by Rayna Tyler
“Can I talk to you for a minute?” Maris asked Sherri.
“Sure…I guess.” Sherri gave me an apologetic smile and let Maris drag her across the lobby into the lounging area, then stopped near the mantel of the large stone fireplace. Maris had her back to me, but I had a full view of Sherri. Either Maris was too upset to think clearly or she didn’t care that I’d be able to hear their conversation with my enhanced hearing. Not that I would dream of eavesdropping or anything.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Maris’s tone crackled with agitation. “I promised you we’d have an outdoor adventure, and I keep my promises.”
I rolled my eyes, barely restraining a snort. Maris didn’t understand the meaning of loyalty, honesty, or integrity. The woman reeked of selfishness and couldn’t stand not being in control.
“I know, it’s…” Sherri bowed her head.
“What? It’s what?” Maris snapped.
Sherri twisted her hands together. “You said after what happened with Drew that you needed to get away. You thought a girls’ trip would be what you needed.”
“Yeah, and…” Maris motioned impatiently for Sherri to continue.
I walked behind the counter and stood next to Nina. I pretended to shuffle through some papers, hoping Maris hadn’t realized I’d overheard Sherri’s comment or that I was still listening. I knew it was none of my business, but I was more than a little curious to hear what was going on between Drew and Maris. Not because I had any interest in him or cared about getting him back. My instincts were screaming that whatever her reasons were for being here, they had something to do with their relationship.
“Why didn’t you tell me that Berkley was going to be here, that she owned the resort?” Sherri rubbed her arms protectively as if preparing for another one of Maris’s outbursts.
“I didn’t know, I swear.” Maris fisted her hands at her sides. “Someone at work recommended this place, so I checked it out online. How was I supposed to know it belonged to Berkley? It’s not like her name was plastered all over the website or anything.”
The more I listened, the more irritated I got. I found it hard to believe Maris had ignored our website’s gallery of photos, the page filled with pictures of the resort, including several photos of my brothers and me.
“I guess we could leave if it makes you uncomfortable to stay here,” Maris whined, following it up with her infamous pout. A pout I’d witnessed too many times. A pout that made most men grovel.
I knew it would only be a matter of minutes before Sherri broke down and gave Maris what she wanted.
Chapter Four
BERKLEY
I groaned, rolled on my side, and punched my pillow as if fluffing it up was going to stop the barrage of thoughts racing through my mind or help me get back to sleep. I glanced at the glowing green numbers on the digital clock sitting on the small wooden stand by my bed. It was almost four in the morning, and I’d gotten maybe three hours of sleep.
Usually, being able to sleep wasn’t a problem. At least on the nights when I wasn’t fantasizing about Preston having his hands and lips all over my body. Tonight’s unwanted stress and inability to relax was due to Maris’s arrival. The fact that she’d shown up without Drew bothered me. Hell, having her show up at all was massively troubling. I could understand it if she’d come here to flaunt their relationship, to purposely hurt me.
Without him, she didn’t have anything to gain other than being a pain in my ass. A pain I could simply avoid and ignore for the next five days until she left. I’d contemplated getting Sherri alone and asking her why Maris was here, but her surprise at seeing me had been genuine. After overhearing their conversation, I was pretty sure Sherri hadn’t been clued in on the plan. Whatever the plan was.
I flipped on my back and stared at the ceiling. Then there was the disturbing news about Bryson finding the bear trap in the shifter run. How long had the trap been there, and how many times had one of our guests come close to being caught in it? Was Eli the only poacher we were going to have to worry about?
Thinking about the possibilities terrified me. When I’d expressed my concerns to Preston and Reese, they’d seemed confident we wouldn’t have any more problems, at least not from Eli. Though I’d never met Eli, I did know Al Thompson. He was a nice enough guy and had been a friend of my grandfather’s. I’d met him once as a teenager when my grandfather had taken Mandy and me shopping in Hanford. If I remembered correctly, Al had even taken the time to buy us each an ice-cream cone.
Preston mentioned that Eli had been shaken up when he found out the resort was open again. Hopefully, knowing he was endangering people and having him help Bryson remove the traps would be the end of the problem.
I loved owning the resort, and for the most part, I enjoyed dealing with the guests and the day-to-day challenges that came with running the business.
I still experienced the occasional nightmare whenever I thought about Desmond Bishop and the ordeal he’d put my family through. We weren’t the only ones Desmond had terrorized over the years. He’d acquired many enemies. Enemies who wanted him dead, which was why he’d turned his isolated home into a well-guarded compound.
As a result of us rescuing Mandy from Desmond’s property, there’d been some casualties. Thanks to the handful of shifters in law enforcement, the locals never heard anything about the incident. Desmond had disappeared during the fight, and we still didn’t know what happened to him. A rumor, started by some of the locals who’d helped us, said he’d gotten in over his head with some unsavory elements and fled the country.
I’d heard the Hanford Regency, the hotel near Hanford and owned by Desmond, had been taken over by new owners. New owners who, unlike Desmond, weren’t interested in stealing the resort from us.
There was always the possibility that Desmond might return seeking revenge, which was why Preston and his team were vigilant in patrolling the property, maintaining the welfare of our guests, and acting as bodyguards for the members of my family.
After Desmond had disappeared and his threat had diminished, I’d hoped things would get back to normal, or something close to normal. Maris’s arrival and dealing with my ever-growing attraction to Preston and the need to bind myself to him permanently were not things I considered normal.
Now that I was thinking about Preston again, my frustration was heading in a different direction. A direction that had my body overheating with the sensual need to be touched. It was pointless trying to find a comfortable position to sleep, not when my mind wouldn’t relax.
Groaning, I tossed back the covers and rolled out of bed. Some people drank warm milk when they couldn’t sleep. Personally, I found it a little bland and preferred to indulge in a nice cup of hot chocolate. Because of the high metabolism I’d inherited from my wolf, drinking the sweet, delicious mixture didn’t affect me the way it would some humans. I kept a private stash of packets hidden in one of the cupboards specifically for times like this.
With that in mind, I slipped out of my room and headed for the kitchen.
My nightshirt barely covered my ass, but since it was early and everyone else would still be in bed, I didn’t bother covering my legs with a pair of sweats. When you lived with other shifters with the same abilities, there was always the chance of waking them up. My wolf’s heightened senses also enabled me to see in the dark, so I refrained from using any lights as I tiptoed along the hall. Once inside the kitchen, I reached for the light switch. My fingers were inches away from touching the light pad when I sensed a presence to my right.
Preston’s scent swept over me seconds before he spoke. “Hello, sweetness. Having trouble sleeping?” He was standing with his back to me, facing the sliding doors that led out onto the private deck at the rear of the lodge. Moonlight glistened through the glass, the beams highlighting his blond hair and casting a soft glow on his skin. And since all he wore was a pair of shorts, it took me several long moments to appreciate every inch of skin that was exposed.
“Yeah,” I said, then flipped the switch, almost wishing I hadn’t. Under the full blaze of the overhead light, the man looked even more delicious, a handsome specimen of male perfection, and I had to bite my lip to keep from moaning. Being alone with him was a bad idea. If I’d been able to form a complete thought, I would have raced from the room. Instead, I stood there ogling him with my wolf happily prancing inside me. If I let the irritating animal have her way, she’d be nipping, biting, and urging him and his cat to run his hands all over me, err, us.
“What are you doing up so early?” I sniffed deeply, savoring the musky male scent that always reminded me of an early morning run through the forest. After detecting a hint of chocolate and noticing the cup in his hand, I realized he’d made himself some hot chocolate. I wasn’t sure if I should be mad because he’d invaded my private stash or amazed that we had something in common.
His gaze flared with desire, and he slowly perused me from top to bottom, the movement slow and leaving a scorching trail of heat in its wake. He sauntered toward me, the firm muscles I was struggling not to notice rippling with each stealthy barefoot step. “A lot on my mind, and you?” He set his empty cup on the counter.
“Same.” I could hear the raw emotion in my cracking voice. He hadn’t even touched me and I was shuddering. Needing something to do, to put some distance between us, I turned and reached into the upper cupboard to grab a packet and a cup.
“Did you want…” The rest of my question was cut off by a low growl. I glanced over my shoulder and caught Preston staring at my ass where the fabric had ridden up to expose my silky black panties.
My arousal spiked and my wolf panted. The damned thing must have thought she was a dog, because she was ready to roll on her back and let him rub her stomach or anything else he wanted to touch. I swallowed hard and shook a packet in front of his face. “I was talking about the hot chocolate.”
He gave me one of his lopsided grins. “Of course you were, but I’m good.”
“We are still talking about the hot chocolate, right?” I teased, switching on the faucet and filling the cup with water before placing it in the microwave.
He chuckled and leaned back against the middle island.
As soon as I heard the beep, I emptied the contents into the water, stirred it with a spoon, then hopped onto the counter a few feet away from him.
We settled into a comfortable silence, neither of us speaking for several minutes while I blew on my drink and sipped it. Finally, Preston shifted sideways, leaning on one elbow with his hip pressed against the counter’s edge. “Want to tell me what’s got you so upset?” He traced his fingertip along my thigh. “I’m a pretty good listener.”
The warm and featherlight touch made me shiver and squirm. I stared at my half-empty cup contemplating how I should proceed. Preston seemed to understand me better than my own brothers. He’d never given me a reason not to trust him, and I didn’t exactly hate how at ease I felt around him. Most people, me included, didn’t want to admit they’d been cheated on.
My relationship with Preston was difficult, mostly because of my resolve to keep him at a distance. I was afraid once I opened up to him I wouldn’t stop talking until I’d shared every sordid detail. Would telling him about Maris and Drew’s betrayal change the way he viewed me, treated me?
Potentially, it could solve my problem and drive us further apart. But was that what I truly wanted?
PRESTON
When Berkley first appeared in the kitchen, I didn’t tell her that she was the reason I was standing in the dark and staring at the forest through the glass doors. I also didn’t share the fact that this wasn’t the first time it had happened, or that I’d helped myself to her hidden hot chocolate packets more than once and had to replace them. Though the latter wouldn’t matter, because one whiff of the air and she’d be able to figure it out.
Berkley was tough, didn’t spook easily, but the majority of our interactions happened during the day when others were around. It was the two of us now, and I’d sensed her hesitancy when she’d entered the room. I didn’t want to do anything to make her change her mind about staying, so I downed the last of my drink and waited.
It didn’t take her long to make her own drink and get comfortable on the counter. Scenting her arousal and getting a glimpse of the skimpy black silk barely covering her gorgeous ass had made me hard. My cat was growling, and it took all my strength not to toss her over my shoulder and take her back to my room. I settled for running my fingertip along her thigh.
Her light gasp and the shudder I felt were nearly my undoing. She hadn’t slapped my hand away or fled from the room, giving me hope that I was making progress.
Berkley’s grasp tightened around the cup as she blew on her drink. “How did you meet Reese?”
Though nothing worked faster in shutting down an uncomfortable erection than to have a woman ask you about her brother, I wasn’t surprised by the question. I’d gotten used to the way she wielded topic changes like a shield to protect her emotions and keep me at a distance.
If discussing something she considered safe kept her here with me, I was game, but it didn’t mean I would make things easy for her. I turned and braced my upper body on the counter with my elbows, making sure my arm pressed against her thigh.
Our conversations to date had never touched on the past. Berkley was always guarded when it came to discussing anything personal. Maybe by sharing something about myself, I’d convince her to let down her guard. “We were both stationed overseas. Your brother and a few guys from his unit stepped in to help me out in a bar fight.”
Berkley lowered the cup to her lap. “How did you end up getting into a fight?”
“I made the mistake of flirting with another shifter’s girlfriend.”
“You, flirting.” Berkley rolled her eyes and laughed. “Can’t imagine.”
“I have my moments.” I shot her a sidelong frown. Yes, I was a male who’d enjoyed the pleasure of a woman occasionally, but I wasn’t a player. I didn’t try to get every beautiful woman I met into bed, and I hadn’t given any female a second glance since I’d met Berkley. Mate or not, she was the only woman I wanted or would ever want. I had to find a way to make her believe it. “Anyway, after nursing our wounds over a few beers, we became friends. After we both got out, we stayed in touch.”
“Reese told me you worked for a big firm in Atlanta before you came here. Why give it up? Working here can’t possibly be as challenging for you.”
“Challenges come in all forms, and living in a city doesn’t necessarily provide the important things in life.” Like a future with a mate and children of my own. “Besides, I could ask you the same thing. Your business degree could have landed you a job anywhere, yet here you are.”
“You’re right.” Berkley released a contemplative sigh. “Being here wasn’t the future I’d planned, but I wouldn’t change any of it.”
“Really?” I playfully tugged the hem of her nightshirt. “Does that include me?” I couldn’t resist teasing her and hopefully gaining some insight as to what she was thinking and where I stood.
“No.” She giggled and flicked at my hand. “Not even.”
“Fair enough.” I grinned, happy with the fib she’d given me.
After a few seconds of watching her sip the remainder of her drink, I changed the subject, delved a little deeper, and pushed into a more personal territory. “The reason you can’t sleep wouldn’t have anything to do with the new guest that arrived today, would it?”
“What new guest?” Berkley squirmed, her tone more defensive, less playful.
“The one with the interesting red hair and staying in the cabin on the south end of the property.”
I realized too late that mentioning Maris St. John had been a mistake. Berkley’s body tensed, and her grip on the ceramic cup came close to shattering it. “If you’re looking for someone to share your bed, you’ll have to look elsewhere. You do remember the clause in your contract t
hat states having sexual relations with the guests is strictly prohibited, right?”
Berkley hadn’t acknowledged me as her mate or staked a claim, but there was no missing the flare of jealousy in her eyes. I was relieved to discover that she cared, that her attraction to me was more than sexual.
I refused to let her believe I had any interest in the other female and moved in front of her to keep her from jumping off the counter. “Nina told me the two of you had words.” I held up my hand. “Don’t be mad at Nina. She was only doing what Reese and I asked her to do.”
“And what’s that?” Berkley pinned me with an angry glare.
“To let me know if she thinks any of the guests might cause problems. It’s my job to protect your family and the resort. The best way to do that is if I’m aware of potential issues.” I placed a hand on each of her thighs and smiled, hoping it would diminish her anger. “Don’t you think any female who would purposely torture her animal by putting a nasty dye on her hair warrants some watching?”
Reese and I had run into Maris and her quiet friend outside the lodge shortly after returning from our meeting with Al and Eli. Everything from her tailored dress to her neatly polished nails bespoke of a city girl having expensive tastes and used to having her own way. She didn’t strike me as the type of person to stay in a mountain resort where hiking and horseback riding were the preferred forms of entertainment.
I’d met enough spoiled rich debutantes to know she was trouble even before Nina gave me a full account of what had happened between Berkley and her.
“Maybe.” Berkley bit her lip to hide her smile.
“Besides.” I coaxed the cup out of her hands, placed it on the counter, then nudged her legs apart so I could stand between them. “There’s only one female I want in my bed, and she’s not a guest.”
BERKLEY
“There’s only one female I want in my bed, and she’s not a guest.” Preston’s thick Southern accent came out in a purr. A purr that vibrated to my core and awakened my arousal. The minute he placed his hands on my thighs and spread my legs with his hips, I knew I was in trouble. Because of my wolf, my temperature normally ran higher than a human’s. My body had never responded to a man’s touch so quickly, soaring to the level of a scorching summer day.
