Page 3 of His Bear Hands (Bear Creek Grizzlies #1)

3

SIMON

S imon rose with the dawn, a habit beaten into him by too many years in the military. Life without discipline was dangerous. Sloppy habits led to sloppy decision-making, and sloppy decision-making got people killed. He walked the perimeter of their immediate property, a quick jog that left his scent around the place to hopefully scare the other predators away, and then went back inside the lodge to start breakfast for the two guests.

Luckily Tate's call came during a lull in business. They hadn't been overflowing with guests, so Simon had an extra room for the girl. She'd been up most of the night, finally turning out her light at three in the morning. He heard her moving around, and remained ready to interdict her if she made a run for it, but in the end he only heard a little bit of snuffling that could have been tears. He gave her the room next to his so he could keep an ear out for any escape attempts — or assassination attempts, if things went badly.

He felt like a jerk already, after the abrupt way their conversation in the car ended. He couldn't quite figure out why, but he must have said or done something that offended her. Zoe barely whispered two words to him even after they arrived and he showed her where she would stay, only a soft 'Thank you' before she retreated to the small but cozy room. Simon frowned at the burner on the stove as it refused to light, leaning down to check the gas line before getting out a match.

Simon shook his head as he poured muffin batter into a tin. She was so jumpy, so damn skittish. He wanted to talk to her, to figure out how she looked at the world, to figure out why a shot of excitement raced through him every time he touched her. But she'd clamped her mouth shut and stared into the night with a pensive look on her face, worry creating lines across her forehead.

Ethan and Cooper stirred in the back of the lodge, shambling out in their pajamas, and silently ate their oatmeal and bacon and bowls of fruit. Then they disappeared again to get dressed and start work. The tourists wouldn't be up for another hour, most likely, and then would take a nature walk around the lodge. Simon glanced at his watch. Almost seven, and no sign of the girl. He'd told her to be up early before he shooed her off to bed, but she barely acknowledged he spoke. She looked dazed, a little off-kilter, and he wondered if she were actually as steady with her situation as Tate seemed to think. Being hunted by international criminals would be enough to throw anyone off their game, and Zoe didn't strike him as an even-keeled person to start with.

At half-past seven, he climbed the massive staircase to the second level of the lodge, the great-room open behind him, and took a right and then a left to the back of the house. He kept the big room with the great corner views in the back right of the house for himself, and gave her the space next to it, closer to the front of the lodge. The guests all stayed on the other side of the house, and the rest of his guys slept downstairs in the back. Simon wanted to build a few smaller cabins behind the lodge, so his guys could make better dens to manage their bears, but so far they didn't have the revenue to support new construction. Soon, though, or at least he hoped.

He knocked on her door, listening for anything stirring inside. Nothing. He knocked again and heard a grumbled, "Not now."

Simon edged the door open and poked his head in. "Hey. Time to get up."

She sprawled across the queen size bed in yoga pants and a t-shirt with a cartoon character on it, dark hair tangled across the pillows, and he abruptly had to revise his assessment of her age. Definitely not a kid. The backpack and sweatshirt she'd worn the night before hid some womanly curves, emphasized by the tight t-shirt and the gentle swell of her hips. He looked away before his thoughts drifted elsewhere, and knocked on the inside wall a little louder. "Time to get up, Zoe. Work starts early around here."

"You're nuts," she said, lifting her head enough to give him a jaundiced, one-eyed look. But she didn't move or cover herself up. "It's only seven. Normal people don't get up before noon."

He made an irritated noise, though it had more to do with the fact that he needed to stay behind the door to hide his interest in her than her reluctance to get out of bed. His bear very much wanted to crawl in with her and spend the rest of the day getting to know every inch of her. Simon struggled for control, his voice deepening as she moved and the t-shirt stretched across her breasts and her nipples slowly stood out against the thin fabric. "Zoe, I will dump a bucket of ice water on you if you're not downstairs in ten minutes. "

She lifted her head again to peer at him. "You don't let the strays sleep in?"

Simon blinked, trying to formulate a retort, but she struggled free from the tangled sheets and marched up the door to pat his chest. "I'll be downstairs in half an hour."

She started to shut the door in his face but Simon blocked it with his boot and his shoulder. The bear might like her but he ran a tight ship, and everyone worked for their keep. Even if she smelled so good it drove him wild. "You're not a guest. You're here to work."

"Thought I wasn't supposed to touch anything?" She sounded fierce for something so small and soft and sleepy, her hair standing up and pillow wrinkles marking her cheek.

God, he wanted her to touch something, all right. Simon cleared his throat and struggled to remain composed. The guests would be up any minute and he didn't have time to show her exactly how he felt about her staying in bed all day. He wouldn't get a lick of work done if his bear was distracted by her all snuggled up and cozy. Maybe putting her in the room next to his was a terrible idea. "You're helping make breakfast for the guests, then you can weed the garden."

Her nose wrinkled into an expression so damn adorable his bear grumbled about letting her go back to sleep in his bed. Safer that way. None of the other bears would get any ideas about her. Zoe tried again to shut the door. "Manual labor isn't really my thing. I'm more of a white collar numbers kind of girl, see?"

Simon gripped the door, unmoving despite that she put her full effort into shoving him into the hall. It was kinda cute, maybe, her feet sliding on the floor as she leaned her entire body into trying to push him out. Simon frowned. "And how did that white collar stuff work out for you? On the run? Hiding out? I don't run a charity, girl, and you're going to work for your keep. "

"I can pay you," she said, exasperated, and abruptly turned on her heel. She released the door so quickly he nearly fell through it, but recovered by the time she turned around, holding the backpack in one hand and a stack of cash in the other. It had to be at least five grand, probably ten. "How much do these yuppies pay? I'll double it. Just let me sleep in a little." She tossed him the cash and slid back into bed, making a sleepy noise as she rolled back up in the sheets.

It took every ounce of strength he had to not follow suit or at least tuck her in. He dropped the cash on the mattress next to her. "Manual labor will be good for you. Now get your ass out of bed. You've got ten minutes. If you're not downstairs by then, I will dump ice water on you and your first chore will be cleaning it up."

"Okay." She yawned and rearranged her pillow. "See you downstairs in ten."

Simon ground his teeth and left, catching the door before he slammed it, and stalked down the stairs to the kitchen. He pasted a smile on his face for the newly-awake guests, a married couple on something called a babymoon, and engaged in friendly conversation though he kept an eye on the clock. At eight minutes, he excused himself and filled up a bucket of water from the sink, dumping ice into it.

When the guests laughed and asked what he was doing, Simon's smile turned more genuine. "We have a reluctant employee. She has trouble with mornings."

So at least they were on his side as he hauled the bucket upstairs. He stood outside Zoe's door at nine minutes, and as soon as his watch said ten, he shouldered the door open. She blinked and looked at him, yawning. "It's not —"

He tossed the water on her and she yelped. Scrambled up as ice and water and sheets flew everywhere, and glared at him, mad as a scalded cat. Simon struggled to keep his expression even as she muttered curses and the soaked t-shirt clung to her body. "Like I said, Zoe. Your first chore is now to clean all this up, put the sheets in the washer, get dressed, and come downstairs to finish preparing breakfast."

Her chest heaved with indignation and her green eyes looked dark as emeralds as she scowled at him. "You're mean."

"And you're late." He turned on his heel and strode out before the sight of her breasts made him change his mind. He whistled as he headed back to the kitchen, stowing the bucket under the sink, and finished pressing fresh orange juice for the guests.

A few minutes later, a great deal of cursing came from a giant wad of sheets and blankets and pillows as it staggered down the stairs and disappeared into the back of the lodge. Simon pulled a tray of muffins from the oven and set them out to cool, keeping his composure as Zoe strode into the kitchen and fixed him with an evil eye. "What would you like me to do?"

He directed her to the skillet on the stove. "Don't let the sausages burn."

The guests tried to hide their grins. Simon felt a little bad; Zoe still looked like she'd just woken up, though she wore the jeans from last night and another t-shirt. At least she put a bra on. He turned his attention to the radio on his belt so he didn't end up staring at her chest, and pulled a map from the drawer in the kitchen island. He placed it in front of the guests. "So, a light nature hike around the lodge after breakfast is a great way to start the day. I recommend this track," and he highlighted a short trail that wandered into a nearby meadow. "The birds are singing and Ethan said he saw a couple of foxes out early. Just keep an eye out for bears. The mama bears have been bringing their cubs around to eat. They're just black bears and are usually more afraid of you than you are of them, but when the mama bears think their cubs are threatened, it changes the situation. So take bear mace with you and this air horn. That should scare them away. Just talk and make noise as you walk so you don't surprise them."

The man raised his eyebrows as he studied the map. "It's safe, though, right?"

"Of course. Just stay aware and make some noise. But Noah can go with you, if you'd like?"

"No, we'll be fine." The guest continued eating, studying the map with a frown. "We'll take a radio with us, just in case."

"Sounds like a plan." Simon checked how Zoe handled the bacon and sausages, leaning over her shoulder as she poked them with a fork. He kept his voice low. "When those are done, make yourself breakfast. Then please help Ethan clean up."

She grumbled something that even his bear hearing couldn't catch, which was probably just as well by the death glare she gave along with it. Simon tried not to laugh and instead tugged on the end of her ponytail. "Okay, sunshine. Have a good morning."

He took a large cup of coffee and retreated to his office, just behind the kitchen. He'd never been a morning person, until necessity made him one. Hopefully Zoe figured out how to get herself out of bed on time each morning, otherwise that bucket would get a lot of use over the next month. He paused in the doorway to the office, frowning in thought as the bear pushed for them to keep her in their sight. Keep her close. Of course, if she insisted on sleeping in, that gave him the opportunity to wake her up.

Simon pinched the bridge of his nose and shoved away the thought. Not a good idea. Definitely not a good idea. He could make it through the month without getting attached to her. A girl like her would never want to stay at the lodge, and he sure as hell couldn't move to the city. Even if the bear thought she smelled good and wanted to stay next to her, it wouldn't work. She didn't know anything about shifters or his bear, and it was best to keep it that way.