Page 36 of Mated to the Mountain Bear (Bear Protector #1)
BEN
“ Y ou’re quiet,” she whispers.
Zara has been awake for a few minutes. Her head is still on my chest, and her calm breaths make this entire situation worse. She has blind faith in me, believing I know what I’m doing here.
Even what we’ve done is enough to drive her stalker crazy. I’ve marked her with my scent, made her cry out my name. He’ll know. And now, he has even more reason to see me as an enemy.
Now, he won’t just want her. He’ll want me dead for touching what he thinks is his.
Zara’s short nails reach back to trail up my thigh toward my hip, and before my libido roars to life again from a simple touch, I catch her hand and pull it to my lips for a soft kiss.
“Are you okay?” I ask quietly, burying my nose in her hair and nuzzling her neck. What I wouldn’t give to remain here, with my mate wrapped up in my arms, all cosy and warm in my den.
Zara shakes her head and turns her head slightly, pressing two gentle kisses to my bicep. “I’m perfect. Better than perfect.” But uncertainty radiates from her, and my bear grumbles. This isn’t the afterglow we wanted.
“How long did I sleep?” she mumbles, attempting to inch away. Maybe she’s regretting what we did and how close we came to crossing a line we can’t uncross.
Stubbornly, I keep my hand clamped to her stomach and press her tighter to my chest. I can’t bear to let her pull away from me.
“An hour. Not long enough, but probably too long given our current situation.” I tip my head toward the inky blackness outside. “But it was worth it.”
Zara finally half smiles and stiffens, but my brave little mate doesn’t freak out. She simply looks up at me with utter trust.
“So what do we do now?”
We.
I love how the word sounds on her lips but also hate the implication that she’s going to be anywhere near this showdown.
There will be no we taking on a deranged wolf shifter, an alpha, if my suspicions are correct, who thinks his fated mate has been with another man. I will be the only one to face those consequences and take him down before he attempts to claim her as his own.
I press another kiss to her delectable lips and release her reluctantly. Rolling out of the bed, I stoop to pick up my jeans, trying not to notice the way her eyes track my movements, while considering how to break this next part of my plan to her. She won’t like it, but I need her to agree.
More than agree, I need her to actually do it.
“Ben?” Zara’s tone is wary as she edges to the side of the bed. “What do we do?”
I pause to look at her, my mate, blonde hair tumbling around her tanned shoulder, her skin still flushed from my hands. She’s perfect.
Of course, he wants her. How could he not?
“I thought Beau would come back once he couldn’t track this guy down,” I admit, knowing that it wasn’t much of a master plan at all. We’re isolated up here. It’s a long way from this remote cabin to civilisation, so the wolf could ambush us at any of a dozen places on the way down the mountain.
No, there’ll be no running. I need to take care of this problem head-on. Which ordinarily wouldn’t be an issue. A lone wolf is no match for a grizzly bear, no matter how pissed off he is.
Except something feels different now. I can sense the shifter energy in the air, and it’s strong.
“But he hasn’t. So, do we go to Beau? Your truck...”
Zara stands naked, her lips still swollen and her pussy still wet. I can sense her desire even now as she leans into me and rests her hand on my bare chest. I’ve never seen anyone more beautiful, and it’s killing me to leave this room.
“No, Beau could be anywhere.” We’re on our own. “And there’s something else you need to know.” I take a deep breath. “He’s not alone anymore.”
Her eyes widen. “What do you mean?”
“While we were... together, I heard them. Other wolves. His pack.” I cup her face gently. “He’s an alpha, Zara. And he’s brought reinforcements.”
She pales but doesn’t pull away. “How many?”
“At least three, maybe more. They’ve been circling the cabin, getting bolder.” I force myself to maintain eye contact. “They think you’re their luna—their alpha’s mate. They’ll try to take you to him.”
Her hands grip my arms. “But I’m not…”
“I know that. You know that. But they believe what he tells them.” I press my forehead to hers. “I promise you, I will not let that happen. They’ll have to go through me first.”
Zara frowns as I pull away with a smile and disappear into the bathroom to freshen up. Not to wash away her scent, I want that all over me, but because I can’t think straight with her standing right beside me, let alone with her cum still on my chin.
“Ben, did I do something wrong?” She leans in the doorway, now wearing a T-shirt of mine that hangs off her like it’s a dress, which makes me melt.
Stepping in close, I cup her face and kiss her fast but hard, closing my eyes tightly, as I savour how she relaxes at my touch.
Mine. All fucking mine.
“Never. You’re perfect.” Hugging her to me, my chest tightens. “I’m just trying to get my game face on.”
She nods but watches me closely as I pull on a shirt and boots. My throat constricts as I see my mate move around my space, our space, tidying the sheets and folding my discarded clothes for me, like we’re a proper couple.
“What?” she asks shyly when she sees me staring at her.
“You look good in my home. That’s something I hope to see more of when this is all over.”
Zara grins but tilts her head to the side, studying me closely when she senses my tension. She can tell I’m hiding something from her, our fledgling bond strengthening after our intimacy. But it’s for her own good.
“Come on,” I say, waving her out to the kitchen.
I pause at the hall closet, reaching for the top shelf. The metal safe clicks open with the combination I’ve used a hundred times. Inside sits the rifle I’d hoped I’d never need for anything but hunting.
“Is that necessary?” Zara’s voice is small behind me.
“Yes.” I pull out a box of ammunition, then reach deeper for a smaller, older box. “These are regular bullets.” I load the rifle, showing her each step. “They’ll slow a shifter down, maybe buy you time, but they won’t stop one.”
I open the second box, revealing bullets that gleam differently in the dim light. “These are silver. They’re... permanent. For shifters, they’re lethal.”
I never thought I’d need these, the bullets I’d taken from my father’s safe before I left the clan, just in case he ever came to drag me back. Or punish any of my other brothers for trying to start a new life.
Her hands shake slightly as she takes the rifle. “Ben...”
“You won’t need them.” I promise, loading three silver bullets into her pocket. “But if something happens to me, if they get past me, you aim for centre mass, and you shoot. Then you run to my truck and don’t look back.”
“Nothing’s going to happen to you,” she says fiercely.
I kiss her temple, wishing I could be as certain.
Whistling for Jerry, I ruffle his furry head after he bounds into the room, loyal to the end.
Any other dog would be cowering in a corner or itching to run away, sensing the dominant alpha outside, and the tension in the air.
If I can feel it, so can Jerry. But this dog is brave and fierce, and I know he’ll do what he can to keep my mate safe.
“You stay with her.” I point at Zara, and he tips his head to the side, confused. “Her. Stay.”
When he gets to his feet and moves away, walking to Zara’s side and brushing up against her leg, I give him a sharp nod. “Good boy.”
Zara rolls her eyes, thinking I’m being over the top, but I wish I were. Sadly, I’m worried it’s not going to be enough.
In the kitchen, I leave the lights off. Staring out into the trees, I can’t see them, but I can feel them.
Waiting.
In the distance, so faint that Zara probably can’t hear it, comes a howl. An answer to a question I didn’t ask.
He’s coming.
“Let’s get this over with.”
Zara grips my hand, determined. Trusting. Pride swells inside me that she would even consider someone like me to be hers. My bear growls, determination hardening like steel in his veins.
She’s going to be okay. I’m going to make sure she gets to live a normal life again.
Even if it costs me everything.