The Bear Project

by Doris O'Connor

  Evernight Publishing

  www.evernightpublishing.com

  Copyright© 2014 Doris O’Connor

  ISBN: 978-1-77130-686-7

  Cover Artist: Sour Cherry Designs

  Editor: Karyn White

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.

  This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, and places are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  DEDICATION

  To all of my readers who love my shifters as much as I do. Thank you for all your encouragement.

  THE BEAR PROJECT

  The Projects, 2

  Doris O’Connor

  Copyright © 2014

  Chapter One

  "If he keeps you waiting, he's not worth waiting for, sugar."

  The deep southern drawl wrapped itself around Emmi, and the rest of the crowded bar faded into the background. The man that sinful voice belonged to caged her in against the counter, one muscular arm either side of her, until she had to inch forward on her stool to avoid contact. The heat of his body seeped into her back through the thin cotton of her summer dress, and puffs of hot air raised gooseflesh on her skin, when he bent his head and inhaled sharply against her neck.

  His scent surrounded her. Earthy, virile, intoxicating, he smelled of tobacco and leather, and that indefinable something that had Emmi's body reacting as though she was a cat on heat.

  What the hell is that about?

  "Hmm, delicious." A rumble came from the stranger's chest and trembled through every fiber of Emmi's being. By rights she ought to be outraged by this invasion into her personal space, not fighting her body's instincts to lean into this man and take what he offered. Sexual tension hung heavy between them, and Emmi raised the glass of bourbon she'd been nursing for the last half an hour in a white knuckled grip, and drained the whole lot in one go.

  Fire burnt her gullet, and she barely heard the man whistle through his teeth.

  "Steady there, sugar. That there will put hair on your chest." He chuckled softly, and Emmi finally found some of her usual spunk.

  "Good, then maybe people like you will leave me alone."

  Shit, was that breathy squeak coming out of her mouth really her voice?

  "Oh sugar, you don't want me to leave you alone now, do you? I've been watching you for the last half hour, as have several others in this establishment. It's clear you don't want to be here, so whoever the jerk is that—"

  "There is no jerk, okay." Emmi spun round as far as his close proximity would allow and swallowed hard. The man looming over her had to be at least six foot five of tightly packed muscled bad boy, packaged into faded denim jeans, and a simple white tee that left nothing to the imagination. Several days' worth of stubble graced a jaw so chiseled it looked as though it could cut glass, and his eyes… Liquid chocolate dipped in the rays of the setting sun, they held her captive, and Emmi had to remind herself to keep breathing.

  Yet, this wasn't a pretty boy—far from it. This man oozed confidence and sex appeal, with muscles clearly honed from hours of hard labor, rather than time spent at the gym, and right now, all his attention was solely focused on her.

  He smiled, and showed a set of even white teeth, which were a startling contrast to the deep tan of his skin. The crinkle lines around his eyes were testament to the fact that he smiled often, and there was a devilish glint in his eyes now. He reached out and tugged the hairband out of her hair, as though it was his God-given right to touch her, twirled one long finger around a strand, lifted it to his nose, and inhaled again.

  "He's just what, sugar?"

  Again that sinful smile, when she drew a shuddering breath into her lungs and yanked her hair out of his grasp.

  "Do you mind? And I have a name. Stop calling me sugar. My name is Emmi. I'm not a damn confectionary, stud."

  His eyebrows rose, and then he laughed. A full, deep, belly laugh that made several of the other patrons of the bar stop what they were doing and look toward them. Emmi wanted the ground to swallow her up. This was the last thing she needed. More attention drawn to herself. The root of all her troubles stopped rubbing herself against her next conquest, and sauntered over to them, her six inch heels click-clacking along the dusty wooden floor.

  She put a hand on the man's bicep, and his amusement fled in an instant.

  "Not like you, Cole, to slum it? She looks a right prissy to me. What'cha think, y'all?"

  She pushed her tits out and demanded the attention of seemingly every man in the room.

  Emmi bristled inside at that comment. She might not flaunt her wares for all to see, like this heavily made up brunette, but she was certainly not prissy. Then again, compared to the woman who'd had wild monkey sex in the toilets, causing Emmi to miss her bus, and get stuck in this little hicky town in the middle of nowhere, perhaps Emmi was more conservative.

  Before she could say anything in response though, Cole growled low in his throat. It was a sound not unlike that of a wild animal, and the other woman's eyes widened and she took a step back and away from them.

  "Take it easy, there, Cole. Just having a bit of fun, that's all."

  "I'd have thought you'd had enough fun for one day," Emmi said. She was damned if she'd sit here and be found lacking by the town slut. Not that Emmi knew that's what the sorry excuse for a female was, but there had been an exchange of money in the toilets after said wild sex, so it seemed entirely reasonable to assume that Emmi was looking at the resident whore.

  Instead of being annoyed, however, the other woman just laughed.

  "Oh, it was you hiding in that cubicle, was it? Did you learn something?" She blew a bubble with the chewing gum she'd been diligently chewing the whole time, blew Cole a kiss, and sashayed back to her latest victim.

  "Oh, the nerve of that woman." Emmi ground the words out through clenched teeth, irritated beyond belief that Cole was once again grinning down on her.

  "What's so damn funny? If she wants to strut her stuff, she could at least take herself off to a room somewhere, instead of giving decent folks a heart attack when they're just…" She couldn't quite bring herself to say pee in front of him, so she just clamped her mouth shut and glared at him.

  "So, let me get that straight, sugar." His grin deepened when she groaned at the renewed use of that irritating moniker. "You were in the toilets when Dolly serviced her latest client, and you hid?"

  Heat crept into Emmi's cheeks under his amused regard, and she crossed her arms to stop herself from wiping that arrogant smirk off his far too handsome face. There should be a law against men this appealing finding you in such embarrassing circumstances.

  "Well, what else was I to do? It didn't seem polite to interrupt them."

  "Polite?" Cole shook his head and cupped her chin with one hand, forcing her to look up at him. "How very English of you."

  "What's that supposed to mean?" Emmi asked.

  "It means, sugar, that it's perfectly obvious you're not from around here. I'd remember a cute little thing like you, and besides your accent gives you away. Anyone else would have simply left Dolly to get on with it and left, which of course raises the question, what you were doing here in the first place."

  "That's really none of your business, now, is it?"

  Emmi held her ground, and inwardly cursed at the heat climbing into her cheeks under his silent scrutiny. Microbes under the microscope were surely studied with less intensity than this sexy stranger was showing her. It was un
nerving and far too arousing. Emmi crossed her arms over her chest to hide her nipples’ embarrassingly obvious reaction to his close proximity. However, there was nothing she could do about her knickers’ increasing dampness. She never reacted like this to any man, dammit. What did they put into the drinks around here? And more importantly what was she going to do, stuck in this bar, in the middle of nowhere?

  "You're wrong, you know." He smiled, and Emmi's pussy practically did the samba in response to that almost growl.

  He dipped his head lower, until he was so close that their breaths mingled, and it took all of Emmi's will power to not just close that distance and press her mouth to his firm lips.

  "I am?"

  Cole smiled in answer and ran just one finger along her jaw-line. The calloused pad left a trail of heated need in its wake, and Emmi found it difficult to breathe. The crowded bar faded into the background, until she was only aware of Cole.

  "Yes, you are."

  "Why?" she asked on a shuddery exhale, and he tapped her nose with a sinful smirk, that had her insides tightening in need until she wanted to jump his bones. His delicious scent intensified. It called to her in an indefinable manner. It should be illegal for any man to smell so good.

  "Because you're mine."

  ****

  The curvy little human's eyes widened at the growl of his beast, and Cole told his bear to shut the fuck up. The animal wasn't listening to him, however. From the minute he'd stepped into the bar, her scent had driven his bear insane, and this close to her, his animal was straining to claim his mate.

  Mate, that word alone should have sent Cole running out of the door as fast as his paws would carry him, and he'd been all set to do so, until he'd seen her emerge out of the toilets, looking lost and confused.

  Misery had surrounded her like an invisible cloak, and his bear's growl in answer had the occupants of the table he'd chosen to sit at scarpering. Even in a town full of shifters Cole's bear was feared almost as much as Cole himself. In other circumstances he'd have found this situation amusing. Now, knowing that Emmi had stumbled into this bar by accident, and sensing her unease and her unwilling arousal, his sense of humor had left in a hurry.

  He'd seen the way the other males had sniffed the air, and despite his personal misgivings, he had to approach her, before one of the other shifters claimed her. Mid-cycle as she was and with that air of innocence surrounding her, she was a tasty morsel of human no shifter could resist. The town didn't need any more incidents. That's why he was here cooling his heels after all, to make sure the rumors surrounding Creek Fells stayed just that—rumors. This unsuspecting human who'd stumbled into their midst at the wrong time could change all that.

  "You've got to be kidding me. Does that caveman attitude work for you?" she asked.

  Had it not been for his shifter senses, the ice in her voice might have convinced him, but her body gave her away. Emmi wanted him as much as he wanted her. She didn’t understand this connection between them, but her physical response only served to heighten his, and made his bear go into full overprotective mode. He wanted to fuck her, and at the same time he wanted to wrap her up in cotton wool and keep her safe from harm.

  Cole was in a shit-load of fucking trouble here, and he had to get her out of here, fast.

  "Look, I don't know who you think you are, but I'm not interested." She put a hand on his chest and immediately dropped it as though she'd been burned. A shudder went through her little frame, and she drew her brows together in confusion.

  "Hot little piece of ass you've got there, Cole, but she seems to not wanna go with you. I'll be glad to take the lil’ lady off your hands, and show her what a real man can do."

  She spun around at the sound of Blade's voice, only to shrink away from the wolf shifter. Her back made contact with Cole's chest, and his bear growled his approval.

  "Fuck off, Blade. She's not interested in you or anyone else. Emmi here has just agreed to come home with me, haven’t you, sugar?"

  He put one arm around her waist and pulled her still closer into his frame, and his bear hummed his approval. Cole indulged his animal by inhaling deeply against her sweat dampened neck, and licked the instant gooseflesh that sprang up. Oh yeah, she felt it, too, the bond between them. The only question was, could he afford to act on this pull, and did he have any choice in the matter at all, anyway?

  "Trust me, and let me get you out of here." He whispered the words into her ear, whilst running his tongue along the sensitive outer shell, and he sensed her acceptance seconds before her tentative nod.

  "Good girl, now follow me."

  Chapter Two

  Cole's truck bounced along the dirt road, and Emmi held onto to the dashboard with a white-knuckled grip.

  God, what on earth am I doing?

  Their close proximity in his battered old truck only served to increase her off the chart arousal, until every bump in the road seemed to settle straight in her clit, and she had to bite her lips to stop herself from moaning.

  "Relax, sugar, we'll be there soon." The deep, velvet tones washed over her senses and strangely enough put her at ease.

  "And where would that be?" she asked.

  "Nothing fancy, sugar, but it’s home for now." He glanced at her and smiled, and she couldn’t help but smile back.

  "Why are you helping me?" she asked, and immediately felt foolish for doing so. To his credit he just grinned and shrugged his shoulders.

  "Rescuing damsels in distress is my specialty, don'tcha know."

  Ordinarily speaking she would have been outraged at that cocksure attitude of his, but when he slowed the truck to a crawl and glanced across at her, the quiet determination in his gaze made the words stick in her throat. Her skin heated, and time stood still for those precious minutes, seconds … she had no idea … until he returned his attention back to the dirt track, and Emmi breathed a sigh of relief.

  "I hardly needed rescuing. I could have stayed in a motel or something."

  His growl in answer made her jump, and she threw him a worried glance. That almost sounded like the bears she was so fond of, but this was insane. He was a man. A sexier than holy fuck man, to be sure, but just a man.

  "There is no motel near here, and the townsfolk don't look kindly on strangers, especially on the full moon. That fucking tour bus should have never have stopped here."

  "It wasn't meant to, but we had a pregnant lady on board, who was desperate for some fresh air, so we stopped briefly. I got distracted taking pictures, and then I needed the loo, and—"

  He swore under his breath, and she scooted away from him as far as she could, which wasn't far. Even in the roomy interior of his truck, his presence filled the space, and every feminine cell in her body quivered in need and appreciation of his pure virile masculinity. Pheromones poured off him in waves and sent her libido in overdrive.

  "Clearly the tour company needs a fucking reminder of the rules."

  "Rules?" she asked. Why was he so hell bent getting out of shape over this? And why did she find the tight control he seemed to exhibit right now such a turn on?

  He growled again, and she clenched her thighs to stop the renewed gush of moisture soaking her panties. Cole inhaled sharply, as though he could smell her need, and the tight grip he had on the steering wheel turned his knuckles white.

  "Yes, rules." He ground the words out through clenched teeth, the muscle in his jaw working furiously, and the air grew thick with tension. A tendril of fear snaked itself around Emmi's spine, but her hormones screamed far louder than that tiny voice of reason that told her to run—to get away as far and as fast as she could. Instead she uncurled her fingers and placed one hand lightly on Cole's tense bicep. A shudder went through him, and he relaxed slightly.

  "What rules, Cole? I've heard the rumors, of course. The tour guide had great fun telling us all sorts of outrageous stories on the way here, but I'm not foolish enough to believe them."

  She adopted her quiet, soothing voice, the one
she used with the animals she saw in her line of work, and a fleeting smile crossed his rugged features.

  "Then why were you on that tour? If not to scare yourself silly and to satisfy your morbid curiosity? It's what humans do, after all. It's why we need the rules."

  He crunched the gears, and Emmi winced at the protesting screech of the truck's engine, even as her heart gave a funny lurch at the intonation he put on humans, as though he wasn't one of them.

  Which was a ridiculous notion, wasn't it?

  "Okay, maybe the vast majority of the tourists on board were there for that reason, but I wasn't."

  He didn't respond to that at all, just kept driving along the bumpy dirt track that seemed to take them farther and farther into the forest surrounding them.

  "I wanted to see bears in the wild. Away from the usual tourist spots, so when I found this tour advertised I jumped at the chance, okay? Stupid, maybe, considering that damn tour bus took off without me, but I did get some awesome pictures along the way. Not of bears sadly, but you can't have everything."

  He smiled again, but still he didn’t say anything, and Emmi rolled her eyes. Somehow it seemed terribly important to her to make him see. She didn't even want to examine why it seemed to matter so much, what this stranger thought of her. She just knew it did.

  "I'm an animal conservationist, and I have a soft spot for bears in particular. Well, any animal needs protecting, but bears are just so … so…" She ran out of words, all too aware that she was babbling, and that he no doubt thought she was a complete loon now. Most men did when she showed her passion for animals, and he looked more the type to hunt them down and shoot them than to care about their survival.

  "Bears are just so what?" he finally asked, as they entered a clearing, and he stopped the truck in front of a beat up looking mobile home.