Bear Clan Complete Series Boxed Set

by Jenika Snow

  I stood up and went to search for more batteries when there was a large crash through the window. I cried out and instinctively covered my head, turning away so my back was toward the noise.

  Rain and wind moved through the broken window, and I turned around to see the damage. A large branch had gone right through the glass, the curtains blowing wildly, rain and debris spraying all over the ground.

  The sounds of heavy footballs on the porch came through, and I would’ve passed it off to just the storm, but then I heard pounding on my front door. My heart raced and I backed up, grabbing the island and curling my hands around the edge.

  Fear took root inside of me, growing like another entity.

  “Ainsley.” I heard Asher’s voice roar out over the loud noise of the storm and made no hesitation in rushing toward the front door, unlocking it, and throwing it open.

  The wind pushed the door out of my hands and it slammed against the wall. Asher strode in instantly, closing and locking it, and then facing me and looking me up and down. But it wasn’t sexual. I could see and feel that truth instantly.

  He had his hands on my shoulders, his fingers curled against my body. Concern was thick on his face. “Are you okay?”

  I licked my lips and nodded, not sure what to say, not even sure why he was here, but thankful nonetheless. As soon as I’d heard his voice, I instantly felt relaxed, calm, and knew everything was okay. Even right now, with his hands on my shoulders, I felt his warmth fill me.

  After a few seconds of him continuing to look me over, a crease between his brows as the worry took over his expression, he stepped back and exhaled. Asher lifted his hand and ran it over his short hair, then turned and looked at the window.

  “I need to fix this,” he said almost to himself and then went right into action.

  I took a step back as he went to work. He braved the weather once more as he went out to his truck. I kept the door slightly open and watched him grab what looked like a tool box from the back of his vehicle.

  He rushed back inside, even more soaking wet than when he’d first arrived, his hair plastered to his head, water droplets falling from his body.

  Once the door was shut again, Asher went to work closing up the window. There’d been a few old pieces of plywood in one of the rooms, and after he grabbed them and got rid of the branch through the window, he proceeded to close the opening. The sound of the hammer was barely a whisper over the howl of the wind.

  Once it was closed up, he turned to face me. The only light was from the twin flashlights sitting on the floor beside the fireplace, and the shadows danced along the walls behind him. A chill had started to settle in the cabin, and I lifted my hands and rubbed them over my arms almost involuntarily.

  And once again, Asher was moving into action. He went to the fireplace and in a matter of minutes had a roaring fire in the hearth. I felt the heat instantly and walked over, holding my hands out and rubbing them together in front of the flames.

  Even though I stared at the fire, I could feel Asher’s gaze on me. I straightened and looked over my shoulder, seeing him standing off to the side, his arms hanging loosely at his sides, his clothes soaking wet, his hair dripping with water.

  “God, I’m so sorry. How inconsiderate of me.” I went into action then, grabbing some towels that were shoved in a box and carrying them over to him. I handed him one and set the other in the couch. “I don’t have anything that will fit you, but maybe we can hang your clothes in front of the fire since the electricity is out and, well, I don’t have a washer and dryer yet.”

  He continued to stare at me, not speaking, but there was this fierce expression on his face that I couldn’t quite place.

  He started unbuttoning his flannel, and when he pulled it off, I quickly took it and turned, giving him privacy as he started to remove the white T-shirt he had worn underneath.

  My heart was racing, images of what he looked like without a stitch of clothing on slamming into my head. I felt my face heat and was thankful he couldn’t see me surely blushing.

  I went and turned on the stove, the gas burner lighting up. At least I could still use this without the electricity, could heat us up some water so we could have some tea, so he could warm up a little bit.

  “I hope you like tea,” I said almost absently, but that was just something to keep me busy, to keep my mind off of more inappropriate things.

  I heard rustling behind me, and found myself looking over my shoulder, even though I tried not to. I wanted to give him some privacy, but it was as if he had this rope tethered to me, and I was being pulled toward him. It was hard to fight, almost impossible to ignore.

  He had the white shirt off, and the sight of his chest, the tattoos that I could see, had my private inner muscles clenching almost painfully. I squeezed my thighs together and turned around quickly, but I found myself looking over my shoulder once more, taking in the hard planes of his chest, his pectoral muscles, the washboard abs.

  His chest was bare aside from a line of hair that started just below his navel and disappeared underneath his dark boxer briefs. Yeah, he’d taken off his jeans. And of everything that was holy, that man looked like he was carved out of marble.

  I focused on making the tea, waited until the water heated, until the kettle whistled that the water was hot. I swallowed, my throat so dry and tight, desire racing through me as if it were trying to get to the finish line.

  Once I had the water poured and the teabags in the mugs, I turned and faced him, cups in hand.

  He was already staring at me, completely unaffected that he was nearly naked in front of me. I felt myself blushing even more.

  The closer I got, the way he watched me, his head slightly lowered, his eyes trained right on me, told me maybe I wasn’t hiding my emotions very well. And then when I was a foot from him, holding out the cup of tea, I watched as his nostrils flared slightly and he inhaled deeply. Shivers raced up my arms and legs, and I realized—remembered—he was a bear shifter.

  There was no denying or hiding the fact I was aroused right now.

  For a suspended moment, he didn’t even move, didn’t take the mug out of my hand. He just watched me, continuing to inhale deeply, as if taking my scent into his body. This moment seemed very primal and wild, and the longer I stared at him, the more I saw the subtle changes in his body.

  His muscles seemed to become more pronounced, his features more brutal. His eyes flashed dark, the light blue irises being swallowed up by the pupils before retracting and becoming blue again. And I knew without him telling me, without really knowing much about shifters or what they went through during the change, that I was witnessing his bear trying to push forward, trying to gain supremacy.

  I knew that as well as I knew myself. And it was such a strange thing to be so positive about.

  He finally took the mug and I occupied myself with grabbing one of the towels I’d set on the couch. I picked up the one he’d already used to dry off, the terrycloth damp and smelling of him.

  Fresh. Clean. Like the forest.

  He wrapped a towel around his waist, and I couldn’t help but see the way his abdomen clenched, his six-pack becoming even more pronounced. I sat down and held my mug with both hands, staring at the fire because if I didn’t focus on that, I’d be checking him out. And that would be grossly inappropriate.

  I’d hired him to renovate my home, not to eye him up and down like a piece of meat.

  Long moments passed and I felt his gaze on me, knew he was watching me even though I wasn’t looking at him. And then it was like reality snapped to attention and I finally turned my focus to him. “I’m really thankful you showed up, but I’m surprised you’re here.” A boom of thunder shook the house, and I jumped, a little surprised by how close it sounded.

  He moved to sit next to me on the couch, and instinctively I shifted a little so that I could look at him. I set my mug on the table and swallowed, the silence moving between us, this knowing feeling claiming me. The way he lo
oked at me, the vibes I got from him, had me feeling like this moment was so intimate, so important and profound.

  “Why did you show up tonight?” The words came from me on a whisper, and I knew it sounded a little more sexual than I intended. But all I could think about was being with Asher, wondering what it would feel like to have his body pressed to mine, to have him on top of me, his hands pushing my thighs apart…

  I shook my head to clear those thoughts. Now wasn’t exactly the most appropriate time for all that.

  Was any time appropriate to lust after him?

  He still had a towel wrapped around his waist, but his chest was on full display, the light from the fire causing shadows to bounce off his broad shoulders. He seemed very sure of himself, confident. He wasn’t arrogant, didn’t have this cocky persona about him. It was just as if he … knew.

  “Asher?” I said softly when he had yet to answer me.

  “I tried to stay away, Ainsley.” His voice sounded so thick, with a touch of animalistic magnetism.

  “Tried to stay away?” My heart was thundering a mile a minute at his words.

  I knew what I wanted him to mean.

  “I tried to stay away,” he said once again and moved an inch closer to me. “There’s no denying this. I can’t fight it.” He swallowed, and I watched his throat work from the act. “I tried, and it was the worst fucking mistake I’d ever made in my entire life.” He looked down at my lips. “Walking away from you the first time we met...” He shook his head and glanced back up at me. “I’ll never forgive myself for that.” He exhaled slowly, and I sensed this internal war, this remorse come from him. “I thought staying away was the best thing, that being with you, and maybe losing you …” He shook his head slowly, this painful, anguished expression on his face. “But I realized that not having you in my life is more painful than anything I have or will ever experience.”

  My hands started to shake, and I placed them on my thighs, curling my fingers into my legs, trying to keep them steady. I didn’t know what was happening right now, or why he was saying these things, but what I did know was that I felt them too.

  Strange and crazy, but also so incredible.

  And then he lifted his hand, about to touch me, but he stopped right before he got to my cheek. He looked like he was fighting a war with himself, that he was trying to go slow. But I didn’t want slow or easy. It was like that rope wrapped around me had pulled so tightly it finally snapped in half.

  I lifted my hand and curled my fingers around his thick wrist, brought his palm to my cheek, and leaned against it, moaning softly at the contact. It was like a tiny thousand ants moved along my skin where his touch was, but it wasn’t painful.

  It was the most incredible feeling I’d ever experienced.

  “What’s happening, Asher?” I thought I said those words in my head, but the low growl that came from him, the heat slamming from his body into mine, told me he’d heard me.

  “What’s happening is two mates who have finally found each other.” His voice was so masculine.

  We stared at each other for long moments, neither speaking, the only sound that of the fire crackling and the storm raging outside.

  But I didn’t know what to say regardless. He’d admitted we were mates, something I’d felt from the moment I saw him. The many things I thought about telling him, my emotions and feelings, this intense attraction I felt toward him, all made sense.

  Fated mates.

  Two souls drawn together.

  A lifetime connection.

  My breath hitched at that knowledge, at the deep-rooted realization that settled in my core.

  “Mated?” I didn’t know why I phrased it like a question, but this low hum left him, and I knew it was one of approval.

  He moved an inch closer to me, his hand still on my cheek, his thumb running right beneath my eye.

  “For fucking life, baby.”

  I grew wet between my thighs at hearing that endearment.

  “I felt it instantly,” I said honestly. He made another low hum and moved another inch closer. His leg was pressed against mine now, his gaze lowering to my mouth. Involuntarily, I glanced down and saw the way he tented the towel, his massive erection thick and long and because of me.

  All for me.

  I watched as he lowered his gaze to my mouth and I licked my lips, desperately wanting to feel him on me, his tongue spearing into me, tasting me, claiming every part of me. My entire body tingled, and I felt a surge of electricity move through me. Excitement and anticipation were at war, and all I wanted to do was beg for him to finally take me in the way true mates did.

  “I can smell your desire, Ainsley.”

  His voice didn’t sound human any longer, and that had me squeezing my thighs together, arousal so heavy inside of me that I was losing my mind with lust.

  “It’s saturating the air, this sweet, needy aroma that has my bear clawing to get out.” He looked me in the eyes and I saw the flash of his inner animal, his eyes going black before glowing yellow. “Can you see how much my bear wants you?” His voice was husky. “Can you see him flashing at the surface?”

  I nodded because that was all I could do right now.

  And still his eyes changed color back and forth, over and over again. I knew without a doubt it was his bear trying to gain supremacy. Maybe that should’ve frightened me, but all I felt was unadulterated lust.

  Everything seemed to be moving in slow motion as I looked into his eyes, as I thought about all the obscene, dirty things I wanted him to do to me. And it was as if that tether that had snapped earlier wound its way back around me tighter and tighter until I couldn’t breathe, until I couldn’t even survive unless I finally did this with Asher ... until I finally became his mate in every single way.

  And I knew without a doubt that would be our reality tonight.

  Chapter 8

  Asher

  There was no way I could have stopped this even if I wanted to. Which I didn’t.

  I was having a hard time keeping my bear under control. The beast wanted out, wanted to claim Ainsley right now, to show her what it truly meant to be owned by a shifter, to be mated.

  But I needed to remind myself that I didn’t want to move too fast, be too feral with her. I’d never experienced these feelings, these needs and desires before. But with Ainsley I felt so fucking out of control, I couldn’t even think clearly.

  The images in my head had me imagining obscene, filthy things. I wanted to push the hair off her shoulder so I could see the long, smooth column of her throat. I wanted to spread her thighs, lick her, suck on her, to see how she felt wrapped around my cock.

  She was my female.

  “Asher?” she whispered, this pleading, needy tone in her voice. I could smell how aroused she was, how wet she was. It was this sweet scent that filled my head, made me hungry, drunk for more.

  I wanted to drown in her.

  “Yeah, baby?” The words were a rough growl from me. I leaned in and wrapped my hand around her nape, pulling her impossibly closer to me.

  “Asher.” She said my name again.

  I ran my tongue along her jawline and groaned at the sweet flavor of her flesh. My cock throbbed, and my bear paced right below the surface of my skin, needing out so damn badly I could taste the wild nature of him, feel it consume every cell in my body.

  In this moment I was feral, territorial, and wanted to possess every inch of this female until she acknowledged that she was mine, and that she always would be.

  I’d never felt this kind of intensity before, but I wanted to soak it all in, keep it forever.

  She made me feel … alive.

  With her I wasn’t alone. With Ainsley, I was everything I’d ever wanted to be.

  A low growl left me, and in a matter of seconds I had her in my arms and was striding to the bedroom.

  “There’s only a mattress,” she said on a gasp, her legs wrapped around my waist, her arms around my neck.

  “W
hat?” I said harshly, only thinking about one thing … claiming her.

  “I don’t have a bed, only a mattress.” Her words were nothing more than puffs of breath against my neck.

  “That’s all we need,” I groaned.

  Once in the room, I shut the door with the heel of my foot but refused to let her out of my arms. The sensation of holding her, of her warmth and curves molding against me, had me feeling primal.

  I needed to feel her, touch, lick, suck at every inch of her body.

  I was about to eat her alive until she came so fucking hard my ears would ring from her screams and my bear would be able to sample the nectar that would flow from her lush, curvy body. I walked toward the mattress, let her slide down the length of my body until her feet touched the floor, and reluctantly took a step back.

  And then I just stared at her.

  She wore these little denim shorts, the material having risen up when she slid down my body. Her thighs were smooth and creamy in color, and all I kept thinking about was parting them and watching as her pussy lips spread wide so I could see her wetness. My mouth literally watered when that image slammed into my head.

  I reached down and pressed my hand right over my dick, applying pressure and trying to ease the ache in my shaft.

  Fuck, I was already losing control and I hadn’t even really touched her, didn’t know how wet and hot she was.

  “Your eyes,” she whispered, and I knew what she was talking about without even asking.

  “It’s my bear,” I growled out and took a step closer. “He wants out, Ainsley.”

  She swallowed, the sound audible.

  “Why?” she whispered.

  I made another low, animalistic sound. “He wants out because of you, because he wants you that fucking badly.”

  I inhaled, the scent of her desire coating the air and causing my cock to jerk even more. As she stood there, I kept my focus on Ainsley. “I’m hungry for you.” My voice was distorted, my bear rising up. I was more animal than human right now.