herself up, looking around for something to cover herself.
Garret didn’t turn around. He bowed his head, and his curly hair stuck to the sweat on his neck. “That was indescribably stupid. You know that, don’t you?”
Holly blinked at him and then…at nothing. “What…what just happened?”
“You shifted.”
“Yeah, but…” she faltered. “I’m not a shifter. I’m human. You said that yourself just a few minutes ago.” She looked behind her down the mountain. Was it really just a few minutes ago that she thought she was human—fully, truly human?
His shoulders heaved, and he puffed out his cheeks, blowing his breath through pursed lips. “Not anymore. I guess this is just one of those things—kind of like Johnny becoming a warlock and you getting pregnant with a baby who has six fathers. Life is stranger than fiction.”
“Yeah, but…” Words failed her.
He jerked around, and his eyes flashed. He locked his gaze on her for a moment before his features softened. He rotated the rest of the way around to face her. The sun lit up every curve and crevice of his chiseled physique. How long had it been since she’d seen him naked in the clear, unbroken light of day? She couldn’t remember that, either—not that she felt embarrassed.
She didn’t feel embarrassed to let him see her, either. He accepted everything about her. She never doubted that for a second. He always did.
Her swollen belly and her rounded shape felt heavy and cumbersome in this form, but it also seemed right like everything else that happened.
Her becoming a shifter, running through the woods, and even attacking him in play only to get beaten by an overpowering opponent—all those things felt absolutely right. They fed her and made her stronger and more vital than ever, just like the forest itself. They were all parts of the forest, just as she was.
Garret crossed the ring of Stones. He bent down and retrieved a package from a hollow in one of the trees. He returned, unwrapping a pair of tattered jeans and an old sweater. He pinched his lips, holding them out to her. “These are Keller’s, so you’ll be swimming in ‘em, but at least you’ll be decent to show your face in public. Sorry, we don’t have anything in your size, but none of us anticipated you’d need ‘em out here.”
She bit back, a grin eyeing the monstrous sweater. “Um...thanks. I guess I won’t be going out in public before I get a chance to stop by the house.”
She looked up to find his eyes twinkling down at her. All at once, she saw the funny side of everything that had happened, and they both laughed. She slipped the sweater over her head. The sleeves hung several inches below her hands, and the lower hem came almost down to her knees.
She rolled the sleeves up and got into the jeans. She could have fit both her legs in to one side, but she folded down the waistband to make them stay up. Like he said, at least she was covered.
He retrieved some of his own clothes and put them on. When he finished, he took her hand and drew her away from the clearing. “Come on. Let’s get back. The others will be wondering where you are.”
CHAPTER TWO—GARRET
The trip back to the house took a lot longer walking next to Holly, but Garret didn’t hurry her along. He didn’t want to run the risk of her shifting again.
When he glanced over to check on her, he discovered her gazing up into the sun pouring through the leaves. A beatific smile radiated from her countenance. Her whole being shone with incredible ecstasy and contentment. He’d never seen her like this before. That was the problem.
He could understand why she felt tense and threatened the last several months, but there was definitely something strange going on with her—and not just the part about her shifting into a bear and getting pregnant with a baby who had six fathers. This went deeper, a lot deeper. This went to the very heart of who she was—who Garret knew she was.
In the seven months since the party found out Holly was pregnant, she had plenty of time to relax and get over her traumatic ordeal. Nothing threatened her or kidnapped her or any of her people.
This came from somewhere else. This crazy ecstasy was so out of character for her that he couldn’t be happy about it no matter how contented and healthy and energetic it made her.