Page 145 of Choose the Bears

“You should’ve told me.” I wrapped my arms around her, holding her close. “You should’ve fucking told me what you had planned.”

“So you could argue with me?” Her voice was muffled by my chest, so she pushed me backwards. “Remember when I suggested changing the coffee supplier?”

“Jarrod’s sells single origin Arabica of the highest quality,” I replied stiffly.

“And I needed this.” Her hands went wide, the slight shake there doing nothing for my confidence. “You took on my pain when you first shifted, and now it’s back in its rightful place.”

I couldn’t argue with her. If she thought I was stubborn, then it was a trait we shared. I had no idea how long this would last, something I would quiz Mama mercilessly about when we were done, but not now. I watched my sister step backwards, the fox shifters who’d watched the most closely clustering around her.

“We’re going for a run,” one said, gazing down at her. “You could come. No one will see a fuck off huge polar bear on our turf.”

She made a show of nodding.

“Don’t mind if I do.” Her gaze strayed to me. “Go back to your mate, Ash. Your job here is done.”

“I’ll see you tomorrow?” I asked.

“Late,” the fox shifter replied before shooting me a lethal grin. “Real late. C’mon, Ursula.”

I watched them as they disappeared into darkness, trying to make out their shapes until I was forced to stop.

“This is what it cost to mobilise your entire colony?” I asked Mama. “This?”

She shrugged.

“I would do anything for family, just as you would, bear boy. Now, I need a drink. Will you join me?”

I shook my head, knowing this was a deadly insult in fox quarters, but there was somewhere I needed to be. One part of my soul wanted to be out rambling in the dark after my sister, but most of it.

It needed to be right here.

I walked into the room,catching the way the stray band of light illuminated the three of them, their bodies tightly entwined. In some ways, they were too beautiful to disturb, but with that sixth sense she had, Imogen’s eyes fluttered open.

“You’re home?” Kyle snorted and Lucas started to snuffle. “What happened?”

“Everything,” I said as I climbed onto the bed. “Just everything.”

Chapter 74

Imogen

A year later

For a while, I’d faffed around cooking and doing odd jobs at HQ, but the guys staged an intervention.

“As much as I love having you as team leader in dodgeball,” Kyle said, “this isn’t you. You can’t spend hours mucking around with kids?—”

“You can because you are a child still,” Lucas shot back.

“We don’t need you to integrate yourself into our life,” Asher forged on, shooting them a dark look. “What we want is for you to decide what you want to do with yours.”

“We’ll support you no matter what you decide,” Lucas said, pulling me into a hug, and right then I stood within the safe haven of my sleuth and wondered…

Which led me all the way to here.

Standingin front of the art department of the University of Adelaide, just staring at the massive building, not able to take another step forward. My hands were sweaty, the handle ofmy folio slipping from my grip, which was when Kyle stepped forward and took it from me.

“They’d be lucky to have you,” he assured me.

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