Page 58 of Kidnapping Their Third

“It’s not prestigious work,” she whispered, as if afraid she’d piss him off. He only grinned at her, relieved to understand the question.

“They didn’t care.” She looked skeptical so he continued. “Honestly, they didn’t. Mom wanted me to do what makes me happy. When Kimble came into my life, they were excited for me but worried because, well…”

He trailed off, he didn’t have to explain Kimble to Cora, she’d experienced it.

“How is that possible?” Cora murmured. “Our families always want more from us. That’s what it means to be a family.”

“That’s what it means to be in your family,” Pike countered. “Being part of my family means cheering everyone on as long as they’re happy with life.”

“We decide,” Kimble said. He grumbled a little in another language, then found the words he was looking for. “We make the family we want.”

“Yeah, we’ll make all the rules for our family!” Pike agreed, putting his cheek against hers for a nuzzle. The smell of her tears hit him hard and suddenly his bear was pressing hard to get out. He gasped and pulled away, fighting his shift.

“Pike?” Cora cried out, struggling in Kimble’s arms. “What’s wrong?”

Hugging himself tightly, Pike backed away. He didn’t want to scare Cora by shifting without warning.

“His bear demands control,” Kimble explained, setting her on her feet. All her earlier distress vanished, replaced by concern for him.

“Pike, what can we do?”

“Forgive me,” he begged before giving up the battle with his bear. The inner beast roared to life, ripping through him and taking over the body they shared. He felt his clothes shred from his body as his shape changed.

As with most shifters, the change was quick and painless. One moment he was a man and the next he was a massive black bear standing on all fours among the remnants of human clothing. The shift took nothing out of him. If anything, he felt energized as the world around him came alive with smells and sounds he wasn’t able to access while in his human form.

His bear was ecstatic to have control and intensely curious about their human mate. Pike tried to hold the bear back, screaming at his animal side that they could frighten Cora and drive away their mate.

Except Cora looked fascinated. His bear rumbled with pleasure at the curiosity on her face.

“Oh, wow, you’re big!” she exclaimed, standing still as bear Pike ambled up to her. “I looked up black bears, and you’re almost double the size of wild ones. That must be a shifter thing, right?” She looked to Kimble for confirmation.

Kimble grunted and stepped around her to sink his long fingers into Pike’s fur. “Touch,” he urged her. She moved up to run a hand over Pike’s head right between his round fuzzy ears.

If Pike could purr, he would have as both Kimble and Cora petted him. Confident that Cora wasn’t afraid and knowing his bear would never hurt their mate, Pike let his human side slide into the background so the bear could take full control.

“Pike, you’re adorable,” Cora cooed, no longer crying. “Can I hug you? Can you even understand me while you’re a bear?”

To answer her question, Pike pressed his nose under her arm, in a clear invitation for a hug. She wrapped her arms around his neck and squeezed with a happy sigh.

“Oh god, it’s like you’re the biggest most wonderful plushy toy ever!”

Pike was content to let her hug him for as long as she wanted, but Kimble had other plans. With a squeak of surprise, Cora was pulled away from him. Pike bared his teeth at Kimble only to go perfectly still when the vampire settled Cora on his broad, furry back.

“Kimble?” Cora said, her tone close to being afraid. “I don’t know if this is okay with Pike. He’s a bear, not a horse.”

“We should walk,” Kimble said simply and strode off in the wrong direction. Pike grunted a few times to get Kimble’s attention then pointed with his snout in the correct direction.

Kimble grinned, his red eyes flashing with amusement. “Then you lead. I follow like good pet.”

Pike took a careful step, very aware of Cora’s small form straddling his back. She laughed and clutched handfuls of his hair to steady herself. Her laugh convinced him Kimble was brilliant!

After another few steps, he was confident Cora wasn’t going to tumble off him. As he led Kimble down the narrow path into the preserve, Cora chattered about the magnificence of Pike’s bear.

If she kept this up, he might never shift back to human!

The preserve was mostly covered in scrub brush and native grasses with the occasional tree. The moon was only a sliver and didn’t provide much light for Cora, but Pike didn’t have any issues. He knew every inch of the preserve, especially all the tastiest places. He’d show Cora all his favorite areas, or at least the closest ones. Maybe he could even convince her to try a bite of sedge grass!

Her human palate probably wouldn’t like it, but a bear could dream.

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