Page 16 of Load Bearing
“I’m a shifter,” Hunter clarified. “It’s a thing.”
“A thing.” Trixie echoed, still braced for combat with her hammer. “It’s a thing.”
Hunter spread his hands. “I’m not going to hurt you.”
“You were a bear!” she said, outraged. “Do it again!”
Hunter obliged, flowing out into his larger form, and Trixie slowly straightened. “Hunter?” she said cautiously.
He nodded like a cartoon.
Are we funny?his bear wanted to know.
Trixie started to laugh weakly.
We’re funny!his bear said in delight.
Trixie took a cautious step forward and Hunter was proud of her clear courage. He sat back on his haunches and she carefully closed the distance between them. “Can I touch you?” she asked.
Hunter nodded again.
She didn’t laugh, his bear pouted.
Trixie reached forward, realized she was still holding her hammer, and put it in the opposite hand. She didn’t offer to drop it. Then she carefully touched Hunter’s neck, stroking the fur like he was a dog. “You’rereallya bear.”
Hunter shifted beneath her hand and was glad that she didn’t snatch it away from his human shoulder. “I’m a shifter.”
“Ashapeshifter.”
“We just call ourselves shifters.”
Hunter was crouched very close to Trixie and he stood up slowly, watching her face as she went through a dozen emotions. Confusion. Hesitation. Disbelief. Outrage. A flash of anger. “Are theremanyof you? Are you all bears?” He watched the moment she put it together. “The wolf in the video footage!”
“Probably Keith or Kyle.”
“Locals call them the Taylor pack,” Trixie observed numbly. “I always thought it was just an affectation. Can you be more than one thing? Are you born with it or bitten? How do you know they’re shifters? Can you smell each other? Are you superhuman? Immortal?” She peppered him with questions but gave him no chance to answer. “Are you a mutant? Is there a whole race of you poised to take over the world? Where do your clothes go?”
“Trixie…”
“Not that I’m not glad you’re still wearing them,” she added quickly. “It’s just… this sort of upends the whole way I thought the world works. If this can happen, what else? Are there wizards? Fairies? Magic rings?”
Hunter realized that she wasn’t going to give him a conversational gap, so he did the only thing he could think of, leaning over to kiss her.
The hammer dropped from her fingers and that hand slipped up to the other side of his neck as Trixie kissed him back with the passion of shock.
For one long, glorious moment, Hunter’s whole world was that kiss. It was as right as anything he’d ever experienced, pleasure and instinct rolled together in one undeniable pull. Trixie washis.
“Wait, wait,” she murmured against his mouth, finally drawing back. “I’m still your boss.”
“I quit,” Hunter growled.
“What?”
“I quit.”
It didn’t have the desired effect. Trixie pushed him off in earnest. “No, I still need your help. You haven’t signed the paperwork for insurance, and I could use the extra hands tomorrow before the truss truck gets here.”
“Hire me back tomorrow,” Hunter suggested, not willing to spend another night without her now that he’d tasted her lips.
