Her mother frowned. “I remember a specific conversation about it.”
“I’m doing it, Mom. Now, Mrs. Nester said she dropped by yesterday for tea and you had a lovely visit. I’m glad you’re becoming friends.”
Her mother sniffed. “It was okay. She had cat hair on her clothing and it made me all stuffed up.”
Rosalie sighed and discreetly checked her watch. Only two more hours until her mother’s bedtime. She could do this.
* * *
“Did you like the movie?” Hudson glanced at her as he turned down the street toward her complex.
“It wasn’t bad for a shoot ‘em up action flick,” she said with a grin.
He laughed and reached across to squeeze her thigh. “Thanks for going to that one. I know you weren’t really into it.”
“It was better than I thought it was going to be.” She smiled at him, a little flicker of pleasure going through her when he left his hand resting on her thigh. At the movies this afternoon, she’d left the usual empty seat between them. To her surprise, when Hudson came into the theatre with their popcorn and drinks, he’d flipped the arm rest up and sat down next to her.
He hadn’t put his arm around her or held her hand or anything, but she’d decided that sitting right next to Hudson in the theatre made the Sunday afternoon matinee about a thousand times better.
Hope you enjoyed it while it lasted. Because by next Sunday you’ll be just friends again and it’ll go back to the way it was. Do you think Hudson will still go with you to the movies if you’re with Lincoln? He hates Lincoln for some reason, and there’s no way he’s going to hang out with you once you start smelling like lion.
She shoved that thought out of her head with lightning speed. Even just the thought of smelling like anyone other than Hudson made her feel weird and uncomfortable. She belonged to Hudson, it was his scent and only his scent that should be on her.
You’re my good mate, sweet Rosie.
She jerked all over, and Hudson rubbed her thigh as he pulled into the complex. “You okay?”
“Yeah, just…uh, yeah.”
He parked in front of her townhouse but kept the truck idling.
“You’re not coming in?” She asked then berated herself for sounding so needy. It was Hudson’s day off, but that didn’t mean he was required to spend the entire day with her.
“Just gonna go home and grab a change of clothes,” he replied. “I’ll park my truck at my place and walk back.”
“You should just bring enough clothes and your toiletries over for the week,” she said. “I can make a spot in the closet for them. Then you don’t have to keep going back to your place every day.”
His entire body stiffened, and he gave her a cautious look that made her instantly regret what she’d said. “This is just a casual thing, Rosalie.”
“I know,” she said hurriedly.
“Do you? Because you basically just asked me to move in.”
Her face flushed bright red. “No, I didn’t. I was just trying to make things easier for you, that’s all.”
“I’m not interested in dating you. I made that perfectly clear. This isn’t anything but sex,” he said.
Her embarrassment turned to anger. He was acting like she was an idiot. “I’m aware of that. I was being nice, Hudson. A woman can be nice to you without it meaning she’s demanding a relationship or something.”
He was still giving her that same guarded look, and she glared at him. “Stop looking at me like that. I’m not asking you to move in with me, for God’s sake.”
“Maybe I should do my own thing tonight,” he said.
“Maybe you should.”
“I’ll text you tomorrow.”
“Fine.” She grabbed her purse and opened the door of his truck. She slid out and slammed the door shut before walking to her townhouse. She fumbled for her keys, blinking back tears, before opening the door and walking inside.
She shut the door and leaned against it, listening to Hudson’s truck as it roared out of the complex. She stared miserably at Mr. Pibbles as the hot tears slid down her cheeks. “Stupid polar bear shifter. He’s a jerk, Pib.”
The cat meowed and rubbed against her legs and she wiped away the tears before petting the cat. “I guess this confirms that I really was just dreaming the ‘you’re my mate’ thing. It doesn’t matter, right? You’re the only one I need anyway, Mr. Pibbles. C’mon, you can keep me company while I have a hot bath and forget all about dumb Hudson and his stupid freak out over me just trying to be nice.”
* * *
Hudson shifted the six pack of beer to his other hand, stuck the package of cookies under his arm, and dug the key out of his pocket. He hesitated and then shoved it back into his pocket and knocked on the door instead.
Three hours. He’d made it three hours before his polar bear’s whining and whimpering and carrying on had sent him straight back to Rosalie.
Are you sure it’s just your polar bear?
Yes, it was just his fucking polar bear. It was stupid and refused to acknowledge that come Friday, his little infatuation with Rosalie would have to end anyway.
She’s our mate! His polar bear roared.
No, she isn’t! And I swear to fucking God, if you try and make me tell her I love her again, I’ll kick your furry ass all the way back to goddamn Canada.
His polar bear snarled in fury, and Hudson shoved it down as Rosalie’s voice drifted through the closed door. “What do you want?”
“Can I come in, Rosalie?”
“Why? You’re doing your own thing tonight, remember?”
He sighed. “Let me in so we can talk.”
There was silence and he held up the beer and the cookies. “I brought beer and cookies.”
The door unlocked, and she swung it open. His bear growled happily at the sight of her even when she scowled at him. “I wasn’t asking you to move in with me.”
“I know,” he said. “I overreacted and I’m sorry.”
She pushed Mr. Pibbles back with her foot before just scooping him up and turning around. He stared at her ass in her tight yoga pants as she said, “Come in.”
He stepped into the house, removing his boots and jacket before following her into the kitchen. He set the beer and the cookies on the table as she put the cat on the floor and sat down. She must have just gotten out of the bath, her skin was flush with warmth and her hair was piled on top of her head in a messy bun.
He swallowed heavily when his gaze dipped to her chest. She was wearing a tank top and was clearly braless and he studied the outline of her nipples.
“Up here,” she said.
He raised his gaze to her face and gave her a sheepish smile. “Sorry.”
He could smell her anger with him, but underneath that anger was lust and, Christ, did he just want to pick her up, carry her to the bed and eat her sweet pussy until she was screaming his name.
Instead, he opened a can of beer and handed it to her before opening one for himself. She took a long drink and helped herself to a cookie as Mr. Pibbles jumped up on the table. He sniffed at her open can of beer before sauntering across the table to Hudson. He petted the cat roughly, smiling a little at its loud purr.
“I’m sorry,” he said again. “I was a dick.”
She sighed and poked at the half-eaten cookie. “I’m embarrassed that you think I was trying to make this more than it is. You were very clear about what you wanted, and I do understand what this is.”
“I know you do,” he said. “I overreacted.”
She gave him a weirdly apprehensive look. “If you want this to be finished now rather than, uh, Friday, you can tell me that. I won’t be offended. You don’t have to keep having sex with me if you’re tired of -”
“I don’t want to stop,” he said quickly. “Unless you want to stop?”
“No,” she replied.
She fidgeted in her chair, looking sad and near tears, and he couldn’t stand it any longer. He leaned over and pulled
her chair across the floor to him before plucking her out of it and putting her on his lap. He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her upper chest.
“I’m sorry, Rosalie.”
She rested her forehead against his. “I’m sorry too.”
“You have nothing to be sorry about. I was being an idiot.”
“You weren’t,” she said.
He rubbed her back, and she kissed his thick neck. “Did you eat dinner?”
“No, I wasn’t hungry.”
She straightened and gave him a small smile. “Do you want to have dinner with me?”
“Yes,” he said. “I also want to stay the night with you if that’s okay.”
“It is,” she said.
He kissed her briefly. “Thank you. After dinner, we can take another look at the kink list and -”
“I don’t want to,” she said. “Can we just have vanilla sex tonight?”
“We can do whatever you want.”
“What I want is to have dinner with you, maybe watch a little television, and then take you upstairs and ride you until I come.”
Her face flushed red, but she stared steadily at him. He loved that his shy little mate was learning to be bold with him.
He kissed her upper chest again. “Add in pussy eating and you have yourself a deal, little human.”
“I’ll agree to those terms.” She gave him a cheeky smile and he patted her ass when she slid off his lap. “Come on, you can put those muscles to good use and peel the potatoes while I start the steaks.”
* * *
Rosalie wasn’t sure what woke her up – if it was the needle-sharp claws of Mr. Pibbles as he launched himself from his spot on her hip, or the weird high-pitched whine. She opened her eyes, staring blearily at the alarm clock. Almost noon. Shit, they had slept in even later than normal.
The whining noise continued and she turned her head to stare at Hudson. He was in his polar bear form and sprawled on his stomach. One heavy, claw-tipped paw actually rested on her thigh, but she didn’t feel any anxiety over it. Much like Mr. Pibbles, she’d grown used to seeing Hudson as a polar bear and she knew without a doubt that he’d never hurt her – whether he was in his polar bear form or human form.
She rubbed her hand across the thick fur of the paw. When he made a snoring sound and turned his shaggy head away, she realized the whine wasn’t coming from him. Frowning, she pushed his paw off of her and sat up.
Her eyes widened, and she threw back the covers, staring at the woman standing in the doorway of her bedroom. “Mom? What are you doing here?”
Her mother’s face was the colour of old cheese, and the whining noise intensified when she sucked in a breath. She was staring slack-jawed at Hudson and her entire body was trembling.
“Shit.” Rosalie slid out of bed. “Mom, it’s okay. Don’t panic. It’s not -”
Her mother drew in another deep breath and let out a shrill scream that sent Mr. Pibbles, who’d been sniffing at her legs, bolting out of the room.
“Mom! Stop!” Rosalie shouted as Hudson woke with a loud snarl. He half-fell, half-jumped off the bed, the floor shaking when he landed on it with a loud thump. Her mother screamed again, and Hudson growled loudly, baring his fangs at her.
Rosalie ran toward her mother, grabbing her by the arms and swinging her around to face her. “Mom, stop screaming! It’s fine.”
Her mother clutched at her, giving her a look of pure panic. “Run, Rosalie, run! He’ll kill us both!”
She tried to drag her out of the room, but Rosalie dug her heels in. “Mom, stop! He won’t hurt us.”
Her mother threw another terrified look over Rosalie’s shoulder. Her mouth dropped open and she whispered, “Oh my God.”
Rosalie turned to look at Hudson. He had shifted to his human form, and he stared at Rosalie’s mother as she whispered, “He’s n-naked.”
Rosalie put her arm around her mother’s waist and led her out of the bedroom. “Come downstairs with me, Mom. Come on.”
She helped her mother down the stairs and into the kitchen. She sat her in a chair and squeezed her mother’s cold hands. “What are you doing here?”
“I went to your office. You’ve been so distant this last week, I thought we could have lunch together. But, the girl at the front said you were on vacation. So, I came here and when you didn’t answer the door, I let myself in. I thought you’d been hurt or-or kidnapped. Why else would my own daughter not tell me that she was on vacation?”
“Mom, I didn’t mean -”
Her mother pulled her hands free. Some of the colour had returned to her face and she gave Rosalie an accusatory look. “What have you done, Rosalie?”
“His name is -”
“You- you’re sleeping with an animal. You’re a dirty, dirty girl, Rosalie. You should be ashamed.”
“Hudson isn’t an animal. He’s a polar bear shifter.”
“He’s a freak!” Her mother snapped. “He’s a filthy animal and you let him touch you. You let him into your bed!”
Her mother’s gaze flickered to the left, her face paled, and Rosalie turned to see Hudson, wearing jeans and a t-shirt, standing just outside of the kitchen doorway. It was obvious from the look on his face that he’d heard what her mother said. Her heart sank, and she tried to smile at him as he handed over her robe.
She was wearing just her sleep shorts and tank top and the house was cool. She slipped into the robe, appreciating his thoughtfulness despite the shit that was currently going down. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” he said. He cleared his throat and ducked into the kitchen, holding his hand out. “I’m Hudson.”
His mother shrank back, and she made a low moan of fear before closing her eyes. “Get away from me, don’t-don’t kill me.”
Rosalie wanted to roll her eyes at her mother’s theatrics. She knew her mother well enough to know that her real terror had passed. “Stop it, Mom. Hudson won’t hurt you. Hudson, this is my mother Beverly.”
“Nice to meet you,” Hudson said.
Beverly crossed her arms over her torso and looked away. “You almost gave me a heart attack, Rosalie. I almost died because you lied to me.”
A tiny flame of anger flickered to life in Rosalie’s belly. She turned to Hudson. “Could you give us a few minutes?”
He nodded. “I’ll head home and -”
“No,” Rosalie said. “We have plans today and that hasn’t changed.” They didn’t have any specific plans, but she’d be damned if she’d let her mother drive Hudson away. “If you don’t mind waiting upstairs for a little bit though, I’d appreciate it.”
“Yeah, okay.” Hudson turned and left the kitchen.
Rosalie’s mother released her breath in a shuddering sigh. “He’s a monster, Rosalie. A monster, and you’re letting him -”
“Enough!” Rosalie had never used such a harsh tone with her mother before and her mother shrank back, real anxiety flickering in her eyes.
“I’m your mother. You can’t speak that way to me.”
“You’re my mother and I love you and I respect you, but you’re going to do the same for me and listen quietly for the next five minutes.”
“I don’t know what is happening with you. You – you’re having sex with a shifter, and you - you have a cat! A cat! What are you thinking?” She glared at Mr. Pibbles as he sauntered into the kitchen.
“Listen quietly, Mom. Or I swear, I’ll never talk to you again.”
She was bluffing, but her mother’s eyes widened and she shut her mouth abruptly.
Rosalie took a deep breath. “Hudson is not a monster or an animal. He is a polar bear shifter, a bartender and,” she hesitated only briefly, “my boyfriend. He is also smart and sweet and the best guy I know. He cares for me, and I know he looks scary, but he isn’t. I promise you.”
“He’s dangerous, Rosalie. Shifters can’t be trusted, everyone knows that! He’s going to get you hurt and -”
“Mom!” Rosalie glared at
her. “Being with Hudson keeps me safe.”
“What are you talking about?”
“When I go somewhere, when I walk down the street, shifters avoid me. They get out of my way. Do you know why? Because I have Hudson’s scent on my skin, and there isn’t a shifter alive who is stupid enough to hurt a polar bear’s mate.”
She took her hands and squeezed them tightly. “Hudson keeps me safe, Mom. I care about him deeply, and I’m happy when I’m with him.”
A crocodile tear slid down her mother’s cheek. “I don’t approve.”
Rosalie lifted her mom’s hands to her mouth and kissed her knuckles. “I don’t need your approval.”
More tears and her mother made a low sobbing sound before whispering, “You’re breaking my heart. How could you do this to me?”
Rosalie squeezed her mother’s hands again and waited patiently. After a couple of minutes, her mother gave her a wide-eyed look of sorrow that couldn’t quite hide the glimmer of slyness in its depths. “I can’t watch my only child ruin her life by dating a shifter. I won’t watch. You have to choose between me and that – that polar bear, Rosalie.”
“I choose him,” Rosalie said without hesitation.
Her mother’s mouth dropped open, and Rosalie released her hands. Guilt was flooding through her, but she shoved it aside ruthlessly. Her mother was bluffing, she was sure of it, but she still felt sick to her stomach. She didn’t want to lose her mother, but she wouldn’t give up Hudson. She couldn’t give him up.
“What did you say?” Her mother whispered.
“I love you, Mom,” Rosalie said, “but I won’t let you dictate how I live my life. If you can’t deal with that and want to cut off communication, it makes me sad, but I won’t tell you how to live your life either. If you change your mind, just call me, okay? Drive home safe.”
She stepped away and her mother lunged to her feet and grabbed Rosalie’s hand. “Rosie, no!”
Rosalie smiled at her mother. “I won’t choose you over him.”
“I- I know. It was wrong of me to ask you to do that. I just need time to process this. I don’t want to lose you, okay?”
Rosalie Undone (Book Six) Page 27