by V. Vaughn
Loved by the Bear - Part5
V. Vaughn
Copyright © 2018 by V. Vaughn
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Cover by Ravven
Editing by Jodi Henley and Angie Ramey
Contents
About This Book
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
More from V. Vaughn
About the Author
About This Book
While Audrey distracts herself by focusing on her brother, Connell, Josie pulls Max in and shows him why she’s the one he should choose. Max fights the draw to the human woman who is proving to be a capable mate, but his choice will impact the existence of all werebear forever.
Madison goes through the change, and along with the powers of her new shifter form she gains the knowledge Josie isn’t who she appears to be. She fears nobody will believe her, and Madison knows it’s up to her to stop her roommate before it’s too late.
One
Audrey
Oh, no, she didn't! Steam might as well be coming out of my ears I'm so mad. Josie just challenged me over Max, my true mate, and I growl as I lunge for her. But I don't get to her because Kelly steps in front of me, and before I can use my magic to send my sister flying across the room, I'm on the ground eating vinyl. "Oof!" I squirm to move but someone is pinning me down. "What the—"
"You've gotten stronger." Shannon says as she lies on top of me with one of my arms wrenched behind my back.
Kelly squats down to peer at me. "Seriously, Josie's a total bitch but you're going to thank us for this once you calm down."
"I doubt it," I croak out. I twist to try to throw Shannon from my back, but she cranks my arm up higher. "Get off me, Shan!"
"I'm sorry, Audrey. But you really don't want to kill someone."
"Arg! I'm chill!” I struggle against Shannon's hold as it occurs to me I could fling her off with magic. But part of me knows she's right to be restraining me. Killing a human is not something I'd want on my conscience, even if it is that bitch Josie.
Kelly rolls her eyes at me. “You can let her up now. Jo— Reese is gone."
Shannon gets off me and says to Kelly. "Did you see that Chloe thing?"
"I know, right? He really does like those skinny chicks."
"What?" It's just like my sisters to have a conversation that only the two of them understand. "What are you talking about?"
"Reese," Shannon says. "Keep up. He's into Josie because she looks like this influential—" She gasps.
And Kelly takes over for her. "Oh my god! Maybe she's Reese’s true mate, too?”
Shannon's eyes get big as saucers "Whoa. That's like a love quadrangle."
"Wait. That can't happen." Could it? Both my sisters raise their eyebrows at me as if I'm an idiot. Sure, I did just almost kill Max's other true mate, but what are the odds that Josie also has two true mates? "Highly unlikely, guys."
"I know," Shannon says. "But what if it’s true?"
"It's her butt," says Kelly.
"Josie's?" I ask.
"Chloe's." Kelly says. “The fitness model influencer?” The twins roll their eyes at each other and I suddenly feel old. "I think she has implants."
"Do you think it's a tax write off?" Shannon asks as my sisters wander into the dorm’s kitchen, completely done with me. I'm not sure when I went from being someone whom they both wanted to hang around at all times to being unchill.
I shake my head because that's not what's bothering me. The woman I’m competing with for Max’s true-mate bond is in the dorm next to where I live, taunting me with the whole situation. And the strongest warrior the Le Roux clan has seems to be into her, too. She’s a human who hasn't got an ounce of body fat! What the heck happened to our culture? Werebear women have curves, and werebear men used to prefer them. Although, Max had no trouble with my body if last night is any indication.
My anger at Josie fades a bit, mostly because my alpha logic has kicked in. We are damn good at trying to set an example. Like keeping a human who hasn’t really done anything wrong alive. But I've still got a lot of pent-up frustration and decide shifting to run might be a good idea. I walk into the kitchen to see if my sisters might want to go with me. I find them sitting at the counter eating cinnamon rolls as they both discuss pictures on their phones. I don't want to know what other pop culture thing they're talking about that I probably won’t understand, and I turn to leave when Reese walks in.
"Hey, Reese," I say. "Any interest in a run?" I refrain from adding a sarcastic comment about leaving Josie’s side. For all I know, my sisters could have been wrong about him being attracted to her.
"Ah…" He frowns. "Can't right now. I'm— I need to eat."
"Sure. I'll go see if Evan and Nick are free."
Metal clangs as I approach the weight room, and when I get there, I find the two warriors who are usually assigned to me. Evan is spotting Nick as he bench presses a heavy bar. "Hey, guys."
"Audrey," Evan says. "What's up?"
"I could use a run. How much longer you going to be?"
"One more set for both of us and we'll go."
"Cool." I lower myself and sit on a bench to wait. Evan and Nick switch places, and I ask, "You guys still like women with meat on their bones, right?"
Nick squints at me. "Don't go there. Max isn't into Josie for her body, and you know it."
"Oh." I shake my head. "No, I know it's the true-mate thing. I was thinking about something else."
Nick snorts out a laugh as he lowers the bar to his chest. "Is this about Reese and his celebrity crush?"
I chuckle. "The twins were talking about it, yeah."
"He just likes that chick's ass, even though he claims she knows a thing or two about workouts."
"Oh." Relieved my world hasn't completely turned upside down, I move on to what I really should have said to my two warriors first. Lifting an entire river over their heads and nearly getting them killed while attempting to save Max was irresponsible of me. Especially since I was the one who put my true mate in danger in the first place. As hard as it is to admit my immaturity, these guys deserve better from me. I say, "I need to apologize to you guys for yesterday. I never should have put you in that kind of danger. Seriously. I'm too old to be pulling crap like that."
Evan shrugs. "It's okay. You were saving your true mate. That kind of thing makes it hard to be rational."
"Maybe," I say. The truth is, while I can’t say I wouldn’t do it again for my true mate, I’ve got to start thinking before I act so I don’t put my warriors’ lives in danger. “You both deserve an apology anyway."
"Accepted," Nick says as he sits up. "Ready to run?"
Their dismissal is genuine. Serving me as a future alpha is an honored part of their job, and I’m beginning to wonder why I deserve it. I never used to appreciate the people who look out for me as much as I should. This isn't the first time since I came back from California that I'm seeing my world in a new light. But I'm not going to get all mushy on two warriors. I accept that we've moved on, and we leave the dorm and go behind the shed to strip for our run.
My bear is itching to get out so badly that I’m aware of how heavy my clothing is on my skin. Like it’s restraining me from complete freedom of movement as I walk across the lawn. When Max calls out, "Audrey,"
I stop and turn toward the house to see him walking our way. "Going for a run?"
"I am." My body tingles as I recall sex with him last night, and I try hard not to think about it so he won't smell my desire. I notice him moving slowly and ask, "How are you feeling?"
"Not bad, considering." He nods toward Evan and Nick. "Thanks for the help yesterday." They nod back as if it was nothing. Max asks me, "Could I convince you to walk with me instead? I want to shift to speed along my healing and figure a walk would be a good way to do that."
Even though I really should get the exercise running would give me because I'm still a bit amped from my encounter with Josie being thwarted, one doesn't usually say no to a true mate. Especially when I know he’s got to be struggling with the desire to go into the dorm to see her too. “Sure." I glance over at the guys.
"We'll go to the meadow if you want to meet us there later."
“Okay.” I wait for Max to catch up to me, which allows Evan and Nick time to shift and take off, giving us privacy.
"Sleep okay?" Max asks me with a smirk on his face, likely referring to the fact that I left him after sex, claiming I’d scratched that itch when we both know I can’t.
"Just fine. You?"
"My bed was cold. Somebody should have stayed."
I want to give him a snarky reply, but I just tried to prove to my warriors I'm worthy of my alpha status. It's time I tried to live most aspects of my life as a leader. "You know I would have liked to stay, but I'm not handling the Josie thing well. Try to understand."
"Wow. So, it wasn't just sex?"
I shoot him a nasty glare as I wish I'd gone with sarcasm.
He chuckles. "Sorry. Thank you for being honest."
He reaches out for my hand. I hesitate for a moment with the urge to resist his charms. My damn pride doesn’t want to take a back seat, but I force it to and take Max’s hand before we start walking again. The ground shakes a little under our feet when Nick and Evan take off running in their bear forms, and we both watch them as we make our way to the back of the shed. I think about how magnificent Max is as a bear and how much I hate that he isn't fully mine. It makes me realize that the sooner he makes his decision the better off I'll be to deal with the consequences. Especially if he picks Josie.
I take a deep breath before letting go of his hand. "Did you hear that Josie's staying next door?"
"I gathered as much." We've stopped moving and are standing by the hooks at the back of the shed when he steps into my space and rubs my arms. "I heard a little bit of your conversation in the kitchen and saw you storm across the lawn. What happened?"
I blow out a breath as my cheeks heat up with my embarrassment. "I acted like a true mate who felt threatened. It wasn't my best moment."
Max squeezes my arms as he leans in closer. His voice drops in volume and makes my insides tingle when he says, “My bear would have loved to have seen it."
I gaze into his brown eyes. My god, my heart is so full of love for this man. Desire builds in me too as his scent fills my nostrils, and the heat of him radiating toward me makes me lean in so that we’re almost touching. But the vision of Josie squaring off with me as if she has a chance with Max makes jealousy slice into my heart like a knife.
I take a step back from him and let out a frustrated sigh. "Max, I need you to decide soon. I'm not sure how much more of this I can take."
He steps forward again, nearly crushing any resolve I have left, and he places a hand on my cheek. I can’t help it; I lean into him, wishing he'd hold me in his arms instead. "I know. I can only imagine what it's like for you."
Somehow, I manage to step back, away from his touch. Away from something that’s not yet mine as I gain control of my emotions. I lift my shirt to remove it.
"I have a confession to make," Max says as he hangs his shirt on a hook. "I'm afraid to see Josie again."
"Why?"
"Because I want you to be my true mate, Audrey. I barely know that woman. Everything about her is wrong. For one thing, she's as skinny as a rail."
I snort out a laugh, wondering if he caught wind of my concerns about her appearance, and my heart soars that he mentioned it.
"She's half human and not even alpha material. How much do you want to bet she doesn't have magic either? Think of the crap I'll be able to pull on her."
I’m naked now, and I smile at his attempt to make me feel better.
He gazes intently into my eyes. "You're the woman I imagine spending the rest of my life with."
My throat closes as a sob almost escapes. God help me, I believe him. I don't manage to keep a tear from rolling down my cheek, and I quickly swipe it away before I shift into a bear to avoid having to say anything more.
We walk side by side toward the forest, and when Max gently bumps his shoulder against mine, I bump back. I do think he wants his true mate to be me. But what if he were walking with Josie right now? Would his true-mate attraction to her make him see this in a different light? I can’t shake the fear that once he spends time with Josie, I may lose him forever.
Two
Josie
Now that I've been deposited in my room, I yank my arm away from Reese, the Le Roux warrior who escorted me here. I let him lead me here willingly, but that’s because if I hadn’t, he'd have thrown me over his shoulder in a fireman's carry. He’d probably have slapped my ass for fun and humiliated me in front of Audrey Le Roux, too. I'm furious about the new development in my plan to infiltrate the clan. If Audrey hadn't stormed into the facility in a rage that would be hard to fake, I'd have considered what she said about Max having two true mates a lie. But I doubt she's that good of an actress. Audrey was one pissed-off alpha, and I'm fortunate her sisters intervened.
"You sure know how to ruin a good time,” I say, and I smack my fist into my palm as my adrenaline spike fades a little, which is a good thing, because I'm in the equivalent of a dorm room with the Incredible Hulk, who could crush me like a cockroach under his shoe.
He grins at me and shakes his head. "You're something else. If I hadn't taken you out of there, Audrey would have killed you."
"Nah, I don't buy it." I wander over and grab the desk chair, and it thumps on the floor when I turn it around and set it down again. I straddle it to lean my arms on the back.
Reese raises an eyebrow.
"I mean, sure," I say. "As a werebear she'd win in a battle, but I don't think she'd kill me. Nope.” I slowly look him up and down with a smirk on my face. “I don't know why, but I'm worth something to you people— Or animals. Which of them do I call you?"
Annoyance flickers in Reese's eyes, letting me know my insult hit home, and his face hardens as he stares at me with a coldness that tells me he has no intention of answering my question.
"Anyway, like I was saying, if you Le Roux wanted me dead, I already would be." I open up my arms and move my shoulders with a little swagger. "So, what now? Do we play a few dating games to find out which bachelorette Max will choose?"
Reese glances over my head. "Hope you can read. There's not much else for you to do now."
When I was escorted here last night, I noticed the books along a shelf over the window, and I don't have a need to break my gaze with the warrior to see them. "I'm locked in this room until you decide what to do with me?"
"Pretty much." Reese moves toward the door to leave.
"Wait—" Damn it. I really don't want to be left sitting here for hours without a clue what happens next. At least hanging out downstairs I could eavesdrop on the activity going on. So far, I know that Nick is banging some girl from the Robichaux clan while he waits for his true mate to come along and that Evan is having a dry spell. Not exactly the intel I was hoping for, but you never know if something might come in handy. I think of a reason for Reese or someone else to have to come back, and I put my hand on my stomach to emphasize my point. "I'm hungry."
Reese scans my body with his gaze. "I bet you are. Trainer? Fitness model?"
"What?" I scowl
. “You think I’m a cupcake? That I like to work out and post hot pictures on the internet for followers?" I let out a huff. "As if."
Reese shrugs. "You're pretty enough."
My god. Men are so predictable. I bet he thinks a compliment or two will get him in my pants. My voice drips with sarcasm. "Awww, I think you like me."
"Too skinny. And no ass.” He has a look of disgust on his face now. “I’ll find you some food." He backs out of the room and locks the door behind him.
As the sound of his footsteps fade, I stand up and crane my neck to look at my butt. It’s round from thousands of squats. "I've got an ass. Hmpf." And it's hard as a rock like Reese's is. Now that's a backside I wouldn't mind squeezing. I take a moment to think about how sexy the warrior is. I'm not usually into the body-builder type, and he's not exactly that, although he probably benches more than any other guy in the gym. I think he's just built big. My insides flutter a little with physical attraction, and I hate to admit there was something a little hot about the way he hoisted me over his shoulder to carry me out of the woods. I even feel a little tingle when I recall the spanking. “Ugh," I shudder as I hate myself for going there. But… "I'd do him," I say, talking out loud to myself as I pace the room.
While food will be good, what I really want is to run. My confrontation with Audrey got my adrenaline pumping. I lift my knees up and jog in place as fast as I can to burn off some energy. As my feet pound on the floor, I glance around my current digs. The chair I sat in goes with a desk, and when I checked out the contents last night, I found blank, lined writing paper, a few pens, and a pencil. Thinking about it makes me wonder about Madison and her cute little note pads and pink pens. She's bound to wonder where I am soon if she isn't already. The last time we communicated was through texts two days ago, and she was going to Trent's parents' house for dinner to meet them for the first time. I'm sure she's texted me to check in since then, but Reese confiscated my phone yesterday morning. I have a pang of guilt when I imagine her worry. But there's not much I can do about it, and I have more important things to be focused on.
