Page 12 of Riding With the Grizzly

“Okay,” Nara says once we’ve reached the end of the block and turn left, toward the forest separating the north side of town from the south. “Tell me about shifters, fated mates, the moon… I guess I can’t make an informed decision about your level of sanity until I’ve heard the sales pitch.” My mate is so fucking adorable.

“Every full moon, shifters and their mates feel an intense, almost indescribable pull toward their one true love. All these months and years I’ve been alone, dreading each full moon. Without my mate, all I had was a painful hole in my heart, a gaping wound that kept me up all night.”

Nara squeezes my hand and surprises me by pressing a kiss to my shoulder. My bear and I are instantly on edge, though I manage to breathe through it and push down every primal instinct I have to claim, mark, and fuck my mate as soon as possible. I would never take anything she didn’t offer, though. I need her to choose me.

When we reach the tree line, Nara points to the well-hidden walking path that leads straight through. I’ve never noticed it before since I’m usually in my bear form when out in the woods.

"So… we've covered fated mates and how the moon plays a role in everything because of course it does. That just leaves the shifter part. I don't mean to put any pressure on you or anything, but I don't know that I can believe any of this unless you show me–"

I tear off my shirt, making Nara gasp in surprise. Before she runs off, I slip out of my jeans and fall to the ground on all fours. My boxers rip and fall off as my body morphs and grows, my teeth elongating as well as my nails. Fur brushes against the inside of my skin and then pushes through, leaving me a furry, five-hundred-pound grizzly bear sitting at her feet.

“Holy… what the… you just, and then, and poof!” My mate thankfully isn’t scared of me. It would kill me and my bear if she were afraid of us. No, her eyes flash with wonder and awe, as if a whole new world just opened up for her. I suppose it did.

I take a few measured steps toward her, keeping my head bowed so she knows I'm not a threat. To my delight, Nara holds out her hand. I nuzzle against it, loving everything about her touch. She pets me and then looks directly into my eyes.

“It’s really you,” she whispers more to herself than to me. “Your eyes are so green and your fur is the same color as your dark hair. Can you understand me?”

I nod, relishing in her smile and bright blue eyes. She believes me. She saw my bear and didn’t freak. That has to be a good sign, right?

Taking a few steps back, I shift into human form again, grabbing the only scrap of clothing that didn’t become collateral damage - my jeans. When I’m done pulling my pants up, I turn to look at Nara, who has her hands covering her eyes. I suppose she’s never seen a naked man before, or at least not this closely. Shifters are used to torn clothes and being free and naked, but humans are more modest than we are. I grin when I see that her fingers are spread out, giving her a secretly decent view of me.

“Believe me now?” I ask as I walk toward her. She nods, her eyes catching on the muscles in my chest and arms. With only my jeans on, my girl is getting a show. I don’t mind, and I can fuckin’ smell how much she likes what she sees.

“And you’re sure about me? Being your mate?”

The way her eyes soften and fill with hope and belonging makes me ache to hold her. So, I do. I reach out, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her against me. "I've never been more confident about anything in my life."

I bend down, resting my forehead on hers. Nara lifts up on her tiptoes, her hands crawling up my bare chest before wrapping around my neck. “Prove it,” she murmurs.

I don’t waste a single second molding my lips to hers in our first kiss. Everything about my mate is decadent, from her full lips to her eager tongue and sinfully sweet taste. My hand comes up to cup her cheek, angling her so I can delve deeper into her hot little mouth and devour everything she’s offering.

We eventually break apart, Nara collapsing into my chest while I hold her. Our breathing slows to a steady rhythm, our hearts finding the same beat. “You’re my fated mate, Nara. I’ve shown you everything I can and told you a secret that could destroy me if it gets into the wrong hands. But you still have a choice.”

Nara tilts her head to the side. “What do you mean?”

“Even though we’re fated, you can still choose to reject me. It’ll hurt like hell. I can’t even imagine…”

“Don’t worry,” Nara says softly. “I’m not rejecting you.”

My bear roars in victory while I try to keep the dopey grin off my face. “Let’s go back to my place. Right now. We’ll start–”

“I’m not rejecting you, but I have to go. At least for tonight. Our situation is… complicated to say the least. If my dad found out where I was tonight and who I was with, he’d freak out. Let’s give it some time.”

I’m about to protest but part of me understands that she’s still overwhelmed. She got a condensed, text-book version of shifters, a species that’s been around as long as humans have. It’s a lot to take in, especially knowing the role she’ll play in everything.

“I respectfully disagree with your decision to live anywhere but with me, but I do understand what the stakes are.”

Nara grins at my answer, then gives me a quick kiss on the cheek before running down the path leading straight to the Midnight Rebel’s clubhouse.

I plan on never having her leave me again after tonight.

CHAPTER SIX

NARA

The blankets are ripped off of me and I startle, blinking my eyes open and trying to figure out what’s going on. It’s dark in my room and I look toward the windows, but it’s pitch black outside.

“Wha?” I ask groggily, blinking until my dad’s face comes into view.

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