Page 34 of Loan Wolf (Green Valley Shifters: Generations #1)

34

GABE

G abe heard Clara yelling from the parking lot, and had a glimpse of her thrashing wildly before dipping out of sight in the sea of green lilypads and white/yellow lilies. “Clara!” he cried, but she was gone, and it was a long, tense moment as he watched for her to bob back up.

When she didn’t, Gabe kicked off his boots and charged in, not even bothering to remove his clothing. He waded until it was deep enough to swim and dove in, uncaring of the slimy algae or the unpleasant stench of the water. “Clara!” he called, flailing out to where he thought he’d seen her.

Any ripples were absorbed by the flowers, and she was nowhere to be seen. “Clara!” he yelled again, knowing that she’d never hear him.

He flailed, his feet losing the bottom of the pond beneath him. It was deeper than he expected, and the lilies clung to him like greedy fingers. “Clara!”

And then she broke the surface, her eyes closed, foul green water streaming from her head, and Gabe had never seen anything so beautiful in his life. She blinked and tread water and coughed. “What are you doing here?” she demanded as she opened her eyes.

Gabe swam closer and took her by the shoulders. “What am I doing here? What are you doing here?”

She laughed at him and Gabe couldn’t tell if there were tears on her cheeks, but there was a sadness in her eyes that broke his heart. “I’m skinny dipping, of course.”

She was, he realized then, completely naked, whereas he was wrapped in heavy wet clothing now. “You scared me,” he said, and he nearly drowned them both by trying to hug her close and tread water at the same time.

“I’m a good swimmer,” Clara scolded him. Then she sputtered and sank and struggled up again, hampered by Gabe, who couldn’t let her go.

“You’re an idiot!” Gabe scolded her right back, and he kissed her, hard.

Kissing and swimming was even harder than hugging, so after a few mouthfuls of foul-tasting water, they gave up, and swam for shore.

Gabe’s clothes weighed a hundred pounds and would probably be wet for an hour in this humidity. “What were you doing?” he asked Clara, when he’d taken off his T-shirt to try wringing it out. “What did you…wish for?”

He didn’t think that she was depressed or suicidal, and if she was trying to kill herself, there were easier ways to do it. But there was such a raw and longing look in her eyes. Gabe had to know.

She was squeezing the water from her hair and she met his gaze with resignation. “If you’ve heard the rumor about Mueller’s Pond, you’ve probably heard the rumors about shapeshifters. They’re real, and I wanted to be one, more than anything else in the world.”

Gabe held her gaze and his breath. She knew about shifters? And if she knew about shifters…

“Shifters recognize their one true love, the moment they meet them, and I…wanted that. I wanted to be sure.” Clara’s eyes were full of longing and suspicion.

“It’s not the moment they meet,” Gabe said quietly. “Only the moment it’s right. I knew you were something special when you were Mary in the pageant. But I didn’t know you were my mate until Gran’s funeral.”

Her breath caught in her throat. “You’re…”

“You’re my mate.”

Now that he’d said it out loud, Gabe wasn’t afraid. She would understand, or she wouldn’t, but there was no happiness without her, and she deserved to know the whole truth. Clara’s lips parted in wonder and her eyes widened. “Gabe…”

Then she cocked her fist and drove it directly into his diaphragm. “Why didn’t you tell me, you asshole?”

Gabe gasped for breath; Clara was strong and she hadn’t pulled her punch in the slightest. “How could I? You were completely clear that this was no-strings! I didn’t know how I could possibly fit into your New York life and I could never ask you to give it up to stay with me!”

“You knew I wasn’t sure about my career! Didn’t you think this was an important part of the equation?”

“I couldn’t influence your decisions!” Gabe shouted back. “It wouldn’t be fair to toss, oh, by the way, my wolf says we’re destined for each other onto your already-overwhelming pile of personal conflict!”

“It’s a pretty critical part of my decision-making process to know if you love me or not!”

“Of course I love you! I’m completely crazy for you! I’m head over heels, ready to jump into Mueller’s pond to save you in love with you! I’m break my own heart making sure you’re happy in love with you. I’m stupidly, foolishly, fabulously in love with you, and I would never forgive myself for being the reason you stayed in this cow-reeking town when you could have the world at your feet!”

“I don’t want the world at my feet!” Clara yelled. “I only want you !”

Gabe crushed her into his soggy bare arms and kissed her, pond-scum and all.