Chapter 19

CHAPTER 19

WILLOW

A bear. Cage is a fucking bear!

Willow should have known. The signs had been there all along. In the dim light of the safe room, she leaned against the cold stone wall, her mind a whirlwind of revelations. The paranormal romance books she'd devoured late into the night had suggested that creatures like Cage existed, hidden amongst humans. But who believed such things? And yet, she had seen the impossible with her own eyes. Cage, the man she had shared her life and her bed with, had transformed into a bear.

She thought back to their conversations, especially the one just before the attack. He had been trying to tell her something, something important, and now she was convinced that this was it. Had he been hinting at it all along? His reluctance to let her testify against Frank, his insistence that it was too dangerous—everything made sense now. He wasn't just concerned for her safety; he was worried about exposing his world, the world of shifters, to public scrutiny. His reticence, his attempts to distance himself, all fell into place.

On the monitor, the battle raged on, but Willow's focus was on Cage. Even in his human form, fighting with a ferocity she had never seen, he was mesmerizing. His movements were fluid, almost graceful, a stark contrast to the raw power he wielded. She couldn't take her eyes off him. Now she understood what he meant when he said he'd protect her. He wasn't just a man; he was a freaking force of nature.

The fight seemed to be winding down, the enemy retreating. Willow took a deep breath, steeling herself. "We should go," she said to Jones, her voice trembling but determined.

"Maybe we should wait here," Jones suggested.

"I don't think so. Let me put this another way. I'm leaving. Now you can either go with me, or I'll go alone, but not you or anybody else is going to stop me." She started to leave, walking to the keypad that would unlock the door. She hesitated, her hand poised over it. "Are you all like Cage?"

"We aren't all grizzly bear-shifters…"

"Don't tap dance with me Jones. Are you all shifters? That's what you call yourself?"

"Yes ma'am. The answer is ‘yes' to all your questions."

"Then shift yourself out of my way," she growled, surprising herself with the sound.

Jones hesitated but nodded, leading the way out of the safe room. They moved cautiously through the corridors, the sounds of battle fading. Willow's heart pounded in her chest, a mix of fear and adrenaline propelling her forward.

As they reached the main hall, a sudden movement caught her eye. Before she could react, someone lunged at them from the shadows. Jones went down with a grunt, and Willow felt a strong hand clamp around her arm. She opened her mouth to scream, but the sound was cut off as a rough hand covered her mouth.

She was spun around to face her attacker, and her blood ran cold. It was Frank, her now ex-husband. He looked different, more feral, but she would recognize those cruel eyes anywhere.

"You really thought you could escape me, didn't you?" he sneered, his grip tightening painfully. "The Shadow League came through for me. They changed me to be like them. And now, you'll join me."

Willow's heart pounded in her chest. Somehow, she knew he was a shifter. She wasn't sure what kind of shifter, but a shifter, nonetheless. The thought was terrifying, but she refused to be cowed as she had been in the past. She would not let him take her again. She would not become like him.

She bit down hard on the hand covering her mouth. Frank yelped in pain, his grip loosening just enough for her to scream. "Cage!"

Frank's face twisted in rage, and he struck her across the face. "You belong to me," he hissed. "You always will."

Willow's vision blurred, but she fought through the pain, kicking and scratching with all her might. She managed to get another scream off, a desperate cry for help. This couldn't be how everything ended. She was not going to allow this to happen.

Suddenly, a familiar swirling mist began to form around her, the same mist she had seen envelop Cage and the gorilla. Her mind raced, trying to make sense of it. In her mind's eye, she saw an enormous grizzly bear charging toward her. The sight was both terrifying and oddly comforting. As the bear leaped, everything went black.

When Willow awoke, she was lying on the cold stone floor. Her head throbbed, and her body ached, but she was alive. She blinked, trying to clear her vision, and saw Cage kneeling beside her, his expression a mixture of relief and rage.

"Willow," he said softly. "Are you okay?"

She nodded weakly, her eyes searching for Frank. He was lying a few feet away, unconscious or worse. Jones stood nearby, looking shaken but unharmed.

"What happened?" Willow asked, her voice barely more than a whisper.

Cage's expression hardened. "He won't bother you again. I promise."

Willow's mind was still reeling from the attack and the transformation she had witnessed. She looked at Cage, her protector, her shifter. "You're a bear," she said, more a statement than a question.

Cage nodded, his eyes never leaving hers. "Yes, I am, and apparently so are you."

"What? No. I can't be." She shuddered at the thought.

"But you are," Cage assured her.

"How did you do this to me? Why?"

"You did it to yourself. Remember when you bit me, drew blood and then licked it from your lips?"

"It was only a drop or two…"

"Doesn't matter. Each drop of blood contains your entire DNA sequence. Shifter DNA is stronger than human and mine overwrote yours. When you ingested my blood, your body began to morph."

"But how did I shift? I mean it's not like I know how."

"I know, but in rare circumstances, like when your life is in danger, your she-bear will come forward to protect you. She did and now Frank won't cause you any more trouble."

She glanced at Frank again. He hadn't moved and when she looked, she realized his eyes were staring lifelessly into space with no sign of life. Both his chest and throat had been slashed open by the claws of what she supposed was a bear.

Willow pointed to him. "Did I do that?"

"Yes and no," Cage confirmed. "Did your claws rip him open? Yes, but it was the Shadow League who really did this to him. They wanted to use him against us, against you."

Willow took a deep breath, trying to steady herself. "I should have known. There were so many signs."

Cage took her hand in his, squeezing gently. "It's not your fault, Willow. None of this is your fault."

She looked into his eyes, seeing the truth there. She had been blind to the reality around her, but now she understood. "What do we do now?"

"We shift—no pun intended—our focus from Frank to the Shadow League. We fight," Cage said simply. "We protect our own. And we make sure the Shadow League can't hurt anyone else."

Willow nodded, feeling a new strength coursing through her. Inside she could hear her bear making chuffing noises of agreement. She wasn't alone in this fight. She had Cage, the unit he led and her bear. Together, they would face whatever came next.

As the adrenaline began to fade, Willow felt exhaustion creeping in. Cage helped her to her feet, wrapping her in a blanket before lifting her up and carrying her as they made their way back to their bedroom. Jones followed closely, his gaze darting around their surroundings for other threats.

Once inside the main keep, Willow finally allowed herself to relax. She leaned into Cage, drawing comfort from his warmth and strength. Setting her down inside their bedroom, Willow's fists clenched at her sides, the comfort he had given her evaporating in a surge of anger.

Without thinking, she whirled on him, swinging her fist and landing a punch solidly into his abdomen. Normally she might have gone for something else, but she knew the gorilla had landed several blows there and he was probably tender. Cage winced.

"What the fuck?" he growled.

"You should have told me!" she exclaimed, her voice trembling with a mixture of fury and hurt. "You should have been honest with me from the start!"

Cage flinched, more from the accusation than the pain, and looked at her with sorrowful eyes. "I know, baby. I know. I'm sorry. I was trying to protect you."

Protect me?" she repeated, her voice rising. "Do you have any idea how stupid and betrayed I feel right now? You kept such a huge part of your life from me. How could you?" Cage reached out, but she took a step back, glaring at him. "I understand it's a big secret, but still I had a right to know. How could you just let me—what the hell do you call it anyway?"

"Transitioning or turning."

She nodded. "How could you just let me transition without telling me. Don't you need my permission for that?"

He grinned—the little mischievous-boy grin that she adored. "Depends on who you ask, but in general it is frowned upon to turn someone without their permission. If they are in extreme danger or something…"

"Still, how could you not have told me?"

"In all honesty, I didn't know. It wasn't until I saw you'd shifted and started to look back on our time together. The only time you could have ingested my blood was when you bit me and then licked my blood from your lips."

"But that was a tiny amount."

"And that is all it takes."

She shook her head, continuing, her voice softer but still laced with anger. "But I thought you cared for me."

"I do. I swear I had no idea."

"We're supposed to be in this together. How am I supposed to trust you if you're keeping secrets from me?"

Cage's shoulders sagged, his eyes flashing momentary regret. "I get it. I made a mistake. I should have trusted you. I'm sorry, Willow."

She stood there looking at him. For Cage to have made that concession had cost him. Willow took a deep breath, her anger slowly dissipating into a heavy sadness. She wanted to stay mad at him, but she also knew this was not the time or place to hash this all out. "Now what?"

"That's up to you."

"I need some time to process all of this," she said quietly.

Cage nodded, his expression earnest. "Take all the time you need. I'm here for you, Willow, and if you'll let me, I'll make it up to you. I promise."

Willow looked at him, her emotions still swirling, but she knew she loved him. It didn't matter about his being a bear. She loved him and that trumped everything else.

"I'm sorry," Cage said quietly. "I should have told you the truth from the beginning."

Willow shook her head. "Yes, you should have. You were trying to protect me. I understand that now."

Cage looked at her, his eyes filled with a mixture of sorrow and determination. "I won't keep any more secrets from you. I promise."

Willow smiled weakly, feeling the weight of the day settle over her. "I have a way for you to make it up to me," she said with a teasing voice as she walked out onto the balcony of their bedroom, which overlooked the command center and the beach that lay beyond.

"Is that so?" he said with a smirk as he followed her outside, his groin snugging up to her ass like she had been made for him. He leaned in, his warm breath ghosting against her ear.

Cage's hand snaked down her spine, tracing every vertebra until he removed the blanket from around her naked body. Stopping there, he teasingly ran his fingers along the curves of her ass and down the cleft while the warm breeze danced all around them. With a devilish grin, she could feel and not see, he pressed a gentle kiss to her neck, trailing tiny wisps of hot breath across her skin.

"So, you want to play, do you? I guess you're owed that," he rumbled, the sound of his voice feeling as though it permeated her skin.

The cool afternoon breeze hit Willow as she stood there, naked where anyone at the right angle could see her clearly; and from certain angles, they would be able to tell what Cage was up to. He took hold of her hips to keep her in place. Her heart raced not only from the thrill of anticipation but also from exhilaration.

She felt his hands slip around to the front before sliding down, his thumbs brushing against the folds of her sex, tracing circles around the dampness between her legs as his other hand came back up to cup her breast, rolling her nipple between his fingers and thumb. The scent of sea salt mixed with his dried sweat from the battle filled her nostrils as he leaned in closer to kiss and nip at her neck again. She leaned back into him, reveling in the way he handled her as a finger slipped into her core; just one at first, then another. Moaning louder, she closed her eyes as he began to slip inside her, his fingers finding her g-spot.

"God, I love how hot you get for me," came his rough whisper in her ear.

His other hand teased just the edge of her other nipple before flicking it gently. A shiver ran through Willow as he pulled his hand back just a bit before adding another finger and plunged back in, stretching her out and hitting that sweet spot deep inside her over and over again.

Trying to stifle a moan, Willow pressed back against him, desperate for more even as his thumb circled around her clit faster and faster. His hips ground into hers as if he pushed much harder he'd be inside her where she wanted him.

"Fuck..." she panted softly as he picked up the pace even more, each thrust deeper than the last.

Her hands gripped the railing harder for support as he began to whisper dirty little nothings in Latin into her ear, making her even wetter than before.

Cage reached down and pinched her clit, rubbing it gently and Willow thought she might come right then and there. But no, he pulled away slowly, trailing his wet fingertips across her clit and upward before she heard the sound of the zipper to his fly open. He liked to fuck her when she was naked and he wasn't. She held back a gasp as the blunt head of his cock found her slit and teased her.

His cock pressed into her, hard and ready against her already aching entrance.

"Oh fuck yeah," he murmured as he slowly slid into her.

Oh my god.

Her stomach clenched at the size of him. She would have thought she'd be used to it by now, but she wasn't. Cage began to move in deep slow strokes. His lips trailed hot kisses along her neck and shoulders, making her whole body shudder. As he picked up the pace, his hands gripped her hips tightly, holding her close with each thrust that pushed him deeper inside.

Willow arched her back, feeling him hit that spot inside her again and again...fuck! The orgasm built until she was barely hanging on.

She gasped as he grabbed her breast roughly, massaging the hardened nipple between his fingers. He bit down on her earlobe gently before whispering, "You're so fucking wet for me...you like this big cock?"

She nodded frantically as he pulled out slightly then plunged back in deeper than before, bottoming out before waiting a moment. The feel of his beard scraping lightly against her neck, making goosebumps break out over her skin.

He fisted her hair and tugged, pulling her head back as he ravaged her body, fucking her harder and faster.

"Do you forgive me?" he rumbled low and seductively.

"Wh… what?" she stammered unable to think coherently.

"Do you forgive me? Do you want to continue to be my sweet fuck toy?" He pulled her hair hard and slapped her ass as his hips pistoned into hers.

Willow was so close, so very close.

Cage slid his hand down around to pinch her clit hard just as he angled his hips upward and growled out, "Answer me Willow or I'll take you over to that bed and edge you all night. You'll suck my dick as many times as I want and swallow all my cum, but you won't get to climax until tomorrow morning. Forgive me?"

"Yes," she cried.

The world exploded into a cascade of colors as she came, screaming his name in ecstasy. Anyone who'd missed their little show would have no doubt what they'd been doing. Cage began fucking her harder and faster until he too climaxed moments later, moaning her name like a prayer as he spilled himself inside her.

He collapsed against her and they stayed joined together until Cage reluctantly withdrew. Afterwards, as they nestled in their bed, the castle walls echoed with the sounds of the night, a reminder of the battles fought and the ones still to come. But for now, in the quiet of their room, Willow allowed herself to rest, knowing that she was not alone.