Once Upon a Shifter (27 page)

Keeping his finger on her clit, softly circling, he began to move in and out of her. As he made slow, measured thrusts, Dina lowered her head onto her hands, and pressed her hand over her mouth. What Logan was doing to her felt so intense that she had to restrain herself from screaming. Her pussy walls were on fire, his cock turning them to liquid heat. Her muscles gripped his cock, each thrust sending them into tiny spasms. His thrusts quickened, and became harder, each one filling her to the hilt, his pelvis butting deliciously against her ass. Before long, the spasms turned into a violent tremor, and she held her breath, feeling like she was falling through space. One hard thrust knocked her over the edge, and she exploded in an intense, powerful orgasm, beginning at her clit, and detonating in waves deep inside her.

Logan took her orgasm as a sign to fuck her even harder, and she collapsed on her front, helpless, as he pumped in and out of her unrelentingly. As with the previous night, she came again and again, and, as she hit one, extra strong climax, Logan came too, rasping and growling in her ear.

Afterwards, he stayed on top of her, kissing her back and the nape of her neck.

“That was even hotter than last night, Dina, which I didn’t think was possible,” he murmured. “I didn’t know mating could be so intense. You’re mine, all mine. I can’t wait for the day that I fill you with my seed, and you bear our first cubs. I can’t wait to make love to you while you’re pregnant, your belly gently swelling with our babies.” Dina wriggled with delight. She couldn’t wait either. She was so ready to have Logan as her lifelong mate, and bear his cubs.

*

Logan was as good as his word. Dina didn’t leave his place all of the following week. They stayed holed up in his cozy cabin, having rough, tender, energetic sex. He attended to her every need, cooking her amazing meals from his overstocked fridge, all of which had a strong meat focus. She ate deer, wild boar, moose and rabbit, all cooked to perfection.

On the following Saturday, Dina woke up to the sound of a beeper going.

“What’s that?” she said drowsily, rubbing her eyes. When she opened them fully, she saw that Logan was already out of bed, pulling his clothes on.

“It’s an alert. It means that there’s a fire emergency somewhere in the forest, and my boys and I have to go deal with it.”

“Is it bad?” she said, pulling herself into a sitting position.

“No. We just have to watch out for forest fires. It probably means that someone lit a campfire somewhere they shouldn’t have.” He walked over and kissed her on her forehead. “It’s still early. Go back to sleep, sweetheart, and I’ll wake you in a couple of hours with breakfast.”

“Ok,” she said uncertainly. As he crashed out of the cabin, she lay back down, not thinking she’d fall back to sleep at all. But, within minutes, she was sound asleep again.

When Dina next awoke, it was to the sound of animal growls and snorts. She sat up quickly.
What is that?
She drew the curtain aside, but couldn’t see anything unusual, so she pulled on the shirt Logan had been wearing the night before and rushed into the living room to look out of the window. What she saw made her jaw drop.

There were maybe eight huge bears fighting each other right in front of the window. Her heart began to beat fast, and she stifled a small scream. They were wrestling each other, tumbling around in the dirt, and their mouths were open, revealing sharp, white teeth. What the hell was she supposed to do? She wished Logan was here to help her.
Hold on, they’re not actually fighting that aggressively
. As she forced herself to calm down, she saw that they were actually tumbling around like puppies.
They’re playing! I didn’t know adult bears did that. But then, what do I know about bears?
She pulled the curtain a little wider, and one of the bears paused mid-wrestle and looked right at her. It was a black bear, with these really intense, soulful eyes. As she watched, it came right up to the window, and pressed a paw against the glass. The paw was huge, with a large black pad, five smaller pads, and five sharp black claws.
It’s Logan, of course it is
, her rational mind told her, although her heart was still pumping double time. Tense with nerves, she stepped away from the window, and walked to the front door. She opened it cautiously, and the bear was there, on the veranda, standing a little back from the door.

“Logan?” she whispered. The bear walked forward on all four paws, stretched its long muzzle towards her hand, and gave it a lick. She lifted her hand, still trembling a little, and placed it on the bear’s head. Its fur – Logan’s fur – was so soft and luxuriant. Growing more confident, she stroked his ears, and his muzzle, and his cute leathery nose. He turned his head in the direction of the other bears, and she followed his gaze. He gave a little bark, and they stopped rolling around in the dirt, got to their feet, backed up onto their hind legs and raised a paw. They were waving to her. They were all the guys she’d met at the garden party. Not that she could identify them individually, but it was them: Logan’s clan. She waved back at them, and they returned to their tumbles. Logan stepped closer to the door, and nosed it wide open. Slipping past her, he walked into the cabin. Dina followed him hesitantly, and closed the door.

As she stood and watched, something began to change in his bear’s body. His fur seemed to be disappearing. His head was shrinking, the muzzle shortening. His torso became tighter, more compact, while his limbs lengthened. Then it happened in the blink of an eye: he had human skin, and his muscles rippled; there was the sound of bones cracking, followed by a loud crunch and a kind of whoosh. And he was standing on two feet: a naked man. Dina ran over to Logan and wrapped her arms around him. Her eyes stung with emotion. Logan squeezed her tight, gently rubbing her back.

“I’m so sorry for scaring you, baby,” he said tenderly.

“I wasn’t scared,” she whispered. He laughed. “Dina, I could smell it on you. You can’t hide things like that from me, you know!” She looked up at him.

“I’m sorry. I was so happy to finally see you as a bear; I didn’t want you to think I didn’t like it. I was a little scared at first, but as soon as I understood it was you, it was fine.”

“Good,” he said, stroking her face. “I felt like this was the only thing missing from our pair bonding. Now we’re complete.” He lifted her chin with his thumb, so she was looking him in the eye. “Dina, I love you,” he said.

“Oh, Logan, I love you too,” she replied, eyes bright with tears of happiness.

“You do?” he whispered, as if he could scarcely believe it.

“I do. My feelings have been growing for you every day, as we’ve been spending all this time together and getting to know each other so well. And now I feel like we’re so closely joined, we could never be parted.”

“It’s true, baby. We never will be,” he replied, dipping his head, and drawing her into a long, tender kiss.

After what felt like hours, Logan drew back.

“God, you must think I’m a disgusting bear,” he said. “I’ve been running around all morning, and here I am, touching you and I haven’t even had a shower!” Dina laughed in delight.

“You smell great to me,” she said. He smelled earthy and spicy – his usual exciting masculine scent. “But what happened with the fire?”

“Ah, just some idiot starting a fire by dropping a cigarette butt into a litter bin. We put it out easily. But if it hadn’t been reported to us quickly, it would’ve been a different story,” he said, shaking his head. “Now, I’m going for a shower. Want to join me?”

“I’d love to!” Dina said, eyes lighting up.

Chapter Six

Three months later

The town hall looked beautiful. The clan had worked so hard at turning it into the perfect space for both humans and shifters to celebrate, and they’d done an amazing job. There was a huge barbecue, and plenty of outside seating for everyone to hang out and relax. There was a jazz band, of course, and a full bar. The sun was shining, the sky was a perfect blue, and a few of the trees were turning to russet gold, signifying that fall wasn’t far off.

Dina looked around in wonder. As a little girl, she’d thought she’d get married in the town hall, but when she’d grown up, the chances of that happening seemed slimmer and slimmer. And now here she was, being united with the most amazing guy in the world.

She’d made out to her friends that she and Logan had married spontaneously during a weekend away in Vegas. They couldn’t have a legal marriage, because he was a shifter and didn’t have a regular birth certificate. They’d already had a shifter-only ceremony in the forest with the clan. It had been ancient and mysterious, involving complicated rites. Now, they were having a symbolic ceremony with all their friends and family. Dina’s mom had been crying the entire time, and her dad looked like he was going to burst out of pride. Once they’d seen the venue looking so beautiful, Melissa and Kristin had forgiven her for apparently not including them in her wedding. She knew they’d understand once the shifter secret was revealed to them. They were her bridesmaids of course, along with Lauren. They were all wearing mint-green dresses in raw silk, cut in different styles to flatter their figures. Lauren’s dress had been the most challenging to design, as she was almost six months pregnant, and her baby bump was getting big. She was blooming, her skin glowing with health, and she looked deliriously happy.

Dina stood in a spot where no-one could see her, looking at all the happy guests waiting for the ceremony to begin. Logan came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her.

“Are you ready, baby?” he asked, gently rubbing her belly. She wasn’t yet beginning to show, but she could feel the new life inside her, alive and kicking, and growing day by day.

“I’m more than ready, Logan,” she said. She lifted her chin, and he leaned over her shoulder and kissed her tenderly. He looked so handsome in his gray suit and button-down white shirt. Dina was wearing a stunning white satin dress, and a headdress with a long train.

As they walked out into the garden together, all eyes turned on them. Dina looked from one friend and family member to another, and her heart almost burst with happiness. They reached the end of a flower-strewn aisle that the clan had created for them, and the girls took their place behind her, lifting up her train.

Tamika was waiting at the other end of the aisle. Dina and Logan were making out to all the human guests that she was an official wedding celebrant, and she looked the part, in a striking white suit. The jazz band began to play the wedding march, and they walked down the aisle slowly, Dina wanting to savor every single second of it. They stopped in front of Tamika, beneath an arch entwined with passionflowers, just like the one at the garden party.

Shyly, they spoke their vows to each other, a simpler version of the ones they’d spoken at the shifter ceremony, where they’d promised to be each other’s life-long mate. When they’d each said “
I do
” – the two little words that completed their union – Logan lifted Dina’s veil and kissed her. Their friends and family broke out into clapping and cheering.

“Congratulations, darling!” Tamika’s husky English voice boomed, and Dina hugged her. She knew she’d be grateful to her forever for connecting her with Logan. Then she turned to her bridesmaids and hugged them too. She looked from Melissa to Kristin with excitement. Once the shifter ceremony was complete, she was allowed to share the secret with either one of them. She’d been too busy preparing for the human ceremony to have time to do this yet, but once she and Logan returned from their honeymoon in Mexico, it would be top of her list. The only problem was figuring out which one to tell.

THE END

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