Bear Love (11 page)

Dawn light streamed through the windows as Jess enjoyed
breakfast with Suzy and the other guests of the inn. The bear shifters put on a
breakfast buffet in the mornings till nine in the main room on the first floor,
and the place was packed with visiting skiers and the excitement of winter
vacations everywhere, with a leaping fire in the fireplace and gleaming snow
outside. Jess could feel it in the air, that excitement, that little tingle
that said
Anything is possible
, and
she wondered what it would be like to be surrounded by that everyday.

Laughing skiers quickly downed
their meals and left to hit the slopes, and Jess and Suzy drank coffee and watched
them. Mike and the other shifters ran the counter or went out to cut firewood
or clean the ice off the lifts or continue repairs on the second wing, which
wasn’t habitable yet—running the Resort was a lot more physically demanding
than Jess would have thought—but the shifters frequently could be seen talking
tensely to each other. Most of them had returned from the “cat hunt” (as they
were calling it) last night, but a few were still out there under the direction
of Connor, hunting Bryce and his pride.

One of the other shifters, Colby,
reluctantly took up the duty of Shifting and having his picture taken with the
tourists by Alice, who had proven to be the best photographer of the bunch.
Luckily this was only done two hours a day, one hour in the morning and one in
the afternoon or evening, so there was only a little danger of Colby eating the
tourists.

When nine o’clock came around, the
food was taken away, but the coffee remained, and it was delicious. Still on
fire with nerves—and caffeine—Jess continued to drink and watch the activity.
She and Suzy sat off by themselves against a corner window, and from here she
could see out over the sleepy town with its many curls of smoke rising from
Tudor-style windows.

“It’s beautiful here,” Jess said.
“I can see why you like it so much.”

“It was a hard decision,” Suzy
said. “I mean, after school. Whether to stay in the city or come back home. But
then I came for a visit and I knew I could never leave again.”

“I think you made the right call.”

Suzy eyed Jess for a moment, then
leaned forward and said quietly, “Do you think you might be staying?”

Jess knew what she meant, and one
corner of her lips turned down. “I ... don’t know.”

“But you
like
him, right? Mike? I mean, you two were gone for a long time last
night …”

Jess felt herself flush. “I thought
you were asleep!”

Suzy smiled. “I’m a light sleeper.”

Jess let out a breath that felt
like it had been caged inside her. “I don’t know what to do, Suzy. I mean,
after being in a relationship for so long ... feeling trapped in it, even as it
went bad ... To go right from that into another relationship, especially with
someone who considers you his ‘mate’ ...”

Suzy hesitated, then tilted her
head, and Jess could tell she was up to her usual tricks. “What would you do if
another
woman were interested in
him?”

“I’d skin her alive!”

Suzy laughed, and then so did Jess.

“I think you have your answer,”
Suzy said.

Jess blew on her coffee, then took
a sip, savoring the nutty flavor. “But how can I consider myself an independent
woman when I just jump from one man to another?”

“That’s something you’ll have to
figure out for yourself.”

Jess stared off over the town, her
mind working. There might be a way, she thought. Maybe, if ...

She looked up with a start as Mike
approached. God, he was so handsome. Chips of ice dusted his huge shoulders—he’d
just been outside chopping wood for the fire—as well as tangled in his stubble,
but they were melting with the heat of the inn. His eyes when they fell on Jess
were warm but troubled. She knew he feared losing her. She feared it, too. But
she wasn’t going to let that happen if there was another way, and she was just
beginning to suspect there was.

“How’s the cat hunt?” Suzy said.

He ran a hand through his wavy
black hair, showering ice chips. “Good news,” he said. “Connor just called from
Tillingham. He, Bruce and Jackson followed the pride’s trail into town there.”

“So that means it’s safe here?” Jess
said, daring to hope.

“Looks that way. I think last night
was an act of desperation on their part. Their last big chance to steal the
mate of a bear shifter and bring her back to their clan. And to do it right in
the heart of our territory! On our own mountain! They won’t risk that again.”

Jess nodded. “That’s why Connor was
so intent on killing them.” She glanced around, making sure no one was
listening in, then said, more quietly: “It was a territorial thing.”

“We’ve got to protect what’s ours,”
Mike allowed, and she didn’t miss the double meaning there.

She wanted to stand up and wrap her
arms around him. After last night she felt they should be intimate with each
other like that. She wanted it, and she knew he did, too—could see the strain
in his body posture even now—but something made her hold herself back. He
seemed to be waiting on her, too. Waiting on her decision.

“So can we go home?” Suzy said.

“That’s up to you,” Mike said.
“You’re welcome to stay here for a few more days, or as long as you want, until
we’re sure. We have a vacancy.”

“I want to go home,” Suzy said.
“Jess?”

Jess was staring at Mike, her mind
a-tumble. “Oh, uh, right. Definitely want to go home.”

Mike's thick eyebrows converged. “I
kind of wish you wouldn’t.”

She swallowed. “We’ll be fine.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“I ...” She didn’t know how to
finish the thought.

Seeming to sense her indecision, he
reached out and grabbed her hand, gently, and pulled her to her feet. As if her
body had a mind of its own, it pressed up against Mike, and she shivered at the
remaining ice on his jacket and at the same time luxuriated in the heat coming
off his body. Just the smell of him sent tingles running all through her.

“I think I’ll just ... uh, go warm
up the car,” Suzy said, and slipped away. Jess could have kissed her.

Mike stared down into Jess’s eyes,
and his chest vibrated with a deep growling, purring sound.

“You smell good,” he said.

She pressed her head against his
chest, feeling his hard pecs, then pulled back. “Mike, last night was very
special ...”

Pain flickered across his face. “It
was special, but ...”

“No buts.”

He didn’t seem convinced. “Then why
don’t we get together later? I’ll take you out to dinner in town.”

“I’ll think about it.”

“What’s there to think about? I
know you feel it, too.”

“Feel what?” But of course she
knew, she was just stalling for time.

“That connection.” He lowered his
face to hers so that their noses were touching and their lips were just barely
brushing against each other. Instantly she grew moist. His nostrils flared, and
she knew he could smell it, too. Somehow that just turned her on more—especially
when she felt his lips curve into a sexy smile. “You do smell good,” he
growled, and as if unable to help it she pressed her hips against him.

Then, forcing herself, she pulled
back. “No,” she said. Her voice was tight.

“No?”

“Not yet,” she amended. She stepped
away. “There’s ... something I have to do first. Something that will help, I
think. Maybe. If it goes well. We’ll see.”

“You’re not making any sense.”

“I know. I’m sorry. But if it all
works out ...” She shook her head and pressed a hand against his chest.
“Listen, Suzy’s waiting for me in the car. I’d better go. But I’ll call you
later.”

“You promise?”

She lifted his hand to her lips and
kissed his palm. “I promise.”

The phone rang, and Jess jumped in her seat, where she’d
been sitting tensely. Suzy grabbed the phone, said, “Hello?”, then immediately
hung up. “Automated telemarketer,” she told Jess. “They can’t even be bothered
to annoy us in person anymore.”

Jess, who had had to work in a call
center part-time during a few college semesters, felt obliged to stick up for
her old profession. “They’re just doing their jobs, Suze. Well, the humans are.
The computer ones suck.” That was something they could all agree on.

Suzy was eyeing her strangely.

“What is it?” Jess said.

“Nothing. Only ...”

“Yes?”

Suzy smiled and patted Jess’s
shoulder as she walked back to the couch where they were both curled up under a
homemade blanket rewatching
Downton
Abbey.
It was snowing outside, fire blazed in the fireplace and the smell
of popcorn wafted up from the bucket placed between them. Suzy’s place wasn’t
big, but it was snug and warm and wonderful. If you looked outside, you could
see the distant snow-capped peaks.

“You’ve been acting weird the last
couple days,” Suzy said. “I can tell something’s up.”

Jess rolled her shoulders, trying
to resist the impish grin she felt trying to form. “Maybe,” she said coyly.

“Oh, come on,” Suzy said. “’fess
up.”

“Nope. Not unless it works. If it
falls apart, it never happened.”

“Okay. But you
are
expecting a phone call. On my phone.”

“That’s just an alternate, in case
my cell’s out of batteries or something.”

“Can I ask
who
you’re expecting to call? It can’t be Mike.”

Jess and Mike had gone out last
night to a steak dinner in town, and it had been amazing. The steak had been
tender and juicy, and Mike had been, too. Just the thought of the sex they’d
had afterward at the Pine Ridge Resort made Jess horny all over again.

“It’s not Mike,” she said.
“Hopefully I’ll see him tomorrow.”

“Why not tonight?”

“I didn’t want to see him until ...
well ...”

Suzy stared at her, then laughed.
“You’re really going to drag this out, aren’t you?”

Jess grabbed the remote. “I didn’t
want to see him until I had something to tell him, that’s all.”

“About this thing you’re cooking
up.”

“Right. Until then, if this deal
doesn’t go through, I don’t know ... Can we really be together?”

“That doesn’t make any sense.”

“I know. It does to me, though.”

Jess started to hit
Play
—they were watching the series on
Blu-Ray for the second time—when the phone rang. Jess shot up as if an electric
current had passed through her.

The ring had come from her phone
sitting next to her on the couch-side table, and she grabbed it and placed it
to her ear. Breathlessly, she said, “Yes?”

“It’s me.”

Connor
.
Jess sucked in a breath. “Well? Have you come to a decision?”

There was a long silence. At last Connor
said, “I’ll do it.”

Jess fought the urge to let out a
whoop. “At the price we talked about earlier?” she said.

“That’s right.”

“Excellent. I’ll contact the seller
and draw up the paperwork. Just so you understand, I’ll be acting as
intermediary on this deal. I don’t work for one side or the other; I just
facilitate the deal.”

“I understand.”

“Good.”

They hung up, and Jess turned to
see Suzy watching her open-mouthed.

“What was that about?”

Jess grinned and reached for the
bowl of popcorn. “You’ll find out soon,” she said.

She hit
Play
, but her mind found it difficult to concentrate on the show.

The next day she fired up her
laptop and used it to draw up the forms, then shot it over to the seller, had
them sign it, then over to Connor. By the end of the day the deal was at the
title company with a ridiculously immediate closing date: four days from now.
That gave Connor just enough time to go over to the property and do a quick
inspection, as well as giving the title company just enough time to do what
they needed to do. She waited the four days out anxiously, constantly resisting
the urge to see or call Mike. He would call, but she would always tell him the
truth: she would know their fate in four days. Then three. Then two. Then one.

On the last day she dressed in the
best clothes she had with her and had Suzy drive her down to the little title
company in town. Connor met her there, wearing his sturdy winter clothes, and
the seller was already there. She was an old widow with a deeply lined face and
laughing green eyes that were tinged by sadness. Jess had learned that the
reason she was selling was that the property had been her husband’s dream, and
he had worked on it for years until finally, just as he had finished it, he had
died. She had let the property sit for two years, not having the heart to sell
it, but Jess’s phone call had prompted her to take action.

The closing agent provided coffee
and had everyone sit down around a table in the conference room, and Jess
inspected each page of the documents before she allowed Connor and the seller,
whose name was Abigail Benson, to sign them. Jess smiled to see the looks of
relief on both Abigail’s face and Connor’s.
It’s
happening!
she thought.
It’s really
happening.
Soon Mike and I can be
together.

Sudden worry made her bite her lip.
If it’s not too late,
she thought.
Maybe I waited too long.
After all her
wishy-washy shenanigans, she wouldn’t have been surprised if Mike had grown so
frustrated that he had moved on to less neurotic pastures. And she couldn’t
blame him if he had.

Please
,
she thought for the thousandth time.
Please
let this all work.

“Mike, it’s time,” said Rick.

Mike grunted and looked up from the
open control panel of the ski lift. Damn things had gone to shit again, and it
was up to him to fix them. A whole line of skiers were waiting impatiently for
their turn to go up the slope, but the lift was out of order and they couldn’t go
anywhere, and none of the other shifters were technical-minded enough to get
the lift repaired.

“I’m busy,” he snarled at Rick.

Rick frowned down at him. “Hey,
bud, don’t take it out on me.”

“Take what? Hand me the wrench,
damn you.”

Rick sighed and handed him the
utensil, and Mike returned to work. “Everyone knows you haven’t seen her in
days,” Rick said. “It’s starting to make you a jackass.”

“I’m not a jackass. You’re the
jackass. Can’t one of you bastards be bothered to learn how things work around
here? This machinery ain’t gonna fix itself.”

Rick’s jaws ground together; Mike
wasn’t looking at him, but he could hear it.

“Watch your tone, bub, or I’ll make
you wish you had,” Rick said.

Mike smiled, but it felt more like
a snarl. “You wanna go?” His bear growled violently inside him, ready for some
carnage. It had been cooped up too long, and being denied access to Jess had
only made it unruly and cantankerous. “We could give these tourists something
to blog about.”

“Damn it all,” Rick said, “we don’t
have time for this. Connor has something special planned. It’s that big
announcement he’s been hinting at.”

Finally Mike glanced up. “The one
that has something to do with Jess?”

Rick nodded. “That’s right. Now fix
this damned thing. I’m supposed to run the lift while you’re away. Then I’ll
go. Half the crew goes and half stays. Then when the first half comes back, the
second half goes. We all get to see it.”

“Whatever ‘it’ is.”

“Right.”

Mike smeared oil from his hands
onto his jeans. “I may need to put on some clean clothes. Jess is gonna be
there, right?”

For the first time, Rick smiled
knowingly. “That’s the story goin’ round. But I don’t think she cares about
some oil stains. Meanwhile, you’re keeping everyone waiting.”

Mike grunted. “I’ll have this fixed
in five minutes.”

Five minutes later he relinquished control
of the lift station to Rick and ambled down to the inn, where Connor was
gathering the first group in the parking lot and loading them into the two vans
the crew used. Connor was grinning and smiling, which annoyed Mike, but when Connor
noticed Mike’s agitation he only grinned wider.

“What’s so damned amusing?” Mike
said.

Connor grunted a laugh. “Just get
in.”

Mike climbed in, surly and swearing
under his breath, and the other shifters gave him room, obviously recognizing
that he wasn’t in a social mood. His bear growled inside him, just as irritable
as he was. What was all this mystery about, anyway? Why hadn’t Jess seen him in
days? What the hell was going on?

He scowled out at the town as Grant
drove them through it. To Mike’s surprise, they passed the outskirts of town
and kept going, making their way down the mountain. They passed Abe’s Bar,
where Mike and Jess had met, and kept going still further.

“Where we goin’?” Mike grumbled.

“Hold your horses,” Grant said over
his shoulder. “You’ll see soon enough.”

A few minutes later he turned off
onto a small road, and the van behind them followed. Mike grumbled and snorted
as the van bumped along the rough road, which wasn’t paved and didn’t seem to have
garnered much use. Tall conifers clawed the sky to either side, crowding the
road, and he peered through the dark trunks into the depths of the forest. His
animal longed to run free, with Jess by his side.

At last the van passed through a
high wooden archway with a sign above it: GRAYWOOD PARK.

“What the hell?” Mike said.

The van pulled into a subdivision
comprised of stately log cabins. Mike stared around, shocked and full of
wonder. Slowly a feeling of warmth filled him, along with incredulity. This was
the place where he, Jess and Suzy had hidden from Bryce’s pride that first
night after leaving the bar. This was the place where he and Jess had really
gotten to know each other.

Grant braked the van, and the
shifters climbed out into a central plaza in the subdivision, a little park
right before a particular log cabin. A couple of shifters had gone ahead of
them, and they were grilling hamburgers and hot dogs on an open pit while an
old woman with a kind face watched on.

Jess was there. Talking with the
old woman, she looked gorgeous, curvy and sexy and awesome. Mike’s bear growled
in longing to see her. Her gaze immediately locked onto his, and her
conversation with the old woman lapsed.

“Jess!” Mike said, lumbering over.
“What’s all this about?”

She threw her arms about him. He
was so surprised he almost didn’t embrace her back, but then he reached around
her with both arms and brought against him, enfolding her in his huge arms.
When Jess at last pulled back, tears were in her eyes.

Concern ripped through him. “Jess!
What’s wrong?”

She smiled tremblingly, and he
could see they were not tears of sadness but joy. “Don’t you see?” she said.
“It’s done.”

Mike blinked. “I don’t get.”

She patted his chest, letting her
fingers linger there. “You told me your people were scattered throughout the
town, that they didn’t have a common home. Well, I thought, why not this place?
It was perfect, and beautiful. And ...”

“Yes?”

She smiled again, a secret sexy
smile. “It’s where we kissed for the first time.”

The memory of that kiss flooded
back to him. He grabbed her by the hips and pulled her against him, then
crushed his lips up against hers and plunged his tongue into her mouth. She met
him, eager and questing.

“Hey now,” Connor called. “Save
that for later.”

The alpha was gathering everyone
around the barbecue pit. “This is going to be our new home,” he said, as the
scents of the food filled the air and made Mike’s mouth water. “From now on
Graywood Park is our territory, every bit as much as the mountain is. This is
our home.”

The bear shifters glanced around,
most of them smiling.

“A damned nice home it looks, too,”
said Mike.

“I think so,” said the old woman.
Attention shifted to her, and she offered a smile. “Allow me to introduce
myself. I’m Abigail Benson, and my husband and I built this place. It’s yours
now, but one of these cabins is mine.” She inclined her head to the cabin
behind her; smoke curled up from its stone chimney. “It was one of the
conditions of the sale.” She indicated Jess. “Jessica Quinn arranged all this.”

“She did good,” Connor told Jess.
“Our people needed a common home. Jess, thank you, from all of us.”

She beamed. “It was my pleasure.”

Mike felt his chest swell with
pride. Looking at the old woman, though, he frowned. “You realize what we are,
right? Livin’ around us won’t be easy.”

She smiled, a strange small smile.
“I’ll manage.”

“Let’s eat!” Connor said. “And
drink!” He gestured to a keg sitting near the barbecue pit, and he didn’t have
to do it twice. In moments the shifters were congregating around the food and
drinks.

Mike turned again to Jess. “I still
don’t get it,” he said. “I mean, why? Why do all this? It couldn’t have been
easy.”

She shook her head, letting her
auburn hair tumble about her shoulders. Mike longed to run his hands through
it. “It just took a few phone calls, really,” she said. “I’m a real estate
agent, remember. But I knew I had to do it.”

“But why?”

She smiled and kissed his chest,
right below his left pec. “For you, silly bear man. Don’t you see? I wanted us
to be together, badly—”

“Me, too.”

“—but I didn’t want to be one of
those women that just hop from man to man like they can’t exist without one.
You know what I mean?”

“I ... think so …”

She leaned into him, wrapping her
arms around him as far as she could go. “I had to stand on my own two feet, be
my own woman. I couldn’t just be your girlfriend, not if I was going to hold my
head up among your crew. I had to be something else.”

He nodded, starting to get it. “Now
you can be the one that brought us together. That made us a home.”

“Exactly!” She tilted her head up
for a kiss, and he obliged, feeling his manhood stiffen in his jeans. He could
smell her grow wet, too.

She grabbed his hand and tugged on
it. “Come on,” she said, throwing him a mischievous smile.

“Where are we going? Don’t you want
to eat?”

Her smile widened. “Oh yeah. I’m
starving
.”

But instead of taking him to the pit,
she pulled him away from the others and down an aisle between cabins, shortly
arriving at the same log cabin they had broken into on that first night. To his
surprise, smoke rose from the chimney.

“What do you think?” she said,
stopping before the cabin.

He stared at it, perplexed. “About
what?”

“Silly bear! It’s our new home.”