Page 40 of Out of Peril

Mine, my wolf howled victoriously.

“What are you doing?” she screeched.

I looked down as my pants dropped to the floor with a thump that seemed to echo through the supercharged air around us.

“Getting naked,” I said.

“You said you wanted to meet my beast.”

I could feel her nerves rolling off her in waves. I smirked, needing to compose myself and stay focused.

“And my wolf wants to meet her too,” I blurted out to explain why I was half naked standing before her if not to seduce her. “Didn't want to rip my clothes,” I muttered.

She laughed and seemed to calm down a bit. “Of course.”

Needing to redeem myself, I dropped my underwear and fully committed to the little white lie. Because for a second there, I was absolutely ready to get to know her in a whole new way.

She stood there openly checking me out. I'd never felt so exposed before, but my wolf practically purred like a damn cat at her open interest. It was clear she liked what she saw. But when she licked her lips once more, it took every ounce of willpower I had not to lunge for her as we both stood there naked, taking in the sight of one another.

Lindsey shifted first.

For a moment, I just stood there stunned. Her beast wasn't aggressive toward me. She actually sort of cowered away from me.

I shook off the surprise of it all, wondering if I'd ever truly get used to this.

No. I had to get used to this.

This was my mate, for better or worse.

When I stepped towards her, she took a step back.

“I'm not going to hurt you,” I assured her.

Who would have thought a beast would be so vulnerable. We both knew she could rip me in half before I even knew what was happening. Yet she was intimated by me, anxious even.

I was surprised to learn that I could still feel my mate's emotions clearly even while she was in her fur and I in my skin.

At first I just stood there looking at her. Her lower half wasn't so different from mine, just covered in the spotted fur of a cheetah. Chase Westin was mated to a black panther. No one seemed to think the cat and dog pairing was all that weird anymore, and they certainly loved each other and made it work.

The extra set of arms with claws like an eagle were a bit strange, but they were strong and had carried me across the Gulf of Mexico safely and without harming me in any way. Sure, my shoulders had been a bit sore from the journey, but it wasn't even bad enough that I had to shift to heal from it.

The wings were badass. I had to admit, that was the coolest part of all. I smiled as I looked up at the soft black feathers covering them. Her wing span had to be at least ten feet or more.

“Amazing,” I said reverently, reaching up to see if they were as soft as they looked.

And then I moved to her head. She still had the face of a wolf. I could imagine from her coloring just how beautiful she'd once been.

When I reached my hand up to touch her, she hesitated and then slowly lowered it to me. Her fur was still soft, and when I leaned in to sniff her, she smelled like Lindsey.

“Mate,” I said reverently. “My magnificent mate. You are like no other, and you are mine. I promise to protect and cherish you. Things are going to change. You'll see.”

Lindsey

Chapter 12

I wanted so badly to believe him that he might actually be able to look past the hideous beast he had called magnificent and maybe be doomed to spend all eternity alone. Sure I had the kids that I'd all but adopted, but they would grow up and move on with their lives eventually.

I had long since given up on the dream of growing old with someone. Who could truly love a beast?

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