Page 8 of Falling for her Guardian

The two walked off, talking quietly, Gabriel glancing at him over his shoulder like Storm had suddenly grown two heads.

With the unmated males gone, his fangs and claws receded, and he felt halfway normal. Turning back to the female, he said, “I’m Storm.”

“Seren.”

He rose to his feet and offered her his hand. When she clasped his, another jolt of awareness snapped through him.

Truemate.

She let out aneepand fell against him, one hand gripping his and the other fisting his jacket. He grabbed her around the waist with his free hand to keep her from falling and drew her close.

He thought he was going to combust. She fit against him perfectly, even though they both wore thick coats. She was shorter than him by nearly a foot, petite but curved. She let go of his jacket and adjusted the hat on her head.

“You can just take me back to the woods and I’ll get back to my car and figure something out.”

“Hold on, what are you talking about?”

She was still leaning against him, still staring up at him like she thought she was dreaming.

He wished he could see her better.

So he was going to do just that and take her inside the security building where it was warm and she’d be protected from the elements better.

“My car broke down. I was about fifteen minutes from my parents’ house by car, and I’m not the most athletic person, so it probably would have taken me a half hour or more to walk. It’s winter, you know? So I was worried about being stranded in my car and freezing to death, then I saw a flickering light in the woods and thought it was someone’s house or campsite. I was very wrong.”

“You want me to just take you back to the woods and leave you stranded? What kind of male would do that?”

She opened her mouth but then closed it, shrugging and letting out a hum that sounded likeI don’t know.

“Come with me to the security building.” He held tight to her hand, even when she gave a little tug like she could get out of his grip. His eyes narrowed. “Where do you think you’re going to go, Seren? You can’t go through the Entrance without a magical escort, and you’re at the North Pole so you can’t go traipsing around in the elements or you’re going to get hurt.”

“Just open the portal back up and let me go.”

He stared at her. She didn’t realize he was a shifter.

It made sense, though. Humans tended to not know much about shifters and magical beings unless they were around them.

“I can’t. I’m a shifter.”

Her nostrils flared and something like anger flashed in her eyes.

This time when she pulled on her hand he let her go.

“Fine. But you’ll find someone who can get me back to Ohio, right?”

She started stomping through the snow, her arms folded and her shoulders hunched.

“Where are you going, Seren?”

“To the security building.”

“Wrong way.”

She huffed and swiveled. “Then let’s go! It’s cold.”

He shook his head and joined her, pointing toward a shadow in the distance.

He wanted to ask her if she had a problem with him being a shifter, but he was a little concerned about what her answer would be. She’d been fine until she realized he wasn’t magical, and then everything about her screamedlet-me-out-of-here.

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