Chapter 5

five

. . .

Michael

Y ou see now? I snarl at my bear. Look what you did, you fucking idiot. She's terrified of us!

My inner bear growls back.

Oh, shut up. I told you this would happen.

What a mess.

My damn bear has been wandering through the mountains for weeks looking for our mate. He kept me trapped inside and wouldn't let me out no matter how hard I tried to escape, how loud I screamed, no matter what I said. He didn't trust me to find her and now look what happened.

We showed up naked on her campground and now she refuses to come out of that bus.

The worst part is, he's ruined the one moment I've been waiting my entire life for. I finally saw her beautiful face. I finally breathed in her sweet essence. I finally heard her ethereal voice. But it didn't go as I had always planned.

It couldn't have gone worse.

I'll have to cut my losses and try again. Standing here naked while she shouts at me to leave isn't going to change her mind about coming out.

Maybe in a few days, I'll run into her in town. I'll have clothes on. There will be people around. Maybe I can strike up a conversation while her guard isn't on red alert.

"Okay," I say in a calm voice as I back away, still holding the rock over my cock. "I'll leave. I wasn't trying to hurt you. I just…"

What does it matter? She's not going to believe anything I say anyway.

I step into the forest, toss the rock, and jog away. I barely get to the river before my inner grizzly bear has a full-on meltdown.

He's snarling my ear off and thrashing around.

Easy , I try to tell him, but that just sets him off more.

"No!" I gasp as he makes a break for the surface. He's so strong. I've never felt this kind of strength from him before. It's like seeing our mate has leveled him up.

He bursts out of me easily, turns with a snort, and sprints back to her camp.

What are you doing?! I shout from inside.

He stomps around the campground and smells every inch of the bus while my girl stays hidden inside.

I gather my energy and wait until he's distracted. Jemma's clothes are hanging on a line. My grizzly catches the scent of her panties and while he's occupied with that, I burst forward with everything I got.

I grab onto his essence and pull him in as I push my way out. He roars in outrage as the phase begins. He shakes and convulses as he tries to fight me, but I burst out, naked and breathing heavily.

"Great, you're back," Jemma says from inside the bus. Her tone is flat and sarcastic, which makes me smile.

"Did you miss me?" I ask.

"No."

I sigh as I grab a rock, which is larger than the last one. I hide my little grizzly with it.

She's silent, but I can feel her eyes on me.

"How did you do that?" she asks after a long moment.

"Do what?"

"What do you think, genius? Turn into a goddamn grizzly bear."

"Oh," I say with a chuckle. It's so normal for me that I don't think about it much.

"I'm a bear shifter. Ever heard of them?"

"Yeah. I read they were extinct."

I grin. "Not in Montana we're not."

"Oh."

I finally got her talking. I want her to keep going.

"I come from a family of grizzly bear shifters," I tell her. "Me, my two brothers, my dad, and my grandpa before him."

She doesn't say anything, but she doesn't scream at me to leave, so I take that as a good sign.

"I have garlic in here," she finally says. "So, don't come in."

"That's vampires," I say, trying not to laugh.

Her voice is unreal. I can't stop smiling, knowing I'm talking to my mate. She's right there. Right in that bus. After a lifetime of being worlds apart, we're this close.

But as close as she is, I still have a long way to go. She doesn't want anything to do with me.

Convincing her to come out will be much easier if I'm covered up.

"Can I please borrow a towel?"

"No."

I drop my head and sigh, but a few seconds later, the door opens and she tosses out a towel. The door slams shut and I can hear the click of the lock.

"Thank you," I say as I toss the rock and rush over to grab the towel. I wrap it around my waist and tie a knot.

We're getting somewhere…

I hope.

"What do you know about bear shifters?" I ask her.

"Besides them showing up naked and refusing to leave?"

"Yeah, besides that. What do you know about mates?"

She doesn't answer. I think she's holding her breath. I can't hear it anymore.

"Each shifter has one fated mate," I say in a low steady voice. "The bond is so intense, it's life-changing. It's all-consuming. It's all that matters."

I heard my dad and my brothers talking about the intensity of it, but I didn't realize how strong it was until I felt it for myself. And I've barely had more than a taste…

"A bear shifter will wait their whole lives for their mate," I continue. "No one else can tempt them. No one else can even turn their head. A shifter lives and breathes for their mate and their mate only. Once they're together, the bond can never be broken. They'll live the rest of their lives as one."

I hear her start to breathe, but it's low and shallow. She feels it. She must…

"The reason why I wanted you to look into my eyes, Jemma," I say softly, "is that you're my mate. And I'm yours. We belong together."

I let that hang in the air.

"I know we didn't start off on the right foot," I continue, "but I'll make you the happiest woman in the world if you give me a chance. That's all I'm asking for. One chance."

My heart is pounding as I wait for an answer.

After a long silent moment, I worry I won't get one, but then the door slowly opens.

All the tension flows out of me. I feel like I might float away.

My mate steps out of the bus with her sparkling blue eyes gazing at me. It's like she's seeing me for the first time.

She's stunning . Her long wavy brown hair tumbles down onto her shoulders. My fingers tingle as I imagine what it would feel like to sink my hands into her locks and pull her mouth to mine.

Those luscious lips… My mouth waters as I look at them.

She's wearing scuffed-up jeans and an old gray sweater, but I've never seen clothes look so good on someone before. Those jeans are hugging her hips, her sweater is draped down over her round breasts, I can't breathe as I take her in.

I'm in awe of her beauty.

"You're perfect," I whisper.

Those sexy pink lips curl into a grin. "You owe me a piece of beef jerky."

I laugh as all of the stress and tension I've been holding for decades leaves me like someone just opened a drain. I'm with my mate. She's finally here.

She doesn't take her eyes off me. I can see that she feels it too. I can feel the intense need radiating off her.

"Anything for my mate," I whisper.

She takes a deep breath as her blue eyes dart over my naked torso. "I don't know about all that mate stuff, but you earned yourself a coffee. Do you want one?"

I don't think I've ever smiled so wide in my life.

"Please."

She heads over to the cooler beside her bus. "Are you hungry?"

"I haven't eaten in two and a half weeks."

She gasps. "Seriously? How are you still standing?"

I shrug. "My bear ate."

She looks at me funny. "I don't even want to know how that works."

I grin as I watch her take the coffee out and start a pot over the fire.

I have one more chance.

My bear grumbles happily from inside.

Don't even think about it, I warn him. The chance is mine , not yours.