The whiteness outside made his reflection and his face easily read.
His expressions told of his pain. He looked as if he’d had the worst news ever.
How can this possibly hurt him when he walked away, never looked back, never reached out?
She thought of the Lance she’d always known. The Lance who took a long time to open up, even though they’d been together. The Lance that didn’t want to share his pain, didn’t want to let anyone into his chamber of demons.
That’s what he’d called his weaknesses—his chamber of demons. She’d tried to tell him what he thought was a weakness was not. It was a normal reaction to life’s curveballs.
Then again, who was she to speak? She had her own chamber of demons. It just happened that her demons were different from his.
She studied his face, his back, the way his spine was stiff, his shoulders squared. She knew him too well. She knew exactly what he was doing. He was trying to work his way through the notion she wanted him out of her heart and out of her life.
A part of her ached for his pain. She knew it too well.
Shit. She’d lived it for four years.
“I did this to you.” His voice was low. “I pushed you to that extreme.”
She wanted to tell him something to make him feel better. She couldn’t. It would be a lie. Yes, he did push her to this. He was the solitary driving force behind her misery.
“I’m going back to Seattle. Back to that witch doctor woman.”
“You should get a refund.”
A refund from a witch doctor?
The notion was so damned wacky a smile made its way to her face, though she could see he was dead serious. Sometimes he said the funniest things.
“I owe you. Let me go with you.”
She did a double take. “Why?”
“Seems the least I could do. Were we too young when we couplebonded? Did I rush you?”
Every pore in her body screamed no, but she remained silent.
“The thing that kills me…” He whirled around. “How much I still want you, need you, crave you. And my bear’s the same way.”
It kills me too.
The tattoo burned, the sensation traveling throughout her body.
“I’ll take you home in the morning or as soon as the snow stops and the roads are clear. I’ll make sure you stay safe.”
Lance strode toward the door, opened it, and closed it behind himself.
Mac then heard the front door open, and close.
Not even two minutes after he’d walked out of the room, she saw his grizzly lumbering through the snow, passing the same window he’d just been staring out of.
His bear’s stride was slow, his posture dejected.
Chapter 15
L ance stayed in his bear form, took cover in a cave, and watched the cabin, tuned into MacKenzie’s heartrate. He knew she’d spent a sleepless night, tossing and turning. On occasion he saw her silhouette in the window, looking for him.
He knew when she fell asleep.
Lance concentrated, pushing his bear back, the bone crunching, sinew realigning creaking sounds echoed in the little cave. He snuck into the cabin, and made a call to Mae. Gave her a quick rundown of the situation, told Mae he wouldn’t be there when she got there, then slipped out when he heard Mac stirring.
Lance resumed his watchful spot, staying in his human form, bundled in his coat, listening to MacKenzie’s heartbeat, slow and steady in her slumber.
He heard the footfalls, coming from the back of the cave. He recognized the shuffle of an old friend. The cave had a tiny opening in the back, where the footsteps were coming from, one that led to all the tunnels that had been in place under the mountain range for more than a couple hundred years.
Story had it, one of the local shifters, a Native American and grandfather to one of Bear Canyon Valley’s residents had put the system in place to keep shifters safe from attack.
Lance was now fully shifted into his human body. “Griz.” He called out to his old friend.
The old shifter he hadn’t seen in ages—more than four years—approached.
“Quite a
His expressions told of his pain. He looked as if he’d had the worst news ever.
How can this possibly hurt him when he walked away, never looked back, never reached out?
She thought of the Lance she’d always known. The Lance who took a long time to open up, even though they’d been together. The Lance that didn’t want to share his pain, didn’t want to let anyone into his chamber of demons.
That’s what he’d called his weaknesses—his chamber of demons. She’d tried to tell him what he thought was a weakness was not. It was a normal reaction to life’s curveballs.
Then again, who was she to speak? She had her own chamber of demons. It just happened that her demons were different from his.
She studied his face, his back, the way his spine was stiff, his shoulders squared. She knew him too well. She knew exactly what he was doing. He was trying to work his way through the notion she wanted him out of her heart and out of her life.
A part of her ached for his pain. She knew it too well.
Shit. She’d lived it for four years.
“I did this to you.” His voice was low. “I pushed you to that extreme.”
She wanted to tell him something to make him feel better. She couldn’t. It would be a lie. Yes, he did push her to this. He was the solitary driving force behind her misery.
“I’m going back to Seattle. Back to that witch doctor woman.”
“You should get a refund.”
A refund from a witch doctor?
The notion was so damned wacky a smile made its way to her face, though she could see he was dead serious. Sometimes he said the funniest things.
“I owe you. Let me go with you.”
She did a double take. “Why?”
“Seems the least I could do. Were we too young when we couplebonded? Did I rush you?”
Every pore in her body screamed no, but she remained silent.
“The thing that kills me…” He whirled around. “How much I still want you, need you, crave you. And my bear’s the same way.”
It kills me too.
The tattoo burned, the sensation traveling throughout her body.
“I’ll take you home in the morning or as soon as the snow stops and the roads are clear. I’ll make sure you stay safe.”
Lance strode toward the door, opened it, and closed it behind himself.
Mac then heard the front door open, and close.
Not even two minutes after he’d walked out of the room, she saw his grizzly lumbering through the snow, passing the same window he’d just been staring out of.
His bear’s stride was slow, his posture dejected.
Chapter 15
L ance stayed in his bear form, took cover in a cave, and watched the cabin, tuned into MacKenzie’s heartrate. He knew she’d spent a sleepless night, tossing and turning. On occasion he saw her silhouette in the window, looking for him.
He knew when she fell asleep.
Lance concentrated, pushing his bear back, the bone crunching, sinew realigning creaking sounds echoed in the little cave. He snuck into the cabin, and made a call to Mae. Gave her a quick rundown of the situation, told Mae he wouldn’t be there when she got there, then slipped out when he heard Mac stirring.
Lance resumed his watchful spot, staying in his human form, bundled in his coat, listening to MacKenzie’s heartbeat, slow and steady in her slumber.
He heard the footfalls, coming from the back of the cave. He recognized the shuffle of an old friend. The cave had a tiny opening in the back, where the footsteps were coming from, one that led to all the tunnels that had been in place under the mountain range for more than a couple hundred years.
Story had it, one of the local shifters, a Native American and grandfather to one of Bear Canyon Valley’s residents had put the system in place to keep shifters safe from attack.
Lance was now fully shifted into his human body. “Griz.” He called out to his old friend.
The old shifter he hadn’t seen in ages—more than four years—approached.
“Quite a
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