33

Cedric shook his head as he approached the house, his nostrils flaring as the sweet scent of Bethany"s rising ovulation flooding them once more. He thought the scent would be fainter outside than in, but as he drew closer to where she was, safe and hopefully still in his bed, the memories of her sweet and ripe taste made his jaw ache and his claws dig a little deeper into the snow. He had to keep his shit together, so they could talk everything out, but it was impossible when she smelled so fucking good, and he was a simple bear.

She was a temptation he couldn"t resist on the best of days, but knowing that she was naked and begging for his cock to fill her luscious body and pound her until he put a baby in her was enough to make even the strongest bear break.

Fuck, he could do this. He could enter the house, put some pants on, beg her to come outside and talk to him with fresh air between them, and—

He froze in front of the steps, listening carefully for any sounds coming from inside. He"d been prepared for her tears, given how he had rushed out with only a broken apology, but had hoped to hear her in the shower or in the kitchen making coffee, but instead, all he heard was silence.

She wasn"t inside the house. And what was worse, he couldn"t hear any sounds from her outside of it either.

In an instant, he was back in his human form and rushing inside, frantically searching for any signs of her. There was no hint of a struggle, no scent of blood or adrenaline, beyond his own now fading from earlier. Her empty bags were still shoved against the wall where they had left them after she unpacked, and a flood of relief rushed through him as he realized she hadn"t packed up and left him. The possibility was something that hadn"t even crossed his mind until he knew she had not, but now, the question of where she was remained up in the air.

Where would she be? Where would she have gone?

Back outside, he sniffed the air, trying to catch a hint of her scent. It was there, fading quickly with the wind, but he searched the snow and found her tracks, leading towards the woods, where he had originally run after rushing out of the house earlier.

She was following after him. She was looking for him.

And now, with the weather turning worse and snow starting to fall, she was somewhere in the woods, with only a faint scent for him to follow and tracks that would soon be covered in more snow.

His heart raced as he shifted back into bear form, using his superior senses to search for more of her scent. A bear"s sense of smell was over a thousand times better than a human"s, and he could track anything, even in a storm. Finding her was far from impossible, but time was not on their side, nor the falling temperature. He had to both find her and get her back to the safety of their home, before she froze to death, and there was every possibility of her being hurt while out there. She was a more than capable human, and could easily take care of herself, but he doubted she had any way to defend herself, nor had she taken her pack filled with emergency supplies, which was still sitting against the wall in the living room.

He was going to find her, and yell at her for being stupid, and kiss her a thousand times over, and then tell her he loved her.

Because he fucking loved her, and he was tired of not telling her.

His legs stretched as he took off in a race towards the woods, trying to remember the original path he had taken earlier. He had turned away from Owen"s place, he knew that much, but from there, it was a blur. She couldn"t have gotten too far in the thick snow, even with snow shoes on, but the tracks were now disappearing completely under the snow, and he sniffed again as he reached the tree line. She had been there, of that he was certain, but he couldn"t guess how long it had been. The wind was destroying the last remnants of her scent, but he had to keep going, rushing through the trees until he reached the river.

Her scent was stronger here, the trees protecting the area somewhat from the wind blowing it away, and he turned his head, confirming his fears that she had followed his tracks away from Owen"s place. If she had headed towards Owen"s cabin, he knew his brother would have heard her out there and tracked her himself, and she was warm and waiting for him to arrive, but the other direction...

It was miles upon miles of forest and rough terrain in the park. No humans would be around for miles. It would only be with luck that she would find any place to hunker down to survive the storm.

The trees were a little more sparse as he continued down the well worn path towards the thicker forest ahead, and he sent up a silent prayer to whatever was out there that he would give anything, do anything, to find her safe and warm. She was his everything, his sunlight, his warmth, his happiness. He would tell her every day for the rest of their lives how much he loved her, would worship her with every part of his being, would never again make her question his feelings for her. He loved her. Loved her so much, he was fucking terrified.

But then, like the angel she was, she appeared in the distance, stepping out from behind a large pine tree along the trail and appearing before him.

His steps didn"t pause as he raced forward, raced towards her, still a bear to cut the time it would take to reach her in half. She was smiling as she exposed her face, confirming his suspicion that she knew it was him, but as she raced towards him, he finally shifted back into his human form and opened his arms to her, hugging her tight as she whispered his name.

She wasn"t as cold as he had feared, although she was shaking slightly in his hold, but as he searched her over, his panic rose, needing to know she was as well as she seemed.

"Are you hurt? Are you okay? I went home and you weren"t there, and I panicked. Thought you had headed back to town, then I realized you were trying to follow me, and fuck if that didn"t make it worse. A storm picking up, and you tried to chase a bear in the woods? Are you crazy, Sunshine? Fuck, but then you found your way back all the same, but I"ve been running from here to Owen"s place, trying to follow your scent, with the storm making it worse. If I lose you, if you were lost out there, I—"

He was rambling, and he knew that, but now that he was safe, the rising terror was kicking in, his adrenaline overwhelming him. He had been terrified, and now he felt sick with worry that he had placed her in such dangerous conditions, all because he had been unable to stand strong and resist her.

"I had to follow you. I had to bring you home."

His hands cradled her cheeks as he stared into her eyes, seeing the tears building up there. They would surely freeze in the falling temperature, and the impending storm wasn"t doing them any favors for time.

"I was going to come back, with or without you chasing after me," he insisted, trying to resist the urge to check her over fully himself. "Just had to get it out of my system. Nearly gave in up there, and—"

"And I love you," she whispered, her words cutting him off. He froze for a moment, the words washing over him and warming him inside and out. She loved him. He already knew that, but to hear her say it... "I"m in love with you."

Cedric grinned down at her, not sure what to even say, his heart pounding in his chest as he looked down at the woman who loved him. He had loved her for so long, he couldn"t remember living before her, and now, to hear her say it out loud, to know she was no longer avoiding or questioning her feelings for him... He wanted to throw back his head and howl like a damn wolf, but that would take his eyes away from her, and the thing he longed for most was to stare into her eyes and memorize her dazzling smile and commit to his memory for all his days the way she looked so radiant in the snow, professing her love for him.

"I love you, Cedric. So much it hurts. And I"ve been so scared to let myself love you, because I was afraid that one day you would leave me and it would shatter me, but I"m not afraid anymore. I refuse to be afraid."

"I will never hurt you, ever, Sunshine," he promised as he pulled her close, pressing his lips to her forehead with a kiss to seal his words. It hurt, to know she had been afraid of him leaving or hurting her, but he knew, deep down, that it was because of the harm others had done to her, and nothing he himself had done. He had kept every promise, every time, even the ones that hurt him, and he would always do that, for the rest of their days. "Been in love with you since the moment I saw you punch some fucker in the bar. Never thought I would find someone I would want to share my life with, so I wasn"t even looking, but there you were. Took my breath away from the start. Got caught in your orbit and that was it for me. I"m going to spend my whole life proving it, too."

"I know," she confirmed, looking up at him with her beautiful blue eyes and her beaming smile. "I"ve known all along you would never hurt me. I was scared for stupid reasons, and—"

He couldn"t resist her lips any longer, nor could he stand to hear her calling her reasons stupid. He needed her, and now she was his, and never again would she have a reason to fear the pain and heartache others had caused her. She kissed him back immediately, her arms wrapping around him tight, and he clung to her as he held her close, wanting to tangle his fingers in her curls but knowing she was too cold to do much more. He needed to get her home, and in bed, but he needed to kiss her so much more, to swallow all of her worries and lock them away.

She was shivering, though, as he pulled away from the kiss, and he knew their time in the woods confessing their love was done as he pulled away, whispering her name. She was so perfect, braving the cold and the snow for him, but he had to get her home... after he made his own confession.

"I love you," he whispered against her lips, wanting to say so much more but knowing it would be better to wait until the wind wasn"t picking up and she was naked in his arms. "Got a lot more to say than that, but not out here. Not when you"re cold."

She kissed him again, and he nearly gave into his desire to start undressing her and painting her skin with his words and his tongue, but he had just promised to never hurt her. That included taking care of her physical needs. Her body temperature was dropping, and the best way to warm her up would be in front of his fireplace, with his naked body pressed against hers.

A good thing he was already naked. That would save time.

"Storm is getting worse and I need to get you warm," he insisted as he pulled away from her kiss, despite wanting to keep going. "Gonna shift back so my cock doesn"t freeze off. Hold onto the fur on the back of my neck, and don"t let go. Might turn into a white out, and I don"t plan to lose you."

If he did lose her in the storm, he would find her again, but that would be a waste of time. And he was tired of wasting it.

"You won"t," she laughed, shaking her head a little. "It won"t really freeze off, will it?"

"It hasn"t yet," he chuckled, shaking his head as he went in for another forehead kiss. "But I don't plan to find out before I put a baby in you. Nape of the neck. Don"t let go."

She nodded as he forced himself away from her, shifting as he did so to get himself under control. His sense of smell was even stronger in his bear form, and he growled at the sweet scent of her ovulation, telling him how ready she was to be bred. The walk back to the cabin would be long, but he would get her there, and then there would be no more holding back.

She grasped the fur on his neck, and he immediately started moving forward, careful to go slowly so she could stay close. Her forearm rested on his spine, and he kept it that way as he left the safety of the trees and moved across the open field, towards their home. The wind was picking up as the snow continued to fall, but he listened to her closely as he moved on, wanting to be certain he didn"t miss her needing a break or asking him to pause. She was quiet, though, and while her heartbeat was racing, he picked up no hint of fear, only excitement.

Reaching the steps of the cabin, he waited until her feet were on wood to shift into his human form so he could open the door for her. Snow was piling up, but he didn"t care if any went into the entryway, knowing he could clean it later. The cabin was warm, but not warm enough, and as she stepped inside, he shoved the door closed behind her, then continued in to build up the fire, not wanting to waste a moment once she was naked.

He could hear Bethany struggling to get her snow shoes and coat off, and once wood was added to the fire, he returned to the doorway, helping her to unzip and peel away the frozen layers. She was shivering once she was down to just her underlayer, and he rubbed his hands together, wanting to be certain they were warm, before he helped her out of those as well.

Her shirt and bra hit the floor, but as he reached for her pants and underwear, she raised a hand to stop him, resting it on his chest and pulling his attention back to her face.

"I want a baby."

He waited for her to say something more, but her eyes were searching his as though in question. What was she questioning? What was she afraid of?

"I want a baby. With you. A life with you. Here, in this cabin."

Cedric grinned, nodding his head slightly as he spoke. "You"re gonna get it, Sunshine. My home, my life, it"s all yours. I"ll give you as many babies as you want. We"ll build onto the cabin. Gonna make this our home."

"We barely know anything about each other," she whispered, her hands now going to her own pants, hooking on the elastic but not pushing them down. "It"s crazy, and it"s risky, but I want to do it all the same."

Cedric grinned, his hands moving underneath her arms to grasp her bare waist and tug her a step closer. "Are you dickmatized?"

Bethany started laughing, shaking her head a little before shoving her pants down. "Yes."

Her sweet scent hit the air full force, and Cedric"s whole body shuddered as he tried to resist the urge to sink to his knees and taste it from the source once again. Fuck, he wanted her desire all over his face and beard and his hands, but he had already eaten her out for hours. She needed his dick inside of her, and his cock couldn"t wait much longer without threatening to mutiny entirely.

"I know you think your bear pheromones cure all, but it might take more than one time for it to take," she warned, her arms going up and around his shoulders. Her nails scratched along his spine, and he shuddered again, delighting at the feeling of her naked body pressing against his.

"Fuck, you think I"m gonna get tired of fucking you, Sunshine? Never gonna get tired of it. No matter how many rounds it takes."

She smiled, clearly pleased with his answer, and he lifted her up by her waist. Her legs wrapped around his middle as he carried her towards the living room, planning to spread her out on the floor in front of the fire, but changing his mind at the last moment. He wanted her on top of him, at least for the first round, so their kisses and touches never stopped. Once she was on the floor, he would have her on her hands and knees, ready to be fucked by a bear.

Next time around... and there would be plenty of rounds.

"You"re my mate," he murmured as he sat down on the couch, her legs on either side of his as he settled her body over him. "Soulmate or not, I wear your mark on my heart."

"What does that mean?" she asked, a little breathless as she shifted herself, his hard cock rubbing between her lips in search of her warm cunt. "Soulmates and marks. You keep mentioning it."

"It"s a shifter thing, but not a bear thing," he answered, groaning as her hand wrapped around his length and stroked him. "Wolves, they have soulmates, and they mark each other with a bite while reaching their pleasure together. Links them or something like that."

"Do you want that?" she asked, her hand still stroking him, now moving so slowly he shuddered. "Do you want to bite me?"

"Fuck, yes," he answered as his hand covered hers, directing the head of his cock to her opening. She was hot and wet and he wanted to plunge inside of her, unable to resist any longer. "Want your teeth on my skin as well, but it won"t stay. I"ll heal up. I"ll get it inked like Owen, though, if you want—"

His feet braced on the floor as he shifted his hips up, his cock pushing inside of her with one long thrust. She gasped, her head falling back as he moved his hands to her hips, tugging her down to force himself a little deeper, and he groaned at the expanse of creamy skin, ready to be scarred by his teeth.

"I want it. Want to be yours," she gasped, lifting her head slowly as she rolled her hips, taking him another inch deeper. "Mark me. Make me yours, Cedric."

He groaned again as he rocked his hips with hers, his fingertips gripping her so tight he knew he was sure to leave bruises. He was going to lose control, but not before he said it one more time. Not until he knew his love for her was undeniable.

"You"ll always be mine, Sunshine. Loving you is easier than breathing. Gonna spend my whole life showing you that."

She leaned forward, her lips pressing against his as she stole the air from his lungs, and he forgot everything else, save for the taste and feeling of her.