by Moxie North
“No,” Tanner growled. “Not Eddie. Talk about throwing a lamb to the wolves. No, my cousin Cash has a new girlfriend, and I think you two would hit it off. He has a house outside of town and is gone working a lot. Cassie gets lonely and would love some company. She’s recovering from a car accident. She’s almost back to normal, which is great, but our family can be a bit overwhelming to an outsider,” he explained.
“Overwhelming?” she asked, tilting her head to the side. She looked a little worried. Brooke was great with the public but meeting Tanner’s family? That was a whole other level of getting to know someone.
“Well, there are a lot of us. Pretty much half the town. So when someone new and shiny enters the family, like Cassie, everyone wants to play with her. It takes a strong-willed person to manage the zoo that comes with spending time with a Rochon.”
“New and shiny.” She laughed.
“Yup, small town, not much happens. Someone has a new boyfriend or girlfriend and the family practically throws them a party. Cash’s girlfriend says there should be a ceremonial hat. Don’t be surprised if she makes you one if you choose to go over there.”
“I think I can handle that. I don’t think I’d be comfortable being in your house without you there,” she admitted.
Leaning over to grab her hand over the table, he gave it a squeeze. “Brooke, I want you to be comfortable in my home. Truly, I am thrilled you were willing to come back with me. I want you to make yourself at home.”
Brooke saw he was not just being polite. He really wanted her there and didn’t want her to feel like a guest.
“Okay, I may rearrange things while you are gone. I’m a little hyper-organized sometimes.”
He smiled. “Go for it, I’m sure some things are in the wrong place.”
“Oh, you are going to regret that,” she snickered.
“I doubt it. So, dessert?”
Chapter 26
Pulling into his driveway, Tanner kept his eyes on Brooke to see her face when she saw the house. He was glad he did. Her face lit up as they parked. His lights were on timers, so the house had a glow like there was a happy family inside. Hopefully, someday there would be.
“You live here alone?” she asked, craning her neck against the window to see up to the second story. “It has a porch. Is there a swing?”
“Yes, I’ll show you in the morning,” Tanner said, stepping out of the SUV. He came around and opened her door for her, helping her out.
“It looks like a dollhouse, Tanner,” she said in awe. Brooke couldn’t believe how much it looked like one of those Victorian doll houses that adults made and kids were never allowed to play with. The kind that, as a child, Brooke itched to touch. This was the adult version.
“A manly dollhouse, right?” He looped his arm around her waist.
“Yes, very manly. Especially if you ever get those chickens you were talking about,” she mocked.
Tanner gave her side a gentle pinch, and she squeaked. “Stop,” she said, smacking his stomach.
“Don’t hit. Use your words,” he teased using her dad’s words.
“You heard that?” she said surprised.
“Excellent hearing,” he murmured.
“Sure…” Brooke said, knowing Tanner Rochon had layers she hadn’t even delved into yet. “Show me around?” she said as they reached the back door that led into the kitchen.
Tanner opened the door for her and gestured for her to go in first. Brooke took in the clean, modern kitchen. There were just enough vintage touches to keep with the age of the house. A large metal and linoleum style table with six chairs around it stood waiting for a pancake breakfast on a weekend morning.
Brooke knew it was crazy to start picking out china patterns. She wasn’t the marrying type, had never thought it was something she even wanted. She had kept her relationships casual in the past, dating for a while but never feeling the need to go any further with the men in her life. They were usually nice, sometimes funny, but they never made her think of the future.
Two days with Tanner and she was thinking home cooked meals, gardens in the backyard, and the Sheriff naked on top of her.
Maybe it was her head wound, she thought.
“It’s big,” she said, refocusing and checking out the pale blue walls.
“I had to do a lot of remodeling. This kitchen was as old as the house when I bought it. Bathrooms and the kitchen got the updates first. After that, I worked on the bedrooms, then the living areas. Did most of the work myself, except for the electrical. I don’t mess with electricity,” Tanner said, coming up behind her. He wrapped his arms around her waist and leaned his head against hers.
“No shocks, huh?” she teased.
“No, thank you.” he said, placing a kiss on her neck.
“So, you going to show me the bedrooms?” she said, leaning into his kiss.
Tanner wanted nothing more than to take her upstairs, show her the king size bed and toss her on it. But he had to be straight with her. Brooke’s life was in too much chaos for him to keep secrets from her.
“Yes, I do want to show you the bedrooms. First, though, I think we should talk.” He led her to the living room.
Brooke took in the hardwood floors, shining with polish. The muted beige walls with pictures of wildlife and scenes of the mountains on the walls. The furniture all was newer but still didn’t stand out against the classic lines of the home.
Tanner brought her to the couch and sat her down, making sure she had pillows to support her. He headed to the carved wood fireplace. There was an ornate mantle boasting a beautiful clock and matching candles on each side. Leaning over, he started the wood that he’d placed in it earlier. He always kept it ready to start. He liked the way it looked, and he hated having to cut wood when it was cold.
Once the fire was crackling, he turned and leaned against the mantle. Crossing his arms, he looked to Brooke, who was staring at him in confusion.
Brooke thought this was a slam dunk. Her memory was back, they’d had a nice dinner, up next on the agenda was a little action. But nooo, they were going to talk in the living room in front of a cozy fire. In Brooke’s world, this was the kind of setup her parents would have with her when a great uncle died, or her grades weren’t the best.
“I feel like I’m getting grounded,” she said, glaring at him.
Sighing, Tanner ran his hands through his hair. “I need to tell you about me. Who I am. I like you, Brooke, you know that. But what you don’t understand is that I’ve been waiting for you my whole life. I’ve been waiting for the perfect woman to come into my life, someone I can love, and build a family with. I know that is you.”
Brooke was taken aback by the sincerity in his words. She knew he liked her as in wanted to have sex with her. That was tough to miss. But saying she was his perfect woman? That was a little out there.
“How can you know? You just met me. And I didn’t even know me until today!” she said with a little more hysteria.
Tanner wasn’t doing this right, but then this was the first time he had a mate. So he was bound to need practice. “I know because my instincts told me you were the One. The One that the universe meant for me.”
“Yeah, just to let you know, Sheriff, that is fucking creepy sounding.” Brooke didn’t care. He sounded crazy, and she was starting to get that gut feeling that she shouldn’t be there. Her instincts were telling her to run again.
“God, I’m fucking this up,” he groaned. “Brooke, do you believe in supernatural…things?”
“What, like ghosts?” she sputtered.
“No, like things other than humans?” he asked quietly. He was terrified of scaring her, and his bear was pacing in his mind. He knew they were on shaky ground too.
“Oh, shit, I found the one crazy ass cop in this tiny town. First I see a gang hit, now I’m sitting with Officer Dumbass. How did I get so lucky?” Brooke started to get up from the couch.
“Brooke, please! You said you’d let me tell y
ou about myself,” he reminded her.
“Fine, but then I’m calling a cab, getting in my crappy rental car and driving to Canada,” she said, settling back on the couch and crossing her arms defiantly. She wasn’t scared that he’d hurt her, at least not physically. But her heart was feeling a little bruised that she’d been so quick to like him.
“Do you remember what you saw in the hospital room? How my eyes changed?” he asked quietly.
Brooke thought back to that glow that circled his eyes. She stared up at him. She hadn’t come up with a rational reason for it and had written it off as her own moment of craziness.
“Yeah, your eyes glowed,” she whispered.
“That’s because I share my body with another soul. The soul of an animal,” he said, watching her closely.
“An animal?” she said, trying to wrap her brain around his words. “Like, what…you feel like a cat?” Brooke was remembering a show on body modification she saw once about a man who had his features altered to look like a tiger. The man seemed happy, but he in no way looked like a tiger.
“No, I mean, I’m a shifter,” he said, hoping she had some basis for the word.
“What? Like a skinwalker?” she asked. She’d also seen a movie where people could change into other people. Maybe it was the same thing.
“No, I can’t change into another person. I can only change into the other soul that shares my body. I was matched in the womb with the soul of a bear. A brown bear actually. He’s been with me since I can remember.”
Chapter 27
Brooke was having one of those out of body experiences where you wanted to make sure you remembered every detail. That way it would be easier to describe it to her shrink in the future.
“So what, deep down you feel like a bear? You dress up? Go to those conventions wearing a tail? Hey, I don’t judge, I live in San Francisco. I’ve seen everything,” she said, holding up her hands.
“I’m not a furry! I’m a shifter – a werebear, if you will,” he said with exasperation. Shouldn’t someone being told that a human and an animal could share a body be considered unique – interesting, even – not that she would think it meant he was into an alternative lifestyle.
“Ok, so shift. Show me your bear. Bring him out. I’d love to meet him,” she said mockingly. She knew she wasn’t being very nice, but she was astronomically pissed off and didn’t feel like playing nice.
“I can’t just show you my bear. I don’t think he would even come out right now. He knows you wouldn’t believe him. He has to trust that you won’t get upset. I really am what I say I am, Brooke. I wouldn’t lie to you. I care about you too much to lie.”
Brooke wanted to believe him, or maybe she didn’t. She thought she had found Mr. Right. Instead, she had a contract out on her life. The cop she’d made out with had some kind of animal split personality, and she just wanted to go home now.
Going home wasn’t an option. Running away again seemed the only choice she had left.
“I think it’s time for me to go,” she said quietly and stood up.
“Don’t go, Brooke. Please, wait,” Tanner said, panic clear in his voice.
“I can’t do this, Tanner. I can’t deal with someone’s mental illness right now. I’m barely holding on to my own sanity!” she cried out to him.
“I’m not crazy!” he growled, his voice pulling up his bear.
Brooke shot her eyes to him; she heard the sound, but that could be faked. What couldn’t be faked was the fact that Tanner was unbuttoning his shirt. She watched as he took off his gun belt and laid it on the floor. He continued disrobing, and Brooke thought about having him stop, but she was getting a free show. Crazy man wanted to do a striptease for her, so be it.
“Would you like me to check my purse for some dollar bills?” she asked with a snarky tone.
Tanner didn’t say anything just finished removing clothing until he was standing in just a pair of black boxer briefs in front of his mate.
“Come on, show me the good stuff before I have to go.” Her tone was mocking, but now it was a cover. He might have been nuts, but Sheriff Rochon was fucking hot. His body was toned top to bottom, a broad chest with flat pecs that were perfectly carved. His stomach had those ridges that made girls go dumb when they saw them. Strong, muscular legs lightly covered with hair. Even his feet were nice. He was physically perfect. Too bad he was crazy.
Tanner didn’t blame her for mocking him. He could only imagine if someone stood before him and said they were an alien or a vampire. Shifters made sense to him, but it’s what he’d always known. Reaching for the band on his briefs, he caught her eyes and pulled them down. He watched Brooke’s eyes drop straight to his cock.
He was hard; he couldn’t help it. Tanner was always hard around his mate. The moment he’d met her he’d been rock hard, and he wasn’t ashamed of being naked.
Brooke took in the long, thick dick in front of her. It could be hers if she was willing to swim in the crazy pool.
“Well, you’ve got the bod. I’ll give you that,” she murmured. She knew she should look away, but she just couldn’t. It was a spectacular penis.
Tanner walked a few steps away to an area in front of the bay window. The shades were already drawn, so he didn’t have to worry about the neighbors seeing him flash his dick around.
“I wish there was another way to do this. Just remember, I’m still inside when he has control. He can’t act without me being on board. He will stay calm and won’t approach you. Just sit there and try to keep an open mind, yeah?” Tanner was trying to stay calm, but this could make or break his future happiness.
“Go for it. Get furry,” she said, waving her hand in the air. She leaned back and crossed her legs and arms in a defiant pose.
Tanner took a deep breath, centering himself. His bear was hesitant, and he didn’t blame him. Telling his bear it would be all right, he reminded his bear he needed to show their mate who they were.
The shift was harder than it had ever been before. His bear tore out of his skin, and it was more painful than he would have liked. It only took a moment, and he kept his eyes on his mate. She went from shocked to horrified to catatonic by the time his four paws hit the floor with a reverberating thud.
Brooklyn Nishi was having a short circuit of epic proportions. Tanner had been standing naked as a jay bird in front of her one second and in the next there was a bear in the living room. A big bear. Huge. It was brown and definitely furry, and it was looking right at her.
“Oh shit,” she whispered. “You’re a fucking bear!”
Tanner kept a hold on his bear, telling him to stay as still as he could. She hadn’t screamed, and he was taking that as a good sign.
He told his bear to sit down and not move. Let her look her fill, he told him. She needed time to process what she was seeing. To work through the truth that he was presenting.
“A bear, a real bear. Is that really you, Tanner?” she asked the giant animal sitting on the rug. His head was enormous; she imagined how much wool she’d need to knit him a hat.
Now she knew she was crazy. Bears don’t wear hats. Bears also didn’t sit their asses in people’s living rooms, and she was damn sure they didn’t morph out of a naked man that had been standing in front of her moments before.
Brooke watched as the bear lifted his head up and down in answer to her previous question. “You just nodded. You understand me?”
The bear made a chuffing noise, and Brooke took that as a yes.
Compared to her amnesia, Brooke decided this was exactly what a breakdown would feel like. Her inner animal, the one that kept her alive and told her that breathing was better than standing your ground, was whimpering in fear. Her conscious mind was telling her she clearly had to be sleeping. The shimmering light she saw before the bear appeared wasn’t like in the movies. Those people cracked and screamed in pain as they changed into werewolves and the like. It was an ugly, horrifying process.
Tanner just morphed.
One second he was standing there – the next, a big ass bear.
“I think I might barf,” she said, covering her mouth with her hand. She knew she shouldn’t move but the need to heave had her bolting to the kitchen.
She was leaning over the sink dry heaving when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She screamed and jumped back.
Tanner was there, still naked, but now back to his hunky man flesh.
“I can’t,” she started.
“Please, I’m still just Tanner. The Sheriff of Apex, Washington. The man that cares so much about you; it’s killing me to see you upset.”
“What am I supposed to do with this information, Tanner?” Brooke needed some instructions. A guide to Handling Your Current Love Interest and His Inner Animal. Maybe they sold it at the bookstore?
“I had to tell you. Show you. I need you to understand about shifters. We get one true love in our lifetime. That’s it. We know from the moment we lock eyes with that person that they are the match to our dual souls. Can you imagine spending your life waiting for that spark? To know that the universe found you the perfect mate? Shifters mate for life, Brooke. We are utterly devoted to one person. You are my person, Brooke. You are my One. I’ve loved you from the second your eyes met mine in the hospital.”
“You can’t love someone that quick,” she murmured.
“Really? Because I know you are attracted to me. I know you trusted me enough to be willing to come home with me. I know you feel better when I’m around. I can hear your heartbeat speed up when you see me, then settle into a slow rhythm when I’m touching you. You are drawn to me because even as a human you recognize I’m your mate too.”
Brooke didn’t want to admit that anything he was saying was true. She’d never been in love, so she was just guessing what it felt like. She knew she didn’t want to be away from him. Even if he was a part-time bear. Part-time or all the time? Was the bear talking to her sometimes and not Tanner? These were all very upsetting thoughts that kept her from admitting how much she wanted Tanner Rochon.