Free Bearing The Long Road Home (Ice Bear Shifters 7) by Sloane Meyers Page B

people, and I have faith that they will accept you and love you just like I do once they get to know you.”
    Chloe’s eyes widened a bit at Seth’s words. “Wait a minute,” she said. “Did you just say you loved me?”
    Seth paused for a beat. He hadn’t exactly meant to say those words for the first time as part of a plea for Chloe to come back to Alaska with him, but they had just kind of slipped out. “Shit, yeah. I suppose I did, in a manner of speaking. Sorry, I guess that’s not the most romantic way to tell you I love you. But I do love you, Chloe. I can’t imagine life without you.”
    “I love you, too,” Chloe said, chewing her lower lip as she looked over at him. “But I don’t think you understand how terrified I am of going back to Alaska and meeting your clan. I don’t care how much you try to tell me it’s all going to be okay. They’re going to hate me, and you know it.”
    “Maybe they’ll hate you at first, But they will come around,” Seth said.
    “How can you be so sure?” Chloe asked. “And what if they don’t come around? You can’t expect me to just stay in Alaska where I’ll never find peace.”
    “I’ll make you a deal. Come back to Alaska with me. Let me introduce you to my clan, and spend a month there with me. I honestly believe it won’t even take them that long to accept you. But, if for whatever reason, you still don’t feel at home with my clan after a month, I will go with you wherever you want to go. If you want to go to Maine, I will go there with you. If you want to go to freaking Africa, I will go there with you. Although I wouldn’t necessarily recommend somewhere that warm for a couple of polar bear shifters like us.”
    Chloe looked over at Seth with misty eyes. “Really? You would really do that for me? Leave your clan and Alaska behind?”
    Seth left the bag he was packing and came to sit on the bed next to Chloe. “I hope I don’t have to, but I would. I would do anything for you,” he said, drawing Chloe into his arms and planting a kiss on the top of her head.
    Chloe leaned into Seth’s embrace and sighed. “Okay,” she said. “It’s a deal, then. I’ll give you one month in Alaska to convince your clan I’m not evil. But if a month passes and they still don’t like me, then we’re moving to Maine, like I originally planned to do. I have enough money to get me over there, now, and I don’t want to live in constant fear anymore.”
    “Save your money, sweetheart,” Seth said bravely. “I know you’re going to find a new home with the Northern Lights Clan.”
     
    * * *
     
    Despite Seth’s display of confidence, his nerves were shot by the time he and Chloe landed at Glacier Point’s airport. He hadn’t told anyone the exact time his flight landed, because he didn’t want one of his clan members picking him up at the airport and meeting Chloe there. He had figured he would take a cab back to the cabins, and then just march up to Neal’s cabin and explain the situation. Seth had figured that telling his alpha in person that he had bonded with a Blizzard was the best way to go. He would make the announcement quickly, like tearing off a band-aid. Neal would be shocked, but hopefully he would give Seth a chance to explain.
    As their cab approached the Northern Lights cabins, though, Seth couldn’t stop second-guessing his plan. What if someone saw Chloe and caused a commotion before he got to Neal’s cabin? And what if Neal was angry that he had brought a Blizzard to their cabins without warning? Maybe Seth should have asked for permission, first. Seth felt his stomach churning with anxiety as the cab pulled up in front of his cabin. One glance at Chloe told him that she felt even more anxious than he did. Seth paid the cabbie, then took a deep breath and went to open Chloe’s door for her. He grabbed their bags from the trunk, praying that he could at least make it inside his cabin and regroup with her for a moment before anyone