Chapter 803 Chapter 803
Calla wasn’t a shy person when it came to undressing. She didn’t know any shifter who was. Her stomach had butterflies in it right now, and she didn’t know if it was because she was nervous about shifting or because Bear was standing there without his shirt. It was silly. She’d seen men without shirts on since she was little.
Her cat moved closer. She was more than ready to try this. Pulling the track pants down, she shoved them in the direction of her feet and got them off.
She looked at the mucky ground and debated how was the best way to get down without whimpering like a child.
Bear came over and put his hand in front of her. She looked up at him. He looked at her eyes, instead of checking her out. “Thanks.”
He jerked his head in a brief nod.
Once down on her hands and knees, she closed her eyes and focused on her breathing. Slow and easy. She felt that feeling that always happened before a shift. It was like shivers that moved over her skin on her entire body. It was always euphoric. Dropping her head, she relaxed her shoulders and let it travel down her arms. That flick feeling happened in her fingertips, and she knew if she opened her eyes, she’d see claws.
The first few pops were completely normal, without pain. Her spine was the first part that really changed. She’d tried it a few times in slow motion to figure out the order it happened. Shoulders and hips followed. That was always a bizarre feeling as her human hips changed direction and position on her body, which made sense. Her human hips were for walking upright. Her cats were for running and jumping.
When the shift progressed to her legs, the pain had her hiss out a breath and gave a deep yowl at the same time.
“Relax through it, Calla.”
Bear’s voice made it so she could focus on something other than the pain. The prickling tingle went through her, and she knew her fur was covering her.
Open her eyes, and she saw with cat eyes. She’d looked it up before, and apparently, normal felines don’t see all colors. She was thankful that she wasn’t that way because right now, knowing she’d made it through the shift made everything she looked at feel magical.
Stretching, she assessed that all was working as it should.
Something bumped against her shoulder; she turned to see Bear beside her. He was big and hadn’t been lying about his mane. It was golden and darkened at the tips. Being an adult, he had the wraparound, as her friends used to call it, where the hair from the mane went down under his chest and underside. He was a beautiful man-lion.
Calla butt her head against his shoulder and then darted away from him. She knew she couldn’t go too far; she could already feel the fatigue of the shift. But she had shifted, and that was amazing.
Bear had no problem catching up to her. As soon as he did, she put on the brakes and stopped. He flew right by her and had to do a bit of sidestepping to slow down and turn back.
Taking her time, she ran at a jogging pace toward the rock. Bear stayed level with her shoulder, not needing to lead in any way. He really was a decent man. Decent wasn’t the right word, but in today’s world, it was also everything.
When they got back to the rock, he dropped down onto his belly and rested his chin on his paws.
Calla walked over and placed her paw on his head, careful not to use any claws. She brushed over his mane a few times like she was petting him. Amused amber eyes watched her.
Calla’s cat let her know that was all the energy reserves she had for now. It was too bad she didn’t smell any prey nearby, or she’d to have a snack and regenerate.
She did a few hops just to double check that everything bent, straightened and flexed the way it was supposed to. It did. She was so happy.
~
Breathtaking in any form, Bear decided, was the best way to describe her. She was the same golden color as her long hair, and her eyes stunned him. Most of his clan had hues of amber when they were in animal form. Hers was the same pale blue-green as when she wasn’t her animal. It was like an electrical shock traveled through his whole system when she looked at him.
She bound a few feet in the air and dropped down again. Everything looked like it was functioning exactly as it should be.
When she dropped down and lay on her side, he tensed, and then he heard the bop. She knew she’d reached her limit and was shifting back.
He didn’t want to rush over and crowd her. The shift back might be almost as difficult as the first one had been. Bear had come close to telling her to stop when he knew she was in pain, but he hadn’t. The last few days, he’d discovered all new limits. Calla in pain was one of them. As much as he’d love to have a family with her, he didn’t think he’d survive the pain she’d be in during birth.
Calla was back in the form of a woman. He felt less like a creep looking at her in this form.
She rolled onto her side and looked at him. If he thought he wouldn’t like an idiot, he’d attempt a smile, but it wasn’t like he’d sat in from of a mirror and practiced it as a lion. Moving to her hands and knees, she started crawling toward him. The playful light in her eye brought him peace and the satisfaction of knowing she was happy.
After a moment, she was nose-to-nose with him. She smiled. “Are you going to shift? I’m not making out with a furry face.”
She smelled amazing. His cat stirred. Her eyes were holding his gaze, and he could see something there he hadn’t before. No fear. No worries.
She turned her head. “Or should we get back?”
The urge filled him again, and now he knew they had been his animals and not his. Stretching, moving his face closer, he licked up the side of her neck and cheek.
She turned and smiled at him. “I’d return the affection but might choke on a furball.” Reaching, she thread her finger into his mane. “You are a very sexy man-lion, Bear.”