Free Bearly Hanging On (A Werebear Shifter BBW Romance) (Laid Bear Book 3) by Marina Maddix

wished Chet would just do her already. Her entire body quivered with need for him all day long, every waking moment. Anytime something touched her — a branch, a customer, a fly — her sensitive skin screamed out for Chet to take her. To make her his woman. The only thing stopping him was her refusal to admit what her heart already knew. That she already was his woman, forever and always, till death do us part.
    Her gasp of awareness caught his attention. “What? What’s wrong?”
    No, she was just horny. She didn’t believe in love at first sight. This was just a summer fling, if you could even call it that since they weren’t having sex.
    “Look,” she finally managed to croak out, pointing a shaking finger at a developing whirlpool near Tremble Rock. It was spinning as fast as her emotions, sucking any stray bit of reason down its eternal black vortex.
    The shudder that wracked her body must have made Chet think she was chilly because he tugged his jacket around so it partially covered her, but all that did was make her want him more. Not only for his thoughtfulness, but because she was now literally wrapped in his scent.  
    “Awesome,” he said, oblivious to what she was going through. How could he not notice how worked up she was? He always seemed to have a sixth sense when it came to how she was feeling, but tonight, when she wanted to say things to him she couldn’t have imagined an hour earlier, he was focused on a fucking whirlpool.
    “I can feel it,” he breathed into her ear, his thumbs stroking infuriatingly erotic circles on her forearms. The tips of her full breasts tightened to the point of pain, her inner muscles clenching in response. She’d never known this kind of need before, this excruciating, painful, delicious need.
    Giving her head a jerk in a pathetic imitation of a shake — it was all she could manage, in her current state of arousal — she whispered, “Impossible.” There was no way he could be feeling the vibration from the current way up here. It was only Tremble Rock that…trembled.  
    And her. She was trembling plenty.
    Chet tucked two fingers under her chin and tilted her head up until their gazes locked. “I’m not talking about the rock, my love. I’m talking about you. You know. You finally understand, don’t you?” His voice was soft but with an undercurrent of excitement, anticipation.
    He knew! How…oh, hell, she didn’t care. Relief washed over her that she was no longer lying to herself. Ever since that night at the swings, she’d felt like a boat pushing against the current of his love. Her stubborn nature was getting her nowhere fast, but if she turned around and went with the flow, there was no telling where their lives might lead.  
    The only thing she knew with any certainty was that she would rather die today in his loving arms than spend a lifetime without him.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

    Crystal had barely finished nodding before his lips were on hers, claiming her as his own fated mate. He’d waited so long — a lifetime, it seemed — for her to realize what he’d known all along, and now the moment of their coupling was here.  
    He could barely control himself, and his bear was frantically tearing at its cage. A fine layer of dark fur sprouted on his arms and he could feel himself growing larger, as his bear fought for control. Moving his body so he had Crystal pinned under him, he hoped she wouldn’t notice the outward signs of his inner turmoil.  
    He kept her mind otherwise occupied by brushing his lips across hers, his tongue lightly skimming as they went. Her breathy moan and the way she pressed her hips into his, into his desperate need, made his head spin, and he nearly lost control.  
    He couldn’t do that. He couldn’t allow his bear free rein until Crystal knew the truth. It would be too shocking, too frightening for her. But keeping it from her was killing him.
    The pang of guilt he felt at keeping her in the dark about his true nature