Page 13 of Chosen By The Grizzly

Ifollow Callie along the trail at a distance, making sure to stay just out of view. It’s not easy, because she keeps turning around and peering intently into the trees. She looks so vulnerable out here, all alone and unprotected. My heart aches. I yearn to run to her, take her in my arms and soothe away her sufferings.

Show every damn bear in this wilderness that she’s mine.

Because I’m not the only shifter here, that’s for sure. And as soon as they get a whiff of her intoxicating scent, it’ll be all-out war here. I can’t wait until she bears my mark on her neck, proving to the whole world that she’s my property.

I watch as Callie picks up the backpack belonging to one of those trashy girls. When she throws it down in despair, my chest hurts. And when lifts her head and yells their names into the sky, each pained cry is like a knife wound in my gut. I can’t stand to see her hurting. Her pain is my own. And that’s how it’s going to be forever, because she’s my mate—the other half of my soul.

I’m torn, and that’s not an easy sensation for my beast to deal with. It’s bellowing and straining inside me.

Those damn friends of hers. I grit my teeth. If it wasn’t for them, I’d seduce her, take her back to my cabin right now, and show her what it means to be a bear’s mate. But they’ve gone and gotten themselves lost, and I know she won’t leave until she finds them.

I shouldn’t let them see me again. If they didn’t manage to video me earlier, they will now. The best thing I can do is follow her, keep watch over her until she finds the others and guides them out of the wilderness.

Trouble is, their scents are coming from all directions. They scattered when they ran from my cabin, and my nose is telling me they haven’t managed to find each other yet.

At least Callie is on the right track. The scent in front of her is strong and true. If she keeps going, she’ll find at least one of the girls.

And then what? They’ll leave the forest together, and how will I find her again?

Now!my bear roars.Take her, she’s yours.

Before I can stop myself, I call, “Hey, there! Wait up!”

Callie gives a little gasp of shock and spins to face me. Her face is frozen with fear, and it’s yet another knife in the gut. Her hand goes to her waist, then she fumbles around for something. Bear spray. My beast surges inside me. The blast she gave me earlier is still stinging its nostrils.

I crook an eyebrow. “You aren’t gonna spray me again, are you?”

“How did you find me?” she demands, her voice high and tight.

My insides crumple. She doesn’t trust me, yet. She thinks I’m a stalker. I can’t blame her.

“I followed your scent,” I tell her, because she’s whip-smart and I know that’s the only thing that’ll convince her.

She wrinkles her nose. “What do you mean?”

I take a long breath and release it slowly. I’m thirty-four years old and I’ve managed to get through my life without ever having to explain my nature to a human.

Okay, here goes.

“Earlier, when you sprayed the grizzly, it didn’t go anywhere, did it?”

Her lovely arched eyebrows tug together. “I-I guess it ran away fast.”

“You know that’s not true.”

Her frown gets deeper, then she bites her lip. It’s an incredible sight, her plump lower lip disappearing between her pearl white teeth, and my cock starts to ache again.

“It kind of—disappeared—and then you were there, right in its place.”

“But that’s not possible, right?”

She nods uncertainly, eyes shining with intelligence.

“That’s because me and the bear are the same. I’m a shapeshifter.”

“Shapeshifter?” she mouths.

“Give me your hand.”

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