Page 23 of Eager Beaver
When we got out of the car, a man was walking over. I guessed he was the welcoming committee. He was probably in his forties, with thick silver-blond hair and a wide smile, and even though it was well below freezing, his jacket was unzipped. He looked nothing like Guy, but there was just something about him that made me wonder if they were family. He extended his hand to me, and when he spoke, his accent was even thicker than Guy’s. “Hi, you must be Guy’s mat—”
“Friend!” Guy interrupted loudly, eyes wide as he glared at the newcomer, and my mouth involuntarily jerked into a frown. Friend? Really? He caught my expression before I could get it under control, and he smiled in apology. “More than a friend,” he corrected, taking my hand and lacing our fingers together. It seemed he was having a hard time defining what we were as well. “This is my Fable.”
The public display of affection smoothed over some of my doubts, and I shook the man’s proffered hand. “My name is Pierre, and I’m the Alpha here,” he said, referring to himself as his designation for some reason. “I welcome you to the lodge.” And then he leaned in and took a deep sniff—again with the sniffing!—before flashing a sly smile at Guy as if he knew my secret. Which was totally impossible, because I hadn’t told a single soul I was pregnant. I wanted Guy to be the first.
“Um… okay. Nice to meet you.” Next door, over Pierre’s shoulder, I saw curtains twitching, and when I looked, I noticed several people were gawking. I guess this was what you got when you lived in a small town—nosy neighbors.
Guy hooked an arm around my waist and started ushering me inside, giving Pierre an obvious brush-off. “Thanks for stopping by. Maybe we’ll see you later.” Not if I had anything to do about it. I had every intention of spending the entire weekend in bed with Guy. I had to get my fill of him while I was here—though I suspected a few short days would never be enough.
“I’m sorry about that,” he said as the door closed behind us, the warmth of the cabin enveloping me like a hug. “He means well, but he doesn’t understand boundaries.”
“It’s fine, I like meeting your friends, but please don’t tell me we’re hosting a big dinner tonight. I want you all to myself,” I said, kicking off my boots.
In answer, Guy picked me up and threw me over his shoulder, and I squealed. “Let me give you the tour,” he said, but his handswere on the backs of my thighs, squeezing delectably and setting my body on fire.
“I hope this tour ends in the bedroom.” Although, I didn’t hate the view I had back here, his ass flexing as he stalked quickly through the cabin.
“Living room is there. Kitchen is fully stocked for the weekend, help yourself, although I tragically seem to have lost my cheese grater. Whatever will we do?”
“Don’t tease me,” I said, giving his ass a spank.
“I wouldn’t dream of it.” Down a short hallway, he turned so I could see through a doorway. “There’s the bathroom, and this… is the bedroom.” He bent down to set my feet back on the floor, and my blood rushed back to my head as I regained my balance.
“Uh-huh, very nice. Now take off your clothes.” There would be time to look around his cabin, but right now, with this gorgeous man in front of me, I had no interest in anything but getting him naked.
It was a frantic blur of whipping our clothes off before we fell into bed at last, hands groping and limbs tangled. When he finally sank into me, we both let out a contented sigh. It was like coming home after the longest day at work. It was a warm bath and a hearty meal, a cozy blanket and slippers. Just like that, we shifted from frenzied to slow and deliberate, as if we both realized there was no need to rush. We had all night… and maybe even longer…
16
Guy
Darknesshaddescended,andthe moon was high, bathing the man in bed beside me in an otherworldly glow, splayed across the sheets, sated and sleepy. I groaned as I rolled out of bed, reluctant to step away from him for even a moment. Sweat was still drying on our skin, but I had certain obligations when it came to taking care of my mate, and that included food and water. It was too easy to lose myself in him, but that was where my beaver came in handy.
L’eau, he demanded, nipping at my mind with sharp teeth to get me moving.Nourriture. Et des bissous. At least he addedkisses to the list of necessities, but I got the impression he meant for himself, in his fur.
And he was right. It was long past time to introduce them in person. Fable was my fated mate, and as much as I longed for the future we were destined to have, we couldn’t move forward until he knew all of me, furry side included. I only hoped that he wouldn’t run screaming into the night, naked. Maybe I should make sure he was dressed first, just in case; wouldn’t want him to catch cold.
“Where are you going?” Fable murmured as I pulled on my boxer briefs.
“Just to the kitchen to grab a snack. Any requests?”
“Mmm, peanut butter, chocolate, ice cream, and… pastrami.” One of those things did not belong on that list. I laughed, thinking he was joking, but his thoughtful expression said otherwise. “And sauerkraut,” he added with a decisive nod.
My stomach clenched at imagining the flavor combo, but I still said, “I’ll see what I can do.” My love for him was unconditional; it didn’t depend on his taste in food.
Raiding my fridge, I managed to come up with at least a couple of his cravings, including a roll of summer sausage, and I hoped that was close enough. We didn’t get a great variety of specialty foods this far north, but I would order an emergency airdrop of supplies if that was what my mate needed.
I loaded up a wooden tray and headed back into the bedroom, nerves crawling under my skin because of what I knew came next. Fable was sitting up in bed, the blanket pooled around his waist, leaving just a hint of his dark, curly hair in a delicious tease of what lay hidden under the blanket.
His gaze smoldered. “Keep looking at me like that, and we’ll have to put our snack on hold, and it would be really unfortunate to let that ice cream melt.”
I took a deep, bracing breath as I set the tray on the bed. Fable sobered as I settled on the bed across from him, leaving some distance between us so I could keep my head on straight. He sighed and nodded, clasping his hands in his lap, hard enough that his knuckles went white. “I need to tell you something,” he said.
I blinked for a moment, wondering what it could be. “Me first,” I told him. “I’ve wanted to tell you something about myself since I first laid eyes on you, and if I wait any longer, I might chicken out again.”
“Oh… okay.” His gulp was audible, and he sat back against the headboard and pulled his knees up, hugging them to his chest.
Right. Where did I start? I’d never admitted the existence of shifters to someone before. It wasn’t the kind of secret we told all willy-nilly. I cleared my throat. “So, you know how scientists discover a new species of frog in the Amazon Rainforest every year? Or, like, some weird squishy horror fish in the deepest ocean?”
