“Nathan,” she pleaded.
“Yes…”
She guided him inside her, her mouth dropping as he speared her and gripped her hips, bouncing her on top of him. She cried out into their kiss and rode him, chasing both her pleasure and his.
Deeper, he thought. Deeper, deeper…
She was hot and tight around him. He tangled his hands in her hair, leaning forward to mouth at her neck and pinch her breasts before kissing them one at a time. She scratched his chest and he growled, his bear riled, as her blunt nails raked the dusting of hair there.
Nathan felt the build-up of heat and pleasure but it was as if it would never be enough and he gripped her harder as she moaned and bounced on top of him until he flipped her over. He clasped her hands and raised them above her head, their eyes meeting as thrust into her harder, snapping his hips and ripping cries out of her. He bellowed and shut his eyes, her core so impossibly hot and tight around him as her body merged with his that his vision whited out as he came and pulsed inside her. She kept him there, locking her legs around him and arching into it until he spilled inside her once again.
He was sated and sweaty but she hadn’t come again yet and he slid out of her smoothly and reached down as she was still catching her breath, abruptly and furiously rubbing the swollen flesh of her clit so that she screamed out and dug her nails into his shoulders.
“Nathan!” she gasped and fucked herself on his finger, trembling under the attention of his talented fingers until going still, her every muscle tensed until she finally relaxed again and breathed into his kiss.
I hope I gave you what you came for, he thought, as she curled into his arms under the sheets again.
8
Alanna
“Nathan?” Alanna whispered. “Are you awake?”
Nathan didn’t move. Alanna sat up and watched his chest slowly rise and fall. She hadn’t intended on falling asleep. She hated to think what might have happened if she’d slept through the night and John had found her missing in the morning. Her brother would probably be missing a couple of fingers, for starters. But the sun wasn’t up yet and John usually slept in late enough that Alanna wasn’t worried.
She decided not to wake her bedmate. He looked so peaceful in his sleep. But she allowed herself to trace her fingers softly over his lips and leaned down to kiss his cheek.
“I wish things were different,” she whispered. “I bet you’re wonderful.”
She left him like that, quietly putting her clothes back on and slipping into her robe. Now that she’d found her way to his place, it wasn’t hard to find her way back and she padded quickly down the seemingly endless hallways of the lodge and back across the catwalk to room 27. She held her breath as she slipped the key card into its slot and opened the door, freezing in the dark of the suite, her ears perked up as she listened for any sign of John. But all she could hear was his snores through his door. She’d lucked out not getting caught. If Rawley ever found out his soon to be “wife” had slept with the Black Bear Lake Lodge handyman, she knew he’d cut off more than fingers. She was his property now and she was meant to get used to it.
She was heading back to her bedroom, the ache of exhaustion creeping into her bones as night turned to morning, when John appeared suddenly, throwing his bedroom door open.
“What’re you doing up?” he barked. He was bleary-eyed, but she still had to be careful and her heart pounded. Would he know? She wished she’d been able to take a shower.
“Nothing,” Alanna said softly. “Just wanted a glass of water.”
Alanna saw the way his jaw clenched and his eyes narrowed. She wasn’t sure what mistake she had made, but John did not believe her.
“Where were you going?” he hissed, stomping over to her. He grabbed her wrist so hard she yelped and reared back. “Where were you going at four in the morning?”
“Nowhere!” Alanna gasped. “I wasn’t.”
John stepped up so close to her that for a terrifying moment she thought he was going to kiss her and she stayed still, knowing that the slightest wrong move could get her hurt. She looked away from him, her breath too loud. He slipped his hand into her robe pocket and took out the key card she’d left there, then waved it in her face.
“I just wanted to…” She swallowed and met his eyes. “I just wanted to go look at the sunset. Get some coffee before everyone was up. I swear that’s all.”
“I don’t trust you.” John whipped her around by the arm so suddenly and so hard, she thought he was about to rip her shoulder from its socket and she yelled for him to stop. But he only yanked her toward her room before shoving her inside so hard she fell to the floor. “I dunno what you’ve been up to, but I’m going to let Rawley know and then we’ll see how happy little Alex is about your so-called sunrise morning coffee.”
“No!” Alanna cried out, but John was already shutting the door.
She supposed she was lucky that John hadn’t guessed she was coming back and not going out, but she was full of fear for her brother’s safety as she curled up on the floor and tears slid down her cheeks. Her shoulder still hurt badly from how he’d manhandled her and she was going to have a bruise on her wrist.
She closed her eyes and thought of Nathan instead, his soft warm hands touching her so carefully as if she was the most precious thing in the world.
John decided she wasn’t allowed to leave their suite again until he felt like letting her out. He didn’t seem to want to go anywhere either. So she stuck with him and even though he mostly ignored her, it was infuriating.
John ordered their breakfast via room service hours later and the food was as good as ever, the two of them eating at the table by the window. Alanna poked at her food, angry and sulking, and John paid her no mind as he wasted his time doing whatever it was he did with his phone.
She was tempted to deliberately break something that could be fixed in the room. Then Nathan would be sent up and she could at least see him. How the very sight of him made her feel as if maybe everything would be alright, she had no idea. But she’d tasted that from him now and she wanted more of it. The fact that he was so willing to give it made that feeling even more desperate.
When the phone rang, Alanna jumped. It was only ever Rawley and her stomach turned. She forced herself to scarf down some frittata as John answered and started chatting about some business investment.
She was on her way to the bathroom when John said, “Hey. Get back here. Your brother wants to talk to you.”
Alanna swallowed and padded over to John, obediently taking the phone. “Hello?”
Alanna heard only the faint hiss of the phone line for so long that for a moment she thought that was the point. Alex was dead and this was the cruel way Rawley had of letting her know. But finally, a soft voice said, “Hey...Al...Alanna?”
He sounded like he could hardly breathe and Alanna leaned heavily on the wall, shutting her eyes. They’d hurt him badly in some way. So badly he could hardly speak. She was still wearing her tiny pajamas and her robe and she clutched the belt of her bathrobe tightly as she spoke into the phone. “Alex? Are you alright?”
“You remember,” he whispered, “the river, the…Crockett River.”
Despite her concern, she was impatient. Why did he keep bringing up Crockett River?
“Yeah.”
“We said...we’d always save each other from drowning.” He sounded as if he had a brick wall on his chest, as if every breath was a struggle. She wanted to know what they’d done to him. It was probably just a brutal beat-down. But what if it was something much worse? She’d heard too much about Rawley by now to put much cruelty past him. “The flowers by the river,” Alex whispered. “Sis.”
When she realized what he was trying to say without saying it in a way that anyone listening would understand, Alanna managed not to outwardly react. That would wreck what he was trying to do, which was itself unthinkable.
“I miss Crockett River too,” she said flatly. “That was fu
n. When we went there.”
The point was that they’d been willing to sacrifice themselves for each other and ended up both surviving. That was what he was trying to get her to do. He wanted her to forget about him and save herself. It wasn’t surprising. She’d always trusted Alex with her life.
“I have to go,” Alex whispered. “I miss you.”
“Me too,” Alanna said. “I love you.” She handed the phone back to John and gave nothing away.
Alex had played his trump card.
I’m doing this, she thought.
The thing was, she’d already had this argument with Alex multiple times. But they’d managed to come to an understanding: if one wanted the other to save themselves, they were bound to comply. It made Alanna want to tear her own skin off, but she had to agree. It was all a part of having only had each other after their parents had died. They couldn’t watch each other get hurt too. If one could save the other, they would do it.
John seemed relaxed, having finished his breakfast. He wrapped up his phone-call with Rawley and Alanna made herself a strong screwdriver to give herself some nerve before she went ahead with the sliver of a plan she had in her head.
She changed into warm clothes, but she tried not to be obvious about it. A sweater over a warm undershirt and jeans with boots. Hopefully, she’d end up shifting anyway. Her bear didn’t need a parka.
“I’m worried about my dress.”
John was on the couch, watching a football game on TV and Alanna stood back in the shadows, wringing her hands. He was drinking another highball and only grunted in response.
“You said it was really important that I pick out new dresses downstairs to wear for Rawley but I couldn’t decide and now you won’t let me leave.” She bounced on her toes. “I...I swear all I was going to do last night was watch the sunrise. I’m sorry I lied. But I’m not saying don’t come with me, you could come with me if you don’t trust me.”
“Fucking hell,” John grumbled, rolling his eyes. “Fine, go get the damn dresses. I’m not missing this game. If you’re not back in an hour...”
“I’ll be back,” Alanna said, nodding.
“Guess they worked your brother over pretty good.” He leered at her and she ducked her head, putting on her best show of seeming chastened.
“Yeah,” Alanna said. “They did.”
“Go,” he snapped. “Clock starts now.”
Alanna nodded and every movement felt deliberate as she walked out of the room and shut the suite door behind her. The plan, if one existed, was that she run off and hope to hell that Alex was also able to escape. She would go to Crockett River. There was no guaranteeing that was part of it, but if Alex was ever going to meet her anywhere, it would be Crockett River. And if he didn’t get away…
Don’t think about that.
They’d made a pact and it hurt her to agree to its terms. But she would’ve never forgiven Alex if the shoe was on the other foot.
She headed downstairs and through the lobby, out towards the promenade, keeping an eye out for Nathan the whole time. Just seeing him would make her feel stronger. But there was no sign of him and Alanna couldn’t afford to wait around. She walked quickly and confidently all the way through the promenade, bypassing the dress shop and heading towards the back entrance that let out toward the slopes and the forest beyond.
Her heart pounded as she followed a small crowd of guests all wearing skiing gear and carrying their poles and skis outside. Nobody looked twice at her. But she headed toward the woods, walking as quickly as she could without running and bringing too much attention to herself since no one else was wandering into the thick woods way out behind the lodge.
She estimated that by the time she reached the woods, about fifteen minutes had passed since she’d left room 27. Once safe in the thicket of trees, she shifted and began to run. Bears weren’t the fastest animals in the world, but they were a lot faster than they looked and shifters were much faster than regular bears.
It felt so good to be back in her bear form in her natural environment, her great paws tramping through the powdery snow as she barreled through the forest, heading only away if nowhere specific yet. It felt like being alive.
9
Nathan
Nathan wasn’t surprised when he woke up without Alanna in his bed. She’d run from his kiss and even though coming to his room had seemed like more than just an impulse, she was scared and skittish. He didn’t hold it against her. Besides which, he had lied. Maybe he hadn’t told her any lies but he knew too much now. If she’d known he’d ever had an association with Rawley, surely she would have run from him too. He felt guilty about it, but tried to tell himself that he’d made her feel good and safe during the night they’d shared. Maybe that made up for something.
Nathan couldn’t say he had a plan as he rolled out of bed after nuzzling the pillow that Alanna had slept on for a while and wishing he didn’t have to wash her scent from his body. He only had one instinct now: protect Alanna. And with it was the ever-pulsing thought that he’d realized when they’d made love: She’s your mate.
Nathan texted all his brothers and for once, even though it was a workday and everyone was always busy and difficult to corral, he insisted they all meet after breakfast.
It was time to plot a rescue.
Like usual, he could only get his brothers to gather in the kitchen over a late breakfast and that was fine. It still took them all longer than he would have liked to get there and he was on edge, pacing and getting in the way of cooks and sauciers and Cody himself who didn’t look annoyed so much as concerned. Nathan was never so keyed up.
“Alright,” Connor said. He sat on a stool with a coffee and nodded at Nathan. “I’m guessing I know what this is about. Something else happen?”
Eric shoved his hands in his pockets and leaned against one of the giant steel refrigerators. Nathan nodded at him. “You didn’t tell them?”
Eric shrugged. “Wasn’t my place.”
“Yeah, I probably would have been pissed if you had.” Nathan took a deep breath and paced again. It was a bit of a bear habit intruding on his human self. Bears loved to pace. “It’s Rawley,” he finally said, looking straight at Connor. “That’s who the guy who’s with Alanna is waiting for. I don’t know exactly how he’s involved but I’m positive he’s involved. Eric found him online. The guy works for him.”
“Rawley,” Connor repeated. Nathan watched him absorb that. It wasn’t as if any of his brothers had met Rawley. But Nathan had told them why he’d left and would never return. The world of bear shifters wasn’t very big, but he’d hoped they would never have to cross paths again. “Alright, little brother. How are you playing this?”
Nathan found himself slightly taken aback. Connor had never been shy about throwing his weight around even if Nathan knew his brother trusted him.
“Ideally,” Nathan said, “I’ll be able to get Alanna alone again and she’ll tell me how she’s mixed up with Rawley. But I’m not sure I’ll get the chance. I mean… I could just ask him. The heavy, I mean. The guy she’s with. If I told him I knew Rawley, that I have that connection, without giving anything away, maybe he’d talk. I might be able to bullshit him.” He sighed, rubbing his eyes. “All I really want to do is get Alanna away from him, if I can. If she’ll let me. Whatever trouble she’s into, she doesn’t seem like someone who’s safe in the least.”
“Okay,” Connor said slowly. He pointed to Nathan and Eric. “Assuming he’s in his room, you two go up and try to talk to him. Avoid confrontation if you can. We’ll see what happens after that.”
“What if Rawley shows up,” Nathan said softly. “What if it comes to a fight?”
“Then we fight,” Connor said.
Nathan stood in the elevator with Eric and cracked his knuckles, growling under his breath.
More than anything, he wanted to take down Rawley. But who knew if Rawley was even going to show up?
“You look like you want to fight,” Er
ic said, casting him a sidelong glance. “We’re not going in there to fight. Connor literally just said—”
“I know that,” Nathan said, blood simmering with impatience as they stepped out of the elevator and onto Alanna’s floor. He rubbed the back of his neck. Everything felt too tight. The elevator seemed stuffy. “Not going up there to fight. But I want to be ready if he makes a move.”
“Don’t goad him,” Eric said darkly, and Nathan shot him a glance. “I mean, I know that would be ideal. You can’t start the fight so you just goad the guy into one, but let’s try to find out what’s happening first.”
“I know,” Nathan snapped. “I’m not Cody.”
Eric snorted at that and they exchanged a knowing smirk. Of the four Strauss brothers, Cody had by far the hottest head. Connor could get very angry when he had a good reason and you never wanted to be on his bad side. But it was Cody who got pissed off and started a fight over the slightest thing and it was sometimes difficult not to laugh at him when he was in one of his moods.
“I know you’re not Cody,” Eric said as they made their way down the hall. “But I know Rawley is a sensitive subject. And you obviously really like this girl.”
“Yeah.”
Eric looked at him and performed a slight double-take. “Oh shit. Did you sleep with her?”
He grimaced and rubbed his chin. That beard was growing into thick. He needed a shave. “Maybe.”
“Nathan.”
“What?” He shrugged and they found themselves arriving at room 27, standing there for a moment and rolling their shoulders, mentally preparing themselves for whatever might happen. “She came to my door. I didn’t pursue her. And before that, she kissed me. By the dressing room in Lynn’s? God…It was hot.”
“Careful.” Eric winked at him. “Could be your mate.”
Could be.
Nathan didn’t respond to that. He knocked on the door. There was no response and he tried it again. No answer and no sounds from inside the suite. He nodded at Eric who took out his universal room key. It was a risk. There could be somebody sleeping inside and then they would have to explain why two lodge employees barged into an occupied suite for no reason.
Nathan (Strauss Bear Shifter Brothers 0f Colorado Book 1) Page 8