Page 36 of Bear’s True Mate

I hung up and lowered the phone, realizing Nolan’s bear was staring at me now. His eyes were warm and steady. There was a hint of Nolan in them somehow. I couldn’t explain it, but he was there still.

He was a bear.

Nolan was a bear.

I still couldn’t wrap my head around it.

The man I’d been falling for had transformed into a literal bear and put himself between me and the worst thing in my life without a second of hesitation.

Nolan’s bear continued to stare at me, like the only thing that mattered to him in this moment was whether I was afraid of him.

I wasn’t.

14

NOLAN

The police took twenty minutes to arrive. I’d shifted back before they pulled up and threw on some shorts from my place before the cruiser’s headlights hit the driveway. Evan was still on the floor with his knees drawn up and his back against the wall, staring at nothing. He didn’t move when the officers came in. Didn’t even speak. He looked like a man whose soul had left his body and hadn’t come back yet.

Rose gave a statement. She told them about their past, his texts, him tracking her down, breaking in, and threatening to harm her if she didn’t come back with him. She didn’t mention my bear. Maybe I should have been focusing on that, but I wasn’t. All I could think about was how well she lied. I mean, I knew she made up stories for a living, but damn. The woman could tell a bold-faced lie without missing a beat.

It was actually impressive… and slightly scary.

Evan didn’t say a word as they cuffed him and walked him out. He kept that blank look on his face all the way to the cruiser. Whatever fight he’d had when he showed up was gone. All that was left was a man in pissed-in khakis who couldn’t stop shaking.

Good.

After the police left, Rose moved to sit on the couch with the blanket wrapped tight around her shoulders. I’d cleaned up the mess my bear had made as best I could, but knew I’d still owed Alister a new coffee table when he came back. There was an awkwardness charging the air, and I could feel Rose’s eyes on me while I cleaned, but I couldn’t meet her stare.

“What are you?” she finally asked, breaking the silence, and I looked at her.

“A bear shifter,” I said.

She nodded, like it was the most natural answer I could have given. “A bear shifter.”

“Yeah.”

“You shift into a bear. At will.”

“Yeah.”

“Have you always been able to do that?” she asked.

“Pretty much. I was born a bear shifter, not bitten and turned.”

She arched a brow. “That’s a thing?”

“Yeah.”

“So, there are others like you?”

“In town? Yeah. More than you’d think. We keep it hidden. Most people don’t know.”

“Most people,” she repeated.

“The people who matter know. Friends. Family. Mates.” The last word came out before I could stop it, and I saw her register it, her eyes seeming to sharpen.

“That’s one heck of a secret.”