Page 19 of Grumpy Special Ops Bear: Ep. 3
Grant reached over and smacked Cutter upside the head. But it was too late.
“What?” Cutter snapped. “She said she knew nothing about him.”
“Doesn’t mean you had to tell her, you half-wit. Come on.”
Grant grabbed Cutter by the shoulder and dragged him away.
I sighed with relief when they walked away from the camp. Fergus and I needed a few minutes of privacy—or at least some time for me to scream at him without interruption.
I was still sitting on the log, looking like I’d been sucker-punched in the gut. There had to be an easy button or a book I’d forgotten to read in my life, anything that could’ve told me why all this crazy shit was happening to me now, in the middle of fucking nowhere.
This was the last straw. I was pretty sure if I learned anything else, I’d snap, crackle, and pop.
“Trinity, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.” Fergus walked over to me.
“About which part?”
“Both. I didn’t want you to be worried about me being the alpha of my clan after your experience with Price.”
I laughed bitterly, but I still didn’t meet his gaze. “And the second?”
“I wasn’t sure of our connection until you got wounded. I felt your pain, and I couldn’t stand it,” he growled.
I finally looked up. My heart nearly stopped at the emotions in his eyes—hurt, despair, and fear. It was killing me to see him this way, but I didn’t know how to fix it.
Dammit. Why do I suck so badly at this communication shit?
I just sat there quietly, not uttering a sound.
After a while, as if he couldn’t bear the silence any longer, he sighed. “Listen, it means nothing. You can still go home when this is all finished, and I won’t ever bother you again.”
His words were like a stab to the gut. It would slowly kill me to know my mate was out there and I wasn’t with him.
Fergus walked away.
I reached out, snatching his hand. He turned back to face me.
“Don’t,” I whispered, looking into his eyes. “I’ve dreamed about you for months.”
He blinked in confusion. “What?”
Gripping him tightly, I pulled myself up, my chest brushing against his. “This is going to sound crazy, but the dreams started a couple of months ago. Each one was with you as a bear and me being stuck in some fucking ice, screaming for help. You would bound out of the forest, always angry and growling.” I shrugged. “I thought you were trying to kill me. Now I know better. It was a sign.” I paused. “What I’m trying to say is you’re not the only one who feels something, Fergus.”
I swallowed hard. My heart was beating as if I’d run a marathon. “I just wasn’t about to call you my mate. Shit. I was too scared to even call it what it is.”
Fergus’s other hand landed on my hip, tugging me closer to him. “You don’t have to do this.”
“I’m not trying to make you feel better. It’s the truth,” I assured him. “The whole time I was out there alone, I knew someone or something was watching over me. I could feel it. Then, when I finally realized who you were after, you saved my life. I feel something I never thought I would feel for anyone. And frankly, it’s fucking scary.”
My whole life, I’d searched for that one person I knew would love me forever, someone who would be there for me when I needed him, someone who would keep me safe, a man I could act like myself with and have no worries that I’d somehow chase him away if I revealed my inner demons.
Over the past couple of years of failed relationships, I’d given up hope that I’d find the right man. It was depressing to think I’d eventually have to settle for the next best thing. Never in my wildest dreams had I thought I’d find the real thing—a man in whom, when I looked into his eyes, I could see the passion and fire I’d been praying to find.
Who knew he’d be waiting for me on a life-or-death chase?
“And who would have thought I’d find the man of my dreams and a furry pet at the same time?” I grinned at him.
He grinned back. “Smart-ass,” he said before his mouth crushed mine.
