Page 33 of His UnBearable Touch

She froze when she felt something bump against her shoulder, rub along her arm, bend down toward the man laid prone before her.

“Don’t you bite him!” She winced back as the bear roared at her. She knew he had to be close because she felt wet spittle on her face. “Sorry, sorry,” she muttered back, but she didn’t back down.

“I know I’m crazy for doing this, but if I’m going to die, I’m going to go out doing something.” She huffed. “Yes, like talking to myself.” She tugged tighter on his coat and took in a deep breath before she moved, pushing herself forward and landing on the palms of her hands. She wasn’t prepared for the exact distance of the stop and felt pain radiate through her palms.

She heard movement in the space, from a few directions at once. Squeezing her eyes shut she sucked in a deep breath and let it out, using every ounce of air in her body. “Mine!”

There was a startled silence and then a roar; one side and then the other. Still the same two.

She crouched down over him, trying to cover as much of his body as she could. He may be taller and heavier, but she had a good amount of cover to offer.

Something nudged her thigh, pushing up against her. She didn’t move. Something at her other shoulder, a nose or something she imagined was a nose. Allegra shook her head. “Nope. Not moving.”

Teeth closed over the back of her calf, nearly breaking skin, but not. “You better stop that.” That’s right, talk to the bear, Allegra. It let go and she felt tears run down her cheeks onto her arm.

Pressing herself closer to Valerio she placed a kiss on his cheek. She knew that by the time his brothers got there it was going to be too late. She didn’t have a clue of what to do. All she knew was that she was going to make the most of every stupid second of her life. Turning her cheek against Valerio’s she closed her eyes one last time and reached into the darkness for his light.

Wake up.

* * *

His head ached.

His body was worse.

Something hit him, a vehicle of some sort, slow but hard enough to break bone. And then the fall. He’d turned, putting himself on the bottom.

On the bottom to absorb the impact.

To protect her.

Allegra.

He felt her holding him. He heard her mumbling at him. Mumbling to herself.

His woman could talk.

And he loved every word, because it meant she was alive and awake.

Wake up.

She was pushy too.

He loved that about her.

And hopefully when they mated, she’d be pushy and tell him what she wanted. He’d be more than happy to follow her instructions as long as she was his.

Wake up.

He drew in a breath to answer her back. To tell her to wait just a moment.

But when he took in that breath he stopped short.

Bear.

His senses came alive, energy pulsing through his body like his nerves were on fire. He opened his mouth to talk and only heard the bear bellowing out a challenge.

Allegra was his!

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