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“So, outing me to the world is gonna make you rich and famous?” he growled.
She shook her head. “No! It’s not that!” She paused, then admitted, “Well, maybe a little. But mostly it’s about the biological mystery here. If I can’t tell anyone…” She sighed. “Scientists publish their findings and share their data and conclusions with their peers. If can’t do that, then what’s the use of making a discovery?”
“I’m not a fucking discovery!” he snarled.
She flinched. “I know. I’m sorry. I get carried away sometimes.”
He nodded, and continued in a gentler tone. “Look, Holly, if you decide to go public with this, it’s not just me who’s gonna suffer. I got a family. And a baby niece on the way. I don’t want my kin to pay the price because I was stupid enough to get caught on camera. So, I’m asking you to do the right thing. For their sake… please.”
She sensed what that ‘please’ cost him. And she couldn’t deny that he was right.
Her excitement deflated as her conscience kicked in.
There would be a firestorm of publicity if she went public with her findings. The media would hound Ice and anyone else suspected of being a shapeshifter.
And that wasn’t even the worst that could happen.
What if the government or armed individuals decide shapeshifters are a threat? What happens to Ice and his family then?
With his supernatural abilities, Ice could simply take and destroy the evidence of his abilities if he wanted to. But he had left the decision up to her.
Plus, he’d saved her life a short time ago. She owed him big-time.
“All right,” she conceded. “I promise I won’t tell anyone about you or any other shapeshifters. But I want answers.”
“I said I’d answer your questions. But if you’re not gonna tell anyone, why do you need to know all that stuff?” Now he sounded genuinely bewildered.
“Because I’m a scientist. Even if I can’t publish my discovery, I still need to understand what you are and what you can do. And how shapeshifters are even possible, from a scientific and biological standpoint.” She shook her head. “Ice, my world’s just turned upside down. You blew my mind. Seriously.”
He stared at her like he wanted to eat her up. She imagined his mouth on her skin, and shivered with desire. “Okay. You got yourself a deal.”
“Great,” she agreed. “I’ll keep your secret, and you answer all of my questions.”
She extended her hand to shake on their bargain.
His fingers closed around hers. But instead of shaking her hand, he raised it to his lips and inhaled deeply.
Then he kissed her hand. His warm lips brushed her knuckles, and sent a jolt of pure electric sensation shooting down her arm. The sensation raced to the pit of her stomach. Heat pooled between her legs and triggered a hot, steady pulse of desire.
Ice’s eyes widened, as if he sensed her reaction.
Oh God, I hope not. She recalled what he’d said earlier about having super-senses, and her face heated.
Here she was, trapped in this cabin with a very large, grumpy mountain man who could shapeshift into an enormous Ice Age cat.
And all she could think about was kissing him.
Chapter Eight – Alive with Interest
“First question,” said the gorgeous, maddening woman enthroned on Ice’s sofa. “Were you born able to shift, or did something happen to you?”
He couldn’t resist the urge to yank her chain a little. “You mean, did I fall into a barrel of radioactive waste and gain superpowers?”
Holly stared at him, wide-eyed, for an instant. Then she got the reference and laughed. “No, seriously,” she urged.
“Shifters are born, not made,” Ice informed her.
Holly’s expression brightened. “Oh, so there are more of you?” she asked, eagerly seizing on a detail he’d let slip.
