Fascination: BBW Paranormal Shape Shifter Romance (Shifters Forever After Book 2) by Elle Thorne

had pressed her for more, Laken said it was a combination of her heart and her panther, or so she thought. She’d said that the emotions were stronger than any she’d ever felt.
    That’s exactly what Isaac does to me. Isaac. The man who would put cuffs on her in the next few moments.
    She opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out. She swallowed. “I’ll only ask one thing. Just one favor. Please let me have Christmas with my sisters. After that, I’m yours.”
    He leaned against the breakfast bar, thick arms crossed over a chest that narrowed to a delicious vee.
    Her panther chuffed a sound of appreciation. Cade agreed, completely.
    “So you’re all mine if I give you Christmas day with your sisters. Just like that?”
    That voice. So deep. So sexy. So… all man. All shifter. All alpha.
    A surge of reactions throughout her body.
    Another chuff from her panther.
    We both need to relax. You and I know that’s not what he meant or how he meant it.
    She nodded. “Yes. All yours. To take me in to the police station. You can get the credit for the capture. Get your promotion. Live happily ever after.” And all that other shit.
    She’d barely finished her sentence, hadn’t completely finished her thought when he moved with more speed than she would have expected from a polar bear shifter.
    It’s not like I know any other polar bear shifters—just him. And his family.
    He stood in front of her, breathing her air, his body in her personal space, reminding her how powerful he was, his strong jaw jutting in a display that said he was angry. His teeth clenched so tightly, her shifter hearing picked up the sound of their grinding.
    It was a struggle, having this man she wanted badly close to her. So close, and yet so very far, considering what he planned for her.
    She looked up at him, his diamantine gaze piercing straight through her, as if he could read her very thoughts, essence, and even her panther’s emotions.
    He puffed out a long breath, surrounding her in a blend of scents, eau de Isaac, piney woods, earthy, all man.
    He stepped closer, leaving nary an inch between them. She felt her heartbeat sync with his, the pounding of her pulse so loud it filled her head.
    When he put his hands on her hips, though his touch was light, she felt like she was surrounded by a safety harness. The warmth of his flesh traveled through the fabric of her clothing.
    A moisture she couldn’t have controlled if she’d wanted to responded to his touch.
    “You’re mine to take, but not in. I couldn’t live with myself if I took you in for trying to create Ignacio’s Place any more than I could have let Mary go to jail.”
    “What? No. You can’t do that. I know what being with InterForce means to you. Laken said it’s your dream.”
    “Dreams change. Better dreams come along.” A slight tilt to his lips yielded a little smile, but his eyes held an emotion she wasn’t sure about.
    “No, Isaac. I can’t let you do that.”
    “You can’t stop me. I have a backup plan, anyway.”
    “Meaning…?”
    “I’ll do contract work for InterForce.”
    She narrowed her eyes. “I’m not sure.”
    He growled, lifted her off her feet, pulled her against his body with such intensity the breath left her body. His lips claimed hers with a hot and undeniable possession.
    She boldly snaked her arms around his neck, pulled herself tighter against him while her lips pressed on his with a desperation she’d never have thought she felt.
    Not she. Not Cadence Araya who’d never needed anyone, who’d fended for herself for far too long.
    Between them, his desire was a rod of steel, insistent with need. Lips still locked, he swung her upward and carried her toward her bedroom, shouldering the slightly ajar door completely open.
    He released her, a fierce desire shining in his eyes. She pressed a finger to her swollen lip.
    “Be sure, Cadence. Be very sure. I’m not going to let you walk out of this room an unbonded woman. If you yield