To Tame a Bear

by Emilia Hartley

  Aimee considered returning to her Korean family. She didn’t know where they were now. Her grandmother was most likely in the next life, an ancestor watching out for her. At this thought, Aimee tilted her head back and peered at the ceiling above her, imagining heaven.

  What would her grandmother have her do? Follow her dream of a restaurant or stay and fight for the man who could be her mate?

  Aimee had seen mated pairs that weren’t happy together, but she always wondered if those were the fools who convinced themselves into living a lie. Perhaps they weren’t mates. Then again, there was a chance they were and that mates weren’t always the best addition to one’s life.

  She felt herself shrink. There was no answer to be found, no matter where she looked. Her grandmother probably would have told her to fight for Dom, but Aimee’s life among the Den warned her against keeping a broken man.

  Aimee shoved her chair back and stood. “I’m going into town for ingredients. Is there a car I can steal from anyone?”

  Her voice shook dust from the rafters, releasing a soft cloud. She waited for a response before deciding she was alone. Unlike the bear shifters, she grew smaller when she shifted. The long distance between the cabin and town on top of the dropping temperatures made it unwise to use her beast to get there.

  Had it been summer and there was a river or a stream she could follow, then it would have been a perfect water slide. Instead, Aimee was left contemplating theft. She was tired of being trapped in the cabin, in the wilderness. Dom had an extensive collection of spices and ingredients in his cabinets, but he was lacking in the things she craved.

  Outside, the only vehicle in the driveway was Callie and Morgan’s RV. Not only did she respect Callie too much to steal it, she wasn’t sure how she felt about driving an RV in the mountains. It seemed a bit too risky to her. So, she forced her chin higher and turned toward the work-site where everyone was most likely gathered.

  The sun was still high. It might be lunch time for the men. Maybe she could convince Orion to drive her into town. He wouldn’t have anything else to do and the inventive shifter was good company for the most part. She also knew Orion would understand what Dom was going through and she wanted to pick his brain.

  The walk to the work-site was long, but one that she remembered well. It wasn’t too long ago that they marched there to save Dom. Now, she retraced her steps under less duress. It allowed her to see the beauty of the mountains for the first time. The last leaves of the season drifting toward the ground were like small fairies, little nature spirits flitting here and there across a swath of snow. The sun was no longer dappled by the trees but cast finger-like shadows across the ground.

  She breathed deep, taking in the rich smell of earth. Slowly but surely, the scent was overtaken by the choking smoke of machinery exhaust. Aimee adjusted her breathing, opening her mouth even though it felt worse to let the exhaust slide over her tongue.

  “Aimee!” Emmy stepped down from the First-Aid trailer and greeted her with a warm smile.

  Aimee flashed a smile, but her eyes moved to the machine not far away. Her head throbbed with the memory, what she could remember at least. She rubbed the back of her head as she approached, even though the concussion was long gone.

  Emmy’s brows lowered, and concern flitted across her eyes. Emmy must have assumed Aimee had cut herself or gotten burnt in the kitchen. Aimee assured her that she was fine before launching into the real reason she’d come.

  “Where’s Orion? I need him.”

  At this, Emmy’s brows shot toward the heavens. “Orion? I would have thought you’d come to find Dom…”

  “One would assume, but he’s isn’t exactly available the way I need, so I’m going to use Orion for what I need.” Aimee knew her words could be read the wrong way, but she didn’t care. Maybe if Dom saw her leaving with Orion, he might act on his feelings for once instead of hiding them away.

  She could tell Dom felt something for her. It was a mirror of what she felt for him, only hidden away for reasons she couldn’t understand. If they wanted one another, wanted to fall in love, then why couldn’t he take the chance?

  “You’re grinding your teeth,” Emmy commented under her breath.

  Aimee forced herself to relax and blew out a breath. As if summoned by her thoughts, Dom climbed the hill toward her. She averted her gaze and scanned for another body. When she found Orion, she raised her hand and waved. The growl Dom released when she turned away from him slithered up her spine, vertebra by vertebra.

  It took all she had not to turn around. The weight of words filled her mouth and sat on her tongue, but she wasn’t sure how they’d come out. If she would beg for him to have her or if she would tell him off for the way he’d spurned her. Either way, that wasn’t what she needed.

  All she needed was a ride into town.

  Approaching Orion, she sniffed the air and caught a whiff of savory broth. “Are you drinking soup out of that thermos?”

  Orion shrugged. “Yeah. It’s good. Want some?”

  “If it came out of a can, I’ll pass.”

  His shoulders slumped, and he looked down at the thermos in his hands. She hadn’t meant to crush his generosity like that.

  “I was hoping you could spare an afternoon and give me a ride?”

  Orion’s gaze flicked past Aimee. She could feel Dom’s presence behind her. It pushed against her back like greedy hands that wanted to pull her away from Orion. She fought the urge to spin on him and tell him exactly where he could shove his jealousy, but this was what she wanted. It felt wrong, toying with him.

  Her cheeks heated when she realized the way her words could be interpreted. “By a ride, I meant into town. I want to see if they have an Asian market. It’s a stretch, but I’m tired of crappy ingredients.”

  Orion swallowed another mouthful of soup, eyes still on Dom and not her.

  “I’ll make you lunch for a week if you do this for me. Is that good enough?”

  “Sold.” He hopped down from where he’d been sitting and snatched his keys. “Let’s roll!”

  Aimee laughed. “That’s it? You aren’t even going to tell anyone where you’re going?”

  “Dom is the overseer. He knows exactly where we’re going. If he has a problem with it, he can write me up. Or, he can come with us.”

  No. That wasn’t what Aimee wanted. She had come to Orion for answers. Having Dom sitting in the backseat would make it so that she couldn’t ask the things she wanted to know. For a moment, she hoped Dom would say no and turn away. She didn’t look over her shoulder, as if ignoring him would make him disappear even though she could feel his presence like a bonfire at her back.

  “Sure,” Dom said, a sound that was more growl than anything else. “Let’s take a trip. Shall we?”

  ***

  He could feel the tension radiating off her. Aimee hadn’t wanted Dom to ride along with them. For what reason, he didn’t know. All he knew was that it set a fire burning in his core, one filled with rage and fear. The beast whispered in his ear. It had nothing good to say, only adding fuel to the flames with the idea that she was finally moving on.

  That was what he’d wanted. He wanted Aimee to have a better life, a happier one. The thought of her finding that with Orion infuriated him more than it should have. It was a kick in the stomach that she so easily diverted from him and started courting Orion. His friend. Right in front of him.

  Dom hauled himself into the back seat of Orion’s truck. The space was narrow and cramped. Orion wasn’t one to expect company. He lived alone with his inventions, the tools and parts spread across the floorboards proof of that.

  “Ah,” Orion began, scratching his beard and glancing at Dom in the rearview mirror. “What made you come to me? You could have asked Callie to borrow Morgan’s truck. That makes more sense than approaching me of all people.”

  Aimee was quiet for a moment. Dom’s mind spun with the things she could say, that she wanted to fuck him, that she wanted to
know the touch of a man that wasn’t broken. They all knew that Orion was broken, too. That wasn’t what Aimee intended. None of the things fluttering through his mind were what she intended.

  “I could have done that, but they’re already my friends. This way I’m making a new friend. You seem lonely. I’m lonely. It was a good fit.”

  Dom swallowed his growl. He fought to keep himself in his seat and not wrap his hands around Orion’s throat. His friend hadn’t done anything wrong, but Dom still clutched the cushion beneath him, his shoulders flaring with the effort it took to stay seated.

  “I’m not lonely—”

  “You talk to machinery more than other people.” Aimee’s voice was flat, but there was amusement in her eyes.

  “The truth must sting,” Dom muttered from the back.

  Orion glared at him in the rearview mirror. Dom caught the urge to fight flash over Orion’s eyes. It was here, a spark of fire, and then gone. Pity replaced it. Dom’s stomach turned. He clenched his fist around the handle bar on the ceiling and turned away to peer out the window.

  He didn’t want Orion’s pity. He didn’t want anyone’s pity. Dom was doing fine, getting along day by day.

  Ahead, he caught Aimee’s gaze in the side mirror. It seemed to say you could be doing better with me. It was a lie. He would only hurt her. Dom refused to be a danger to her. He’d rather go back to the work-site and pick another fight with Reid. He dragged his hand along his face, wondering why he’d come along.

  The rest of the ride was silent. The trip into town seemed to drag until the rise of bell towers signaled their arrival. The narrow mountain road widened, shoulders stretching on either side of the street until sidewalks appeared to replace them.

  Dom didn’t want to tell Aimee that she was going to be disappointed, but she was. The small town was quaint and cute, filled with cafes, sandwich shops, and chocolate shops. What it didn’t have was any kind of diversity. The most she would find was an Asian aisle at the local grocer. He had no doubt she would make the best of it while hiding her disappointment.

  When Orion pulled into the grocer’s lot, Aimee asked him what he was doing.

  “Well, otter girl. I hate to inform you, but there isn’t an Asian market here. This is the only market you’re going to find other than the place downtown that sells specialty oils and prepackaged taco sauces.”

  Dom leaned forward to find Aimee’s brows angrily knit together.

  “That doesn’t even make sense as a business model. What kind of store is that?” She muttered to herself, disgruntled, as she hopped out of the truck.

  Dom smiled, amused by her display, especially when he caught her grumbling bored white people under her breath. Both he and Orion trailed after her while she stormed the grocery store. The overhead heater slammed them with hot and rancid air. Dom held his composure enough that all he did was scowl, but Orion gagged and made for a nearby trashcan.

  “This trip has been lovely so far,” Aimee said, finally acknowledging Dom’s presence while Orion dry heaved into a trash bin.

  People gave them all a wide berth. Dom knew it wasn’t the man with his head in a trash bin that bothered them. Not only were Dom and Aimee decidedly other, but the humans could probably feel that there was something dangerous about them.

  Aimee brazenly met their gazes and waved, even if her smile was sharp-toothed. She refused to be belittled by their reactions and he admired her for it. Still, he moved so that his body stood between her and the humans moving in and out of the store.

  “Are you done?” Without waiting to see if Orion was, in fact, done, Aimee charged ahead.

  She stomped through the store, eyes darting over the vegetable selection. When she paused and looked back, Dom raised the plastic basket in his hands. She hadn’t grabbed one. He figured they would need it, so he’d made sure to claim one.

  The smile of thanks that parted her lips made his stomach flip. While her eyes were on him, he couldn’t hear the insidious whisperings of his beast. There was no urge to fight everyone around him. He barely even felt the pain that had been constant since the fight. Seeing Aimee smile and laugh, seeing her happy to be near him, allowed time to rewind and make him the man he was before the fight.

  Dom wanted to throw himself at her, a sudden urge, but he rocked back on his heels and reminded himself that he knew nothing about this new feeling. He didn’t know if it would last. He didn’t know when he would break or when the pain would return. A few moments without pain was not worth risking Aimee’s safety.

  She said nothing until Orion caught up with them.

  “Sorry, I got held up helping an employee fight with one of the bottle return machines. The machine had a cap stuck in the system.”

  The smell of iron filled the air, sticky and sweet. Dom looked down to find Orion cleaning blood from his hands with a wet-wipe. While Dom knew Orion would not attack humans, fear still dropped his stomach. His bear rose, wild and ready to fight. Dom tried to swallow it down, but the beast was stronger than him.

  Both Aimee and Orion looked at him. His beast rampaged through his mind. The scent of blood curled in his nose. Danger, the beast screamed. Danger.

  Dom lurched away from them and ran for the doors. People barked at him, annoyed and irritated. He didn’t pay them any attention. He couldn’t spare it while he fought with the monster in his mind. If he let it go, let it out, he could cause too much damage.

  Even outside, under the open sky, the beast struggled to be free. It needed to protect Aimee. It needed to fight. To be strong.

  If he let it out, the bear would rip through the people around him. He was a danger to not only those he loved, but the rest of the world. The beast fought him for dominance It roared and thrashed until his head pulsed with pain. The beast took his stomach and twisted it tight, so tight he could barely breathe.

  One wrong slip and everything was over. One wrong slip and the beast would reveal shifters to the world.

  Dom gritted his teeth and fought it back, bent double while he grappled the beast.

  Chapter Five

  Aimee thrust the basket into Orion’s hands and ran after her mate. Her stomach bled cold, the feeling rushing to her feet as they flew over the floor. Dom was nowhere to be seen. The cold in her blood turned to spikes of anxious pain. Heart thumping, she looked in every direction.

  Finally, she found him near Orion’s truck. He gripped the fiberglass frame, bending and crushing it. Aimee slowed, but stepped heavier just so he would hear her approaching.

  “Dominic?”

  He didn’t move. He didn’t even acknowledge her presence.

  Her heart leapt into her throat. She knew he had trouble controlling his beast, but this was the first time she saw it for herself. The fear curled in her veins hadn’t been for herself. It hadn’t made her run in the opposite direction. Instead, she’d run toward him.

  His safety was all that mattered. She threw caution to the wind and closed the space between them.

  “You need to get your shit together if—”

  She didn’t get to finish the sentence. Dom grabbed her. He pulled her into his body, trapping her between him and the truck. The space was small, and she couldn’t move, but panic never came. He kept one hand on her, fisted in her coat, while the other crushed the side of Orion’s truck.

  Dom’s body shuddered against hers. His breath was ragged in her ear. The fight went on, but she could tell that her presence helped.

  “What did I just say?” she whispered in his ear.

  Dom breathed deep, most likely taking in her scent while he buried his face in her shoulder. His whole body trembled. She felt the invisible rake of claws against her body, his beast using every ounce of magic in Dom’s body to break free.

  When she hissed in pain, it stopped. His hand left the truck and curled around her waist. Unable to stop herself, she ran her hand over his lowered head. A fine layer of fuzz grew on his scalp. When she met him, he’d kept it shaven.

  “
You should let me help you cut your hair.”

  They sat like that for a long moment, holding one another. While humans passed and threw curious glances in their direction, Aimee looked them in the eye and challenged them to say something. Everyone averted their gaze and went on with their lives. She grinned triumphantly, watching the humans walk away.

  As she looked toward the grocery store, Orion appeared. His arms were laden with bags and he was in the process of shoving something into his mouth, a black tray in one hand. Aimee hadn’t realized how long she and Dom stayed like this until Orion came back.

  “What are you eating?”

  Orion grinned wide. “Salmon sashimi! I didn’t even know they had this.” He dug through his bags until he found a black plastic bowl with a plastic lid. “They have poké, too!”

  “You’re telling me you bought a bunch of raw salmon, then.”

  “Well, when you put it like that…yeah, I did.” Orion didn’t even seem bothered by it. Not until he saw Dom’s haggard appearance and the way Aimee held him. Orion’s face crumpled. He looked down at his hands with guilt on his face. “I didn’t even think about what I was doing. Honestly, I should have known better. The cap was stuck in a dangerous place and I didn’t want the human getting hurt. Shifters heal fast and pain doesn’t mean a whole lot to me, so I figured I could do it. I hid the blood from the human, so he wouldn’t make a big fuss.”

  Everyone was silent. The trip had been a bust, ending in near disaster. Everything Aimee wanted had been taken from her. She wished Dom had stayed home, if only to have avoided his struggle with the beast. She understood a bit better, though not completely.

  His beast wanted safety but didn’t seem to understand when moments were dangerous or not. It acted on instincts that were faulty. Frayed, even.