Bears of Burden Complete Series Box Set

by Candace Ayers

  His lips thinned as he pressed them together.

  I walked backwards, feeling my face tingle and burn with rage. “What is this? What are you doing? Did you think you can make me feel like a discarded, snotty Kleenex for over a year and then snap your fingers and I’d just throw myself at your feet? Beg you to touch me? Beg you to run your hands over my body and pleasure me?”

  Growling, he glared. “Stop talking.”

  I stopped moving and put my hands on my hips. “Stop talking. Stay hidden. Don’t come anywhere near my friends or my bar. Don’t live or breathe. Don’t do anything that may look like you’re having fun anywhere near me. Stay inside, Veronica. Tucked away. Better yet, leave town altogether. You’re so full of commands, both silent and not. Well, I’ve got one for you, Hutch. Go. Eat. Bull pucky.”

  I watched my books dent as his grip tightened. “You’re pushing me.”

  I deepened my voice and rolled my eyes as I mimicked him. “You’re pushing me. You won’t like me when I’ve been pushed.”

  He charged towards me and I squeaked once before turning and sprinting towards my house. He was fast, but I was smaller and faster. I also had a lot of experience running.

  My front door was locked so I raced towards the backyard and slipped in between a slight gap in the fence. I dared a glance back to see Hutch clear the top of the fence and land with ease. My mouth hung open and I tilted my head up to his as he dropped my books and took three giant steps to close the gap between us.

  His hands grabbed my arms and jerked me into his chest. Glaring down at me, he licked his lips and gently shook me. “Don’t run. It makes me want to push you down and mount you right here in the yard. Do you understand?”

  I was breathing heavily from the run, my chest brushing his with every inhale and exhale. I rested my hands on his waist and dug my fingers into his sides. “If that’s what you want to do, do it.”

  His eyes went wide and he stepped backwards. My body was on fire, though. I was done playing. I wanted him with a need that I’d never felt before. My anger could wait until the sex part was over.

  I moved with him, step for step. “Are you going to run forever? I want you to take me right here. I’m not asking for anything besides that. I’m not asking for anything else from you, Hutch. Just stop running for five minutes. For five minutes, just give in and let our bodies do what they want.”

  In the blink of an eye, he laid me on the ground and was on top of me. “Five minutes?”

  I couldn’t help the teasing smile that tilted my mouth. “Fine, two minutes.”

  He growled next to my ear and then nipped at my earlobe. “I should turn your ass red for teasing me when I’m trying to do the right thing.”

  I lifted my hips and rocked them against his. “Do it.”

  He shifted to the side and flipped me onto my stomach and over his legs. His hand came down on my bottom hard, once, twice, and a third time.

  I’d been putting on a brave front. I hadn’t known if I’d like spanking or not. I didn’t know what I liked. I was as untouched by a man as a woman could be. Feeling his big hand connect with my butt cheeks, though, had my body reacting and reacting hard.

  I arched my back and thrust my bottom higher for him.

  Hutch spanked me once more and then ran his hand down the back of my thigh. When he moved it back higher, he took the hem of my dress with his hand, revealing the tiny black thong I wore. His hand cupped my bare cheek and squeezed. “Who’d you wear these panties for?”

  I laughed. “Myself.”

  His hand came down hard on my skin again, slap, making me yelp. “Who?” He rubbed the sting away and continued to rub, his thumb dipping lower and lower the longer he went, until he was touching me.

  “You,” I breathed.

  His thumb stroked back and forth over the cloth covering my most private spot and a rumbling, drawn out growl sounded from his chest.

  My breath caught and I dug my nails into the grass in front of me. I wanted more. I felt embarrassingly wet and needy.

  Hutch pulled me up until I was straddling his lap. One hand cupped my sex and his other caught my hair and tightened his grip in it. “I’m dangerously close to fucking you right now and It’s not going to be like in one of your romance books, V. It’s going to be rough and hard.”

  I ran my hands over his scalp and raked them through his hair, my nails biting into his skin. “You’re thinking of the wrong romance books, buddy. Mine are exactly like that.”

  He ripped my panties and slipped them into his pocket. “I’m not your buddy.”

  I leaned forward and bit his shoulder through his T-shirt. “You’re not my anything.”

  Hutch pulled my hair harder, tilting my head back so he could stare into my eyes. “No?”

  I stared back, burying the emotion that threatened to show. I wasn’t going to get anywhere with him emotionally. He didn’t seem to want to connect with me. If the physical was all I could get, I’d take it for the night. That meant lying about how I felt about him. “Why do you sound wounded? Not used to being with a woman who doesn’t think you’re so amazing that she wants forever with you?”

  “Were you always this sassy?”

  I licked my lips and nodded. “You were a doofus for running from me. This could be good.”

  His lips turned down. “You keep calling me names.”

  “Only the ones that fit.”

  His hand shifted and one of his fingertips pressed into me. I’d used vibrators before, but having him inside my body made my eyes want to cross. I clung to his shoulders and pressed against his hand. Hutch grabbed the zipper at the back of my dress and tugged on it.

  “I want you naked. Now.”

  10

  Hutch

  I wasn’t gentle as I yanked the zipper down on Veronica’s dress. It stuck and I yanked harder, ripping the leather. If she was surprised by the show of strength, she didn’t show it. If anything, it made her hotter. She writhed on me like she was already on the verge of coming undone.

  I pushed my finger deeper into her, amazed at how wet and tight she felt. My dick throbbed painfully at the thought of being in her. Veronica let her head fall back and I couldn’t resist running my tongue up her throat.

  I knew I should take it slow with her, but my bear and body were demanding I thrust into her already. As tight as she was, though, I needed to prepare her for me. I wasn’t a small man.

  Thrusting my finger in and out of her slick, tight channel, I used my thumb to circle over her clit and watched in awe as she whispered my name and came in convulsing shudders around my finger.

  Her mouth fell open and her teeth clamped down on her bottom lip until I could smell the sweet tinge of her blood. She shook against me and then nuzzled her face against my shoulder. “More.”

  Somehow, my dick managed to harden even more. My little mate was a wild one, it seemed. I suddenly felt stupid for making assumptions about her instead of getting to know her. I didn’t stop to contemplate what that meant for us, farther than lots of amazing sex.

  I lifted her off my lap and yanked the dress off of her body. She was stunning naked. All smooth, soft skin and gentle curves that made my mouth water. I had to taste her. I ripped my shirt off and tossed it on the ground before laying her on top of it and lowering myself on top of her.

  Unable to help myself, I kissed her. Her soft lips accepted mine and hungrily opened for my tongue. She tasted like strawberries and lime. I tasted her greedily, eager to experience every bit of her. Her nails dug into my shoulders and then raked down my back as I rocked my thigh against her core.

  Kissing Veronica was unlike anything I’d ever experienced with a woman before and I wasn’t sure if I was terrified or exhilarated by it. Too worried to delve into the emotion, I kissed down her jaw, nipping as I went. Her moans and cries drove me to bite down harder and suck on her skin until a temporary mark marred her pretty skin.

  “You’re going to leave a mark. Don’t.”


  My bear roared and I couldn’t stop the sound from escaping my mouth. I tried to bury it into her shoulder, but she stiffened slightly underneath me before tangling her arms around my neck and pressing kisses into my neck. Her kisses were featherlight and teasing.

  “Calm down, Hutch. No need to roar at me.”

  I raised myself on my arms and looked down at her. With her lips flushed red and her green eyes wild, she was the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen. My chest ached and my bear scratched at the surface, begging me to claim her. “Do you know?”

  A devilish smile twisted one side of her mouth and she used the tip of her finger to touch the tip of my nose. “That you’re a giant bear with the temperament of one, too? Yes. Duh.”

  I sucked her finger into my mouth, needing to taste more of her skin. Her eyes dilated and she moaned. When I gently bit the tip, she used all of her strength to push on my shoulder. I let myself roll and grinned as she situated herself on top of me.

  Her bare pussy pressed against my dick through the thick material of my jeans and the feeling of her heat that close had me groaning. Veronica leaned down and kissed me, her tongue teasing me. “I want to see your penis.”

  She shifted down and grabbed my belt buckle, but I had other plans. I grabbed her hips and dragged her higher until her knees hit the grass on either side of my head. Her wide eyes and opened mouth told me she hadn’t been expecting it. Her cry of shock hinted that she’d never been tasted that way before.

  I adjusted her thighs to be spread farther and easily ran my tongue up her slit. She tasted sweet and I was helpless to the growl that rumbled through my chest. I nibbled her pussy lips and then stiffened my tongue to drive it into her.

  She turned to putty in my hands. Her thighs shook and when I looked up at her, she had a tight grip on her sexy little tits. Her fingers moved over the peach colored nipples, working them as her head fell backwards and the veins in her throat stood out.

  I fucked her with my tongue and then stroked her with long, teasing strokes before centering my efforts on her clit. She screamed as my lips latched around it and I sucked. Her body slumped forward and I had to catch her with my hand to her chest, bracing her. I slipped my tongue into her again and felt her tight walls pulse around it with her orgasm. I couldn’t get enough of her. Her taste, her orgasms, her absolute surrender to the pleasure. I was lost, and I wasn’t ready to stop.

  I slid a finger into her and turned my sucking into light, flicking strokes. She shook above me and clawed at my arm holding her up. My name was like a prayer on her lips, chanted over and over again. When I curled my finger, she screamed and went completely stiff.

  Her juices flowed out of her, around my finger, and I eagerly lapped it up as she came again.

  My mate was ultra-responsive and my head was spinning, devising all kinds of ways I could make her writhe in pleasure. Right then, I ached to be in her, though.

  I easily lifted her and rolled her backwards to the ground. It wasn’t the best place for our first time, but it would do. I shoved my pants down and looked down at her, shaking my head. “You’re addictive.”

  She reached for me, pulling me back to her. “It’s not a big deal, Hutch, but I have to tell you something.”

  I paused with my dick in my hand and shrugged. “Can it wait?”

  She looked down at my dick and licked her lips. “Wowza! I… I think it’s relevant.”

  I sat back on my heels and nodded for her to go on.

  “I’m just going to say it. I’m a virgin. It’s not a big deal. Not at all. I just wanted you to know so you’d go easy on me with that massive dong.”

  My heart stopped beating in my chest. My stomach flipped and I felt sick. What the hell kind of a fucking sorry-ass bastard was I? I wasn’t just about to mount the woman in her yard, like she was an animal, but I was going to steal her virginity. The beast in me wanted to do it. It was mine, her virginity. No other man had ever touched my mate in the way that I would. She was mine. That part of me wanted to push my still hard dick into her and take her.

  The man in me couldn’t do it. Yes, I was an asshole. I knew it, she knew, hell the whole town knew it, but if I took her virginity here in her backyard, without so much as giving her any hope of a future relationship, solely for my own sexual gratification, there’d be no coming back from that level of asshole.

  I stood up and yanked my pants up. “I can’t do it, Veronica.”

  Her face was awash in a mixture of both shock and pain. The soft, sweet mouth that had just been open in pleasure, now hung open in horror. Her expression felt like a punch to the gut.

  “You’re serious?” Her voice was soft and quivering, riddled with tears. “You’re leaving?”

  I backed away, terrified of the way my chest felt like it was caving in at the sight of her eyes pooling with unshed tears. “I have to. I can’t do it. I have to go.”

  She grabbed her ruined dress and threw it at me. “Go, then!”

  I caught it and dropped it at my feet. “I’m sor-”

  “Screw you, Hutch Mallory! Get out of my yard.” She stood up and grabbed her heels. She turned to leave and then spun back around to me and chucked one of the heels at me. While I was blocking the first one, she nailed me with the second on the side of the head. “I hate you. I hate you more than you’ll ever know.”

  My throat tightened and emotion threatened to choke me. “I’m sorry, Veronica.”

  She stomped towards her house and stopped at her door. Before opening it and vanishing inside, I heard her whisper. “I feel sorry for whoever you end up with, Hutch Mallory. No one deserves someone as mean as you.”

  11

  Veronica

  The Burden Public Library hadn’t closed for a day that wasn’t pre-scheduled in its entire existence and I was not about to break that tradition. As much as I wanted to stay home, curled up in bed, wallowing in my own self-pity, I had to go in. My heart ached like it’d been used as a punching bag. It wasn’t the first time I was hurting over Hutch, but it was the worst. Experiencing something so intimate with him and then having him run away, like I was some kind of leper, cut deeply.

  I should’ve known that I couldn’t be like that with him without falling to pieces after it. I knew he wasn’t going to stay and suddenly want happily ever after. He didn’t want me. His body probably couldn’t help its attraction to mine, but he didn’t want me.

  I banged my head on my desk and let it rest there. I had a headache left over from crying the night before and sleeping exactly zero hours. I looked like a zombie. It was probably best if I kept my face hidden as much as possible today. No one needed to see how rough I looked. There’d be no dismissing the obvious pain in my eyes and I didn’t know what to say if someone asked. I didn’t want to admit that Hutch was my mate, but I didn’t know if I should hold it in anymore.

  Mortifying or not, I was hurting and I needed to confess to someone that my mate didn’t want me. Maybe it would help me move forward.

  As if sent by fate, Georgia and Allie walked in, smiling. Seeing me, their smiles disappeared and they rushed into my office and closed the door. Georgia came around and knelt beside me. “What’s wrong, honey?”

  Fat tears betrayed me and ran down my cheeks. “Gosh darn it.”

  Allie sat across from me and reached across the desk to take my hand. “Talk to us. We’ll kill anyone we need to.”

  I laughed but it sounded fake, even to me. With resignation and shame weighing heavily on my shoulders, I shrugged and shook my head. “I found my mate.”

  Their faces furrowed. Allie squeezed my hand. “Shouldn’t that be good news?”

  “I actually found him over a year ago. He rejected me.” I grabbed a tissue and blew my nose. “We kind of hooked up last night. It was…great, until he found out that I’m a virgin. Then, he ran away.”

  Allie scowled dangerously. “Who is he?”

  Georgia’s jaw went slack. “You’re a virgin?”

  “Georgia, focu
s!” Allie rolled her eyes and turned back to me. “Who do we need to kill, Ronnie?”

  I looked up at her with tears in my eyes and did it. I confessed. I’d always been so worried about what everyone would think of me if they knew how my own mate couldn’t stand me, but for once, I didn’t care. “Hutch.”

  They both seemed shocked. “Hutch Mallory?”

  I nodded and looked away. My chest felt like it was so tight it might snap. I rubbed it absently and then looked back at them. “Hutch, and he hates me. I guess he was okay with putting his feelings for me aside last night. Until I told him about my virginity. Then, he freaked out.”

  Allie hissed. “That son of a bitch. I really will kill him. Well, I won’t kill him because he’s your mate, and he’s, like, a giant, but I want to kill him. That asshat! Can’t he see how lucky he is to get to be with you?”

  Georgia tilted her head to the side and opened and closed her mouth a few times before sighing. “Okay, I’m just going to say it. You’re one of the freakiest women I know. You suggest erotic books and sex toys with ease. You helped Fiona with her husband’s little problem without batting an eye. Last night, you gave me instructions on how to prepare myself for anal sex! How in the hell are you a virgin?”

  I laughed and that time it was real. Her bewilderment was more than amusing. “I read. A lot. I’m still sexual…just not with another person. I’d never really found anyone I wanted to have sex with until I saw Hutch. Then, he rejected me. Hard. After that, I couldn’t imagine having sex with anyone else. I’m not some prude. I just…it just hasn’t happened.”

  Allie snorted. “No one in their right mind would ever consider you a prude. Anyone who’s actually heard you speak, especially after a drink or two, knows that you’re a freak.”

  My cheeks burned. “I’m not a freak. I just have a healthy curiosity about things.”

  Georgia shook her head. “You wear the sexiest lingerie of any of us. You are more informed about human sexual practices than any of us. I feel lied to.”