Shifters Forever The Boxed Set Books 1 - 6 by Elle Thorne

rolled his shoulder.
    She could see that under the shot-shredded fabric the skin was beginning to heal, leaving behind the bloody mess of his shirt, but at least his flesh was mending.
    She shook her head, trying to wrap her mind around that. At the same time, she recalled the other night, when she’d been hurt and drugged up, the fur, the warmth, the tenderness of being in the bear’s embrace as he carried her to the cave. “You became a bear.”
    He touched her forehead with his lips, a tender kiss. “My kind does that,” he whispered in her ear.
    Mae watched them, not saying a word, except there was a big smile plastered on her face, as if she’d just gotten a great birthday present.
    Chelsea was starting to understand the nature of Mae and Grant’s friendship. And at the same time she felt foolish for having thought differently. A slow warmth, unimpeded by the coldness of the day, washed over her.
    “And your cousin, who was married to Mae? The same thing?”
    Mae cleared her throat and waved her arm around as if to indicate Derek and the situation, bringing them back to the present.
    Grant nodded. “We need to take care of all this.”
    “Let me handle it,” Mae said. “I can make it all go away. I need you both to go, though. Quickly. And you’re going to call Doc for your shoulder.”
    When Grant opened his mouth to protest, she held her hand up, a command in her gesture, brooking no argument.
    “You sure?” Grant’s eyes closed slightly, as if he doubted her.
    “What do you mean?” Chelsea was becoming more confused with every moment.
    Mae tossed Grant a set of keys. “Take her out of here while I take care of all this. Send Joe to get me. I’ll call a friend to help me out with some of the logistics. I’m parked near the SUV.”
    Grant snatched the keys out of the air, then put his uninjured arm around Chelsea. “We’ll be at the house.”

Chapter 19
    I n his front hall at home, Grant stripped his shirt off, then looked at his wound in the mirror. It was completely healed.
    Chelsea’s eyes widened. “I can’t believe it.” She shook her head. “Just like that, you’re healed.”
    Grant nodded. It still amazed him, especially since it wasn’t often that he was shot or injured to this degree. His days of conflict had ended years ago, and of late he’d settled nicely into being the clan’s chief, a quiet and drama-free leader who tolerated no trespassers on their territory, and no issues that would attract the attention of humans.
    “So, does that mean you’re—does that mean you don’t die?”
    “No. I can die. But not from this sort of thing. It’s more about separating me from my bear. That would cause me to become a—” He hated using the word. He hated that it sounded like he was minimizing it. “It would make me more human. Then I’d live a human life and I’d be killed by things that kill humans.”
    A puzzled look crossed Chelsea’s face.
    He took her by the hand and led her out of the hallway into the library, in front of the large desk. “I’m not immortal. But our kind has longevity. Long, long lives. And we don’t die unless we’re separated from our bear spirits.”
    She sighed. “I don’t have to understand it.” Her gaze roamed over his chest, and a desire lit in the back of her eyes.
    He scented her arousal, and it awakened both the bear and the man in him. The adrenaline of being wounded and having to save the woman he wanted as his mate heightened his sexual drive. In his pants, he felt his cock straining, pushing, wanting her. Wanting to possess, own, take, and brand himself deep within her.
    “Do you want to...?” He was going to ask if she wanted to understand it, if it mattered, if he mattered enough that she’d want to know, but how would he do that? How could he show this woman how much she’d come to mean to him when he wasn’t sure if she was in as deep as he was?
    Chelsea cocked her head to the side, a glint in her eye. “I do.”
    A