Idle Bear: BBW Paranormal Shape Shifter Romance (Bear Mountain Book 4) (5 page)

“Oh, you've got a lot of extra cushion,” he said as he squeezed her flesh with bruising force. “I'm going to have fun teaching you why you should never stick your nose where it doesn't belong.”

He took a step forward and wrapped his hand around her waist, pulling her flush with his body. The hand on her head pressed harder, and he rubbed his cock all over her ass. The hand around her waist dove between her legs and grabbed her crotch forcefully, lifting her heels off the ground.

“Let's get these pants off,” he said, reaching for the button on her jeans.

She lifted her leg and kicked him in the knee cap as hard as she could. He loosened the hold on her face and she swung her bound hands around and hit him in the head. He swayed from the blow and she ran for the door.

He caught her by the hair and pulled her back, slamming her into the ground. His body covered hers and he held her bound hands above her head with one hand, and tried to unfasten her jeans with the other. Sara swung her legs, and tried to wiggle away, but he was too strong. She managed to kick his already injured knee, and he released her arms. She tried to hit him again, but he held her bound hands against her stomach and slapped her across the face.

“Son of a bitch,” he yelled. “You want to play dirty? Fine, we’ll play dirty, but I always get what I want.”

He pulled a knife out of the holder on his belt and cut a slit in the fabric covering her arm.

“This should help you behave,” he said, and stabbed the knife through her nearly healed gunshot wound.

Sara screamed in pain and tears streamed down her face. The shock of what he’d done left her immobile and he quickly unfastened her pants and shoved his hand down her panties.

She heard three shots and the door to the shed burst open. A huge grizzly raced into the room, dragged the man off of her and burst through the opposite wall. The structure swayed above her head, but she couldn’t move.

Outside the shack, bears roared and men screamed, cried and begged. Another shot rang out, and then silence filled the air. Sadness swamped her as she thought about the bears not surviving the hunters.

A man ran back into the building and kneeled above her, but she couldn’t see his face through her tears and the added light in the room. Had a hunter come back to finish her off, or was he one of the good guys?

“Don’t worry, honey,” he said, touching her stomach. “You’re safe now.”

As much as she tried to focus, the man remained a black shadow.

“Is she—” another man said as he ran into the building. “Oh, shit. Here, use my shirt.”

She heard the sound of fabric ripping at the same time her hands were freed and the rope peeled away from her skin. She moaned as he moved her hands to her sides.

“This is going to hurt, but I have to pull the knife out now, honey,” the shadow above her said. She tried to place his voice, but she couldn’t, and then he pulled out the knife.

Pain caused her to cry out, and she gave in and sank into the darkness.

Chapter Seven

No! No! Get off me! The dirty, smelly man above her smiled maniacally and held her in place with his body. He was strong, but she still fought to free herself. Pain doused her arm and she cried out as the man forced his hand down her pants.

She cried for help, but no words escaped her mouth. Suddenly, a bear burst into the room and pulled the man away, breaking through the fragile wall of the shed. Had Aaron come back for her? The man she loved didn’t want her, but she allowed herself an ounce of hope. Roars and screams filled the air, followed by the sound of a gunshot, and then silence.

“Aaron!” she screamed.

Sara sat up in bed, swinging her arms and legs. She had to see Aaron, and find help if needed.

“Shh… I’m here,” he said, pinning her sore arm to her side and wrapping his other arm around her shoulders. “Careful or you’ll rip the stitches out again.”

The sound of his voice soothed her in ways she hated to admit, but she’d know him anywhere. Aaron’s hard body enveloped her in warmth, and the lose grasp on her elbow was light enough to keep her arm in place and not cause any extra pain.

She looked around the sterile, darkened room and realized they were at the clinic. A small cot had been placed under the window, and the pillow and blanket were askew.

He’d stayed with her? But why?

Maybe the pain medication had altered her senses.

“Aaron?” she asked. She’d been so sure of his voice, but she couldn’t believe he’d come back. His presence didn’t make sense.

“It’s me, honey,” he said, kissing her on the forehead. “Everything is going to be all right, but you need to rest now.”

“You left,” she stated the obvious.

“Yes, but I came back,” he said, lowering her back down onto the pillow. “Rest now and we’ll talk in the morning.”

“I heard gunshots,” she worried. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” he assured her.

He straightened her blanket and pulled it up to her chin. His hand brushed hers and she grabbed it, lacing her fingers around his.

“I was so afraid they’d killed you,” she whispered, kissing the back of his hand.

“I can’t die, honey, so that would never happen.” He leaned over and lightly brushed his lips against hers. “We’ll talk more in the morning. For now, you need to rest.”

She tightened her grip on his hand.

“Stay with me,” she pleaded. She didn’t allow herself to focus on her weakness for a man who didn’t want her. She needed him.

“Always,” he said.

She closed her eyes and drifted back to sleep.

***

Sara woke early the next morning, and glanced around the room hoping to see her own bedroom and personal belongings. Unfortunately, she was still in the clinic and the cot under the window looked like a toddler bed with Aaron’s big body draped over it.

It hadn’t been a dream.

She vaguely remembered waking up in the middle of the night and begging him to stay with her. How could she have been so stupid? Whatever his reasons for returning, they had nothing to do with her. Making him stay in her hospital room was beyond needy. As soon as he woke up, she’d let him off the hook.

The bathroom door mocked her from less than ten feet away. Her legs felt heavy and tired, but she felt certain she could walk the small distance. She swung her legs over the side of the bed and carefully lowered herself to the ground.

She dragged the IV with her and took baby steps to the tiny room. When she finally made it to the door, she felt as if she would collapse. Sheer will got her inside, and when she finished washing her hands, she leaned against the counter in defeat. How would she get back to the bed?

“Sara?” Aaron asked after she heard a knock on the door. “Are you okay?”

As much as she wanted to lie and tell him to get lost, she needed his help.

“No,” she sighed. “I’m…”

“I’m coming in.”

He pulled open the door, took one look at her, and scooped her up in his arms.

“Why didn’t you wake me?” he asked.

“I didn’t want to bother you. What are you doing here?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, what are you doing in my room?”

“Waiting for you to wake up,” he said, placing her back on the bed. “I’ll get the doc so he can check on you.”

He left the room without another word and returned with the doctor.

“Well, it’s nice to see you awake, Miss Henley,” the doctor said. “I want to observe you for a few hours, but if all goes well, you can go home after six tonight. You’ll still have to take it easy, so let Aaron do all the heavy lifting for at least a week. I want to see you next Monday, and if everything is okay, you’ll be free to carry on as usual.”

“Thank you, doctor,” she said. She wondered what Aaron thought of being volunteered to be her nurse maid.

The doctor left the room and she glanced at the clock. She had a little over eight hours before she could go home. Suddenly, she remembered the bed and breakfast.

Aaron pulled a chair next to her bed and sat down facing her.

“I’m so glad you get to go home today,” he stated simply.

She wanted to send him away, but she needed answers first.

“How long have I been here?”

“Two days.”

“And three days with the hunters?”

“Yes.”

“What happened to them?”

“They set that old mining cabin on fire, but got trapped inside and burned to the ground right along with it.”

She knew he lied, but she didn’t press him. He probably did it to spare her the gory details of the real events, and to protect himself and whoever had helped him find her.

“Who were you with when you found me?”

“Seth. The sheriff, Dave, Seth and the Garrison twins had been searching for you for three days. When I got back and found out how long you’d been gone, I attacked Gage. Luckily, he talked me down and we made a new plan. Part of that involved me searching for you, and Seth acted as my back-up.”

“Thank you for helping them. Do you know if anyone checked in on the bed and breakfast?”

“Yeah. Actually, that’s how they found out you were missing. A guest came to the sheriff’s office to complain that they couldn’t find you and needed to check-out. Sam and Darcy have been cleaning the rooms, and Dave and Gage have been handling the money. No one took any new bookings though. We were unsure of the process and didn’t want to overbook.”

“Meaning you didn’t know if you’d find me alive.”

“Yes,” he said, honestly.

She studied her hands as she thought about her time in captivity. Her wrists had started to scab, but she could still feel the tight rope cutting into her skin and her arm burned when she thought about her attacker pushing his knife through her skin.

The skin around her mouth felt raw, and she remembered seeing scabs around her lips when she leaned against the counter in the bathroom. Time would heal her wounds, both physical and emotional, but she felt confident she would overcome them.

Now seemed like a good time to start.

“Thank you for staying with me. I’m sure that cot wasn’t very comfortable, but you don’t need to worry. I’ll hire someone to help me with the bed and breakfast, and any heavy lifting,” she smiled, remembering the doctor’s words. “I’ll be as good as new in no time. You don’t need to stick around any longer.”

“Sara, I came back for you. I’m not going anywhere.”

“What are you talking about?”

“You’re my mate, honey. The one woman in the world created just for me and my bear. I knew it almost from the moment I first saw you in the sheriff’s office, and though I didn’t want to believe it, I couldn’t deny how much I wanted you. I know I said some mean things, but when my bear took control and shifted to protect you, I freaked.”

“You called me a slut tried to make me feel ashamed of myself for having sex with anyone before you,” she accused.

“I know. I only said those things to push you away. I hadn’t shifted in nearly one hundred years and the bear was fighting for control to shift again. I thought if I got away from you, I’d get some of the control back, but it didn’t work. Once he got his way, he wouldn’t let me shift back until I came to terms with who and what I am.”

“You have a beautiful gift. Why haven’t you shifted in so long?”

“I fell in love with a woman, and I was prepared to spend the rest of my life with her. We could have had a happy life, but I knew from the start something was missing. When I told her about my bear, I figured out what it was. She ran from our tent, shouting and screaming my secret to the whole camp. Everyone, including men I’d called friends and comrades, chased me. I vowed in that moment to never show anyone my bear again.”

“Oh, Aaron. I’m so sorry that happened.” She wanted to be angry, but the pain and anguish on his face softened her heart.

“When I think about it now,” he shook his head, “I realize how ridiculous I’d been. I did love her, but she wasn’t my mate. She never provoked anything close to the feelings I have for you.”

“Maybe you only think I’m your mate because it’s been so long since you’ve shifted. You might meet someone better in another hundred years. Will you live that long?”

“Yes, I’ll live that long, but that’s not how it works. I’m immortal, honey, and I can’t die. I can be injured, and feel pain, but I can’t be killed. The mate mark won’t turn you into a bear, but it will give you the gift of immortality. Once I mark you, we’ll be together forever. You’ll always be mine and I’ll always be yours. No one else will matter.”

“Will I be able to have children?”

“Yes,” he laughed. “The process to mark you involves biting your neck while I come inside you without protection. Newly mated bears are extremely fertile and your chance of becoming pregnant is nearly one hundred percent. The fact that Darcy and Sam aren’t carrying yet is surprising.”

He offered her an instant family, something she’d always wanted, but would she make him happy? He talked about mating, but he never mentioned marriage or whether or not he wanted kids, only that she would have them. What if he freaked out again and left her to raise the little bears alone? She’d be alone for eternity, not just the rest of her regular lifespan.

Aaron watched as she processed the information, and she knew he was waiting for some kind of response. She didn’t know what to say, so she said the only thing that stuck in her mind.

“That’s a big decision. It seems I have a lot to think about.”