Some Bear to Love: BBW Bear Shifter (BWWM) Romance Standalone (3 page)

But he was tall, taller than any man she’d been interested in, and as he finally gave in and pulled off his shirt to reveal his bare chest, gleaming and tan, the muscles beneath were huge and rippling. Just one of those men who could naturally get huge when working out.

Her mouth literally watered. What she wouldn’t do to have a man like that in her bed. Just once…

He turned to go back into the cabin, probably to change into his swimsuit, giving her a view of his wide, powerful back and shoulders, which tapered down to a trim waist and a perfect—

“Want to snorkel with me?” A deep, masculine voice interrupted her thoughts.

“What?” she flipped around to see Wilson in the water. He normally would have caught more of her notice, but he just paled next to the chemistry she felt instantly with Sebastien.

But he certainly seemed more interested in her than the latter was.

“Want to pair up with me? The others are partnered.”

“Oh, sure,” she said. “Where to?”

“How about just the other side of the boat? There’s not a lot out here, just coral and fish, but it’s nice to just go face down and cool off.”

“Sure,” she said reluctantly, eyeing the boat. She kind of wished she could go with Sebastien, but he was still changing. Plus, he’d made it clear he wasn’t interested, and there was no reason to be cruel to Wilson.

She tightened her mask, put her snorkel in her mouth, and swam forward with her face in the water.

Immediately, the underwater world opened up to her. Blue and shimmering and wonderful. She felt ripples from Wilson swimming alongside her but didn’t pay much attention. At one point, he reached for her hand, maybe just to make sure they didn’t pull apart, but she moved out of reach. She didn’t want to give him the wrong idea. She’d had plenty of men come on to her in her day and knew it was best to be firm in her rejection.

She looked over at him in the water as he pulled his hand back, but he didn’t seem overly bothered.

After another minute, she felt him catch her hand again. This time she shook him off more intentionally and swam a bit faster ahead. This wasn’t a love cruise, even if she did want it to be that way with the captain. She shouldn’t have agreed to go with Wilson.

Then something grabbed her leg, and she got pissed. She kicked hard, felt a connection with something, and surfaced, pulling off her mask and sputtering in rage. The nerve of some people—

She stopped with a gasp when she shook water out of her eyes and saw Sebastien, red-faced, with a hand over his perfect nose, eyes angry as all hell and burning like blue flames under the Caribbean sun.

“I assume you have a reason for assaulting someone who was just trying to warn you not to go too far from the boat.”

She whipped her head around to survey her surroundings. He was right. She was a little too far from the boat and definitely should have turned back to stay with the group. Wilson’s snorkel was a little ways away. Clearly, he’d taken her rebuff well and had given her some space.

Too much space.

There were currents out here and she could feel herself being pulled away from the boat. She started swimming back, feeling grim embarrassment for having assaulted the captain, thinking it was Wilson and thinking he was making a move.

Of course the captain would only touch her for completely honorable reasons.

She gritted her teeth and swam past him, too humiliated to respond, but he caught her by the arm.

“Hold on. Swim back with me. The currents here are bad.”

She looked into his blue eyes, that gorgeous blond hair streaming around his face. His touch on her arm was too much. Her embarrassment melted into something else entirely. Something warm, hot, and pleasant in an anticipatory sort of way.

They’d done nothing but fight since they met, yet she couldn’t help feeling she’d rather spend time with him than anyone else in the word.

Given the appraising look he was giving her, despite all his protesting, it was possible he felt the same way.

He tried to link an arm though a strap of her lifejacket, but she pushed him off.

“I can swim on my own,” she said, setting out ahead of him.

“Fine, stubborn female,” he said, striking out after her.

They battled for first position, and soon, they were passing their group, reaching the ship, and panting and looking at each other as the others dove and splashed.

He pulled off his mask and put it on the swim platform. His face was tensed, lips pursed, but there was something glinting in his blue eyes. Something she hadn’t seen before.

Pleasure.

“That was fun,” he said, hefting himself up to sit on the low platform and reaching a hand down for her to do the same. “You know, I’ve never really gotten in with the customers before. It’s nice.”

“Shouldn’t you try what you’re selling?”

He shook his head, sending sparkling water droplets spraying around him. Damn, he was beautiful. All that muscle, tanned and dripping wet. “What I’m selling is a safe voyage where everyone can enjoy themselves. Nothing more, nothing less.”

“How do you know it’s enjoyable if you never try it?” she asked.

He looked out at the ocean, and she noticed a familiar gleam in his eyes as he did. He loved it. He surveyed the water the way she surveyed anything that looked fun or adventurous.

He was a man of singular passion. It was almost good he was destined not to be with her. She wouldn’t want to have to compete with the ocean. Especially for her mate. That would hurt.

Not as much as having to walk away from him and go back to New York to keep family promises that were made before her birth, but yeah, it would hurt.

“I’m glad you got me out here. I’m even glad my dad made me first mate instead of captain, though I was pissed at first. Maybe I did need to relax.” He rubbed his nose and glared at her playfully. “Why did you pop me one, though? Can’t say that was enjoyable.”

She tried not to laugh, because it wasn’t funny, but looking back on it, the situation kind of was. “Sorry, I thought you were Wilson.”

His expression darkened as he looked her over. “What?”

Oh shit. Then she’d have to explain why she accidentally kicked Wilson, and she didn’t even know how much Wilson had actually pulled. And he looked angry with her.

She should have just claimed she accidentally kicked too hard. She bit her lip.

H
e didn’t
like the dark feelings stirring within him. Anger, possession, jealousy.

And the fear he’d experienced when he’d seen her swimming past her snorkeling partner, getting too far from her boat and out toward dangerous ocean currents.

It was similar to how he’d felt when she’d flown off the back of the boat. Like his heart had stopped and only had permission to start again when she’d been okay.

He’d never felt this way before. He’d always been a protective sort of person. Always wanted to shelter his family and the people under his care on the ship.

But this was different. A soul-deep need that seemed to burn within him.

And he didn’t know what to do about it.

And now he was feeling it again, as she said she’d kicked him, thinking he was Wilson. So what had Wilson done? He had his own suspicions about the guy. He wasn’t sure exactly what kind of shifter he was, but he was something. And he’d been one of the last people to book the boat, after the couple.

So had he done it because Kim had booked it and he could sense Kim was an alpha female, a rarity in the shifter world? It was something to watch out for.

He tried to convince himself it was because she was just a passenger, but he couldn’t help feeling there was something else to it.

Her warm gray eyes sparkled in the afternoon sun. Her dark hair was dotted with glistening drops of water, and her curvaceous, tall body was graceful in the sea. She was some kind of sparkling water sprite, and he found himself wanting to watch out for her for the rest of his life.

Which was stupid, because she was a lawyer. She was going back to New York, back to “civilized” life. She didn’t need him. She’d play and have fun like many of the tourists here and then go back to the “real world.”

Leaving everything behind.

Like his mom had left him and his brothers and his father. True, the location had been different, but the result was the same. Sebastien had seen the destruction it wreaked on his dad’s heart, and he wasn’t going to open himself to the same. Not to mention how damaging it had been for him and his brothers, suddenly rejected and on their own.

Their dad had tried to explain they were part animal, some more than others, and animals didn’t usually stay together in the wild. Especially bears like them.

So after their mom left, making excuses about it being too cold, their father had moved them to the tropics. Polar bears didn’t need to live in the Arctic. In fact, their bodies had to go through intense changes to do so, storing tons of fat to stay warm.

Here in the tropics, as long as there was water, they were fine.

But he couldn’t help thinking part of the reason his father had come here was in the hope that his mother would show up one day.

But she hadn’t.

He heard Kim clear her throat and made an effort to pull out of his thoughts and be less rude. What had they been talking about? He looked to her for a clue, and she gave him an innocent look as jealousy coiled through him again.

Wilson.

“What did he do?” he growled, a little more harshly than he meant.

She bit her lip and looked to the side. Her lashes sparkled with water. So long. “Nothing.”

He exhaled tensely. “Sure. No, what did he do? I’m captain. You have to tell me.”

Her eyes twinkled, and she slid back into the water and swam a bit away from the platform. “Maybe I’ll tell Bart later, then.”

He hopped into the water to chase her. The others were on the other side of the boat, so they didn’t see her make a break, giggling, to evade questioning.

But she was smaller than him, something his body kept noting even as it noted she was also strong and vivacious, and it was easy to catch up in a couple strokes. Within minutes, he had her against his body, and once again, he liked the feeling far too much.

She struggled helplessly and then gave up, looking up into his eyes with ones that gleamed like polished silver in the sun. “Fine, I give,” she said, biting her lip and pushing her long braids over her shoulder as she looked up at him.

“Good,” he said, still encircling her in his arms, telling himself it was so the current couldn’t pull her away. “Now tell me what happened with Wilson.”

“He made a move on me,” she said. When he let out a low growl, she corrected herself. “Just tried to grab my hand a couple times. I don’t know. I didn’t look back after the first one. Maybe that was you.”

He tried to keep down his anger. He didn’t like the violent reaction he had to another man coming on to her. It suggested things about his bear that he didn’t like. Like he’d found his mate. And he was never going to let something like that dictate his life the way it had his father’s.

But the Wilson thing, that was worrying. Should he tell her outright about the shifter thing? Presumably, she already knew he could sense her and she could sense him. But had she picked up on Wilson yet? The man wasn’t a very strong alpha and wasn’t putting out a very intense scent.

“You should be careful around him,” he settled on saying. “Maybe not go off alone with him.”

She nodded. “Yeah, I think I’m in agreement there,” she said. Then she gave him a playful look that made him want to pull her close and kiss her. “But who will be my partner?” She gave him a coquettish stare.

Damn, she made it hard to stay serious. Or angry. “Me,” he said. “I’ll partner you.”

He only meant it for activities, but it seemed to mean more once the words hit the air, taking on a flavor that was slightly romantic. “It’s only for a few days,” he amended. “Not a big deal. I’m enjoying being out in the water anyway,” he said.

She went silent then, as if considering everything he’d said, everything that had passed between them. Maybe this female was more serious than he’d first thought. She’d seemed so flippant, whether she was stealing his boat or making fun of him for losing his captain position… or falling off the back of the boat.

But she was a lawyer. There was a smart brain inside that tenacious body. She pushed out of his arms and broke the magical contact between them, becoming that irritating female that was always in trouble once again. She swam away with a laugh.

“We’ll see. Maybe you and Wilson can take turns,” she said.

“Not if he makes a habit of touching you when you haven’t asked for it,” he said with a growl.

She turned back with a grin, a few feet away. “He’s not the only one.”

That was it. He swam after her and caught her again, taking her by the arm and whipping her back against him so he could take her lips in a hard kiss. She gasped in shock, but he smothered it with his kiss, diving deep, swiping possessively through her with his tongue, owning and claiming and letting her know he was a man who took things seriously, even if it were kissing some sense into the most beautiful, frustrating, infuriating woman he’d ever met.

When they pulled away, she was panting softly. There was fury in her eyes, along with something else. Something much more primal that called to him.

“Honey, you’ve been begging me for it from the moment you saw me,” he said gruffly, keeping a hand around her soft waist. “And if you pretend it’s the same with anyone else, I’m going to give it to you.”

She bit her full lower lip and gave him half a grin but then swam away once again, giving him no answer to his statement. He couldn’t tell if she was overwhelmed, like he felt, or if she just had nothing to say.

But he had a feeling he’d won this round, for the first time, between them.

K
im watched
as the others took plates to the barbecue and then sat to eat. She’d gotten her plate earlier, scarfed down what seemed like the appropriate amount of food, and been brooding and nursing a single wine cooler ever since.

The breeze was cooling, the sun was casting beautiful streams of orange and pink and yellow across the darkening red sky in front of her, and the water was turning dark blue and reflecting the sunset.

And she still hadn’t forgotten that single kiss that had rocked her world.

Sebastien was nowhere to be seen while Bart was handling the grill. They were still anchored out here in the middle of this beautiful ocean, with nothing visible in the distance. Tonight, she’d be sleeping in a tiny cabin, not too far from his, dreaming of pulling his hair out of that beautiful ponytail and winding her fingers in it as she took his lips in a kiss in revenge for what he’d done to her in the water.

Not the kiss, but telling her she’d been begging for it. It didn’t matter that he was right.

She checked her watch and waited for the others to finish eating. Wilson kept giving her smiling glances, pushing his thick blond hair out of his face in an attempt at flirting.

The couple was a little standoffish. She got the feeling the wife found her threatening, which was a shame because she could have used a girlfriend on this voyage. She couldn’t wait to get back and talk to Mara. She pulled her phone out of her tote and checked again for service. Nothing.

She’d just have to wait until dark. She had a plan. One she was sure her handsome captain would object to, but she’d already figured out a way around it.

She was pulled from her thoughts by Bart sitting next to her with a plate of his own. The smell of grilled chicken lifted toward her nostrils as he cut in and chewed, looking thoughtfully out at the ocean. Where else was there to look?

“Don’t be too hard on the captain.”

She chuckled. “He’s not captain. You are.”

He laughed, a sound like a small dog’s bark, and slapped his knee. “You know as well as me that no matter who’s piloting this vessel, he’ll always be the captain.”

She laughed and put an arm around the smaller man. He blushed and focused on his chicken. He looked to be around Sebastien’s age, maybe a little older. But Sebastien commanded more attention and respect, and the other man didn’t seem to resent it, even if he did seem to be aware of it.

“He hasn’t had a lot of time for fun. His father wasn’t trying to be cruel or anything, but you can’t get the captain to enjoy himself. He’s been trying to run things since he was little. Since I was little. If he ain’t in control, he don’t know what to do with himself.”

She smiled. “I guess I’m a good counter to that.”

He grinned back. “That you are. Stealing his boat, falling off of it. Getting too far away while swimming. And other things.” He smirked slightly and looked away, and she realized he must have seen them kissing. Of course, since he wasn’t in the water, what else would he have been doing?

“No, no, don’t feel guilty,” he said. “I guess all I’m saying is whatever you’re doing, keep doing it.”

She smiled. That would be no problem. She even intended to start up again as soon as the sun was down. As soon as the others took to their cabins and were safely asleep. Then she’d enact her plans with the captain.

S
ebastien was on his back
, listening to the quiet sounds of the ship rocking at night, when a knock sounded at his door. He sat up a little too quickly and nearly whacked his head on the low ceiling.

“Who’s there?” he hissed.

“Shh…” a feminine voice answered as the door to his cabin opened. He grimaced. He should have locked it, but he didn’t think anyone would have dared to bother him.

But of course, Kim never held to anyone’s expectations. She was in the doorway, wearing another one of those sensuous bikinis that pressed up her breasts in the middle, in bright colors that complimented her smooth, dark skin and lush curves. And a low sarong about her wide hips. Her legs were long and toned, her stomach curved in like an hourglass, with soft fat on the front that he wanted to sink his hands into.

She was soft, womanly, and perfect, and he longed to take her in his arms and show her.

But she wasn’t for him, he reminded himself for the last time. She was a city girl, and he wasn’t looking for a mate. He wasn’t looking to be destroyed like his dad had been.

Still, he found himself wondering what just one night with this gorgeous woman would be like. One night together with no strings attached.

Now that was a dangerous thought. He had a feeling once he found a home inside that body, those arms, he’d never be able to let go. And that thought scared him more than anything.

“Why are you here?” he asked, standing and shutting the door behind him.

“I’m trying something I’ve never done before and wanted to see if you’d join me.”

“What do you mean?” he asked, eyes narrowed.

“I’m thinking of going skinny dipping.”

He bit his tongue and then swore. “And you came to tell me this why?”

“I don’t think it’s safe to go alone.”

He folded his arms, shifting his weight to try to ignore the erection growing in his pants as he thought about her curves half covered by dark water, glistening in the moonlight. “Damn straight. It’s not safe either way, because I’m not going. It would be unprofessional, not to mention unhygienic.”

“Oh, please,” she said, taking a step forward to place a hand on his chest. He could feel his heartbeat hammering away beneath it and hoped she wasn’t aware of it. But when she looked up with a grin on her face, he could tell she was. “Like anything about the ocean is hygienic.” She played with the neck of his shirt, pulling it down slightly, teasing the hair of his chest. “It’s wild, untamed, exciting. And natural. That’s what people love about it.”

That’s what I love about you
, he wanted to say. But it made no sense. All the woman did was frustrate him.

“But if you’re not interested, I suppose I could go ask Wilson,” she said, turning to leave.

“Like hell,” he growled. When she turned to him with a satisfied smirk, he knew she’d gotten him. But damn if he’d let another man see her naked curves in the moonlight. He didn’t know exactly what this was between them. Didn’t know why she was the first woman he’d kissed in ten years. Didn’t know why it drove him out of his mind to think of another shifter pursuing her.

And if he did know, he didn’t want to acknowledge that.

All he knew was she was his. Or she could be tonight. And if they didn’t go all the way, at least he could see her naked.