Bear Lake- Book Four (5 page)

 “That’s
not to say you girls aren’t as good as her. It’s just that she’s this fancy
doctor…” Marcus growled again and shook his head.

“Self-pity
isn’t going to do either of you any favours. Neither is you hiding out here
with us when you should be there with her.” Alex berated him.

“I have
nothing to offer her.” Marcus took a step and Alex’s humourless laughter made
him freeze again.

“You
have all that you are, Marcus, and she seemed to like you just fine that way.”
Alex assured him, but he didn’t like that answer. He growled and started off
again; leaving his clan behind him as he stalked back to his cabin.

Hadn’t
he been the one that had talked to each female mate in turn and helped them
out? He couldn’t help himself out of this one.

At
least now he knew how everyone had been feeling when he’d delivered his
lectures, pretending to know what they were going through.

Alex
watched him go with a sigh and then followed it up with a huff. She pursed her
lips and considered it. Jackson eyed her with suspicion.

“There’s
a big old lightbulb that’s come on above your head, please tell me this isn’t
going to lead to trouble for the clan.” Jackson whispered against her ear.

“Trouble?
When do I cause trouble?” Alex raised her eyebrows high on her forehead and
berated him with just a look.

“Never,
sweetheart. Perish the thought.” He muttered.

“We
know where the bodies are buried, Alex…” Shane teased her. “Literally.” He
chuckled and she shot him a death glare. He frowned; dropped his head back to
his task and started flipping the steaks.

“You
still got that card that Janice gave you for
emergencies
?” She wiggled
her eyebrows and he frowned. She’d already stopped him calling it a dozen times
in the last day.

“Yep.”
Jackson sighed. “It might not be…” She held out her hand and he sighed again.

“This
or sex, Jackson, good, hot banging sex.” She whispered against his ear and his
cock hardened at the thought.

“That’s
blackmail and you’re in no fit state…” He growled.

“I
haven’t bled since you banged me…” She scowled at him and used the guilt card
for what she wanted. He growled and rolled his head on his neck as he bit down
on his muttered growl.

“Fine.
But if this goes wrong…” He warned as she held out her hand and waited for him
to fish it out of his back pocket. She’d told him to put on it on the fridge
under one of those little magnets- he’d kept it on him at all times.

“It’s
on the damn fridge…” He lied, eyes wide in mock innocence.

“Liar,
liar, I’m going to roast your ass over that fire…” Alex’s voice was a little
too sweet. That always meant trouble.

He
sighed and fished it out of his back pocket, slapping it into her hand as she
tried to close her fingers around it, but he still had a hold of it.

“What
are you gonna do?”

“Invite
the doctor for barbecue.” She craned her head on her neck in victory and shot a
look towards Shane. “Put another steak on the Barbie, Shane.” She grinned to
herself.

~^~

Janice
felt all bubbly inside. Like a million butterflies had taken flight in the pit
of her stomach and were making their presence felt. Nervous apprehension would
have been the medical term- shit scared was her version, and she much preferred
that one as she drove towards the shifter cabins that were far enough away from
town to give her heart enough time for a good damn workout as it hammered in
her chest the closer that she got.

“Crap.
I should turn back….” She slowed the car and frowned hard.

Why
should she turn back? It had been Alex that had invited her over- not Marcus.
She wouldn’t mind seeing how Alex was doing- she’d never cared for a mother who
had a shifter baby inside of her before.

“Fuck,
Marcus. I’m going to get me some barbecue…” She put her foot down harder and
the car sped up.

This
wasn’t right. The things that he’d said to her before he’d turned and ran away,
practically screaming, from her doorstep…

“I
should go home…” She slowed the car once more.

Damn
it. She was getting closer and closer and if she didn’t make her mind up soon
then she’d be there anyway.

“Fuck.”
She bit out and slapped the palm of her hand against the top of the steering
wheel in annoyance, with him, with herself…

She
could certainly see why shifter men were so in demand. She hated each and every
one of those ho’s that had bounced on Marcus’s thick length. Jealousy was a
damned miserable emotion to have, and she hated herself for it.

“What
the hell am I doing?” She yanked the steering wheel to the left and pulled her
car onto the soft mud at the side of the road.

“Idiot.”
She leaned in over the steering wheel and growled in annoyance.

“I’m
like a fucking teenager again…” She dropped back against her seat but she
couldn’t release the death grip that she had on the wheel.

“No
men. That’s what I damn well said. No more men in my life. The jerks.” She
grumbled. She’d always picked the wrong ones. The cheaters.

Then
she tipped her head back against the seat and closed her eyes to the world
outside. All she saw was Marcus behind those closed lids. His image taunted
her.

“Fuck
him…” She muttered.

She
could still feel his lips on hers. Still feel his hands against her body. That
hard press of his length against her sex.

She
tossed her head forward and snapped her eyes open. She was getting aroused just
at the thought of him.

“Fuck
him, indeed.” She muttered. That was exactly what she wanted. She groaned.

“Oh
God, I’m one of those bimbo’s that wants to ride his damn cock!” She groaned as
she sat forward and dropped her forehead to the steering wheel.

“This
is not good. This is not happening to me…” She grumbled.

Then
her head shot up. Her eyes snapped opened and she frowned hard and she took a
long, deep, calming breath in and sighed it back out again.

“This
is
bloody well happening. If I want to go eat damned barbecue with the shifter
clan- I’ll go eat barbecue with the shifter clan, and Marcus is not going to
bloody well stop me. No one is. Nothing is…”

She put
her foot down on the accelerator and nothing much happened- except her wheels
spun in the wet, soft mud.

She
twisted her head to one side and frowned hard at the sound of the car spinning
aimlessly in place. Then she slapped out at the steering wheel and growled long
and hard.

“This
is not a good day to piss me off.” She growled.

~^~

“Go
tell Marcus that his mate is stuck in the mud up the road…” Alex grinned at her
mate and Jackson sighed.

“Seriously?”
He shook his head in dismay.

“Or you
could leave her there for the night…” Alex scowled at him. Jackson pushed up to
his feet and sighed again.

“I’ll
tell you in the damn morning which one would have been the better option.”
Jackson said by way of a warning and she chuckled.

“Ye of
little faith in your mate’s abilities to bring two star-crossed lovers
together…” Alex crowed.

“Star
crossed what now?” Jackson shot back over his shoulder as he stared off for
Marcus’s cabin.

“I’ll
get her…” Chance pushed up to his feet and everyone shouted at once.

“No!”
He didn’t have a good record where mates were concerned. He’d nearly killed Alex,
and nobody spoke about what he’d done to Suzanna, Reece was still mad about
that, and he growled across the way.

Chance
dropped his backside back to the log and huffed.

“One
little mistake…” He growled out.

“One?”
Reece growled back.

“Ok,
two.” He admitted reluctantly. “But they both ended well, right?” He hated
being the damn screw up of the clan. He’d only meant for both of his brothers
to have their mates. Now they did… couldn’t they leave things in the past where
they belonged?

“Sure
they did.” Suzanna smiled at him across the way and Chance felt the same prick
of guilt to his conscience that he always had when he looked at her.

“At
least I didn’t bite anyone and turn them into a damn bear…” Chance followed his
arms across his chest and heard Shane roar in anger.

“No
damn fighting!” Alex snapped out. Both men cooled their heels as they turned to
look at her.

“Sorry,
Alex…” Shane grumbled and then Chance did the same.

“We’re
having a guest. Marcus’s mate. And if anyone so much as throws a stroppy, I’m
not going to be responsible for my damn actions.” She warned them.

~^~

“She’s
what?” Marcus growled out in annoyance.

“Alex
said you could just leave her there on the side of the road…” Jackson folded
his arms across his chest and waited for the big man to make a move. Marcus was
frozen in place, His hands fisted at his sides.

“In the
dark…” Jackson added and Marcus’s dark eyes snapped towards him. Still nothing…

“Where
anything could happen to her and might already be happening as you stand there
and…”

That
was the one.

Marcus
growled long and hard as he set off for the door. Wrenching it back on its
hinges and stalking outside into the darkness.

Jackson
chuckled and followed him. When Marcus got to the site of the fire pit; he
reached out a hand and pointed one huge sausage like finger at Alex as she
looked back at him with all of the innocence that she could muster.

“This
is not a good idea, Alex…” He growled.

Alex
held up her hands in front of her in surrender.

“Just
wanted to thank my doctor for…”

“Save
it for someone who doesn’t know you as well as I do and might believe you.” He
growled out as he stalked towards his truck.

The
sound of the metal hinges protesting as much as the ones on his front door had
screeched through the air. He growled and tossed his body into the driver’s
seat. His dark eyes took in his alpha as the man stood there with his arms
folded across his chest watching him.

He
stabbed the key into the ignition and fired the engine to life before he
reached out, hooked the door and wrenched it closed with a deafening thud. The
car shook, but he felt a little better in himself.

This
clan was going to be the damn death of him. Or his mate. Either way he didn’t
believe this was going to end well.

~^~

Janice
stood there with her arms folded and her backside resting against the bonnet of
the car. Alex had assured her that someone from their clan would be along to
help her out shortly.

She
cursed her own stupidity for coming out in the dark for a damn barbecue with
people that she didn’t really know well…

Well,
she knew Marcus. Kind of. They’d shared the kind of moment that you only really
read about in novels or saw in the movies. Then he’d left and she’d found this
gaping hole inside of her like an ache that couldn’t be ignored, and she’d
tried…

The man
kept spouting some sudo nonsense crap about how he was no good for her.
Whatever that meant. Did his bear want to kill her? It hadn’t felt like he’d
wanted to kill her.

Alex
had said that she’d be safe. Well, stuck in the middle of nowhere wasn’t exactly
safe, but that was just her damn car’s fault. First it had broken down and now
it didn’t like mud.

She
heard the sound of a car coming up the backroad towards her and squinted when
the headlight caught her eyes. It was impossible to see who was in the driver’s
seat, and yet her heart hammered anyway.

Back to
being a stupid teenager again.

It was
definitely a truck, but when they’d all come on mass to the surgery her nurse
had said that there had been quite a few of those in the parking lot, so she
was no better off. Then the door opened and she heard that low, deep growl as
it rolled towards her through the frosty night air, and she just knew that it
belonged to Marcus.

Second
guessing herself was one of her flaws, but this was a new low even for her. She’d
been doing it since she’d accepted Alex’s invitation and now she was second,
third, and fourth guessing herself as the big man stalked towards her and
blanked out at least one headlight.

“It’s
dangerous for a woman alone on these roads at this time of night.” Marcus
growled his annoyance at her.

“Hello
to you too.” Janice tossed up a hand and let it fall to her side. She guessed
he was pissed that she was in his territory.

“You
don’t have a man to keep you safe…” Marcus growled harder.

“Yeah,
I was considering buying a blow up doll…” She turned away from him. She was
definitely going home. She didn’t need Mr Bad Mood Bear to ruin what was left
her of her crappy night. “Can we just yank the car out of the mud and I’m
gone.”

“Alex
said you were coming for food…” Marcus stopped in his tracks and eyed her.

She
might not have been able to see him, but he damn well had a good view of her
and she looked… sad, it wasn’t in her face, but in the way that she carried
herself.

“I just
lost my appetite.” She muttered, but his ears caught it. He felt a rush of
guilt shoot through him.

“Not on
my account…”

“Your
mood just adds to my wonderful evening.” She bit out. Now he felt like shit.

“Get in
the truck, Janice.” Marcus growled and she shot him a look over her shoulder.
She was frowning hard.

“Thanks,
I’m good here…”

“It
wasn’t a request.” Marcus started towards again and she turned to face him. If
he was going to get all growly and male chauvinist on her ass then she was
going to be ready for him.

“I
don’t take orders.”

“This
one you will or I’ll…”

“You’ll
what?” She demanded.

She was
making a concerted effort to stand her ground. That lasted all of ten seconds
as he closed the gap between them and reached out for her with those big hands
of his.

A
moment later and she was up and over his shoulder, dangling there as she had
last night like a sack of spuds.   

“There
was an easy way and a hard way…” Marcus growled out, annoyed by her behaviour.

“And a
stupid way, which you just bloody proved.” She didn’t struggle. She was a doctor
and a head injury, should she slip and fall, wouldn’t have been good for
anyone, least of all her.

“I
asked you nicely…”

“If
that’s your idea of nicely then you need a slap upside your head.”

“Fine.
Well, I asked and you refused. This is easier.”

Marcus
got to the truck and slowly started to let her down his body to her feet. It
wasn’t the same as the last time he’d done this. She wasn’t drunk and off
limits for one thing, and they hadn’t shared that earth shattering damn kiss
for another.

He was
as hard as steel. His cock ached for her as much as his bear whined like a
little bitch. He felt the press of her breasts against his chest and a rumble
went through him.

Her
scent was divine. It wrapped around him and drew him in… then she stomped on his
damn foot with her boots and he let out a roar of pain and jumped away from her
as he reached for his throbbing toes.

“Easier?
But I’m guessing more painful.” She offered up to him with a small contented
smile.

“Damn
woman, what the hell is wrong with you?” Marcus growled.

She
guessed in all of his dealings with hundreds, maybe thousands of women, he’d
never met one who wanted to knock his damn lights out before. Hmm, now he had.

“I
don’t know. Perhaps it’s just that I’m an irrational woman and not a big,
masculine, take charge kind of a man.” She tossed her hands onto her hips and
questioned him with raised eyebrows.

“People
just don’t go around stomping on other people’s damn toes.” Marcus growled with
a deep scowl that she was beginning to know rather well.

She
preferred his smile, loved his grin, and that sexy look that he got… No, she
wasn’t even going there.

“Ok,
sorry. I take it back…” She shrugged and he twisted his head on his neck and
stared back at her with a look of disbelief on his face.

“You
can’t take it back. My damn toes are throbbing.”

“Ah,
poor baby. You’ll heal, right?” She turned on her heels and started away from
him.

“Oh, no
the hell you don’t.” Marcus shot out a hand and grabbed her upper arm, spinning
her back as he stepped up to her and caught her against the length of his body.