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“Ready?” he asked with a grin.
Quinn just nodded, obviously staring at his body. That was perfectly fine with Julius.
Then he shifted.
It felt like an itch that started in his bones and then exploded out as his body expanded and fur covered him over, quickly. His face got longer and, just like always, he grew claws and a short tail, landed on his front paws.
It was over.
Quinn was standing now, looking half-ready to run, her left hand clutching Hudson’s forearm.
That was a good sign.
He raised his snout and sniffed the wind. Even though he had an abnormally good sense of smell as a human, it was nothing compared to the scent rainbow he experienced as a bear. There was the sharp scent of pine trees, the damp smell of moss and rocks. Two deer to the north; three wolves about a mile to the east.
More than anything, though, there were two overwhelming scents: Hudson and Quinn.
YOUR MATES,his bear-brain thought.
“Can he hear us?” Quinn asked.
“Of course,” Hudson answered. Julius could feel his mate practically vibrating with just the touch of her hand on his arm, the wild thing inside him desperate to claw its way out.
“I mean, can he understand us?”
Julius grunted and nodded.
Hudson smiled.
“Yup.”
Her heart was beating furiously, and Julius could smell her anxiety. He didn’t blame her.
After all, grizzlies were very, very dangerous.
“You’re in control, right?” she asked, this time directly to Julius.
He grunted again.
Then she took her hand off of Hudson’s arm and took a couple of tentative steps forward.
“Can I touch you?” she asked, her voice getting smaller.
Her heartbeat was even faster, and her scent — wildflowers and musk and fear and, impossibly, even a little arousal — was so strong that bear-Julius could almost taste it.
Julius bowed his head. Quinn held her breath and stood perfectly still for a few moments.
Then she closed the distance between them and extended one trembling hand.
She’s going against everything her parents have ever taught her, he thought. The thought gave him a tiny spark of hope, somewhere deep in his heart.
Give it a year.
Her hand reached the top of his snout, and with the pads of two fingers, she stroked the short, velvety fur there, so lightly that it tickled.
His eyes slid closed, and he gave into the enjoyment of letting him touch her. Even just on the nose.
She might do more, his bear-brain told him. She’s come further than you thought.
