Page 27 of Mated to the Mountain Bear (Bear Protector #1)

BEN

J erry’s growl booms through the night like a gunshot. It’s not his usual playful yapping when he finds something interesting he wants to show me, or a creature he wants to hunt. This is primal, territorial. He’s detected a genuine threat.

I’m on my feet before I fully process the sound, pulling Zara up with me. Every instinct screams danger, immediately demanding we get our mate to safety.

“What’s...”

“Shhh.” I scan the darkness beyond the cabin but can’t see anything. My eyes are useless in these shadows, even if they’re better than the average human. My bear pushes against my control, demanding I shift, demanding I hunt whatever’s out there threatening what’s mine.

Because they are. Nobody has wandered out here by accident.

Jerry races from the woods, hackles raised, positioning himself between the cabin and the trees.

His aggressive barking continues, backing slowly toward us while never taking his eyes off something I can’t see.

I take a deep breath, but the breeze is blowing the wrong direction, and I can’t get a trace of anything this high up.

“We need to get inside. Now.”

I vault over the platform rail, landing in a crouch that my human form shouldn’t be able to manage, but there’s no time to worry about what Zara might think. I straighten immediately, arms up.

“Jump, Zara. Now.”

She doesn’t hesitate, trusting me completely. I catch her easily, her weight nothing to my bear-enhanced strength. Her heart hammers against my chest as I set her on her feet.

“Inside,” I order, one arm staying around her as we move.

We’re almost to the door when movement flashes in my peripheral vision. A tall figure watching from the trees. Zara clings to me, squinting into the shadows.

“Is it... is that the bear?”

I don’t have the heart to tell her, don’t want to frighten her any more than is necessary.

“Inside. Now.” I need to just get her through the door and into the cabin, keeping her as calm as possible.

“Stay here,” I order, already turning back toward the door.

My tone brooks no argument. This is not the Ben who shares quiet moments on the roof and whispers to her about how fate has connected our lives.

This is the apex predator who will do whatever it takes to protect what’s his.

“Ben, what’s wrong?” Her voice shakes. “Oh no, Jerry’s still out there.”

I’m already moving back outside, my skin rippling with the beginnings of a shift I’m struggling to control. “Stay. I’ll get him.”

Zara’s face drains of colour. “Ben… you can’t go out there.” She leans forward, watching Jerry through the window, his fluffy tail a beacon in the silvery moonlight.

“Lock the door behind me.” Then I’m gone, leaving her confused and shaken, but I’ve no other choice.

Jerry hasn’t moved from his defensive position, still growling at the shadows. Whatever was there has melted back into the darkness, but the dog’s not convinced it’s gone. Neither am I.

“Jerry, come.”

He ignores me, taking off toward the woods with a series of sharp barks. His massive form crashes through the underbrush, quickly disappearing into the shadows between the trees.

Damn it. I follow, every sense on high alert.

The darkness doesn’t bother me; my night vision is better than most. But whoever was watching knows what they’re doing.

They stayed downwind. If it weren’t for Jerry going for a wander, we might never have known they were there, watching and waiting. At least, not until morning.

Jerry’s barking stops abruptly. Too abruptly for my liking.

I find him twenty yards in, hackles still raised but silent now, staring at something on the ground. My blood chills when I see what’s caught his attention.

Footprints. Fresh ones. Under a tall tree with lots of wide, sturdy branches that would give perfect view of the cabin. Of the roof.

They watched us. Watched me kiss her.

And decided to ruin it.

Rage floods through me, my bear roaring for release. But I can’t shift. Not with Zara so close. Not when she doesn’t know what I am.

“Jerry, heel.”

This time, he obeys, sensing the command in my voice. We make our way back quickly, my eyes scanning for any movement. Nothing.

The door flies open almost immediately when I return. I practically shove Jerry inside. His whole body vibrates with tension, a low growl rumbling in his chest. He’s not happy, just as protective of Zara as I am.

“Lock it,” I command, already backing away. My eyes scan the edge of the forest, hands clenched into fists at my sides. “Now, Zara.”

My bear is clawing at me, demanding we hunt, demanding we protect.

“This is ridiculous. Come back inside,” she pleads through the door. “It’ll get bored and wander off on its own.”

“Now,” I demand, refusing to leave until she complies.

Finally, I hear the deadbolt slide home, along with a mutter curse and some snarky comments about it being my fault if I get eaten.

She’s safe. Jerry will protect her while I’m gone.

I circle the cabin twice, checking for any sign of intrusion, any trace of who was watching but finding none, until I move further back, closer to the creek to the rear, away from the porch and the comings and goings of the day.

The footprints tell me they were here for a while. Patient. Calculating. Too clever to come close while my brothers were here.

I curse. This definitely isn’t a random hiker who stumbled off their trail.

Her stalker. Has to be.

This is someone who knew exactly where to position themselves for the best view and to remain hidden.

The prints under the tree are fresh, sinking deep into the damp soil.

Following their path up the hill, striding long and moving at speed, my bear presses forward, eager to hunt, to free our mate of this man who’s been making her life hell.

With a steely determination to end this, I take off in pursuit. This guy has no idea whose woman he’s messing with, and turning up here?

He just poked the bear.