I moved to his side and ran my nose across his little belly before gently nipping him and then moving to the other side of the room in a game of chase. He ran after me, knocking over everything in his way. Bailey quickly shifted, and Mom followed, and then the game moved from the playroom to the kitchen and then out the front door. I heard Alex give a mighty whoop and run after us.
Before long we were all in the yard, chasing each other. I stuck close to Mason and let him catch me a few times before chasing after him. He was fast for his age and gave me his all. I’d never felt prouder of anything in my life. This amazing little life had come from me. My heart ached for how many years and how much time I’d missed with him, but I’d make it up to him. He’d never have to worry about anything again.
I felt Sammie watching us from the porch and stood on my hind legs to get her attention. I let out a mighty roar and hit my chest, showing her how much of an idiot I could really be. She shook her head, but when she looked away, I saw a smile on her lips. I was going to win over my son and Sammie too. There was no turning back.
I smelled Matt coming up the drive and turned to him just as he was stripping down to shift and join the fun. He tackled me to the ground and we rolled into Alex, taking him down with us. Michael stood off to the sidelines, watching. I felt my brother’s pain in that moment and crawled out from under Matt to go to him.
Michael wasn’t much for shifting, not for fun. It had been years since he shifted for anything other than emergency situations. An accident when he was younger had scarred him, physically and mentally. We were all still connected to one another in our own way, though, and I felt the unhappiness rolling off of him in waves.
I stood up in front of him, watching him as he frowned at me. I huffed and then shoved him by the shoulder. My bear wanted our brother to play.
“Knock it off, Luc.” He ground his teeth together and then turned and headed off in long strides.
I roared at him and then heard the same noise come from below me. I looked down at Mason and forgot my brother’s troubles for the moment. My son was trying to imitate me.
Sammie came towards us, holding berries. “Look what I found for my bears.”
Mason ran towards her and reached for the berries, but she held them over his head and shook her finger at him. “That’s not how we take food from humans. Unless you want to eat my fingers, too.”
Mason made a gagging sound and gave his own little huff at her.
“What? You want to eat my fingers?! This little bear is a wild man!” She leaned down and tickled his belly. “If you eat my fingers, how will I tickle you?”
He laughed and then suddenly, Mason wasn’t a bear anymore. My jaw dropped as I watched him become a scrawny little kid with shaggy brown hair and the gangliest looking limbs I’d ever seen.
Sammie dropped the berries she was holding and screamed. She scooped him up and held him tightly to her chest. I watched with my heart in my hand as the biggest tears I’d ever seen rolled down her cheeks and her body shook from her silent sobs.
“I don’t want to eat your fingers, Sammie. You’re silly.”
I shifted back and almost fell to my knees. Seeing him as bear was one thing, but seeing him as a little boy knocked the air out of my lungs. I ran over to them and pulled them both into my arms. Mason struggled against being smothered by us, but it quickly turned into a bout of giggles.
CHAPTER 9: Sammie
“What’s so funny, boy?” Lucas’s voice shook with unshed tears and I had to remember to keep breathing. Everything in me was overwhelmed with emotion and feelings that I couldn’t make sense of.
“You’re naked and you’re hugging Sammie.”
I felt my cheeks turn red and lightly pulled out of his embrace. I sat Mason down and cupped his soft cheeks in my hands. “I’ve missed your little boy face so much.”
He moved into the touch, smiling at me. “You smell good, Sammie.”
I fell to my knees and held him against my chest. I kissed his head and cheeks and said of prayer of thanks all over again that nothing had happened to him. “You smell good, too.”
He suddenly pulled away and frowned. “You’re crying.”
I touched my face and realized that I was. So much for keeping it together. As excited as I was about Mason being a little boy again, I couldn’t help but think about what it meant for me. I would have to leave him, return to work. I would show my boss that he was okay and with his father and then I’d have to go home. Away from Mason. Away from Lucas. The thought sent a pain through me that was so harsh it felt like a dagger in my chest. I whimpered.