Lost Bear Page 5

  Bears or not, he would never back down from any of them.

  “It wasn’t your idea?” Gage asked.

  “No, it wasn’t,” he said.

  “Then why didn’t you say something inside?”

  “I shouldn’t have had to. You know how much I like her, and how much I want to find someone to spend the rest of my life with. You should have known, without question, that her stupid plan wasn’t my idea.”

  Gage apologized first, and the rest followed.

  “If it’s any consolation, I’m in trouble,” Gage admitted. “Katie is going to lay into me later for picking on you.”

  “Good,” Dave laughed. “You deserve it.”

  “So, what exactly is this plan?” Seth asked.

  He explained her desire keep their relationship in the friend category, but with added perks.

  “And you went along with it?” Gage questioned.

  “I had no choice. She shot me down when I suggested we date instead. It was either this, or nothing. I’m not a fool, so I chose this.”

  “We’ll, we know she’s been hurt before,” Gage said. “I guess this is her way of coping. So you think you’ll eventually change her mind?”

  “I hope so. The rules—”

  “There’s rules?” Seth asked.

  “Yes,” he sighed. “There’s rules. We can do anything except call each other boyfriend and girlfriend. When it’s over, it’s over. We each go our separate ways with no hard feelings, and no attachments. I hope to convince her that it should never be over.”

  “Oh god,” said Gage, “you’ll have to tread lightly.”

  “Yeah, good luck with that,” Seth added. “She might be little, but Short Stack is more stubborn than any other bear I’ve ever met.”

  “Great,” he said, his sarcasm palpable. “I had a feeling you were going to say that.”

  ***

  Emma studied Dave from behind her menu. He wore a pale blue dress shirt, a darker blue matching tie, and black dress pants. The firm lines of his face, combined with his sculpted muscles, made him look like a god carved from granite, and he fit right in with the European inspired décor of the hotel restaurant.

  It had been two weeks since the barbeque at Gage’s, and though she hadn’t meant to put him on the spot, he’d handled the situation with the clan graciously. She squirmed in her seat when she remembered how he’d spanked her ass later that night though. She had a feeling the swats had been more for punishment than for fun, but she didn’t care. She enjoyed the sting of his hand, and she deserved to be reprimanded, even if he chose to do it silently.

  While the men interrogated Dave out by the grill, the women stayed inside and swooned.

  Dave was a good friend to their mates, and he’d helped save most of the women from danger. They desperately wanted to him to find true love. Her jealousy soared upon hearing them praise him so thoroughly, and as the only bear in the room, she desperately wanted to shift and tear them apart. The irrational feelings scared her into silence, and she let them carry on for nearly thirty minutes.

  When they’d finally left the party, Dave drove them back to his place and she attacked him the second he’d closed the door. He’d pleasured her with the same intensity, and they’d fallen asleep exhausted.

  He didn’t say a word about her behavior, and she’d spent the following day in fear that he’d end their arrangement. Instead, he’d acted as if nothing had happened and made it a point to see her at least once a day.

  They ate breakfast together nearly every morning, and if he couldn’t meet her for lunch or dinner, then he saw her after. Their nights usually ended in multiple orgasms, but not always. They’d fallen asleep in front of the TV on more than one occasion, although those nights typically involved one of them waking the other with their tongue or lips.

  She’d felt her canines extend several times during sex, and she’d even gone so far as to scrape them along the juncture where his neck and shoulder collide, but she hadn’t marked him. She couldn’t. It didn’t matter how much he settled her, or how much peace he brought into her soul, she couldn’t mate with him.

  Men always cheated. They always left, and she’d lose half of herself when he went away.

  She had to end it.

  “Please excuse me,” she said, and escaped to the restroom. She needed a few moments away from him to think about how to end things.

  On the other side of the room, she saw Lynette, the hotel owner’s daughter, watching Dave with interest. The woman stood at the hostess’ podium and pretended to write, but Emma easily saw through her facade. She took a detour and approached the woman.

  “He’s gorgeous isn’t he?” Emma asked.

  “What? Oh, I…,” Lynette said.

  “Don’t worry about it. I know he’s dreamy. You should ask him out,” she said.

  “I thought he was your boyfriend.”

  “No, we’re just friends. He’s available and looking for the right woman. You never know, it could be you.”

  “Are you sure? I’ve given several hints, but he doesn’t seem interested.”

  “You’ll never know unless you try. Sometimes men need a little push,” she winked. “I’m going to the restroom, so he’ll be free for a few minutes. Go on over and ask him out.”

  “Right now? Are you sure?”

  “Positive. Good luck.”

  She disappeared into the restroom and fought the tears that threatened. She shouldn’t be crying, she should be rejoicing. Lynette was tall, beautiful and thin. The woman was a perfect match for Dave and he’d be a fool to turn down her offer.

  She looked at herself in the mirror and bared her teeth.

  Don’t you dare shed one single tear—it’s time to let him go!

  She checked her watch, took a deep breath and plastered a smile on her face.

  Lynette was absent from the hostess stand, and Dave still sat at their table, alone. She didn’t see the woman anywhere, so she figured she’d disappeared into the back to celebrate.

  When she sat down, Dave scowled.

  “Did you send that poor girl over here to ask me out?” he demanded.

  “Yes, did she go through with it?” Emma smiled.

  “Yes. She did. How could you do something so mean?”

  “What are you talking about? She’s tall, thin and beautiful. Most men would love to go out with her.”

  “I’m not most men, as I’ve said before, and I’m going out with you,” he accused.

  “For now, but we both know it’s not going to last.”

  “Who says?” he bit out the words, clearly angry at the direction of their conversation.

  “I do, and you agreed, remember? We’re friends with benefits and nothing more. Did you forget our agreement?”

  “No, I stupidly thought you would change your mind.”

  “I told you I wouldn’t,” she said. “I think you should go back and accept her offer.”

  “That’s what you want?” he asked.

  “Yes, that’s what I want,” she lied.

  “Fine.”

  He stood, dropped his napkin into the chair and walked across the dining room with purpose. Lynette tried to step away from him, but he grabbed her hand and held it in his.

  The two became blurry as Emma watched them, and she quickly dried her eyes with the corner of her napkin, and blinked away the tears that desperately wanted to escape.

  As predicted, he’d left her for another woman. It didn’t matter that she’d pushed him to leave sooner than later, his actions proved she’d been right all along.

  Men always left.

  Minutes seemed like hours, but he eventually returned to the table. He had a big smile plastered on his face, and her heart broke in two.

  “Thanks for sending me over there. We’re going out tomorrow night,” he said.

  “Tomorrow?” she asked.

  “Yes. Neither one of us wanted to wait a whole week until next Saturday, so we decided to live dangerously and
make our first date a Sunday night.”

  “I thought we were going to the movies tomorrow,” she said. She hadn’t meant for the words to slip out, but they had and she couldn’t take them back.

  “Yeah, I’m going to have to cancel. Sorry,” he said, picking up his menu. “Do you know what you’re eating?”

  “Yeah,” she said, clearing her throat. “I’m ready.”

  “Good, let’s order. I want to call it an early night so I can get ready for tomorrow.”

  His words cut like a knife, but the message was clear. Now that he’d found someone else to lavish with attention, she didn’t matter anymore.

  The rest of the evening consisted of agonizing small talk about the weather for the following night, and date ideas for him and his new woman. When he wasn’t blabbering about his future date, the once comfortable silences were awkward and painful to sit through.

  He reacted exactly how she’d expected, and on the outside she sat still, with a small smile on her face, until the tedious evening ended. On the inside, her bear roared in pain as he discussed his plans.

  At the end of the evening, they parted ways in the lobby of the hotel with a simple goodbye.

  “Well, I guess this is goodbye. Good night, Emma,” he said.

  “Good night, Dave.”

  She watched him walk out of the building without turning back, and then took the stairs up to her room to avoid waiting for the elevator and possibly breaking down in front of strangers.

  She walked into her darkened room, kicked off her shoes and collapsed on the bed. Tears streamed down her face, and her gasps for air filled the room and echoed around the dark space until she used a pillow to silence her cries. She’d known she would ache when he left, but the force of his betrayal felt as if it would smother her.

  She was drowning in pain with only one way to escape.

  She threw the pillow across the room, and ran down the hallway in her bare feet. She still wore her black evening dress, and her face was streaked with tears, but in that moment it didn’t matter. Nothing mattered except getting away.

  She flew down the stairwell until she reached the first floor and raced out the exit located in the back of the building. The forest beckoned and she ran deep into the National Park until the trees and the night surrounded her. She shifted and allowed her bear to roar several times to release the pain.

  Then she ran.

  Chapter Seven

  Dave stood on his porch and surveyed the forest of trees behind his home. It had been his day off, and he’d stayed home most of the day, angry and upset by Emma’s actions. Her cousin’s hadn’t been kidding when they mentioned her stubborn streak, and when she tried to force him to go out with Lynette, he’d lost his cool.

  He saw the hurt she tried to hide when he initially gushed over his date with the other woman, but once her mask was in place, she didn’t let it crack for the rest of the evening. When he’d walked out of the hotel lobby, he forced himself not to look back.

  If he had, he would have revealed the truth of his conversation with Lynette and they’d be right back where they started. Several times he’d picked up the phone to apologize, he’d even contemplated visiting her room, but each time, he pushed the thoughts away.

  He couldn’t force her to commit to him no matter how much he wanted her, or how much he loved her. It had only been two weeks, but he knew things moved fast when a bear found their mate. He knew he belonged to her, but she refused to accept the truth.

  I need to get out of this house!

  He checked his watch and saw his date with Lynette should have started fifteen minutes ago. He owed the girl a huge favor for going along with his plan. Darkness shrouded the forest, but he needed to stretch his legs, so he grabbed his firearm, flashlight and handcuffs and disappeared into the trees.

  Nearly an hour later, he felt a few drops of water dot his face and he looked for shelter in case the sky opened up. As the drops came down heavier, he raced inside a cave in the nick of time.

  Buckets of water splashed to the ground, but he knew better than to run blindly into a cave. He stayed next to the opening while he surveyed the dark space behind him with his flashlight.

  His search revealed a female grizzly with a light brown coat. She lay on her stomach with her head resting on her paws, and though she blinked when the light landed on her face, she did nothing more than glance at him. It didn’t matter if she stayed in her human form, or shifted into a bear, he would always recognize his woman.

  She’s not yours!

  “I’m sorry,” he said, shutting off the light. “I’ll leave as soon as the rain lets up.”

  He walked back toward the entrance and leaned against the cave wall. As much as he wanted to leave and distance himself from her, the rain seemed to fall in waves, hindering his visibility. He’d be an idiot to leave the cave and jeopardize his safety.

  For lack of something to do, he pulled his handcuffs out of his back pocket and twirled them between his fingers.

  “You don’t have to go,” she said from behind him.

  He didn’t turn back. He’d never keep his hands off her if he saw her in her human form.

  The silence stretched out between them until he felt as if he would suffocate. Eventually, she broke the ice.

  “How was your date?”

  “Great,” he lied.

  “Are you going to see her again?”

  “Maybe,” he said. “It looks like it’s letting up, so I’m going to head out.” The water had only let up a fraction, but he couldn’t stand being so close to her and pretending they were nothing more than friends. He took a step forward, but her words stopped him.

  “I hope she makes you happy.”

  “You made me happy,” he confessed, still staring at the rain, “and I haven’t been happy in a really long time.”

  “You only think that because you haven’t been dating in a long time. You just need to get back out there. You think you’re happy now, but I’m a short, chubby bear, and one day you’ll realize I’m not what you’re looking for.”

  “And then what? I’ll cheat?” he spat the words and turned toward her. “In case you haven’t noticed, I don’t care about the bear thing. I’m surrounded by bears nearly every single god damned day, and Gage is my best friend. I don’t give a shit about that.”

  “Yeah, but—”

  “But nothing,” he shouted, and took a step closer. “I wouldn’t have had sex with you if I didn’t love your curvy body. You’re sexy as hell and I can’t be around you without becoming as hard as a rock. Even now, when you’ve made it clear you don’t feel the same, all I want to do is fuck you.”

  He turned away, looked back outside and sighed. He needed to get away from her, and silently wished for the rain to let up. It came down harder instead.

  Shit!

  “Men always want sex,” she accused.

  “I don’t know about the other men you’ve dated, but that’s not true,” he said, exasperated. “Some men only want sex with the right woman. Gage is a perfect example. He waited two years for Kate, and he never dated, or had sex with anyone else during that time.”

  “You’re telling me you didn’t sleep with her?”

  “Who?” he asked, turning back to face her.

  “Lynette.”

  For the first time since he entered the cave, he noticed her attire. She wore the same black dress from their date the night before, but it didn’t look the same. The material had permanent wrinkles, as if she’d slept in it, and the lace on the hem hung down loosely, as if it had been caught on something.

  Could she have been more upset with his possible date than she admitted? He shook his head, reminded once again of her stubbornness, and realized his bear hadn’t been completely honest. If she accepted him, he knew his life would never be dull, and his love for her seemed to expand.

  “I didn’t even go out with her.”

  “She cancelled?”

  He’d had enough.
>
  “Dammit woman,” he roared and stormed across the cave. “You. Are. Infuriating.” He grabbed one hand as he spoke, and slapped one of the cuffs on her wrist. By the time she’d figured out what he’d done, both wrists were bound together in front of her.

  “Da—”

  He grabbed the back of her head with one hand, and covered her mouth with the other.

  “Stop talking and listen to me.”

  Her eyes widened, but she didn’t struggle.

  “The date with Lynette was a trick. I apologized to her for your momentary insanity, and she agreed to go along with my plan. I. Want. You,” he said, “and not just for sex. Before you arrived in Bear Mountain, I felt lost and lonely, like something was missing from my life, and now that you’re here, I feel complete. These past two weeks have been wonderful, and I don’t want them to end. I want to marry you, and see you pregnant with our cubs. You don’t have to mark me if you don’t want to, but I hope that one day you will. I love you, Emma, and I want to spend the rest of my life proving it to you. Please trust me and give us a chance.”

  A single tear escaped from her eye, and rolled down her face, over his palm. He knew it wasn’t because of fear or pain, and hope swamped him. Maybe he’d finally gotten through to her.

  His anger dissipated and his next words came out in a whisper.

  “Do you understand what I’m saying, baby doll?”

  She nodded her understanding.

  “Good.”

  He removed the hand covering her mouth, and kissed her.

  ***

  Emma met Dave’s hungry kiss with one of her own. She didn’t protest his tactics because suddenly everything made sense. She might be an alpha bear, but Dave was an alpha man. The men she’d dated before had been weak in comparison, and she finally understood why they’d all cheated.

  She just hadn’t met her match yet. Or her mate.

  He forced his tongue between her lips and she stepped closer, desperate to touch him. Her mobility was limited, but she found the button of his jeans easily accessible. As soon as she lowered his zipper, he stepped to the side, out of reach and wrapped one fist in her hair. He caressed her breast with his other hand, and nibbled on her neck.