by Lynn Hagen
Bear took a step back when Sampson’s voice became strained. The man’s agitation was climbing. “So you hurt Travis and Flint because someone doesn’t love you?” Bear was trying to grasp what in the fuck was going on.
Sampson moved abruptly, causing Bear to growl. Either the man hadn’t heard the animalistic sound or he was past the point of caring—which took him from stupid to deadly.
“They wouldn’t tell me where Bailey was!” Sampson took a step forward, shoving the gun toward Bear. “I didn’t want to hurt them. They should’ve just told me where he was.”
“Wait,” Bear said as he slowly lowered his hands. “Are you in love with Harley?” His brain finally kicked into gear as he put two and two together. The only person Bailey was seeing was Harley Grouper, the town slut.
Oh, this was getting better and better. It seemed one of his love flames had followed him here to Brac Village. Bear was ready to kill Sampson and then go after Mr. Gigolo.
“We are in love with each other,” Sampson heatedly corrected Bear. “Harley said he was in love with me. He told me he loved me. He even went to my brother when we first started dating, asking him to talk to me when I didn’t want to see Harley anymore, telling my brother that he was in love with me.”
If they were so in love, then why had Harley left Sampson? Why was Harley seeing other men? Bear was pretty sure the psychotic love was one-sided.
Just who in the fuck was this Harley guy and how had he managed to have a string of men obsessed over him? Bear had seen him and once again thought that the man did not possess the looks of a god. He knew there was more to a relationship than just appearances, but what the hell was Harley feeding these men? The line of bullshit had to be priceless.
“Why don’t you lower your gun and we’ll figure this out together?” Bear had to find a way to disarm the man. Travis and Flint needed his help. The scent of human blood reeked inside the bay, becoming an overpowering stench. Flint was bleeding out. If he wasn’t dead already, he would be soon.
“Do I look stupid to you?” Sampson’s hand gripped the gun tighter. “Call Bailey down here to the firehouse. Tell him someone called off and you need him to come in.”
Bear shook his head. “I won’t bring Bailey to his death.”
And animalistic sound ripped from Sampson’s throat. “Call him!” He moved closer, aiming the gun higher. “I wish I had known he was the bastard Harley was seeing. I would’ve killed him when I first arrived here. And here I thought it was only the vet assistant.”
A cold lump formed in Bear’s stomach. Had Sampson gone after Damon? Was the man lying somewhere bleeding, or worse? A thought occurred to Bear as he stood there staring into the cold, dead eyes of a sociopath. “You started those fires.” It was a blunt statement, spoken out of disbelief. “How? You were with us when we put them out.”
A twisted smile curved the side of Sampson’s mouth. It was a deviant, nefarious smile. “Twice I have tried to shove Bailey into the fire. Twice he has survived. The third fire was to get rid of the vet assistant. He was supposed to be working that night. But was he there? No,” Sampson shouted. “He was off with my Harley trying to seduce the man away from me. Don’t you see? Harley is innocent in all of this. He is weak and craves the flesh. If it wasn’t for Bailey, Tommy, and Damon, I would have him back already.”
Bear seriously doubted that. He totally agreed that Harley was a slut, but he was pretty sure the man was smart enough to stay away from Sampson. The man was a lunatic. “How did you start those fires?”
Sampson once again perked up. The anger that had begun to fill his face was gone, replaced once again by his deviant smile. “I used gasoline. I put together a homemade timer that ignited the fuel after I left. Did you know that a gasoline-soaked rag will still ignite even an hour later? Just as long as you leave it resting in less than an inch of water—” Sampson used his free hand to throw his fingers out, as if demonstrating a fire combusting. “By the way, I have one last timer set. You will never find it before it goes off. Since I can’t find Bailey then I’ll burn this town down to smoldering ashes. You could tell him that it’s all his fault. He should have left my Harley alone.”
What a fucking fruit loop.
Bear had heard enough. He prayed he wasn’t shot, but knew he couldn’t stand there any longer and listen to this raving lunatic. He had to help Travis and Flint and then find the last timer.
When Sampson strangled his hair with his hand again, Bear lunged. Sampson didn’t even have time to react. Bear had him down on the floor and disarmed in a matter of seconds. His hands were manacled around Sampson’s wrists, the man’s arms behind his back. For good measure, Bear sat on the crazy son of a bitch.
Pushing both hands into one of his, Bear pulled his cell phone free and called the cops. He told them that he needed an ambulance for both of his firefighters, and that he had the culprit pinned down. He also told them that they needed to send a unit out to the vet assistant’s house to check on him. Bear made sure to let them know that they had to hurry. Another fire was about to ignite. And from what Sampson had told him, it was going to be epic.
“Let me go!” Sampson shouted. “I need to be with Harley. He needs me. I have to save him from all the men trying to corrupt him.”
Yeah, this one was going straight to the nuthouse. He would’ve asked Sampson where he hid the last homemade timer, but the man was babbling incoherently. He wasn’t going to get anything out of this guy except a profession of love for Harley.
Bear was getting really tired of that name.
Sirens filled the night and then Bear saw swirling lights splash inside the bay. Sampson fought to get free, but the Bear refused to allow the man to wiggle from under him. Once the cops had the cuffs around Sampson’s wrists Bear hurried over to Travis and Flint.
The cops took Sampson out and the paramedics came in. Bear was relieved to find a pulse in Flint’s neck. It was barely there, but he had one. Travis had a big knot on the side of his head that he was going to feel when he woke up.
As Bear gazed round, he realized that he had no one to help him with the fire. He could call Reno and Bailey in—especially since Sampson was in custody—but Bear seriously doubted the three of them could put out the fire that Sampson had planned.
He was going to need help, and he was going to need it now. Bear did the only thing he could think of. He called the alpha. Although the sentries were not trained firefighters, Bear was going to have to instruct them. He had no choice. He had gone from having five men to having only Reno and Bailey to help him.
“He did what?” Maverick asked, his voice laced heavily with sleep. “I’m sorry, but I could’ve sworn you said that my town was about to be burned to the ground. I must still be sleeping.”
“I honestly wish this was just a dream. But you heard me correctly. Sampson set one last fire to go off. From what he said, it’s going to take the entire town to put it out.”
Bear pulled the phone back and stared at it. Had Maverick just hung up on him? He wasn’t sure, but didn’t have time to waste. Next Bear called Reno, telling him to pull his ass out of bed. Bear didn’t need to explain why. He knew Reno was already getting dressed.
He dialed Bailey.
For a moment Bear thought the guy wasn’t going to answer his phone. He was about to hang up after the fifth ring, but then Bailey’s tired voice came over the line. His voice was a little slurred as he answered. Bear had been around the guy long enough to know the man’s tired voice. Bailey had taken something and would be of no use to him.
He had no clue that it was that bad if he was on medicated drugs. It better be prescribed medication or Bailey was going to have a whole other set of problems to deal with. “Never mind,” Bear said into the phone.
“Doc gave me a sedative to sleep. I’m sorry, boss. I’m just too out of it to come in.”
At least Bear knew they were prescribed meds. He had seen how depressed Bailey was becoming and that worried Bear. He was goin
g to have to check in on the man tomorrow. “Take it easy, buddy, and call me when you get up.”
Bear was so fucked.
He geared up—even though it was only him— and pulled the rig out of the bay. Reno pulled in, got his bunker gear, and climbed in beside Bear. “I can’t believe it, fucking Sampson?” Reno rested his elbow on the door, his fingers on his face. “I always knew there was something a little strange about the guy, but I never suspected something as crazy as this.”
“Wait,” Bear said. “I didn’t tell you anything. How do you know what’s going on?”
“Friend of mine works down at the police station. Right after you called me I got a call from him, asking me why I didn’t tell him I worked with a pyromaniac.” Reno turned toward Bear. “Seriously, a firefighter who is a pyro? Now I’ve heard it all.”
“He shot Flint and knocked Travis out.” Bear filled Reno in as he drove toward the middle of town. He wasn’t sure where to go. There was no smoke or anything to give them a clue. He spotted the sentries climbing out of the trucks that were parked along the street in front of Santiago Cycles and other businesses.
Bear pulled the truck over and got out. One of the men was yelling that if his motorcycle shop burned to the ground that he was going to pull the guy out of jail and shove a timer up Sampson’s ass.
“My men will start searching the buildings, scenting for gasoline. I want you to stay close by your truck just in case we’re too late.” Not only did Maverick look like he wanted to murder someone, but Bear saw the worry in the alpha’s light-grey eyes. The wolf cared about his town. Bear knew this, but seeing the stress lines around Maverick’s eyes only confirmed what he already knew.
The men scattered, searching each business. Bear wasn’t sure that this would work. There were a lot of buildings in town, some occupied with businesses, others empty. There was a mixture of brick buildings and ones made of wood. But just because they were brick didn’t mean the fire couldn’t get inside.
This was a disaster waiting to happen.
Bear paced back and forth from the front of his truck to the rear, waiting for someone to shout that they found the timer. He began to think about what Sampson had said and all the fires he had started. Bear didn’t normally get mixed up in other folks’ business, but he was going to make sure that Harley leaving town became a reality.
Brac Village did not need this kind of bullshit. He knew that they were already dealing with Vampire Hunters. They didn’t need a damn psycho trying to burn down what everyone was trying so hard to build up.
Bear decided to call Spencer and let him know what was going on. He also needed to hear his mate’s voice. Spencer answered, sounding wide awake. “I thought you would be asleep by now.”
“Well if I was, this phone call would have woken me,” Spencer teased. “What’s wrong, you bored?”
Bear wished that was the reason. He began to explain everything to Spencer, starting from when Sampson had come to him and told him that they had gotten a call. He could hear the gasps on the other end as his mate listened.
“Harley had come by here earlier wanting me to talk to Bailey. He said that Bailey spoke highly of me, so he thought that I would have some influence. Bear, he said that he was in love with Bailey.”
Bear’s anger hit the roof. “He came by?”
“Yeah, but I pretty much told him to fuck off.”
Bear grunted, proud of his little impala. “Yeah, well he told Sampson that he was in love with him. I don’t think Harley knows the meaning of love. I’m going to make sure he doesn’t go anywhere near Bailey again.”
“Do you really think Sampson planted a timer somewhere?” Spencer asked. “Do you need me to come help look for it?”
Although the thought was appreciated, Bear said, “No. We have plenty of help trying to locate it.” They really didn’t, but Bear didn’t want his mate anywhere near town right now. One of the sentries had gone to the twenty-four-hour diner in search of the timer, warning Cody and the others about the potential risk.
There was also a twenty-four-hour gas station and drugstore. Both had been taken care of as soon as the search began. The gas station, drugstore, and diner closed down. That made Bear feel a little better knowing the businesses were closed. He didn’t want any casualties.
“Call me when you know something,” Spencer said, pulling Bear from thought. “And be careful. I–I love you.”
Bear felt his heart burst with joy at Spencer’s stuttered declaration. The grin on his face spread from ear to ear.
He couldn’t believe how lucky he had gotten when fate had decided to pair the two. “I love you, too.”
With the way he was feeling at the moment, Bear couldn’t fathom how Harley could just toss those words at someone without any emotion behind them. The man was a rank bastard. “I’ll call you just as soon as everything settles down.” Bear’s head snapped up when he heard a wolf howl. “I gotta go.”
As he hung up, Bear and Reno glanced at one another. The sound had come from the direction over by The Café. Bear wasn’t sure if he should go check or not. He knew he had to stay with the truck, but the waiting was killing him.
Maverick soon appeared, holding a small device in his hand. “It was sitting on top of a large tote filled with gasoline.”
Bear took the device from Maverick, examining it. It looked like an ordinary egg timer, only there were two wires sticking out the back, running through some strange tubelike casing. From what he could see, it looked like when the timer went off, an electrical current shot through the wires.
Simple but effective. “Where was the tote?”
“Sitting in the alley behind the floral shop where there were a ton of boxes stacked. The place would have been ablaze in seconds, taking out the adjacent shops. My men took the tote away and are still going to search each building just in case. The cops checked the vet assistant’s house. Damon Myers was fast asleep, no harm coming to him. I think I’m going to go down to the jail and have a little talk with our pyro. I’m going to also make sure his love interest finds a new place to live. I don’t need this kind of bullshit or the headache.”
Bear totally agreed.
“I’ll make a few calls and get you some firefighters from other stations. You’ll have new men by the end of the week.”
With that, Bear and Reno headed back to the firehouse.
Chapter Thirteen
Spencer had waited as long as he could. Bear had slept most of the day away and Spencer was bored out of his mind. When the clock struck three, he crawled into the bed—totally naked—and pulled the covers back.
His mate groaned and turned over, instantly reaching for Spencer. Oh no, Spencer did not get into bed to fall asleep. He had other things on his mind, wicked and naughty ideas, and sleep wasn’t one of those things.
In one flawless motion, Bear rolled, pinning Spencer underneath his large body. And here Spencer had thought the man asleep. His mate’s eyes were no longer closed, smoky-grey irises piercing as Bear stretched Spencer’s arms out above his head. He brushed a kiss back and forth across Spencer’s lips.
The man easily kept Spencer’s wrists pinned to the mattress, brushing more kisses over Spencer’s eyelids, over both cheeks, and then gave him a short one on his lips.
“What were you planning on doing?” Bear whispered as his teeth nipped at Spencer’s chin. “You’re totally naked and have fallen into my snare.”
Spencer tried to keep his breathing steady as the anticipation began to build inside of him. He had never had his hands trapped before and found the experience exciting. His heart went wild and blood rushed hot through his veins as a groan rose up in his throat, arousal catching him in a vicious grip.
Spencer melted when Bear claimed his lips in a toe-curling kiss that set his blood on fire. He hadn’t known that his mate had gone to bed naked, but now that the man was lying over him, he could feel their hard cocks rubbing against each other.
Bear’s hands roamed over
Spencer’s body freely, caressing him, arousing Spencer to a fevered pitch. His mate’s hands and mouth explored Spencer leisurely, making Spencer feel as if he were being slowly drugged.
“I want to savor you, take my time.” Bear chuckled. “I’m not sure I can, but I’m going to try. Your luscious body is already driving me close to the edge.”
Spencer smiled, touched that someone so powerful could be so gentle. Bear was always gentle with him and Spencer loved the man for that quality.
“And if I don’t want to go slow?”
Bear’s mouth broke into a wide grin. On a growl, he nipped Spencer’s bottom lip. At first, they merely touched and caressed, kissing tenderly, exploring each other’s bodies. Bear was patient with him, even though the tension in his mate’s body told Spencer that Bear was racked with the need for release.
He was kind and caring, treating Spencer like a cherished lover. Even when his mate took him roughly, Bear was still gentle. It was as if he was afraid he would break Spencer. He didn’t want his mate to hold back. Spencer wanted to experience every heart-stopping moment.
“Don’t hold back on me,” Spencer said as he ran his hands over Bear’s short-cropped hair. “Give me everything that you have been keeping inside of you.”
Bear scowled deeply. “I’m almost twice your size in height and width. I hold back because I could accidentally hurt you. I couldn’t live with myself if something like that happened.”
Spencer reached up and rubbed the palm of his hand over Bear’s furrowed eyebrows. “I’m a big boy. I can handle whatever you have to give.” Spencer wasn’t sure if he was speaking the truth or not, but he didn’t like the idea of his mate treating him with kid gloves.
He might be fairly new to sex, but Spencer felt as if he were being cheated. Not that the sex wasn’t already spectacular, but he wanted everything Bear had to offer.
Spencer’s body arched into his mate’s as Bear stroked him, every inch of him hypersensitive and greedy for his touch. Spencer couldn’t get close enough, couldn’t hold Bear tight enough. He was desperate, a coil of need tightening inside of him.