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The next thing I knew, I was in his arms. He had me out of the truck, cradled against his chest. I hooked my arms around his thick neck. Snow was everywhere, sliding to fill in the cracks and crevices between us. It was shockingly cold as it hit my skin, but the shock didn’t last long. My skin warmed, and even though it seemed like a relief, I knew in the back of my mind, the part that was trying to stay calm, that this could not possibly be good.
There was no telling how big this avalanche would be. Bjorn pulled me tighter against his body. He was strong in his human form, but it was nothing compared to his strength as a bear. He could crush me if he wanted to. It was awesome and terrifying all at the same time.
“I’m sorry,” I said. We’d been fighting, as usual, when the snow hit the car. I had to say it, whether he understood me or not. With all this snow attempting to bury us alive, I wasn’t even sure if he’d hear me. But if we couldn’t get out of this, I wanted to make sure I said everything in my heart. “I love you.”
His body rumbled against mine, and for my own sanity, I would believe it meant he loved me too.
The white light became blinding, and Bjorn managed to break out of the snow. He shook his body, my body, getting the snow off us. He was holding me tighter than ever.
It was like nothing had ever happened. The sun was still shining, and the road ahead of us was clear. I braced myself and looked over Bjorn’s shoulder, and it was like snowmageddon back there. The road had been entirely swallowed by the avalanche. There wasn’t even any hint of a road.
“You don’t have to carry me anymore,” I said. “I can walk through this much snow.”
He grunted, but did he put me down? Nope. Big surprise, the bear was stubborn.
“So you’re the strong, silent type when you’re wild. Good to know.” I sighed.
Bjorn stopped and placed me on my feet. My legs had turned to rubber, and if I wasn’t just as stubborn as he was, I might have asked him to carry me again.
And then the bear walked away from me. He was headed off the road.
“Bjorn. What are you doing?” I called after him. Oh, no. He was not leaving me to go do mysterious bear business. My first steps were shaky, and my head was swimming. But there was no way I’d let him abandon me in the middle of the road.
He’d gone to all fours and kept looking back at me like he was trying to tell me something.
He grunted.
“I don’t know what you want me to do.”
Ambling back over to me, he grabbed my arm with his mouth, teeth sinking into the leather. He pulled me in the direction he’d been moving. Now that I was closer, I could see there was a path. But it wasn’t one of the nicely groomed hiking paths I’d walked on so many times in Sunset Springs. This one was only used by those who preferred to tread on all fours, and there was so much snow.
“Where are you bringing us? That will lead us to the middle of nowhere.”
Another grunt.
“I can’t understand you.” I was starting to panic. I’d never been up close and personal with shifters until I came to work forThe Mating Game. I hadn’t gotten used to the metamorphosis yet. It freaked me out every time, but I did my best to keep my cool. When I asked the contestants how they felt about having a mate that occasionally went furry, I had to admit, some of it was for my own research.
Did I know that Bjorn and I were destined for this? I couldn’t even think about that right now because I was being pulled away from civilization by a giant polar bear. The snow was getting deeper, and it was getting harder to keep up with him. And it was getting cold. It was already about twenty degrees colder up here than it had been in Sunset Springs when we left. But the sun was already sliding lower in the sky, which meant the temperature would drop fast.
He stopped, but he didn’t let go of me. I took back what I said about him going off on bear business. “Where are we going?”
He nudged me with that big body off the path. Finally, he let go of my arm and started digging. A hole emerged, more like a den, and he grabbed my arm again, pulling me toward it.
“Shouldn’t we stay near the road? In case someone comes?” But soon, it would be dark. It happened fast this time of year. And Bjorn had instincts. At least, I hoped he did.
A sinking feeling became heavier inside me. No one was coming. They would know the road was closed because of an avalanche.
I crouched down inside the den. It was dry, just dirt, dried leaves, and some exposed roots running along the ground like veins. I wrapped my arms around myself. My jeans were wet, my boots weren’t the kind made for trudging through snow, and my jacket was way cuter than it was warm. I’d dressed to impress my date. Not to survive a night outside in the mountains.
Bjorn sat beside me and pulled me into his body. I wrapped my arms around him, and the cold went away. He was huge, strong, and a little rumbly, but having his arms around me and being buried against his chest was like being swaddled in the warmest, softest blanket ever.
I must have fallen asleep or passed out. I woke up, and it was dark. And cold. Not even a giant polar bear could keep it away anymore.
Bjorn made a noise, acknowledging he knew I was awake.
Wriggling my arm between my body and his, I pulled my phone out of my pocket. I thanked the moon and every star in the sky that it hadn’t fallen out and still had some juice. It wasn’t that late, but I had no service.
“Bjorn.” I nestled against his fur, but it didn’t make a difference. The cold had managed to seep into my bones, making my teeth chatter. “I don’t know—”
