by Zoe Chant
Of course, it helped that they had lots of willing and able, and well-muscled, friends to lend their hands to the effort.
Apparently they were also willing to “kidnap” her early in the morning and blindfold her for the big reveal.
“I know where we’re going,” Elise pointed out from her place in the passenger’s seat. She assumed. Her fingers itched to pull the fabric from her eyes. “Is there any reason I have to be blindfolded for the drive?”
“I have my mission,” said Cameron. She sounded serious. Then again, she always sounded serious. But she also, Elise had learned over the past few months, had a yen for straight-faced mischief… and a secret love of home and garden TV shows. (She’d made Elise swear to take that information to her grave.)
Heaving a sigh, Elise let her head fall back on the headrest.
“Sit on your hands if you have to,” added her unsympathetic driver.
Elise huffed, but secretly she was pleased. She’d been the odd person out, coming new into a well-established circle of friends, and their immediate acceptance of her as one of their own made her happy. Almost as happy as Noah made her.
It wasn’t long before Elise heard the car being parked and Cam getting out. Her own door opened and Cam guided her out and to the front door, where she knocked.
The door was opened and Elise ushered inside.
“Can I take this thing off already?” she demanded.
“Uh… Hold on.” That was Noah. “Can she talk the blindfold off?”
The answer was affirmative. Elise tore off the cloth before anyone else could—and then had to blink several times as her eyes adjusted to the light.
“Well?” Noah asked anxiously.
“Wait, I’m… Oh!” she exclaimed.
She’d seen the house every weekend in its various states of dress and undress. But it had always been a work in progress, with tools and drywall dust and overturned furniture everywhere.
Now it was finished. The trim had been done and the walls painted. Even the coat rack was in place.
“So?” said Noah.
Everyone else seemed to have disappeared, leaving just the two of them. She wrapped her arms around him and squeezed.
“It’s perfect,” she whispered.
One of his hands cupped her face, teasing her hair. “Wait till you get out of the foyer,” he advised, a gentle laugh in his eyes.
He led her on a tour, and each room was more perfect than the one before. The living area was lush, the kitchen spacious, the dining room cozy… and the new nursery bright.
“Oh!” Elise clapped a hand over her mouth. She hadn’t known about any plans for a nursery. That must have been Noah’s idea.
She turned to him.
“Not yet,” he said bashfully. “But… someday?”
She was too overcome to do anything but nod.
“Come on, I still have to show you the master bedroom. There’s something I want you to see.” He slipped his hand into hers and led her down the hall.
There was the bed he’d built. Elise frowned. As far as she could tell, there was nothing out of the ordinary about the room, although it was very nice.
“Look a little closer,” he urged, nudging her forward.
As she drew closer to the bed, she finally saw it.
A small, black, velvet box lying in the middle of the bedspread.
“Oh, my God,” she said, stunned.
He had an innocent look on his face as he sat on the edge of the bed next to her. “Why don’t you open it?”
So she did. Inside was a diamond ring. The stone sparkled as it caught the light through the window, and it was set in a shimmering, slender gold band.
Elise turned back to Noah, who was now kneeling beside her.
He took her hands between his. “I love you, so much. And I know you love me. But you didn’t get a totally free choice when it came to taking my mark. So I wanted to give you a choice about this. Will you marry me?”
She was almost too choked up at his thoughtful words to answer, but somehow she managed. “Of course! Yes, I’ll marry you!”
Noah slipped the ring onto her left ring finger, then twined their hands together. He rose to his feet and bent to kiss her. It was more than passion; it was a promise. Of the future they shared, one that she couldn’t have imagined even a few months before.
“I really want to be alone with you right now,” he murmured, leaning his head against hers. Just behind his words she could hear the low growl of his bear’s desire. “But there’s one more thing. If you’re ready?”
She nodded, and they went out the back door—to the new porch, which had not existed the last time she’d been here.
“Congratulations!” several voices yelled.
“It is congratulations, right?” asked Tyler. “Unless she turned you down? The other side of the banner says ‘Condolences,’ just in case.”
Elise held up her left hand and stuck her tongue out at the tiger shifter. “You wish!”
Tyler laid a hand over his heart like she’d wounded him, but his grin was genuine.
Everyone was there: all of Noah’s crew, her brother, and even Clara in a video chat on someone’s tablet. Everyone was passing around cups of pink punch.
“A toast!” someone said, and the chant caught on: “Toast! Toast! Toast!”
“I’ll make a toast,” offered Elise, whose heart felt full to brimming over. “My brother and I have been on our own for a while. You guys took us in—accepted us like were your own—saved our lives—I’m so glad we get to be a part of your family. To family!”
“To family!” echoed everyone, and together they drank.
A note from Zoe Chant
Thank you for buying my book! I hope you enjoyed it. If you’d like to be emailed when I release my next book, please click here to be added to my mailing list.
Please click on the title to write a review of Bear Mechanic. I love hearing what my readers think! It helps me decide what to write next.
Page down to read a special sneak preview of Loved by the Lion.
The cover of Bear Mechanic was designed by Augusta Scarlett.
More Paranormal Romance by Zoe Chant
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In the Billionbear’s Den. A stressed-out BBW in need of a break + a sexy billionaire bear shifter in need of a mate to share his home + the remote woodland house he built himself = one steamy romance!
The Bear With No Name. A BBW park ranger + a sexy bear shifter with amnesia + a town that needs their help = one unforgettable romance!
Bearing Your Soul. A shy BBW who’s been burned by love + a sexy veteran bear shifter + a family code of silence = one sizzling hot romance that defies all odds!
Country Star Bear. BBW + country star bear shifter + a slippery night in New England = hot nights under the covers!
Bodyguard Bear. A BBW witness to a murder + the sexy bear shifter bodyguard sworn to protect her with his life + firefights and fiery passion = one hot thrill ride!
Hollywood Bear. A BBW stuntwoman + a movie director bear shifter + Hollywood hijinks = one blockbuster romance!
Bearly There. BBW + billionaire bear shifter + chocolate-drizzled desserts = one lick-your-fingers-good story!
Bear West. BBW city girl + bear shifter cowboy + a mail-order bride company = one Wild West romance that's truly WILD!
Kodiak Moment. Workaholic wildlife photographer + loner bear shifter + Alaskan wilderness = one warming and sensual story.
And many more!
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Loved by the Lion
by Zoe Chant
Special Sneak Preview
Cole couldn't keep his eyes off her the whole night. He watched her eyes sparkle as she told jokes and laughed and smiled, seeming perfectly at home with his family. With his pride. His lion purred at the thought of Kira as part of the pride.
Across from him she leaned to the side to talk to Marlene over someone else's head, her slim hand curled around the beer he'd given her. Her top pulled against her skin, and he imagined the skin underneath, smooth and flawless, that he could run his hands over and squeeze.
If only there weren't so many people around! Cole knew if he could just get her alone . . .
She caught him looking, flicking her warm brown eyes to his. The edges of her mouth curled just so when she did, before she was called away by someone else. Internally his lion snarled a little, put out by her attention going somewhere else.
The thing was, she didn't even seem to know how beautiful she was. That was a damn shame.
And it wasn't just her physical beauty, either. She was no ditz: smart, competent, kind. If she were a lioness, Cole knew instinctively and without a doubt that she would be an alpha like him. The other members of the pride responded to her in the same way they did to him, with that instinctual understanding of who was in charge, the kind of deference that couldn't be faked.
Since his mother had died, there had been no woman leading the pride. Everything was on Cole's shoulders. He didn't mind the burden, but for the first time in years he thought of what it would be like to not be the only one carrying the weight of the pride's worries on his shoulders.
But that was stupid, he reminded himself, even in the face of his lion's disagreement. She was just a normal human. She couldn't be his mate, no matter how much he might like the idea.
After the last piece of spaghetti had been slurped down and the last meatball had disappeared, Kira even took charge of the cleanup effort. Most everyone wandered out of the dining room in search of a drink and post-dinner chat.
"Oh honey, you don't have to do that," Marlene chided, moving to take some dishes from Kira's hands.
Grinning, Kira pulled them out of her reach. "You think I'm going to let you get out of it?" she teased.
Marlene stared at her for a moment and then laughed with gusto. "Fair enough, darlin'."
"And what about you?" Still smiling, Kira addressed Mason, who was sitting in the corner, sulking. Only teenagers could exude that perfect blend of apathy and disdain while slumping and refusing eye contact.
Mason shrugged one shoulder, but at least his scowl didn't get worse.
Kira seemed to take that as consent. "Grab the pots and bring them into the kitchen," she instructed, and, hearing the note of command in her voice, Mason – miraculously – obeyed.
Cole himself was harangued into dish duty as well, though it wasn't too hard to get him to agree, not when it meant spending more time around Kira. She joked around easily with Marlene and Mason, and for a moment he was a little jealous.
His own relationship with Mason was ambivalent. He loved the kid, like a little brother even, but two alphas in a pride was one alpha too many. A century ago or more, Mason would have gone out into the world to form his own pride. But that instinct wasn't so helpful in modern society, where eighteen years old made you technically an adult but not actually independent.
Mason had just begun college, still living with his parents for financial reasons, and over the past several months Cole saw him beginning to chafe. He wasn't doing so well with his parents – that Cole attributed to the human side of him, no mystery there – but he reacted badly to Cole in particular lately: one alpha didn't want to take orders from another alpha, at least not when they were both male. Ultimately they were each other's competition.
That didn't seem to extend to other people's orders, though. He did fine with Kira, loading up the dishwasher while she asked him questions about his college, his major, his plans for the future. She sounded like she was really interested, too. Cole almost swore the kid was smiling by the end of their conversation. How long had it been since that had happened?
Mason still had all a teenager's laziness and interest in video games, so when the conversation reached a lull he wandered off. Not long after, Marlene gave him a significant look and excused herself. Cole had a feeling he knew what that look was about.
"You're good with him," Cole said when it was just the two of them. There was a loud wave of laughter from the rest of the house. Even though they'd loaded up the dishwasher, there were still a few dishes left to be done by hand. Kira spilled some soap in the sink and let the hot water run.
"Mason?" He heard the smile in her voice. "He seems like a good kid."
"He is. When he lets himself be."
She chuckled. "I think all teenagers are like that. Better than having to grow up too fast."
They worked in silence for a few minutes, Kira scrubbing the plates and Cole rinsing and racking them with comfortable ease.
"Are there any plans for tomorrow?" she asked, handing him another plate.
"Most everyone's going out hunting in the morning." Cole rolled his shoulders. "It's been awhile for almost all of us. Just about everyone lives in the suburbs and in cities, you know."
"That must be hard on you."
Cole shrugged noncommittally. "It can be. Everyone appreciates the chance to stretch their legs once in a while."
"And break out their claws, too, huh?" Kira teased.
"That too."
"Too bad I can't come with you, at least not without a ride," she joked.
Cole grinned, his lion roaring to life. "If all you needed was a ride, all you had to do was ask.
"
"Oh, you're offering?" she said slyly, turning toward him and pulling her hands out of the water. They were covered in suds.
As she turned, a lock of hair fell into her eyes, and before he knew what he was doing, Cole reached back to push it behind her ear. His touch left a droplet of water on her cheek, and her skin was smooth and silky. His hand lingered there; he didn't want to let go of her.
His lion urged him to make a move already: take her, make her yours, right here, right now.
"My hands are all soapy," she reminded him, holding them up as evidence.
"Don't care," Cole said with a rough undertone to his voice. Having her skin so close to his was intoxicating. Unable to take it anymore, he leaned down to press his lips to hers.
She melted into his touch immediately, pressing herself up against him deliciously. One of her hands slid into his hair, getting it all wet and messy, but he didn't mind the slightest bit. It was a small price to pay for being able to slip his tongue between her lips and press her back against the counter.
One of his hands cupped the back of her head, tilting her face up. The other drifted lower, finding the hem of her shirt to ride it up and touch all of the soft, warm skin of her back he could find.
His knee slipped between her legs and she parted for him eagerly, moving so she was pressed right up against him and he could feel the heat at her core, heat he wanted to touch, dip his fingers into, explore. The strength of his desire almost dizzied him.
She broke off the kiss – but thankfully only for a moment, pushing herself up on the counter so she was a little higher than him and reaching for him with an eagerness he loved already. He tucked his hands into the back of her jeans, pulling her hips against his so she could feel his hard length, feel what she did to him.
Her long legs wrapped around him, pulling him even closer than he thought was possible. Heat radiated from where their bodies touched.
His hand slipped around to skim up her ribcage and cup one heavy breast through her bra. She moaned, and the sound burned down his body. Cole's lion was growling his satisfaction as his mouth searched out the sensitive spots on her throat, sucking and licking and looking for what would cause her to make that sound again.
