Bear Naked

Chapter Six

The good thing about bear form was that it tended to mute the scatter of human thought. I wasn’t sure if other shifters had that mental glaze that came over bears, but I knew that changing to a shifter form as large as ours required a lot of concentration, and it tended to drown out anxiety, or unhappiness. In bear form, you just existed. You just were. It was calm, peaceful. I could see why Leif had chosen it for so long.

No one came after me, and I plowed through the familiar woods, exploring. There was a trail I liked to think of as my own, and my own little private den on the far edges of the land. I headed there.

I wasn’t sure how much time passed, but I vaguely remembered dawn, and dusk, and then dawn again. I didn’t care. I fished dinner from the river, and ate berries, and curled up in my den.

I was safe as a bear. Safe from hurt. Safe from sadness.

At some point in the blur of my thoughts, though, I caught a new, familiar smell in the woods. Recognition came rushing back, and I emerged from my den in time to see another bear crashing through the woods, heading for me.

Leif.

I suddenly wanted to talk to him. Being a bear - and being numb to everything - wasn’t working anymore. I wanted to tell him why I’d run away. Because if anyone understood, it’d be Leif. So I transformed back to human form, just as he approached.

He nosed me, his big, beloved fuzzy face full of concern despite his animal side, and I burst into tears. I dropped to my knees and began to sob, curling up into a ball. The bad thing about bear form was that I didn’t deal with any of my issues while shifted; they were still there, just waiting for me to shift back.

Nearby, Leif shifted back to his human form faster than I had, and a moment later, he wrapped his arms around me, hugging me close and soothing me as I wept. We sat in the leafy underbrush at the edge of my rocky cave, two naked humans who didn’t care about mud or grass stains on skin. When Leif tugged at me, I crawled into his lap and let him hold me as I cried.

His big hands soothed my skin, stroked my hair. He didn’t pressure me, didn’t ask why I’d ran. He was just there for me, pressing small, affectionate kisses on my face to let me know that I was cared for.

And I loved him for it.

“Why is it so awful?” I asked tearfully.

“Why is what so awful?” His voice was so soft, so soothing. His hands continued to stroke and pet me, comforting me.

“Everyone!” I sobbed. “I thought when we came back, that it would fix all of our problems. I’d have a mate and you’d be home, but everyone’s being so nasty about it.” I thought about Gerda and Aunt Erika’s mean words. “It’s like they don’t want us to be happy.”

“They don’t,” he said with a chuckle. “They want us to be as miserable as they are.”

“But doesn’t it bother you?”

“It bothers me that they’re making you so miserable,” he said gently. “But as for the rest of them, I stopped caring what they thought sixteen years ago.”

For some reason, that made me feel worse. “So you were fine until I dragged you back here. That makes me feel even worse. I can’t please anyone.”

Leif’s hand stroked my cheek, and then tilted my face so I looked him in the eye. “What makes you think I’m unhappy now?”

The gentleness in his gaze made fresh tears splash down my cheeks. “You didn’t want to be with me. Not really. I came after you and practically shoved my overheated vagina in your face so you’d have no choice but to mate with me—“

He laughed at my words. “Is that how you see it?”

“— And I promised you that things would be better and now they’re not! They’re worse than before because they exiled you and now they’re threatening me and everyone thinks you’re crazy and—“

“Shhh,” he soothed. His fingers brushed over my mouth, halting my words. “‘Lina, stop. You’re just making yourself upset. I’m not unhappy. And I’m not surprised they’re being this way.”

“You—you’re not?” I hiccuped, then sniffed loudly. I tucked my head against his shoulder, because it felt so good to cuddle against him and let him hold me. God, there was nothing better. How had I gone for so long without Leif? How could I go on without him if they took him away from me? My hands tightened on him.

He stroked my hair, my skin, my shoulder, until my breaths were coming slower and more regular. Until I was calm. And eventually, he spoke. “Remember what I told you? That sometimes what we think we want isn’t what we truly want?”

I nodded, inhaling deeply at the scent of his skin. He smelled woodsy and wonderful, and just a little bit wild. I loved that. Just being close to him was helping me calm down a little. With Leif, everything would be okay, somehow.

“Did you know Katja was running away when she died?”

I stiffened. It was awful and selfish of me, but I didn’t want to hear about my dead rival for Leif’s affections. Not right now, when I was so vulnerable. But I made myself say, “Oh?” as if this were interesting.

“It’s true. She’d stolen her father’s truck and was going to drive away. She didn’t care where, just…away. She told me, because she thought I deserved to know. We were best friends, but she didn’t want to marry me. She wanted to marry for love, and we didn’t love each other.”

I stilled. This…wasn’t what I expected to hear.

“And Katja was tired of the elders controlling every aspect of our lives. They didn’t want her to go to college. They wanted her to stay home with me and make babies. She wanted to study forensics. And I wanted to keep sculpting, but the elders didn’t think that was an appropriate job for someone that was going to start a family. They were going to make me apprentice to Jokkum.”

I flinched, thinking of Aunt Erika’s words. Jokkum was a plumber.

“The clan was making Katja miserable, so she was going to run away. Except she got into a car accident and died, and I realized…that I was miserable, too. That was why I left. It wasn’t because I was so lovesick over Katja’s death. I loved her as a friend, but I was more upset that she had wanted so badly to escape…and that she was right. The clan loves to keep control over everyone. They don’t care if we’re miserable as long as they’re in control. Look at your cousin Mikkel. Have you ever seen a more wretched man?”

I thought of Mikkel, always hiding from Gerda. And I clung tighter to Leif. “So…you weren’t in love with Katja?”

“Not the way everyone thinks I was.” His fingers brushed over my cheek in a caress. “I just wanted freedom. Letting everyone think I’d gone mad at her death seemed to be the easiest way to get it.”

I dragged in a long, shuddering breath. “And…I made you come back here. To the place that made you so unhappy. I’m such an awful person.”

“You’re not,” he said softly. “You’re just…uncertain of yourself. That’s their fault, too. I’m stunned that the bear clan has taken a woman as beautiful, and strong, and loving, and proud as you, and made her think that she’s so unlovable.”

“I don’t — I’m not — I — “ I stammered, and then stopped.

He was right, I realized with astonishment. Ramsey’s defection from the clan had hurt me worse than I’d realized. Because I’d been the one left behind, I was the one that had to take all the blame. The pitying looks and the thoughts that there must have been something really wrong with me for him to not want to return. The talk from the elders and the arguing over who would ‘take one for the team’ had only compounded that.

My clan had made me feel lonely and unloved, despite being surrounded by people who were supposed to be family.

I tightened my grip on Leif.

“Do you know,” Leif said, voice musing, “out of this clan that purports to love and care for each other, you’re the only one that thought to come after me in sixteen years?”

“But…” I hesitated. He was making me sound so noble, so giving. “I did it for my own selfish needs, Leif. You know that.”

“The motive was desperate,” he agreed, hugging me close to his naked skin. “But you could have just mated with me and left, if all you wanted was a heat partner. But you saw how lost I was, and you did your best to bring me back. You gave up your own clothes so I could be warm. You gave me the last of your coffee and your chocolate, because I didn’t like the coffee bitter. Every time I mentioned a discomfort, ‘Lina, you gave me whatever I needed to make me happy. How is that selfish?” The backs of his fingers stroked my cheek. “You worried that you were using me, and you offered to let me out. It was me that chose to stay.”

“Leif,” I said softly. “Stop making me sound so self-sacrificing.”

It was like he wasn’t listening to me. “You say that you were using me, but every touch you give me, every caress, is so full of love and caring. That’s not using someone.”

“I love you,” I said softly, pressing my face against his neck again. “I love you so much.”

“I love you too, ‘Lina,” he murmured. “You’re the only reason I came back.”

And because we were back, things were miserable. “I don’t know what to do,” I told him. My hands smoothed up and down his back, enjoying the feel of his warm skin against mine. “I feel like if we stay, they’re going to do their best to make sure we’re as miserable as they are.”

“I don’t think you’re wrong about that.”

I knew I wasn’t. The clan elders loved control more than anything else. If they had to crush the life out of the rest of us to ensure that they kept that control? They’d do it. Even my own father didn’t have my back. He wouldn’t let me move out, and had even taken my truck from the airport, all because he wanted to keep me under his own control.

For the first time in my life, it made me angry.

I’d cheerfully gone along with it for so long, thinking that I was the problem, the unlovable one. All this time, they’d let me think that, because it kept me subdued and under their thumbs.

No longer.

“Sometimes I think Ramsey was the lucky one,” I told Leif. “At least he got away from their head games.”

“Do you think he’s lucky?” Leif asked. “He left you behind.”

Sweet man. I squeezed him in a hug, and nestled closer. I thought of Ramsey again, of the unhappy teenager he’d been. I wondered if he was as miserable now that he was part of the Paranormal Alliance in the south. Now that he had a little she-wolf for a mate. I’d tried to join the Alliance in the hopes that there would have been another were-bear out there that we hadn’t known about, but my father had found out that I’d contacted the Alliance and shut that avenue down.

He liked me being single and lonely, I realized. If I’d never gone into heat, he would have been fine with me being alone all my life. I frowned at the thought.

And then I sat up, thinking hard.

Leif’s bright blue gaze searched my face. “What is it?”

“If I leave, would you follow me? Even though it means leaving your family behind again?”

Leif’s smile was beautiful to see. “You’re the only reason I’m here. My family is with you. You, and whoever we have growing in here.” His hand brushed my stomach.

A burst of love shot through me, and I leaned forward and kissed Leif on the mouth, hard. “You’re wonderful, you know that?”

He grinned and kissed me again. “So what’s the plan, love?”

“I think we’ll pay Ramsey a visit.”

To say that my father wasn’t pleased by our decision was an understatement. Actually, my father wasn’t pleased with anything that involved me. He’d seen me come out of the woods, hand in hand with my mate, and had tried to send Leif away again.

We’d ignored him.

When his bluster didn’t work, he threatened to call Leif’s father, citing that Leif’s refusal to obey simply showed his mental illness and suggested that the elders wouldn’t look well upon this.

For the first time in my life, I realized it was an empty threat. I didn’t care what the elders thought of us. If they wanted to separate us, I wanted no part of being in the clan any longer.

So we ignored my father and went to my garage apartment to get my things and dress. My hands trembled as we did, but Leif’s strong presence at my side made things easier.

With Leif at my side, I could do anything.

I packed light - there wasn’t all that much I needed, really. My laptop for work, clothes to change into, and some personal toiletries. My phone. My savings account had been tapped out due to my Antarctic trip, but Leif told me he had an IRA he’d planned to use for college that had been accumulating money all this time. It would be more than enough to cover anything we needed when we got to our new home.

A new home. Strange, how invigorating and freeing that sounded.

Leif had one bag - a backpack - that was sitting on my front porch. He’d apparently come with intentions of not leaving my side again. I’d adored the sight of that, and kissed him long and hard out of pleasure.

God, I loved that man.

When my car was packed up with the last of my possessions, my father showed up again with Gunnar Ludvik in tow. “What do you think you’re doing, Niko?” Father asked in an angry voice as he saw the boxes in the back of my little sedan.

“I’m leaving with Leif,” I said.

“Leaving?” He sputtered. “Do you want to be exiled like this fool you mated?”

“Fool?” Gunnar asked, turning an angry face toward my father. “My son is not a fool. You brought me here to talk sense into the boy, not to insult him.”

“He is leading my sweet daughter to ruin!” My father roared.

“Am I?” Leif murmured at my side, amused. “Have I corrupted you?”

“Only the parts I wanted corrupted,” I told him with a cheeky grin. Now that we’d made our decision, I felt so light. So…free. So happy. Why couldn’t I see how the clan’s ridiculous rules was smothering me? Without them, the world seemed full of possibility once more.

“You cannot go,” my father demanded, charging forward. “Your elders forbid it.”

“And if we go,” Leif asked, coming to stand in front of me protectively when my father approached. “What will you do? Exile us?”

“This will be no turning back for you, son,” Gunnar said in a low, sad voice. “Are you sure this is what you want?”

Leif looked to me. I knew if I said the word, he’d stay…because he loved me. He’d be willing to put up with their bullshit all to make me happy. Such a wonderful man. I felt so lucky. So I simply smiled and nodded at him. He winked at me, then turned back to his father. “I’m sure.”

Gunnar drew his son in for a long hug, and murmured something in his ear. Then he clapped his back and released him. “If I cannot stop you, then so be it.”

Leif patted his father on the shoulder, and then stuck his hand out to my father to shake. “Mr. Aasen.”

My father glared at Leif, then looked at me again. “You’re making a mistake, Nikolina. You will be exiled—“

I ran forward and impulsively kissed my father on the cheek. “Bye, Daddy. Wish us luck.”

“Never!” His face was turning beet red. “You stop this right now! You—“

We ignored him and climbed into my car. The two elders stared at us as we backed out of the driveway and pulled onto one of the side roads that would lead to the highway…and eventually out of the Ozark Mountains.

Leif was watching me as I drove. His hand went to my thigh, a caress of support. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” I said. “Actually, I am.” My father would be upset right now, but eventually he’d calm down enough to talk. And there were phones for those sorts of things. I felt free, and light…and happy. “It’s a long drive to Texas, though.”

“I’m glad I’ve got good company,” Leif told me.

I grinned, and headed down the road. “So what did your father say to you when he hugged you?”

“He said for me to get settled, and then to let him know where we were at, and he would join us. He’s tired of the games, too.”

I laughed out of pure joy.

When we pulled into the parking lot at Midnight Liaisons, it was pitch black outside. The strip mall storefront was lit up, and I knew they were open late hours. They had to be, considering some of the clients were nocturnal.

“What is this place?” Leif asked with a yawn.

“Dating agency,” I told him.

His eyebrows wrinkled as he considered this. “So why are we here?”

“Because I think they have Ramsey’s address.” I leaned over and gave him a long, lingering kiss. “Wait for me here?”

“I’d wait for you forever. You know that, right?”

God, that man. I was totally going to eat him up when we stopped for the evening. I gave him another fierce kiss before climbing out of the car. We could always get a hotel for the night. I wanted nothing more than to claw Leif’s clothing off and throw him down on the nearest bed…but we were so close to our destination that it seemed silly to stop now.

I entered the small dating agency office and sniffed the air. Smelled like humans. For a moment, I wasn’t sure I was in the right place.

“Hi there,” said a peppy blonde, standing up behind a nearby desk covered in pink supplies. “I’m Ryder. Can I help you?”

“I’m looking for the shifter dating agency,” I said bluntly. “This the right place?” She smelled human, but the moon logo on the back wall was throwing me off.

“That’s us,” she said cheerily. “You need me to help you find the right man - or woman - of your dreams?”

“Actually, I need the address of Ramsey Bjorn.”

Her cheery look faded just a touch. “I can’t really give out information on our clients. I—“

“I’m Nikolina Aasen,” I said to her. “His betrothed. I’ve come down from the bear clans to get him.”

It was pleasant to see her eyes bug out, just a little. She blinked at me for a moment, then typed something into the computer.

“Aasen has two A’s,” I said helpfully.

She looked over at me, and I watched her type again, noticing she hammered down on the ‘A’ key twice. She was searching my name. A moment later, she peered at her screen, then at me.

“Oh shit.” She looked terrified.

“So can I have his address? I’d like to say hello to an old friend.” I didn’t bother to tell her that I had a mate. She was human, so she couldn’t see the mate mark on my neck, and it’d be easier to get information out of her if she thought I still had a connection with the other were-bear.

Ryder hesitated for a moment, then pulled out a bright pink post-it. She scribbled something on it with a glittery pen, then ripped the post-it off and held it out to me. “You totally did not get this information from me.”

I smiled at her. “Thank you.”

“And if you’re murdered by a tiny little she-wolf, just keep my name out of it.” Ryder gave me a pained smile.

I laughed. I was six foot tall and could shift into bear form. I could handle a werewolf. “I haven’t been here.”

“Exactly.”

It was almost another hour before we pulled onto a gravel road out in the middle of the country. In the distance, a large Victorian loomed, every light on in the house despite the late hour.

“Something tells me that we’re expected,” Leif mused.

“I’m guessing the little human made a phone call after I left,” I told him. “She looked like she was a bit freaked out.”

“Then we’ll go to the door together.”

That sounded fine to me. We got out of the car and I inhaled the crisp night air. Texas smelled different than Arkansas. Less lush, but more grassy. It was a smell I could get used to. Leif’s scent wafted toward me, and my hand slid into his. He was my favorite scent, I decided. I moved closer to him and we approached the house together.

It was a cute house, in a sprawling, antique-ish sort of way, though I caught the faint scent of new lumber and fresh paint….and the smell of were-bear and wolf, all over the grounds. I wrinkled my nose at the doggy scent. Bears smelled so much cleaner, at least to my nose.

Before we could take one step onto the porch, the front door opened. A man stepped out.

Ramsey didn’t look like I’d remembered. Whereas Leif was all lean, corded muscle from the harsh island living and probably days of missing meals, Ramsey was like a chunk of concrete. He was thick and broad. His hair was long and brushed his collar, and three days growth of blond beard shadowed his hard face. He was also frowning quite fiercely at the sight of me.

“Hi, Ramsey,” I began.

A small, pink-haired female lunged out the door, and I barely caught a glimpse of flailing arms and legs as she tried to bodily launch herself at me, only to be snagged by Ramsey, mid-air. “Let me at her,” the little she-wolf snarled. “She can’t have you! I’ll claw her eyes out! I—“

“Sara,” Ramsey said in a low, gruff voice that brought back painful teenage memories. Memories of parents shoving us together and forcing us to talk to each other, since we were betrothed. Wow. I hadn’t realized how uncomfortable I’d been all those times until I heard Ramsey’s voice.

My hand tightened on Leif’s and I was suddenly glad things had turned out the way they had. To think I’d once been sad that Ramsey had left me a spinster and we’d never marry. Now I was glad that things happened the way they did.

I’d simply been waiting for Leif all my life.

“She’s not taking me from you,” Ramsey said to the small female squirming in his arms. His voice was patient and even loving. It was kind of cute.

So was the fact that Leif had stepped in front of me the moment she’d lunged forward. He was so sweet.

“I just want to talk with Ramsey,” I said, linking an arm around Leif’s waist and pulling my body against his back in a possessive movement. “My mate and I have been exiled from the bear clan and we wanted to talk to another were-bear that’s left them behind.”

The woman — Sara — stopped squirming in Ramsey’s arms. “Did she just say ‘mate?’” she whispered.

Ramsey grunted in something that sounded like agreement.

“Oh.” She patted his side. “Put me down, Huggy Bear. I’m good now.”

He did, and I watched as the woman - goodness, she was a tiny thing - straightened her clothing and smoothed her short, wild pink hair. She was wearing jeans and a t-shirt that said GAMER GIRLS DO IT WITH JOYSTICKS and when she looked at me, she studied me with that same wary look.

I pushed one of my thick blonde braids aside and revealed my neck and the mate mark there.

Immediately, a smile blossomed on Sara’s face. She gestured for us to approach. “Well, don’t just stand there. Come on in!”

Ramsey snorted, though his hand went to his mate’s neck and he pulled her against him and gave the top of her head a kiss.

My fingers tightened on Leif’s hand, but we went into the house.

The interior had an interesting shabby chic to it. There were shelves of gaming books and code books, and what looked like an entire shelf of various computer games. A big TV hung on a back wall, and the entertainment center below it was crammed with gaming consoles. There were ratty, comfy couches scattered in the living room, and at the far end, I could see what looked like a study that was set up with two big computers side by side.

Someone here was clearly into computers. Ramsey? That didn’t seem like the man I remembered, but maybe he’d changed in the years that he’d been gone.

“Nice place,” I said politely.

“My Huggy Bear made it for me,” Sara said in a cheery voice. As she passed by Ramsey, she grabbed his ass and squeezed. “Made a den for his mate. Isn’t that sweet?” When Ramsey sat down on one end of the couch, she immediately crawled into his lap.

Possessive little thing. I bit back my laugh. I did not want Ramsey. Not when I had Leif. “Very sweet.”

Leif sat down on one of the couches opposite Sara and Ramsey, and tugged on my hand so I’d sit down next to him. I didn’t need coaching - every moment I could spend with Leif was a wonderful one, and I was all for it.

“So what brings you two here and so late at night?”

“We just left the clan and didn’t have anywhere else to go,” Leif said. “My mate wanted to come and see Ramsey.”

“Oh?” Sara tried to keep her tone light, but I could hear the concern in it.

“Yes,” I said, and was unable to resist needling her. “I thought I’d come and talk with him about his apology.”

Immediately, Ramsey’s arm snaked around Sara’s waist, holding her down.

Leif squeezed my hand. “That was naughty of you,” he murmured.

“Apology?” Ramsey asked. Not a man of many words, that Ramsey. So he hadn’t changed that much since when I’d known him before.

“Yeah. For years I dreamed of making Ramsey apologize for leaving me a spinster. I resented him for a really, really long time. A long, long time,” I said, smiling. “But then I found Leif, and I realized that Ramsey’s leaving was the best thing that could have happened to me.” I looked over at Leif’s blue eyes and beamed, my heart full of love. “And so I wanted to come and tell him that. That I was okay.”

“I’m glad,” Ramsey said in a gruff voice.

Sara stiffened in his arms. “That so? Because I—“

He silenced her with a quick kiss, then said, “Felt guilty for her. Not for me.”

“Oh.” Sara blushed and looked over at me. “I understand.”

“Was it hard for you to leave?” I asked Ramsey. So far, I had no regrets but I wondered if they’d kick in later.

“I have never looked back,” Ramsey said after a long moment. Then, he added, “But I felt bad I ruined your life.”

“Not ruined at all,” I said, and squeezed Leif’s hand again. “I have my mate, and we’re expecting a child. All we need is a home.”

“Home is where you make it,” Ramsey said.

“That’s right,” I said, surprised to hear Leif’s words echoed in the fellow exile. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all.

“A baby?” Sara’s face softened. “A baby bear? That is so cute.” She patted Ramsey’s arm that was linked tight at her waist. “We should let them stay in the cabin. Just until they get on their feet.”

“Oh,” I said quickly. “We didn’t come to impose. I just wanted to reconnect with Ramsey. He’s the only kin that Leif and I have now.”

“Stay,” Ramsey said. “We have room.”

“And you can tell me all about the bear baby,” Sara said, grinning. “I’m taking notes for the future.”

To my surprise, big burly Ramsey blushed beet red. As he did, I noticed even darker marks on his neck. Were those…? His long hair swung over them again, and I missed my chance to see it.

But it made me think.

Once Sara had realized I wasn’t coming to stir trouble between her and Ramsey, she was a fiery little bundle of excitement. I doubted she stood taller than five foot and probably weighed less than a hundred pounds, so it was interesting to see her stand up to massive Ramsey and lead him around with affectionate pats and groping. She chatted with me as she dragged blankets out of their linen closet and led Leif and I to a small detached house on the far end of their property. They had friends and guests stay here occasionally, she told me, and there was a faint smell of old werewolf in the tiny cabin. It was no more than a one-room cabin with a bathroom, but it would be perfect for Leif and I.

“I hate to impose,” I told her.

“Nonsense,” Sara said with a wave of her hand. “You’re Ramsey’s family. You can fill him in on what’s been going on with the bears while he’s been gone. I know he gets curious from time to time.”

“All right,” I said, and glanced out the window at Leif and Ramsey, who were unloading my car. “Can I…ask something personal?”

“Of course.” She thumped a stack of blankets into my arms.

“Are those…mate marks on Ramsey’s neck?” I saw them all over her neck, but I could have sworn I’d seen similar on Ramsey, though his hair covered most of it before I could get a good look.

“Yup,” Sara said proudly. “I figured if they can claim us, we can claim them right back.”

Oh, I liked that. I liked that a lot. “You’re a smart woman.”

She grinned.

A short time later, we were alone in the cabin. Ramsey (well, mostly Sara speaking for Ramsey) promised to show us around and introduce us to others in the Paranormal Alliance the next day so we could connect with other shifters in the area.

Leif and I talked about our plans. We’d cash out Leif’s IRA and, if we liked Texas - though if the other shifters we met were as friendly, I was pretty sure we’d like it — we’d see about putting a down payment on a house here.

It didn’t matter to me as long as I was with Leif.

I changed into pajamas and collapsed on the bed, suddenly exhausted. It had been a long day. I felt emotionally drained and as wrung out as an old towel. When Leif slid down on the bed next to me and pulled me in his arms in a languid motion, I suspected he felt the same.

But…I was ecstatically happy. I’d never imagined being so completely and utterly content. Exile? Seems it agreed with me after all.

“So,” I said to my mate. “What do you think?”

“I think I love you,” Leif said, and then touched my stomach. “And I think I love our child. Everything else doesn’t matter much.”

I smiled. “You’re easy to please.”

“I have everything I want in this bed right here with me.” He nibbled on my ear. “You know, I’d be perfectly happy if you wanted to return to Antarctica…or even back to the clan. Just as long as we’re together.”

I touched his cheek, full of love. “I like this place. We’ll see how things work out, yes?”

He nodded.

My hand slid to his neck, and I admired that tanned, beautiful skin. Sara’s comments had given me a great idea. I rolled over on the bed until I was seated atop my mate’s hips, my legs pinning him down.

“Mmm. Guess you’re not that tired,” Leif said with a grin.

“Guess not.” I leaned forward and pressed my mouth to his neck.

“What are you doing?”

“I learned something today,” I told Leif, my lips brushing over the sensitive skin of his throat. I was pleased to feel the shivers of reaction my featherlight caresses coaxed from him.

“What’s that?” He sounded a bit hoarse, and his hand slid backward to cup my ass.

“That if I want something in life, I need to claim it for my own.”

“I think this sounds good. What did you have in mind?”

“The only thing that matters.” And I bit down on my mate’s neck, claiming him for myself.

His groan of pleased surprise was delicious to hear. And as his hands slid up my back, I couldn’t resist another claiming bite on his neck.

By the time the sun rose on the small cabin that was our new temporary home, Leif had been claimed so many times that no one would ever doubt again that he was entirely mine…or that I was entirely his.

** The End **