Mallory's Bears(60)

“So you show me that by slinging me over a shoulder and hauling me back to a place that I ran from? Is that what you thought would make me want to stay?”

“No. Shit. I don’t know. You didn’t give us much time to think first.” He threw up his hands then slumped in the chair.

She stayed away from Gunner. If she let either of them touch her, she wouldn’t be able to think straight. Half of the time, she was angry that they’d talked her into coming back. But the other half, she was thrilled, excited, and turned on that they had.

She’d always wanted a man, men, who would take charge, the kind of men who were macho and commanding, even to the point of being primal. It looked as though she’d gotten her wish.

“Tell me everything. No holding back anymore. If you don’t, then one way or another, I will leave and this time it’ll be for good.”

Gunner closed his eyes, frowning to put lines where there were none before. “We’ll tell you everything.”

“I’m waiting.” She crossed her arms like a mother ready to listen to her disobedient sons’ excuses.

“We’re werebears. Men who can change into bears anytime we want. We have an inner beast inside us. It’s not a physical thing, but more of an emotional, primal entity that resides within us. When our bears are rising to the surface, ready to shift from human to bear, our eyes change from the color they are to ones filled with amber. When we’re in our bear bodies, our eyes glow with that amber.”

“Oh, my God. I saw amber in the eyes of those people in Shatland. And their teeth, your teeth, can really change into fangs? I don’t know why I’m asking. I saw you.” Would saying those same words over and over make her believe?

“That’s right.”

“So the whole town is filled with werebears?”

“With werebears, faeries, vampires, and more,” added Gunner.

Her mind threatened to shut down. Faeries? Vampires?

“And you want me as your…mate?”

“We love you.”

It was a plain and simple declaration that sent her heart racing.

Rick paced toward her, but she wasn’t ready yet to be held. Not that she didn’t want to. Her body screamed at her to wrap her arms and legs around them. It screamed at her to tell them that she loved them, too. But if she wanted to think straight, she had to stay apart from them.

“Tell us you don’t feel the attraction.”

She opened her mouth to deny it, but even before she could speak, he cut her off.

“You can’t, can you? Go on. Tell us you don’t feel it.”

She couldn’t. As much as she tried, she couldn’t. If she wanted them to tell her the truth, then how could she lie?

Gunner didn’t try to get close, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t see the yearning in his eyes. “We call it the connection. Shifters and their intended mates recognize each other when the connection brings them together. You felt it. We know you did. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have come together that fast. Tell us you know what we’re talking about.”

The connection swept over her again and it was stronger than ever. How could she turn her back on them? She loved them. She had no doubt about that. But did that mean she could live with them knowing what they were?

“I didn’t understand it, but that’s part of it, isn’t it? It grabs hold of you, of your needs buried deep inside you, and doesn’t ever let go, does it? Thinking logically about what you’re doing, who you’re doing it with, flies out the window.”

“That’s as good an explanation as any I’ve ever heard.” Gunner shoved his hands into his pockets, probably to keep from reaching for her. “It’s an invisible bond that will never fade away and will never die. We’re your men, baby, whether or not you accept us, whether or not you decide to stay. We’ll never love another woman.”

She’d longed to hear those words for so many years. And yet, now that she had, they hurt as well as thrilled her.

“Why didn’t you tell me before?”

Rick motioned for Gunner to hold back. “That was my fault. Gunner wanted to tell you earlier, but I wouldn’t let him. Although he ended up telling you anyway.”

“Not that you believed me. I would’ve shifted to prove it, but then that damn call came and we had to leave.”

Rick’s jaw worked as though he had to chew his words before he could speak them. “I wanted it to be just right with enough time for us to answer all your questions and for you to take it in. Part of that was hoping that we could break it to you easy, but a big part of it was that I was just plain scared.”