Bearing The Long Road Home (Ice Bear Shifters 7) (8 page)

Seth walked up to his cabin, grabbing the two travel bags that he had left sitting in the piles of spring snow at the bottom of his porch steps. He glanced around and saw curious eyes peeking out from the windows of the other clan members’ cabins. Their faces quickly disappeared from view when Seth looked in their direction, but he had seen them. He knew they were watching, trying to get a glimpse of the Blizzard Seth had brought home from Canada.

As soon as Seth shut the cabin door behind them, Chloe burst into tears.

“That was awful,” she said between sobs. “No one even wants to give me a chance.”

Seth pulled her into his arms, his heart aching for her. He remembered how cold he had been to her when he first met her, too, and he felt ashamed. She was such a sweet, giving person, but no one could see beyond the jet black eyes that gave her away as a Blizzard.

“I know I promised to give you a month to convince them,” Chloe said, sniffling. “But do we really have to stay here that long? I’m not sure I can take a month of being treated like I’m some kind of murderer.”

Seth kissed the top of Chloe’s head. “No, sweetheart. We don’t have to stay here a month. Just give me a few days to pack up my things here, and we can go wherever you want. I promise you, we will find somewhere to live happily, where people can appreciate you for who you are as a person.”

Chloe still cried, but her sobs lessened at Seth’s words. When she had regained her composure somewhat, Seth leaned back and used his pointer finger to tilt her chin upward toward his face.

“Hey,” he said, planting a soft kiss on her lips. “It’s going to be okay. I love you, and you love me. We found each other, and that’s all that matters. We’ll build a happy life together. Things will get better. I know they will.”

Chloe gave him a weak smile, and he gave her one more quick kiss.

“Now,” he said. “You must be exhausted. Why don’t you lie down and take a nap? Or treat yourself to a hot shower if you want. The water pressure in the bathroom here is fabulous. It’s going to feel like heaven after all those months of using the tiny showers in Yellowknife.”

Chloe smiled, a little more convincingly this time. “Okay,” she said. “What are you going to do? Want to join me for a nap?”

Seth shook his head. “No, I’m going to go talk to Neal. He reacted a lot stronger than I thought he would, and I want to try one more time to convince him to give you a chance. Maybe if I go on my own and try to talk to him man to man he’ll listen.”

Seth saw a dark shadow cross over Chloe’s face, and he rushed to reassure her.

“Don’t worry,” he said. “I meant it when I said we can leave in a few days. If Neal refuses to listen to me, we’ll be gone from here by the end of the week.”

“It’s not that,” Chloe said. “It’s just…are you sure I’m safe here by myself? Your entire clan knows now that there’s a Blizzard hiding out in your cabin. What if they come and try to attack me while you’re gone?”

Seth shook his head no. “Don’t worry about that. They hate Blizzards, but Neal has a strict policy of not harming women or children. It’s the reason I didn’t try to attack you at all when I first saw you back in Yellowknife. The clan might not have given you a warm welcome, but they won’t lay a finger on you. I promise.”

Chloe looked only slightly reassured, but she nodded, anyway. “Ok,” she said. “If you really think so.”

“I do,” Seth said, reaching over to squeeze her hand. “Just relax and get comfortable. You’re perfectly safe here, and I’ll be back before you know it.”

Chloe nodded again, and Seth left the cabin. He started back toward Neal’s cabin, telling himself over and over again to remain calm. It wouldn’t do him any good to yell at his alpha. He had to speak calmly and try to get Neal to think rationally.

Seth walked up the steps to Neal’s cabin, but he paused with his hand in midair just before knocking on the front door. He heard yelling inside, and quickly realized that Neal and Christine were in the middle of a huge fight.

“Don’t you understand, Christine?” Neal yelled. “Her clan wiped out almost my entire clan! Heck, they wiped out almost every clan in northern Alaska, including Seth’s clan. I’m honestly shocked that he would choose to get into a relationship with a Blizzard. He’s usually so levelheaded.”

“That’s exactly my point, Neal,” Christine yelled back. “Don’t you think that there must be some explanation for all of this? Seth wouldn’t just fall in love with someone he thought had any part in the deaths of his former clan, or the Northern Lights Clan. You should give him a chance to explain.”

“I don’t know what explanation there could possibly be,” Neal said. “The things the Blizzards did are things that only monsters could do.”

“I agree with that, but I think you might be unfairly lumping Chloe in with the monsters. Remember how I thought you were a monster when I first learned that you were a shifter? What if I had never given you a chance? What if I had never admitted that maybe I was wrong for thinking that? We would never have fallen in love and become lifemates. Our beautiful son would never even have existed.”

There was a long pause and Seth stood perfectly still on the front porch, holding his breath and waiting for Neal to respond.

“That’s different. You and I are different,” Neal said.

“How?” Christine said. “I don’t think we really are. Both situations involve someone thinking the other person is a monster. And you should be man enough to admit there’s a possibility that you’re wrong. You don’t have to agree to like Chloe, or to like what she has to say. Just agree to hear her out. Seth is a valuable, cherished clan member. You owe it to him to give Chloe a fair chance.”

Another long pause ensued, and Seth quietly started backing up off the porch. But before he could completely make his escape, Neal’s front door flew open and Neal started storming out. Neal scowled when he saw Seth at the bottom of the porch steps.

“Alright, Seth. Chloe gets one shot to explain why anyone should treat her with anything other than complete and utter contempt. One shot, so she better make it good. I’m calling a clan meeting in thirty minutes.”

Seth’s heart leapt with excitement in his chest. He nodded, and then ran off to tell Chloe the good news. This was their chance! They wouldn’t have to leave the Northern Lights Clan, after all.

Seth knew that one shot at telling her story was all Chloe needed.

An hour later, Seth held his breath and looked around at the shocked expressions on the faces of his clan members. You could have heard a pin drop as Chloe finished telling the Northern Lights Clan the truth about Dominic’s reign of terror. The adults all stared at Chloe, not willing to be the first one to say anything. The young children, for once, were completely quiet. They seemed to somehow sense the seriousness of the moment.

Seth watched as Chloe looked around at the faces of each of the clan members, silently pleading with them to believe what she was saying, and believe that she herself was not a bad person just because of what her old clan had done.

Neal finally broke the silence, his voice strained. “Thank you for sharing your story, Chloe. I think the clan needs a few minutes alone to discuss our next step. Would you mind stepping out for a few minutes?”

Chloe nodded her head in acquiescence and stood to leave Neal’s cabin, where the clan had gathered for the meeting. Seth gave her what he hoped was an encouraging smile as she walked out the front door with her head held high. He was so proud of her. He knew telling her story was not easy, and she had just told it to a room full of strangers—many of whom were large shifters and could have torn her to pieces if they wanted to. Seth watched through the front window as Chloe walked back to his cabin, never once looking back. He knew she had laid it all on the line, and she was determined to let the chips fall where they may.

Seth turned his attention back to the inside of Neal’s cabin, where still no one spoke. Neal let out a weary sigh and rubbed his forehead, but didn’t say anything else. One of the children had started pushing a small wooden train around on the floor, and the sound of its creaking wheels sounded abnormally loud in the otherwise quiet cabin. Finally, Eric broke the silence with one word.

“Wow.”

Neal looked up at Eric, a pained expression on his face. Seth felt a pang of sympathy for his alpha. Deciding whether to let a new shifter join a clan was always a serious decision, but it was an even tougher decision when that shifter belonged to a clan that had wiped out most of your own clan.

Christine spoke next. As lifemate to the alpha, she held a special position of respect, and all ears turned to her as she chose her words carefully.

“I think it’s clear from Chloe’s story that she does not fit the prototype of a Blizzard that we all hold in our minds. And I think it’s unfair to judge her based on the actions of others—actions that she had no control over and did not support.”

“But, they wiped out entire clans. We can’t just ignore that,” Tyler said.

“The Blizzards’ alpha and his minions wiped out entire clans,” Seth said. “Chloe had no part in it. She was an unwilling observer, powerless to stop him. Chloe herself is a caring, kind person who wouldn’t hurt a fly. Her own life has been devastated by the things her old alpha did.”

Another long silence ensued, and Seth bit his tongue to keep from saying more. He had to give everyone time to process what they had heard. As hard as it was, he forced himself to remain quiet and let them think. After what felt like an eternity, Neal spoke.

“This is a big decision, but I’m inclined to agree with Christine and Seth. I think Chloe was a victim, just like we were, and I think allowing her into our clan doesn’t validate anything the Blizzards did. It actually defies it. If we truly want peace in the Arctic again, we can’t hold the transgressions of the past against those who did not want them. We have to forgive to heal our own hearts.”

No one spoke, and the expressions of most of the clan members in the room remained unreadable. Seth found himself holding his breath again, waiting on pins and needles for Neal to make a final proclamation.

“I understand, though, that this is a big decision, with a lot of emotional baggage attached to it,” Neal said. “I don’t want to force anyone here to accept a Blizzard based on my own personal beliefs, so I’m going to do something I almost never do with big clan decisions: I’m going to hold a vote. If the majority of you agree that Chloe should be allowed into the clan, then we will accept her. If not, we will politely ask her to leave. So, each of you think about what your decision is, and raise your hand if you want to let Chloe stay.”

For the longest thirty seconds of Seth’s life, no one moved. Then, slowly, to Seth’s shock, Alan was the first one to raise his hand.

“I’m sorry, buddy,” Alan said to Seth. “You were right. I didn’t know the full story. If the men of the Blizzard clan put Chloe through half as much as they put me through, then the poor girl deserves a break.”

Seth let out his breath as he gave Alan a grateful look. Emboldened by Alan’s stance, Tyler raised his hand, followed by Eric and James. As each shifter raised his hand, his lifemate raised her hand as well. Finally, after a long pause, Ryker became the last one to raise his hand, sealing Chloe’s fate. She would be allowed to join the Northern Lights Clan.

Seth fist pumped the air. “Yes!” he shrieked. “Yes, yes, yes! Thank you so much everyone. You will not regret this, I promise. She’s amazing, and you’re going to love her.”

Neal smiled. “I hope this brings a new era of peace to the Arctic. It’s time to let go of the hatred of the past, and embrace the promise of a better future. Seth, you’re free to go and let Chloe know that she’s been accepted into the clan. As I usually do for new clan members, I’d like to do a welcome party for her. Does tomorrow night work for everyone?”

All of the clan members nodded their agreement, and Seth’s heart swelled with happiness. His sweet Chloe had a place to stay, and a new family. She wouldn’t have to leave Alaska, after all. Seth thanked Neal and the rest of the clan once more, and then raced out the door to head for his cabin. He burst in his own front door, and found Chloe pacing back and forth across the kitchen. He gathered her into his arms, and spun her around. Despite his best effort to remain macho and in control of his emotions, his eyes teared up as he set her feet back down on the ground. He didn’t think he had ever before had a moment of joy this pure.

“You’re home, sweetheart,” he said. “You’re home.”

* * *

The next evening, Chloe timidly followed Seth into Ryker’s cabin, where the Northern Lights Clan would be officially welcoming her as a member. She didn’t know what kind of “welcome” to expect. Her first few experiences with the clan members had been strained, to put it mildly. But her worries disappeared as she walked into the room. The cabin had been decorated festively with balloons, and there was enough food and drink to satisfy a clan three times the size of this one. When Chloe walked in the door, one of the cubs, who looked like he was about three years old, ran up to her.

“Are you my new Auntie?” he asked, his voice innocent and hopeful.

“Uh, I, um…” Chloe hedged, unsure of how to respond. That’s when the boy’s mother came running up to them.

“Hi, I’m Kenzie. I know we met at the clan meeting but it I’m sure that was a lot of names to remember. This is my son, Calum. My daughter Hope is around here somewhere. And yes, Calum, this is your new Auntie. Auntie Chloe,” Kenzie said.

“Auntie Chloe! I’m so excited that I get a new Auntie,” Calum said, and threw his arms around Chloe with no hesitation. Chloe, despite telling herself she would make it through this evening without crying, burst into tears.

“Look at that,” Neal said, walking up and seeing Calum’s little arms wrapped around Chloe’s legs. “Calum puts us all to shame. Children don’t see a clan name or history when they look at a face. They just see that individual person for whom they are. That’s exactly how we should react.”

Chloe was reintroduced to everyone as the party began. She had expected things to be strained, but overall the evening went smoothly. Now that the clan had decided to welcome her, they made an effort to truly make her feel welcome. She talked and ate and laughed until her sides hurt. No one made any rude comments about her being a Blizzard. In fact, no one asked her any questions about her past life. Chloe didn’t mind explaining her history again, but she figured tonight was for celebrating, not for dredging up the dark past.

When the clock struck midnight, and the children had long since fallen asleep in one of the cabin’s bedrooms, Seth and Chloe finally left the party. As they walked hand in hand back toward Seth’s cabin, shivering in the cold evening air, he leaned over and gave her a quick kiss.

“What did you think of your first clan party?” he asked.

Chloe smiled over at him. “I loved it,” she said. “Everyone treated me really well. No one mentioned anything about my being a Blizzard.”

“That’s because you’re not a Blizzard anymore. You’re a Northern Lights bear now.”

Chloe’s heart felt like it was going to beat right out of her chest from happiness. Was it possible that she actually could shake the label that had been following her around for the past few years, causing people to judge her for what other shifters had done? This whole day felt like a dream come true. Seth pulled her into his arms as they walked into his cabin’s front room.

“It’s only going to get better from here. The more they get to know you, the more they’re going to love you. And with the protection of the Northern Lights Clan, you won’t have to be always looking over your shoulder, wondering if you’re about to be attacked by some rogue shifter.”

Chloe let herself melt into Seth’s embrace. “Thank you for convincing me to come back here. You were right about your clan. I thought from the first few reactions I got that I was going to be leaving Alaska for good. But they came around, and now I get to stay here.”

“I had my doubts for a few moments there, too,” Seth said. “But everything worked out, and now we’re here together. Home.”

They spent a few moments silently wrapped in each other’s embrace, and then Chloe tilted her face up toward Seth’s. She planted a long, deep kiss on his lips, and then pulled back to look into his eyes.

“I love you,” she said.

He let out a low growl. “I love you, too.”

Then he returned the kiss, slipping his tongue into her mouth and pulling her closer against him with his arms. Chloe breathed in his scent, that now familiar mixture of sandalwood and pine, and she let her tongue waltz with his as their kiss continued. The kiss grew more urgent, and Chloe and Seth both shrugged out of the jackets they were wearing, then kicked off their shoes. The pair collapsed on the couch in a passionate embrace, and Chloe reached down to pull Seth’s sweater up and over his head. He returned the favor, unbuttoning her blouse and tossing it aside. Then he unclasped her bra and removed it to allow his hands to cup her breasts. Chloe moaned as he massaged the nipples with his fingers, then pushed him off of her and onto his back on the couch.

“I want to taste you,” she said, and started unbuttoning his jeans. She struggled to pull off the thick denim material, and then quickly slid off his briefs, leaving him naked on the couch with his stiff erection pointing straight up at the ceiling. She slid between his legs on the couch, positioning her head right above his groin. Then she slowly licked a trail from the base of his shaft up to the tip of his penis. He let out a long, low growl of pleasure, and Chloe smiled with satisfaction. Then she moved her entire mouth over his dick, sucking in as much of him as she could while she massaged his shaft with her tongue. She felt him arching his back as she took him to the brink of ecstasy, his dick beginning to pulse with passion.

Suddenly he grabbed her shoulders and started sitting up, pushing her off of him.

“Wait,” he said, breathless and panting. “I want to finish inside of you.”

Chloe smiled and nodded. She placed her hand on his chest and pushed him firmly back down onto the couch. “Stay,” she ordered. Then she climbed off the couch for a moment to quickly remove her jeans and panties, which by now were soaked with the juices of her anticipation. She got back onto the couch, straddling Seth and giving him a mischievous smile.

“I’m in charge tonight,” she said. She lowered herself onto his dick, closing her eyes with pleasure as she felt him filling her. She thrust her hips against his, moving as fast as she could. The pressure and heat in her body built until she couldn’t contain herself anymore, and she threw back her head with a load moan as she exploded into an intense orgasm. As soon as the waves of her release started to crash over her, Seth came as well. He roared and thrust his groin upward, pushing his dick deep into her and filling her with pulses of hot passion. Chloe moaned again as she felt the heat of his orgasm filling her, and a fresh wave of tingling pleasure washed over her.

When Chloe’s breathing finally started returning to normal, she fell against Seth’s chest, enjoying the feeling of her naked skin against his. Both of them were sweaty and disheveled in the afterglow of their lovemaking, but Chloe thought she had never seen Seth looking more handsome. As she lay against him, he wrapped one arm around her, and then used his free hand to run his fingers lazily through her hair. She sighed, taking in the sweet, peaceful moment. For the first time in years, she felt truly secure and happy.

After several minutes of silence, Seth spoke.

“So, my beautiful Northern Lights bear,” he said. “What do you think of April?”

“The month of April? Um, I generally like it. Why?” Chloe asked tilting her head back to look at Seth with a questioning gaze.