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When I stood, my head pounded slightly, but it went away as fast as it arrived.
I stood there and listened, looking around. I took everything in for another second before I made my way into the kitchen, mindful of my still slightly sore ankle, and got myself some water.
I drank two large glasses before I finally set the cup down and braced my hands on the counter, staring out the window. The sun had set, and everything was cloaked in inky darkness. I could hear the howl of wind. The violent pounding of ice and water hitting the glass followed.
I shivered, but it wasn’t from the cold. A chill raced over my arms and legs, because I knew at any second I wouldn’t be alone, that I’d have to face this new reality of what was happening and who—or what—had brought me here.
And as much as that should have frightened me, I felt a strange tightening in my belly.
My heart started beating faster for far different reasons, and my body lit up as if I had touched a hot coal.
I stood, seeing a large hallway off to the side. My feet were moving before I realized what I was doing.
The first door opened up to show a massive bed in the center of the room. The second room was designed in much the same way, but this bed was a little bigger than the previous one.
The last room at the very end of the hallway had the largest bed out of the three.
I imagined the bear creatures sleeping atop them, their big, beast-like bodies sprawled out across the top. My body once again lit up, and every erogenous zone tightened as my blood heated.
I started breathing a little faster and harder as images played through my mind, things I’d never thought about before.
I had just shut the bedroom door when I heard a heavy sound coming from outside. There was a distinct scrape-scrape-scrape of nails against wood. For one second, there was a pause of silence, and then I turned to face the entryway, a clear view of the front door.
I held my breath as I saw the handle turn, then the wood door was being pushed open.
A little whimper of something other than fear spilled from me when I spied three sets of golden, glowing eyes already trained right on me.
Well, it was now or never to figure out what my future held.
Chapter
Seven
Bear
I could smell her apprehension instantly, and the protective side of me rose, even though I knew she wasn’t afraid of us.
My brothers and I stayed back, giving her a moment to get her bearings. She looked her fill of us, taking in every aspect of our bodies, starting with our clawed feet up to the tops of our heads.
I was the one to enter the cottage first, my movements slow so I didn’t frighten her further. Our female was strong as she stood her ground, but I could see the rapid pulse at the base of her neck beating quicker. The candles scattered throughout the cottage flickered with the wind rushing in through the opened doorway. Bruin was next to enter, then Ursid. Our youngest brother shut the door quietly behind us, sealing off the torrential weather.
The sweet scent of Goldie’s lingering arousal filled the air. It was faded, not new. But it was incredible. The greatest, sweetest thing I’d ever inhaled into my body.
The cottage started growing warmer with the door closed, the frigid storm cut off. I held a stack of furs I’d taken from the cave, and Bruin had four trout hanging from a line of twine, while Ursid had a bowl of oats to make porridge.
We shook off the snow and ice, droplets falling to the wooden floor before melting quickly. But even the weather couldn’t mask the pheromones pouring off us.
She was in the hallway, presumably had seen our rooms… the ones we had yet to sleep in.
They were ones we made so we each could spend private time with our mate.
“Where am I?” Her voice was soft, tentative.
I took in her scent, loving that I didn’t sense any genuine fear. She was strong, our human, ready to face us, even though we were triple her size and not of her species.
“You’re at your new home,” Bruin grunted, and I snapped my head in his direction, baring my teeth.
“Easy,” I growled, because he said it aggressively, possessively.
Bruin narrowed his eyes at me, his nostrils flaring as his own dominance rose.
We challenged each other frequently—all of us alpha—but I knew he’d back down. Bruin wouldn’t want to frighten Goldie.
He was the one to break eye contact as he looked back at our female. Ursid hadn’t taken his gaze off her the entire time. His chest was rising and falling, and the aroma of his mating need saturated the air.
