“Hey, easy,” a soothing voice crooned from beside her.

  She knew that voice. Turning her head to the side, her gaze rested on a face more beloved than he would ever know. Eduardo was there, patched up now, judging from the bandages wrapped around his body.

  “Were you shot, too?” she asked, worry filling her.

  “Yeah, but it’s no big deal. It isn’t the first time,” he told her, brushing her hair back from her face with gentle strokes.

  “Eddie, I thought he was going to—”

  “Shhh, it’s alright now. I got you,” he murmured, kissing her head, and gathering her in his powerful arms.

  Alina allowed herself a moment to simply rest in the security of Eddie’s warmth. She loved him so much and was so very tired of this push and pull they were stuck in.

  “It’s all going to be okay,” he told her, and she sighed as he rocked her gently.

  Alina wished with all her heart that he was telling the truth. That Eddie was finally ready to accept her love for what it was. She needed him. The fact she had marked him, and he had not returned the claiming bite, weighed heavily on her soul. Her Tigress was forlorn, thinking her mate did not want her.

  But he came for us, she reminded the Cat.

  He did not give up. Now we must wait for him to decide. Even if that means we must part.

  “I want to go home,” she said, closing her eyes as she came to that hard decision.

  Giving him the space he needed was going to be difficult, she knew. Alina’s heart constricted, and she bit back tears. She loved him. That said everything, didn’t it? But in loving him, she would have to set him free. Even if it killed her.

  “Alright. Let me get the nurse,” Eddie said, kissing her forehead.

  She pasted a polite smile on her face when he returned. Already dressed and packed with the few belongings she had, he shook his head as he walked in the room.

  “Why didn’t you wait? I would have helped you,” he told her, taking her bag as the nurse followed him inside with a wheelchair.

  “I don’t need that,” Alina grumbled, but she sat down anyway.

  “It’s procedure,” the nurse said, wheeling her out.

  “I have the car waiting for us in front,” Eddie told her as she signed the release forms.

  She made to stand, but he was already there, lifting her up in his big, strong arms. Fuck. He was making it so difficult. Her Tigress growled mournfully, the beast not wanting to let him go. But what choice did she have?

  “Are you hungry?” he asked, but Alina shook her head.

  A few more attempts at small talk later, and she simply closed her eyes, feigning sleep. There was no way she could get through this if he kept being so nice to her. But Eddie was kind.

  Sure, he could be gruff and blustery, but the big Grizzly was the most caring man she had ever met. In Russia, she had mostly been around the males of her ballet company. Felines and Ursids were fundamentally different creatures.

  As Shifters, those differences leaked over into basic personality traits and behaviors, such as how they treated their females. Eddie was far more courteous and had better manners towards women than any male feline she had ever seen.

  But his kindness was not reserved just for her. Sure, Alina liked that he was so good to Yasmin, Mama, and the other females at the Club. But a small part of her wished there was something special just for her.

  Eddie wanted her physically, sure. He had proved that when they had made love together. But most men liked sex. She’d bitten him. Claimed him. And he had remained unmoved to return the bite. Maybe the Fates had it wrong, she wondered, feeling her heart breaking.

  “We’re here,” Eddie whispered, concern lacing his voice.

  He had pulled into the driveway, and Alina frowned as she noted her brother’s car was missing. Where was her family? She had been counting on them to act as a buffer.

  Dammit. Before Eddie could move around the car to get her door, she opened it. There was no way she could handle him touching her. Not now, when her heart felt as fragile as spun glass.

  “Alina!” he called her name, and she took off.

  Running as fast as she could while injured, with tears blurring her vision, Alina gasped at the pain lancing through her. She did not even make it to the door before he caught her.

  “What happened? What’s wrong? Alina, talk to me,” he begged, wrapping her in his arms and pulling her tight to his body.

  “Please, it hurts,” she whispered, sobbing openly now.

  “What hurts? Do you need to go back to the hospital?” he asked, panic lacing his voice.

  “No,” she shook her head, pushing against his chest.

  Eddie stopped walking, letting her slide down his body, but he did not release his hold on her waist.

  “Alina, please. Tell me what is wrong?”

  “First, um, thank you for rescuing me. It seems you are always doing that,” she said, with no small amount of self-deprecation.

  Shrugging, she took a step back, and he dropped his arms. Fuck. It was cold without him. They were in the yard behind Konstantin’s compound, halfway between the main house and the guest one. Snow covered the landscape, making it appear as if it were dipped in frosting.

  So pretty, she thought absently.

  “Alina?”

  “I am trying to be noble. I know you have had a difficult time accepting the Fates decision to throw us together. I am sorry I am not what you wanted as a mate, and I know I bit you without your permission. I am sorry, Eduardo, on both accounts.”

  “Alina, what are you saying?” he asked, his voice cracking.

  “You never wanted this. You never wanted me. It was obvious from the beginning, but I was stubborn and forced your hand. I am so sorry, Eddie.”

  “Are you saying you don’t want me anymore?” he choked out.

  “I will always want you, moy bogatyr, but I love you too much to keep you where you do not want to be. I just want you to be happy,” she whispered, her heart breaking.

  “Thank the gods,” he growled, pulling her to him, and wrapping her tight in his arms. “Because I am only happy with you, mi fiera. I told you already, I love you. I fucked up, Alina. Hesitated when I should have fucking pounced, and I made you doubt me. I am so damn sorry. Please give me a chance to make it up to you, baby,” he begged.

  “What are you saying?” Alina asked, gazing at him through tear-rimmed lashes.

  “I love you. I want you. be mine. Mate,” he growled, eyes bleeding black with his Bear.

  “Are you sure?” she asked, not daring to hope.

  “Fuck yes, I am sure. Be mine, baby. Say yes.”

  “YES!”

  CHAPTER NINE

  Eddie carried Alina into the guest house, almost scared to kiss her. The second he got his mouth on her, he knew the tight leash he had on his control would slip.

  “Eddie,” she whispered, her tear-streaked face gazing at him with so much love he damn near tripped.

  “Alina,” he replied, cupping a hand behind her neck and tugging her face to his.

  “Are you sure?” she asked.

  “I have never been more sure of anything in my life. I want you, mate. Need you. Love you so fucking much it hurts.”

  Then he was kissing her, and all rational thought left his brain, Eddie’s Bear chuffed and pawed the ground in that metaphysical plane where he waited. The beast delighted he was finally going to claim the sexy little Tigress.

  Wind howled outside, and fat flurries fell, hitting the skylight above the bed as Eduardo slowly unwrapped his mate. Her skin shone like ivory and his breath caught in his throat at her beauty.

  “I have never seen anything like you, mi fiera,” he whispered reverently, almost afraid to touch her.

  “Is that a good thing?” she asked, peeking up at him shyly.

  “Oh yes, baby. It is a very good thing,” he growled, his voice deep with his Bear.

  Eddie stood up, removing his own clothing as he watched his beautiful female stretch out on top of the covers. She was so gorgeous. Her perfect skin gleaming, all pretty and pale, and pink in the most delicious little spots.

  He could not wait to get his hands and mouth on her. As if she could hear his plans for her, Alina sighed, closing her eyes and arching her back slightly. Her tip-tilted breasts were just begging for attention, and Eddie was just the man to give it to them.

  He knelt on the bed, his fingers brushing across her ankles first, up her calves as he spread her legs and made room for his body. She felt like silk against his calloused fingertips.

  Everything about them seemed in contrast. His skin was naturally bronzed to her ivory. His hands were rough to her smooth ones. But there were similarities, too.

  Alina was a dancer, and her feet bore evidence of her training. He lifted each foot, bending his head to brush his lips across one arch, then the other. Her eyes fluttered open as she watched him, lips parted.

  He continued to give attention and care for every inch of her beautiful, well-trained body, touching and kissing, whispering words of praise as he went. Her flat stomach trembled as he dragged his hand up her torso, leaving goosebumps in his wake.

  By the time he reached her tight little nipples, Alina was whispering to him in Russian. His understanding of the language was practically nil, but whatever she said, it was turning him on even more.

  “Fuck, baby, you are perfect,” he growled before sucking the tiny bud into his mouth.

  Alina gasped, tugging on his hair, but Eduardo would not be rushed. He lapped at her skin, pressing her down into the mattress before licking a trail up the line of her cleavage to her neck and finally, her mouth.

  Fuck, he loved kissing this woman. She was sweeter than candy and so damn beautiful when she opened for him like a brand new rosebud. Humbled that she had chosen him, Eduardo cupped her cheeks, making sure she was looking at him as he pressed his cock into her warm, wet heat.

  They both groaned when he was fully seated, and he loved the way she felt surrounding him. Alina was everywhere. In his heart. His Mind. His body.

  “Eddie, need you,” she moaned.

  “I need you too, so much, from the first time I saw a picture of you,” he murmured.

  “Ya vseegda tebya hotella,” she whispered back, and he knew exactly what she meant.

  “I have always wanted you, too, Alina,” he growled, then he started moving.

  The sounds of their lovemaking filled the room. Naughty little whispers, urgent panting, and moaning. A symphony to his ears, he thought as the pleasure built and built. Alina scratched at his back, and Eddie felt her tremble as her sheath tightened around him.

  By the time she cried out, he was more than ready. Eddie struck her shoulder, placing his bite mark in a mirror image of where she’d placed hers on his skin. He bit down hard and deep, his fangs scraping bone, as he never wanted her to doubt his resolve. Her orgasm increased, and she dug her claws into him, marking him again, and Eddie roared in triumph as he spilled himself inside her.

  “Mine. Mate,” he growled like a possessive asshole. But Alina’s eyes glowed in the darkness with her beast, and he knew she appreciated his primal proclamation.

  “Finally,” she whispered, panting to try to catch her breath.

  “Never getting away from me now, mi fiera,” he said, dropping a hard kiss on her mouth.

  “I will never want to.”

  For the first time in a long while, Eddie’s Bear felt peace. He had his she-Cat now, and everything else would fall into place.

  Mine.

  EPILOGUE

  Christmas arrived in a flurry of snow and surprises. Bringing with it many gifts, the least of which was not a special meeting of the Shifter Council of New York City, still being temporarily led by the Neta of the Island Stripe Pride, Dean Romero.

  At the meeting, Shifter run Station 1135 of the Fire Department of the City of New York provided expert testimony via Firefighter Austin Baudin, which proved the fire at the warehouse where Alina had been brought after being kidnapped was caused by Evgeny Ivanovich in an act of premeditated arson. The man had apparently rigged the room to blow on the chance she refused his advances. Motherfucker thought if he couldn’t have her, no one could.

  Lucky for Alina, her true mate did not feel that way. She Sighed, snuggling back against her mate’s big, warm body. Eduardo’s hands came around her instinctively, even in sleep. Last night was Christmas Eve, and he’d given her two wonderful surprises, the first was a beautiful engagement ring with a large opal surrounded by diamonds he’d said reminded him of her.

  The second gift she would also wear proudly until the day she died. Her fingers touched the still sore skin of the mating bite he had given her on her right shoulder, claiming her in their traditions and sealing the matebond that had started the day she met him. Even now, it pulsed as it encircled the two of them.

  “What are you thinking of, mi fiera?” Eduardo asked, nibbling behind her ear, giving her shivers.

  “Mmm. About you, how happy I am now,” she said, turning to face him.

  “I am sorry I made us wait. I was trying to save your virtue,” he said, brows furrowed in apology.

  “Moy bogatyr, you did that and more. You saved my life, showed me love, and rescued me from a life alone. I love you, mate.”

  “And I love you. Now, about the dance show tomorrow tonight,” he said, and she stilled.

  Alina did not bring up the performance they had to delay after her injuries, and she was not sure how he was going to take it. Dancing was her life, after him of course, but would he mind?

  “Yes? What about it?”

  “I can’t wait to see it. I have a table reserved in the front just for me.”

  “You do?”

  “Of course, I will always be there, rooting for you, cheering you on.”

  “But you won’t be angry? Jealous?”

  “Mi amor, I have your claim right here. How could I be jealous?”

  “I love you so much,” she said, her heart so full of happiness, tears pricked her eyes.

  “I love you back,” Eduardo whispered, cupping her face, kissing her with so much love that soon kissing was not enough.

  It would never be enough. She would always want him and, even better, she knew he would always want her back. He’d saved her virtue, all right, and it belonged to him now, sure as he belonged to her.

  The end.

  Get the other side to this story in Bruised Force by Elena Kincaid.

  Pssst…. Want more tales of fated mates and PNR?

  Lookee here:

  https://www.cdgorri.com/paranormal-romance/

  BEWARE… HERE BE DRAGONS!

  The Falk Clan Tales began as my stories surrounding four dragon Brothers and how they find their one true mates, but when a long lost brother arrives on the scene, followed by a few more Shifters…what can I say? The more the merrier!

  Each Dragon’s chest is marked with his rose, the magical link to his heart and his magic. They each have a matching gemstone to go with it.

  She’s given up on love. But he’s just begun.

  In The Dragon's Valentine we meet the eldest Falk brother, Callius. He is on a mission to find a Castle and his one true mate, one he can trust with his diamond rose....

  His heart is frozen. Can she change his mind about love?

  In The Dragon’s Christmas Gift our attention shifts to Alexsander, the youngest brother of the four. He has resigned himself to a life alone, until he meets her.

  Some wounds run deep. Can a Dragon’s heart be unbroken?

  The Dragon’s Heart is the story of Edric Falk who has vowed never to love again, but that changes when he meets his feisty mate, Joselyn Curacao.

  She just wants a little fun. He’s looking for a lifetime.

  We finally meet Nikolai Falk and his sexy Shifter mate in The Dragon’s Secret.

  She doesn’t believe in fairytales, until a Dragon comes knocking on her door.

  Meet Castor Falk, the long lost brother of our original four Dragons, and his sassy mate Josette. The Dragon’s Treasure is full of adventure and laughs.

  Nothing can surprise this six hundred-year-old Dragon, except maybe her.

  Devine Graystone meets his match in Sunny Daye, an irrepressible Wolf Shifter with a heart of gold. Read their story in The Dragon’s Surprise.

  He’s a hardcore realist until she dares him to dream.

  Nicholas Gravestone doesn’t know what to think when he spies Minerva Lykos on the property his Dragon covets. Can this unlikely pair come to a truce? Find out in The Dragon’s Dream.

  Thanks for reading.

  xoxo,

  C.D.

  *Dragon Mates & Dragon Mates 2 boxed sets are now available in hardcover, paperback, and ebook. Get a discount when you buy direct!

  HAVE YOU MET THE REST OF THE BARVALE CLAN BEARS?

  Looking for a Paranormal Romance series that is loads of growly fun?

  Meet the Barvale Clan first in the Bear Claw Tales! A complete shifter romance series about 4 brothers who discover and need to win their fated mates!

  Titles are:

  Bearly Breathing

  Bearly There

  Bearly Tamed

  Bearly Mated

  Followed by two more spin off series, the Barvale Clan Tales, featuring:

  Polar Opposites

  Polar Outbreak

  Polar Compound

  Polar Curve

  and, of course, the Barvale Holiday Tales, beginning with A Bear For Christmas

  Hers to Bear

  Thank You Beary Much

  &

  Bearing Gifts!

 

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