by Lily Cahill
"I know you're planning on building a B3 retreat." His father took a deep breath. "I'm asking you to reconsider."
This was so far out of left field, Marcus didn't even know where to begin. "Why?"
Peter sighed. "I would rather have this conversation in person. Would you meet me in Rothbury? Where we can look at the land together?"
Marcus looked at Skye's slinky dress, pooled where she had left it the night before. "This isn't a good time. There's someone here, and she'll ask questions."
"It has to be today. I'll explain when I see you."
Marcus' brow drew together. "I'm not going to betray B3. The Brotherhood means everything to me."
Peter sighed heavily. "Just hear me out, all right?"
Marcus set his jaw. "Fine. I'll meet you in Rothbury in four hours."
Chapter Fourteen
Skye
Skye woke up in a gloriously comfortable, unfamiliar bed. Marcus' bed. Just the thought made a quick shiver of delight run across her skin. Her body felt wonderfully used, rejuvenated by Marcus' incredible touch. She rolled over, ready to touch him some more.
The bed was empty.
According to the clock on the bedside table, it was barely six in the morning. He couldn't have been awake for long. She pulled an ultra-soft sheet off the bed, wrapped it around her naked body, and went to find him.
She hadn't taken the time to appreciate his house the night before. Now, as she left the spacious bedroom, she was amazed by the size and opulence of Marcus' rooms. She poked her head into a home gym, a comfy television room, and a bathroom that made her swoon. No wonder he dismissed her apartment. The gulf between them was more obvious than ever. But oddly, the gym seemed like the only room where Marcus spent any time. The rest of the rooms seemed like they had been staged, but not used.
But Marcus wasn't in any of the fourth-floor rooms. She found the stair and headed down, but she didn't find him on the third floor either. She was starting to wonder if she would ever find him. She was in the mood for coffee, pancakes, and sex ... maybe not in that order.
She heard his voice when she descended to the second floor. He was in his office, and it sounded like he was on a business call. She was planning on waving hello and leaving him to his work, but then she heard what he was saying.
"There's someone here, and she'll ask questions."
Skye froze. Who was he talking to?
"I'm not going to betray B3. The Brotherhood means everything to me."
The words twisted inside her. B3? The Brotherhood? Obviously the group meant more to him than he'd let on. He had lied to her, then he had distracted her with sex to keep her from digging too deep.
She looked down at her naked body. It must have been a real sacrifice for him to pretend to be attracted to her. Although she had to give him credit for his acting skills. She had really believed that he wanted her. That maybe, just maybe, he would keep wanting her.
She was taking deep breaths. Her eyes felt hot and damp, as if a single blink would send her into tears.
"Fine. I'll meet you in Rothbury in four hours."
Rothbury? So this did have something to do with the property. If she focused on the story, focused on her career, then maybe she could ignore the pain inside her.
She heard Marcus set down his phone and scampered silently back up the stairs. She leaped back into the bed, trying to arrange herself as if she was still sleeping.
She heard his heavy footsteps on the stairs. A moment later, she felt him come into the room, as if she was attuned to his very presence. Well, he wasn't the only one who could act. She was going to play it cool even if it killed her.
She felt his weight settle next to her on the edge of the bed. She yawned and blinked as if she was just waking. "Good morning."
"Good morning." He was looking at her with such affection it almost killed her. He's playing you, she reminded herself, but it didn't seem to make a difference to her treacherous heart.
"I have to go," he said regretfully. "You can stay as long as you like. Take a bath, make some food, whatever. In fact, I'd like it if you were still here when I got home."
She nodded dumbly. Did he think she was a moron? What sort of guy would really be that open with his home?
"Tonight I'll make you dinner. Remy's not the only one who can cook," he said with a smile. "I'd like to tell you more about B3."
Oh really? That was as unbelievable as the bear she had hallucinated. She welcomed the anger, because it pushed out the hurt. She was careful to keep either emotion from showing on her face. Unable to trust her voice, she said, "Okay."
"Good." He kissed her lightly on the forehead. "Now, go back to sleep. Take care of that head."
"Okay," she said again, and closed her eyes. She kept them closed as she heard him move around the room, gathering what he would need for the day. She stayed still and silent until she heard the elevator begin to descend into the garage.
Then she jumped to her feet and dashed down to the office to find her dress. He wasn't getting away that easily. She was going to figure out the secret of B3, even if doing so broke her heart.
Chapter Fifteen
Marcus
The long drive up to Rothbury wasn't long enough for Marcus' temper to cool. His father had no right, no right whatsoever, to drag him out here. Marcus cursed himself for giving in to his father yet again. He couldn't seem to stop giving the old man chances.
He could be with Skye right now. They could have stayed tangled in that bed all damn day. His cock pulsed at the idea, but it wasn't just sex he wanted. He wanted to make her laugh, and hold her close, and get to know the woman he was fated to spend his life with.
And more than that, he wanted to come clean about B3. How in the hell was he supposed to tell her he was a shifter? It would shock her, of course, but he was certain that her inquisitive nature would take over. Once he explained, she would understand why he had been so evasive about the Brotherhood. She would stop chasing the story, he could proceed with building the retreat, and they would start the rest of their lives together.
Instead, he was driving away from her, driving into the wilderness on a chilly day to meet a man he hated. By the time he parked his black SUV next to his father's sports car at the gated entrance to the land, he was furious.
His father got out of the car when he saw Marcus approaching. Marcus was surprised to see that the older man's hair had gone white.
"Thank you for coming, son," Marcus' father said, holding out a hand to shake.
Marcus kept his hands in his pockets.
After a moment, Peter dropped his hand. "Take a walk with me," he said, and ducked under the gate before Marcus could argue.
Peter led Marcus into the woods. Marcus refused to be the first to speak, so he followed his father in silence.
They walked for a few minutes until they were well away from the road. As always, the wilderness calmed Marcus, called to him. He could see exactly what he would build on this land to enhance its natural beauty.
They entered into a clearing where early spring flowers were just beginning to poke out of the ground. "I can't believe Chapman is dead."
It took Marcus a moment to remember. Chapman had been the name of the former owner, whose heirs were trying to sell off the land. "How did you know him?"
"We did some deals together. One of the few people I worked with who wasn't a shifter. He said he had this land that no one ever used, and I asked him if I could bring you camping up here sometime. Do you remember the first time we came here?"
Marcus nodded. "You brought me and Mom camping here when I was a boy. I remembered it when I started looking for land for B3."
He had fond memories of the trip. They had roasted marshmallows and slept under the stars. During the day, he and his father shifted and roamed the wilderness while his mother relaxed with a book at the campsite.
"Did you ever wonder why we didn't go to one of the B3 retreats?"
"No." Marcus' brow furr
owed. Now that he thought about it, all of their other family vacations had been to a Brotherhood retreat. "Why?"
"Your mother wanted a little private time, with no one around but family. You see, she was expecting another child."
"What?" The news staggered Marcus' heart. "But I must have been ten or eleven by then."
"We weren't expecting it. It just happened," Peter said with a shrug. "We were planning on telling you when we got back from the trip. But then ...," Peter struggled to continue with obvious emotion in his voice. "Then we lost the baby. Which is when the doctor discovered the cancer."
"I remember," Marcus said gruffly. He tried not to think of those years, as his mother got sicker and sicker and his father became more and more desperate.
"That was the last trip we took together as a family."
The emotion in his father's voice struck a nerve in Marcus, which he resented. "Oh, please," he scoffed. "Don't act as if you're tragically mourning my mother's death."
"I never stopped mourning her."
"Oh yeah? You've got a shitty way of showing it. You've spent the last twenty years fucking every floozy you could get your paws on."
Peter whirled to face his son. "Marcus, I know you're angry. You have every right to be. I've been a fool. Ever since your mother died, I've been trying to recreate what we had."
"By sleeping around? By drinking yourself to death?"
Peter held up his hands in surrender. "I have no excuse. She was my mate, and without her life seemed meaningless. I had nothing."
"You had me," Marcus said. "I needed you. And you let me down."
Peter looked at the ground. "So this is how it's going to be. You'll never give me another chance."
"Why should I?" Marcus asked. He was all but shaking with rage and sorrow. "The last time I gave you another chance, at that B3 event in Vegas, what did you do?"
His father sighed. "I got drunk. I shifted. And then I decided to go swimming in the hotel pool."
Marcus huffed. The pool deck at the Ursa Major hotel had gone from casual to chaotic when a full-sized brown bear had pushed open the door and belly-flopped in the pool. "You put us all at risk. There were dozens of shifters staying in that hotel. B3 was right to kick you out."
"You're right."
Marcus didn't think he had ever heard those words from his father before. "I am?"
"I deserved it. It was the wake-up call I needed. I'm sober now, Marcus. I've been sober for five months."
Marcus looked at him closely. For the first time in years, his father was clear-eyed and focused. But that didn't mean he had changed. "I hope it lasts."
Peter nodded. "It will. It hasn't been easy. When I finally got clean, I realized what a mess I'd made of my business. Getting kicked out of B3 decimated my contracts. Not that I didn't deserve it," he said, holding up his hands to forestall Marcus' protests. "I broke one of the cardinal rules of the Brotherhood. I should have known better than that."
Marcus looked away. He wanted to chastise his father, but hadn't he transformed in front of Skye the other night? Now that he knew she was his mate, it was one thing, but he had revealed himself to a non-shifter, just like his father. If anyone knew, he'd be kicked out of B3 as well.
He didn't want to feel sympathy for the man, so he changed tacks. "Did you bring me all the way out here to tell me you're sorry?"
"Not exactly." Peter began to pace around the clearing. "When Chapman died, I remembered this land. I thought perhaps I would buy it."
"You? What are you going to do with it?" Marcus' father had made his fortune in building textiles, which had sparked Marcus' own interest in property development.
"Nothing. I would keep it just like it is."
Marcus shook his head. "You're too late. The sellers already agreed to sell the land to B3."
"Ah, yes," said his father. Peter looked nervous for the first time. "I swear, son, I didn't know you were brokering the deal. If I had known, I would never have done it. But I couldn't stand the idea that B3 would get this land."
"Why not?"
"They already had you," his father said simply. "As I said, you chose the Brotherhood over me. And you were right to do so. But it doesn't mean I want B3 to have my memories as well."
The words touched something in Marcus. In defense, he scoffed, "Did you bring me all the way out here to say that?
Peter shrugged. "I suppose I hoped that if we were here together, you would remember some of those fond memories we had together. Before I ruined everything."
There was naked honesty in the man's eyes. Marcus hated seeing it. His father was still manipulating him. "But you tried to sour the deal so I wouldn't be able to buy it."
"I thought it was B3," Peter pleaded. "I didn't know you were involved."
"Let me guess--you told a reporter."
Peter nodded, looking abashed. "I have a friend at the Gazette. I fed him a tip about B3."
Marcus shook his head. "You told him that B3 was planning on drilling the land."
Peter raised his eyebrows. "You have good sources."
He thought of Skye. "You were hoping the Gazette would do your dirty work for you."
"I knew it was a mistake almost as soon as I had done it. But there's no stopping A.J. when he's on to something. He assigned some young reporter who he said is one of his best. But by the time she started gathering information, I knew you were involved. I had to find a way to stop the story."
Marcus glowered at him. "What did you do?"
His father looked ashamed. "It got out of hand. I asked a guy I know to get her camera for me. I thought he would steal it out of her desk, or break into her car, or something. I never expected he would hurt her."
It took a moment for Peter's words to sink in. When they did, Marcus felt a fury beyond anything he had experienced before. "You hired someone to mug Skye. She could have been hurt. She could have been killed."
His father cocked his head. "Do you know this woman?"
Marcus didn't reply. He was already shifting into bear form and launching himself at his father.
Chapter Sixteen
Skye
Skye estimated that she had left Chicago no more than an hour after Marcus. It had taken her all that time to get home, change, and convince A.J. to pay for the rental car for her to drive to Rothbury for the third time that week. She made up some time by driving like a madwoman, but she still had hours to stew and wonder.
How much had Marcus lied about B3? And had he lied about his attraction to her?
She followed the rental car's GPS over twisty dirt roads. Even though she was anxious to arrive, she couldn't help but notice the quiet beauty of the trees and meadows. If Marcus had been telling the truth, he would preserve this lovely spot while also making it comfortable and welcoming. She couldn't believe that Marcus would do anything to ruin this natural beauty.
But then, she didn't really know him. She had shared her body with him--and, she feared, her heart--but she didn't really know him at all.
When she found the entrance to the land, she pulled into the turn-in beside a flashy sports car and a muscular SUV. She thought she recognized the SUV from Marcus' garage, but she couldn't be sure. She placed her hand on the hood. The engine had grown cold.
She got out her phone and activated the camera function. She didn't know what she would find, but it paid to be prepared.
As before, she ignored the private property signs and slipped through the gate. She had no idea how she was going to find Marcus in these woods. He couldn't have gone far, she assured herself, and set out with eyes open and ears pricked.
It wasn't long before she heard voices. She was careful to walk quietly as she approached. Then she came around a tree and saw them--Marcus and another man having an intense discussion.
The other man looked a bit like Marcus, but he was shorter and his thick mane of hair was entirely white. Could they be related? Marcus hadn't talked much about his family, though she knew from her research that
his father was the sort of aging playboy who had a different socialite on his arm every time he was photographed.
God knew Marcus could have followed in his footsteps, but for some reason he had chosen to spend an evening with her. Seeing him again brought it all back--how close he had sat to her at the restaurant, his attention to her needs and desires, how charming he was with Maddy. Was it really all a lie?
She couldn't quite make out what the men were saying, but Marcus looked angry. She lifted her phone, intending to take a picture of the other man so she could search his image. And that's when Marcus ... changed.
She didn't believe what she was seeing. Marcus launched himself at the other man, and the violence was surprising enough. But then he wasn't Marcus anymore, his body was morphing into something else. Instinctively, her finger hit the button to take a series of pictures with her phone. In the time it took for her to understand what she was seeing, Marcus had become a bear.
She put a hand to her head. Was it possible that she was still hallucinating? Maybe she had some sort of deep brain trauma. Maybe all of this was a dream, and she was still sleeping. Maybe she was going crazy in a very selective way. But there was no way to deny it--she had just seen Marcus Sinclair, billionaire property developer, shape-shift into a bear.
Before she had recovered from that shock, the other man also shifted into a bear. It was smaller than Marcus' bear, and had gray hair threaded around its muzzle. The two animals were on their hind legs, roaring into each other's faces.
Marcus landed a heavy blow to the other bear's face with his massive paw. The other bear stumbled, but recovered quickly enough to roll away from Marcus' snapping jaws. The older bear kicked out with his powerful hind legs and managed to knock Marcus back.
Marcus fell onto his back and the older bear pounced. He pinned Marcus to the ground and roared so ferociously that Skye was certain he would rip out Marcus's throat.
Without any thought for her own safety, Skye ran toward the fighting bears. "No, don't! Stop!"