Bearly Escaped

by Claire Skylar

  She felt serene and protected with him when she stood by him. Maybe it was her bias speaking, but she imagined rich guys cowering in fear and shitting themselves when a gun is pointed at them. Their safe secure lives in gated communities and bodyguards precluded any other response. But Spencer was different. There wasn't even a hint of bother in his face. He talked directly without any fear. His confidence was something else and it made her realize how rare that was amongst men. Here was a man who had everything to lose, a sprawling business empire, billions in wealth but the swagger never disappeared. She could stand by a man like him.

  Yup, he was well built and could take both of the men down in hand-to-hand combat, but he had no chance without a gun. Maybe the billionaire had some tricks up his sleeve. Oddly, she was hoping that Spencer would be like Batman, the vigilante billionaire, with an arsenal of gadgets hiding in a cave or somewhere in his suit. She had an unfathomable appetite for superheroes. Deep in her heart, she always wanted to be one or at the very least, have one as her lover. She chuckled slightly at the insane leaps of imagination that her brain was meandering through. She knew periods of stress invariably led to that. Probably it was a way to stay calm in the face of danger.

  Cowering under the desk, she waited to see what would happen. When the lights went off, she knew Spencer was up to something. Maybe Spencer was Batman.

  When she heard the shots firing off, she felt the dread rise in her throat. The negotiations had obviously failed. Spencer was probably lying in a pool of blood. Lurid images of death flashed in her head and she bit down her tongue to stop the screaming. She tried to wipe off the free-flowing tears but it seemed like a hopeless task. She remembered his jovial face and the desires that she had felt for him. She no longer felt protected. The man who had promised it wasn't there to uphold his promise. He must have been valiant and tried something to protect her but death was too steep a price.

  Anger rose within her. She cursed at herself for letting herself dream , and believe that something better was possible. This evening felt like a cruel joke. Puffing you and slamming you down so hard! All that she dreamt of lay lifeless in a pool of blood. There was no coming back from this. She could never regain the confidence necessary to step out again.

  With the end of that storyline, she took a deep breath to calm her mind and thought about how to escape and live. She wanted revenge. She thought of Brendan and knew that he could help her get it. She had to escape these ruffians first though.

  She realized the need to scoot back further, the thin desk would not be able to afford protection against those large guns. You don't survive for so long, if you weren't street-smart, at least here in this city.

  The barrage of gunshots meant that getting up would mean certain death, so she lay as still as possible, in the fetal position. It seemed that the table afforded more protection than she gave it credit for. Bullets still ricocheted around her, but the rush of adrenaline numbed her fear.

  When the bullets stopped for a moment, she knew that was her cue. But then the earthshattering growl shook her to her bones and she froze.

  What was that? A bear?

  Ari wondered if her brain was playing tricks on her. There shouldn't be a bear or anything sounding like a bear in the middle of the city. She crouched back to her former safe place not knowing what to do.

  The ear-shattering gunfire amplified by small corridors bounced off the walls and terrified her and her resolve to escape. Maybe this was a fear tactic to make her lose all hope and come out.

  When she heard guns raining down hellfire the second time and realized that the bullets were not in her way to safety, she took her chance and rolled to the back, farther away from the gunmen. She opened the door to the kitchen and rolled inside. Breathing heavily, she sat against the thick stainless-steel wall with her head turned and tuned to the fighting she heard outside.

  She felt her sweaty shirt clinging to her, and how loud her quick shallow breathing sounded. Her hair was in total disarray as was the makeup. Adrenaline had masked the pain until now. The screams and the fighting sounds terrified her and she shut her ears in a panic once again. The darkness didn't help her at all.

  Jeez! I wish I could just see!

  She felt hot tears drip on her clothes and prayed that she'd somehow escape and been ok.

  Feeling herself slipping against the wall, she tried to straighten her back and felt a sharp stab of pain in her thigh. Looking down but seeing nothing in the dark, she poked at the source of pain and felt blood wetting her jeans. The pain was getting stronger by the passing minute and she realized that she'd been shot.

  Knowing that she had to remain quiet and refrain from becoming the center of attraction, she bit her tongue and bore the agony. She banged the floor with her bare hands as the pain throbbed like a tide coming in and out. The burning sensation felt like someone had shoved coal embers into her thigh using a poker stick. She let out hot shallow breaths trying to control the pain, even as it morphed into different forms and grew frighteningly quickly.

  Strength ebbed out of her with each second and it was not long before her will gave out; she had to call for help or die bleeding.

  She called out to Spencer, not knowing if he was still there, or dead by the bullets or the bear.

  "Spencer! Help!"

  She cried out once again, pushing hard against the enveloping darkness that was beginning to surround her.

  "Help! Help! Spe — "

  She collapsed; arms splayed across her body. With no one by her side except the cold linoleum floor.

  C H A P T E R 11

  Ari!

  His rage was still palpable. But seeing the men writhe in pain had mollified it to a huge extent. The bloodthirst still raged though. These men need to pay and a message had to be sent.

  The scream allowed Spencer to refocus on what had happened. The scene in front of him was worse than a wet market in some south Asian country. Blood splattered on the walls, blood on the linoleum floor and blood splotched all over him.

  The fury unleashed was nothing like anything he had ever felt before. Fighting was not new to him but the sheer anger that consumed him felt strange. The ferocity of the bear's vengeance both scared and surprised him.

  His body now complained of multiple hits he had taken. It was not too bad but these guys had spilled blood and by the sound of it, Ari's too.

  His

  rage was aflame again. He felt himself losing control over the beast inside him. The result was not going to pretty. If this rage went on for longer, he ran the risk of letting the beast override his consciousness and will. In the heat of the moment, it felt like a small price to pay for revenge.

  Then he heard the scream again. Urgent and full of pain.

  That seemed to plug the reservoir of rage within him. It vanished instantly and was replaced with fear. A fear of losing his fated mate, Ari.

  Our mate is hurt! We need to tend to her!

  He ignored the groaning men and began to rush back, but stopped mid-stride. He couldn't let Ari see him in this bloody state. He didn't know what had caused her scream in the first place. There was no chance she would let him in his current state anywhere near her.

  Begrudgingly, he shifted back to his human form and ran towards the source of the cry for help.

  It was still dark but Spencer saw everything. Slumped against the steel wall, Ari was breathing erratically. Her bloody hands gripped the thigh on her outstretched legs. Her eyes were open with a thousand-yard stare. Even in this disheveled state, she looked pretty.

  Dropping to his knees, he grabbed Ari and cradled her in his arms. He spread her legs and saw the gunshot wound.

  Good! Looks like it only brushed the thigh!

  Spencer knew he had no time to waste. Taking her to a hospital would lead to unwanted questions, not to speak of the tabloids which could spell trouble if they caught a hint of what had happened. This had to be kept on the downlow. It seemed prudent to leave the country for now and get t
o his tropical island in the Bahamas.

  He grabbed his phone and made the call with a lump in his throat. Cradling her, he grabbed a piece of cloth and fashioned a tourniquet. That's all he could do.

  The bloody arm reminded him of his own injuries, but the pain was almost imperceptible. His shifter healing was at work, and he felt the bullets slowly move out as his flesh healed. Soon the bullets would fall out and the wounds would seal shut.

  How he wished he could share the healing power with his mate. But alas, she was only human.

  Her beauty had ensnared one of the most highly sought beasts in the world. She had somehow made him so vulnerable. And deep inside his heart, he was happy to be vulnerable. That somebody had reached within and made a place for themselves in his lonely heart

  His eyes stood fixated on his mate as if he could wake her up by the power of his mind. Alas, such psychic powers didn't work on living things.

  He would take care of her, not just today but forever. It pleased him that his bear responded so emotionally to hearing her cry. He remembered the rage before that and the bloodthirsty vengeance he felt inside. The response cemented the bond between them. This girl had changed him.

  After about five minutes, his enhanced hearing picked out the rapid whirling of helicopter blades coming in his direction. He surmised them to be five minutes away.

  Grabbing Ari in his arms, he walked out and waited for it to approach and land.

  The medics grabbed her from his arms and he let go of her reluctantly. Climbing aboard, he sat unmoving, staring at Ari's face.

  Still unconscious from the blood loss, medics started cleaning the wound. She screamed as they began to stitch her up. Spencer held her hand and soothed her.

  "Sir, what about the men back there?"

  "Call 911 from the phone inside and let them be "

  The men would survive, sadly, but what would they explain—that they were mauled by a bear.

  He realized he had not yet made good on his promise to protect her.

  Somewhere out there, somebody wanted them dead.

  C H A P T E R 12

  Imagine surfacing out of a cold and dreary lake for a bit of fresh air and then falling back into the abyss and then surfacing again ad infinitum. Ari felt something like that as she struggled to stay conscious.

  She thought she heard Spencer by her side, cradling her, soothing her. Followed by what seemed like an endless period of unknowing and the rapid chop-chop of a helicopter.

  She was dreaming again

  She was with Spencer on the beach. He was nuzzling her neck, as her hands meandered on his strong muscular back. She was lying down, all naked and she felt Spencer's slick growing erection kiss her belly. There was so much love in the way he adored her bountiful breasts, grabbing them, sucking on the taut nipples.

  Licking, sucking his way down, down to her belly. A long pitstop around her belly button. Her insides were wet, so sloppy wet, by the time he reached down there. His lips and tongue were doing god's work in sending her to high heavens. He was so good at worshipping the female form.

  She moaned in delight as pleasure washed over her again and again amidst the waves crashing right next to her.

  She grabbed his head and thrust him deeper inside her, moving his tongue to where she wanted her.

  "Aaah! Aaah! Spencer make me come!" she moaned again loudly, as she reached down and felt his stubble graze over her soft insides.

  Orgasming hard, she scissored her legs lengthening the explosion of pleasure and suddenly felt the bandage across her legs. It didn't feel right.

  With groggy eyes, she realized she was somewhere else.

  She somehow managed to peek out of her what-felt-like-thousand-pounds-eyelids and saw herself on a wide bed, soft pillows cradling her. The curve of the fuselage and the oval double thick windows surprised her for a second. The hum of the jet engine was loud but not too much.

  I'm in a jet!

  The bedroom she was in was spectacular in its opulence. It seemed almost otherworldly compared to her small bedroom in the house she shared with her mates. It was cool and refreshing to wallow in the soft smooth bed and she almost didn't want to get up. But the thought of Spencer jarred her back to her senses.

  She got up and saw the bandages on her thigh. It all came back to her. Dinner. The gunmen. Spencer. And the bear. It felt like pick the odd man out. Why did she remember a bear? She thought she heard a bear growl.

  The pain was almost imperceptible now. The bandages were the only sign of that history.

  Just then, Spencer walked. Still immaculately dressed in a pinstripe suit, he looked every bit as nice as she remembered him. He had the I'm-so-glad-you're-up smile.

  It lifted her spirits to see him hale and hearty.

  "Good morning! my dear Ari, just to let you know, this is my Gulfstream and you are the first woman to fly in it."

  Ari mimed gasping.

  "Liar! Seems like I've been kidnapped. I wonder where my savior bear is?" she asked playfully.

  "Jokes aside, what bear? Are you running a fever?" he reached for her forehead and shook his head.

  "Don't tell me you didn't hear the bear back then? Wait, how did I get here?"

  "You need to rest."

  "I was bleeding and gunshots all around me, and you, you were out there."

  Spencer took a deep breath and sat beside her.

  "You remember the lights going out. The gunmen shot themselves in the dark. I took care of them, stitched you up as new and had you brought here. It's safer here than you think."

  Something felt amiss but Ari couldn't put a finger on it.

  "Okay. But what about the bear? I swear I heard a bear."

  "That must be some hallucination. A bear, a frigging bear, right in the middle of the city?"

  Ari closed her eyes and tapped her temples. If she could only remember. It was too hazy. After all, our minds tend to erase memories from stressful situations as a survival tactic.

  But when Spencer leaned in and reached for a kiss, all she could do was to forget everything and focus on him.

  "Did I really scream a while back?" Ari was mortified when she recalled her dream.

  Spencer nodded.

  She swallowed and looked away.

  As an introvert, she wasn't used to sharing intimate secrets with anyone. Social interactions were tough; small talk doubly so. She felt embarrassed. Ari didn't have the heart to look up.

  The silence grew between them until Ari glanced upward at Spencer donning a look that said did-I-seriously-hear-that.

  He smiled and asked softly," What about it?"

  Ari blinked.

  Why does he want to drag this out? I'm so dirty!

  "I am sorry that I did what I did," she said as she took a long deep breath and gave up. There were no two ways about it—she had to come clean.

  "You want to apologize about a wet dream? Why?" Spencer chuckled as if she had offered an apology for the sun rising in the east.

  Ari took a long deep breath.

  Why does he have to make it so awkward?

  "Well, that was not very, how do I say it, proper for a lady to be doing in her boss's bedroom." Her face was redder than a Red Delicious, as she spat out the words like sunflower seed shells.

  How she wished that she could rewind time, and be back home. No embarrassment, no billionaires with their private planes. Nothing.

  Spencer sat speechless for a moment before responding.

  "I think I heard a name too." Spencer smiled wistfully.

  "Oh no! Is there anything to make it more awkward?"

  "Well, I have a confession to make. Maybe that will soothe your nerves."

  Ari nodded and hunched forward, keen to hear what Spencer had to say.

  "This might seem a little too forward considering the circumstances and being under my protection but I am in love with you."

  Ari tilted her head and raised an eyebrow at him.

  "Hey, this is no time to make fun o
f me. "

  His silence told her more than anything that this was true.

  Her heart fluttered and she felt energy flowing in her. Spencer loved her. He had been her knight in shining armor and now she was with him, safe

  "It's hard to—" she sighed, "you are—" she pointed at the interiors of the jet," the one who flies this and I am just ...!"

  Spencer grabbed her hand and held it.

  "And you are the most beautiful girl in the whole wide world!"

  She stared into Spencer's blue eyes and found him to be telling the truth. No guile in them. He wasn't saying that just to get into her pants unlike the rest of the "boyfriends" who had played with her and left. He meant it.

  "So, you're telling me that you were smitten and that's why you put on a disguise and followed me?"

  "Guilty as charged."

  "You know, I've always considered myself to not be worthy of love. With how I look and feel, it's kind of disconcerting to hear this, coming from a guy like you."

  "I don't know what you're talking about. Frankly, I half expected to have to fight for your attention from a gaggle of suitors. Guys should be out there eating out of your hands. You are, so beautiful, you know," Spencer's eyes roamed all over her.

  He can't be serious!

  She was just an ordinary girl, out here in the boondocks, with a talent for bathroom singing and a bad case of chronic foot-in-the-mouth disease—That's what her friends said anyway. Her ex-best friend, Anna only invited her to be her partner in pubbing to make herself look better.

  "No, I'm not! It just doesn't feel right!"

  "I've been in business long enough to know better, would you agree? Your voice is divine, I get your humor, and I can vouch for the fact that you are smart. Maybe it will take a couple of million times of me repeating this, but you are very beautiful. A goddess. I want nothing more from a mate, I mean, a partner. Trust me!"

  Ari nodded and before she could say anything to the contrary, Spencer put his fingers to her lips.