Bear My Heart: A Small Town Paranormal Romance (11 page)

“No, Olga...”

“Don't tell me that
it's not my fault! Don't you see? He'll get rid of anyone who tries
to help me. That's why I can't stay in one place for long. I have
to keep moving so I don't hurt the people around me.” She
wiped her tears away with the back of her hand. “I'm sorry,
Troy. I've endangered you and your family. Megan, Leo, Logan, even
Lilly and her parents. I should never have...”

“Stop, Olga. Just
stop.” Troy gripped her wrists.

“It's better for
everyone that I leave now.”

“For everyone?”
Troy sneered, not hiding the disgust and contempt in his voice. “Or
for you?”

“People have died,
Troy! They're dead because of me! Don't you see that? Even that
young girl. My name was beside her body. She died because of me!
He killed her because I escaped. I caused her death!” Olga
screamed.

Troy stood up and yanked her
to him. He hugged her hard as she struggled and lashed out like a
wounded animal. Each wrenching sob tore through his heart, and he
rocked back at the force of the sharp, twisting pain. He didn't know
how to make the pain go away, but he would gladly bear this terrible,
tormenting agony for the rest of his life if it meant Olga would stop
hurting and be free.

Olga's sobs finally subsided.
She clung to him and mumbled indistinctly, “I've been running
for a long time, Troy,” she whispered. She sounded so tired,
and he could hear the defeat and resignation in her voice. “I
kept moving from place to place, hoping he wouldn't find me. I kept
to myself, but it gets so lonely you know. I've met some nice
people, and sometimes...I allowed a nice guy to take me home. It was
nice to have someone to hold in the dark.” Her breath caught
painfully. “But always, something would happen to the guy. He
would be mugged and mutilated, or he would have an accident soon
after. And then I would receive another drawing.”

She pounded her fist against
his chest. “It's never going to end.”

“It will,” Troy
said grimly. “And it ends here.”

CHAPTER
THIRTY-ONE

Troy grabbed her duffel bag
and strode to the front door. “You're coming home with me,”
he growled.

“What?” Olga's
eyes went impossibly wide. “No! I c-can't...”

“You can't or you
won't?”

She shook her head.

“Olga,” Troy said
quietly, holding her gaze. “Do you trust me?”

“Yes.” There was
no hesitation but her smile was small and sad.

“Do you trust Megan?”

“What?” She
looked startled. “Of course!”

“Okay. Then let's get
you to Megan's. You'll be safe there.” Troy made a show of
pulling out his phone. “I'll just give her a call...”

“No! No, don't you
dare!” Olga flew to him and grabbed the phone out of his hand.
“I will not put Megan and her sons in danger. Never!”

“All right then. If
you're not going to Megan's place, then you're coming with me,”
he said firmly. “This is your home, your life, Olga. You're
not running from this.”

She opened her mouth, then
clamped it shut. She took a deep breath and gave a barely
perceptible nod.

Troy held out his hand to
her. “Let's go home.”

Olga managed a smile. Then
she put her hand in his and walked out the door with him.

Troy drove to his house in
silence. His eyes scanned every street corner, every tree, every
shadow to see if he could spot that piece of shit who called himself
the Artist.

Troy tried to recall the new
faces he had seen around town. Many people passed through the small,
scenic town of Bear Cove. Some were here for business, others were
visiting friends and family, and there were even some tourists and
honeymooners who drove all the way out to Bear Cove just to enjoy the
romance and peace of the little town. But the majority of the town's
visitors were just passing through. They simply stopped to rest for
a night, and after refueling their cars and grabbing some supplies
for their journey, they would be on their way.

Troy hardly bothered taking
note of all the faces that came and went but now he wished he did.
One of them had to be the Artist.

Troy glanced at Olga. She
was looking nervously out the window, staring at the people they
passed on the street. Some people waved at them, but Troy didn't
wave back. He just sped straight to his house and made sure he
shielded Olga with his broad body as he bundled her into the safety
of his house. Then he hurried back to his truck and unloaded all the
bags.

Bolting the door, Troy
carried her duffel bag into the bedroom and placed it on the bed.
“I'll prepare dinner,” he said, pulling the door close
behind him to give her some privacy.

Olga scrambled up. “I'll
help...”

He wagged his finger sternly
at her. “Only the chef is allowed in the kitchen. And I'm
your personal chef tonight,” he declared with a dramatic
flourish.

“Oh!” Olga's
eyes rounded.

“You just unpack and
unwind. I have everything under control.” He winked at her.
“I'll call you when dinner is ready. No tiptoeing into the
kitchen. I don't want you to steal my secret recipe.”

He was rewarded with a laugh.
“Okay. Thank you, Troy. Thank you very much.”

He turned away, then abruptly
spun round and closed the distance between them in two strides. He
held her tight and pressed his lips to her temple. “I'm not
going to let anything happen to you, Olga.”

“I'm not worried about
me. I...”

Troy captured her face in
both hands and looked deeply into her beautiful, stormy gray eyes.
“I won't let him hurt the people I care about. I care about
you, Olga. And I'm not the only one. A lot of people in this town
care about you, and I know you care about them too.”

She cupped his stubbled chin
tenderly and whispered, “I want this so much, Troy. I want a
family, a home...I want an ordinary, mundane life with you, Troy.”

He kissed her palm and
smiled. “I don't think our life together will be ordinary at
all. But—I like mundane. In fact, I like it a lot.”

CHAPTER
THIRTY-TWO

“And now for dessert,”
Troy announced.

Olga put down her napkin and
gasped. “Oh, I don't think I've got room for dessert. That
steak was huge! But it was perfect,” she smiled. “Marinated
and done just right.”

Troy grinned. “I'll
just get you one scoop of ice-cream then.”

“All right,” she
said. “Just a small scoop.”

Olga watched Troy bustle to
the kitchen and pull out spoons and cups. She had finished every
morsel on her plate. Troy was an excellent cook, and she didn't
realize how hungry she was until she took the first bite.

Leaning back, she released a
quiet sigh. Troy was sweet, protective, sexy as hell and the guy
could cook. She'd never dared dream that she would meet a guy like
that. Even if she did, she would never have dared to hope for a
future with him.

But this future was now
within her reach. She could have the life she'd always wanted, and
have the happily-ever-after that she'd only read about in fairy
tales.

If only she could free
herself from
him
.

Olga balled her fists, her
eyes narrowing. Troy was right. She would not allow the Artist to
destroy her. She deserved love and happiness just like everyone
else. Why should she run and hide like a fugitive?
He
was
the fugitive, the criminal, the bloody murderer, not her!

Troy came out with two cups
of ice-cream. He'd even put sprinkles on top of her ice-cream.

They sat side by side at the
dinner table and enjoyed their chocolate ice-cream in companionable
silence. Olga had never felt so comfortable with anyone before. She
was deeply attracted to Troy, but she also felt as though she had
known him for a long time. There was sexual attraction and desire,
but there was also love, acceptance and friendship. Their connection
was not just deep, but strong and unchanging. Troy would always be a
part of her, she realized.

Troy nudged her playfully and
asked, “Whose turn is it to do the dishes tonight?”

“Mine of course.”
She stood up but Troy tugged her back down. She landed on his lap.

“I'm just teasing you.”

Olga wrapped her arms around
his neck and kissed him on the corner of his mouth. “I'd be
lying if I said I wasn't scared,” she said softly. “I'm
still scared, Troy. I know he's out there, and now, I'm sure he
knows about you. I scared for you, Troy. I don't...”

Troy silenced her with a
long, lingering kiss. “I can handle that sick fuck,”
Troy growled. “You forget I'm a big, bad bear.”

“I didn't forget.”
She held his heated gaze and said, “I want you to claim me.”

“A rogue bear doesn't
deserve...”

“Bullshit!” Olga
spat. “That's bullshit, Troy.”

He started to speak again but
she pressed a finger to his lips. “You thought I was a coward
because I wanted to run away again. Well, I think you're a coward
too, Troy Hillman. You're afraid to be happy. You think that you've
been turned into a bear shifter against your will so you should live
the rest of your life in regret and bitterness. Well, guess what?
Shifters deserve to be happy too. It doesn't matter if you're a born
shifter or a turned shifter. You're what you are. You've got
nothing to be ashamed of.”

“I'm not ashamed...”

“Yes you are. You've
never really accepted what you've become. That's why you shift in
secret. That night, when you saved me from Jim, you just turned and
slunk off into the shadows when the rest of the townsfolk came
running. You didn't want them to see you. They know what you are
yet you hide from them. I'm not the only one who's hiding, Troy.”

CHAPTER
THIRTY-THREE

Troy didn't look away from
her. She was even more beautiful when she was angry. Olga was
breathing hard and she was glaring at him, but there was no mistaking
the fierce love and pride in her eyes.

She loved him.

She was proud of what he was,
who he was. And she would be proud to be a bear shifter's mate.

“You're tough, Olga,”
he said, wrapping his arms around her.

“I'm a survivor,”
she answered. “But from now on, I'm not just going to survive.
I'm going to live.”

Troy leaned in and kissed
her. His heart was bursting with love and desire for her, and he
knew without a doubt that she was his. She was his reason to live,
and he knew that everything he had gone through was to bring him to
this moment. If he had to endure that horrendous, savage attack by
the bear all over again just so he could be here with her, he would
do it a thousand times over.

She saw him. She saw through
all the excuses and pretense, and saw his heart. The heart that he
shared with his beast.

Troy cupped her breast gently
as his mouth moved over hers. He could feel her nipple stabbing into
his palm through her t-shirt. She wasn't wearing a bra. With a
groan, he buried his face in her neck.

“Olga...” he
growled softly.

She speared her fingers
through his hair and slanted her mouth over his. Their tongues
tangled and their hands moved furiously to remove their clothes.

Olga pulled her t-shirt over
her head and began to tug at the waistband of his track pants. Troy
removed his t-shirt and tossed it to a corner. He slid his hand down
her shorts and felt her warm, sticky juices coat the tips of his
fingers.

“You're so wet,”
he said hoarsely.

She murmured into his mouth,
working to free his erection. Troy gritted his teeth when she closed
her hand around his hard, throbbing cock. His hips jerked when she
pumped her fist down the length of his shaft.

Troy fought for control when
he felt her hot, wet tongue swirl round the head of his cock. She
reached up and untied her ponytail, letting her glossy black hair
tumble down her shoulders. Sweeping her hair to the side, she took
him deep into her mouth, letting him see what she was doing to him.

She sucked and bobbed her
head faster and faster, bringing him dangerously close to the edge.

Troy grabbed her and kissed
her hard. Her lips were wet with his precum and he could taste and
smell himself all over her.

His bear roared within him.
Mine!

Troy felt the raging,
violent, unstoppable force of his bear's lust and hunger. This time,
he didn't try to restrain his beast. He had found her. His bear had
found its mate.

Troy could feel his eyes
glowing as his bear surged to the surface. His muscles bulged and he
could feel the tips of his claws pushing out from his fingers.

With a roar, he ripped Olga's
shorts and panties to shreds with his claws. She shivered but not
from fear. She was highly aroused. Her skin was hot and flushed,
and the scent of her arousal was driving him insane.