Wild Bear Winter, Part Three

*** Please Note: This is Part Three of the Wild Bear Winter Story. If you're looking for Part One, CLICK HERE. If you're looking for Part Two, CLICK HERE. 

Tasha had every reason to expect this year to be the best year ever. After all, she’d spent the last several weeks falling head over heels in love with the most amazing man she’d ever met, and then she’d discovered on Christmas Eve that he loved her right back. She’d also discovered that he was a bear shifter, something she hadn’t even known existed until him. But oh, how she loved his bear side. It made him both fierce and lovable, and she wouldn’t have wanted to change a thing about him.

She’d spent every night between Christmas and New Year’s with him, reveling in getting to know him better. Their hot, wild romance had culminated in the sweetest kiss she could have asked for at midnight on New Year’s Day. She’d been dreading the New Year just a few short weeks before that, wondering how she could face a new year without her mom. But Max had changed everything. With him by her side, she’d marched into the New Year with confidence and joy.

And yet, three weeks into January, she was beginning to lose the feeling of euphoria that had been following her around since Christmas Eve. Instead, she felt like a cloud of sadness had settled over her.

She still loved Max like she’d never loved anyone before, and he still loved her. He’d even told her that she was his lifemate, explaining that all bear shifters believed they were destined to be with someone from the moment they were born, and that she was that person for him. He said there would never be anyone else for him besides her, and she believed he meant that with all his heart. It brought her great joy, since she never wanted anyone else but him. They were perfect for each other.

And yet, despite their happiness, she felt herself falling deeper and deeper into depression.

She knew why. Her mom’s birthday would have been that very week, and Tasha couldn’t stomach the thought of the day passing with no one to celebrate. Her mom had loved birthdays, and every birthday in the family had been an excuse for lots of cake, balloons, and general frivolity.

How could Tasha bear her sadness on a day that had always been filled with such happiness before? She knew her mother would not have wanted her to mope. She would have wanted Tasha to be strong and to move forward with all the good things life was bringing her, like her new job at the bookstore. Like Max. Like her newfound friendship with Julia and Lola, who were also lifemates of bear shifters.

But Tasha couldn’t shake her melancholy. She tried to put up good appearances for Max, but she knew he saw through her façade. He had been watching her closely every night that week, not doing much to hide his ever-increasing concern. Finally, the night before what would have been her mother’s birthday, he cornered her in the kitchen while she brewed a pot of chamomile tea—her desperate attempt to do something to calm her nerves.

“Hey,” he said, coming up behind her and wrapping his arms around her. “Stop hiding from me. What’s wrong? You might fool the rest of the world with that brave face you’re putting on, but you can’t fool me. I know you too well already.”

Tasha sighed, leaning back against him and finding comfort in his strength. He was right. She shouldn’t hide from him. If they truly were lifemates, destined to love and protect each other for all their lives, then she should trust him with her heart. She should trust him with the pain she felt.

“Tomorrow is my mom’s birthday,” she said quietly. “Well, was my mom’s birthday. I guess now it’s just another ordinary day.”

He went very still, and then turned her in his arms so she was facing him. “Oh, Tasha,” he said, pulling her even closer. She buried her face in his chest, breathing in the familiar woodsy scent of him and finding comfort in his warmth.

She should have opened up to him much sooner. Even though he couldn’t take away her pain, he could help her carry it. She didn’t have to do life alone anymore.

He held her for a long time, not saying anything more. He seemed to sense that she just needed his comforting presence. After a long time, when her pounding heart had steadied somewhat, and she didn’t feel quite so much on the verge of tears, he seemed to sense that she was ready for him to speak.

“You know,” he said. “Your mother might not be here with us on this earth anymore, but that doesn’t mean that her birthday is just another ordinary day. It’s still a day you can celebrate that she was born, and lived, and was a wonderful person.”

Tasha sighed. “You didn’t even meet her before she died. How could you possibly know what kind of person she was?”

Max leaned back and smiled at her. “I know she raised you. No one who was anything less than wonderful could have raised a person as extraordinary as you.”

Tasha shrugged, too worn out to argue. She wasn’t sure whether he could really tell what kind of person her mother had been just because Tasha herself had turned out to be an okay person, but she was afraid if she tried to say anything at that moment that she would burst out crying.

“Hey,” Max said suddenly, pulling away and reaching into his pocket. “I got something for you today, and I was going to wait until Valentine’s Day to give it to you, but I think you need it more now.”

He handed her an envelope, and she stared down at it unsure of whether she should go ahead and open it right then.

“Don’t be shy,” he said. “I want you to have it now. See what’s inside.”

Feeling a little thrill of excitement despite her worries, Tasha tore the envelope open. When she turned the card inside over and saw what it was, she gasped.

Max had gotten her a gift certificate for the fanciest spa in Wood Canyon. A very generous gift certificate.

“Max! This is too much!”

“For you? Never. You deserve ten times that amount.”

Tasha wanted to tell him that he was being ridiculous, but the words stuck on her tongue. His thoughtfulness and generosity had literally rendered her speechless.

“Tell you what,” he said, suddenly sounding very excited. “Why don’t you call Julia and Lola. Maybe Emily, too? See if any of them are free to join you for a spa day tomorrow. I’ll cover costs for whoever of your friends can come, so you can have some relaxing time with your girls.”

“Max! You really can’t do that. Spas are so expensive.”

He shrugged. “I have plenty of money from when I sold my house back in my old town, and I’m living pretty cheaply right now. It’s not a big deal for me to spoil my girl and give her the relaxing day she deserves with her friends.”

Then, he leaned down and kissed her deeply, stopping any other arguments she might have come up with. His kiss grew deeper and more urgent, until both of them forgot about spas and ended up making love on the couch because they were too impatient even to make it back to the bedroom.

And so, the next day, at Max’s insistence, Tasha headed out for a spa day with Julia and Lola. Emily was running the bookstore that day, so she couldn’t get away, which Tasha had known would be the case. Emily was trying to hire another part-timer, but until she did, Emily and Tasha couldn’t both take off work at the same time unless they closed the store.

One good thing about going out with just Julia and Lola, however, was that they both knew about bear shifters. That meant that Tasha could freely discuss all things shifter related with them. It felt good to be able to talk about life with a bear with someone else who understood.

Julia and Lola also outdid themselves by bringing a box of fancy cupcakes to the spa. After spending time getting massages and pedicures, then hanging out in the sauna and hot tubs, Tasha definitely felt ready for a snack. She suggested they head to the spa’s in house café, and Julia and Lola agreed while giving each other knowing looks. Tasha hadn’t had any idea why they were acting so strangely about going to the café, until they arrived there and the café workers brought out a box of cupcakes they’d been holding in the back for them.

Tasha gasped when she saw the beautifully iced cupcakes. “What is this?”

Julia beamed, but Lola spoke in a tentative voice. “We wanted to celebrate your mom’s birthday. I hope that’s okay. Max told us that you were feeling down that today’s just another day now that she’s gone, and we want you to know that it doesn’t have to be that way. We’ll always celebrate your mother’s beautiful soul with you. We can even make this a yearly tradition if you want, to do a spa day and have cake in her honor.”

“Or we can make another tradition entirely, if this doesn’t feel like a good fit to you,” Julia added hurriedly. “We just want you to know that we are here to help you celebrate your mom’s life, always.”

Tasha had told herself that she wasn’t going to cry while out on her spa day, but she couldn’t keep back the tears that were already forming.

“You guys, this was so thoughtful of you. I can’t believe I’ve lucked into having such wonderful friends. I thought that finding Max just meant that a wonderful man was going to be part of my life from now on. I didn’t realize it would also mean that I’d get to be part of such an amazing friend group. I can’t thank you enough.”

“We’re lucky to have you, too,” Lola said, reaching to give Tasha a giant hug. “I’ve had so much fun getting to know you. You really just make life sparkle.”

Tasha didn’t know what to say. She didn’t think anyone had ever told her before that she made anything sparkle, but Julia was nodding along as though Lola were simply stating plain facts.

Tasha’s tears did spill over then. These two women truly cared for her, and she cared for them. Suddenly, the day didn’t seem at all sad or lonely. It seemed full of hope and promise of the future. This is what her mother would have wanted: for her to be happy, to be part of a group of people who cared for her, and to be looking forward to the future. Tasha wondered if her mother was looking down on her from heaven and smiling. She wondered if her mother had somehow had something to do with bringing Max and the rest of his group of friends across her path.

It wouldn’t have surprised her. It seemed like exactly the sort of thing her mother would have done.

Tasha looked briefly heavenward. “If you can hear me up there, mama, then thank you. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.”

The cupcakes tasted divine. Even Julia agreed, and Julia, as the owner of a donut shop, had very discriminating tastes when it came to treats. She always said if it wasn’t something that wowed you, it wasn’t worth the calories. But they all agreed that the cupcakes were wow. There were a few extra, and Julia insisted that Tasha take them home to share with Max, who was known for having quite the sweet tooth. Andy and Dane even liked to tease him that they weren’t sure he was a real bear, since he almost seemed to prefer eating sugar to eating meat.

Tasha didn’t care what ratio of sugar to meat Max was consuming. All she cared about was that he was hers. She was excited to surprise him with a delicious cupcake, but when she got home he wasn’t in her house, even though his truck was in the front yard. Frowning, Tasha set the cupcakes down on the kitchen counter and went to check the backyard.

She gasped when she walked into the backyard and saw him there. Her shock didn’t come from the fact that he was back there on a chilly January day. After all, she knew he was part bear, and could handle the cold better than many men. No, her shock came from what he was doing.

Or rather, what he had been doing for hours. From the way her backyard looked, it was clear that he must have spent the entire time she was at the spa cleaning up her yard. Dead brush and flowers had been removed, the paths had been shoveled clear of snow, and he had even placed several adorable decorative statues—of bear cubs, what else?—strategically around the yard. 

He looked up when he saw her, and smiled, although he looked a bit sheepish. “Hey,” he said softly. “I wasn’t expecting you to be back quite so soon. I had intended to go take a shower and be ready to greet you when you got back, so I could better show you this surprise. But, since you’re here already…surprise!” 

He gestured around the gorgeous yard, which had been fine enough before, but now truly looked spectacular. The elbow grease he’d obviously been putting in over the course of the day had transformed the space into a true backyard oasis.

“Max!” she breathed out, walking toward him on the freshly plowed cobblestone paths. “This is incredible. You shouldn’t have done all of this.”

He beamed at her, clearly pleased that she was pleased. “Of course I should have. I’ve been spending most of my time in this cottage, so I felt I should contribute somehow to its beauty. Cleaning up the backyard so its usable on warm-ish winter afternoons, and so that it’s ready for spring planting, seemed like the best use of my time.”

Tasha shook her head, and once again tears sprang to her eyes. “You know, this was my mom’s favorite place in the world.” 

Max tilted his head slightly. “I didn’t know that, but I suppose I could have guessed it. You’ve talked a lot about how much she loved it. I just wanted to do something nice for you, to make the day even more meaningful. I thought cleaning up a place she loved would be a good place to start.” 

Tasha wiped at her eyes, trying to blink away the tears. “You’ve already done so much, with the spa day, and even just with being you. I feel like I won the lottery when I met you. I never imagined love could be so good. I never imagined someone would take care of me just because they cared about me, not because I had to earn anything.”

Max crossed the remaining space between them and pulled her into his arms. “Oh, Tasha. We haven’t talked much about past relationships, so I don’t know who in your past ever made you feel like you had to earn their love. But love shouldn’t be that way, and I promise it never will be with us. You’re worth all of this, just the way you are.”

Despite a valiant effort, Tasha couldn’t keep a few stray tears from escaping down her cheeks. A cold breeze made those tears feel even colder, and she buried her face in Max’s chest. She almost said aloud that she didn’t deserve someone as wonderful as him, but she had a feeling that if she did that, then he would give her another lecture on knowing her worth. So instead, she looked up at him and said, “It’s a beautiful day, despite the cold. Want to go for a forest walk before the sun starts setting? I could bundle up a little more and then I think I’d be okay?”

Tasha suddenly wasn’t ready to go inside again. She wanted to enjoy the beauty of nature that surrounded her, both in her backyard and also in the beautiful forest that backed right up to that backyard. 

Max grinned, and leaned down to kiss her nose. “Go bundle up. I’ll shift, and then I’ll take you for a ride through the forest.” 

Tasha’s eyes widened. “On your back? You can carry me? Are you sure I won’t be too heavy?”

Max laughed. “Have you seen the size of my bear?” 

Tasha grinned. “Okay, true. Let me just go get a warmer scarf and some warmer gloves then.” 

She quickly went in to get the warmest clothes that she could, knowing that despite the sunshine she’d chill quickly in the wind if she wasn’t careful. When she was satisfied that she had bundled up sufficiently, she returned to the backyard, where she found that Max had already stripped out of his clothes and shifted into his bear form. 

She’d seen him in bear form several times by this point, but she still hadn’t gotten over the pure awe she always felt at the sight of him, large, fierce, and covered in fur. 

He was right: she didn’t need to worry that he wouldn’t be able to carry her on his back. His bear was a grizzly, giant and strong. He probably could have carried three of her without straining too hard. 

He huffed at her impatiently and swung his head backward, indicating that she should climb on.

“Patience, mister,” she said with a laugh as she walked over to him. Then, with a distinctive lack of grace, she climbed onto his back. It was hard to move in all the layers she was wearing, but she finally managed to get herself onto his back. 

He looked over his shoulder, swinging his giant bear head around as far as he could to make sure she was securely on. She gave him a thumbs up, and then, with a satisfied grunt, he started toward the back gate of her garden, which led directly onto a forest path. Tasha held on tightly and breathed in the fresh, crisp winter air. 

This was turning out to be an amazing day. 

* * *

Max picked up speed slowly, wanting to make sure that Tasha was secure before he started going too quickly. He had a hard time not running at an all-out sprint, though. He didn’t think his heart had ever felt so full of love and pride and pure joy. 

Tasha had started out dreading this day, and he had turned things around for her. He had taken care of his woman, taken care of his lifemate. 

Nothing in his life had ever felt so good.

Every time he coaxed a genuine smile from Tasha, especially on the days when he knew she was sad and missing her mother, he felt like his whole life had been leading up to this point: to the moment when he would meet his lifemate and spend the rest of his days making her the happiest woman on earth.

He loved the weight of her on his back as he ran through the snow-covered trees. She’d spent the first several minutes fretting that she was too heavy for him, and would hurt his back. But he had finally convinced her through his strong pace that his grizzly form could handle her. He was a giant bear, a giant strong bear, and he had no problems carrying his woman through the forest. 

In fact, he craved the chance to do this. He’d never felt as free as he did right then, when it was just Tasha and him and the wide, wide wilderness.  

His friends had told him that when he saw this forest in spring, then summer, and then autumn, he was not going to believe its beauty. They told him to just wait a few months, and the forest would reveal its true beauty. 

But Max thought they were crazy. He knew springtime blossoms, deep summer green, and blazing fall colors were all beautiful in their own very special ways. But he had always loved the quiet, sophisticated beauty of winter. 

How could anyone not love this? The dark wood of the trees against the brilliant white of the snow and deep blue of the winter sky? The pine trees added a splash of green, even in the middle of the winter, and he thought that he wouldn’t have minded if winter lasted all year. He even loved the cold. He naturally ran hot, since his bear side was designed to withstand freezing temperatures. Even in human form, he could handle much more cold than the average man. But when he was in bear form, he could easily withstand anything the Wood Canyon weather could throw at him. 

He did worry about Tasha, since she was very much not a bear and frequently seemed to be cold. But she had done a good job of bundling up, and he could tell from the easy way she rode his back that she was enjoying the ride, not worrying about whether she was going to catch frostbite. 

All these happy thoughts swirled through Max’s mind, giving him a fresh burst of energy as he made his way deeper into the woods. He had a certain destination in mind—a cave he’d discovered on one of his many recent wanderings in the forest. He had no idea whether Tasha had seen the cave before, but he had a feeling she hadn’t. It had been a little ways off the trail, so it wasn’t somewhere that she would have seen if she hadn’t gone on a bit of a more daring exploration, which he knew probably wouldn’t have been her thing. She tended to be cautious when it came to wandering around in the forest, which was a good thing. But Max knew she was safe with him, and he wanted to show her the cave. 

The other reason he thought she likely hadn’t seen it before, or at least had not seen it recently, was that the entrance had been heavily overgrown with plants when he first found it. No one had disturbed the cave for quite some time. 

Max sort of hoped that Tasha would fall in love with the spot as much as he had, and that it would become one of their favorite, secret destinations when they went gallivanting around the woods.  

He ran faster, eager to see how she reacted to the cave. He gulped in big lungfuls of air, and expertly weaved his way through the thick underbrush as they got deeper into the forest and away from the more well-traveled areas of the trail. 

Tasha remained fairly quiet as they made their way through the woods, but Max didn’t worry too much about her silence. Even though she normally chatted his ear off, even when he was in bear form and she knew he couldn’t respond, he knew that her current mood had probably made her feel more like contemplating and less like chatting.

When they finally made it to the cave, the afternoon light had grown rather long. Max looked up at the sky and furrowed his bear brow, although no one looking at him would have been able to tell that’s what he was doing, since his bear fur was so thick. He hoped Tasha would trust him enough to be okay heading home in the dark. He hadn’t intended to do anything today to make her even a little bit anxious. 

But she didn’t appear anxious at all at that moment. She’d slid off his back and was walking slowly toward the entrance of the cave.  

“Wow,” she breathed. “Cool.”

Max let out a huff of agreement, slightly impressed that Tasha had figured out on her own where the cave was. He’d thought it might take her a minute, but he should have known her sharp eyes would have no problem. She tried to gently push aside the brush, but had to use a little more force than she’d first intended. Max stepped a few yards back from her and shifted back into human form so he could help her. The cold nipped at his bare skin, but he ignored it. He knew from experience that it would be much warmer once he was inside the cave and the wind was blocked off.

“It’s really blocked off, huh?” Tasha said, looking a little sheepish. 

Max smiled. “Watch. I know the exact spot to push on. It’s almost like a secret door.” 

He walked up to the right side of the thick brush and pushed on a specific spot he knew well from his past explorations. The spot of brush opened almost like a little door, and Max held it open for Tasha.

“After you, my lady.”

She grinned at him and slipped inside. Max followed her and let the “door” swing shut behind him. It blocked out almost all the light, so that he and Tasha were reduced to shadows. 

“Kinda spooky,” she said in a loud whisper. 

He laughed and pulled her into his arms. “You think so? I was going for a nice secluded, romantic spot. Spooky wasn’t exactly the vibe I was intending.”

She snuggled against him. “I guess I could see where it’s romantic. It’s just darker than I expected.”

“Next time I’ll bring candles,” he promised. 

She threw back her head and laughed at that. “Maybe an electric lantern? I’m worried that with all the dry brush in here, a candle might set something on fire.”

“Fair enough,” he said, pulling her close and leaning down to plant a kiss on her nose. She kissed him back, then pulled back suddenly and looked downward with wide eyes. “Max Thompson! Are you getting turned on?”

He groaned as she reached for his hard length. He was indeed very turned on. How could she expect anything else, with her body pressed up against his own naked body?

He definitely wasn’t cold any longer. 

She closed her hand around his rock-hard dick and started a pumping motion that drove him absolutely wild.  

“Tasha,” he said, trying and failing to suppress another groan. “If you don’t stop doing that I’m never going to make it home without laying you down and making love to you right here.”

“That’s the general idea, isn’t it?” she murmured. “Don’t think I didn’t notice that you already brought a bunch of blankets up here to prep the place.”

Max would have laughed, if he wasn’t already so overcome with other more pressing emotions. 

“I suppose the possibility of us…doing things… up here did cross my mind.” 

“Well, we’d be fools to waste this opportunity,” she said, increasing the speed of her rubbing motions. “After all, you’re already naked.”

Max moaned. “You aren’t, though. We should do something about that.”

“Should we?” Tasha asked in a teasing voice. “What do you suggest we do?”

Max growled. “This.” 

He reached for the zipper of her jacket and tore it down with more ferocity than necessary, but he couldn’t help himself. He needed her clothes off of her, now, and damn it if she wasn’t wearing a ridiculous amount of layers. He knew that she had been trying to stay warm, but he was about to make sure she was plenty warm.

He was about to make sure she was burning up. 

With another growl, he pulled off her gloves, the jacket, and the hoodie underneath. Then he moved to put his lips on hers as he reached under her thick woolen sweater to start unhooking her bra. She gasped in surprise as he pushed his tongue into her mouth, the urgency of his kiss growing with every passing moment. 

He wanted her. Needed her. Had to have her. 

She was his. 

“Mine,” he growled, as he reached down to start unbuttoning her pants. She gripped him harder, making the job of undressing her impossibly difficult. How was he supposed to concentrate on anything with her hand causing an absolute inferno of desire to radiate out from his dick?

Somehow, he did manage to get off the rest of her clothes. By the time he’d managed it, he was feeling positively feral. His wild, shifter side had completely taken over, and all thoughts had flown out of his mind except one: he needed to claim his lifemate. 

His. She was his, and he was going to claim her. 

With another growl, he gently pushed her perfect, curvy body down onto the soft bed of blankets he had indeed set up in the cave with a moment like this in mind. 

She moaned, and the sound nearly undid him. The pressure and heat in his dick had already become unbearable, and he felt like he was going to explode. Thankfully, she had lost her grip on him by that point, because if she’d still been doing that unearthly rubbing motion he was sure he would have completely lost control by that point. 

He needed to hold it together just a little longer. 

He also needed to pay her back by showing her what it felt like when someone teased you to the very edge of absolutely exploding into an orgasm.

He reached down between her legs and slipped two of his fingers deep inside her. She was more than just wet, she was dripping. And she wasn’t just warm, she was on fire. He thought of what that wet heat was going to feel like on his dick when he entered her in a few minutes, and he nearly came right then, just from imagining it. 

He couldn’t do that yet. He had to hold on and drive her crazy just a little bit longer. 

He pumped his fingers inside her, and he could feel her body tensing up. Her breathing grew rapid, and he knew she was close to coming. 

With a satisfied growl, he pulled his fingers out, and she immediately let out a cry of protest. 

“Don’t stop!” she exclaimed. “Feels…so…good.”

“I know,” he said, his voice low and husky. “But I’m not going to let my fingers have all the fun.”

He slid up so his body hovered over hers, his face right over her face and his dick right above her entrance. 

“Ready for more?” he asked. “Ready for me to take you?”

“Always,” she panted. 

He needed no further invitation. He slammed into her, the heat of her instantly sending his whole body up in flames. 

He roared as he began to thrust, wild, passionate instinct taking over. She was crying out herself, her body so tense and hot that he knew she was right on the edge. 

They both were. He moved in her, faster and faster, the pressure and impossible heat in his core telling him that the lifemate bond between them was being affirmed. He was hers, and she was his. 

His. For always.  

She cried out again, and then, she was coming, hard and fast. Her impossibly strong inner muscles clenched around his length over and over as she found her release, and he could hold back no longer.

With a roar, he gave one last, deep thrust. His orgasm rolled over him like a violent, volcanic earthquake. He pulsed into her, the heat and pressure giving way to tingling, intense throbs of pure pleasure. Pure passion. 

He had never known a feeling like this before her. She did things to his body and heart that he would have thought impossible before he’d met her, and he had a feeling, from the way she trembled and arched up to meet him in the passion of release, that she felt the same about him. 

They rode their release together, until finally, both spent, they collapsed together in each other’s arms. 

Neither one of them were cold any longer.

 

In fact, Max didn’t see how he’d ever possibly be cold again. Not with Tasha beside him, keeping him warm. 

She snuggled against him, as though reading his thoughts and wanting to prove to him that she did indeed have what it took to warm him always. 

He turned to her and kissed her forehead. “I hope this day turned out okay for you, after all.” He said the words with true concern, but she laughed.

 

“Oh, Max,” she said, her voice light and dreamy. “This day was full of so much more joy than I could have even dared to hope for. Thank you. It was a good reminder to me that despite everything I’ve been through, my life is still so full of love and happiness.”

“And it always will be, as long as I have anything to say about it,” he told her, his voice steely with resolve. “I never imagined when I agreed to move to Wood Canyon that I would meet my lifemate here.”

 

“And I never imagined that when I decided to take a chance on opening my heart, that I would find someone as wonderful as you, someone with a fiercely loyal bear side on top of everything else. But here we are.”

 

“Here we are,” Max agreed, kissing her tenderly. “And our life together is just getting started.”

“It’s gonna be a good life,” Tasha said, snuggling against him. “The best life ever.”

“Indeed it is,” Max agreed.

He held her close, and breathed in her scent, trying to sear that perfect moment into his memory. If it were up to him, he’d just stay in that cave forever, making love to her over and over. 

But real life wouldn’t allow him to just live in a cave, and they were probably going to want dinner at some point. Tasha had mentioned something about some cupcakes she wanted to share with him, too. His stomach growled and he laughed, thinking he wouldn’t mind a cupcake at that moment. He chuckled, and was going to make a joke about the fact that he should have brought snacks to the cave as well as blankets, but then he realized that Tasha’s breathing had turned even, and she was asleep.

He smiled and settled down. Dinner and snacks, as well as real life, could wait just a little bit longer while he enjoyed this perfect winter afternoon with his perfect lifemate. 

What a wild, wonderful adventure this move had turned out to be, and he wouldn’t change a thing. 

*** Thank you for reading! For the next Wood Canyon shifter short story adventure, click here to read Shifter Spring Fever! ***