Page 4 of Bear to be Wild (Moonlight Siren #5)

ROAN

“ Y ou’ve got this,” I pushed the small group in the Tabata class. “Finish strong—three… two… one.”

Kettlebells thudded onto mats. The collective sound of heavy breathing followed.

Sunlight poured into the fitness studio from the wide windows.

Outside, the morning sun twinkled on the Caribbean Sea.

Peaceful. Quiet. Just what I craved. When I’d joined the Moonlight Siren, I was looking forward to a fresh start somewhere new.

To live simply while I sailed the world and maybe even find my place in it.

Since we had a day at sea, I had a full schedule with clients. After I finished up with a couple of classes in the fitness studio, I’d spend much of the day training individuals in the gym.

“Okay, drink some water,” I directed. “Then we’ll finish up with the cooldown and stretch.”

Staying busy. Busy was good. I needed it after the encounter with Maribelle yesterday morning and my bear reminding me about it since then.

As if I needed any reminders. She was likely on the other side of that mirrored wall in the spa, and I was keenly aware of just how close she was. My mate was on the other side of that wall, and I didn’t know what to do about it.

Could I win her over somehow? Doubtful, with the way she’d looked at me with disgust yesterday. But I couldn’t give up yet though, not if she was my mate. I’d just have to make a better impression.

“All right, step side to side. Roll those shoulders back.” I stood before the group of nine supes and showed them the motions. Once we got our heart rates down, I finished up with stretches.

“Great job today. You probably burned off a fraction of breakfast at the buffet,” I joked and a few chuckled in acknowledgment. “If you’re staying for the core class, meet back here in fifteen minutes.”

A few more “thanks” and “great class” followed as the supes put their weights away and spilled out of the room.

I carried my kettlebells back to the weight rack when something hit me. A pull. It yanked like a hook under my ribs. I wobbled, almost dropping the weight.

A wolf shifter cocked his head. “Coach?”

“Fine—” The word died with a gasp.

Heat filtered through me. Bright and humming. Magical.

My bear reared up, ears forward. Mate.

There you go again, I replied. Once more, I can’t go over there and declare she’s our mate since she’s essentially a stranger. And she doesn’t even want to be in the same room as us.

He snorted in protest. Again.

I took a few minutes to pace the fitness room and concentrated on taking deep breaths. Eventually, the strange heat subsided.

During the core class, I pushed it to the back of my mind and focused on guiding the group through the movements. More women attended this one than men, and a couple gave me appreciative looks. I barely noticed, distracted by the witch next door.

When I moved through the group, a lithe feline shifter asked, “How does my form look, coach?” Suggestive flirtatiousness edged her every word. If that wasn’t obvious enough, she snaked her body to push out her ass.

I guided her back to proper form, not the least bit enticed by this attractive woman since my awareness was locked on Maribelle.

After class, I wrapped up in the fitness studio and gobbled down a protein bar while I glanced at the schedule on my phone.

The first appointment was a PT session with a wolf shifter in the gym next door.

After washing down the bar with some water, I walked out of the studio and headed down to the gym.

But then—yank.

“What the hell?” I whispered.

A bolt of heat inside my chest pulled me backward. I turned around but didn’t see anything.

My bear perked up inside, equally perplexed.

I raked a hand through my hair and continued walking.

Boom. Another tug at my solar plexus. I staggered backward and braced myself against the wall. My breath came quickly as I scanned the hallway in rising panic. Was this the start of a heart attack?

Ahead, the spa door swung open. Maribelle stepped into the hall, eyes wide with distress, before they fixed on me and locked there. The strange heat, the enigmatic light returned. With the way her lips parted on a gasp, she must have sensed it too.

Unfamiliar magic snaked across the room, shimmering between us like an iridescent thread.

It anchored in me. It anchored in her.

Her mouth fluttered open. “Oh no.”

“Maribelle?” I croaked out the word. “What’s happening?”

She pinched the bridge of her nose, then shook her head, and her silvery-lilac curls bounced with the movement. “This is fine. Totally fine. Tiny snag,” she said in a way that sounded like she was reassuring herself.

Concern for her distress followed. I cleared my throat. “Are you…okay?”

“Okay?” She bit her lower lip. “No, bear, nothing about this predicament is okay.”

What did she know that I didn’t?

“Cursed cauldrons,” Maribelle whispered with a grievous expression. “This can’t be.”

“What can’t be?” I asked. “What’s happening?” My chest filled with lightness. Wait, was this the mate bond? Did she feel it too? Maybe she didn’t detest me after all, and I had a chance with her.

Maribelle winced and scrunched up her face. “I may have made a teensy mistake.” She squeezed her index finger and thumb close together as she explained.

I stared, waiting for her to explain.

She brushed a curl behind her ear. “You see, you were being all loud and all”—she paused and pursed her lips as if she’d eaten something sour—”motivating.

” She rolled her shoulders back. “And so, I tried to perform a spell that would help us both be able to do our jobs effectively. It was supposed to be a simple sound-muffling spell, so the sound of all your ‘let’s go, gym bros’ chants wouldn’t reach my serene spa space. ”

My bubble of hope burst. Denial floated through the air like confetti. Ouch. Ouch. And devastating ouch.

“You dislike me that much that you used a spell to—to—muffle me?” I asked.

“Not you, necessarily,” she denied, widening her eyes. “Just all of that.” She moved both hands in a circular motion toward me. “Bro bear energy.”

“Bro bear energy?” I repeated, bewildered by this cyclone of a witch who’d just admitted to using magic to silence me.

“Hold on, so let me get this straight.” I raked my hand over the stubble on my chin.

“Your problem isn’t necessarily with me?

But how I’m training clients?” Before she could answer, I added, “I don’t get it.

You’re into helping your clients, right? ”

After a begrudging pause, she replied, “Right.”

“Well, so am I. It’s all about wellness. We’re just coming at it from two different angles.”

She crossed her arms. “One being much louder. And far less relaxing.”

I studied her. She stood before me, feisty and defiant, yet shame flickered briefly in her eyes. Which brought me back to what she’d been explaining earlier. “Tell me about the spell.”

Full-blown guilt followed by wide-eyed horror passed over her face before she dismissed it with a casual wave and a schooled neutral expression.

“Oh, it’s just a little mishap with a spell gone wrong.

” Her tone was light. “One I’ll figure out how to undo as soon as possible. But…” She clucked her tongue.

“But what?”

She squinted. “Until I do, it might be kind of awkward.”

“Why?”

She squirmed, appearing sheepish. “I accidentally bonded us together for seventy-two hours.”

I blinked at her. “You what?”

She blew out a heavy breath. “Do you have a comprehension problem? You keep repeating what I say or ask too many questions.” She circled her hand before me once more. “Too many protein shakes spiked with testosterone?”

I gaped at her, this feisty witch, who’d just jumped from shameful to defensive. “Ha, no,” I countered, but I wouldn’t admit to having just eaten a protein bar. “I’ve never met anyone who put a spell on me before, let alone one that went wrong and accidentally bound us together.”

Did that explain why I thought she was my fated mate? Was it all just a spell gone wrong?

Nope , my bear denied. It’s real .

I ignored him. He obviously wasn’t paying attention to what she’d just admitted about trying to shut us up with a spell.

She adjusted her weight from one foot to the other and chewed her bottom lip, drawing my gaze to it. That rich, full, pink pouty lip…

Focus.

“Care to explain to a dumb gym bro what exactly this spell means for us?” I asked.

She paled. “I didn’t call you dumb.”

I stared at her, calling out her bullshit.

She pursed her lips. “I know the type. The attractive, swaggering, over-suave shifters.”

She thinks I’m attractive. I lit up at that admittance until my brain continued to the next. “I don’t swagger. And suave? Where did you get that from during our brief introduction? Did I say or do something to make you think that?”

Her gaze turned to the side as she appeared to contemplate my question. “Okay.” She snorted. “Maybe I don’t know you well enough to make that assumption.”

My lips slipped into a smile. “Is Miss Spell-Gone-Wrong admitting she made a mistake?”

She grunted. “Watch it, bear.”

“Are you unable to answer a basic question?” I teased as I crossed my arms, mimicking her sassy attitude, which I enjoyed a great deal.

She tipped her head back and released a prolonged groan. “Fine, I messed up, all right? And it means that we’re stuck together until I can figure out how to undo it.”

“Stuck?”

She pinned me with a look, reminding me how I kept repeating her statements as questions in my bewilderment. “Yes, stuck.”

“Please, oh, gifted witch,” I drew out the words for added effect, enjoying getting a rise out of her. “Elaborate for the not-so-enlightened shifter in the room.”

Her upper lip curled up into a distasteful snarl. “Bear, it means we’re stuck together. Forced to be close.”

“How close?”

“I don’t know.” She threw her hands up. “Let’s figure it out.”

“How?”

“You walk in one direction, and I’ll walk in the other. When the spell takes hold, we’ll know.”

“Okay.” I pointed toward the gym, where I had been heading. “I’ll go that way.”

“And I’ll head toward the spa.” She locked her bright blue eyes on mine, and for a moment I forgot about everything else.

“Three, two, one, go,” she counted down, snapping me back to the mission.

I walked with slow, deliberate steps. After a couple dozen more feet, the heated sensation within yanked me back toward her, as if I’d been hooked by an anchor made of flames.

“Candle shit!” Maribelle swore.

I stifled a chuckle at her odd oath of frustration. Then I turned and gauged the distance between us. “Looks to be about here.”

She let out a cry. “This is horrible.” She slapped her forehead and slumped against the wall. After a few seconds, she lifted her gaze to meet mine. “If Tia finds out I did this, I’m done.” She sniffed. “I’ll lose my job. All because of some stupid spell.”

Compassion surged through me. Our boss Tia, the Wellness Director, came across as strict and no-nonsense—the type who would not let this go with a warning.

Although Maribelle’s spell would be a big inconvenience since I’d just started this job and had to make a good impression, it also had a plus side—I’d spend time with my mate.

Maybe get to know her better. Maybe show her I wasn’t just some big, loud, swaggering shifter.

“I’ll keep it to myself.” I tipped my chin up. “What can I do to help?”

“What?” She tilted her head in surprise.

“We need to work together, right?”

Together, my bear echoed.

“Umm,” she stammered. “Yes, I think so.” Her voice softened. “You won’t tell Tia about this?”

“No.”

“Well, uhh, thank you, umm, Roan. I appreciate it.”

Roan. Just hearing her say my name in her voice rumbled through me, leaving me content. “So now what?”

She glanced down the hall toward the spa. “We’ll have to figure out how to get through the day while I try to figure out how to undo the spell.”

“Got it.” I nodded. My busy schedule flickered in my mind. I glanced at the clock in the fitness studio. “I’m supposed to be training a client in the gym in fifteen minutes.”

Her face paled. “And I have a busy day with clients.” She glanced from the spa to the gym. “Oh no, it’s too far.” Her frantic eyes locked on mine, and she gulped. “Looks like I’ve brewed my last potion on this ship.”