Page 60 of Savage

I dropped back into my chair, ripped off the lid. After grabbing the spoon from the dip and licking it clean, I scooped up some ice cream.

“Why didn’t he tell me?” I asked.

She sighed. “Box of rocks, remember? Did Audrey tell you how she found out Boyd was a shifter?”

“She didn’t tell me Boydwasa shifter.”

“She couldn’t, honey. I know she’s your best friend, but pack law is stronger than human friendships. She’d be endangering her mate and her unborn child if she did.”

“Toss in the baby and make me feel bad,” I grumbled.

“She found out when a teenage shifter got shot, and he shifted while she was helping him.”

My eyes widened. “Is he okay?”

She smiled at my concern. “Of course. Shifters have rapid healing abilities. But Boyd didn’t tell her before she discovered it the hard way. Marina found out when the barn roof collapsed at Audrey’s wedding reception.” She patted my hand again. “Audrey didn’t tell Marina either.”

I gasped. “She didn’t? Her own sister? Oh man, she must have been furious.”

“My point is, the guys are idiots. They think we females can’t handle tough stuff. They love to protect us, even from the things we need to know.”

“I didn’t even know I was mated.” I stared at her then blushed. “Oh my God, you knew.”

She nodded and smiled. “I am so happy to know Clint’s claimed you.”

“It’s because I’m having his baby.” I poked the ice cream.

“Definitely.”

That hurt. A lot. I stared at the lumps of chocolate in the ice cream. “I don’t want Clint if that’s all he wants. Todd didn’t really want me. He wanted a possession. My parents felt obliged to save face.”

“Honey—”

“I won’t be an obligation.”

“Male shifters aren’t like human men. The first time Clint breathed in your scent, he knew you were his. Forever.”

“That’s insane. His nose was broken the first time we met. That meant that… oh my God, I threw up on him.”

She laughed. “Yet he still wanted you.”

I covered my face with my hand. “He did.”

“The wolf finds his mate by scent. That’s how Tom found me. How Boyd knew Audrey was the one. The same went for Colton and Marina. Even Rob, and he’s alpha. You’re Clint’s. Baby or not. That’s it. The entire love story from his perspective is right there.”

“Seriously?”

She nodded. “You’re human, so you don’t have the same response right back. It’s much easier when it’s a shifter-shifter match.”

“I bet.”

“This is what’s probably torturing Clint right now—that you don’t understand the depth of what he feels for you. He’s never once questioned you being for him, and he never will.”

“You’re his mother, you have to say stuff like that.”

She shook her head. “I’m a shifter. It’s easy because when a son says he’s met his mate, he’s met his mate. Do you… do you care about him?”

I poked at the ice cream some more. “Yes.”