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“If he was afraid for his family, it makes sense that he would quit suddenly and cut all contact. Maybe if we went and spoke to him, we could connect a couple more dots,” Mila continued.
Cyrus grunted in response. What she wouldn’t do to get inside his mind. He was stoic and distant. She knew in her heart that he had too many emotions and thoughts running through his troubled mind.
She lay silently next to him, trying to keep her breath small and restrained. She didn’t want to upset the moment.
For the first time, she allowed herself the space to consider all the events that had happened in the last couple of days.
Gerri Wilder had brought her here as a prize for a billionaire tech genius who wanted her to stay with him. Cyrus Bechtel spent an entire day romancing her with a spa, a dinner, a moonlit walk, and a ride atop his polar bear in the delightful mountain air.
In a short day and a half, she had allowed herself to become so emotionally attached to the man that she was willing to have sex with him. He had a horrifying display of anger, followed by a grand show of groveling.
Then she took him to her bed before being attacked by an intruder. She watched the man she had just shared her bed with turn into a polar bear and fight almost to the death. And now she was sharing a bed with him again.
The roller coaster of this trip had been more than she could process. But now, in the still of the moment, she began to understand exactly what fated mates were about. Even after all the chaos and damage, the doubts and fears … she wanted nothing more than to be by his side.
She wanted to help him, to be with him, to protect him from his past and from their future. Did she consider them an item now after everything they had gone through? Perfect strangers to secret lovers.
Maybe when this was over, there would be such a thing. While she had never considered settling down, this man was the perfect one to do that with, not because of his money or his stunning good looks. But because he was loyal and protective, he was a good man and had already risked his very life for her.
After forty-eight hours, she had fallen in love with this polar bear shifter. She uncurled to look up at Cyrus’s face. He was staring at an unassuming patch on the wall, his eyes searching for something she could never fathom.
Watching his chiseled jaw set in stone, obviously holding tension, she was overcome with emotions. Her eyes began to water, and as the tears fell, she held her gaze on his face.
He slowly lowered his gaze to Mila, eyes softening. He reached out to wipe the tears from her face and pulled her to his chest.
“Please don’t cry, my love. I am here. I have you. You are safe.”
Mila sobbed harder as Cyrus petted her hair. Her tears finally gave way to shaking, halting breaths, and she pushed away from his chest. She sat up next to Cyrus on the bed, looking him directly in the eyes.
“Oh, Cyrus … I am not afraid. Not anymore. Being here with you is the only thing that makes sense. I am so happy to have you, to be here with you, no matter what happens.”
She leaned forward and pressed her forehead to his, closing her eyes. She could feel he had also closed his eyes. She smiled and opened her eyes. He slowly opened his as well.
“No matter what happens,” she breathed before pressing her lips to his.
He pulled her into him and held her tenderly, returning the passionate but gentle kiss. She rolled off him, and he turned to face her.
“We should get some sleep, my love,” Cyrus whispered.
“I love you, Cyrus. No matter what happens.”
He put his arm over her and pulled her close. The warmth and the rhythm of their breathing slowly lulled them to sleep.
The next morning, they woke up in a jumble of limbs. She opened her eyes to see him watching her sleep with a goofy grin. She blushed and curled into him when he promptly kissed her head.
“Good morning,” he whispered.
“Good morning.”
She was smiling so much her sleepy face hurt. She looked up at him with intent.
“Well, my love, shall we get ready for another crazy day?”
He laughed and slowly extracted his limbs from hers. The tone changed the moment they left the bed. It was like they had stepped out of a bubble of protection and back into the uncertain world.
They both dressed without making eye contact and got on the road. They stopped briefly to pick up something for breakfast and then headed out to see Miles. There was no question in her mind that he was mixed into this threatening situation.
They sat in silence, not knowing what the day would hold for them. The drive to Miles’s house was strained as Cyrus was in his head the whole drive. She thought about what this might mean for him, how much of a struggle he must be facing.
