by Haley Jacobs
“Okay, okay…” Jake raised his hands. “So what’s the deal with this rogue bear?”
Barbara sighed and put her head in her hands. “We don’t know. All we know is that he keeps coming around, going through cars, the snack bar, and yesterday morning he tore through the lobby.”
“Is he a juvenile, you know, just checking things out?”
“No—he’s an adult male. A big one who should know better. We’ve darted and relocated him three times, but for some damn reason he just keeps coming back. The funny thing is, he looks distressed but he’s never aggressive. I seriously don’t think he’d hurt anybody, but we just can’t take that chance.”
Barbara pushed a photograph of the bear across the desk toward Jake. The bear was standing on his hind legs as tourists were fleeing. Jake held the photo in his hands and studied it with a practiced eye.
“Huh,” he said. “You’re right. Usually when a grizzly stands like that it’s to make himself look bigger and scarier. They’re snarling. But this one looks like he’s searching for something.”
Jake thought for a moment. “You didn’t happen to relocate any females recently, did you?”
Barbara’s eyes got big. “We did—just about the time this one showed up. She was roaming around the parking lot. We thought it would be safer if we moved her deeper into the park. So that means that she—“
“Was his mate,” said Jake. “He’s not rogue. He’s looking for the love of his life. And a horny old bear is just what you don’t need at the Lone Pine.”
“Exactly.”
“Well, I guess I had better have myself a little bear-to-bear chat with the old guy.” Jake rose off the couch and picked up his bags.
“Don’t worry about the bags. I’ll have one of my rangers take them to your cabin. I put you right next to mine in case our bear shows up in the middle of the night. We may both have to shift in a hurry.”
“Thanks, Barbara. I’m happy to help.”
“Now…” she said. “What about your mate?”
Jake hesitated. “How did you know…?”
“Ryan, the Lone Pine’s Desk Manager. He’s an owl shifter—very perceptive and very psychic.”
“No shit? I’ve never met an owl before.”
“Ryan’s great, but you can’t hide anything from him,” Barbara gave him a sly grin, “He booked you and your mate on the 8:30 Bear Tour tomorrow.”
“What?!”
“Oh, relax! Downey Falls is where our bear hangs out. You can connect with him there. And seal the deal with your mate.”
4
Julia awoke in the haze of a dream. In her dream, she was in the middle of a meadow lying on her back on a soft blanket watching clouds skitter across the sky. She was naked. A warm breeze caressed her skin, playing with her hair and teasing her senses. She smelled the fragrance of wildflowers and listened to the sounds of birds chirping in the distance. The clouds in the sky began to take shapes—a rabbit, a deer, and one of them, a bear. They all danced across the sky, taking no notice of Julia. All except the bear.
“I know you,” said the bear. Julia was not frightened. The cloud bear descended from the sky and stood over Julia. She looked at him again, and instead of the bear, it was Jake, standing there and wearing nothing. He smiled at her. She brought her gaze down from his sapphire blue eyes to his chiseled shoulders and muscular chest. His skin was slick with sweat. She brought her eyes further down to his rippled abs. Before she could shift her gaze any lower, Jake knelt down and kissed her lips with tender heat. She embraced his strong back, bringing him closer to her. She sighed as she could feel her skin lightly brushing his chest. She could feel his hands on her body as he—
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
Julia awoke with a start. She was trembling when she switched off the alarm. It was 7:00am. Where was she again? She could see the tops of trees out her window. The Lone Pine Lodge. She sat on the edge of the soft bed, still reveling in the half-remembered dream. She stretched and stood up, staggering toward the window.
From the second story window of her room, she could see an open grassy space with sidewalks heading into some forest paths. There was a full-sized wooden carving of a bear welcoming the guests. Just below her and to the right was the Ranger Station and a couple of cabins. A cabin door opened and a tall man with sleep-tossed black hair emerged, wearing a dark blue robe. He sat down on the porch swing, nursing a mug of coffee. It was Jake. She could see his bare chest through the robe. Julia gasped, remembering her dream. She waited, watching to see if the blonde who met him at the airport would also come out. No one did.
“What is the matter with me?” said Julia, “I just got dumped by Kevin. I can’t start anything new right now.” She glanced at the brochure for the Bear Tour.
“Can I?”
“Julia showered and put on jeans and a white cotton t-shirt. Even in this altitude—High Mountain National Park was at nearly 7,000 feet—she knew the late August heat would be oppressive.
She looked over at the rumpled bed, imagining what it would be like to have Jake lying there, looking happily disheveled after a night of wild lovemaking. She smiled. It was then that she noticed the note on top of her pillow. How on Earth did that get there? It was written in old fashion spidery handwriting.
Have a wonderful stay!
--Your Friend Emilia
After breakfast, Julia went to the front desk. Ryan was there.
“Good morning, Ms. Pratchett!” he said, “I hope you had a good night’s rest.”
“I did, but the weirdest thing happened this morning. I woke up and there was a note on my pillow from one of your housekeepers. I don’t know how she got in. Or out for that matter.”
“What did it say?” Ryan twitched his head again.
“Something like, ‘Have a wonderful stay.’ It was signed ‘Emilia.’”
Ryan thought quietly for a moment. “Emilia’s not a housekeeper, but she does live here.” He sighed. “This is an old hotel, Ms. Pratchett, and Emilia has been with us for a very long time. I’ll have a talk with her. She won’t bother you again.”
Julia had no idea what that meant.
Julia waited outside for the bus with the other tourists who had signed up for the Bear Tour. She held her sketchbook close to her. Julia was always self conscious when it came to her drawing. It was something private. Regardless of questions from other people, she would not miss the chance to draw a bear from life for the first time.
Even in art school, she was shy about showing her work to the class, even though she had won several awards. That was about the time she met Kevin. He was a business major, and never quite understood why she had wasted so much time making artwork. He shamed it out of her. After graduation, she got an office job to make ends meet. Her work life continued from there, but she always wondered whether her drawings were good enough to sell. Even if they weren’t, drawing was a way to get through the rough patches in life.
The tour van pulled up and the tourists piled in the side door. It was nearly full when Julia took one of the last two seats.
“We’re waiting for one more passenger,” said the tour guide, as the van idled. Julia leafed through her sketchbook to find an open page. She had so many drawings of bears! This was going to be amazing!
Someone entered the van and took a seat next to her.
“That’s a wonderful drawing, Julia.” JAKE! Julia snapped the sketchbook shut.
“I’m kind of into bears,” said Julia, blushing now, remembering her dream from early this morning.
“I can’t tell you how happy I am to hear that. I know a bit about bears myself.”
Julia blushed. “I didn’t properly introduce myself yesterday. My name’s Julia Pratchett.”
Jake smiled. “Jake Richardson.”
They shook hands, the contact lingering longer than normal. In the limited space of the van, Julia could feel the warmth of his body. This trip wasn’t going to be so bad after all. The
tour guide closed the door and got in the passenger’s seat.
“Welcome to the High Mountain Bear Tour!” said the tour guide, “My name’s Jessica, and I’ll be your guide to one of nature’s most magnificent creatures.”
“Ooh! Magnificent!” said Jake’s bear, “I like that.”
“We have a special guest with us today,” Jessica continued, “Doctor Jacob Richardson from the University of Montana Grizzly Bear Research Institute is here to study some of our bears!”
Julia’s mouth dropped open. “You’re a professor?”
“Yep,” said Jake.
“And you study bears?”
“When I said your drawings were wonderful, I wasn’t kidding.” Jake smiled. “And I know what I’m talking about.”
“Well, now I’m really self-conscious!”
As they headed into the park, Jake was talking to a man in the row in front of them. Julia’s phone beeped. Molly again.
Any hot rangers YET???
Julia texted back, Maybe.
“Here we are at Downey Falls,” said Jessica. “It’s world-renowned as one of the best places to watch wild grizzly bears, and one of the most scenic places in the park. We’ll have about 45 minutes before we have to move to the next location.”
“You’re sure that this place is safe?” asked Julia.
“You’re at least a quarter mile a way from the bears,” said Jake. “Besides, they’re much more interested in the trout in the stream.”
“And finding soft, curvy mates,” said Jake’s bear.
Jake blushed. “And finding their mates.”
Julia followed Jake to the platform with the other members of the tour group. Jessica was giving her usual spiel about grizzly bears, and handed out binoculars so that the tour group could see them close up. The group was on a platform on a small rise overlooking a golden meadow. Just past the meadow was a creek. Downey Falls was in the center, a small waterfall in the wide creek. There were about fifteen bears near the falls. Bears were fishing, while others were lying asleep in the tall grass. Still others were nuzzling their mates. Several cubs chased each other through the waters of the creek.
Julia was hoping to have a chance to talk with Jake, but everyone had questions for him. She marveled at how easy it was for Jake to talk to them. Julia could hear the passion in Jake’s voice as he talked about something that obviously meant so much to him. That passion was hot beyond words.
The 45 minutes ended too quickly.
“Okay, everyone,” called Jessica.“It’s time to move onto our next spot.”
Julia was really sad to hear this. She hadn’t even had time to do some sketching. She looked over at Jake, who grinned and gave her a mischievious look.
“I need to stay here for awhile. There’s a particular bear that the Park wants me to observe,” said Jake. “Would you like to stay here with me?”
“I’d love to! But how are we going to get back?” asked Julia.
“We’ll just radio the Ranger Station, and they’ll pick us up.”
“That would be amazing!”
Jake went over to Jessica and told her he and Julia were staying behind. Jessica smiled and waved as the van headed off into the forest.
“So I guess it’s just us now,” said Julia.
“Well, us and a few bears.”
Julia looked out over the scene. It was just she and Jake and about 15 bears. It was unsettling to be outnumbered. She sat down on the bench and pulled out her sketch book and pencils while Jake scanned with his binoculars. She wasn’t sketching bears. She was sketching Jake.
“There you are, you little bastard!” cried Jake.
“What?” Julia looked up from her sketch.
“I found the bear I’m looking for. He’s the one on our side of the creek, sleeping under the tree. See him?”
She put up her binoculars and saw him. He was huge with thick, golden fur. She turned the page in her sketchbook—hoping that Jake hadn’t seen the sketch she had made of him—and started drawing the bear. Jake was staring intently at the bear. He had a strange, faraway look in his eyes.
Jake let his bear take over without shifting. He knew Julia wouldn’t be able to hear the telepathic conversation.
“Friend,” said Jake’s bear. “We need to talk.”
The bear roused, looking startled. He craned his neck toward Jake.
“You smell of shifter,” said the grizzly, “I have no use for shifters.”
“You are missing your mate. We can help”
“Humans took my mate. Humans killed my mate. Now they send a shifter to talk beartalk to me. Humans lie. Shifters lie.”
“They didn’t kill your mate. She got too close to humans. She is somewhere else. We can take you to her, but you have to trust me.”
“NO!” the grizzly roared.
Julia startled at the growl, breaking out in a cold sweat. She looked at Jake. Jake was staring straight ahead, vacant.
The grizzly started moving toward the platform.
“Jake,” said Julia, “I’m scared.” She stood and clung onto him, but Jake stayed stock-still.
“Take it easy, friend,” said Jake’s bear, “Take it easy.”
The grizzly broke into a full run, moving with astonishing speed. He stopped just under the platform. Julia whimpered and clung tighter to Jake.
The grizzly sniffed the air and growled. Julia could feel the sound in her chest. He looked from Julia to Jake.
“Your mate,” the grizzly said ominously, “Humans killed my mate. Maybe I should kill your mate.”
Jake suddenly let out a roar, and in an instant, Julia fainted.
5
When she came to, Julia was on her back on the observation platform.
“Jake…” she said.
The face staring at her wasn’t Jake’s. It was the blonde ranger from the airport. The woman laughed.
“Whoa, girl! You’ve got it bad, haven’t you?” The woman had a soft Southern drawl. “But you wouldn’t be the first to fall for Jake’s charms. My name’s Barbara. I’m the Park Superintendent.”
Julia’s mind was in a whirl. What was going on here? The last thing Julia remembered was having a nine-foot grizzly bear snarling at her, then hearing Jake roaring right back at him. That was when she hit the deck.
“Where’s Jake?”
“I’m right here,” said Jake. Julia turned toward Jake’s voice and saw him shirtless and zipping up his pants. What the hell? Jake knelt over Julia and gently caressed her face. She reached up, touched his muscular bare chest and sighed.
“I guess that means she’s fine,” said Barbara, looking up at Jake. Jake blushed.
“You arrived in the nick of time, Barbara,” said Jake, “Thanks—I owe you one.”
“Don’t thank me, thank Jessica. She had one of her premonitions and called the Ranger Station.”
“Jessica’s a shifter, too?”
“Yep. Coyote. There are a lot of us out here, Jake. You should join us. We could use a good bear like you.”
“Shifter?” said Julia, still in a daze.
Barbara shot a look at Jake. “You mean she doesn’t know?”
“What don’t I know?” asked Julia, “What are you talking about? Jake, what’s going on here?”
Jake looked at Barbara. “One thing at a time. A lot is happening and I don’t want to overwhelm her.”
Julia sat herself up. “Would somebody please explain to me what is happening?”
Jake sat next to her and put a sheltering arm around her shoulders. Julia could smell the musk and sweat. Her heart pounded. She thought she would melt into a puddle right then and there.
“In a nutshell,” said Jake, “That bear lost his mate. She wandered into one of the Lone Pine Lodge parking areas, so she was darted with a tranquilizer and moved to a more remote part of the park. He apparently saw the whole thing and thinks we killed her.”
Jake took a deep breath. “He’s angry, and now he wants to get even by taking m
y mate.”
Julia furrowed her brow. “Huh?”
“That’d be you, honey,” said Barbara, “You’re Jake’s mate.”
“Wait…I’m WHAT?!”
Barbara turned to Jake. “How much does she know?”
“Not much, apparently,” said Julia.
“Well,” said Jake, looking at Julia with those deep blue eyes, “we’ll have plenty of time to talk about it. With a big, horny bear on the loose, there’s no way I’m leaving your side.”
“Make that two horny bears,” said Barbara. Jake glared at her.
Julia was feeling better, finally feeling able to stand. Barbara was there with a box of apple juice. “This’ll help.”
“Thanks,” said Julia
Jake headed over to the spot where Julia fainted, and began collecting his notes that had fluttered to the ground.
“Can I talk to you for a moment?” said Barbara. I’ve known Jake a very long time. He’s a good man, but he’s different. For his type—and mine for that matter—we wait our whole lives to find our one true mate. It always happens with love at first sight. It really sucks sometimes.
Julia’s face darkened. She felt a jealous rage building.
Barbara looked hard at Julia. “You don’t know what I’m talking about, do you?”
Julia stared blankly at Barbara.
“Ever heard of a shape shifter?
Julia shook her head.
“Oh boy,” said Barbara, “That explains a lot. That’s up to Jake to tell you, I guess. It wouldn’t be right for me to do it.”
Barbara thought for a moment. “Julia, honey, just understand that there’s a lot of magic in this world.”
Jake finished sorting his notes and walked over to Julia and Barbara.
“We’ve got to find that bear’s mate,” said Jake, putting on his shirt.
“How are you going to do that?” asked Julia.
“Oh, Jake’s kind of a legend when it comes to tracking down bears,” said Barbara.
“Ever been in an ultralight?” asked Jake.
6
