And the mate bond seals it, turning the words into something more binding than any vow.
Chapter 9 - Autumn
He'll be here in the morning.
This man who turns into a bear, who saved my life, who's been punishing himself for five years for something that sounds more like tragedy than crime.
He'll be here.
I should still be terrified. My rational brain is screaming that I should be terrified. Shapeshifters are real. The man sleeping in this cabin can transform into a creature that could kill me without breaking a sweat.
But I'm not terrified. Not anymore.
Curious? Yes. Overwhelmed? Definitely. Confused about what this means for everything I thought I knew about the world? Absolutely.
But not scared. Not of him.
Maybe I'm in shock. Maybe my brain has just given up on processing reality and decided to roll with the impossible. Maybe I'll wake up tomorrow and this will all feel like a fever dream.
Or maybe, and this is the thought that settles deep in my chest, warm and certain, maybe I trust him. Despite the bear, despite the violence in his past, despite every logical reason not to.
I trust him.
"Get some sleep, Autumn," he says from his side of the bed. He's lying on top of the blankets again, still maintaining that barrier between us.
"Are you going to sleep?"
"Eventually."
"Will you—" I hesitate, not sure how to ask this. "Will you stay? In the bed? I don't want to wake up and find you've decided to sleep on the floor after all."
There's a pause. Then: "I'll stay."
"Okay." I settle deeper into the blankets, my body finally acknowledging how exhausted it is. "Goodnight, Rhett."
"Goodnight."
I close my eyes, and despite everything, I fall asleep within minutes.
Next Day
I wake to pale morning light filtering through the windows and an empty bed.
My hand reaches across the space where Rhett should be before I'm fully conscious. The blankets are cool. He's been gone for a while.
Panic flares in my chest. He left. Despite his promise, despite everything, he decided it was too complicated and he left.
I sit up too quickly and my ribs protest. The injuries from yesterday make themselves known. My palms sting, my knee aches, my whole body feels like it was used as a punching bag.
But that's not important right now. I scan the cabin frantically. The fire has burned down to coals. There's no sign of him.
"Rhett?" I call out, hating how my voice cracks.
Nothing.
I throw off the blankets and stand, wobbling slightly. My clothes are still hanging by the fireplace. I grab them. Mostly dry now, thank God, and pull them on as fast as my sore body will allow.
He promised. He looked me in the eye and promised he'd be here.
