Chapter 11

11

Lucy

I t’s been light for a while, but I can’t tear myself away from Preston’s bed. We’re snuggled under the comforter, his big body wrapped around me. His room is actually a lot comfier than I expected. Sure, the decor could do with a woman’s touch, but the bedding is nice and clean, and the air is full of his sexy, outdoorsy scent.

I’ve never felt so happy and cozy and loved.

But something keeps pricking at my heart—the fact that in a few hours, the minibus is going to pick up my team and drive us back to the city.

Everything has happened so fast, but the thought of being separated from Preston is unbearable.

“What is it, Lucy?” Preston turns me gently onto my back.

Crap, I hadn’t realized my eyes were leaking. I wipe the tear away before he sees it. “Oh, nothing. It’s silly.”

“Tell me, baby.”

Oh, god. When he talks to me in that voice, I just turn to mush.

“T-this isn’t going to be a holiday romance, is it?” I choke out.

His handsome features transform with consternation. “What?”

I sigh. “I mean, we’re going to see each other again, aren’t we? I’m just scared that when I get back to town, you’ll forget all about me.”

With a growl, he springs up and arches over me. “Lucy, what are you talking about? You’re not leaving here.”

“I’m not?”

“Of course not. You’re my mate.”

I shiver in delight. “But my company needs me.”

“Too bad.”

“And I need to pay my rent.”

“Don’t need to pay rent when you live here with me.”

“My plants are gonna die if I don’t water them.”

“Can’t you get someone to help with that?”

My next-door neighbor has a key to my place. She could definitely water my plants.

I nibble at my lower lip thoughtfully.

“Lucy, when a bear takes you as his mate, you live with him in his lair.”

I fight back a giggle because his seriousness is just too adorable. “But what if I don’t like living in a bear’s lair?” I tease.

He frowns. “Then the bear will fix it until you do.”

“What will he do?”

Preston’s expression gets even more serious. “He will renovate the entire place, according to his mate’s wishes. He will buy a lot of pretty new shit—uh stuff—to make her feel comfortable. And… he will install a yoga studio.”

My heart leaps. “So she can do stretches and shit?”

“No.” He looks appalled. “So she can connect her mind, body and soul through the spiritual practice of yoga. It will be a sacred space where she can meditate, flow through asanas, and align her chakras. It will have an eastward facing window, so that every morning, she can greet the sunrise, channel her inner energy and find harmony within. And if she so chooses, she will use her talents to help others do the same.”

My mouth falls open. “How?—?”

“I’ve been researching,” he says with a grin. “Sounds pretty cool actually. The bear might even request a lesson for himself some time.”

“You’re the best, you know that?” I say, drawing him down for a kiss.

I sink deeper and deeper into him… then something pops into my head.

“And that, Preston Wright, is the most I’ve ever heard you say in one go.”

“Maybe you’ve fixed me.” He gives a gravely kind of laugh, but I see that same flash of pain in his eyes that I remember from the barbecue.

“What is it?” I say. “Why did you start talking so late?”

I feel his massive chest swell under my hand, and he gives a ragged groan. “Hunters shot my mom when I was a baby. She was carrying me at the time, but she managed to hide me under her body. Luckily my father chased them off before they could kill her.

“The clan thinks I was too young to remember anything, but I do. I remember my mom’s screams of pain. How scared I was. Reckon the shock cut off my words.”

I gasp. “And you’ve been carrying that secret all these years? Letting them think you were slow?”

“Yup.” He shrugs.

“You should tell them.”

“It was a long time ago.”

“You’re amazing, Preston. And I’m gonna make sure the whole world knows that.”

“Only person whose opinion I care about is yours,” he says. But his expression looks lighter.

“We’re going to talk about this a lot more, you hear me?” I tap his chest with my index finger.

“Later,” he growls, and wraps his arms around me.

After a while, a vehicle pulls up outside, its engine spluttering.

“What’s that?” I shove myself up on my elbow.

“Sounds a heck of a lot like the minibus that brought you all here.”

I frown, listening to the sound of doors slamming and raised voices. “But it’s not due till tomorrow.”

He shrugs.

I crook an eyebrow. “What did you do?”

“I decided they’ve done enough team-building already, and I told your hot-tub buddy that I’d refund their last night. Funny enough, they seemed quite happy with that.”

I give a little gasp. “But, Preston. You didn’t need to do that.”

“Lucy, these are the first days of our life together. They’re going to be special. I don’t want to have to think of those assholes when I wake up with you in my arms tomorrow.”

There’s a hesitant knock at the door.

“Yes?” I call.

“Lucy?” Natasha’s tone is much softer than before. “Are you coming?”

“Nope!” I say cheerfully.

I hear her sigh. “Look, I’m sorry for everything. You’ve been really great.”

“Thanks,” I say. “Safe journey home.”

I fall back on the pillow, and listen as the voices die away and the minibus door slides shut. The engine starts up again, and they’re gone.

They’re gone.

Then I turn to my mate. “You’re pretty romantic for a grumpy grizzly bear. You know that?”

“Didn’t until I met you. Didn’t know much of anything until I met you.” He takes my face in his hands and kisses me.