14
Harper got up for school the next day more confused than ever. Learning about Rocco’s true reason for breaking up with her was an incredible relief. And now he was officially her mate. Things hadn’t happened in the normal way. But shouldn’t I be happy? she thought to herself. The problem was that there was still that one thing niggling away at her, and she couldn’t forget it: if he’d loved her as much as he said he did, how could he have told her that he didn’t, and then start dating that airhead cat shifter?
When she went downstairs to make breakfast, she saw that he’d left already, but there was a note on the kitchen table, saying he hoped she’d slept well and that she had a good day. And did she want to meet for lunch? She sighed. She didn’t know if she could face seeing him during the day today.
It was a busy morning at the kindergarten with two new cubs starting, and she had to field a million questions from their mothers. By the time she got around to replying to Rocco, it was almost lunch time. She sent him a brief message saying she couldn’t make it.
“No worries. Another time,” he replied.
All afternoon, she pushed him out of her mind, while she was busy supervising an obstacle-course class, which involved making sure none of the cubs landed on their heads while scrambling up walls and flinging themselves over barriers. As she began to walk home, she heard the all-too-familiar grunt of a powerful engine. A second later, Rocco pulled up in front of her. He was wearing faded blue jeans and a white t-shirt, a little smeared with grease.
“Hey,” he said, flashing her that smile. “I figured that you had a busy day and could use a ride home.”
“Hey Rocco,” she said, hearing the tiredness in her own voice. “Thank you. But there’s a reason why I leave my car at home – I actually enjoy the walk.” He shut off the engine and climbed off the bike.
“Then I’ll walk with you.” She stopped walking.
“Rocco, I need to be alone for a while. I’ve had a tiring day and I just need some space.” A shadow passed across his eyes and his jaw tightened. Then he lifted his arms in a shrug.
“Sure. It was just an idea.”
Rocco climbed back onto his bike then he sat and watched Harper go, until the green and gold tinged forest swallowed her up. With every bone in his body he wanted to rush after her, to pull her into his arms and tell her that they were going to be together, forever. But he knew Harper. She’d likely cuff him and give him an ear-bashing he’d never forget. And then she’d hate him. She still hadn’t forgiven him; that much was obvious. Of course it was going to take time, but he was just impatient for the day when they could be together again for real, sharing their bed and their lives. There was something else too though. He sensed it. It was more than shock. Even though she now understood his motives, she was still turned against him. Harper had a big heart. He’d always visualized it as a pretty wooden box that was wide open to giving and receiving love. And right now, that box was closed. He had to convince her that she could trust him again. That he’d never hurt her. But how?
“You have to let Harper come to you,” he muttered to himself. She was never the kind of girl who could be persuaded. You had to let her find her own way. “Stubborn” was the word, he thought with a smirk. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to give her a helping hand. A plan came to him in a flash and quickly he started up his bike and tore up the road all the way to downtown Broken Hill.
When he let himself into the cabin half an hour later, Harper was in the shower. Good. He carried all the shopping through to the kitchen and got to work. His mom had given him a recipe for a French beef casserole, with lots of herbs and wine and the kitchen was soon filled with an incredible smell. As he cut up the meat and vegetables, he heard Harper moving to her bedroom and lying down on her bed.
When she finally came down, he was lighting a candle in the middle of the kitchen table and serving himself a huge portion of the aromatic casserole. He’d cooked it well. His mom had explained that it was way easier than it looked, and she was right.
“What are you doing?” Harper asked suspiciously. He noticed that she looked tired again, and as he noted that this was a recent trend, his throat tightened. Soon she’s going to look happy all the time, he promised himself. And the only time she’ll look tired is when we’ve been up mating all night.
“Just making dinner,” he replied airily. “Thought I’d try out a new recipe.” He put his bowl on the table, sat down and began to eat. “Help yourself if you want. There’s plenty.” She went over to the casserole dish and peered inside, then made a satisfied sound.
“Not bad, Silvester,” she said.
“Old family recipe.” He gave her a comical wink.
“If you’re sure there’s enough?”
“There’s probably enough for a week.” She shrugged, took a bowl out of the cupboard and ladled out a helping for herself.
“Wow. I’m impressed,” she said a moment later. “Who would’ve thought you’d learn how to cook?” He tilted his head to the side.
“Thought it was about time, you know.”
He carried on eating, didn’t press the conversation. But the tension between them was so thick that he could almost taste it. At last, he put his silverware down and risked a glance at her. To his surprise, her eyes were wet with tears. Instinctively, he reached across the table and clasped her hand.
“Harper, what is it? Isn’t everything good now? You know I’m a good guy. At least I hope you do.” She wiped the back of her hand across her eyes savagely, then fixed him with a classic Harper don’t-bullshit-me stare.
“Why did you tell me that you didn’t love me? You could have given me some other excuse.” He gave a long sigh that came out as a groan of pain, then he was silent while he collected his thoughts.
“Because it was the only thing that would’ve seemed convincing. My love for you was so strong that anything else would’ve been flimsy. What could I have said? That I needed to focus on my studies? That my parents didn’t like me being with you? It just wouldn’t have rung true, and you would’ve tried to talk me out of it.”
She stared down at the table.
“I guess.” Little wrinkles appeared at the bridge of her nose – a sign she was tussling with a difficult thought.
“But how could you have got together with a cheerleader so soon afterward? At first I didn’t believe you when you said you didn’t love me. But when I saw you with her, I knew it had to be true.”
“Because I had to make you hate me. It was the only way I’d be able to keep myself away from you,” he almost yelled, shocked at the rawness in his own voice. “I had to turn myself into an asshole. When I went bad and did lots of stupid stuff, it wasn’t because I’d forgotten about us. It was because I couldn’t stop thinking about you.” Tears began to roll down her cheeks, and he fought the urge to catch them with his fingertips.
“You could have explained to me, somehow.” He shook his head.
“I couldn’t. I couldn’t rationalize it to myself. All I could do was ruin everything. And I knew that hating me would help you to get over it.” Harper’s eyes were huge and glowing green, like a cat.
“I – I just need a moment,” she said, abruptly getting up from the table.
He waited, his head spinning, having no idea what she was thinking.
Two long minutes later, two long, slender hands briefly touched his shoulders and then she sat down again.
“I’m sorry. I just needed to get a tissue,” she said. When she met his gaze again, her eyes were full of softness. “Oh, Rocco. You were so selfless. All this time I’ve been thinking about my own pain and how you hurt me. And it never occurred to me that it might actually be worse to be the one who was causing the pain.”
“I don’t know if it was worse, but seeing you being so hurt by me was something I’ll never forget.”
“You were so strong, and you made such a difficult series of decisions to protect me. I can see now how mature you were, and
how you never stopped caring about me.”
“I didn’t, Harper. Not once,” he said, his voice husky with emotion.
“I forgive you for everything, Rocco. I want you to know that. And I hope you can forgive me too. For the way I hated you, and the hurt it must have caused you.”
“There’s nothing to forgive, Harper. I have only love in my heart for you.”
Harper stood up, took a step toward him, and sat down on his lap, throwing her arms around his neck. He placed a gentle hand on the back of her neck and brought her mouth to his, drawing her into a tender, passionate kiss.
This time was different. It wasn’t the wild, drunken mating of their Paris hotel room. It wasn’t reminiscences from the past. It was the two of them as they were – adult bears, at the beginning of their relationship. Rocco undressed her carefully, stripping her clothing piece by piece, before laying her on the bed and gazing at her lush curves in adoration. And then he stood in front of her, stripping his own clothes off – the sexy t-shirt, the jeans, the black boxers, until he was gloriously naked – the sexiest man she could ever imagine. He wanted to touch and caress her, but she was ready for him and wanted him inside her, and so they tussled, until he pinned her with his powerful bulk, grasping her wrists in one of his huge hands, while he used the other to pleasure her. While she continued to protest, he brought her to a powerful climax with his hands and mouth. And then, when she was limp from the force of her orgasm, he spread her thighs and entered her, his thick cock filling her to the hilt. He thrust hard, taking her, claiming her as his mate, as he hadn’t dared to before. She moaned and cried out, her nails turning to claws, digging into his back, and he loved it, loved feeling her animal strength. As he arched above her, her muscles clenched down on him in little spasms, urging him to fill her with his seed. He couldn’t hold back. At the last moment, he pulled out, flipped her over and entered her from behind, a second before his orgasm ripped out of him, and he came with a wild, possessive roar.
This time, she turned around and snuggled into his chest, and he just had time to tuck the comforter around them before they fell blissfully asleep.
15
Harper felt safe. She hadn’t felt like that for a long, long time. Yes, she’d spent her adulthood feeling self-sufficient, and well-aware that she was capable of looking after herself. But feeling, safe, protected by her mate was a different thing entirely. Rocco’s chin rested on the top of her head, the prickling of his stubble just discernable. Her face was buried in his neck, and she inhaled his delicious, masculine scent, as if she couldn’t get enough of it. He’s mine, she thought to herself, and at the thought, her heart fluttered. She trusted him. She knew beyond doubt that he did what he did to protect her, and she loved him even more for it.
“Good morning, my beautiful mate,” he rumbled sleepily.
She felt his throat vibrating a milli-second before she heard him speak, and she giggled at the way it made her lips tingle.
“Good morning,” she echoed, glad that he was awake so that she could give in to her urge to run her hands all over his gorgeous body. He laid a hand on the small of her back, pulling her into him, and then he caressed her upper arms, her sides, her ass, while murmuring his appreciation of her. She cupped his jaw and kissed him on the mouth, her tongue flickering into his mouth and seeking out his own. He returned her kiss, and then pulled back.
“If you keep doing that, I’m not going to be able to control myself, Harper Waverly,” he growled.
“Good,” she whispered, and she slid her hand down and wrapped it around his cock, gasping at the discovery that he was already rock hard for her. It only took a little maneuver and he was inside her again, filling her up, setting her on fire.
“I’m going to be late for work,” she said, some time later.
“Yup,” he agreed, reaching for his watch. “But you know what day it is today?”
“Friday!” they both chorused.
“Can I pick you up from school tonight? I just can’t wait to start the weekend with you,” he asked and she nodded eagerly.
Harper was running so late for school that Rocco also had to give her a ride to work. This is like our first romance, Harper thought dreamily, as she clung to his muscular back while the bike made short work of the road. But way better, because we already live together, and we don’t have our parents forcing us to come home at the end of the night.
The next few weeks were idyllic. Rocco and Harper spent all their free time in bed, apart from when they were eating or running in the woods. She never tired of being entwined with his strong muscular body, kissing, mating and talking, making up for the years they’d missed. And by the time they’d done catching each other up on their lives, it felt like they’d never been apart.
Harper moved into Rocco’s room permanently, and they finished filling the cabin with things that they both loved. Every few days they talked about their dreams for the future; when they wanted to start having cubs. They agreed that they wanted two girls and two boys, and they joked that they were all going to end up being green-eyed.
Harper felt like she couldn’t get any happier. And then, one afternoon, as she sat on the porch, drinking a glass of root beer and planning the following day’s lessons, the light south-westerly breeze that had been keeping her so cool suddenly brought a familiar and very unwelcome scent to her nostrils. Her body stiffened, and then she leapt to her feet, and the pile of papers fell from her lap, scattering on the floor. She ran all the way to the end of the driveway, turned a corner, and almost ran into him – a tall, well-built blond man, with rugged features and a broad, square-ish face.
“Christian!” she exclaimed. “What are you doing here?”
“Harper!” the man exclaimed, and broke into a grin, blue eyes sparkling. He took a step closer, and before she knew it, he’d swept her up in a hug. His arms felt familiar, and she choked back a wave of emotion. He put her down again and she staggered backward, startled. At the same moment, the unmistakable sound of Rocco’s uniquely tuneless whistling reached her ears, and he appeared from the opposite corner of the cabin, dressed in a pair of wrestling shorts with a towel slung over one shoulder. At the sight of Christian, he stopped dead, his hackles rising. Christian glowered at him, an unpleasant smile marring his handsome features.
“Well, well, if this isn’t the hero of the moment, who ruined your life then got to be your mate anyway,” he spat. He took a deep sniff of the air. “And, if I’m not mistaken, you’ve become mates in more than just the word.” Harper was hit by a wave of embarrassment and worked hard to stop it from showing on her face.
“Who the hell are you?” Rocco roared, while his bear let off a snarl. Harper made a swift movement so she was standing directly between the two furious bears.
“Rocco, this is Christian. My ex-boyfriend.”
“What?” Rocco demanded, his eyes blazing with shock. “You had a boyfriend? Back in Pine Bluff?”
“I did,” she said, making her voice calm, although her heart was practically beating out of her chest.
“Why didn’t I know about this?”
“Because you didn’t deserve to, doofus!” Christian called from behind her.
“Because, when I agreed to leave my home and become your mate, I was forced to put my current life aside. My home, my job, and my boyfriend. All of which I did. I broke up with Christian, and although it wasn’t easy, he wished me well.” Now she turned to face Christian. “Which makes me wonder what you’re doing here, stirring up trouble.” A look of anguish crossed Christian’s face.
“Harper, I didn’t come here to stir up trouble, I swear. It’s been so hard living without you. But I kept telling myself that as long as you were happy, then it was all okay. I understood that you had to mate a Broken Hill Bear to strengthen our pack. But inside it was killing me. So I told myself that I’d come and see how you were doing, and if I thought you were happy, then I’d leave without you even seeing me. But if I thought you looked sad, I’
d intervene and bring you back home where you belong.”
“Christian, I appreciate your concern, I do. But I am happy. Rocco and I have got back together and everything’s good between us.”
“How can you get back with him after what he did to you?” Christian demanded, his voice full of pain.
“You’ve got it all wrong about him. I’ve found out that he broke up with me to protect me and my mom from danger. His intentions were good. I’ve forgiven him, and he’s forgiven me for hating him all this time.”
“But what about me? You said you loved me, Harper.” She stared at him, so choked up with sadness and pity that she could barely speak. “We were happy together.”
“We were. But I was always honest with you, Christian. I always said that I didn’t think I was the best mate you could have. That I’d lost my heart at a young age, and I didn’t think I’d be able to give you what you deserved.”
“I know, and I accepted that, because I thought you were the best girl in the world, and that was enough for me. We always had good times together, and I never hurt you. How can you be with him when he’s caused you so much pain? When he destroyed your innocence?”
“It wasn’t his fault,” she said, looking over her shoulder at Rocco who had been very quiet all this time. His face was a picture of misery.
“How could you not tell me you had a boyfriend, Harper?” Rocco said. “I assumed you were single, because I never thought you would’ve agreed to be my mate if you were already with someone else.” Suddenly, and from somewhere deep inside her, Harper’s anger bubbled up and overflowed.
“Because what I wanted didn’t come into it!” she yelled. “It was the will of the clans. And particularly of the Broken Hill Bears. The Pine Bluff Bears didn’t need the mating. Yes, they want it because it strengthens them, but it was your clan that made the first move, to prevent the Black Paws from taking you over!” She was mad now; almost crazy mad, but she didn’t care. “I didn’t get a choice in any of this, so don’t go blaming me!”
Bear Cuffs: Bear Shifter Romance (Broken Hill Bears Book 3) Page 10