“Oh my god,” she whispered. The beast turned towards her with intelligent eyes.
She shook her head in disbelief and leaned back. It wasn’t possible. But where did her angel go? There was no way he picked himself up and left. Not when he went out of his way to save her, and he was injured. The bear’s eyes were the same deep blue she’d gazed into minutes earlier.
The man who saved her was the bear.
Standing up, Lana brought her hand to her feverishly hot forehead. She felt as if she might collapse, so she held onto the post to regain her balance. After a moment, though, she leaned over and vomited. Her eyes watered and tears slid down her cheeks. The stress had taken over, and as she let go, she realized something: her life was about to change and there wasn’t a damn thing she could do about it.
Conner watched his mate as she turned away from him in fear. His beast lowered his head in shame, but he wouldn’t regret saving her from the man with the knife. It was his job to protect her. He didn’t enjoy feeling her fear, though—especially her fear of him. She didn’t need to be afraid of him--he’d never hurt her. Closing his eyes, Conner tried to remember...anything.
He wasn’t doing well himself, but as soon as he had shifted, he started healing. He still tender, however, and it was too soon to be injured again. It was worth it. And even though he didn’t know who he was by name or who his family was, or hell, why he ended up waking up in a hospital bed, he knew one thing: That woman was his, and he had just protected her the way it was intended. With that in mind, he shifted back to his human self and pulled the gown back on. It wasn’t much, but it was better than nothing.
He ambled towards her slowly and placed a hand on her back. She tensed beneath his touch and he dropped his hand. “He was going to kill you.”
Plain, simple truth.
“I know,” she replied, but she didn’t look at him. “Who are you?”
Conner scratched his head. “I don’t know.”
This caught her attention. She spun to face him and laughed humorlessly. “You don’t know? You turned into a bear and killed someone, but you don’t know who you are?” Her voice rose and her face turned bright with anger or fear, he wasn’t sure which. It could have been both.
He shrugged. “I was at the hospital. The doctors said I have amnesia, so no I don’t know who I am until my memory decides to come back. What I do know is I’m a man who is also a bear. He’s a part of me, and he killed to protect his mate.” Conner wasn’t going to beat around the bush. Something clicked. It seemed being blunt came natural to him.
“I’m sorry, mate?” she sputtered.
He raised his big hand and cupped her jaw. At first she tensed, but then he rubbed his thumb lightly along her jawline and she relaxed some. “Yes, my mate.” His eyes shined with excitement. Touching her was right. “What’s your name?”
She worked her mouth a few times so he dropped his hand back to his side.
“Lana.”
“Beautiful,” he replied. She still was shocked by him. “We should probably go?” His eyes drifted to the dead man, flaring with anger. Conner would have died before letting him harm Lana.
She shook her head. “I can’t leave. I’m the prosecuting attorney for the case we were building against him. He didn’t like it.” She peeked around him at the body and shuddered. “His brother was planning to take the fall, but the judge threw out the case because there was no evidence. Until now, anyway. The police had finally tied Campbell to the crimes. This isn’t going to look good.” She bit her bottom lip.
Conner nodded, but he didn’t like this news. He wanted to take her away. “What should we say?”
She sighed. “I don’t know. At this point, we’ll both end up in jail. The police will send you back the hospital for your injury first.” She paced. “I can’t go to jail. And you can’t go back to the hospital. They’ll think you’re crazy and lock you up.”
“Then let’s go somewhere safe, and you can call and talk to your police friends. Explain what happened.”
“No, I can’t leave, and I won’t be able to come back. My DNA is on his body.”
Conner growled. “Why?”
“Probably because he rubbed all over me.” Shaking her head, she groaned. “I know what I have to do.”
“What’s that?”
“I have to call my mother.” She said it with both fear and awe. Conner wondered what her mother would be able to do to make this better. Even without his memory, he wasn’t dumb. He knew the implications she would face, and the ones he would face as well. It wasn’t a good situation. And he didn’t think his mate’s mother would be able to do much to help.
“I think we should go somewhere first, before you call your mom. It’s only a matter of time until they find him. We have a little time, though, since it’s late.”
“I can’t just run.”
“I didn’t say that, but maybe you shouldn’t be here when you call her.”
Lana nodded. “I guess. I should probably go home—and you’re coming with me. I might have something you can wear.”
Conner nodded, but he didn’t like hearing that she had men’s clothing that would fit him. His bear growled and plopped down unhappily, jealous of a past he didn’t know.
Chapter 3
Her angel's attitude changed, and she didn’t understand why. She gestured for him to get in her car and he did, but now he sat in the passenger’s seat in stony silence. She started to ask what was wrong, but the glare he sent her way changed her mind. She had no idea why he was so mad. She was taking his advice and leaving the scene of a crime he committed. It wasn’t like her. She had always followed the rules and breaking them was tough.
She pulled out of the parking garage, carefully avoiding Campbell’s body, and shuddered. She never imagined being a part of a crime. But if it weren’t for the man sitting next to her, she wouldn’t be breathing. Deep inside, she knew he had saved her life, and now it was her turn to save him because he was going to need it. He killed a man with his bare hands. No one was going to believe it was an accident. Hell, she wasn’t even sure if it was. He hadn’t said it was. He just told her he had to protect her.
She drove out into the night. Luckily it was getting late and the sun was down. She had some time before she had to call it in, and she needed a drink, or three. But first she needed to find out what the hell she did to piss him off. He had been so sweet, calling her his mate, and now he wouldn’t even look at her.
She stopped at a red light and put her hand on his bicep. He tensed and his muscle flexed beneath her fingertips.
“Why are you mad?”
And why the hell wasn’t she yelling at him for being an asshole? Instead she was calm and actually felt like she should be apologizing for something. She didn’t understand why she felt so attached to him, why she cared so much about what he thought of her, and why she was not being her normal bitchy self when a man pissed her off.
At first he didn’t respond. But then he sighed. “You said you may have something to fit me. I’m a large man, and I don’t feel comfortable with you handing me clothes from the men in your life. My bear doesn’t like hearing about it either. We are protective and apparently pretty damn possessive.”
Lana laughed and squeezed his arm. “The clothes are my brothers’ and they are all bigger than me. It runs in the family. I figured one of them left some stuff around throughout the years.”
Suddenly, his eyes brightened and he stopped moping. “Oh, brothers we can handle.” Then he shook his head with a blush. “Sorry, for being an ass. I guess I’m not used to this, and I really don’t know how I would normally act. My bear is acting like I’m an idiot. I feel lost.”
“I get that, but please try not to make assumptions about me. We both have pasts; you just can’t remember yours right now.”
“Fair enough.”
A horn honked behind them, so she turned her attention back to driving. Speeding down the highway, Lana decided she was going to
her retreat rather than her home because honestly, she was scared. She didn’t want to go to prison, and she certainly didn’t want him to go.
He was quiet again, but this time he looked deep in thought. She wondered what his life was like, and found herself growing more attached to the giant man. He was really sensitive for such a big guy. And apparently any talk of past lovers was out of the question. She smiled, feeling for the first time like she might have found someone who cherished her, and only her. It would be a nice change.
***
Lana pulled into the driveway of her family’s cabin. It was secluded and safe. She loved being in the woods, and she thought her guest might appreciate it as well. His eyes said it all, and he looked like he was going home.
“What’s this place?”
“It’s my family’s cabin. We used to come here all the time as kids, and now we come here as adults when we need to get away. No one should be here now, though. ”
“It’s a beautiful home.”
“Thank you. Now let’s get inside, and you can get cleaned up after I call my mom.”
“Sounds good to me.”
She got out of her car and stretched. This was her second home, and the longer she was a lawyer, the more often she came here to hide out. They went inside and he sat on the couch.
“So what do I call you, then, if you don’t know who you are?”
“You can call me whatever you want, I guess,” he shrugged. “A name is just a name, after all.”
“Fair enough,” she said, pulling out her phone. She dialed home and waited. As soon as her mother said ‘hello’ she got straight to the point.
“Mom, I need your help.” She proceeded to tell her mother what happened. She pulled the phone away when her mother’s voice rose too high. Her bear’s eyes widened when he heard her mother.
“I know, mother. It’s not like I asked for this.” She nodded as if her mother could see her. “Okay, so I’ll wait for you to come to me.”
Her mother yelled a little more but agreed.
“Okay, mom, see you soon. Yeah, I love you too.” She closed her phone and sighed. Her head hurt and all she wanted to do was forget this horrible day happened.
“She sounds nice,” Conner said.
“She’s great, but she is a tad overwhelming. Just a warning for you, she’s going to want to know how and why this happened…”
He shrugged again. “Sure I’ll tell her, as long as she doesn’t announce it to the world. She deserves to know since you’re my mate. Makes us family—”He stopped, and his eyes widened.
“Family, there are a lot of them.” He smiled. “I’m not alone, although all I could see were a large group of bears roaming together. Not real hopeful, I suppose.”
“Any memory is helpful right?”
“That’s what the doctors say. It sucks not actually knowing who I am. I know I was hurt badly enough to go to the hospital, plus they told me I should have died. Only I didn’t. They think it’s a miracle, but I know different. Being what I am makes me heal differently, faster, and better.”
“It’s a miracle, regardless of what you are,” Lana said, and heat rose to her cheeks. What was it about this man that made her feel so—young and desperate? “Oh and my mom said to wait it out. She’s going to pull some strings and deal with it. Then she’ll come here.”
“Pull some strings?”
“Yeah my mother is Elisabeth Walker.”
He looked confused. “And?”
Lana smiled. She couldn’t believe it, but he had no idea who her mother was, which meant he didn’t know about her family connections or her wealth. “She’s a pretty huge name in the city.”
“Oh, well, you shouldn’t be associated with me, then.”
“Too late, you’ve got blood on and in my car, and Campbell attacked me. There’s no way out of this. We can claim self-defense. And since you’re much bigger than him, that should account for how you managed to do that amount of damage. Besides, he stabbed you first. It’s tricky, but my mom is going to figure it out. She said it might take a few days…”
She gulped when his eyes clouded with lust and his smile went from adorable to downright sexy.
Chapter 4
Conner couldn’t have been happier finding out he would get at least three days with his mate, alone, in the woods. If he had his way they would be mated before her mother showed up to try to discourage her daughter from mating with a beast. He could barely contain his bear as it was, and although she covered it up well, the scent of her arousal wasn’t helping matters. If he didn’t have enhanced abilities, he wouldn’t even know.
“I guess I should go find you some clothes so you can get cleaned up.”
“Sounds good. It’ll be nice to have something other than this dingy hospital gown.”
Or I could just stay naked.
As if she could read his thoughts, her eyes traveled down his body like she was mentally stripping him down.
All she had to do was ask.
Lana turned away from him and walked down a narrow hallway. Conner followed closely behind. Her body heat radiated against him, and he wanted to lean into her warmth. He hadn’t been able to get rid of the chill that had soaked into his bones since he woke up in the hospital. He hadn’t eaten, so his blood count was low, and being injured a second time hadn’t helped matters any.
She walked into a room she clearly spent a lot of time in. Her scent overpowered other lingering scents. He crowded behind her when she stopped and pulled open a drawer and searched through it. She easily found him clothes and set them on top. She wasn’t a tiny woman by any means, but she was still small and delicate in comparison to him. Her body molded to his perfectly.
He moved closer and brought his arms around her waist, allowing his hand to flatten across her stomach. She shivered and leaned by against him, as if she couldn’t help herself. Nuzzling her neck, he breathed deeply and took in her scent. It felt like he had finally come home. Conner licked her neck with the tip of his tongue, testing. She shivered and tilted her head to the side. His bear rumbled at her submission. He grazed his teeth along her skin, light and tantalizing. She moaned quietly and pushed further into his body.
Conner slid his hands near the elastic to her skirt and ran his finger lightly along the band. “Okay?”
She nodded her head against his chest and spread her legs further apart, which pushed her skirt up higher. Running his finger right under the waistband and tickling her skin, he growled in frustration at how tight the skirt was secured. He spun her around and shoved her skirt up around her waist before lifting her on top of the dresser. Stepping between her legs, he pulled her to the edge. She wrapped her legs around his waist and tipped her head back. The exposed tan skin tempted him. He leaned in and licked a path from the base of her throat down in between her breasts.
All at once Conner froze. He shut his eyes as his memory slammed into him. It flashed before his eyes in a sequence much like a movie. As glad as he was to get his memory back, he wasn’t thrilled at the timing. She tried to get closer, but she hadn’t even realized he had stopped.
He was the Alpha’s son, and only heir. His family was the wealthiest family in the tristate area. They owned land with petrol oil and sold it to gas stations across the country.
His mother was killed right before his eyes by an enemy clan, and his heart broke. He didn’t realize he was crying until Lana’s finger brushed the stray tears. She was watching him with sympathy. Her eyes matched the hurt he was feeling. It was like she could feel his pain. Then more came and he saw the man who had killed his mother.
He searched for him for the last few years, trying to bring justice, but the man got the better of him and tore into him, trying to shred him apart piece by piece. Conner didn’t give up, though, not until he lifted one furry paw and landed the killing blow. His bear roared into the early morning mourning his mother’s death for the last time, and telling the rest he had found her, bringing her the justice she
deserved. The sun was rising and after he tore the man’s throat out, he limped into the park, trying to make it to the woods behind to lead him back home. But he was fading fast. He collapsed and turned back human. Each breath he took was unbearable. He faded in and out of consciousness.
Then he heard the boy. That was the last thing before he woke up in the hospital. Conner shook his head and brought a hand to his face, rubbing away the tears. He knew the truth now. He murdered two men in less than forty-eight hours. And even though they both deserved it, he felt like a monster. His mother had died protecting the cubs, and he had settled the score and found her murderer. He knew everything now. He was on his way home, when he couldn’t make it. He lost too much blood, and he had nearly died, but the boy found him and the hospital had managed to save him. He really was lucky to be alive. “My name is Conner Lawson.”
“You got your memory back?”
“Yeah, it all came back. I guess you helped trigger it.”
She smiled sweetly and caressed his jaw. “It’s nice to meet you, Conner.”
“It’s weird. I haven’t seen anything, and now, when I was quite happy with where things were heading, the memories came back.”
“It’s better, though. Now I know who you are, and you know who you are.” Then she paused and her eyes filled with worry. “Am I still your mate?” she asked hesitantly.
Conner chuckled. He lost his memory, not his heart. “Of course, nothing has changed. I just know where I come from now, and I have my name. I feel whole now. I have my life back, but even better, I have you. And that’s what means the most.”
“I just wasn’t sure if the memory loss maybe misread our— situation.”
Conner couldn’t help it. She was sweet and sexy, and everything he could have ever hoped for in a mate. He leaned in and kissed her. The first was barely a brush of the lips. He sucked in a breath as soon as her lips touched his back. Such a small gesture, but it was perfection.
Chapter 5
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