Authors: Callie Hartwood
Her smile widened some, and she nodded. "I'll look forward to it."
On the way back to her car, Jazzy didn't stop beaming. Her first shoot had been a complete success. Not only that, but now she would work full time with two of the most attractive men she'd ever met? It was unbelievable, and practically a dream come true.
Victor was charming and nice to admire, but there was something about Mack's electric gaze and almost hungry expression that gave Jazzy butterflies. They danced in a swarm in her stomach, and didn't stop dancing, even as she returned to Mountain Pass an hour later.
Mack shut the door to the back of the cabin fifteen minutes later.
"Dinner?"
He glanced up at Victor, who stood several feet away and by a staircase leading up to the second level. His hands were balled into fists. Mack relaxed his shoulders.
"What's the matter, Victor?"
"Taking on a permanent model... after knowing this girl for an hour? Taking her to dinner? Are you joking?"
Mack kept silent and walked past his assistant to set his equipment in the living room.
"Mack, you can't just hire her on as a regular. You have to remember our code."
He set down his gear. "It's not like that, Victor. You're getting much too paranoid."
"I have a right to. Everyone recalls what happened last time when you got close to a human girl. After that, you yourself said when it came to models, it was going to be one and done. Not one two or three times, then maybe longer."
Mack scowled some, avoiding Victor's eyes on purpose. He didn't want to remember what had happened in the past. Remembering it brought up sore feelings that he chose to keep to the back of his mind for now.
"Let's just settle down for the night, Victor."
His assistant didn't look happy, but he headed up the stairs without another word.
*****
That night as Jazzy rested in the bedroom of her dark and quiet apartment, she had a dream unlike any other. Mack Nordskov, in all his masculine allure, stood in her living room. She approached him slowly, unsure of how to address him. But then her eyes locked with his again, and she found herself falling back into the ethereal trance of wondrous desire.
Mack dipped his head some, never breaking gaze, and beckoned to her with one hand. Jazzy felt herself walking toward him without question and soon was in his arms. As she gazed up at his face, he trailed a couple fingers down her side. She felt the cool touch through the thin fabric of her shirt and shivered.
No words were spoken between them. All that was exchanged was touch... and energy. Mack leaned inward, and his lips barely brushed against Jazzy's neck. She sighed, falling closer against his chest. Hands moved across her jaw and then downward. One set of fingers cupped her breast, his thumb massaging the nipple.
A hot wave of tingling arousal coursed through her body and rested at her center, and she couldn't help but emit a small gasp. Mack looked at her with that signature smoky gaze, and it stole what little breath Jazzy had left. She wanted him, and she wasn't even sure why. It was an animal attraction that she'd never experienced before, and it was real.
Jazzy locked her lips with his, kissing him fervently and wishing for the moment to last an eternity. His firm arms tightened around her body, and one of his hands caressed down her spine, and then further until he'd reached her most sensitive areas. She panted against his neck, hot with want and eager to feel him continue. His fingers massaged the entrance to her womanhood, and she clung to him, and it wasn't long before he slipped her pants down to mid-thigh.
Mack lowered himself to press his lips to her hip, and then trailed his fingers across her chilled skin as he rested a kiss just above her femininity. His touch moved to her bare skin, pausing just outside her delicate folds, and Jazzy panted for more. She spread her legs some to allow him room to adventure inward, and Mack stroked his middle finger back and forth across her entrance.
The sensation was incredible, and her knees immediately felt weak. She struggled to hold onto his shoulders as he continued his pattern of caresses, and he drew his face inward to give the sweet spot between her legs a gentle kiss.
Then...
Then it was over. Jazzy opened her eyes to the early morning light of the next day, and cursed under her breath that the dream hadn't finished. She reached downward to dab lightly between her thighs, feeling herself positively dripping from the dream. Jazzy felt slightly bewildered as to why she'd dreamt so deeply about her new photographer. Just what was it about those stunning amber eyes and that hardened look that he gave her? It'd sent her away with excited chills yesterday, whatever it was.
The most that Jazzy knew, however, was that she wanted to feel it again. She wanted those eyes to course up and down her body, and she wanted to feel Mack's touch, whether it was physical or not.
*****
Late in the afternoon, Mack stood in the bathroom of the cabin, fixing up the buttons of his dress shirt. He didn't usually care much for professional attire, but he did want to look presentable. As he straightened his collar, he found his reflection smiling whimsically, as if he thought of something that made him happy. He supposed he did. He liked Jasmine very much, and had already daydreamed about dating her since yesterday.
It was odd, the electrifying connection that they had between each other, but he knew that he wasn't the only one who felt it. Jasmine had the very same look in her eyes when he'd straightened from the camera equipment to greet her.
Victor's steps paused near the bathroom doorway. "I don't think you should do this."
Mack sighed as he turned from the mirror to look at the other. "You're too late. She's meeting me at the bistro in..." he hesitated, glancing at his watch, "An hour and a half. I need to leave, Victor."
His friend blocked the doorway as Mack headed for the exit.
"You made this mistake in the past, and I'm going to stop you from doing it again," Victor spoke adamantly. Though he was a just a few inches shorter than Mack, he held a face of determination and command.
He was also trying Mack's patience. The other took a couple of breaths, and then gazed at Victor with hard eyes. "Get out of my way, Vic, before I get angry."
Victor smirked.
"I'm serious! This isn't a game!"
He turned from the door and headed for the downstairs. "I'm not making a game out of it, Mack. I'm being as serious as you are. I just think your obsession with this human woman is unhealthy, so I'm going to nip it in the bud before it gets out of hand."
"By doing what?" Mack exclaimed, throwing his hand to the stair railing and following his friend down to the base level.
"Come outside for a minute, would you?" Victor urged. He pushed open the back door and stepped out into the sunlight.
Mack growled a little under his breath, and then did as Victor had asked.
"This, Mack, is your place."
Mack turned to spot Victor just a few feet down the incline, pointing toward the nearby mountains.
"I shouldn't be the one to remind you that you don't fit in to a human's world. Neither of us does. We're monsters to them."
Mack scowled at Victor. He understood what his friend was attempting to teach him, but he didn't need a lesson. He knew the dangers, but he also knew what he wanted. He wanted Jasmine, and he would make it work no matter what it took.
Before he knew it, Mack had reached his limit with Victor. He snarled. "I'm going, Victor!"
"No, you're not!"
Victor leapt toward Mack, and as he did, the monstrous form of a bear took his place; jaws open wide in wild fury.
Jazzy huffed in impatience and checked the time once more on her dashboard. It was twenty past five, and Mack still hadn't shown up outside Carboni's. To her, that was rather unprofessional. Something inside her didn't settle well. She felt like there should have been a phone call of some kind if Mack was going to be late. Biting her cheek in thought, Jazzy pulled her car out from the parking space and drove back out onto the road, heading north back toward Silver Lake.
As she drove, she gazed at the waning sparkles of light on the river. Just what could have happened? She took her time heading up the windy path despite wishing to drive faster. Within an hour, Jazzy stopped outside Cabin 8 and left the car. A roar, and then a frenzy of aggressive snarls erupted from the backyard, causing Jazzy to rush around the side of the building to see what was going on.
To her shock, she watched as two large bears bat at each other with their paws, biting and wrestling each other to the ground. There were two piles of shredded clothes in the grass not far from where the bears fought. The furious noises the both of them made were enough to wrack Jazzy's body with fear. She held in a scream of panic.
Please tell me these two bears didn't kill Mack and Victor!
She thought desperately as she stared in horror at the ruined clothing.
But just as she was about to turn and bolt back to her car, the bear closest to her, auburn in color, was struck in the side and tumbled down the incline. The other bear turned and rushed into the trees, tearing out of sight. Questioning what to do, Jazzy stood there for a few brief seconds. She still wanted to rush for her car, but she couldn't stop the curiosity to check and see that the other bear would be alright. Carefully and quietly, Jazzy stepped down past the cabin and looked toward the bank.
A nude man slowly picked himself up from the ground, holding his side. He turned around and looked up the hill to spot her, and then froze in place.
"M-Ms. Solberg!"
Jazzy was beyond words as she gazed at Mack. She had no idea what she'd just witnessed, but her frightened brain attempted to piece it together for her anyway. Mack was... a bear? But how? Why? She couldn't take this. It was too much. She wasn't about to work for a dangerous creature like this.
Jazzy turned and rushed back toward the other side of the cabin, but before she could get too far, someone gripped her arm. She gasped and turned to look up at Mack, who gazed back with an even expression. The tightness of his hold didn't scare her, but brought her back into a strange sense of ease, as if it felt right.
"You shouldn't have had to see that," he said.
"P-Please. Just let me go. I'm sorry I disturbed you," Jazzy attempted, trying to tug her arm from his hand.
Instead of releasing her, he pulled her closer to his body instead. His breath was heavy, his eyes still holding that wild animal spirit inside them, like he hadn't quite fully changed back into human.
"Jasmine..." he began. “Please don't let this ruin our work together. It is a very minor detail that shouldn't get in the way. Victor and I... We just had an argument is all."
"Y-You call that an argument?" Jazzy uttered, glancing toward the trees. "I thought two bears had eaten the both of you!"
Mack shook his head lightly. "You have my deepest apologies for scaring you, as well as my apologies for not arriving to dinner on time. I was ready to go, but Victor..." He sighed. "It's nothing major. Will you forgive me?"
Jazzy had already forgiven him. She liked Mack too much to think ill of him. He was quiet and powerful, and now with this new characteristic of his that she'd happened upon, she only had a deeper respect for him. It must have taken such a serious strength to keep that ability a secret. Despite the many questions she had on her mind, there was only one that remained most prominent.
"Mack," Jazzy started, looking up into his eyes. She felt so vulnerable under his gaze. "Can we still go to dinner then?"
To her surprise, he flashed a smile and chuckled. "Yes, Jasmine. We can still go to dinner. There is now so much I would like to talk to you about."
Several minutes later, Jazzy sat in the passenger seat of Mack's car as he drove back toward Mountain Pass. Mack was in a new pair of clothes, and looked surprisingly calm despite the earlier fight.
"Will Victor be alright?" Jazzy asked, glancing sideways at him. Mack's profile view was the perfect structure of a Greek statue. He was so handsome.
"He will be fine," he replied evenly. "Victor only gets aggressive when he gets protective."
"Protective? It sure didn't look like he was protecting you," she responded.
"Like I said before, we just had an argument. It's not exactly orthodox for werebears to affiliate themselves too much with humans," Mack explained as he turned the truck's wheel, navigating carefully down the twisting road.
"Werebears? Is that what you call yourselves?"
Mack nodded.
"So... how does that happen? Do you get bitten, or... or are you born that way?"
He paused and glanced at her, smiling thinly.
"What?" Jazzy demanded.
"You're taking this werebear business rather well for a human," he uttered, amusement at the corners of his lips.
Jazzy felt herself flush some, though she wasn't sure why. "Well, it's not normal, at least to me, but I'm not about to just shrug something like that off and pretend it didn't happen."
Mack gave another nod, this time out of understanding. "No, that's something that someone scared would do."
"I'm not saying I'm not scared of you now," she retorted, clutching her purse tightly in her lap.
"Oh?" He shot her another look, this time letting it linger as he swept his eyes up and down her body. "Are you really scared of me, Jasmine?"
A positive tingle enveloped her skin, and she swallowed from the intimidating scan of his eyes. "I don't know."
The car ride was silent for a time after that. Jazzy felt slightly awkward from the ending to the conversation, so she huddled in her seat and waited until Mack had parked outside Carboni's. The sun had set quite some time ago, causing the little town of Mountain Pass to light up with old-fashioned street lamps and luminescent windows of nearby buildings. Carboni's parking lot was a little emptier than it had been at five o'clock.
Mack stepped out of the truck, and Jazzy followed him inside the restaurant. Once seated in a booth tucked away in a corner, she finally unfolded herself and placed her purse beside her. She didn't feel much more comfortable, but the slight distance between her and Mack helped her think a little clearer. After witnessing the bear fight, she wasn't so sure she felt hungry, but a quick glance at the menu brought her appetite back.
Once they'd ordered, Mack clasped his hands on the table surface and leaned in some, gazing at her with those amber eyes. "I really want to keep you as a model, Jasmine."
She shook her head. "You're not going to lose me. I really enjoyed the photo shoot we did yesterday, and I..." She caught herself before running on, about to mention the exciting dream she'd had. What a mistake that would have been.
"And you...?" he pressed.
She cleared her throat. "And I really was looking forward to more opportunities to model for you. You and Victor are very nice, as well as your seamstress and makeup artist. Are... Are they bears, too?"
Mack smiled a little and shook his head this time. "No, not them. Just Victor and I. We've been close friends for quite a number of years, but people like us don't usually make any other friends outside the bear clans."
"I see," she uttered.
Their food arrived only a short time later. The immensely unoccupied space in the restaurant proved that their meals were made fast without any additional orders stalling the process. As the server placed a small salad in front of Jazzy, Mack gave it a bizarre look.
"What is that?" he asked while the server set down a large steak in front of him. A true meal fit for a man of his size, probably including his bear side.
Jazzy looked at the pile of leaves and cherry tomatoes in front of her. "It's a salad," she answered slowly.
"That's it?"
"What do you mean 'that's it?'"
Mack's eyebrow raised as he leaned back some, picking up his fork. "You won't get full from eating that."
"That's the idea," Jazzy answered quietly. "I've been trying to lose weight for jobs."
He scoffed. "Jasmine, there's nothing wrong with your weight. You're beautiful, and I find you very attractive."
Her face felt hot with redness again. Was he really being serious? She'd never had a man so interested in her body--it almost seemed too good to be true.
Mack signaled for the server to come back, muttering something to him that Jazzy couldn't hear. As the server left, it was her turn to pass him a confused look.
"I ordered something more suitable for you," he replied. "Most thin models may have to be ridiculously conscious about what they eat, but there are no boundaries for you while you're working for me. Plus, this is all my treat."
Jazzy smiled to him just a little, and then her lip quivered. She hadn't meant to get emotional, but the thought that Mack not only saw past her weight but actually found it appealing was almost hard to believe. There was a genuine sincerity in his eyes that promised her he didn't lie.
Jazzy ate better than she had in a long while. Mack's generosity and kind words had removed the scared and awkward feelings she'd had toward him almost completely. She and Mack discussed her job history and a little more about her likes and dislikes, things that should have normally been covered in a traditional interview. Some of the night was professional talk, but Mack's occasional compliment or soft smile helped Jazzy ease up and wish for the night to never end.
After a small helping of dessert, Mack paid for the dinner and stood from the booth. He offered his arm to her, and she took it with eagerness. Mack led her out of the bistro with a smile and then back to the truck. He opened the door for her without a word and let her climb in, then got in himself on the other side. Once he'd shut his door, he sighed heavily and glanced at her. Jazzy quickly looked away, embarrassed to be caught staring.
But then a hand was at her chin, and Mack turned her head to look at him. "Jasmine..." he whispered. A swift search of the eyes was all that was needed, and then Jazzy fell into his arms. Her lips pressed against his in almost an urgency. In some strange way she felt she wanted the contact, but didn't know why. Mack kissed her firmly, curling his fingers around the back of her head to pull her closer. Jazzy pushed herself into his lap, hooking a leg around his hip in the cramped space to get even closer to his body. She wanted to be wrapped in his warmth and protection, though she never felt like she needed that security until now.
Mack held onto her thigh with one hand and trailed his fingers up to her breasts. His hold on her was steadfast and commanding, proving to her that he knew exactly what he wanted. Jazzy kissed down his throat, then met his lips again as Mack tugged up the hem of her blouse. Her skin shuddered some under his caress, but she welcomed it, and pressed herself closer to his hand, urging for him to continue.