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Anything, for Ceci. And for Aaron, too.
I tore along the grass, the scent of both Aaron’s beast and Ceci growing stronger in my snout the closer I got. Bounding through the bushes, past freshly felled trees—Aaron’s grizzly had smacked them over like a tank—I launched myself over a deep-running stream that billowed smoke and reeked of burning electrical wires.
Once on the opposite bank, I fired up the hill as fast as all four legs could carry me. I wasn’t sure—
There it was. The beast, a mountain of fur and malice. Panting, agitated, a behemoth drenched in shadows and moonlight, it was frantically licking at the face of Ceci, who lay among scattered leaves and soil, out cold. Or at least, I hoped only out cold.
A shiver skated along my wolf spine.
What the fuck had happened? The beast hadn’t done this. It seemed desperate to revive its mate. Our mate.
I stood, panting from the sprint, my tongue sucking at the night air, trying to cool down and conserve my strength. Unsure of what the grizzly’s reaction would be to my wolf.
And if I might be about to die.
Ceci groaned, her head moving a fraction, then she turned onto her side, coughing, mumbling a few incoherent words. I’d never been more thankful to hear anything in my life. Even though her near lifeless body stabbed at my heart.
The monstrous bear ambled slowly, whining, until its head nudged her side with surprising tenderness, as if to stir her from her slumber further.
I’d never backed down from a fight in my life, but I knew one thing: either as a wolf or in man-like form, I stood no chance against this creature, one-on-one.
At least shifted back, I would be far better equipped to revive and help Ceci, with my paws changed back to human form and my first aid training. So that was what I did.
Stark naked, but not caring a damn at that moment, I approached. My bare feet crunching on leaves and twigs alerted the beast, and it swung its giant head, staring, jaws open. Teeth as long and jagged as carving knives, it neither roared nor growled, but released a long, steady rumble, like a fucking Harley Davidson revved in its chest.
I was scared, which wasn’t a familiar emotion for me, but I moved towards Ceci anyway, bound by the love of my mate. My palms raised up, gesturing surrender, I said in a soft voice, “Easy, big fella. I want the same thing as you.” I pointed with my outspread palm at Ceci. “I just want to help her. Help our mate. Please, let me help her.”
The beast was unimpressed. It remained where it stood, protecting Ceci with its savage arsenal of claws and fangs.
Taking a deep breath, I tried to remain calm. What in holy fuck was I going to—
“What happened?” Ceci’s voice was shaky, but the words came out clear.
The creature raised its head and roared, sending birds fluttering from nests high above. The creature then returned to within inches of Ceci’s face.
“Ceci, don’t move. Stay calm,” I said, fighting the urge to move, feeling distinctly uncalm.
“Jax,” she replied, her voice strengthening but still shaking off the daze as she peered at me through the woods’ shadowy hues. “Why are you naked?”
The fact she’d even noticed and asked caused some tension to release from my shoulders.She was going to be okay.
She turned her head to the beast, its grumble had softened, but the jaws were still partly open, the fangs no less menacing. With a trembling hand, she reached out, causing the beast to recoil a fraction and snort. Then it moved forward again, making no noise except heavy breathing. Ceci stretched further, her shaking fingers now grazing its snout.
Words stumbling, her fingertips stroking its fur warily, she said, “You—you won’t hurt me…”
The grizzly lowered its massive underbelly onto the ground, moving its snout closer, so she could run her whole hand over it. Then, showing a bravery I’d never have mustered, she started petting its massive jowls simultaneously, clasping and kneading the fur. “You’d never hurt me.”
I took a step forward, a twig crunching under the ball of my foot, and the bear’s growl resurfaced until I moved back to where I’d been. Ceci sat up slowly, making it to her knees, and actually began hugging the thing, whispering to it like it was some floppy-eared little spaniel. “Thank you for saving me. I owe you my life.”
My wolf was howling with jealousy inside. But I told him to be quiet. Monster or not, that bear had just saved our mate.
From who or what, I wasn’t entirely sure. But it was something awful. The way the stream stank, like it had been coated in black magic, the scent of somebody evil, it all lingered, murdering my nostrils and turning my stomach.
I heaved a huge sigh of relief as the monster began rapidly shrinking, retreating back into the human form I was infinitely more comfortable with: Professor Aaron Belanger.
He lay there, naked and shivering, with Ceci cradling him.
Xander, Osric, Vesta and Finnian came running up the hill, their jeans and slacks soaked and smelling foul from the stream. They all ran to Ceci, who was holding the gradually awakening Aaron. Fussing over her, they repeatedly checked she was okay, despite her insistence she was fine. Osric rested a hand over her heart and didn’t seem to want to move it.
