by Clara Cody
He didn’t even look at me. “You have to go,” he growled. He gripped the steering wheel harder, his knuckles turning white.
“Wh—?”
His jaw clenched. “Just go. Please.”
I snapped my mouth shut, my nostrils flaring. “Fine.” I snatched my bag and jumped out of the truck. I fought to control the tightness of my voice. “You know what? I’ve met my share of assholes in my life, but you’re by far the worst. Thank you so much for the ride,” I said with an edge as I gave the door a good slam. The headlights on the truck shone brightly on the door as I fumbled for my keys, my hands still shaking with both arousal and fury. I could feel his eyes on me from inside the dark truck. My lips still burned from his rough, stubbled lips. I wiped my hand over my mouth as though it might wash the kiss away. Then I remembered that Emma had already unlocked the door. “Fuck,” I mumbled and slipped inside, resisting the urge to flip him off on the way.
Well, if I didn’t have any sort of complex before, I sure as shit do now. I didn’t seem to have any luck with guys in this damned town.
####
I only made it a block down the road before I pulled over. “Fuck!” I snapped, hitting the steering wheel with my fist. What the hell came over me? I’d kissed her. My body still ached with need, my lips still felt hers against mine. The throbbing between my legs was almost too much to bear. It had taken every ounce of strength I had just to survive the ride to her house. As soon as we’d found ourselves alone, I just broke. It had been years since I’d done anything as rash and stupid as that. Hell, I didn’t think I’d ever done anything so stupid.
But then, here I was, still sitting in my truck, a block away from her house. Not that it mattered now. Judging from the look in her eyes, she probably didn’t want to see me again for the rest of her life. Maybe it was better that way.
Driving and sitting so close to her, especially with the two horn-dogs in the back had been the hardest thing I’d ever done. The beast inside me clawed to get out. I felt him panting, breathing down my neck. I threw the car into drive and pulled out again. I just needed to get home. Larry could close up the bar. He’d do it lazily and probably take more than a few beers with him, but I couldn’t go back there. I couldn’t be around anyone, not like this.
Years had passed since I’d felt this way. The first year had been the worst. Deliberately cutting off contact with my family, knowing how much it hurt them, denying women left, right and center. After a while, people got the picture. I was a monk, a loner. They stopped trying so hard. Eventually, the frustration, the pure animalistic need waned, and I could relax a bit. But now, since Lacey had shown up, it was like I was an eighteen-year-old cub again.
I shifted in my seat, my jeans rubbing against the tightness underneath. I groaned, taking way too much pleasure in it. How long had it been since I’d taken care of that? Not now, I told myself. Not like this. I would only think of her, which would make it almost impossible not to think of her tomorrow. And the next day, and the next. I had to stop it. I should have stopped it before, but I’d been weak. Not now. Better late than never.
What I needed was a hunt.
I made it home in a fog of heated arousal and leapt from the truck. I stripped my clothes off inside, leaving a trail that led to the back door. There, I let the change come over me, move through me. The bear, my bear, grew and emerged, bursting forth with the force of a hurricane. Power ran through my veins. I leapt from the deck and ran into the woods behind the house. I ran a well-known trail, my heavy breath huffing in the quiet night air. My paws beat the hard ground, claws digging into the soil. I wanted to hunt, to taste blood on my tongue. I ran towards the river. If I were lucky, I might be able to snag a fish. But something else caught my attention. I stopped as quickly as my heavy mass would let me and sniffed at the air. It was the same thing I’d smelled before. A strong scent of blood. Thick in the air. The smell made my blood boil, surge through me. I raced towards it without thinking. Leafless twigs and branches slapped as I charged through the woods, following the scent.
I stopped at a clearing. All was still. A body lay at the center of the clearing, torn open, guts spilling out. A deer. It was killed elsewhere and dragged here to a more private place. Saliva dripped from my maw as I resisted feeding. I needed my mind clear. What did this? There hadn’t been a top predator in the area for decades. Bears, wildcats, and wolves were driven North thanks to people. It wasn’t impossible, just unlikely. Everything about the scene screamed bear, though. The peeled skin, the way the body lay, the smell. Which meant that mine wasn’t the only bear anymore. The only question was, was it just a bear? That could be easily taken care of with the help of a trap to relocate it. But if it was another shifter…that would be more difficult. And dangerous.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Being woken up by a police call about vandalism at the bar was not my idea of a good start to the day. Like I didn’t have enough on my plate. When I pulled up, Emma’s one-night-stand stood in front of the bar, arguing with Todd, the youngest recruit on the police force in town.
“How the fuck does this happen?” he yelled at Todd. “I mean…what the fuck!”
“Sir, you’re going to have to calm down.”
I walked up to them and surveyed the damage with a whistle. The seats of both four-wheelers were torn to bits, stuffing sticking out. Long gashes ran along the side, claw marks. A couple of tires were cut to ribbons, dragging on the ground, and one side was partially crushed. They weren’t quite totaled, but not far off. What the fuck is right.
Chunk turned to look at me, fire in his eyes. “This is your fault!”
“What? Are you still drunk?”
“Fuck you, man! This is your bar. Your responsibility!”
I would have thought a guy that’d gotten lucky enough to go home with Emma the night before would be more relaxed, but this guy was wound tight as hell. “Relax, man,” I said, trying to ease him off.
“Don’t tell me to relax, asshole! You’re going to pay for this shit!”
That was it for me. I stepped up, looking down at him. “Listen, shit-brick. For one thing, it’s not my bar. For another, you’re the one that got shit-faced and decided to go home with someone last night, leaving your ride out here in the middle of nowhere. This is not my fucking problem. Don’t even try putting this on me, or else I’m going to be your problem.”
As big and tough as he thought he might be, he stepped back with a hard swallow.
Todd pulled me aside, looking down at the ground. “You see anything last night? I know you live around here. Anything weird?”
“Weird like what?”
“A bear?”
I blinked. “A bear?”
He nodded. “It’s gonna be a nightmare for the campgrounds. Just what we need right now. For the rest of the summer, any time someone sees a dog, we’re gonna be fielding calls. Shit.”
“You really think it’s a bear that did this? There haven’t been bears around here since…well, a long time.”
He shrugged. “I don’t know what else it could be. Did you see those claw marks?” He rubbed the back of his neck. “A cougar, maybe. I don’t think a cougar could’ve done that kind of damage, though. That whole side’s crushed. Cougar’s not big enough for that. Doesn’t have the weight.”
Another car came ripping into the parking lot. A small, white Ford Focus. I recognized Lacey’s soft, heart-shaped face through the windshield immediately. “Shit,” I muttered, recalling the night before. She stopped quickly and leapt out, making her way towards us. I guessed she was more pissed about last night than I’d realized and decided to show up early to give me an earful. I was about to take her aside when she flew past me. I spun around, watching her march up to Todd.
“What can you tell me about what happened here?” she asked, in a serious, journalist tone.
I scoffed, shaking my head. The silent treatment, huh? At least it was better than getting yelled at.
Todd blinked. “U
h…sorry, who are you?”
“Lacey Brooks. I work for Jack at the paper. He sent me over. So, what can you tell me?”
“A couple of guys left their four-wheelers out here overnight, and they seem to have been vandalized.”
“Vandals, huh? Teenagers?” She was all business, not even glancing in my direction. Dammit, she was beautiful. All soft, luscious curves, perfect, porcelain skin. I enjoyed the moment, being able to look at her, without being caught out. I knew I had bigger things to worry about, but I could just let myself have this.
“Doubt it,” he answered, pointing towards the destruction.
“Jesus. Not your ordinary, teenaged trouble-maker, then. What the hell did that?”
“Don’t know, actually. Could be a bear, could be a cougar. Some wild animal, at least.”
I looked away.
“Have there been any sightings?”
I stepped closer, wanting to hear this part.
“Yes, there’s one person who claims to have seen something last night. She said it was a bear, but it was late at night, so it would be hard to tell. It might have been something else.”
“Who did you say that was?”
“Eileen Truman, down on Oak Street. She was out walking her dog last night and saw something in the woods.”
My stomach dropped. Had I been seen? I pushed the thought from my mind. There was no way. I hadn’t gone anywhere close to Oak Street, and Mrs. Truman was old. She wouldn’t have been walking that far from home that late at night. This couldn’t have been my doing. I knew that I’d been in a state last night, but I wasn’t out of control. I wouldn’t have…lost myself. Thoughts ran through my mind at ninety miles an hour. I needed quiet. I had to think. “I’m heading inside,” I said to Todd, and turned without meeting Lacey’s gaze.
The bar was thankfully dark and cool. Like a cave. It felt safe, like home. Leaning back against the closed door, I rubbed my hands over my face. Taking a deep breath, I told myself it wasn’t that bad. It was probably just some bear that had wandered a little further south in search of new territory. That’s it. Some government guys would come down, relocate the little guy, and that would be that.
The phone behind the bar started ringing. I strode across the bar and snatched the phone from the cradle on the third or fourth ring. “Grizzly’s Den, this is Sean.”
“Finally!” a voice rasped. “I tried your place, but no answer.”
“Ryan? Is that you?”
“Yeah, man. I really need to talk to you.”
“You sound like shit.”
“I know, that’s what I wanted—”
Fuck, I do not need to be dealing with this right now. “I told you already,” I snapped. “Don’t worry about being sick. Just call me when you’re feeling better.”
“It’s not—”
My patience was wearing impossibly thin. “I can’t talk now, Ryan. Do you have any idea what’s going on down here?”
“Down there?” he asked, surprised.
“Yes, here! I have cops outside, asking questions about a couple shredded quads, a reporter and a pissed off customer that seems to think that it’s my fault.”
“Oh shit.” His voice practically shook.
I sighed, feeling guilty for snapping at him like that. “Don’t worry about it. What’d you want to say?”
“I didn’t realize it was so…bad. It’s nothing. Really. I’m just sick.”
“You really need to see another doctor, get a second opinion or something. I gotta go.” I hung up before he had a chance to change his mind.
I heard the front door open. What now? I turned to find Lacey standing in the doorway, the light shining brightly behind her as the door swung closed.
“Jeez, it’s like a tomb in here.”
I walked over to the light switch on the wall and turned them on. “Better?”
“Did you see anything suspicious last night?” she asked, looking at her notepad instead of me. “After you dropped us off?”
“I went straight home. Didn’t see anything.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Home? I thought you were coming back here?”
“I wasn’t exactly in a working state of mind.”
“Yeah, right,” she said, rolling her eyes. “Is Larry around?” She looked past me.
“Larry? Ha! No, he isn’t around, and even if he was, he probably didn’t see anything other than his crossword puzzle. Come on, Lacey, what are you really doing here?”
“Excuse me?”
“Don’t tell me you’re here asking questions about some busted-up four-wheelers. I know you write the obituaries.”
She scoffed. “Yeah, I do write the obits. For now. Believe it or not, it’s not my dream job. And this stupid four-wheeler thing might be small potatoes, but at least it’s something. In a town like Kodiak Cliff, a few totaled vehicles are equivalent to a rock star overdosing in a hotel room in Toronto.”
I raised an eyebrow.
“What? Did you think I was here because of you?” A forced, but biting laugh followed. “Don’t flatter yourself.”
“Look, I’m sorry about how I behaved—”
“I don’t care,” she said, cutting me off. Her voice was harsh, sharp. It certainly didn’t sound like she didn’t care.
“I’m just…I’m used to being on my own.”
“Ugh, that has to be the lamest excuse I’ve ever heard! And there have been some doozies, let me tell you. Well, guess what? I’m perfectly fine on my own too. I’d probably be better off given my recent history.”
I shook my head. “No.”
“What?”
My hand slipped under her jaw. “A girl like you…should never be alone. You should be cherished, loved. Often.”
She rolled her eyes with a scoff, slapping my hand away. “Knock it off! Do you just plan on teasing me, leading me around like some desperate little puppy?”
“What? No. I wouldn’t do that.”
“Really? Because I barely even know you, and already you’ve done exactly that twice. To be honest, I’ve had my fill of games and jerks and heartache.”
It gutted me to see that hurt look in her eyes. I wanted to hunt down that shit-head that cheated on her and break his face. Then break mine for what I did. Instead, I sighed and sat down. “I’m sorry. You’re right; I should have controlled myself. It’s just that…as soon as I get close to you, all rational thinking goes out the window.” And it wasn’t just because I was thinking with my dick, either. Maybe that’s how it started, but now it was different. “I’ll keep my hands to myself, I promise.” Even if it kills me.
Her gaze softened slightly. “Okay. Well…good.” She scoffed. “Can I just ask one thing? What is the big deal? I mean, you’re clearly attracted to me. Why all the fight? Couldn’t we just have fun? I know you like being single and all, but it’s not like I’m going to make you pick up your towels and redecorate your whole house or anything.”
“It’s complicated. Far too complicated to explain. Suffice it to say, that my life is—”
“If you say complicated one more time…”
“I was going to say a mess. My life is in a constant state of disarray.” Not to mention danger. I couldn’t very well tell her that, though. “It wouldn’t be fair to bring anyone into that.”
“What if someone wanted to be brought into it? What if someone didn’t mind?”
She was killing me, looking at me like that. I looked away, down at the napkin holder on the table. It reflected a weird, carnival style image of myself. No sane person would want in on that. Not if they knew about the amulet hiding under the floorboards at my house and what it could do. Then, it hit me like a bag of hammers. I sat straight up.
“What? Sean, what is it?”
A bear. My amulet. “I gotta go.” I raced out the door and across the parking lot.
“Sean!” she called from behind me. She stood in front of the door, holding up her hands in question. “Where are you going? What happened?”<
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I didn’t have time, though. I had to get home. I sped down the highway, going far over the speed limit, praying that Todd wasn’t still hanging around. Luckily, I made it home in record time. I jumped out and sniffed at the air. There it was. The same smell from last night. Bear. I turned on my heel, searching the area, the trees, the road. But I saw nothing. I ran inside and down the hall to the office. I breathed a deep sigh of relief when I found the amulet tucked safely underneath the twenty-first floorboard.
I heard a car pull up.
Shit.
“Sean?” she called.
Lacey! Double shit.
Then she screamed.
CHAPTER EIGHT
I screamed, falling backward against my car. A giant…I mean absolutely massive brown bear stood just meters from me, huffing through its nostrils. Panic gripped my body, keeping it pressed against the burning metal of my car.
A screen door slammed, and I heard a voice, coming from the cabin. Sean’s voice. “Lacey!” he called. “Don’t move!” I glanced at where he stood on his porch. He repeated his order, keeping his eyes on the terrifying beast in front of me.
I’d never seen a bear in real life before, let alone a giant like this one. All the documentaries in the world couldn’t have prepared me for it. The only thing that kept me from falling to the ground in awe was my trusty car. The bear rose with a huff to its hind legs, giving a fierce roar. Its long, sharp canine teeth were horrible to see up close. Another scream tore from my throat. The bear fell forward onto all fours and began to charge. Straight for me. Finally, the muscles in my legs came to life. I turned and ran for the cabin. Sean had come down the porch, full tilt. For a brief second, I thought he was running for me. But no, he was going straight for the bear.
What is he doing? “Sean!” I cried out as I lunged, trying to stop him before he did something crazy. I missed and skidded to the ground, landing on my well-cushioned ass. He ran straight for the bear, and the bear straight for him. What the hell is he doing? He’s gonna get—
