Stranded With Her Bear: BBW Paranormal Shape Shifter Romance (Bear Bluff Clan Book 3) (6 page)

“Not at all, in fact I can’t wait to see you. I never thought I’d end up with a little cat.”

“What are you?” she asked, suddenly wondering what kind of creature he was. She couldn’t imagine such a big man as a small cat. Maybe a lion?

“I am a bear.”

“A bear. You mean there are lots of other creatures other than cats?”

“Yes, I guess, maybe everyone you can think of. I know plenty of bears, and then there are the wolves, cougars, panthers, and lions. Over in the east, I believe there are horses too.”

“Wow. Until I met you, I thought I was alone.” It was the truth; she had thought she was the only one afflicted with … well, what did you call the thing that happened to her? She didn’t really know.

“You are anything but alone. Especially now, Willow. I know I come over all confident and brash. But I promise you, I only have your best interests at heart and I will protect you with my life if I have to. Whoever might want to hurt you will have to go through me from now on.” His face was fierce, the sudden change startling.

It scared her, but she believed him, his eyes didn’t lie. Sexy and confident, he would be too good for her without the bond. This was what she thought about as she finished her meal, savouring every last delicious crumb. While she ate she glanced around the bar, taking in the myriad of people. Some were couples, so wrapped up in each other they were oblivious to the rest of the world. If such a thing really existed, then these were mated couples. Then there were those who were simply flirting with each other, looking for some fun. Sprinkled in amongst the crowd were small pockets of males, talking amongst themselves, and lone females eyeing up the man they would like to take to their bed. The majority of those were casting glances at Trent.

She wanted to scream at them, to tell them he was hers. Maybe if she allowed her panther to escape they would get the message more readily. But one look at Trent showed her he was oblivious to them, so she turned away and ignored them, allowing herself to fully enjoy both her meal and her man.

“Ready to go?” he asked, when he had settled the bill.

“Yes, at least I think so.” She tried to smile, but her nerves were too frayed. While she was eating, it was all too easy to push what would come next to the back of her mind. But now, with a sticky slice of chocolate cake churning around in her stomach, along with her steak and fries, the reality of changing into her panther made her feel sick.

“Hey, it’ll be fine.” He reached out and touched her hand lightly, not with any sexual intent, but it had an effect on her that she found arousing. As if he had lit a fire in her nervous system, the flames of her desire burned. She was tempted to turn her hand and let him stroke her palm, to fan that fire which longed to burn out of control.

“OK,” she said weakly

“You are in expert hands,” he said. “You’re mine now.”

“And if I want to leave?” she asked quietly.

His expression softened and he almost purred as he said, “Oh, honey, once you know what a good man you have as a mate, you will never want to leave.”

Did that sound too cocksure? He meant it; he was going to make sure that when she eventually wound up in his bed, and she would, make no mistake, she would never want to leave. Or so he hoped. Because he wanted her in his life forever. All the other women, like Pamela and Carol, were nothing compared to her. His heart and soul belonged to her. It was as if she had him on a leash.

He got up from the table and waited for her to put her coat on. Then he followed her out of the bar, guiding her to the entrance with his hand, which barely touched the small of her back. And yet fire shot through him, his veins pumping hot blood around his body, waking up his bear.
Soon
, he told it,
soon
.

The cold hit them as soon as she pushed the door open. Not the chill brought on by a biting mountain wind. This cold penetrated your bones and pushed through into your subconscious, to scrape its brittle cold fingers against your mind. A cold that made your blood stop mid-flow, leading to a fatigue which begged you to lie down in the snow for one long minute. A minute that would stretch to eternity.

“Let’s not hang around here too long,” Trent said, ignoring any protests she might have and wrapping his arms around her. “Once you change, the cold won’t bother you.”

“Really? Because I have trouble believing that I will ever feel warm again.” She burrowed into his warmth, and he had to admit he liked the idea of prolonging their stay out in the cold, just so that they could stay like this. Maybe when they went back to their rooms, she would be so cold, he could offer to warm her up, bare skin against bare skin.

He put his sensible head back on; he needed to concentrate, to make this as easy as possible for Willow. “Wait until you change into your panther. Then you’ll be warmer.”

“I’ll take your word for that,” she said, her teeth chattering now as the cold took hold.

He moved faster through the streets; luckily, they had been cleared after the snowfall, and with the addition of grit, there was no danger of slipping. Turning quickly to the left, he took her down a narrow alleyway. When they emerged on the other side, they were opposite the edge of a small wood, which led up onto the mountain.

It was here he took her, the temperature perhaps a few degrees warmer under the shelter of the high branches. As they walked, each time they brushed against a tree, a sprinkling of snow would fall, giving the night a magical quality.
Dreamlike
, that was how he would describe it. He turned to look at Willow. His dream had come true, and he wanted his fairy-tale ending.

Damn, he sounded like a sap. “Here,” he said in his deep voice. All male: no fairy tales here, no nonsense either. This was his future wife, and she needed his help to accomplish the thing she was born to do. Change into her animal. In the hope that, by making her complete, she might finally understand the bond between them and stop fighting it.

“You’re sure about this?”

“Absolutely. Now first, I am going to change. Watch how I do it and then, when it’s your turn, I’ll talk you through it. OK?” he asked, noting the paleness of her skin. He had never seen anyone so scared before.

“What if I lose control?”

“You won’t. Before you change I’ll tell you how to come back to yourself.”

“OK,” she nodded.

“Ready?” he asked.

She nodded once, and he decided that he would be quick, to stop her having time to change her mind. He pictured his bear, and had to fight it to stop it bursting from him. Instead, he used his concentration to step into it, allowing his human form to leave the world for a fraction of a second before the bear began to materialise. Slowly, or else he would be left completely disorientated, he allowed the bear to stand and look at their mate.

In the eyes of his animal, she was even more beautiful. His bear appreciated her voluptuous figure, the span of her womanly hips and the swell of her breasts. At a base level, all his bear wanted was to procreate. His sole aim was to put a cub in the belly of his mate and raise cubs with her.

Carefully, watching in case she decided to run, his bear took one solid step forward. Pausing, he watched the fascination sweep over her face. Then she came to him, not afraid at all. Her hand was outstretched, but before she touched him, she asked, “Do you mind if I stroke you?”

In answer, he took two steps forward and let her hand brush along his shoulder. His bear shuddered in delight, lifting his head and breathing her scent into his bear snout. Opening his mouth, he roared in delight at finally having her in his life. The search was over; the next stage of his life was about to begin. And both forms of Trent could not be happier.

“My turn,” she said.

She was brave, too. What a fine mate to have. The fates truly had smiled on him. Reluctantly, his bear allowed his human form to return. It was time. Time to awaken the knowledge that had been buried inside Willow. Knowledge that would make her desire him as a mate.

“Can we go over it one more time?” She was so excited, it was a struggle to keep the process straight in her head. The thing that had scared her for so long was close to being under her control, thanks to Trent’s patience.

“When you are ready to change back, keep an image of yourself, your human self, in your mind. As if you were looking at yourself in the mirror. Then you step into it. No matter what your panther wants, you hold onto that image. It takes some practice. But we have time.”

“Got it,” she said, but she didn’t know how much time they had; she was freezing. If she didn’t change soon, she would have to go back inside to warm up. Along with her body, her mind was beginning to slow, her thoughts a little foggy. Not something she could deal with while trying to control changing into a panther. The thought made her tremble in excitement, but she saw the look of worry flit across Trent’s face.

“Are you sure? I know how cold you are.”

“I need to do this now,” she said firmly. “OK. I’m ready.”

“Right. So do it slowly, do not let your panther take control. You always need to be the one in charge. Don’t worry: the more you do it, the easier it becomes.”

She nodded. Then she allowed the creature inside her to come forth, to fill her brain with its image, with its essence. Willow could feel it, its sleek black fur, its whiskers and its long, twitching tail. All became so crystal clear she thought that it must be real, that she could reach out and touch it. And she did, her body almost sucked from his world to be suspended in limbo for seconds, before the panther began to take over. They were one, a human and a big black cat combined.

Slowly, she let her body settle, so low to the ground, she felt disorientated by the need to stand on four paws. Her vision had changed too, everything sharper, more in focus. Then she noticed her hearing. It was acute; she could hear the thumping beat of Trent’s heart, almost sense the flow of blood through his veins. She was so aware of everything about him. A combination of pine needles and musk, he smelt like a bear in a way she couldn’t understand, but entwined with this was the smell of fear. He was afraid. Of her.

No, she looked at his eyes and saw he wasn’t afraid
of
her, he was afraid
for
her. Maybe scared that the panther would take control, that he would never see his woman again. To ease his fear, she slid along his legs, her tail in the air, twitching slowly as she moved clumsily. This would take some getting used to, walking on all fours. But the thought was exhilarating. Imagine running like this, jumping, leaping from log to log, rock to rock. The panther flexed its paws, wanting to test itself, test this body she had freed from her subconscious. Willow decided to play it safe and return to her human body before she lost control.

Now she was the one who was scared. What if she was stuck as a panther? Would it be so bad? At least Ollie would never find her, but then she would not be with Trent either, and right now that was what she wanted. Her green eyes looked up at him, seeing his concern and reading in his expression how much she meant to him. He was her mate, that all fell into place now. She could fight it, but she would be fighting her own fate, and that was something she could not win. Her panther wouldn’t let her.

OK, you can do this, she thought
, and made the image of herself in her head. Was that what she looked like? As the thought crossed her mind, the image wavered and then disappeared. Willow tried again. She could do this. How many times had she looked at herself in the mirror? Enough to know what she looked like. Better than anyone else on the planet.

There. She had it. Now, before she lost it again, she stepped into the image, knowing that was who she was. The world shimmered out of existence and for a fleeting moment the feeling of being suspended in time washed over her. Then she felt the cold ground beneath her feet. She was returning to herself, but the cold came as a shock, making her stumble forward, gasping for breath.

“Hey, it’s OK. You did it,” Trent said, catching her. Scooping her up, he carried her sure-footedly to the narrow path along the street. He took her straight back to his room and laid her on the bed, trying to warm her up as she slipped out of consciousness once more. This was becoming a bad habit.

When next she woke, his body was next to hers, the familiar heat radiating from him. So warm, so cosy in his arms. She lay and enjoyed it for a few moments before she allowed her excitement to brim over.

“I did it!” she said, turning to look at him.

“You did. Exceptional control,” he said smiling, his eyes caressing her happy face, making her squirm with desire. He had to be one of the most perfect men she had ever met. Maybe she should pinch herself to check she wasn’t dreaming.

“Thank you,” she said, lifting her hand to stroke his cheek, feeling the way his body responded to her. Then she leaned forward, and very lightly kissed his lower lip, waiting for his response. He froze.

“I thought you wanted me.” Her voice and her confidence wavered.

“I do, more than anything, but I don’t know if I can stop myself once I let myself respond. Think carefully, Willow, and if you want to go back to your room, I’ll take you.”

She shook her head. “No. I’ve made my decision. Before … well, it sounded ridiculous that you would want me. But now, having seen you as a bear and then turning into a panther, I have to believe the other side of it. Don’t I?”

“I hope so,” he said with a groan, his hand threading through her hair and pulling her to him.

That first kiss scared her; it gave her a glimpse of the power of his love. He was a force, one that, now loose, took control of her body. Turning her onto her back, he quickly unbuttoned her shirt, dragging it from her body. Then her bra parted company with her breasts, his hands so quick she couldn’t understand how he moved so fast.

“How?” she asked, as she grabbed his hand.

“Another one of our many gifts. But don’t worry; I’m going to go real slow now.”