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“What are you doing?” Marissa broke away from the kiss. The words came out in a shout. She’d been panicked ever since the snow walloped our truck, but in my bear form, I hadn’t been able to calm her down. And now that I was human again, I cut to the chase, going straight for the most foolproof method. Kissing. “You’re naked.”
“And you should be, too.” I pulled her in closer to me.
“What?”
“Yeah. Naked. Take it off.”
“Why? So I can get a twig in some unfortunate spot? You’re in danger of that too, you know.” Her gaze dipped to the ground, and I savored the satisfaction when her eyes widened.
“I had to shift so I could tell you what was happening. You were going into hypothermia. The only way you’ll stay warm tonight is with skin-to-skin contact. Otherwise, you’ll freeze to death.”
I reached for her leather jacket. It was already frozen brittle. She jerked away from me. “I don’t know why you dragged me out to the middle of nowhere. The road was clear.”
“And once highway patrol got word of the avalanche, they’d close it down. At least here, we have a chance of surviving the night.”
“Sweet moon.” She covered her face with her hands. “We’re going to die out here.”
“If you don’t let me get you out of these clothes, you might.”
She looked up at me. It was dark in the den, but I could still see the panic in those dark eyes. “I’m scared, Bjorn.”
“I know you are,” I said softly. I couldn’t let her know I was, too. I had to be brave for my mate and believe everything would be okay. “Are you gonna let me do this?”
She squeezed her eyes closed and didn’t answer. I could feel her body tense. She was shaking from the cold, and I didn’t have much time.
“We need to go back to town,” she said through chattering teeth.
“Not now.”
“Bjorn.” Her body was tense, like she was about to make a break for it.
I put my lips against her ear. “If you run, I’ll chase you.”
She scraped her teeth against her bottom lip. “I might like that.”
“Would you?” I slipped my fingers under the stiff leather and slid it down her arm.
“Yeah.” The shivers intensified. “Tell me what you’d do if you caught me.”
“Oh, I’d catch you.” My cock had already been hard, but now it felt like it might explode. “Why don’t you let me show you?”
“Yes.” The word was barely a breath. I’d waited too long to shift. I’d hoped my bear could keep her warm enough until morning. I couldn’t fail her again.
I’d hoped the next time I had Marissa alone like this, we would’ve been anywhere but here. I’d pictured her in my bed, stripping her slowly of her clothes and defenses. But this couldn’t be about that. She needed my body heat to survive. My temperature would run high for hours after my shift. And if I needed to, I’d be able to go back to my bear form in a couple of hours.
At least, that used to be the case when I shifted regularly. This shift hurt like I hadn’t been to the gym in a while. My muscles remembered what to do, but they didn’t like it.
I’d do what it took to save my mate.
Her hands were so cold on my shoulders. I kissed her again, which might have wasted precious time, but I was losing her. My fingers fumbled with opening her jeans, and I managed to get them down her thighs. She reached down, helping me with the boots.
“This is crazy.” Her voice was so soft.
“It’s not. It’s survival.” I kissed her again, and she pulled away. “Marissa.”
“My phone. It’s in my jacket pocket. Shut it off so we have battery for when we eventually leave here. We are leaving, right?”
“You’re still feisty. Good.” I pulled her against my body to keep her warm and found the phone. I hoped by some miracle there would be a signal, but there was nothing. Not even for an emergency call. “Phone’s off. Now try to relax. I’m gonna do everything I can to keep you safe.”
