Bears of Burden Complete Series Box Set

by Candace Ayers

  I blew out a big breath. “I haven’t accepted yet.”

  Abram made an unpleasant tsk sound with his tongue. “Damn, woman. You’ve got a cruel streak in you. What’d that boy at home do to make you run off and leave him hanging like that?”

  I climbed into his truck and reached for the seatbelt, only to find it missing. I motioned towards it when he got in, but he just shook his head. “Okay… Um… Well, he didn’t do anything, I guess. I don’t know. He’s a lawyer. From a wealthy family. Already owns his own home and it’s huge. On paper, I guess he’s great.”

  Abram started the truck and it shimmied to life. “You don’t seem too enthused, though.”

  Eric was probably sprawled in his king-size bed back home in North Carolina tucked under the Egyptian cotton sheets that his housecleaner, Kelly, laundered every other day. Or, maybe he was still up pouring over a case and glancing occasionally at the clock on the bedside table, wondering why I hadn’t called to check in.

  He was probably in his college T-shirt and the flannel pajama bottoms I’d given him for Christmas three years ago, and there was probably an empty whiskey glass caught, forgotten, between his legs.

  “I don’t know… there’s a lot of history there.”

  Picking up that I wanted to drop it, Abram just adjusted the static-filled radio station to one slightly less broken up. “I still don’t understand why Thorn went all jackass. He should be thrilled that you’re engaged and not going to be tempted by his friends. One less chance of you being run off.”

  I didn’t say anything and Abram cleared his throat. “Unless, of course, he’s interested in you.”

  I kept my eyes straight forward and sighed. “I don’t know about that, either.”

  He laughed. “Convenient.”

  8

  Allie

  Abram gave me a tour of the little trailer and worked to get everything set up for me. By the time he left, I had running water, heat, and electricity, and was cozy and comfortable snuggled in the camper-bed that was like a giant pillow.

  I slept better than I had in weeks.

  I woke up the next morning and showered in the tiny, but clean, shower. Afterwards, I dressed in ripped up jeans and threw my old sweater over my head. It was warming up quickly outside, but the air still held a chill and I figured I’d hike up to my car a bit later to get more clothes.

  I didn’t have a clue what time it was, but I headed towards the bar, anyway. It wasn’t a very long walk, at all, and it gave me the opportunity to look around Burden a little bit. The town seemed to be mostly still asleep. Everything was quiet, until I got closer to the bar.

  I froze as Thorn jogged out of the woods beside the bar without a shirt on. His body was drenched in sweat, despite the cool weather. In just loose jersey shorts and tennis shoes, his hair was a little longer than I expected it to be and damp tendrils hung over his eyes.

  He stopped and ran his hand through it, pushing it back. Then he turned to face me and another low growl reached my ears. His eyes narrowed on me and his presence seemed to grow even larger.

  My eyes were drawn shamelessly to his glistening six pack abs and the deep V of muscle that led right down beneath the waistline of his low-slung shorts. I tried to remember to breath normally and swore under my breath. The man was too tempting.

  He stepped closer to me and I got a whiff of his scent, male sweat and something darker. “You look like you were attacked.”

  I glanced down at my clothes and forced a casual shrug. In reality, I was just realizing how much bare skin the rips exposed.

  “You’re up early.”

  I nodded. “I had a lot of free time last night. My boss let me go early.”

  Another step closer and I could see individual droplets of sweat rolling down his abs. “Sounds like a great guy.”

  “Something like that.” I looked away and blew out a rough breath. “I’d better go. I’m going to help Abram get set up this morning.”

  “Abram won’t be in until around nine. You’re a couple of hours early.”

  “Damn.” I crossed my arms over my chest and sighed. “I guess I’ll go to my car and get more of my stuff while I’m waiting.”

  Thorn watched as I walked past him and then he fell into step beside me. “I just finished my run. I’ll go with you.”

  My body reacted, of course. A warm tingling began to spread from the flutter in my chest, down my belly and shot like a missile to the nerve endings right between my legs. I ignored the wetness pooling between my thighs. It had no business being there. “I’m really okay, Thorn. It’s just right up the hill.”

  He shrugged. “Then it’s not far for me, is it? Come on.”

  I had to take two steps for every one of his and I found myself panting by the time we got to the top of the hill. “Slow down, would you? I’m not exactly in the best shape.”

  He swung around and his eyes raked over me, undressing me in one sweep. When he met my gaze again, his pupils were dilated. “There’s not a thing wrong with your shape.”

  My face heated and I turned back to the road. “Keep your eyes to yourself, would you?”

  A low chuckle came from behind me as he followed, slower than before. “Why? Because you’re engaged?”

  There was that word. I looked down at my bare finger and then back at my car, parked just up ahead. “Yep. Here it is. I just need to get a few items out of the back.”

  Thorn stood beside me and watched as I jimmied the trunk open and started grabbing clothes. Things were just tossed in, chaotically. A bra here, jeans there.

  “You left in a big hurry, huh?”

  I made my way around to the front and grabbed a Ralph Lauren shopping bag from the back seat. I tossed the sweater I was supposed to return for Eric onto the floorboard and went back to the trunk so I could gather more stuff. “Yeah. I’ve been wanting to travel the country for a while. An opportunity arose and I took it.”

  Thorn reached into the trunk and pulled out a tiny pink nightie. He held it up on the tip of his finger and raised an eyebrow. “An opportunity that had you pack a nightie, but not enough gas money for the whole trip?”

  I snatched it from him and threw it into the deepest part of the trunk. “It was a last-minute opportunity.”

  “I’d say.” He took the bag from me and held it open while I shoved more stuff into it. “Where is this fiancé of yours?”

  I grabbed more things that I thought I might need and then slammed the trunk closed. “Home, in North Carolina.”

  He grunted. “If I had a woman like you, I can promise you that I wouldn’t be sitting at home if you were on the road, halfway across the country.”

  I snorted to hide the way his words affected me. “Bullshit. I saw you last night. You had one woman ready to claw your face off when you walked in and another ready to take off her clothes for you by the time I left. You’d never have a woman like me because I prefer more of a commitment from my men. You know, like breakfast and maybe dinner the next day?”

  “More of a commitment, as in a ring that you don’t wear and a home that you leave in what appears to be the fastest escape in the record books?”

  I spun on him and jabbed him in the chest with a finger. “Don’t act like you know my relationship. You have no clue why I’m not wearing my ring, or why I left.”

  “So, you did leave?”

  “What? Not like that! I just… I just wanted to see the country. My fiancé is a very busy man, unable to just drop everything for a cross-country road trip adventure.”

  Thorn dropped my bag and stepped closer, crowding me against the side of my car and using his body to box me in. “Why aren’t you wearing a ring?”

  He was so close I could feel his breath and my mind went blank. He pressed in closer until his thighs were brushing mine and his arms stroked my shoulders as he closed them in on either side of me. I made the mistake of looking up, into his eyes, and felt myself get lost. Thoughts escaped me and I suddenly felt like I was floati
ng.

  He slowly lowered his mouth, closing the distance between us. When he was just centimeters from my lips, he flicked his gaze between them and my eyes. His eyes were shockingly green from that close, and burned with intensity. I had the feeling that I’d been trapped, cornered like prey, but damned if I didn’t like it. My body was practically humming against his.

  “You’ll have to forgive me later. I just can’t help myself.” Thorn ran a finger under my jaw and then used it to angle my face towards his. Slowly, giving me every chance to stop him, he closed the gap between us and roughly tugged my bottom lip between his, sucking and licking before pressing his lips to mine more firmly. Oh, sweet Jesus.

  His few days’ worth of beard tickled my face, but his soft lips were pure seduction. He moved them sensually against mine, pressing firmly into me before licking the seam of my lips. I opened for him and he swept into my mouth with ease, his tongue stroking mine in a way I felt straight down to my core.

  I coiled tightly around his body, somehow finding my arms and legs clinging to him. My heart beat a wild, uneven tune in my chest. I’d never felt anything like the power that was surging through us. The way my body was tingling, it was like I could spontaneously orgasm. Spontaneous orgasm. Was that even a thing?

  Thorn’s fingers raked through my hair and he gripped it tightly, tugging my head back as his searing lips kissed their way down my throat, roughly. His teeth scraped my skin and I cried out in a voice I didn’t recognize. The urge to have him sink his teeth into me rolled over me like a tidal wave and I arched my back pushing my throat further into his mouth.

  9

  Hawthorne

  My teeth elongated, my bear clawed its way forward, and I opened my mouth wider to sink my canines into the tantalizing woman in my arms. She set my soul on fire. Molten hot lava coursed through my body and the only way to ease the burn was to sink my teeth into her soft flesh. I wanted to mark her and make her forget anyone else.

  My bear growled and I let it out before lowering my mouth to her shoulder. Just a little more pressure and she would be claimed. My dick pulsed painfully and I gripped her hair harder, feeling my control slip.

  Just as the tips of my sharp canines pierced her tender flesh drawing droplets of blood, a car sped past and blared its horn at us. I froze, but it roused Allie from her lust induced haze.

  She jerked away from me and ripped her hair from my hands in an attempt to fully untangle our bodies. With a yelp of pain, she freed herself and snatched up her shopping bag as she stomped away from me looking horrified and confused. I could hear her heart, its unsteady beat calling to me. The scent of her arousal, the flaming pink tinge of her cheeks, the thin trickles of blood dripping from the tiny punctures, a few strands of her hair still intertwined through my fingers, everything about her called to me. To my bear.

  He demanded I chase her down and finish what I’d started. Claim her, give her my permanent mark, pin her to a tree trunk and mate her. Fucking bear had no finesse and damned if I wasn’t right there with him.

  I stared after her, frozen to my spot, and gaped as I finally heard what my bear had been shouting, but I had been too fucking stubborn to hear. Mine.

  Mine.

  There was no ignoring the shouting in my head now. Allie was my mate. My fucking mate. The realization was a punch to the gut.

  Allie continued to stomp off, no hesitating or looking back at me. She was probably thinking about her fiancé. Her fiancé…

  I slipped into the woods, desperate to shift and run off the searing pain that was scorching my body. I couldn’t stop the wild roar that escaped my twisting, contorting face.

  It wasn’t until I had shifted and was standing as bear, looking after my mate, that I realized with horror my mistake. I’d allowed my bear to take control of my body. I now had no chance of keeping him away from Allie.

  I ran in the direction of her overpoweringly heady scent which managed to pull every primal urge I possessed to the surface. I was seconds from breaking through the trees when I was slammed, caught sideways by the full force of a raging bear and sent sprawling into a massive tree trunk.

  The tree rocked and shook from the blow, but I quickly righted myself and with a loud roar, charged toward the offending bear. My protective instincts were on high alert, and this bear was too close to my mate. That wouldn’t do.

  Instead of fighting back, the other bear shifted to a human and I was left staring down at Wyatt. I snarled at him before forcing my bear to recede. “What the fuck, Wyatt?”

  He sat up and glared at me. “What the fuck, Hawthorne?! You were charging at your new waitress! What were you planning to do?”

  I knew that I didn’t want to confide the truth to Wyatt. The truth that my new waitress was also my mate. I couldn’t identify why I felt the need for secrecy. Normally, I was an open book. I told my best friends everything. Hell, we’d grown up together and had been through thick and thin. We pretty much knew everything about each other. None of them had mates, though. None of them wanted a mate, as far as I knew. I didn’t want a mate.

  My bear growled at me and paced back and forth inside, pissed that I wasn’t going after Allie. I stared at the spot she’d disappeared from and shoved my hands through my hair. I liked my life. I did what I wanted, when I wanted. I could always find a warm and willing female for me to sleep next to, if I wanted, but on nights I wanted to be alone, I got to sleep alone. I was free. Uncomplicated. A mate would bring more stress, tension, and responsibility than I knew what to do with. Not to mention, possibly cost me more than I could afford to lose.

  Plus, Allie was just passing through and she had a fiancé.

  “Well?”

  “I wasn’t running after her. I was just running. I didn’t see her until it was too late.” We both knew he could hear the lie in my voice.

  Wyatt shoved me and walked away from me. “You’ve never lied to me before, Thorn. Get your shit together.”

  I puffed out my chest and flipped him the bird. “My shit is together. Perfectly together.”

  “Whatever. Just don’t forget about the game tonight.”

  Fuck. I forgot.

  I stayed the hell away from the bar, despite my restless, pain in the ass bear demanding I go and find my mate. My bear could shovel shit. I wasn’t cut out to be mated. I couldn’t deny how good Allie felt against me, but she was engaged to some other asshole. I refused to follow my momma’s footsteps and latch on to someone who might completely negate my entire existence just by saying goodbye. Besides, I was having the time of my life not being tied down. Fun times, no strings, no one to tear my heart out and send me to an early grave from devastating loss.

  Nope. Nothing about Allie and I sounded like a good match.

  I just had to avoid her. It wouldn’t be that hard. I’d make sure Abram put her on the daytime shifts and I’d come in late. No big deal.

  Except, apparently, my bear wasn’t on board with that plan. I found myself turning in the direction of the bar. If I breathed in too deeply, I could still smell her. This whole thing was torture.

  Until Wyatt’s reminder, I’d almost forgotten about the hometown football game. A lot of the shifters in town liked to get together and knock each other around as hard as we could one night a week. The guys and I were on an undefeated team so far. It was always a good time and I even shut the bar down for a couple of hours and sold beer from a big cooler on the sidelines.

  The local high school wasn’t large enough for its own football field, so we used the field behind the bar. The location made it easy to get supplies from the bar out to the crowd.

  Football night was cherished. Shifters naturally had a little extra violence in them, so being able to take it out on one another on the field was always fun. It could get messy and a little bloody, but it was all just for the fun of the game.

  After the tension I had built up inside from fighting with my bear to stay away from Allie all day, I needed a release. That was why, fifteen minutes
before the games were supposed to start, I was already on the field in just my shorts and tennis shoes, ready to go.

  Wyatt was next to me, giving me weird side-glances, but none of the other guys noticed or cared. We were all energetic before a game. Most of the time we ended up matched against a couple of guys we’d never gotten along with and it was a hell of a lot of fun to take them down.

  I thought I was feeling better and looking forward to some ass kicking, but then Allie walked out of the back door of the bar, her round ass calling to me as she bent over, wrestling the cooler out. She was wearing a short skirt that kept catching in the breeze. The way it flirted around the bottom of her ass cheeks had me damn near choking on my own spit.

  Of course, Sterling and Sam made no qualms about taking in the sight. Just as a bigger breeze blew, her skirt floated up for a second, giving us all a view of her perfect ass, beautifully wrapped in a pair of lacey panties. My dick tented my thin shorts and I couldn’t contain the growl that emanated from my chest and rumbled across the field.

  As if on cue, Allie stood up straight and ran her hands down the back of her skirt, smoothing it, before turning and meeting my eyes. Her face flushed pink and she spun back around to the cooler.

  “What I wouldn’t do to take a bite out of that sweet, sweet ass.”

  I turned and punched Sam in the arm as hard I could. He winced and shoved me.

  “What the hell, man?”

  “Don’t talk about my-” What could I say? “Waitress like that.” Instead of arguing it anymore, and playing chance with losing my cool any more than I already had, I hurried over to Allie to help.

  10

  Allie

  No, no, no. I didn’t want Thorn’s help. I heard him do that growly thingy he seemed to do as normally as breathing and couldn’t help the wild crazy stirring of my body responding to it. What the hell was wrong with me?