Page 19 of Alpha Bear Accountant

“Nope. No sports for us today. We’re grabbing food and then heading to the park.”

“The park?” It wasn’t the right season forShakespeare in the Parkor anything like that, so what did that leave? Playing on the swings? Actually, that could be fun, but Todd was far too confident in the way he spoke about our day for him not to have a plan.

He rubbed his nose against mine. “Let’s go.”

Okay, so, no information was how it was gonna be.

At some point in time, he’d called ahead to the deli and ordered us a picnic basket. It wasn’t the “going out to eat” I assumed it would be. It was way better.

Go, mate, go.

Two points for keeping me on my toes and making me feel appreciated.

It was such a sweet gesture. I’d never been much for picnics—not a big fan of the bugs—but if Todd was planning it, it sounded kinda romantic.

When he said we were going to the park, I assumed he meant the one in town. I assumed wrong. It wasn’t the huge one with swings and a climbing rock and a path down to the river. He meant the state park, a place I hadn't been since getting drunk there in high school.

It took us about forty-five minutes to get there, and as we drove inside, he asked the gate agent if one section in particular was open to the public. He seemed pleased to find out that it was.

I’d been there before, but I’d always just gone through the main trailhead and walked around. Learning there were special areas, ones that were worthy of asking about, made everything just a little more exciting. It also made me curious how much my mate had planned for us, and if any of this date was impromptu at all.

We drove through the gate, and Todd knew exactly where to go until we reached his destination. He parked the car, and we walked hand in hand on a path until we reached a clearing. The sun was beaming warmly on the grass despite still having a slight chill in the air. At least it wasn’t so cold that I worried about sitting on the ground while we ate.

Todd took a deep breath and clasped his hands together. “Before we eat, I want to show you something.”

Finally! I’d been dying for this moment. “By something, do you mean your bear?”

He nodded. “If you’re ready for that.”

I grinned from ear to ear. “I’d love that.”

Todd took off his clothes one piece at a time and set them beside the basket until he was completely naked.

He looked so good, I nearly forgot why he was doing it.

“You sure you’re ready to meet him?”

“So ready.” I wasn’t sure what the process for shifting would look like, but in my head, I imagined him writhing in pain like they did in werewolf movies.

Turned out, it was nothing like that. Not even close. In fact, if I had blinked a little too slowly, I probably would have missed it. One second, I was looking at my sexy mate, and the next, there was a big-ass grizzly bear in front of me.

He was huge, and if I had run into another grizzly in the wild even half his size, I’d have been terrified. But this was Todd, and all I wanted to do was to feel his fur and hug him close. More than anything, I wanted to let him know how stunning he was.

“I’m gonna hold you now,” I announced on my way over, not wanting to startle him in case the bear was in charge. I didn’t sense that he was, though.

He still felt like Todd.My Todd.

I pressed my cheek against his furry chest and sighed because the fur was much softer than I had imagined it to be. My arms closed around him the best I could, and that was when I had my very first bear hug.

His huge paws settled on my back and held me to him as I enjoyed his warmth.

“You are absolutely stunning.” I looked up at him. “So gorgeous, my love. So fucking gorgeous, it almost hurts.”

I hated to move, but I took a few steps to the side so he could shift back. Maybe he would take his bear again after we ate and we could play. But right now, there was a lot to say. And it would all be one-sided if he didn’t have his human words.

Todd took his skin again then pulled on his clothes. A moment later, we both sat down to eat. The food was good, and I used it as a way of delaying our conversation until I could piece my thoughts together.

“You’re awfully quiet.” He popped a grape into his mouth with his gaze trained on me. “Everything okay?”

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