“Kodiak.”

She gaped like a fish. “Um… Say what now?”

He shrugged. “What can I say? Apparently Bear thinks you need to be really, really big. Look on the bright side, he didn’t turn you into a Polar.”

“Jules!”

“Although, come to think of it, Kodiaks are comparable in size to polar bears. They’ve even interbred. Or am I thinking of Grizzlies again?”

She opened her mouth, but nothing came out except a squeak. She was going to be a motherfucking Kodiak?

He darted a sidelong glance at her but quickly turned his attention back to the road. It was enough for her to notice that he was trying to hold back his grin. “I’m betting you’ll be able to kick Eric’s ass.”

“I’ll be able to kick yours too.”

“Female Kodiaks might actually be larger than female polar bears. I’ll have to double check, I’m not sure.”

Well, shit. Wow. She was going to be huge. “So when Tabby tells me I have a fat ass—”

“I refuse to answer on the grounds that I may be eviscerated.”

She growled again, not at all amused when he laughed so hard he had to pull over.

Julian sighed in relief as he escorted a much calmer Cyn back into the hospital. The shock of finding out she was a Kodiak had left her practically speechless. Well, for Cyn anyway. She’d mumbled to herself the entire way to the hospital, unaware he could hear every single word.

He really hoped she wasn’t serious about the rotating pineapple attachment. That might sting.

He spotted Gabe before Cyn did. Julian hoped he had something that would ease his mate’s mind, but from the look on Gabe’s face he doubted it.

“Cyn. Julian. I need to speak with you alone.” Gabe gestured for them to follow him right back out the double doors of the hospital.

“I’ll go to check on Glory.” Cyn looked back over her shoulder, but allowed Julian to tug her along in Gabe’s wake.

“Tabby and Alex are here. They’ll let you know if there’s any change in her condition.” Unless Julian was wrong, she was going to want to hear first-hand what Gabe had to say.

Gabe led them over to his squad car and leaned back against the hood. He crossed his arms over his chest and sighed wearily. “The bomb squad took care of the pipe bomb. They managed to safely explode it, and we’re looking into whether or not we can get fingerprints or DNA off of it. Once we have it, we’ll send it off to the Senate investigators to see if they can make a match to any rogue shifters. But I should warn you, there was no smell of Cheetah on the pipe bomb.”

“What did you smell?”

“Wolf.” His frown was confused. “It was almost buried beneath the scent of deer, though.”

Julian swore under his breath. “You think whoever hired Gary and his goons have sent others to finish what they started.”

Gabe shrugged. “I spoke to the Senate representative in charge of their case. He hasn’t been able to get much more out of them. Since Gary spilled the beans that they weren’t the ones who attacked Chloe they’ve kept their mouths shut. I’ve told Max that there might be a rogue Wolf in the area, as well as a rogue Cheetah, and I called Rick Lowell as well.”

“Rick Lowell? As in the Poconos Pack Alpha?” Cyn darted a look back toward the hospital. “Someone had better tell Tabby that both of her Alphas will be in town soon.”

Dr. Max Cannon, the Halle Puma Alpha, had granted Tabby, Cyn and Glory his protection when Gary had threatened them, and accepted Tabby as part of his Pride, despite the fact that she was a Wolf. Not long after, Rick Lowell and his Luna, Belle, had arrived from the Poconos and also included Tabby in their Pack. Max had even been willing to change both Glory and Cyn into Pumas right up until he heard they had Bear mates. Then he couldn’t leave Living Art fast enough.

Max had good reason to run. While a black Bear like Julian would walk away from a fight with a Puma, a brown Bear like Alex or Ryan would maul even someone as strong as Max. If anyone other than Ryan changed Glory, the fallout had the potential to be disastrous. Not even the Senate would be able to ignore a direct attack on an Alpha by a Bear. Despite the unique circumstances, Ryan would be declared rogue and Gabe would be forced to hunt him down.

“We were thinking of asking his Marshall to assist Adrian and me in hunting the Wolf down.” Gabe shook his head, his expression confused. “There’s more going on here than I can guess at.”

“In other words, your Hunter senses are tingling?” If so, Julian would have to make it a priority to find Ryan before Gabe did. He was the only one who would be able to talk Ryan down. If he could get close enough, he could calm Ryan. Once he understood that he’d been granted access to Glory’s room and that she was on the road to recovery his Bear would back off. Ryan would once more be in control of his instincts.

Cyn tapped her foot, her hands on her hips. “We need to find Ryan.”

“I’m being pulled in multiple directions. And I’m not entirely certain that Ryan isn’t one of them.” Gabe tipped his hat to Cyn and shook Julian’s hand. “I’ll give you both a call when I have something. In the meantime, now that you’re mated—congratulations, by the way—I highly suggest the two of you live together. With Glory in the hospital Cyn is alone in the apartment, and that just makes my butt itch.”

“I’ll make sure she’s not alone.” Even if it meant he had to give up his job with Jamie’s practice. He’d rather force her to move back with him to Canada than risk her life.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but if Julian and I get married wouldn’t he automatically become a citizen? He’s worried about missing work, since he’s here on a work visa. If he’s with me around the clock, that jeopardizes his visa, doesn’t it?” Cyn bit her lip, her expression a combination of concern and determination.

Gabe’s brows rose in surprise. “I’m not sure.”

Julian shook his head. “Marriage to a US citizen would allow me to apply for a green card on our third anniversary. I can then apply to become a citizen, but it’s still no guarantee. And while I have every intention of doing just that, I’ll have to double check with Jamie and make sure that what’s going on right now counts toward my vacation time. That way, my visa should be safe.”

“The other option is I go to work with you. I should be safe enough in Jamie’s office, right?” She scowled, but the expression was far too adorable to be intimidating. “It’s not like I can open the shop.”

“And I’m betting Alex will keep Tabby close, so she should be safe.” Having Cyn around while he worked wouldn’t exactly be a hardship. “If Jamie okays it, we’ll go for it.”

“In that case, I’ll leave you to check on Glory. I’ve already spoken to her, but unfortunately she didn’t see anything.” Gabe walked off with a wave, but stopped before he reached the patrol car. “Do me a favor, Julian. Talk to Tim. Find out if certain steps need to be taken.” He drove off, leaving Julian behind to explain to Cyn exactly what steps might need to be taken meant.

He wondered if, given the choice, which option Tim would choose.

Chapter Fifteen

“I’m exhausted.” Cyn flopped down on the sofa with a groan.

Julian flopped down next to her and pulled her close. “Me too.” His dark hair caressed her as he leaned over and kissed the top of her head. “Any idea what we’re going to do?”

“About?” She began stroking the length of his hair that had fallen across her chest. It always amazed her how soft it was.

“Ryan and Glory.”

She smiled. “Steal their clothes, lock them in a room together and let nature take its course.”

“Huh. I should have tried that with you.”

She smacked him in the stomach. Like that would have worked with her. It would have only pissed her off.

“That is why I don’t think it will work with Ryan and Glory.” He nibbled on her ear. “You keep caressing your breasts with my hair and I’m going to get ideas.”