Mate Fur Hire (Bears Fur Hire #3)(14)

“Goodnight, Vera.” Tobias clicked off the light and rustled around in the dark, settling onto his make-shift bed.

“G’night.” Vera sighed and stared at the dark ceiling. The town wasn’t a big one, but there was still light pollution and street noise that made everything seem a little overwhelming. Sure, she would get used to it all in time, but this was night one out of the wilderness, and she was feeling a little adrift. And cold. Really cold. She clenched her teeth together so they wouldn’t chatter.

Okay, Tobias had slammed on the breaks. Dinner had been amazing, and he’d even rested his boot against hers under the table as they talked and ate. He’d even let her try everything on his plate without getting territorial. It was one of those dates that made her draw up and think, this could be something. Not just a contract pairing, but something special. Tobias was thoughtful about his responses, quiet, reflective, good at listening. His heavy dominance and the growl in his throat didn’t even bother her so much anymore because underneath his animal, Tobias was good. A little tortured, a little jaded, and careful sharing any information about himself, but good.

What if he was right? What if she was feeling this incredible connection because he bit her? She didn’t believe in magic much—not as a scientist—but perhaps there was more to a bite from a potential mate than she’d realized. God, this was all so confusing. She felt pulled in a hundred directions and dizzy from the whirlwind day, but the more she thought about it, the more she was convinced it wasn’t just the bite that made her feel this way about him.

She’d been in love before and knew what it felt like. It wasn’t love with Tobias yet, because it was much too soon, but she was getting the same flutters in her stomach she’d had with Jonathan. A bite couldn’t do that…could it?

Gritting her teeth at how mortifying this would be, she slipped from bed, pulled the comforter with her, and tiptoed to Tobias’s still form. Her night vision had kicked in, and he was lying on his side, facing away from her. Good. Quietly, she laid down beside him, dragging the comforter over them.

“What are you doing?” he asked in a sleepy voice.

Snuggling against his back, she rested her hand on his waist and said, “I’ve cared for a man before, and this feels the same.”

He let off a long exhale, then pulled her hand around his torso and pressed her palm onto his hard chest. “The man who Turned you?”

Digging her chin into his back muscles so he could feel her answer, she nodded. “I was always interested in molecular genetics and majored in it in college.”

“Where did you go to college?”

“In Anchorage. I wrote this paper my senior year about a two-year study I’d done on GMO foods. I was interested in swapping genetics from one species to another, but more than that, I wanted to study the long term effects on the engineered food sources for human consumption. I landed this job right after graduation—a dream job—and I met a boy. Jonathan. He said all the right things, was so caring, and we worked together, so even with our hectic schedules, there was always time for us. My passion was in food, but his passion was in suppressing certain genetic traits in animals. He said he couldn’t wrap his head around certain things, though, not like I could, so he asked for my help on his experiments more and more, and eventually, I began to become interested as well. I thought we were suppressing violent tendencies in certain animals, but we were actually doing much more than that. Or I was. Jonathan was sitting back, letting me slowly take over. But eventually, I grew bored and wanted to continue on my original path. I was a food nerd, through and through.” She let off a nervous laugh. Licking her lips, she said, “Jonathan lied about who, and what, he was our entire relationship. Not many shifters can Turn a human.”

Tobias lifted her knuckles to his lips and let them linger there, then said, “From what I understand, not many of them survive.”

Yes, that. She hadn’t survived by much. “It takes a long time.”

“What do you mean?”

God, she was glad he was turned away from her. She wouldn’t be able to talk about this if he was looking at her face. “I mean, it takes a lot of bites over a long period of time.”

“How long?”

“He held me in a big cage in the lab for two weeks. I kept waiting for everyone to come to work and save me, but no one ever did. Just Jonathan. He bit me on the arms, and now I don’t like to wear T-shirts, even when it’s hot out. He marked me with a giant reminder of his betrayal.”

“Why did he do it?” Tobias’s voice sounded strained now, angry.

“He was hired to. He told me everything one night, right before my first Change. I was so sick, and he kept talking, and none of his words made sense until later. He hadn’t ever loved me. Hadn’t really even liked me, but he was being paid a lot of money to be the perfect boyfriend and to guide me to my ‘potential.’ That’s what he called it. He said that Turning me would redirect my focus where it needed to be.”

“Jesus.”

“Ooh, no. Jesus had nothing to do with what happened in that lab. My first Change was the most excruciating experience of my life. And all the while, Jonathan watched me with this proud smile, like I was some kind of miracle. Some kind of success. An experiment gone right. Only I hadn’t Turned right. I’d lived, sure, but I didn’t have any control. My animal was made unwillingly, and she was angry, frightened, and she never settled. And…” Fuck, she would not cry. Blinking hard, she said, “I couldn’t Change back.”