Page 44 of Falling for her Guardian

“Come on inside before you freeze your mate. Your mom would never forgive me if something happened to Seren before she even met her.”

He held the door for them and they stepped inside a foyer, shedding their boots, coats, hats, and gloves before following him down the hall to the kitchen. A woman with strands of silver in her dark hair turned from the sink and dried her hands on a towel.

“Oh, it’s so good to see you, Storm.” She crossed the kitchen and hugged him. Then smiled warmly at Seren. “You must be Seren. I’m Raya. It’s so nice to meet you, and welcome to the family.” She hugged Seren and immediately all her nerves washed away. Yes, his parents were polar bear shifters, but they were also incredibly kind and welcoming. She could still be nervous about Jack Frost, but there was no way he was messing around with the polar bear clan, so she was safe here with her mate.

A fire crackled in the hearth of the great room as they gathered on comfortable couches to talk and get to know each other. Raya made pot roast for dinner, and Seren had never had such wonderful food, even though she thought the elves did a pretty dang good job in the cafeteria.

After dinner, she and Storm bundled up and took a walk around the clan’s territory.

“It’s a lot warmer here than in Northernmost,” she said. The snow crunched under their boots as they meandered through the territory.

“Yeah, it’s all relative, you know? Even though I’m not as affected by cold temperatures, I used to think it was freezing here, but then I went to Northernmost and realizedthat’swhat true cold really is. You get used to the cold here after a while, though, and then it feels really,reallycold at the Well.”

“That makes sense.”

He pointed out the home belonging to Alpha Klaus. The polar bear clan was run by the alpha, but he had a council of elders that helped keep things fair and ensured everyone followed the laws.

“The council makes sure that the good of the clan is always the priority, and that keeps the alpha from getting out of control.”

“Could they take him out of being alpha?”

“It would have to be a grievous error in judgment, but yes. And they’d have to be unanimous in the decision, all five of them wanting him gone.”

She hummed. It was like a big family with the father in charge of the kids and the grandparents helping to keep everyone in check.

Once they reached his parents’ home, they had warm apple dumplings with fresh churned vanilla bean ice cream and watched a movie before heading to bed. As she drifted off tosleep in Storm’s childhood bedroom, complete with the sports memorabilia of his favorite NFL team still tacked to the walls, she thought that Arctic Springs was a pretty cool place.

Storm was drinking coffee in the four-season room with his dad while his mate helped his mom make breakfast. His favorite aunt and uncle had come over, and they were in the kitchen laughing and talking. He loved to hear Seren’s laughter, loved to know that she was comfortable with his family.

“It feels so damn good to be here,” he said, scrubbing a hand through his hair.

“You miss it.”

“Yeah. I love Northernmost, it’s cool as hell up there and I’ve been doing it for a decade. But I miss the mountains and the clan.”

“You already mated Seren, so when do you want to do the ceremony?”

“I want to ask her to marry me. I was thinking we could do the mating ceremony on New Year’s Eve and also have someone perform marriage vows at the same time.”

“Her family will come?”

“Absolutely.”

“Good. Sometimes you hear about humans not liking shifters.”

He told his dad how Seren had been hurt by a male wolf and had sworn off shifters, and her family had hated them on her behalf. “But they warmed up to me, especially after hearing that I rescued her from Frost’s lair.”

Lucius chuckled. “It’s a shame she was abducted, but it’s good that you were able to get her to safety and prove to herfamily that you have good intentions. I’ll let Alpha Klaus know you want to do a joint mating and marriage ceremony on New Year’s Eve. I think it’s the perfect time.” His dad paused and then said, “Do you think you’ll come back here to live or move to Ohio? Because I happen to know that nearby is a cabin that was recently finished, and it would be perfect for a new couple.”

His brows winged up. “Really? When did that happen?”

“Alpha Klaus wanted to keep the construction company busy this fall after a big contract fell through and they were left with the supplies and nothing to do with them. I offered the land near us because I figured it was only a matter of time before one of you three found your mate.”

“I’ll talk to Seren and let you know,” he said.

“There’s plenty of work available for both of you, plus your mom would love it if you were back home. And I would too.”

“Thanks, Dad.”

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