9. Sofia

9

Sofia

W hen she woke up, she felt much better. And next to her, Levi was still asleep.

She couldn’t believe she’d let him so close! And before they’d fallen asleep, she had heard his human voice in her mind, she was sure of it. Much of it had been ideas, instead of perfectly formed sentences, but the ideas had come across.

Was that possible?

She’d heard that mates within her clan could communicate without speaking aloud, or when shifted, but her parents never could. Maybe because they hadn’t been mates. The less she thought about them, the better. Obviously, she’d never experienced it herself.

But it was inconceivable that this male could be her mate. They barely knew each other. And yes, she’d heard of fate, and love at first sight, but she needed to be able to talk to a male—with real words—before she committed to him. Not that she was considering any type of relationship. Any male that was interested in her would be in for a rude awakening when they got to know her and saw how jumpy she was now. She couldn’t imagine a day when she wasn’t plagued by the constant need to flee.

That was what her clan had done to her, by making her steal for them. And that was also what the wolves had done to her. They’d made it impossible for her to ever trust anyone again.

As the sun came up, Levi stretched.

Good morning.

She tried to say it back, but the message was not received, if the look of disappointment on his face was anything to go by.

Don’t run , he said.

She tried not to get upset over that. She couldn’t shift, and she couldn’t communicate, but for some reason, he was determined, and he was trying to help her. So, she wasn’t going to run again. She was going to stay there and try to let him help her. Maybe she wouldn’t ever live as a human again, but she wanted to have the option. She didn’t want the wolves to have that kind of power over her life, keeping her trapped in her bear’s body permanently.

She took a closer look at Levi as he stood up. Of course, he was much hotter in his human form, but he was gorgeous as a dragon. There was something majestic looking about him, with his wings and his shimmering scales, and his vibrant yellow eyes.

He stretched and moved away from her, closer to a grouping of trees. I’m going to change back into a human now .

Would she see him naked again? She felt bad for looking, but it was hard to resist. She must have been feeling closer to her human self because she found herself unable to draw her eyes away. When she was most in tune with her bear, she had very little interest in a male in his human form. But maybe it was just Levi. Maybe he was the only one who would affect her this way.

He let the change ripple over his body. She averted her eyes as he pulled his boxers on. He had given her privacy, so she would do the same for him. After his boxers were on, she let herself look her fill. He reached for his jeans first, but she had enough time to admire his muscular thighs. He took his time getting his shirt, so she was able to revel in looking at his sculpted pecs and his washboard abs. He tugged it over his head, but it was short-sleeved so she could still see the outline of his powerful biceps. From what she’d seen of Levi and the four brothers who lived on the ranch, bear shifter males weren’t quite as powerfully built as dragons, but they were still buff.

However, she had never been this attracted to a bear. And now wolves were ruined for her. She shuddered at just the memory of them.

“Hi,” he said. “You stay put, and I’ll get breakfast for us.” He smiled at her. “Or would you like to hunt a little later? I’ll change back if you do.”

She nodded. She could do that. Surely, she could force herself to move in a deliberate way, and not just blindly flee.

“Okay great!” His face lit up. “I’ll get us some breakfast, and then we’ll hunt for our lunch. I’ll be right back.” She watched him go, even appreciate the way his firm backside looked in his jeans.

He came back with bacon and ham, and they both ate. When they were finished, he smiled again. “I thought we could take a walk. You could get to know the property. If you stick with me, then no one will be alarmed.”

She got the message. If she flipped out and ran away again, then he’d have to take drastic action. Like shooting her with a tranq. And if they were too scared of her, someone might try to kill her. Her legs shook. But if she hurt someone, she’d deserve it.

You’ve never hurt anyone. Especially not a human. But… she had hurt people. Because the wolves had made her.

“Hey,” Levi said. His voice was gentle. “We don’t have to go on a walk if you’re not ready.”

He was so kind. So unlike any other male shifter she’d ever met. Or female, for that matter. She lifted her chin. Maybe it didn’t have quite the same effect as it would if she were a human, but it was enough for him.

He started walking, and he told her all about himself. “I usually wouldn’t talk about myself this much,” he said. “I’d ask you about your life.” He shrugged. “But this will have to do for now.”

She loved hearing his deep voice, and she liked hearing about his life. She was in no hurry to talk about her own life—she was more than happy to listen to Levi forever.

As he’d promised, he showed her around the entire estate. He showed her the bordering ranches, where Quinn lived on the right, and Liam lived on the left, with Brennan across the street. Levi leaned on the bordering fence. “It’s perfect for them. They would probably all live in the same house if they didn’t maintain so much contact with the human world. They grew up in a traditional clan, where everyone lived in one space.”

Next, he showed her the edge of the yard. “I texted Kellan and told him to keep everyone away during our tour.”

She was grateful for that. She couldn’t promise that she wouldn’t rush away again if she got spooked. She could barely wrap her head around the wealth required to have a huge swimming pool with a slide, and a small river. She dipped a paw down in the water. There was a chemical in it too.

“It’s a lazy river,” he said. “A swimming pool shaped like a river. There’s a current that pushes the swimmer forward.”

Ah. She’d been so sheltered from the human world. She knew about pools of course, and she knew water parks existed, but she’d never been to one. Her family had avoided big cities, and they’d interacted with humans as little as possible, so there was an abundance of things she’d never seen or heard of.

Kellan and his clan were obviously not like that. Levi was a veterinarian who worked with humans, and Kellan’s business, Quinn’s medical practice, Liam’s law firm, and the citizens Brennan protected as sheriff were all humans. So, they were very much a part of the human world and had been for years. She’d never be able to catch up.

But why would she have to? She wasn’t going to live with humans. She was going to be sent to live with this Rhett person, the motorcycle dragon shifter. And once she got there, she’d leave and make her way to Canada. She’d stick to the plan. It was for the best.

Once they’d gone over every inch of the land, with the exception of the house, it was lunchtime. “Still want to hunt?” he asked. “Do you want to fish, or hunt in the woods?”

She tried to lift one shoulder, to indicate that she didn’t care either way, but she wasn’t sure if he noticed. She could find a few squirrels easily enough, or a few rabbits.

“Personally, I’m better at fishing,” he said.

To show that she could do that, she took off toward the lake. He followed her. “Great,” he said. “I’ll shift.”

He didn’t duck behind any trees this time, so she watched once again as he stripped his clothing. This time she got to see his back and his ass. He could have been a work of art, that was how good he looked.

“I’ll shift once I’m in the water,” he said. “Kellan’s very careful, but we try to avoid any incidents, with small planes or drones, or just people trespassing. It’s never happened, but it could.”

He waded into the water and ducked underneath. She dove under too, and although the water was a bit murky, she saw well enough to watch as his gorgeous body turned into a powerful dragon.

He dove deep and caught a bass. She couldn’t swim quite as well, but bears were natural fishers, so she dove down a few feet and snagged a carp.

They snacked on the fish and then she watched as Levi flipped under the water, his body making graceful swirls. She floated, mesmerized as he dove over and over.

She resurfaced and treaded water. She reached up to push her hair out of her face, and that’s when she noticed. She had hair, and a hand. She put her hands to her face, feeling over her features. She hadn’t even been trying, and she had shifted.

Oh God. She was human again.