Free Bear Naked Truth (Southern Shifters Book 7) by Eliza Gayle Page A

know I just woke up, but I feel ready for a nap. You wore me out." His beautiful and still flushed mate grabbed the sheet on the bed and wrapped it around her body.
    He frowned. He'd only just gotten her half naked. He wanted to spend more time getting to know every inch of her.
    "Don't look so put out. Give me a little while to recover and I'll be ready for more. A human girl needs her rest."
    A soft growl sounded deep in his throat. He liked that she was thinking about more. "Bears like naps too."
    "Perfect." She snuggled into his side and wrapped her arm around his waist. "You can keep me warm," she said, her voice growing thick with drowsiness.
    "I live to serve, babe." He smiled and closed his eyes. They still had much to learn about each other and a lot of talking to do, but for now, both the man and the bear were content.
    He'd found his perfect mate. Of course, in the process he had ignored Bhric's "hands off" command and there would likely be consequences for that. He had no idea what that meant and he didn't care. He'd happily pay any price to keep his woman.

11
    W hen Jessa opened her eyes she was shocked to find Calder staring down at her from only a few inches away.
    "Whoa, what happened?" She asked, squirming in his arms. There was close and then there was close and it unnerved her to find him studying her.
    "You fell asleep," he said. His gaze never wavered as the scrutiny of those blue blue eyes continued.
    "Oh wow. You must have really worn me out." When he didn't return her smile, a prickle of fear pierced her chest. "How long was I out?"
    "A few hours." The hand he had wrapped around her thigh twitched a moment before he trailed his fingers down to her knee.
    "Have you been watching me this whole time? Cause if so I have to tell you that's a little weird."
    His brow furrowed. "How so? It seems perfectly natural to me to study the woman I've made mine."
    That prickle spread and worry added to it. With Calder there had been a lot of "mine" talk that had her worried. Shifters were possessive over what they considered "theirs" and she wasn't sure if she was free yet from the Blackwood Pack.
    "What does that mean to you exactly," she asked, almost afraid to hear the answer.
    "That depends on how much you know about shifters. When it comes to love and family we do have some key differences."
    She nodded. "I know. I've heard about how shifters often mate quickly so they can try and have babies. I also know that shifter females getting pregnant has become a problem as of the last few decades. And there's the elusive fated mates that hardly anyone talks about."
    He pushed up on his elbows and continued tracing a pace along her hip and stomach. At this point she would normally reach for the sheet and try to cover up. She didn't hate her body or anything, but that didn't mean she didn't try to hide some of its flaws while enhancing the better parts.
    "A lot of shifters don't believe in fated mates anymore. For a long time they were quite rare. Although lately a lot more of that has been happening. Four of the people who live with me at the Dark Moon have been through it, well, it will be six once Greer and Lily return from their vacation. I grew up hearing stories about how intense it could be and until I watched Niki and Dean go through it I'm not sure I believed it."
    "Niki is one of the women from the bar last night?" Jessa swallowed thickly as his fingers danced lightly across her skin and traced the outline of one of her nipples. He was making it really hard to concentrate on this conversation.
    "She's my friend."
    Jessa couldn't help noticing how his voice softened when he spoke of the other woman. A former lover maybe?
    "What about your family? Your parents maybe?"
    Calder raised up and rolled her to her back. "Most certainly not my family. They live in the land of strictly arranged matings. Every thing they do is for the good of their bank account first and good of the clan second. Nothing else matters beyond