His to Bear: Icy Cap Den #1 (Alaskan Den Men) (4 page)

I
n morning
, I take Meg back to check on Trudy. The storm is still blowing hard. Thankfully, Trudy is improving quickly. Her leg will heal with a nasty scar but with no loss of function.

When we return to our cabin, Tristan is waiting. Meg fills him on Trudy’s progress, then hurries inside. The heated glance she gives me encourages me not to dawdle outside on the front porch with my cousin.

“What the fuck have you done?” Tristan says, before the door even closes behind Meg.

“What are you talking about?”

“You made her your mate. A vampire! Have you lost your mind?”

“How do you know?”

“Please! You’re grinning at each other like fools. Not to mention that I can smell you all over her a mile away.”

“She risked her life saving Trudy. If it’d been up to me, she wouldn’t have left the cabin last night. She was so close to death from the cold I almost lost her. So what the fuck is your problem, cousin?”

“What if she’s the one responsible for the traps?”

“Have you been drinking with the trolls again? You know humans use their home brew as embalming fluid.”

“Ash, the traps started showing up after Meg arrived.”

“So what? She also treated all those injured. Why would she set the traps? That makes no sense. It goes against everything in her training. She could get staked for that. “

“She could get staked for fucking you.”

I cross my arms over my chest and plant my feet wide. “That’s none of your business. Go cool off, cousin, before I forget my manners. She has no motive.”

My cousin is deranged. There’s no way his theory makes any sense. Sure, Meg has her secrets, but so does everyone else in Icy Cap.

“Perhaps she works for the succubus. She did just appear up here out of nowhere.”

“That’s insane. She saved Trudy’s leg. Are you feeling guilty you didn’t find the trap first? This isn’t like what happened when we were kids. And it wasn’t your fault.”

“Bullshit. This isn’t about me. You fucked her, and now you can’t see it. She’s controlling you.”

“I saved her. She’s my mate.”

“She arranged the whole thing so you would think you saved her. Now she knows you’ll never turn on her. It’s the perfect plan. She’s probably got a sweet deal lined up with the succubus when we’re all gone.”

“What possible reason could Meg have for wanting to destroy Icy Cap? We’re more than her livelihood, we’re her life. Her purpose is to be a physician. If there are no residents, then she has no patients.”

“You know the vamps want to run Icy Cap. They’ve wanted to for years.”

“Right now Icy Cap is just an idea; you know that better than anyone. Until the lodge is done and we can get some services going, there’s nothing here worth taking. More likely it’s the trolls or fae. They hate each other. If anyone’s working with the succubus, it’s one of them.”

My bear spirit is spoiling for a fight. It would be so easy to teach this upstart bear a lesson. I bare my teeth at him.

Tristan lunges. His fist makes contact with my abdomen, knocking the wind of out me. The funny thing is, I see it coming. But I don’t want to believe my cousin would hit me.

But when he does, I’m happy to return the favor.

All I want to do is pin him and shut his stupid mouth. But Tristan is stockier than me, and his lower center of gravity makes him difficult to throw down. We tumble into the snow, neither letting go of the other.

Meg. Meg. Meg.

It can’t be Meg. Tristan is crazy.

My fist connects with his jaw, which is satisfying until the pain radiates down my arm. We roll over and over in the snow, with me naked and him lightly dressed. It would be so easy to shift again and beat the crap out of him.

Over our grunting and swearing, I am dimly aware of Meg’s voice.

“Stop!” she cries. “For fuck’s sake. What are you idiots doing?” She grabs at my shoulders. “Ash, leave him alone.”

No doubt Meg’s strength is beyond that of a normal human, but I shrug her off easily. Then I relent, mostly because I wouldn’t want her to get hurt if Tristan and I continued swinging.

Meg’s hand is on my forearm. Tristan’s lip is bleeding. I’ve banged my head against ice. I can already feel the lump forming on my skull.

Meg glares from me to Tristan. “What the hell is going on?”

“
N
othing
. My cousin was just leaving.” Ash scowls at Tristan and then leans down to kiss me lightly on the lips. My bullshit meter detects guilt.

“Tristan?” I look over my shoulder at the younger man, who’s standing in the snow with a bloody nose. “Let’s get you both cleaned up.”

Ash waves him away. “He’s leaving.”

My mate looks furious and oh so sexy.

Tristan spits a wad of blood into the snow, then staggers off in the blizzard. Soon he is no longer visible.

“Let’s get you inside.” I lay my hand against Ash’s cheek. “You banged your head pretty hard. I want to check your pupils.”

Ash rubs his sore jaw. “My pupils aren’t what needs checking.”

I slide my arms around him, assessing him for cracked ribs. Finding none, I steer him up the cabin steps. “What was that about?”

“Nothing.”

Two bruised shifter bears and fresh blood in the snow. It’s something. But I switch tactics.

“Are you tired from last night?” I keep my tone light as the front door closes behind us. Ash is a stubborn bear. It’s better not to push him. There’s more than one way to find out what that was about.

“I’ve got way more stamina than that.” He gives a short laugh that sounds more like a bark.

“You said last night there were other things you wanted to try.” I fondle his cock. There are so many benefits to his usual state of undress. “Do you want me to suck you off? Would that help?”

Ash swears softly. “Hell yes. Get on your knees.”

Whatever is wrong between him and Tristan needs to be set right. Later.

I’ve been dreaming of sucking off this shifter for months. Now I have my chance, as his mate, to bring him comfort. And it turns me on, so that’s all the better. I kneel before Ash.

“Take off your sweater.” His hands are on the top of my head, holding me down on my knees. I like it. He’s strong. But so am I.

I pull off my sweater, very glad I already removed my snow pants and upper layers earlier. There is no sexy way to strip when you’re wearing multiple sweaters. I can feel his gaze down toward my breasts.

His cock bobs in front of my face. This man sports an impressive erection. He’s mine. All mine.

I glance up at his bruised face. I long to kiss the pain away, but I know he isn’t in the mood for tenderness now. Something has unsettled him. Giving him the best blow job of his life can only improve his mood.

As I lick his cock in leisurely circles, Ash’s toes curl in pleasure.

“Take it.” He guides my head forward.

I open wide, and his cock fills my mouth, tickling the back of my throat.

“Meg, your mouth feels amazing. Can you take a bit more?” He flexes his hips forward.

I suck, holding onto his thighs with my hands. I want to play with his balls, but his girth keeps me occupied.

Thick, smooth, and hard. This werebear is built for pleasuring.

Sucking him makes me feel powerful and sexy. I’m careful, though. I don’t want my vamp incisors causing any damage to his goods. I am his mate. This is my right. Whoever wants to take this away from me can sit on a stake.

From Ash’s moans, I can tell he’s getting close. This is good news, as I’m feeling lightheaded from hyperventilating.

His hands tightens in my hair. God it is such a turn-on doing this to him.

“I’m so close. You’d better stop.”

I have no intention of stopping as Ash explodes in my mouth. His hips buck and I swallow every last drop of him.

What a mate. Judging from the blaze of his ice-blue eyes, he’s going to make things very hot for me indeed.

He scoops me into his arms and carries me to the couch.

“Wouldn’t the rugs be more comfortable?” Images of last night’s pleasures there are still fresh in my mind.

“This will serve my purposes well.” Ash lies on the massive leather couch. Buck naked, of course. “Take off your pants and panties.”

I shuck them both off before reaching around to unhook my bra.

Ash wags his finger at me.

I straddle him on the couch. “You look like you’ve been fighting. Oh, right. You have.” Just the feel of his skin against mine sends little sparks through my body.

His fingers trace the outline of my bra.

My nipples harden in anticipation of his touch. I lean back slightly, allowing him more access. “What were you fighting about?”

“You.”

Placing my palms on his chest, I stare down into his battered but beautiful face. “Was he upset about Trudy’s condition?”

Ash pulls the straps of my bra down to my forearms. My breasts spill out of their cups into his hands.

I close my eyes as he kneads me. That feels so fucking good. Just his look and touch makes me wet.

Ash widens my legs with his knees. He drops one hand to stroke my pussy.

What were we talking about, again?
Oh yeah. Tristan.

He is hard again. His cock probes my folds. I whimper in anticipation.

“Anything you want to tell me?” Ash flexes his hips. The head of his cock presses against my pussy.

“Fuck me,” I whisper. Mother of God, his cock feels so good against me. I try to take more of him.

“Patience, mate.”

I love hearing him call me “mate.” I never thought I’d find someone like him. I never thought I’d mean something beyond my professional capabilities to anyone. I know I shouldn’t. This is against what is expected of me. But I want to belong to this shifter. He has my heart. He can do whatever he wants with my body.

Ash penetrates me slowly. It feels so amazing, I cry out in pleasure. I want him to fill me fully. Enough of this blissful torture.

“Ash, please. Fuck me.” My voice is tight with need.

He continues until he is fully buried within me. It is exactly what I want. And it isn’t enough.

I swivel my hips just slightly, moving his cock inside me.

“No.” Ash clamps down on my hips with his hands, stopping any motion.

The need to move against him is overwhelming, almost painful. I know the pleasure that awaits me, but Ash denies me.

“Ash, I’ll do whatever you want.” My vampire self-respect is gone. In its place is a desperate need for this man. “Just tell me what you want.”

Ash studies me with hooded eyes. He looks feral, more than a bit brutal, and oh so very hot. If anything, his Alpha behavior just turns me on more.

He thrusts up once, hard and fast, taking me by surprise. “Do you know anything about the traps?”

I reel from the sensation, and my pussy clamors for more. I finally manage an “Again.”

Ash stares at me but does nothing. Taking my breasts in my hands, I tease my sensitive nipples, watching him watch me.

“Do you want to get fucked?” Ash asks coolly. His eyes are on my tits. He swallows.

I nod, closing my eyes and letting my head drop back. Thank the Goddess. I’m about ready to explode from frustration.

“Tell me about the traps,” he presses.

“I . . . no.”

“No, or you don’t know?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Can’t we talk about this later?” I slip one hand down to my clit. I don’t know what Ash’s problem is, but there’s more than one way to get off. I rub the sensitive nub, feeling waves of pleasure build within my core.

“Dammit, Meg.” Ash brushes my hand aside. I take advantage of his distraction to start milking his cock. My pussy clamps down on him when he thrusts upward. It feels so fucking good.

Clearly he wants to fuck me, or his cock wouldn’t be stiff with need inside me. His words say one thing, but his body says another. Right now I’m going with what feels damned good.

“Fuck. Stop. Fuck.” Ash twists his hips to pull out, but he’s unable to fully commit to the task. I lower my torso so that my tits bob in his face. Holding his cock deep inside me, I ride him.

His mouth sucks one breast, then the other. His tongue roughs over my nipples, pushing me higher toward my climax.

Finally surrendering to the task of fucking me thoroughly, Ash laves my nipple while pumping his hips into me. My confusion and frustration with his behavior only pitch my need higher.

This is going to be the mother of all orgasms, and I don’t want to miss a second of it.

I am close. And so is he. He cries out, driving me right off the couch, but he keeps our bodies fused together.

“Motherfucker!” I climax, feeling the world spin away from me as my own need consumes me. It’s as if very nerve in my body died and was reborn at the same time. It is fantastic. And humbling.

I’m shaking and sweaty. The latter feat is a near miracle, as I’ve been some degree of cold ever since I arrived in Icy Cap.

“What the hell was that?” I gasp. I’d had an intense orgasm—where I almost blacked out—before becoming a vampire, but this is something new.

Sweat glistens on Ash’s chiseled chest. I want to weep at his beauty but punch him in the face for being such a prick. Tristan already beat me to the latter.

“Asshole.” I jab a finger into his pecs as I roll off him. It isn’t my best-planned move, as my legs are like jelly. Instead of storming off with my head held high to get cleaned up, I sink to the floor next to the couch like a collapsed marshmallow.

Still, I’m not willing to be deterred. “What is your fucking problem?”

Ash rubs a hand over his eyes, a move I recognize as a stalling technique. “When you’re mated, it’s, um, impossible to lie to your mate while you’re . . .” He trails off, not quite meeting my eyes.

Seriously, now he’s going to get tongue-tied on me? “That’s what I get for blowing you?” Mother of God. Now that the feeling is coming back in my legs, I’m pissed. I still don’t trust myself enough to stand, but he doesn’t need to know that. “You think I’m behind the traps? That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard. But then again, I shouldn’t be surprised what you shit-headed shifters come up with.”

“I asked. You said no.”

“With your cock buried inside me! Fucking is not a lie-detector test.” I stand up. I wobble a bit, but I’m on my feet. It feels good to be apart from Ash.

Then his semen trickles down my leg.

A small smile starts at the corners of his mouth. Of course he smells himself on me. The big lummox is pleased he’s marked me. Again.

I feel tears prick the corners of my eyes. Vampires don’t cry. That vulgar emotional display is the domain of human children and trolls who can’t hold their liquor.

Pulling a throw from the couch, I wrap it around me. Not only am I now feeling cold, I don’t care to be ogled. I’m furious and more than a little hurt. When Ash saved me and marked me as his, I was proud. I fell in love with him before then, of course. I thought he’d returned the sentiment, even though we’d not spoken of love. If making someone your mate isn’t an expression of love, then I clearly misunderstood this shifter.

I push my wayward curls back from my face and stand taller. Ash, meanwhile, reclines on the couch, naked and seemingly unperturbed. How have I so seriously misjudged him? I knew him to be a hothead but never guessed he was cruel.

I shook my head, clearing my thoughts. “I want you to leave.”

“This is my cabin. You’re my mate.”

“So what?” I call over my shoulder as I head to my bedroom, trailing my blanket like a train. I begin throwing clothes on. “You’re an asshole!” I shout as I layer up.

Ash appears in the doorway. “Where are you going?” Seeing me dressed for the elements, he pales. “You can’t go out there. It’s not safe.”

I wind a long scarf around my neck. “I’d rather face what’s out there than spend another minute in here with you.” I push past him, heading for the front door. Grabbing a snowmachine helmet, I step out into the storm.