Burning Ice: 6 (Werewolf Sentinels) by Marisa Chenery

ear. “I fell in love with you the instant I realized you were my mate. You are the only woman who will make my soul complete. Now the big question is, can you accept me as a werewolf and all that staying with me will entail?”
    Riya licked her dry lips. “I’m not going to lie and say I’m ready to make a decision right now, because I’m not. I only met you a couple of days ago and you’re asking me to give you an eternity. I doubt myself at the best of times. I don’t know if I can give you an answer so quickly.”
    Capac blew out a breath. “As I said downstairs, I would have given you time to get used to this before asking you to make this big step, but the fact is I can’t. Tanner is dangerous, more so now that he’s taken over the leadership of the dark wolves. He knows about you. To be honest, even if you say no to becoming my mate, I don’t think you’d be able to carry on your life as you had before. Tanner won’t care if I don’t claim you. You’re still a connection to me.”
    “So in other words I’m left with no choice.”
    “If you don’t want to accept me as your mate, I will never claim you. My mating urge will continue to ride me, push me to do just that, but I would never force it on you. Somehow I would have to control it. You’d have to stay here where you’re protected, though. And once Tanner and the dark wolves have been eliminated as a threat, you’d be able to leave without having to worry about being used to get at me.”
    “How long would that be? How long have you been fighting the dark wolves already?”
    “Almost three years.”
    “See, it could be another three years or more before they are no longer a threat.”
    Capac cupped her face in his hands. “I’m going to tell you this, not to make you feel as if you have to accept what I offer, but to let you know my feelings for you will never change. You are the only woman out of the entire world who was capable of setting my mating urge off. There will never be another, even if you decide you don’t want me as a mate.”
    Riya reached up and placed her hand over one of his. “Never?”
    “Never. I’d spend an eternity alone.” He gave her a small smile. “Though I would much rather spend it with you at my side.”
    “If I do this, you will still wait until tomorrow?”
    “Yes.”
    “I think I’ll need that time to get this all straight in my mind.” Riya took a deep breath. “I guess the first order of business will be acquainting myself with your wolf. I saw you downstairs like that, but I was paying more attention to what Wren experienced after you bit her.”
    “If that’s what you want.”
    Capac dropped his hands, then slid off the bed and stood before it. He met her gaze, as if silently asking her if she was ready for what would happen next. She nodded. Just as what had happened in the living room when he’d shifted there, his body blurred and shimmered. In the end, in Capac’s place, stood a black dire wolf. His legs were a bit shorter than a timber wolf’s, and he was stronger-looking. His teeth were also larger. Overall, he looked like an animal that had lived during the ice age, which he had. That still boggled her mind that Capac was an honest-to-goodness prehistoric man.
    He sat on the floor and looked up at her. Though they were now wolf’s eyes, they were the same color as when Capac was human. She could also see uncertainty lurking in them as well. There was no mistaking him for a normal, wild wolf. He showed too much intelligence.
    Are you still okay? Capac asked her telepathically.
    Riya rubbed her sweaty palms along her thighs. “I think so. When you turn me, will I be a dire wolf or one like Wren?”
    You’ll be a full dire wolf, except your fur will be dark-brown, the same color as your hair.
    “And my eyes?”
    The gorgeous light green they are now.
    Riya shifted a little to the side, then pushed off the bed to stand. Since she was stressed, her klutzy side reared its ugly head.