Bearing Secrets (10 page)

After receiving the phone call
they had all been waiting for, Turi rushed back to his cabin to share the good
news. He’d expected to find Trey and Ivy in his office, where he had left them
only a short while ago, working. They were still in the office all right, but
work wasn’t happening. Instead he walked in to his naked brother with Ivy
pressed against the wall. Their activity was complete, but they were still
locked in each other’s embrace. He had felt their energies, the sexual tension,
but he had been trying to shield Ivy from feeling the pressure while he waited
for the news.

Leaning against the wall, he
cleared his throat. “I see you find ways to pass the time when I’m not around.”

Ivy looked over Trey’s
shoulder at him. “I can put off work longer and we can find a way to waste more
time.” Trey set her down on her feet, but neither of them moved to gather their
clothes.

“Tempting.” Turi wanted to
push everything off his desk and have his way with Ivy, but there was something
more important they had to deal with.

“Then come to me.”

“If there was time I would.”
He promised the raging bear within him that he’d have his way with her on that
desk very soon. “I just received a call…Chad’s on his way. He should be landing
in twenty minutes.” He leaned off the doorframe, intending to go to her, but
before he could cross the space, her legs give out from under her. Trey’s quick
reflexes were enough to catch her just before she collapsed to the floor in a
heap.

“Alive?” Her voice strained
with fear.

“Turi can be an ass sometimes
but if Chad was dead he’d break it to you softly.” He glanced to Turi as he
lifted her into his arms.

“Sit her on the chaise
lounge.” Turi waited until she was settled with a blanket around her shoulders,
before squatting down in front of her. “Chad’s fine. He was where you thought
he’d be.”

Turi slid his thumb across her
face, wiping away the wetness.
Tears, but why?
“What’s the matter, love?
This should be happy news.”

She shook her head and more
tears slid from her eyes. “Why didn’t he come and find me? Why stay holed up
there?”

“Mason…” Turi started to
explain but more tears fell. “My love, don’t cry. He searched the area, trying
to find you. When he found nothing he hoped you’d managed to get away. They
were waiting for Mason to heal before they could do a full search for you.”

“Mason? Is he okay?”

“He was injured, but a healer
from the Alaskan Tigers tended to him.” Turi took her hand in his, holding it
tight. “The other guard, I didn’t catch his name, wasn’t so lucky. Chad did
what he could for both of them but before the team could find them, the other
guard died. His beast within couldn’t heal all the injuries before the
infection took its toll, and eventually he just gave in.”

“Chad’s alive,” she whispered,
as if she still couldn’t believe it.

“My angel.” Trey waited until
she looked at him. “You don’t have long before he’ll be here, you should at
least get dressed.”

She looked down as if she had
forgotten and smiled. “Oh.”

“Trey, go run a hot bath for
her,” Turi ordered, rubbing his hands over hers.

“I don’t have time.” She shook
her head, trying to stop him, but Trey was already on his way out of the room.

“You do. It will help relax
you and there’s nothing you can do but wait anyway.” He stood, gently pulling her
up against his chest. “Come on, let me pamper you. I’ll wash your back and all
the sensitive spots that I know Trey made sore.”

“Won’t that will lead to some
more…soreness?” She raised an eyebrow at him as if she knew he had other ideas
than just washing her beautiful body.

“If I’m lucky.” He leaned down
and swooped her into his arms. “Getting you naked is all I seem to think about
anymore.”

“I’m already naked.”

“That, my beautiful mate, is
what I plan to take advantage of.” With ease he carried her down the short hall
to their bedroom.
Their bedroom.
He loved the sound of those two little
words. He still couldn’t believe how quickly things had happened. One morning
he was adamant about not sharing a mate with Trey and the next night she
strolled into their lives and his heart.

“Bath’s ready.” Trey turned
off the spigot of the deep Jacuzzi bathtub. Like the shower it had plenty of
room that they could have both joined her but as Trey left them, he flicked the
switch to the two-sided gas fireplace that formed the wall between the tub and
the bedroom. “Enjoy.”

Turi set her down in the tub.
The jets washed over her and got the sleeves of his shirt wet. With her settled
in and her head resting against the lip of the tub, he stood. “Relax for a
moment.”

“Gas fireplace?” Her voice was
soft, and full of pure delight as the jets eased some of the tightness he knew
she had been carrying not knowing Chad’s fate.

“I wanted something that could
be seen from both rooms. It could add to the romance, casting the warm glow
across the room and then be turned off without having to worry about dealing
with it.” He pulled his long-sleeved shirt from his jeans and slid it over his
head. “My office and the living room have the real things as you’ve already
seen because I spend the most of my time there. Up until now the bedroom was
for sleeping so the fireplace wasn’t as important. If it bothers you we can
change it.”

“Doesn’t bother me, I was just
wondering why the change in this part. Though it makes me wonder why three
fireplaces?”

“Power outages are common here
in Alaska. We have generators, but for heat nothing beats the fireplaces.”

She nodded and glanced to him.
“Will you join me?”

“I thought you’d never ask.”
He stripped out of the rest of his clothes, giving her a little dance as he
did. After all Trey wasn’t the only one who could do a striptease; Turi just
preferred to do it in his human form. He pumped his hips, giving her a few view
of his hardening shaft. “You like this, don’t you?”

“Oh, I love it, come to me.”
She moved deeper into the large tub so he could join her. Her back pressed up
against the far side of the tub. “Aww…this is hot.”

“The tub has warming walls
surrounding it to keep it heated. Trey turned them on with the fireplace.” He
stepped into the tub causing a ripple over the top that lapped gently against
her breasts.

“What a thoughtful man.”

“Don’t go getting soft on me,
beautiful. That brother of mine has had you to himself too much, and it’s only
going to get worse while he does his techie crap for the forum with you.” He
eased into the water and pulled her onto his lap.

“You’re going to be a part of
it, so there’s no need to be jealous.” She slid her hands up his chest so she
could cup either side of his face. “You’ve been busy, and our time together has
been shorter, but that doesn’t mean I love you any less.”

He nuzzled her neck, marking
her with his scent. “Do you realize I’ve been holding off saying those three
little words because I didn’t want to scare you away with all you’ve been going
through, and you just said it like it was nothing?”

“It’s the truth, I love you.
It scared me at first to have two mates demanding my attention and more, but
now I don’t think I’d want it any other way.”

“I love you, Ivy, and you
witnessed the fight between Trey and I about sharing a mate, but you, my sweet
mate, make it all worth it.”

She took her hands away from
his face and let them disappear under the water. “We’re wasting precious time.”
Her fingers wrapped around his shaft, bringing it back to its full erection
with only a few strokes down the length.

“Time is too precious to
waste, and I want to be buried deep within you.”

“On with it, bear.”

He positioned her so that her
knees were on either side of his hips. His fingers eased between her legs,
running along the bundle of nerves before slipping a finger inside of her to
see if she was ready for him. Instantly her body responded, her back arched,
and a soft moan escaped from her lips. “I love that your body is constantly on
edge with yearning for us, and when you finally get it, the ecstasy in your
eyes is like a thousand fireworks.”

“Then don’t keep me waiting.”

He moved his hands to her hips
and lifted her. When she hovered above him, he adjusted so his shaft stood just
below her entry. With his hands on her hips, he guided her down onto him.
Filling her inch by inch, nearly half in, he pushed up on her hips making her
rise again before entering her completely with his manhood. His steady strokes
fed their desire, and his hands on her hips guided their pace, while water
crashed over their bodies making tiny waves.

He leaned into her, locking
his mouth on her nipple and sucked until she moaned in pleasure. Her hips
increased pace, driving the force of each pump. Breaking the kiss he watched
her ride him, speeding the pace with her own need until his thrusts became
deeper and faster falling into a perfect rhythm.

Her body tightened around his
shaft and her nails dug into his chest. “Turi!” she cried out as they both
came.

Breathless, he brushed her wet
hair from her face. He wanted to see her, to see her eyes and that dreamy look
she got. The aftermath of amazing sex made her glow with beauty, sending a
fresh wave of desire through him.

She collapsed forward, their
chests pressed together as their breathing returned to normal. With his shaft
still deep inside her, he wrapped his arms around her and held her tight
against him. “Mate, I love you.”

Her shoulder pressed against
the window frame, Ivy watched as Kallie and Milo roughhoused in their animal
forms. So carefree and full of life, while she was stuck inside listening to
her brother rant and rave about her mating. When she heard they had found Chad
and he was alive, she was thrilled, relief washed over her, but now that he was
here she just wanted him to go away.

“Damn it, Ivy, are you listening
to me?” He slammed his hand down on the coffee table in front of him. The boom
of the impact startled her, reminding her of the gun blasts from the attack.

“I heard you, but what do you
want me to say? Things are as they are. You know how mating works, you don’t
have a choice. Can’t you just be happy for me?”

“No!” His voice was full of
such anger she had to turn toward him. “I’d rather you dead than mated to a
shifter.”

“
What?
” She couldn’t
believe her ears. Did he really just imply he’d rather she’d died in the attack
than be mated to Turi and Trey?

“I
don’t
want you with
a shifter.” He glared at her and for the first time there was more than just
anger in his eyes; she couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but it seemed
almost like hatred.

“No, the part about how you
wish I was dead.” She tried to keep the anger from boiling within her, knowing
that if it became out of control her mates would ride to her rescue, even if
she didn’t want them to.

“It’s wrong for you to be with
a shifter…”

“Why, because I’m human?” She
stepped away from the window and advanced toward him, her fists in balls. “I
can spend my whole life surrounded by shifters, but to find two that actually
love me despite my heritage or the fact I’m human and that’s suddenly wrong?”

“Don’t get me started on the
fact you’re fucking two brothers!”

“No, let’s stay on one topic
at a time, and you can tell me why it’s so wrong for me to be with a shifter.”
Needing to hear his answer no matter how much it might hurt, she refused to
back down.

“We’re interested in knowing
too.” She turned to the sound of Turi’s voice and found him and Trey standing
in the kitchen archway.

“You!” Chad growled, coming to
his feet.

“Don’t even think about it,
Chad,” she warned, knowing her brother was about to go after her mates.

“What’s going to stop me?” Now
that his anger had found a new target he didn’t bother to turn and look at her.

“My angel, it’s okay.” Trey
tried to reassure her as she neared them.

“No, it’s not.” She stepped
between them, giving her mates her back so she could keep Chad in view. His
anger had control of him and she knew better than to let an angry tiger out of
her sight. “Chad, if you do this I’ll ask you to leave
for good
.”

“You’re choosing these
bears
…”

She didn’t like where this was
going but she nodded. “If you’re forcing me to make a choice, I guess I am. You
know mating won’t be denied, and I love them.”

“How could you love them? It’s
only been a few days.” Chad rotated his neck, something he always did before he
shifted. “This bullshit about mating, they might have to suffer with the pain
of being denied their mate until it drives them insane, but you’re
human
.
What do you know about it? You can’t feel the beast crawling within you until
you feel like you’re being driven insane.”

“Why does it always come back
to me being human? I’m not lesser for that, you know.” She took a deep breath
and tried to keep her rage under control. With her mates so close, their anger
was mixing with hers, making it harder. “For the record, I
can
feel the
mating desire. To deny them would cause me just as much pain, but why would you
care? You just wanted me dead.”

“Then we’ll find a cure.
Shifters are dangerous, bears even more so. I’ve protected you all these years,
now you just expect me to step away and let you risk your life because of some
desire.”

“You know what, Chad? That’s
it.” She tossed her hair from her face. “I’m tired of this prejudice. I’ve
always considered you my brother, and I love you, but I’m done. This double
standard is absurd. I can spend my whole life surrounded by shifters, but now
that I’m mated to two devoted, wonderful bears, it’s an issue.”

“Damn right. There’s no one to
keep them in line from hurting you. Do you think your heritage won’t cause
issues? Then what will happen when I’m not around and Mason isn’t around as
Alpha to protect you? They’ll kill you and find a new mate, one without the
baggage.”

“That’s enough.” Turi growled.
“I’ve stood here and listened to you, hoping you’d work through this irrational
anger and support Ivy because you’re her family and she loves you, but no more.
We know about her heritage, and that changes nothing. We love her and will
protect her—even from someone she considers family.” He wrapped his arm around
her waist, drawing her snugly against his body.

“Ivy was worried sick about
you and now that you’re here, this is how you treat her? It’s a disgrace to the
word
family
.” Trey stepped up to her other side and wrapped his arm
around her shoulders.

“They’ll hurt you. Bears are
notorious for hurting the ones they’re supposed love. Leave with me now, or
I’ll wipe myself clean of this own situation, and your blood will be on their
hands.”

The first of what she knew
would be many tears splashed down her face. “Leave. I’ve heard enough. I’m
staying here…I love Turi and Trey, if you can’t accept that then I’ll grieve
for you but my choice has been made.”

“Don’t do this, Ivy.” Chad’s
shoulders sank; his whole body seemed to cry out that he couldn’t believe what
she was saying.

“Please, just leave.” With her
heart already breaking, she brushed away the tears. As he turned on his heel
and stormed from the house, her stomach sank, and she wondered if it would be
the last time she saw him.

“My sweet angel.” Trey tried
to sooth her, but the tears wouldn’t stop.

When the front door slammed
shut, her legs gave out from under her. As if knowing she’d rather stay right
where she was then be carried to the sofa, the men eased her to the floor, each
keeping their arms around her as they came to the floor with her.

“What happened? Why did
everyone turn on me?” She couldn’t figure out in such a short time how her life
went from perfect to this.

“We haven’t.” Trey smoothed
her hair out of her face.

“First Edith, now Chad. He was
the last piece of family I had left.”

“You have us,” Turi reassured
her. “And the sleuth.”

“The Alaskan Tigers, Milo, Ty,
Adam—”

“Trey, I think she gets the
idea.” Turi told his brother, which brought halfhearted laughter from her. “I
know this is hard, if there is anything we can do…”

“You’re already doing it.” She
rested her head against Turi’s chiseled chest, breathing in the spiciness of
his cologne and beast. “I don’t know what his issue is but I’m not going to
allow that to stop me from living the life I was meant to have. He won’t keep
me from my mates.”

“He seemed to despise the fact
you were mated to bears. Any history with him and bears?”

“Not that I’m aware of. Hell,
it’s stupid but I didn’t even know there were bear shifters. Stupid…if there
are tigers why wouldn’t there be others?” She shook her head.

“It’s not stupid, not all
animals have shifter groups. I’ve never seem an elephant shifter.” Turi
smoothed his hand down her arm.

“An elephant shifter.” The
very idea was hilarious. If she was a shifter, there wasn’t a chance in hell
she wanted to shift into an elephant. She’d much rather be something dangerous
like a bear, tiger, or lion.

Suddenly she straightened
against Turi’s body and steered back to the issue at hand. “I suspect Chad will
want to leave the island soon, if your dad doesn’t kick him off first. Mason
will too…I should talk to him. I need to know if he’s changed against me as
well. He welcomed me into his clan with open arms, took my commitment to the
clan with honor, but if it’s all changed I need to know.”

“Are you sure, angel?” Trey
looked to Turi for back up.

“I know you want to protect
me, but I need to know.” Touched by his concern, she laced her fingers through
Trey’s.

“Trey, go find Mason, bring
him here. I don’t want her to run into Chad again, not until he gets his shit
together. I won’t have it—” He stopped as she tensed in his arms. “I won’t
apologize for protecting you. The way he spoke to you was uncalled for.”

There was nothing she could
say to that. How could she blame him for something that was so ingrained in
them? It wasn’t just the beasts within them, but also the alpha males inside
them. She rose up on her knees ready to stand. She’d get this over with and
then she could spend time in her mates’ arms, which was where she wanted to be.