuddles for the Bear
Devon felt his shoulders relax a little. “That’s exactly right. Flint will be happy you feel that way. Actually, Flint’s not the biggest reptile that we have. Storm, who’s Pax’s partner, turns into a crocodile. You’ll often see him and Flint in shifted form sunning themselves on the rocks outside. Levi and Calvin are both bull shifters. Cyrus is the only one of us who shifts into one of two different types of animals. Nobody’s quite sure how that happened. But he can take the form of a wolf or a bear. So that’s all of us. That’s the secret you needed to know to be able to stay here.”
“You mean aside from being assassins?”
“Well, yes,” Devon said slowly. “But then I already told you that secret ages ago online. I probably wasn’t meant to, in fact, I know I wasn’t. But Cyrus knows about it. He’s our handler, so he takes care of letting us know what jobs we have to do and things like that. Apparently the agency that we work for was already aware of Michael and my conversation with you before I came to find you.”
Wren frowned and wrinkled his nose. “That sounds like more complicated stuff I probably don’t need to know. I’d rather not talk about Michael right now, if that’s all right with you.” He reached out, patting the cushions around him. “He doesn’t belong in this space, is that all right?”
“I totally agree,” Devon said warmly.
“What I don’t understand is what Python said about us being mates, or me being your mate, or something like that. He does just mean about us being friends, doesn’t he, or does that word mean something more to shifter people like you? Why did he bring up the birds and bees? What do they have to do with anything?”
Devon let out a long breath.It would be easier to talk about Michael. How do I explain you’re my life’s purpose, without sounding like a possessive freak?“It is true that mate is a word that some countries use to mean a friend. I understand it can be an Australian slang, for example.”I’m not sure I can do this. Maybe Python could…He shook his head. Python could be unbearable if he thought he was right.
“I didn’t know you were my mate when I came to find you. I came because you’re my friend. I was worried about you.”Tell the truth.“But the reason you’re allowed to live here, or be here if you want to be, is because when I found you and I smelled you, my bear and I both knew you were my mate – as in so much more than a friend.”
Wren was watching him so intently.
“A mate for a paranormal is like the greatest gift in life. A paranormal would never hurt their mate. They’ll never cheat on them. It’s impossible for them to lie to their mate. They protect them, look after them, and spend the rest of their lives making sure their mate is happy and safe.”
Wren’s bottom lip was trembling, and Devon wasn’t sure if he was even aware he was nodding to everything Devon was saying.
“That’s how I feel about you, and I’ll feel that way always, whether you were with me or not. We live for a very long time, and if you ever agree to my claiming you – something we’ll discuss another time,” Devon added quickly. “But if that wonderful day ever happens and you accept me, we will be together for life, if that’s what you want.”
He made himself say that last bit. Wren was raised as a human, as far as Devon could work out. It wasn’t fair for Wren to know that if he left, Devon would be destroyed forever.
“But this is all a bit heavy, seeing as this is your first day of freedom.” He forced his smile. “We could go on a picnic in the woods if you like. I can make us some sandwiches and show you around. There’s a trail not far from the house that leads to the local bakery. We have a big workshop here… I’d like to show it all to you in the daylight. If you’d like to see, if you think you might like to stay, I really...
“Wren, I don’t want you to ever think you have to leave here. I want you to stay. But I also heard what you said about why you stood on that ledge and how you wanted to make decisions for yourself for the first time in your life. When you’re with me, I’ll do my best to make sure you realize that your wants and needs are important, and you can decide about anything anytime. I’m not going to take away your right to choose. I’m not going to take away your autonomy. Do you understand? I don’t think I’m explaining this very well, but do you get the gist at least?”
“You think I’m your forever?”
“I know you are. Shifters don’t make mistakes about fated mates. They are just that important. But there’s no pressure…”
Wren moved quickly, flinging away the cushion he’d been holding, and scrambled across the bed, landing on Devon’s chest with a thump. His thin arms wrapped around Devon’s neck, and Devon could feel his whole body trembling. “I don’t want to leave you, Bear. I don’t think I could. You’re the first person in my life I feel safe with. I don’t know why, and I can’t explain it, but that’s how you make me feel.”
Devon could feel his bear was a bit disgruntled. It was hardly a mating declaration, butit’s a start.Wrapping his arms around Wren’s back, taking care not to make him feel caged, Devon murmured, “It’s all right, Wren, you’re going to be all right, and I promise above all else, you’re going to be safe. Whatever we need to handle, we’ll handle it together. Whatever you want to do, we’ll work it out. But know that I’m not going anywhere and I’ll protect you with my last breath.”
He took a couple of moments to center himself. “Now, did you want to make a decision about that picnic?” Devon’s body was not behaving, especially below the belt line. He couldn’t help it, it was part of the mating pull. A distracting walk in the forest would be a good idea.
“I’ve never been on a picnic, but that means having a meal outside on a blanket, doesn’t it? I’d love a picnic with ham and cheese sandwiches,” Wren said eagerly. “Can we do that?”
“I’ve got the fixings for ham and cheese sandwiches in the kitchen. Let’s do that.” Devon let go of Wren, thinking he would get up. He sat up, but didn’t move off Devon’s thighs. “Wren, what’s wrong? Are you worried I might not have mustard, because I’m sure I do.”
“It’s my shoes.” Wren glanced at his bare feet. “I don’t have any shoes. Will it be all right walking in the forest without them? I don’t want to slow you down.”
“Lack of shoes is an easy fix. I can give you a piggyback. I can do that, and still carry a picnic basket.” Devon flexed his muscles, and Wren laughed. “Although we’ll stop off at Flint’s on the way and see if he has any sneakers you can wear. If not, I’ll just carry you where you need to go until we get some delivered to Cyrus’s workshop.”
“Thank you.”
Devon felt the words more than he heard them. And while his bear was still a bit upset, because claiming was a big deal and his bear was impatient, they were both pleased they could provide a little something for their precious mate.
Chapter Twelve
Wren didn’t think he had had a more enjoyable day in his entire life. Bear, or Devon, as Wren had to keep reminding himself to call him, had been amazingly attentive, so much fun to be with, and above all, so calm and peaceful to be around. The stress and anxiety Wren had accepted as normal in his life, was slowly starting to melt away.
The picnic had been so much fun. The forest was gorgeous, and just being able to walk around and touch the trees was so invigorating – freeing in a way Wren didn’t think possible. Bear made him laugh, talking about some of the funny things the other guys in the Alley had done. Wren noticed that he didn’t talk about his work, but then he figured killing people probably wasn’t a relaxing topic of conversation. He had so many questions, most importantly, why Bear was doing that work in the first place, but when he mentioned it, Bear asked if they could focus on Wren having a light and happy day after all he’d been through instead.
“I’ll never hide any secrets from you, my precious Wren,” Bear had promised. “But my main focus is for you to heal first.”
