Free Bear The Fire (Firebear Brides 4) by Anya Nowlan Page A

shined on her, the center of attention. She strummed her fingers over the strings, picking the song she wanted to sing.
    Rhodes had confirmed the concert with Austin a week in advance, almost immediately after he was allowed to get out of bed, and still she hadn’t hammered down a set list. She’d said she wouldn’t do it, and he’d jokingly said he’d pack her back on a plane and send her to Seattle if she didn’t. She’d believed him.
    It had felt like making those kinds of decisions would make it so… final. This felt better, singing from the heart and picking what seemed to suit the situation the best.
    She settled on a song she wrote after Ragnar’s call, when she was going back and forth about whether or not she should come to Shifter Grove and put herself through the heartache of loving Rhodes again. It had turned out to be the best decision she’d ever made.
    Her voice was clear and strong as she fell into the notes, and she closed her eyes as her hands played the chords she knew by heart. Every Hamilton was in that bar that night, and most of the rest of the town as well. Kali knew that if she’d open her eyes, she’d see Rose’s sweet face lit up with a smile, rooting for her, and Abigail grinning as she sat on Redmond’s knee.
    And of course Rhodes, giving her that cocky smirk of his that she knew hid a wonderful, big-hearted man who beat himself up far too much for the good and the bad things he did. She loved him, and he loved her. And that was exactly how it was supposed to be. Every word she sang felt like another shackle being released from around her.
    All the indecision, worry, and fear that she’d suffered through, unsure of where she was coming from and where she was going during those years she’d tried to make sense of her life were now floating away, releasing her to be the woman she knew she could be. Someone who would stand up for herself. Someone who wouldn’t let happiness pass her by without her grabbing hold of it.
    “The howl of wind,
    The spark of fire,
    It took you from me,
    And it brought us back together,” she sung, opening her eyes and looking at Rhodes.
    He grinned back at her and for the first time in years, Kali could be sure that everything was going to be all right. There were going to be problems, yes. While it had been little more than a fling that grew over both their heads when they were younger, Kali knew that what she and Rhodes had now was true love. She was his mate; he’d told her as much, though deep in her heart she’d always known. They didn’t know everything about each other, far from it, but she was excited to learn everything she could.
    A deep, all-encompassing warmth spread in her, locking gazes with the man of her dreams. He’d saved her and she had saved him. They were even now. It was a clean slate to start off with and Kali knew they were going to enjoy every damn moment of it.
    When the song ended, the gathered crowd erupted in applause and Kali grinned ear to ear, soaking up the cheers. God, it felt good to let her voice out again, her real voice, not the one she’d thought people wanted to hear. It was another new beginning and she had Rhodes to thank for that.
    There was going to be no more fear from now on. A whole new Kali in a whole new world.
 

EPILOGUE
    Rhodes
     
    “You’re being ridiculous,” Redmond huffed, trying to tie the bow tie around Rhodes’s neck again as he dodged and ducked like a fighter in a boxing ring.
    “ You’re the one who’s being ridiculous. Do I look like the kind of guy who wears a goddamn bowtie?!” Rhodes growled, sharing a scowling look with his brother.
    “You’re both being ridiculous. This whole thing’s ridiculous. Leave the damn bowtie, Redmond,” Royce said with a sigh, rubbing his temples.
    Ragnar, the bastard, was standing with his arms crossed over his chest, wearing a bowtie , smirking like this was the funniest thing he’d seen all year.
    “All right, but don’t blame me if your