“Is that so?”
He leaned fractionally closer. “Yes, it is. You have a distinct smell.”
She looked up at him, with one eyebrow raised. “I hope that isn’t as bad as it sounds.”
Tom shook his head, his smart response dying in his throat. He was making a mess of this. "No, that's not what I meant." Wishing he could hit his head on the counter, he began to turn away, only for Savannah to grab his hand.
“Tell me what you meant, then,” she said, laughing. “You’re too easy to wind up, Tom.”
He flushed, catching her hand before she lifted it away. “And you’re too much of a tease. I get enough of that from my brother!”
“Don’t change the subject,” Savannah retorted, something exploding in her chest as he grasped her hand. “What’s my ‘distinct smell’?”
He tilted his head, his eyes running down her hair, over her lips and back up to her eyes. “Jasmine,” he said, eventually. “And honey.” His voice dipped lower and heat burst in Savannah’s belly.
“I see,” she replied, trying to stay calm and not let him see even a hint of the desire she felt.
Tom sniffed again, his eyes widening as he caught a slight rise of pheromones. What he was seeing wasn’t a lie, then. Savannah was just as attracted to him as he was to her.
Stepping away, he let go of her hand and gave her a quick smile. He had to think about this. “Tonight, then,” he promised. “I’ll come find you.”
“Looking forward to it,” Savannah whispered, as he walked out of the office. Closing her eyes, she slumped over her desk and threw her head in her hands. She’d couldn’t hide her attraction to him. He’d obviously smelled it from her and had reacted immediately. Running away didn’t exactly tell her that he wanted to see where this attraction might lead.
Tom threw himself back into his work, ignoring the quick thud of his heart. Savannah had shown him more than she'd wanted, that was for sure, but Tom didn't know what to do with that now. He wasn't the kind of man to have a quick fling, but he'd never really considered a future with a long-term mate.
“A mate?” he said, out loud. “You think Savannah could be your mate?”
The idea had him sitting back on his haunches, completely confused. The bear seemed utterly delighted that he'd finally realized just how important Savannah was, but Tom just felt confused. He'd never wanted anything more than just a basic friendship with Savannah, but now he was thinking about going to more than that? What was the matter with him?
“You look confused,” Jo murmured, walking through. “Everything okay, Tom?”
He shook his head. “I don’t need yours or Nick’s teasing right now, Jo.”
“That’s exactly the opposite of what I’m going to do,” she replied, tersely. “I just wanted to say that if you wanted to talk, then I’m here to listen. Believe me, I know a lot about being confused when it comes to falling for someone.”
“I’m not falling for her.”
Jo raised an eyebrow. “Is that so?” she said, softly. “Doesn’t look like that to me.”
CHAPTER 10
As much as she told herself she didn’t want to see Tom again, Savannah found herself back in the woods the moment she got out of work. Keeping to her human form, she walked in a little further, sniffing the air. Tom wasn’t here yet, she could catch his scent a mile away, whether she was in her bear or not. There was something about him that was drawing him to her, no matter what form he was in. Her body stretched and groaned as the bear began to grow restless, wanting out of her body, but Savannah refused to change.
Now that she wasn’t in Lucas’s pack, she was slowly becoming used to being in her human skin more often. Savannah had always thought that only being allowed to change when the pack leader said was just part of being a pack, but now she wasn’t so sure. Was Lucas a good pack leader? Or was there a different way?
Walking a little further into the woods, Savannah let her fingers trail across the trunk of the trees. To her surprise, she was quite enjoying being in her human form. There was a sensuality about her human form that the bear didn't have. While her bear senses were definitely heightened, there was an awareness of Tom that grew whenever she was in her human skin. It was like she knew he was there, even without seeing him or hearing him. Her skin would prickle, and she'd glance around to see him just walking into the office. It was a little unnerving if she was honest, but she was getting used to it.
The only problem was that, no matter how hard she tried to get rid of her attraction to Tom, the more it grew. She knew why she was here, and that, in whatever way he chose, Lucas was going to get his revenge. The thought was starting to make her stomach churn. Shaking her head, Savannah walked a little deeper into the trees before finally letting her bear come out.
Her skin tore, bones cracked and muscles stretched, as the bear pulled itself out of her skin, making her shriek in pain. The bear didn’t like being kept away for so long. It didn’t like that she’d stopped it from running free the moment she’d stepped into the woods, and it was making its entrance in the most painful way it could.
Cursing it, Savannah gave herself a shake, finally back in her bear skin. She felt stronger now, but excitement grew as she began to search for a hiding place. Tom was going to come and find her, wasn’t he? So where could she go where he’d have to work hard to find her? And what would he do once he did?
Tom growled, his bear growing impatient as he lost Savannah's scent once again. She was good, this bear. She'd climbed a tree at one point, one that bent all the way over to the ground much further away – but he'd only realized that once he'd hauled his massive bulk up the tree and inched along it. Being an alpha sometimes had its disadvantages.
The bear sniffed the air again, walking a little closer until, finally, Tom realized where she had gone. Clever little bear.
Standing on his hind legs, Tom let out a loud roar, which echoed through the trees. It wasn’t a sound of aggression, but one of victory. She’d led him on a merry chase, but he’d come out on top. He’d found her.
Hearing Tom's roar, Savannah turned around and looked into the gloom, seeing Tom's bear stand on the bank. His roar of victory met her ears, making her bear snort with excitement. Reaching the bank on the other side of the lake, Savannah pulled herself up and watched as Tom's alpha bear threw himself into the water. Apparently, he'd liked the look of the water too much and, it was the quickest way over to her. Savannah watched him with bright, golden eyes as he swam over towards her.
Nice try.
She looked at him steadily. Took you long enough.
A slight growl met her ears, making her shiver but she refused to look away. An intensity was growing between them that was making her bear want to push its head into his side, but Savannah stood her ground and refused to give in to her swirling desires.
Are you coming back in?
Without hesitation, Savannah threw herself back into the water, enjoying the feel of the water which cooled her passion at once. For a few minutes, she swam silently beside him, hugely aware of just how strong his bear was. His paws cut through the water, and, as they reached the bank, his rippling muscles helped him to pull himself up on the bank with ease. She chose to stay in the water.
Heading back?
Tom glanced at her, before turning away. The things his bear wanted to do with Savannah was forcing him to leave. He couldn’t let anything happen between them, not yet. It was too soon. He barely knew her, but the way his bear was drawn to her was almost overwhelming.
He let out a long breath, which came out in a snort.
I’ll see you tomorrow.
Savannah watched his bear begin to pad up the bank and back the way he’d come, before making her decision. Taking a deep breath, she pushed the bear back down and forced her human skin to the surface. Trying not to make a single sound, she heard her bones cracking and shrinking as she finally emerged. The water made her shiver, but she forced that thought to the back of her mind as
she began to swim across the lake.
Her desire for Tom was growing steadily, but he kept pulling away. Would it be so bad just to have a quick fling with him? She could do that without involving her heart and maybe it would get her bear to stop acting so strangely whenever he was around. On top of that came the quiet voice that told her that something was different about this pack, compared to the Northern Wind pack. It told her that the reason she was drawn to Tom was because he was so different from Lucas, in almost every way. He was the man – and the bear – she needed.
CHAPTER 11
Tom heard Savannah shift but forced himself not to look round. There was something he felt that he didn't quite understand. He wanted to stay away from her, wanted to ignore her as much as he could, but he couldn't get rid of the surge of attraction he felt whenever he looked into her eyes. As his mind slowly realized that she was in her human form, swimming naked in the lake, Tom felt his own bear shrink and push his human skin to the top. He didn't want to change, didn't want to look for her, but for some reason, he did. She was in her human form, and now, with some growling and snarling, he was too.
Fighting the urge to cover himself, Tom walked back to the water and dove in, just catching Savannah’s shriek of surprise before his head went under the water. Frustrated at his body’s immediate reaction to her, Tom glared at Savannah as he tread water.
“What exactly are you doing?” she asked, the water coming up to her neck.
“What does it look like?”
She grabbed onto the side of the bank with one hand. “I thought you were going back to the house.”
“Why? Did you want to be alone for some reason?” The distrust rose up in his chest as he narrowed his eyes at her, despite the surge of desire pulsing through his veins.
Savannah frowned at him. “No, of course not. I just wanted to swim.”
“You were swimming.”
“I wanted to swim some more.”
“Just….without the bear.”
She flushed, despite the cold water. “So what? I like swimming as my bear and as me. You don’t have to stay. Although I’m sure I can guess why.” She arched an eyebrow at him, and Tom grimaced.
“Don’t start playing games with me, Savannah. If you want to swim buck naked, then go right ahead. Just don’t expect me to stay away from you.”
Shaking her head, Savannah moved forward so that she was within touching distance of Tom. “You can’t stay away from me?”
Only just realizing what he had said, Tom paused. Holding onto the bank, he studied her carefully. "I think you know I'm attracted to you, Savannah."
She smiled at him then, and Tom felt his stomach flip over.
“I know there’s still a lot of trust that needs to be built between us, but whatever this is that you’re feeling, I feel it too.”
Her fingers brushed his arm, and Tom tensed immediately, suddenly very aware that they were both naked. His reaction to her was a powerful one, and he drew back from her almost at once. He needed to swim away before it became apparently obvious just how much he was drawn to her.
“Don’t run away from me,” Savannah whispered, pressing herself closer so that her bare skin touched his. Desire grew inside her, pooling warmth in her belly as she heard his gasp of surprise. “Whatever this is, I want to explore it.”
Tom pulled himself back. This was all going too fast. He didn’t just have random sex with shifters he barely knew. “Maybe we can talk some more back at the shop,” he said, quietly. “I’m not saying that I don’t want to take things forward with you, Savannah, but this is too much too soon for me. I – I’m sorry.”
She swallowed, trying not to be disappointed. “I understand.”
“Why don’t you come up to the office once you’re….dressed,” he continued. Her closeness was making it hard to think straight. His body was screaming at him that he was making a mistake while his heart told him he was doing the right thing. “I’d like to get to know you a bit better.” His gaze landed on her lips and he smiled softly. Their first kiss was going to be a good one, he could tell, but right here, right now, was not the place for it.
Savannah smiled, glad that he wasn't entirely pushing her away. "Sure, I can do that. I can bring takeout if you want?"
He nodded. “Sounds good. See you soon, Savanah.”
Savannah watched him with a heavy heart, turning her gaze away when he pulled himself out of the water. She heard him shift again before his bear went running through the woods and back towards the shop.
Her whole body was thrumming with heat. Pushing herself completely under the water, Savannah surfaced with a gasp, letting the water stream from her face. In one way, she was glad that he hadn’t taken things further, but in another way, she was hugely disappointed. Her feelings were completely confused, but she was glad she was able to see him again tonight. It would just be the two of them back at the shop, and maybe things would happen there.
“I see you’re making good use of your time here.”
Savannah shrieked, spinning around in the water to see Lucas grinning at her. “What are you doing here? Tom might smell you.”
“He won’t. I stayed downwind. I just wanted to see how you were getting on.”
“I’m fine,” Savannah replied, ignoring the shaking in her limbs as she tried to cover her breasts with one arm, whilst her other hand held onto the bank. “I’m just trying to get Tom to trust me right now.”
“And you’re doing that any way you can, I assume,” Lucas murmured, his eyes raking down her as far as he could.
Savannah sank a little further into the water, only barely managing to meet his eyes. “I’m just getting used to being back in this skin,” she replied, quietly.
Lucas chuckled, sitting down beside her and letting his long legs rest in the water. Savannah swallowed hard, knowing she couldn’t move away. Lucas, even in his naked human form, was still her pack leader and still intimidating.
“Listen to me, Savannah,” he purred, his fingers running up her bare arm. “You get that man to trust you any way you can.” His hand tipped up her chin, forcing her to meet his eyes. “And I mean, any way.”
Savannah wanted to scream as his hand dipped into the water, his finger just touching the slight curve of her breast before he slowly pulled it away. His meaning was clear but Savannah felt sick to the pit of her stomach.
“Don’t forget that you’re part of our pack, Savannah,” Lucas growled, his face suddenly darkening. “That means you belong to me.”
“Yes, Lucas,” she whispered, looking away from him. The silence stretched across the water for a few minutes and, by the time she looked back, Lucas had gone.
Savannah wasn't sure if she was going to cry or be sick, given how much her stomach was rolling. Lucas had never taken one of his pack for a mate, and Savannah was certain that she didn't want to be it. But if Lucas chose her, Savannah knew she wouldn't have a choice. The way he had touched her, so briefly, had made his meaning perfectly clear and it had made her sick to her stomach. But what choice did she have other than to obey?
CHAPTER 12
Even the smell of takeout couldn’t stop Savannah’s stomach from churning. A quick shower, a change of clothes and now here she was, walking to his place. She’d wanted to go home and stay there, but she couldn’t bring herself to leave Tom waiting. Not only would that make him suspicious of her, but she knew it would hurt him and Savannah didn’t want that.
The way she was beginning to care for Tom was making her all kinds of afraid. Lucas had made it very clear she was to use anything and everything she could to get him to trust her, but Savannah wasn’t sure she could bring herself to do it. Every time she thought of the way Lucas had touched her, her body gave an involuntary shudder. She couldn’t get that out of her head.
“Hi,” she mumbled, walking into the office, seeing Tom waiting for her. “I brought takeout.”
“Thanks,” he replied, walking closer to her. His eyes ran over her body
and Savannah knew exactly what he was thinking. “Do you want to eat first?”
“First?”
“Before we talk,” he clarified, a slight grin on his face.
“Oh,” she muttered, feeling foolish. “Yeah, sure.”
Walking back behind the counter, he threw her a glance. “Is everything okay?” he asked, taking in her slumped shoulders. This wasn’t the bold, sassy Savannah he’d left back at the lake.
She nodded, trying to give him a bright smile. “Everything’s fine. Thanks for asking.” Giving him her back, she began to unpack the takeout, hoping that he wasn’t going to ask her any more questions. What was she going to say, exactly? Tell him that she was already confused over how she was feeling about him and now Lucas had made things ten times worse.
"I'll be right back," she heard Tom say, hearing the click of a lock as he walked into the back room. A sudden scent hit her nostrils, making her bear wake up with a growl. Sniffing hard, she turned to face the door Tom had just gone through, her hackles rising. There was a familiarity to the scent but she couldn't quite place it. It was something she knew but didn’t know at the same time. What was going on back there? Why was the room locked?
Hearing Tom’s footsteps, Savannah took in a deep breath and turned back to the table. Quietening her bear with the promise that she’d find out what it was soon, she focused on dealing with the food.
“Here you go,” Tom murmured, coming close behind Savannah. The smell of her freshly washed hair had his hands curling into fists, trying to stop the desire to throw the food to one side and give in to what he’d been wanting to do ever since their swim in the lake.
The moment he’d left Savannah in the lake had been the moment he’d called himself all kinds of names for being so stupid. He’d told her it was ‘too much, too soon’? What kind of excuse was that?
Thankfully, being away from her soon helped Tom realize that he'd done the right thing. His body was screaming for her, but his mind was holding it back. He wouldn't let himself sleep with someone just because she offered it – if that was what her intention had been. He'd wondered for a while if she was deliberately attempting to seduce him, but had pushed that idea away almost at once. More realistically, she was lonely. He remembered how she'd told him about traveling from place to place, never really settling down. That could be quite isolating, in terms of relationships of any kind. Most likely, she didn't have a lot of friends and certainly not lovers. Their connection had been almost immediate, although Tom knew he'd spent most of the time denying it completely. Was he just as lonely as her?
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