Claimed on Bear Mountain

by Sloane Meyers

  “I don’t think she’s my lifemate,” Scott said quickly. This statement was an outright lie, and he had a feeling Poppy knew that. But he wasn’t about to admit that he’d spent the night tossing and turning because he thought that the woman was indeed his lifemate. He tried to soften what he was saying a bit.

  “I just think that she was one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever seen, and that made my bear feel restless. I’m not getting any younger, and I still haven’t come across a woman who makes me come alive the way a lifemate is supposed to.”

  Well, no woman except for the woman last night, but Scott still wasn’t ready to accept that. It was just too absurd to think that a big, burly shifter like himself might be somehow fated for a human.

  Poppy cocked an eyebrow at him. “You’re telling me that you saw the most beautiful woman you’ve ever seen, and that she made you feel restless. That sounds like a lifemate to me.”

  Scott refused to give in. “I know that’s what it sounds like, but there’s no way she is. You should have seen her. She’s obviously not the type who would live on a mountain. She was wearing fancy clothes and way too much makeup. She’s too high maintenance for a place like this. But maybe she looks similar to the way my lifemate will look or something like that. I don’t know. All I know is that after last night, I seem to have become hyperaware of the fact that I’m still alone. I couldn’t sleep well thinking about it. I tossed and turned until finally I decided to give up and come get some food.”

  “I can give you some food, but that’s not going to make that restless feeling go away. I would guess that either that girl’s your lifemate, or your lifemate is nearby. Your bear knows it, and your bear won’t let you rest until you find your mate and claim her.”

  Scott considered this, and in a way Poppy’s words gave him hope. Like she’d said, his bear must know that his lifemate was nearby. That was all there was to this. The woman from last night may have made him feel restless, but he’d been wrong to think it was her specifically that made him restless. He was just getting closer to finding his true lifemate. The thought made him feel better, and he relaxed a bit as he drank his coffee.

  “Well, if my lifemate is nearby, I wouldn’t mind if I hurried up and crossed paths with her. I’m ready to settle down and start a family before I’m too old to enjoy that family.”

  Poppy, who probably had ten years on Scott, threw back her head and laughed. “You’ve still got plenty of time to have a family and enjoy them. You’re young yet.”

  Scott knew that Poppy was right, and that he did still have some time. Still, he was getting tired of waiting.

  “You know what you should do?” Poppy asked.

  “No, I don’t. Please tell me. I’m desperate for some good advice here.”

  Poppy grinned at him. “You should head back into Pine Springs and spend some time there. You know how destiny works, right? If your lifemate is nearby, all sorts of coincidences will fall into place to make you cross paths with her again. If this girl is your fated mate, I bet you’ll see her again today if you go to town.”

  “She’s not my mate,” Scott insisted. “She’s a full human.”

  Poppy raised her hands in a gesture of surrender. “I’m just saying. Whoever your mate is, she must be nearby. Why else would your bear be so restless? Just go to Pine Springs and see who ends up crossing your path today.”

  Poppy tried to look innocent, but even she wasn’t a good enough actress to hide the mischievous glint in her eye. Scott scowled at her, but then he thought that maybe she had a point. What could it hurt to go to town and see what fate brought across his path?

  Besides, he and Joel had bought a fishing boat, and he’d been intending to use it more this summer. Neither one of them had been able to get out to the lake and fish as much as they’d wanted. Joel had been too busy with work and with his new lifemate. But just because Joel was too busy didn’t mean that Scott couldn’t go. He had the day off, and the weather was beautiful. Perhaps he should go fish and see if more than just fish came across his path. He’d text Joel to see if he could come, but he already knew his friend wouldn’t be able to.

  That was okay. As exhausted as Scott was, a day of solo fishing sounded perfect. He could sit out on the lake and not be forced to talk to anyone. He’d like to see destiny bring a woman across his path while he was on a boat in the middle of Snowshoe Lake. If destiny could manage that, then he really wouldn’t be able to argue that the woman was his lifemate.

  But that wasn’t going to happen. Scott was just going to have a relaxing day. He looked up at Poppy and grinned.

  “You know what? You’re right. I should head to Pine Springs. Can you make me some food to go?”

  Poppy gave him a smug smile and nodded. She could act smug all she wanted, but Scott didn’t care. She had had a good idea. Talking to her had helped, since it had inspired him to go fishing. He’d give her that much. But one thing he knew for sure: there was no way he was running into the woman from last night out on the lake today. He couldn’t imagine that someone like her, with her fashionable clothes and perfect makeup, would be interested in spending time out on the water. She was much likelier to spend time down at the Pine Springs shopping district.

  Scott could hardly wait for his real lifemate to come across his path so that he could come back and introduce her to Poppy. He’d be sure to remind Poppy that he’d told her there was no way possible that he was fated for a full human.

  Still, Scott had to work hard to ignore the rumblings of his inner bear as he started driving down toward Pine Springs. No matter how hard he tried to convince himself that whatever attraction he felt to the woman from last night was all in his head, he couldn’t keep her face from continuously popping up in his mind.

  Alright, Fate, Scott thought. Your move.

  Chapter Three

  Caroline Green wiped the sweat from her brow and glanced despairingly at the shore of Snowshoe Lake. That shore looked impossibly far away.

  Why did I ever think trying my hand at kayaking was a good idea?

  Caroline had never been the sporty type, but it wasn’t entirely her fault. She’d grown up in an economically depressed area and had been too busy trying to survive to worry about things like kayaking.

  But this summer, she’d managed to escape to the popular resort town of Pine Springs. She’d signed a contract to sell jewelry in a booth six days a week in the local shopping district. The shopping mall where her booth was located was closed on Mondays, and Caroline had been determined that she would spend every Monday trying out a new activity. This Monday’s activity was kayaking.

  So far, it had been anything but a resounding success. Everything had seemed simple enough back at the shore where Caroline had rented the kayak, and for the first few minutes Caroline had thought that maybe she wasn’t too bad at this. But after twenty minutes of rowing, her arms felt like they were about to fall off.

  She stopped to rest in the middle of Snowshoe Lake, which was anything but snowy at this time of year. The early afternoon sun beat down on her, and she wished that she’d thought to bring extra sunscreen with her. After resting a few minutes, she tried to start rowing again, but her muscles protested violently. She looked toward shore despairingly, wondering how she was ever going to make it back. Then she looked enviously at all of the people who are gliding along on motor-powered boats. Perhaps she should have tried that. A gasoline-powered boat ride seemed more her style.

  As soon as Caroline had the thought, she pushed it away. She hadn’t come to Pine Springs to take the easy way out. She’d come here to fight for a chance to start over, and to forge a new life for herself. Part of starting over for her was doing things she’d never done before, like kayaking.

  With a determined grunt, she picked up her paddles again and started to row. But despite her determination to stick with it, she only made it about another five minutes before she had to take another break. This was going to be a long afternoon.

 
; Caroline heard the sound of a motorboat approaching behind her, and she glanced over her shoulder to make sure the boater saw her. To her surprise, the boat appeared to be heading right toward her. At first, she panicked and thought that maybe the driver hadn’t seen her, even though he appeared to be looking right at her. But then, he waved. He had definitely seen her, but why was he approaching her?

  “Everything alright?” the man yelled out as he coasted toward her.

  Caroline felt embarrassed, and avoided looking directly at him. “I’m fine,” she said as she picked up her paddles and rallied herself to try once more to reach the shore.

  “Are you sure about that? Your face is starting to turn red, and you’re not wearing a hat. Do you have sunscreen on?

  “Yes, I have sunscreen on!” Caroline said indignantly. Of course, she’d put that sunscreen on hours ago, and she had a feeling she might have sweated it all off by now. But those were details this man didn’t need to know. Caroline felt ridiculous. She’d never felt so out of place before, and she felt like she had a big sign on her forehead that said “Hi, I’m an idiot who doesn’t know anything about the great outdoors.”

  Caroline hated the old feelings of inadequacy that she felt rising within her, and she told herself not to let this man with his fancy motorboat make her feel insecure. In a gesture of brave defiance, she finally raised her eyes to look at the man. And then, she gasped.

  “Hey! You’re the same guy from the club last night.”

  The man nodded, almost sheepishly. “I am. And let me tell you, I definitely wasn’t expecting to find you out here. But here you are, and it looks like you could maybe use some help.”

  Caroline couldn’t stop the laugh that bubbled up in her throat. Suddenly, the whole situation was funny instead of embarrassing.

  “I guess I could use a little help. Looks like this is the second time in less than twenty-four hours that you’re saving me. I’m a lucky girl.”

  The man grinned. “I’m not so sure you’re the lucky one here.”

  He coasted until his boat was right next to her kayak, then he reached down and offered a hand. “Grab on and I’ll pull you up.”

  Caroline did as he said, not surprised to find that his grip was strong and steady. After he pulled her into the boat, he pulled the kayak up with some difficulty. His boat was large enough that the kayak fit easily across the back of it with plenty of room left for her to sit down.

  “This boat is huge,” she observed.

  The man nodded. “I share it with my buddy, Joel. We got a big enough boat so that our two families could both fit in it. In the summertime, there is nothing like a day out on the lake. Here, you better make use of both of these.”

  He tossed her a baseball cap and a bottle of sunscreen. Normally, Caroline didn’t wear baseball caps, because they made her hair look ridiculous. But she was pretty sure she already looked ridiculous, and anything that would keep the sun off her head right now was something she was willing to try. Besides, she needed an excuse to look away. She wanted to hide the disappointment she felt at hearing that this man had a family. When he’d helped her into the boat, she’d thought for one ridiculously absurd moment that he was the handsomest man she’d ever seen. She’d harbored a tiny hope that he was single.

  Caroline should have known better. Of course a man who was as good a catch as him wasn’t single. Besides, she wasn’t staying in Pine Springs forever. She was only here until the end of the summer, and the summer was almost over. Caroline slapped the hat over her sweaty ponytail, and slapped a generous amount of white sunscreen onto her cheeks to hide the blush she was sure was there.

  “I’m Scott by the way,” the man said.

  Caroline felt her cheeks heat up even more, and she was glad the sunscreen was there to hide the fact that they were so red. How had she been so rude? This guy had just pulled her out of the sweltering heat, and she hadn’t even bothered to tell him her name.

  “I’m Caroline.”

  “Nice to meet you, Caroline. That’s a beautiful name. Are you enjoying your stay in Pine Springs, other than being assaulted by a scumbag last night and burning up on the lake today?”

  “How do you know I’m not from around here?”

  Scott laughed. “I hate to break it to you, but it’s glaringly obvious. No local would come out here in a kayak in the middle of the day without a hat.”

  Caroline shrugged sheepishly. “True enough. I’m not a local. But I’m more than just any old tourist. I’ve been here the whole summer, selling jewelry at one of the shopping malls in the shopping district.”

  “You’ve been here the whole summer? Well, that explains a lot.”

  Caroline furrowed her brow. “What do you mean by that?”

  Scott shook his head, looking amazed by something. But whatever it was, he wasn’t sharing it with Caroline. Instead, he gave her a long hard gaze, then said, “You look adorable in that hat.”

  Caroline blushed again. This time, the sunscreen was all rubbed in, so she was pretty sure he could see that blush. Maybe he would think it was just a sunburn.

  She squirmed uncomfortably in her seat before looking up at him again “I don’t think your wife would like it very much if she heard you say that.”

  Scott threw back his head and laughed. “If I had a wife, then no, she probably wouldn’t.”

  Caroline gave him a confused look. “But you said that you and your buddy got this boat to share with your families. That implies that you have a wife and probably a kid or two.”

  Scott shook his head. “Nope. I’m single. I would like a wife and a kid or two, but so far I haven’t been able to find someone willing to put up with me.”

  “Are you kidding? But you’re so strong and…” Caroline trailed off.

  “So what?” Scott asked, looking amused.

  Caroline had been about to say so handsome, but she’d caught herself just in time. There was no way she was saying that out loud to this guy. Not after he’d just told her that she was adorable. He would think she was totally trying to come onto him and reciprocate the sentiment. And as much as she wanted to reciprocate the sentiment, she wasn’t going to be that irresponsible. She wasn’t in town much longer, and starting a relationship now would be a bad idea.

  Besides, if Scott really got to know her, he probably wouldn’t be interested. He seemed like the kind of guy that had his life together—which was the complete opposite of the kind of girl she was. She was a mess.

  So she just shrugged and said, “You seem like a nice guy, and you must be successful at your job since you’re awfully good at it. I’m just surprised that no one has snatched you up yet.”

  Scott looked at her with such a serious expression that Caroline squirmed in her seat. He looked like he was about to say something serious, but then he just shook his head and gave her what appeared to be a sad smile.

  “Well,” he said. “Sometimes things are more complicated than just being nice and having a good job. But I’m hopeful that things will change for me soon.”

  He winked at Caroline, and she felt a thrill run through her body. Was he flirting with her? Had his comments about things happening soon been meant for her? She shook her head as though trying to physically shake off the ridiculous notion. She must be getting some sort of savior complex from being saved by him twice in a row. She was probably just enamored with him because of that, and was reading too much into his actions.

  For a moment, she struggled to come up with something to say that didn’t sound awkward. Thankfully, Scott broke the awkward moment by holding up a beer. “Want something to drink? I have plenty of beer, and also sparkling water.”

  “I’d better start with water. I’m so dehydrated and hungry that I’ll probably be falling over drunk after drinking just a few sips of beer.”

  Scott nodded, reached into his cooler, and tossed her a large bottle of fizzy water that was blackberry flavored. Then he reached down and held up a bag of chips.

  “Want
something to eat, too? It’s not the healthiest, but it might still help you feel a bit better.”

  Caroline nodded gratefully, and Scott tossed her the chips. After just a few minutes of munching on the chips and drinking her water, she started to feel much better. She found herself curious about Scott, who was currently sitting across from her munching on a bag of chips himself, and seeming completely comfortable with the silence. Caroline had never been comfortable with silence, probably because in her life silence had always meant that somebody was angry with her.

  But Scott wasn’t angry. He was merely comfortable in his own skin, and she admired that. She found herself breaking the silence not because she was uncomfortable with it, but because she wanted to know more about this man.

  “So, I take it that you are from around here?”

  Scott looked over at her and nodded. “Yep. I work as a security guard during peak tourist times, and when the tourist crowd is low I run a snowplow. You should see the snow here in the winter. It’s crazy. But what about you? You said you’re here for the summer to sell jewelry. What made you decide to hang out for so long? Most tourists only come in for a week or two and then move on.”

  Caroline chewed her lower lip for a moment, considering how much she should tell Scott about herself. Would he judge her if he knew the situation she’d come out of? And perhaps the more important question: why did she care whether he judged her or not?

  Caroline wasn’t sure why she was suddenly such a swirl of emotions around this guy, but something about him made her want to trust him and tell him everything. That wasn’t her usual style, but it felt good to be around someone who made her feel that way. She decided to take a leap of faith and trust him with her story.

  “I’m here for the summer to sell jewelry to all the other tourists. The truth is, I wasn’t in a good situation back home. I grew up horrendously poor, like most of the people in my town. My family has no money, and we often have to count out our spare change just to be able to buy bread. It’s not a comfortable situation, and I wanted to make a better life for myself, although I was never quite sure how to do that.”