Acting on impulse, she strode to the door and popped her head out. “Hey Toby! Can I still take you up on that offer for dry clothes?”
“Sure,” Toby hollered back at her. “I’ll grab something and be right there.”
“Thanks!” She closed the door. While she waited, she returned the supplies to their proper place, folded the dirty washcloth and towel, and left them sitting on the edge of the sink.
A knock sounded on the door and Toby called out to her. “You decent?”
“Depends on who you ask,” she replied and opened the door.
Toby handed an empty grocery bag and a stack of folded clothes over to her. “Here you go. The bag’s for your wet things. I’d offer to dry them for you, but I’ve been banned from the laundry room since the last time I tried to help out and ruined Rick’s favorite chenille duvet.”
“That’s okay.” Sophie smiled. “You’ve done more than enough for me already.”
“It’s no problem.” Toby turned to go, then stopped and glanced back at her over his shoulder. “Hey. How do you feel about action movies? I’m in the mood for fast cars and explosions. We could watch something while we’re waiting on Rick to get back.”
“That sounds good to me.” She could use a little mindless entertainment. Maybe it would take her thoughts off her problems for a few minutes.
“Cool.” He nodded and walked away.
She closed the door, stripped out of her wet garments, and pulled on the dry ones. There was no way the T-shirt and drawstring shorts belonged to Toby. They were way too big. The sleeves came down to her elbows and the hem hit her at mid-thigh. Thanks to the drawstring, the shorts weren’t a terrible fit around her waist—probably because of how narrow Rick’s hips were—but they were long enough to be considered capri pants. She imagined she resembled little kid playing dress-up, but at least she was dry. Going without a bra and panties in someone else’s clothes felt weird and a little risqué, but couldn’t be helped under the circumstances.
She left the bathroom and joined Toby on the sofa in front of the television. As hard as she tried to watch the movie, concern for herself, Rick, and the future weighed heavily on her.
* * * *
Even in the light rain, Rick picked up Sophie’s scent trail easily enough. It would be hard to miss her sweet honeyed smell. He’d never come across a more delicious aroma.
He quickly discovered the scene of Sophie’s skirmish with her ex. Two sets of footprints were submerged into the wet ground, along with one long, wide depression where someone who’d smelled strongly of alcohol and aggression had landed. The strong scent of copper stained the earth on the upper end of the depression. Sophie really must have whacked the bastard hard. Good for her. He only wished he could take a turn alone with the asshole. He’d show him the error of his ways real quick.
To his utter disappointment, the path back to Sophie’s wrecked car was devoid of life. Human life anyway. He bypassed the wreckage and continued up to the edge of the highway where the scent of asphalt, rubber, and gasoline drowned out everything else. Catching sight of headlights off in the distance, he started the transition from beast to man. By the time he stood upright on two legs, Sheriff Stuart Watson was pulling off the side of the road.
Comfortable in his nudity, Rick leaned against a tree and waited for Stuart to come to him. He and Stuart went back a long way, all the way to middle school when they’d been the only two brown bears surrounded by black bear shifters indigenous to the area. They’d taken a lot of flack for being different, despite living in an area where new and exotic shifters settled all the time. The humans avoided them, the black bears shunned them, and the prey animals feared them. Their adolescence had not been easy, but it would have been much worse without a friend like Stuart.
Stuart climbed out of his SUV and strode toward Rick. “Hey man. Toby tells me you’ve had some excitement out here tonight. What’s going on?”
“Well...” Rick quickly filled Stu in on the situation and led him to Sophie’s car. “And that’s what led her here to me.”
“That is just fucked up enough to be believable. Are you sure she’s your mate?”
“I think so. She smells right and my bear is possessive as hell.”
“Well, you know just as much as I do about mates.” Stu walked around Sophie’s car, inspecting it. “What does she say about it?”
“She doesn’t know. She’s human and doesn’t need the added burden of being mated to a monster right now.”
“Yes, it would be terrible to be cherished for life by a good guy with an ugly mug like yours and more money than Midas.”
“Fuck you, buddy. You have no idea what this feels like. It’s like knowing the winning lottery numbers, but not speaking the right language in order to buy a ticket.”
“That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.” Stu pulled a flashlight out of his pocket and shined it in the windows of Sophie’s car.
“No, it isn’t. Sophie’s not a shifter. She doesn’t know anything about mates. To her, I’m just some weirdo who happened to save her from being murdered tonight.”
“Whose fault is that?” Stu started typing something into his phone.
“What are you doing now?” Rick asked. “Texting your momma?”
“I’m taking notes, asshole. Or did you just call me out here to hear about your pathetic love life or lack thereof?”
Rick glanced in the passenger side window. “Hey. Is that her purse? She’s going to want that.” He reached for the door handle.
“Leave it,” Stu said. “It’s empty anyway. Her ex must have come back for her wallet after she ran off.”
Rick dropped his hand. “Shit. She’s not going to be happy about that.”
“The good news is we might be able to get his prints from it and place him here at the scene. Right now it’s pretty much her word against his since no one witnessed anything that happened.”
Rick stood tall and frowned at Stu over the hood of Sophie’s car. “She’s not lying.”
“I never said that, but there’s a big difference between knowing the truth and being able to prove it in court.”
“Fine.” He didn’t like the insinuation that Sophie was anything besides completely truthful, even though he could see where Stu was coming from. He wanted Sophie’s ex to pay for what he’d done. Granted, he’d rather tear the asshole limb from limb and then dump his corpse in the deepest cave he could find in the forest, but letting him face trial for his crimes would work too. “What can I do to help?”
“Nothing. I’m going to take a few photos and then I’ll text Ian to come and haul the car back to the shop. We’ll document the damage and take prints there. You can bring your mate to the office in the morning to give an official statement.”
“She’s not mine. Not yet.”
Damn, if he didn’t like the sound of it though. His mate. He didn’t know much about Sophie, but he liked what little he did know. She was beautiful, curvy in all the right places, sharp as a tack, and one hell of a fighter. As far as he was concerned, she was the perfect woman. If anything, she was too good for the likes of him.
Stu waved off Rick’s comment. “Semantics. Just bring her by first thing in the morning. In the meantime, keep an eye on her, keep her safe, and let me do my job. I’ll head back to the station and pull the guy’s DMV information. We’ll put an APB out on the perp’s vehicle and see if we can track him down and drag his ass in for questioning.”
“Just do what you can to nail the bastard to the wall. I can take care of Sophie.”
He wasn’t sure how she’d react to his desire to protect her, but he would cross that bridge when he got to it.
Stu’s phone rang, playing the theme from Jaws, and he turned to answer. “Sheriff Watson here.”
Rick listened to Stu’s side of the conversation, which amounted to a lot of mm-hmms and uh-huhs.
Stu disconnected the call and stuck the phone in his pocket. “I have to go. You get back to S
ophie and Toby and I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Yeah, all right, man. You watch your back out there.”
“You know it.” Stu headed back up the bank to his truck.
Rick shifted and started the long walk home. On the way, he thought about the woman waiting at the cabin. Sophie had been through hell and back tonight. She’d been stalked, run off the road, and assaulted by a man she used to care about. Now was not the time to break the news to her about her being his mate, no matter how much his baser instincts screamed for him to run home as fast as his legs would carry him and claim her as soon as possible. Ignoring his bear wasn’t easy, but he would manage.
He picked up the pace and arrived home in good time. To his surprise, the lights were off inside. Worry crawled up his esophagus and lodged in the back of his throat. He transformed and ran up the stairs, skipping half of them in his haste, and burst through the door ready to wage war. The door slammed into the wall with a bang and bounced back toward him.
Toby jumped off the couch. “Jesus, Rick. Dramatic much?”
“What the...” He darted a look around. The lights were off. That much was true. A movie played on the flat screen TV over the mantle. Toby stood by one end of the sofa. Sophie was slumped over the other opposite side, wrapped in the same blanket she’d had earlier, and wearing a shirt that looked more than a little familiar. “Shit,” he said, quietly. “I saw the lights were out and overreacted.” He shut and locked the front door.
Toby came around the couch and met Rick. “No kidding. You scared the crap out of me.”
“I’m sorry. Her ex was long gone and could be anywhere right now. We need to be on high alert until he’s found.”
Toby exhaled. “All right. What did Stu say?”
“Basically to sit tight tonight and bring Sophie by the station in the morning.” Rick crossed into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water out of the fridge. He looked over at Toby, who’d followed him. “Do you want one?”
Toby shook his head. “Is it safe for her to be here?”
“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure it’s safe. For you and for her.”
Toby studied him quietly. “What’s going on between you and her? This feels like a lot more than some random rescue attempt.”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“I mean, you’ve never brought a woman home. Not even when you were dating someone. Now you run into her in the woods and bring her back here to stay without even knowing her name. Don’t you find that more than a little odd?”
“No.” Rick sighed. “Listen, kid—”
“I knew it,” Toby interrupted.
Rick rolled his eyes. “You don’t know anything.”
“I knew something wasn’t right. That’s enough. Now tell me what’s going on.”
“I ran into Sophie at the grocery store at the beginning of the week. We didn’t talk much. I didn’t even get her name. But I’m pretty sure she’s my mate.”
“What!” Toby exclaimed.
“Shh!” Rick cast a glance toward the couch. Sophie hadn’t budged an inch.
“She’s your mate? Are you sure?”
“As much as I can be. It isn’t like we have a manual.”
“I guess not.” Toby stared in Sophie’s direction. “How do you know?”
“It’s hard to explain.”
“Try.”
“There was this feeling, almost like we’d already met. Then I caught her scent and it took everything I had in me not to pull her into my arms and carry her off, caveman-style.”
“Why didn’t you?”
Rick looked down at the bottle of water in his hands. “She deserves better than being stuck in an instant marriage because of some whim of fate.”
“What I deserve,” Sophie said, from her seated position on the couch. “Is to be trusted enough to make my own decisions.”
Chapter Five
“Oh shit.” Toby looked from Rick to Sophie and back again. “I’ll just um...go to bed. Yeah. I’m going to sleep now. I’ll see you both in the morning.”
Sophie waited until Toby disappeared and then turned her attention to Rick. “I’m your mate?”
“Yes.” He nodded. “You’re my mate.”
“Oh.” She looked him over, trying to gauge his feelings on the matter, and failed. His expression was unreadable, like a blank slate. “I didn’t even know shifters could mate with humans.”
“It happens more often than you’d think.”
Sophie considered that. It made sense. There did seem to be a lot more male shifters than female. Not that she was an expert or anything. “If I hadn’t stumbled onto your land tonight, were you ever going to track me down and tell me about this?”
Rick crossed the room and sat beside her. “In all honesty, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you. I’m not sure how much longer I would have been able to resist the urge to see you again.”
“I’ve been thinking about you too,” she admitted. “I didn’t understand why I couldn’t get you out of my mind. I mean, we barely even met, didn’t even exchange names, and yet I was so curious about you. You even invaded my dreams.” The subject matter of those dreams flooded through her mind like a pornographic slideshow and she had to look away before she embarrassed herself by blushing like a schoolgirl. “I guess now I know why.” She glanced back over at Rick. Her mate.
The situation seemed so unreal. She couldn’t believe she had a mate at all, much less one who was so attractive and could shift into a huge frickin’ grizzly bear. It was a lot to take in.
“I’m sorry you’re finding out like this tonight. I know you have enough to worry about without adding a surprise mate into the mix.” Rick leaned forward and set his bottle on the table. He turned sideways on the seat, facing her. “I just want you to know, no matter what happens—whether you want to accept me as your mate or not—I will do everything in my power to protect you. I won’t let anyone hurt you again. You have my word on that.”
It took her a minute to realize what he was talking about. When she remembered, she felt like an idiot. Of course he was talking about Lou. Under the circumstances, she couldn’t believe she’d forgotten to ask about him. “Did you find him? Was he still there?”
Rick shook his head. “No. I found the spot where you knocked him out, but he was long gone. To make matters worse, it looks like he may have broken into your car and stolen the contents of your purse.”
“Of course he did.” Because it wasn’t bad enough that he’d tried to kill her, he had to steal from her too. “Oh hell. He has my driver’s license, doesn’t he? He knows where I live.”
Rick nodded. “I’m really sorry.”
“It isn’t your fault.” It was hers for getting involved with a psychopath.
“Don’t worry, the police will find him. When they do, we’re going to do everything we can to make sure the bastard pays for what he did to you. Until then, I promise to keep you safe.”
“Thank you for offering, although I’m not sure that’s necessary. I’ve been taking care of myself for a long time.” Granted, she wasn’t doing a stellar job lately, but that was neither here nor there.
“I’m sure you’re perfectly capable, but I’d still like to help, if you’ll let me. Your well-being is important to me.”
Well, when he put it that way... “All right. If you really want to.”
“I do.” He smiled and his entire face lit up, transforming him from dark and brooding to panty-dropping delicious.
She couldn’t help but return the expression. “You should smile more often.”
“I’m sure I will now that you’re in my life.”
“Flatterer.” She met his gaze and found herself trapped there, unable to look away. Her breathing sped up and his followed suit. His pupils dilated and she wondered if hers did the same. It was like their bodies were responding to each other and falling into sync together. She took a deep breath and inhaled the scent of sweat and man and something tha
t smelled vaguely like pine. The aroma was more compelling than it should have been. She wanted to scoot closer, to breathe deeper. She leaned in, intent on breathing him in, and a flash of pink caught her eye. She zeroed in his mouth and watched as his slick tongue glided over his lips, moistening them. Her nipples tightened and her core heated at the thought of all the different things he could do with his mouth.
She exhaled and sat back against the arm of the sofa before she acted on her desires and jumped him. While she doubted he would mind getting physical, it was not the time to take things to the next level. If they were going to explore the connection between them, she didn’t want to start with casual sex. It was bad enough she’d dragged him into the drama of her last relationship and tainted the start of anything they might share.
“We should probably get some sleep,” Rick said. “It’s late and the sheriff wants me to bring you by the station in the morning to file a report.”
“Are you sure it’s all right for me to stay here?”
“I think it’s the safest option, although I can take you to a friend’s house or a hotel if you’re really uncomfortable with the idea of staying.”
She could tell he really hated the idea of her leaving. He definitely seemed like the kind of man who’d be overprotective enough to camp out in front of her place to make sure nothing bad happened. “All right. I’ll stay here for the night. Do you have a spare room or will I be bunking on the couch?”
“We don’t have an extra bedroom, but you can take mine and I’ll crash on the couch.”
“You don’t have to do that. I’m fine with the couch.”
“It’s not a big deal. I insist you take the bed. I can keep a better eye on things from here in the living room anyway.”
Sophie glanced at the large windows bracketing the front door. “Are you concerned something will happen tonight?”
“No. I don’t think we have anything to worry about, but it never hurts to be prepared.”
Pleasant Valley Bears: BBW Paranormal Shape Shifter Romance (Pleasant Valley Shifters) Page 4