A Mate for Lu - Amy Bellows Page 0,51
it onto his lock screen too.
Much to my surprise, Cy sits next to me on the couch and offers me a glass of water. When I take a sip, I discover it isn’t water at all. It’s alcohol. I sputter and cough.
He doesn’t apologize. He just smirks. “Too strong for you, huh?”
“What is this?”
“Vodka.”
Why is he giving me vodka? I rarely drink wine, let alone hard liquor.
“Do you know what other polar bear shifters call me?” Cy says, sipping at his own drink, which is as clear as mine. I’m not sure what it is, but he doesn’t so much as wince after taking a generous swallow.
“Uh, no. I don’t.”
“The bastard from the Slope. Do you want to know why?”
I assume he wants to tell me, so I nod.
“Because I grew up on the North Slope with a bunch of criminals. I literally learned how to walk in the equivalent of a jail and spent my childhood rubbing shoulders with murderers, rapists, and thieves.”
He downs his glass, then takes mine, and downs half of it too. “Lu is the closest thing to a brother that I’ve ever had. He’s a good man, but he tends to fall for alphas who aren’t worthy of him.”
He drinks the rest of the vodka without so much as a hesitation. “Axe was sentenced to a life on the Slope for beating Lu’s last alpha half to death. The guy spent weeks in the ICU. They didn’t think he was going to survive.” Cy stops and looks me straight in the eye. “But if you hurt Lu, you won’t be going to the ICU. No, if you hurt Lu, you won’t survive what I’ll do to you. And once I’m done, I’ll hike far into the roughest Alaskan terrain in my bear form, and bury your body where no one will ever find it. Do you understand?”
Cy stands, and despite downing what had to amount to at least seven shots of vodka, he’s completely steady on his feet. “Read the binder Axe brought over. Memorize it. And do every damn thing on the list. If you don’t, you’ll have to answer to me. Axe may have almost killed a man, but compared to me, he’s a fucking teddy bear. I’m like a snake, sneaking around where you least expect me, ready to strike at any moment. And make no mistake. If you give me a reason to strike, you will regret it for the rest of your life.”
He bends over and sets the glasses on the coffee table, then walks in a straight line for the door.
I open the damn binder and start reading. I would have done it without the threats. If Cy bothered to get to know me, he’d figure out that I’m not a bad guy. I don’t get what Lu sees in him. Or Axe, for that matter. Why on earth would anyone choose him for a mate? Even Mary loves him.
There might be some things about polar bear shifters that I’ll never understand.
35
Lu
The week after I move in with Sam is completely different than the week before. Instead of missing him, I get to snuggle with him in bed every night. Instead of feeling overwhelmed, Sam is meticulous about massaging peppermint oil into my hands every day, arranging childcare for Mary, and cooking me meals that are easy to digest. Being cared for so well calms my stomach to the point where I’m finally gaining weight instead of losing it.
Maybe there are reasons why alpha polar bear shifters are supposed to take care of their mates during a pregnancy.
On Saturday morning, Jesse peers into the master bedroom. “Uh, hey. Are you sleeping, because if you are, I can go…”
“Come in.”
They walk into the room with a tablet in their arms. “I have to pick out the tux I’m going to rent for my gender reveal party.”
“Don’t you want to do that at a shop so you can try them on?”
“Yeah, but usually you do it with your omega parent. I know you don’t feel up for shopping or anything. Maybe if we looked online at the different styles, you could help me?” Their shoulders tense. They’re afraid I’ll say no.
“Of course I can help. Do you have the website pulled up on your tablet?”
They walk over and hand it to me, “Yeah.”
“Alright. I take it that you’re going to be revealed as a man, since we’re looking at suits?”
Their cheeks turn a bright pink. “I guess I can tell you,