Movement caught his eye. A small animal scurried into the underbrush, and his instincts kicked into overdrive. Barreling through the bushes in hot pursuit, he followed the scent of the creature. His heart pounded with the feral thrill of the hunt. A few seconds later, the plump, little rabbit bounded out into the open. Alex pounced just as it bolted into a hole in the ground.
Alex tumbled ass over teakettle at the sudden stop and sat stunned over the loss. Not because he really wanted to catch the bunny, but because of what the bunny symbolized. Or rather, who. Every time Alex pursued her, Kat slipped away.
He lumbered across the small clearing, all joy he’d felt gone. Every day seemed to drive the wedge between them ever deeper. And after last night, all hope for a future with her — a real future — was dashed. Maybe it was time to give up.
They’d live separately in the same apartment. Maybe he’d do as his father had suggested and take a mistress, spend most of his time with her. But the very thought made him retch. He couldn’t imagine ever touching another woman in a romantic way, much less sleeping with one. Now that he’d found his perfect mate, he’d never be satisfied with anyone else. If Kat continued to refuse him, he’d simply live as a monk and content himself with being near her.
The sound of an animal growling raised his hackles, until he realized the growl had come from him. No, living as a monk wasn’t an option. Katrina was the only woman for him, and he’d have to prove it to her, no matter how long it took. He’d continue on as he had been, showing her what a real life with him could be like when they were in public, and respecting her wishes in private. It was frustrating as hell, but he had to hold onto the belief she’d realize they were made for each other someday. She couldn’t deny it forever. Hopefully.
Stepping out into another clearing, Alex realized with a start he’d returned to the site of their ceremony. The exact point where the Fairchild land and the Hamilton land merged, just as he and Kat had in this very spot. His great paws had subconsciously brought him to the one place that would always be sacred to his heart.
It had to be a sign. He’d return home, scoop her up in his arms, kiss the living daylights out of her and ask her to go away with him. Anywhere. A new start.
As he turned to sprint back to his car, a sound echoed up the river. A sound that chilled his very blood. A scream. And he knew the voice.
As soon as she’d heard Alex leave that morning, Katrina had slipped away too. She knew she should be taking advantage of the time alone to plan her escape, but she was about to crawl out of her skin with anxiety. On top of that, she couldn’t help imagining Alex fucking some random woman on every flat surface of the apartment — and some of the vertical ones too. She refused to sit on the couches, much less eat at the kitchen table. She needed to go for a run.
Now that she didn’t have a gaggle of bodyguards following her around everywhere she went, she could come and go as she pleased. No one even looked her way when she left Alex’s place and hopped in the car he’d given her. She drove straight to the border of her father’s land and shifted.
Relief and satisfaction flooded her when the transformation was complete. She longed to feel that freedom all the time, every day. Free to run, free to be whoever she wanted to be. Such joy surged through her, she might even climb a tree in search of honey, as she and Tilly had done as cubs.
Kat stopped at the river’s edge, the river that cut between the Hamilton and Fairchild territories. The river that now reminded her of Alex. Her heart lurched thinking about him, so she drove the image of him from her mind and waded into the river. The cold water barely registered, thanks to her thick golden fur. As a human, she’d already be shivering, but as a bear, she delighted in splashing around.
Living as a bear wouldn’t be so bad. She loved to fish and was damn good at it. Even the plushest mattress couldn’t compare to a nest of soft leaves in a quiet den. The simplicity of the natural life appealed to her, but she would miss her art. And traveling. Airlines probably had a policy against full-grown bears sitting in First Class.
With a sigh, Kat laid back on the rocks and leisurely shifted back to her woman form. Rocks she hadn’t noticed as a bear poked her uncomfortably. Stretching her arm above her face, she wiggled her fingers. She’d definitely miss those. Opposable thumbs were nothing to scoff at.
The sound of rustling shrubs caught her attention. A jolt of alarm caught her breath in her throat as a man stepped out from behind a tree. She released the breath in a relieved laugh when she recognized him.
“Edgar! You startled me.”
Edgar had been one of her bodyguards since she was twelve. He must have seen her running on the property and come to warn her about being out by herself. As usual. She braced herself for a chastising, and got her standard argument ready.
But Edgar didn’t say a word. A slow smile slid across his face as he leaned against the tree and stared at her. His gaze traveled the length of her body, making her wish for something to cover herself with. She’d never felt that within her community, especially with her bodyguards. Nudity was an everyday thing for them as they shifted between bear and human. No one batted an eye or behaved even remotely lewd. It simply wasn’t done.
But Edgar’s gaze couldn’t be considered anything except a leer. He was drinking in her naked form, enjoying what he saw. It left her feeling more vulnerable than she’d ever felt before. Like she was in danger or something — but that couldn’t be. Edgar had protected her for years.
“I’ve been waiting for this,” he finally growled.
Kat shivered at his tone and quickly stood, wondering if she should shift back to protect herself. No, that was ridiculous. Her father had always trusted Edgar with her life. She had always trusted him. He was a good guy.
“Waiting for what?” She tried to keep her voice light, to not show fear, but he probably smelled it coming off her in waves.
“This,” he said, stepping toward her, grinning.
“W-what are you talking about, Edgar?” Kat stumbled backward, sharp rocks digging into her soles.
“We had to stay away, you know.” He took another step closer. “Some of the younger guards wanted to try seducing you, but we all knew your father would have found out and killed us. So we were good little minions and did what we were told. Not that you made it easy on us, always teasing us like a little slut.”
Kat was stunned into silence. “I don’t know what—“
“Oh please,” he snorted. “You knew exactly what you were doing every time you pranced around in those skimpy jogging clothes, acting all virginal and shit. But I didn’t mind. I’m patient. I knew I’d get my chance once you were married off and no longer your daddy’s problem.”
Alarms clanged in her head and Kat finally listened. As much as she didn’t want to believe it, Edgar was a pervert. And quite possibly a violent one.
“Don’t come a step closer,” she warned, though they both knew she wouldn’t have time to shift before he was on her.
He carried on as if she hadn’t said a word. “So I waited and I watched. And now, here we are.”
Everything clicked into place. All the times she’d felt hunted or watched — it had been Edgar stalking her!
“Now my time has come. It’s my turn to fuck you, like I know you want. Don’t try to deny it. I saw how you always looked at me.”
“You mean like an old man?” Kat snapped, still terrified but also furious. This man, to whom her father had entrusted his only daughter, had been lusting over her since she was a child.
Edgar’s eyes narrowed to angry little slits. “I’ll show you who’s old, you little bitch.”
Kat continue scrambling backward, staying just out of reach but not far enough away to shift safely. If he came much closer, she’d just have to take her chances.
“I’m warning you, Edgar…”
He bared his teeth in a sneer and lunged at her. Kat screamed and pulled her bear out as quickly as she could, but she wasn’t fast enough. Ed
gar knocked her to the ground and, before her claws had fully extended, he was on top of her, his weight pinning her.
“Go ahead, scream. Who do you think’s going to hear you?” he seethed. “We always warned you not to go out on your own, but did you ever listen? This is what you get!”
He jammed a knee between her naked thighs. She screamed again and bit at his head with her growing fangs, scratched with her claws, but had little effect. He was half-bear now too, and Kat was no match for his superior strength.
“Fuck you!” she screamed, trying to jam a claw in his eye.
He caught her hand and laughed. “Fine by me!”
She tried to scream again, but he’d thrown an arm across her throat, cutting off her air supply, which cut off her ability to continue shifting. The world began to swim from lack of oxygen. Still she struggled, and she would continue to fight until the blackness consumed her.
Or until death took her.
Thirteen
The world around Kat had faded to dark grey when the forest exploded. An absolutely enormous bear burst out of the tree line and, with a swipe of one gigantic paw, sent Edgar flying. With her brain working again, Kat didn’t hesitate to finish her transformation into a bear. Neither did Edgar.
The two males circled each other, growling and snorting, as Kat edged closer. She’d never seen Alex in bear form, but she knew him instantly from his scent. While his furious black eyes never wavered from Edgar, she felt his silent acknowledgement of her presence.
Together they stood, shoulder to shoulder, against a man she’d trusted, a man who’d been charged with protecting her, not hurting her. If he’d tried it with her, had he succeeded with someone else? Someone who wasn’t under the constant, watchful eyes of her father’s hired men? The very idea sent her into a frenzy of rage.
Raising her bulk onto her hind legs, Kat bellowed at Edgar with such ferocity, he cowered before her, even though he was larger. But it was all a ruse. The moment she dropped back to all-fours, he darted forward and chomped onto her throat. She screamed in rage and surprise, raking her four-inch long claws across his hide. It was his turn to scream, and as soon as his grip loosened, Kat backed away, blood dripping from her paw.
Alex barreled into Edgar, sending him tumbling into the river unconscious and narrowly avoiding Alex’s powerful, snapping jaws. The current swept him away before either Alex or Kat could drag him back on land to finish what they’d started. They stood at the edge of the water together, watching and panting as Edgar floated downstream.
Almost in unison, as if they’d sent a silent message to one another, they both shifted back to humans. Turning to each other, their dilated eyes scanned one another, checking for wounds. Heat and ferocity burned between them like a sun flare, scorching Kat from the inside out. She couldn’t be sure who instigated what happened next, all she knew was that bloodlust had somehow morphed into plain, old lust and they flew into each others’ arms.
Slick skin skimmed across slick skin, fingers buried themselves in hair and tugged…hard, until the neck in question was exposed fully. Fingers slipped into dark, welcoming nooks, and hands stroked eager flesh. Tongues collided, challenging the other, then yielding under the onslaught.
The frenzy overpowered them until they collapsed on the damp grass, all arms and legs and lips and teeth. Even as a bear, Kat had never experienced such animalistic instincts before. But now was not the time for thinking. Now was the time for doing…for loving…for fucking.
Alex hovered over Kat, ready to penetrate her, to claim her as his, but Kat had other ideas. With a ferocious growl, she rolled him over onto his back and poised herself above his stiff shaft. If she’d been in her right mind, she might have hesitated, allowed him the position of power, but not today. Today she was rage incarnate. Today she held the power of the world between her thighs. Today she was invincible.
Alex reached for her breasts, but Kat wanted full control of her mate. Grabbing his wrists, just as he had done once, she slammed his arms above his head and crushed his mouth under hers. He eagerly met her kiss and allowed her the dominance she needed to exert. Pulling away suddenly, she let one of her breasts dip into his waiting mouth, pulling it out before he got his fill.
Now was the time. Her yearning for her mate ate at her, drove her to an uninhibited wildness that would surprise her later. Maintaining her grip on his wrists, Kat bared her teeth at Alex in a snarl and reached back with her other hand to guide him to her entrance. When he tried to push up into her, she punished him by pulling away completely, leaving him grunting in frustration.
Words held no meaning for them — only action mattered. Kat’s warning growl was all Alex needed to settled down and behave. He could follow her lead or he could spend the rest of the day wishing he had. That settled, Kat lowered her hips again, sliding her wetness along his length, wanting him to fill her while simultaneously wanting to torment him, to test him.
Alex didn’t try to force anything again, letting her run the show. Even when she unexpectedly tilted her hips enough to take him fully and deeply inside her, he remained still. Kat sat there for a moment, crying out from the pleasure of having her mate buried in her. Slowly, she began undulating, rolling her hips this way and that, speeding up and slowing down.
Her free hand slid up her belly until she found an already hard nipple. Glaring down at her husband, she tugged until her inner walls clenched around him and drew a groan from him. The sound of his pleasure drove her mad, and she settled into a steady rhythm, feeling her core tighten, and another growl from Alex.
Finally she released his hands and raised herself upright, holding onto his bucking hips with one hand while the other slipped between her legs. She strummed, just as she had for years, just as he had their first night together, until lights sparked behind her eyelids. Still, she didn’t stop, didn’t even slow. Allowing the waves to roll over her, she continued riding Alex, crying out his name, screaming like a wild animal, until he too cried her name and clutched at her hips, ramming into her with such force she thought her brain would explode from ecstasy.
Time became irrelevant as their bodies clenched and pulsed in perfect rhythm. They rode the explosion together, as one, until they tumbled back to earth in an exhausted heap. Sweat-slicked skin cooled, and Kat fell into Alex’s warm embrace, perfectly content to lie in her husband’s arms forever.
Fourteen
Alex couldn’t recall a happier time in his entire life, lying in the soft grass with Katrina snuggled into his side, one long, luscious leg thrown over his. Their lovemaking had been more than just sex — it had been two mates coming together as one, sealing their bond forever.
No doubt remained in his mind or heart that a connection existed between them neither could possibly understand. Today had been a perfect example in action. If he hadn’t played hooky, he would never have been in the exact same forest Kat ran off to, and then… A shudder rippled through him.
“What’s wrong?” Kat asked, her voice as soft as kitten ears.
She traced little circles on his chest, which nearly drove him to distraction. “Not a thing in the world, my love. Everything is absolutely, exactly right.”
He adored how she sighed and snuggled even closer, though he’d thought she was as close as possible already. Didn’t bother him one little bit.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” he asked again.
“I’m fine,” she insisted. “Asshole didn’t even break the skin.”
“Can you tell me what happened?” The last thing he wanted to do was pressure her, but he needed to know so he could figure out how to best protect her. Although, he had to admit she’d held her own pretty well, once she’d been able to shift.
As Kat went over every detail of the altercation with her former bodyguard, anger boiled inside Alex. He mustered every ounce of self-control to stop himself from jumping into the river and hunting down the asshole who’d dared touch his mate. He was barely holding on when she said something that tipp
ed him over the edge.
“I guess he must have been the one I sensed watching me.”
Alex frowned. “What do you mean ‘watching’ you?”
“I’ve had this feeling of being watched…hunted, sort of, for the last few weeks. Just a few times, no big deal.”
“No big deal?” Alex sat up and looked down at her, astonished. “Wow, I don’t even know what to say. You’ve been feeling hunted and you didn’t tell anyone? Not even your father?”
Kat blinked up at him, then sat up and pulled her knees to her chest, effectively closing herself off. “No.”
“Yet you went for a run by yourself anyway.” It wasn’t so much a question as an accusation.
“I-I thought it was my imagination.” Her voice sounded so small, so confused.
Instead of gathering her into his arms, as he desperately wanted to do, Alex stood and paced in front of her, not looking at her. He couldn’t. Fear and anger and uncertainty fought for dominance inside him, and he was afraid she’d think he was angry with her. But he must protect her, at all costs.
“This can’t happen again, Katrina. You must be kept safe. You’re my mate and I won’t allow you to come to any harm, do you understand me?”
The fire in his eyes must have startled her because she cringed when he finally met her gaze. He was sorry for that, but she had to know how important her safety was to him. He resumed his pacing.
“Starting tomorrow — no, tonight. Starting tonight, any time you are not with me, you will be escorted by Fairchild security guards. Of course, I will vet each one personally. We can’t have a repeat of today’s attack.”
Blood pounded in his head as his plan came together. “In fact, we can’t risk you being out in public at all. Where there’s one scumbag, three more are hiding, just like roaches. Going forward, the only time you leave the apartment is with me. Otherwise, you stay put, got it?”
The Werebear's Unwanted Bride (A Paranormal BBW Shifter Romance) (Howls Romance) Page 7