by Leela Ash
Finn smiled at her and kissed her lightly on the forehead.
“Come on,” he said. “I don’t want to keep you out, up here in these dangerous mountains,” he joked, obviously mocking the bartender from the night before. Chloe laughed and slipped her hand into his as they walked together back down the hill.
“How long will you stay for?” she asked him as they began to approach the square.
“I’m not sure,” Finn shrugged. “Probably until after the holidays.”
“Me too,” Chloe beamed. She was glad that he wasn’t going to be disappearing on her any time soon.
He led her towards the bar and as they stepped inside they chose to take a quiet table in the corner next to one of the roaring fires and cuddled up on one of the big cozy couches.
Finn ordered them a bottle of red wine and poured it for them both before relaxing back into the cushions and pulling Chloe close to him. If the room had been quieter, it could almost have been as if they were an established couple, relaxing at home on an evening in front of the fire. Chloe closed her eyes and imagined it and smiled.
They were wrapped up in each other’s arms, kissing and exploring each other without offending everyone else in the bar when Chloe felt her cell phone vibrating in her back pocket. She ignored it at first, but when it started to go off for what must have been the fifth time she apologized to Finn and excused herself from the table.
“Mom?” she said as she pressed answer.
“Chloe,” her mom panted hurriedly. “Where are you?”
“I’m in the square, at one of the bars… what’s the matter?” She could sense the angst in her Mom’s voice and knew immediately that something was wrong.
“Who are you with?” her Mom asked.
“Mom! What is going on?” Now Chloe was really panicking.
“Listen to me carefully, whatever you’re doing, leave it and walk out of their casually. If you’re with someone, just excuse yourself and say you need to get an early night. Hurry back. Right now!”
Before Chloe had a chance to respond, the line went dead.
She knew that something had been happening with her family, and now she had the feeling she was about to find out the truth. She turned on her heel and trying to keep her hands from shaking she walked back to Finn and apologized.
“I’m so sorry,” she said trying to act as normal as possible. “That was my mom, she’s not feeling well and she needs me to head back.”
Finn raised his eyebrows and looked concerned.
“Is everything okay?” he asked as he got to his feet.
Chloe nodded and leaned in and gave him a kiss.
“Honestly, everything’s fine,” she smiled.
She turned and quickly walked out of the bar, not looking back over her shoulder even though he had called her name.
She had to get back to the cabin. Something terrible was happening… she could feel it.
9.
In her panic her feet slipped on the ice as she tried to navigate the pathways back up to the lodge. The darkness seemed thicker and as her heart raced, her hands shook and her mind became clouded with confusion. She was in such a rush she realized that suddenly she didn’t recognize the path, and the forest seemed thicker and appeared to be looming over her. She heard the snap of a twig behind her and she shivered as she realized that she must have taken a wrong turn… she definitely wasn’t on the right path back to the lodge.
She was about to go back and try to find the right way when suddenly out of the darkness ahead of her, she was aware of a figure emerging… a flashlight clasped in their hands which they shone up into her eyes.
“Chloe,” the voice said sternly… and it sent a chill right down her spine.
She would know that voice anywhere…
It was Damon.
Chloe brought her hands up to shield her eyes and blinked as she tried to see past the harsh glare of the flashlight, but as soon as she was able to focus, she immediately wished that she hadn’t… because in his hand, Damon was holding a gun. And he had it pointed right at her.
Her whole body was frozen to the spot and she couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Damon was there… and he was going to harm her. She felt her body tremble and she wanted to speak, but she couldn’t find the words.
“Hold your hands up,” Damon said coldly. “Hold them out in front of you and cross them at the wrists. In a minute I’m going to tie them and then you’re going to come with me.”
“Damon…” she stammered, “What is happening? What are you doing?”
“Oh for God’s sake Chlo,” he spat, “Isn’t it obvious?”
Her mind raced to try and make sense of it all, but she was coming up with nothing.
“You didn’t think I was with you because I was into you did you?” he snorted. “As if… I was only with you to get information about your father and his businesses… and now I know a hell of a lot that I can use to my advantage.”
None of it made any sense.
“Your dad’s not really away on business you fool!” he laughed. “He got wind of my little plan to kidnap you and use you for ransom… so he sent you here thinking I wouldn’t be able to get to you… Ha! How he underestimated me.”
Chloe’s mind almost exploded… Damon had used her… and was going to kidnap her to extort money…? This was almost too unbelievable for words.
“So get down on the ground and hold up your hands, I have a van waiting and I’m already half frozen!” He spat.
Trembling, Chloe got onto her knees and just when she was about to resign herself to whatever fate Damon had in store for her, she looked up into his eyes and realized he had a look of sheer terror spreading out across his face.
He was looking at something behind her and she could tell that he was frightened. When she turned to look around, roaming proudly and fiercely out of the snowcapped trees behind them was the biggest and purest white bear she had ever seen.
It stood up on its haunches and lunged forward in a snarl of teeth and claws. Chloe screamed and covered her eyes, but couldn’t help but peek through her fingers as she watched the majestic beast launch itself at Damon and pin him to the ground.
The bear was huge… she had never seen anything so incredible, but also so out of place. It was like a polar bear, something so beautiful and unique in that little resort in Colorado… none of it made sense!
The bear clamped its jaws around Damon’s leg and began to drag him ferociously into the woods and out of sight. Chloe couldn’t see what was happening, but she could guess from the wailing and snarling that it wasn’t going to be anything good. She got to her feet and went to run but then was aware of a silence that pierced through the forest.
The screaming had stopped.
She turned on her heel and peered behind her, into the darkness, and she could see the outline of the great hulking bear coming slowly towards her. She was rooted to the spot with fear and as she shook with terror she made a silent prayer that it wouldn’t harm her.
Please, she thought, please don’t hurt me.
The bear came towards her and stopped about two feet away from her. It looked at her deep in the eyes and she felt herself falling into a trance. The eyes were so familiar… she knew she had looked into them before. Her heart started to pound as she realized what was happening… She knew who’s eyes they were…
They were Finn’s.
“Finn?” she whispered as she moved closer to the bear and held out her hand.
The bear rose onto its hind legs and roared up towards the moon. It was so deafening she clamped her hands down over her ears and whimpered with fear. But when she looked up the bear was looking at her tenderly and she knew in that moment that she was right.
In a flash of white fur and rippling muscle, the beast in front of her turned from majestic animal to handsome human, and as Finn stood in front of her, completely naked and covered in sweat and streaks of blood and snow she felt something trigger inside of her that she
had never felt before.
She was speechless… but all she wanted was for him to come for her and to strip her naked. She held her breath and watched the rise and fall of his chest as he caught his breath.
“Take me,” she whispered.
Finn lunged at her through the dark and pulled her close to him. As he tore at her clothes she had never been at someone’s mercy so much in her entire life, but it had never felt so right. This man, this beast, this powerful creature, had chosen her. He had protected her and saved her from Damon, and now she had seen him shift back to his incredible human form and he was going to devour her in his own way right there on the forest floor, in the snow and under the moon.
As he thrust his powerful unsheathed cock inside of her warm folds Chloe moaned with ecstasy and gripped onto him with all of the strength she had. She wrapped her legs around him and opened up fully to him as he pumped in and out of her and she knew she wouldn’t be able to hold on for long before she unraveled in a wave of pleasure.
As she came she screamed up at the stars, savoring every second of a pleasure she had longed for and needed for so very long. As Finn felt her pussy quiver around him he too exploded and emptied his hot, thick load inside of her and collapsed down onto her chest.
She had been claimed. She was now his and she wanted to be his mate for life. She knew in that moment that she would do anything for him. She wanted to give Finn everything.
He wrapped her in his arms and kissed her lightly on the forehead. She shivered but it wasn’t because of the cold. The reality of what had happened with Damon came flooding back and the panic set in.
“My mom!” she said as she sat up and grabbed at her clothes, pulling them around her.
“It’s okay,” Finn soothed. “She’s safe.”
Chloe looked down at him as he traced his rough hands across her soft, smooth, plump skin.
“How do you know?” Chloe was so confused.
“Because…” Finn began… “I was sent here to protect you…”
She looked down at him and took his hand in hers.
“Your father sent you here like Damon said… but he’s no fool Chloe… he hired me to make sure you and your family were safe.”
“What?” she couldn’t believe it.
“My military background… special ops… He hired me to take care of any problems should they arise and keep an eye on you all… And good job, hey?” he winked.
Chloe couldn’t believe what she was hearing. He’d been hired?
“So this?” she said as she wrapped her coat around her chest… “I take it this was part of the job description?”
Finn laughed and shook his head.
“Chloe, the last thing I bargained for when I took this job was that I’d fall for the girl I’m supposed to be protecting.”
All of the anger and confusion she had started to feel quickly evaporated. Finn was falling for her. And she certainly knew that she had fallen for him.
“White bears, Polars, shifters… whatever you want to call us… we know when we find the one,” he smiled.
He took Chloe’s hand in his and kissed it softly.
She had never been so happy in her entire life.
“Come on,” he said as he helped her get dressed and then began his walk back to the woods to find his clothes. “I better get you back to the lodge, your father is on his way.”
As they left the woods and walked back across the mountain Chloe couldn’t believe how much her life had changed in the space of a few days. She had lost one boyfriend, but gained something much more… she had found her mate for life. There were only a few days to go until the holidays and now she had Finn she knew it was going to be the most special Christmas she had ever had. What could be more incredible than spending it out at their log cabin in Colorado with her wonderful family and the man of her dreams?
They held hands and walked into the night, as the moon shone brightly above and the sky seemed to jingle with stars…
Happy Holidays, Chloe thought.
THE END
A Baby for the Bear
Samantha Leal
Copyright ©2015 by Samantha Leal. All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic of mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Thank you so much for your interest in my work!
Chapter 1
Freya stood and stared at herself in the mirror. It was still early morning, but she couldn’t sleep. She had far too much on her mind. She ran her hands through her hair and sighed. Her eyes were glistening back at her, azure blue and piercing white, and she wished that the bags beneath them would disappear before her first day but knew she was out of luck.
Behind her the clock ticked and flashed 6:00 am. She hadn’t set the alarm for another hour at least, but there was no way she could go back to bed now. She looked over at her closet and at the outfit she had chosen. It was hung up on the outside and looming over her. A pair of jeans ripped at the knee, a tight white t-shirt and little flats. It wasn’t anything special, but she’d needed to keep her mind clear and know what she was going to be wearing in advance. She had so much riding on her college experience, and she didn’t want to ruin her first day by stressing last minute about what she should wear.
Somewhere outside a bird began singing. The sun had yet to rise, but the dawn chorus started up across the quad, making her feel better. She was a college girl now and she had all the freedom she could ever want. She needed to embrace it, not fear it.
Freya had always been a timid girl and kept to herself. Growing up, she had a select, loyal set of friends and feared that leaving her hometown security and being away from her family would be difficult. She had now been at college a week and found herself settling in. She had made acquaintances, and even though they weren’t the sort of people she would generally choose to hang out with, they seemed nice and had been fun for a few nights out. She just knew there wasn’t going to be a lasting friendship there. Everything was so new and exciting, and she had to keep her feet on the ground as to not get swept up in it all. She didn’t want to be one of those people who completely changed the second they went off to college and ended up screwing up their future with a lack of commitment to the real reason they were there in the first place. She was going to ace all of her classes and exams, and she was going to go places. No matter what happened or who she met, she would always put her education first.
The sound of the trash men filtered up from the street and Freya walked over to the window. The sun was beginning to rise and she decided to open it and let in a cool blast of air. It helped her feel more awake, and as she stretched her arms over her head, she knew it was the right time to stop pacing her dorm room and finally get showered, dressed and out there, ready to start the day.
“I’m so glad I didn’t have to share,” she smiled to herself as she looked around at the double room she had all to herself. “Imagine having to work around someone else all full of nerves!”
The idea of sharing a room with a complete stranger had never appealed to her. Freya knew that no matter how strange and alien a place was, she would always prefer to have her own space, somewhere she could unwind and have some privacy. Though this had also meant she was at a disadvantage. She saw roomies who had bonded quickly, and Freya felt slightly out on a limb, as if she was going to be denied a close girlfriend that she so really wanted.
She pulled her towel from the back of the door, and as she made her way into the corridor, she was very aware that not one other person was stirring.
Maybe I’m going to have to lighten up, she thought. I should probably party more and worry less.
She giggled to herself as she pushed open the door to the communal girls’ showers and turned on the light. To her complete surprise, there was another girl in there, wrapped in a towel and about to go i
nto one of the cubicles. They stood staring at each other for a moment before Freya smiled and shrugged.
“I guess you couldn’t sleep, either?” she asked.
“Nope,” the girl replied, seeming nervous too.
“I’m Freya,” she held out her hand and the girl shook it.
“I’m Julie,” the girl nodded. “It’s good to know I’m not the only one who wasn’t out partying all night.”
“Yeah,” Freya laughed. “I want to make a good impression, you know?”
“Sure,” she said, flicking her long black hair over her shoulder. “I would have hated to be hungover on my first day in classes… For some reason, I just feel like it would set me on the course to fail!” she laughed.
“I felt exactly the same,” Freya grinned. “I don’t think I’m cut out for the binge drinking, hard partying side college has to offer.”
“I know what you mean,” Julie said as she took another step inside the shower before turning back and smiling again. “I’m in room 5C, we should hang out sometime… if you want…?”
“I’d like that,” Freya smiled, trying not to sound too enthusiastic.
The girl nodded and waved before she ducked into the shower and closed the door. She was the first person Freya had met who seemed like the type of person she would have been friends with back home. She could see herself striking up a friendship with Julie. After Freya showered and left the bathroom, she called “Bye!” over the sound of the water jets.
“Catch you later, Freya!” Julie called back.
Freya smiled. She had officially made her first real college friend.
Chapter 2
At the end of a long day of navigating her way around campus, meeting her new teachers and trying to keep on top of all of her work and ever-expanding reading list, Freya staggered back to her dorm room, opened the door and collapsed on the bed.