The door to his bedroom crashed open. Fiona didn’t stir as Leif bounded upright. He relaxed once he saw the intruder’s identity.
“Arve, I didn’t expect you back so soon.”
“He drove like a lunatic,” Josef said drily from behind the mountain Arve presented. “Normally he’s a real grandma while driving over ice bridges and the frozen rivers. I’m telling you it didn’t happen this time, which is why we’re home way earlier than predicted.”
“Mine,” Arve declared, his gaze on the woman at Leif’s side.
“Does she realize?” Leif asked in a sharp voice.
“He told her when we met Kirk and Runt on the road,” Josef said, again with a side of dryness.
“What did she tell him?”
“She let him hold her and didn’t argue.”
Arve pushed the hair away from her face with a gentle stroke that belied his mountainous build.
“Mine,” he whispered.
Before Leif could argue, his younger brother scooped Fiona off his bed and into his arms. He was halfway to the door before Leif growled an argument.
“Please,” Josef said. “Let him. He’s been driving me crazy during the drive home.”
Leif issued a heavy sigh. “It was my turn.”
Josef’s lip curled. “At least you’ve had a turn. I won’t get a look-in at least until tomorrow at this rate.”
“You want her too?”
“Why do you think I put up with Arve’s kamikaze driving on the way back? One glimpse of Fiona and I turned to toast. At least I got a kiss when we met. I have that to sustain me.”
“She’s beautiful,” Leif whispered.
“Will she panic if she wakes in Arve’s bed? He’ll create holy hell if we try to get between them. At least, tonight.”
“She’s strong. Ma creating a fuss didn’t seem to faze her too much. She accepts we’re bears. I suspected she’d run in terror then, but we found her asleep, cuddled up to Runt in his bear form.”
“Ma has seen her?”
Leif propped himself up against the headboard. “Ma came around one last time, trying to persuade us to go out on the ice with the rest of the pack. Fiona came downstairs and things zapped downhill from there.”
Josef cursed. “We can’t let her leave. We can’t let Ma drive her away.”
“No chance of Ma getting to her. Kirk and I stood up to Ma for a change instead of backing down. She’s hoping one or all of us will come to our senses. Ma is the easy bit. It’s Fiona that’s the problem. She’s talking about returning home soon. Her life is in Florida.” Leif’s sigh held a heavy weight. “She has a life away from Churchill and us.”
Josef pulled a face. “We wouldn’t do well in that hot climate. Not long-term.”
“True. It’s a dilemma. We’re taking a week off from driving. From what Kirk and Runt said, I figured you and Arve would want to get to spend time with her too.”
“Can we afford to take the days off?”
“We still don’t have any orders—apart from Wapusk Kennels. Although I figure the locals might get past their distrust if they get another load of fresh produce.”
“True, we can tell everyone we’re still open for orders and see what happens. We always planned on a slow build.” Josef yawned. “Man, I’m knackered. I’ll grab a quick shower and hit the mattress. Every bone in my body is bruised after we bounced through those ruts. It might be a good idea to take the cat over the road. Some ruts have frozen and they’re big enough to lose a sled inside, or at least overturn it.”
“Kirk and Runt said the same thing. I decided they were fussing over nothing.”
“The ruts are bad,” Josef confirmed with another yawn. “See you in the morning.”
“Sleep in,” Leif suggested. “I’ll take care of the unloading. We want to get the produce to the shop as soon as possible. We sold everything in one morning.”
Josef’s brows rose. “Really? That was quick.”
“Fiona’s presence seemed to alleviate the mistrust. The produce flew out the door, and no one quibbled about price.”
“Because we sold it at cost?”
“No. I decided to hell with it and added a slight profit margin. We assumed the risk to ship it here and we should gain the rewards.”
Josef paused in the doorway. “If you need Fiona to help sell, how are you going to get her away from Arve?”
Leif frowned then smiled. “I bet Fiona can handle his stubbornness. She’ll want to help because she enjoyed selling stuff yesterday. She doesn’t like sitting around while others are working. Watch and learn, young polar bear. Watch and learn.”
Oh, No! Danger in Churchill
Fiona woke slowly, warm and secure in Leif’s embrace. Her eyes fluttered open.
“Mine,” a husky voice whispered with satisfaction.
“Arve?” she asked, her mind foggy with confusion. “Where am I?”
“Mine.” He kissed her with a faint touch of lips that gradually deepened to something more carnal. The scruff on his chin and jawline scratched in a sexy way.
A protest grew at her lips, but it popped like a balloon under Arve’s ardent morning greeting. His hand—so much bigger than his brothers’—covered her breast, and despite her healthy cup size, not much spilled over his palm. His solid, muscular body melted into hers, pushing her into the mattress. His cock thrust against her belly, and after a few seconds, she decided answers could come later. His quiet insistence and decadent kisses seduced her into the idea of hot morning sex.
Arousal swept through her with the same forceful nature that came with Arve. Her pussy moistened and need surged to life as if she hadn’t had vigorous and satisfying sex with Leif the prior evening.
“Are you mine?” Arve rumbled, taking a second to raise his head and brush the tangle of hair from her face. His whiskey-brown eyes glowed and his bear peeked out at her with clear inquisitiveness.
His determination and her easy surrender made her realize how much the Swenson men had come to mean to her in a short time. Leaving them after this adventure would prove difficult.
“I’m yours,” she murmured. “And your brothers’ too.” Might as well fess up that she and the brothers had been having sexy fun together before Arve’s arrival.
“Good.” His wide mouth shaped into a gentle smile with not a hint of jealousy or anger or any other emotion except acceptance. In contrast to other men she’d known… Wow, just wow.
“I met your mother,” she said with no idea why she’d said it.
“She doesn’t like humans.” The longest sentence she’d heard from him since their first meeting.
“No. Kirk and Leif fought her.”
Arve nodded. “You are worth fighting for.” He smiled gently again and lowered his head to seal his proclamation with a kiss.
He parted her legs, arranging his big body so he lay between, his cock poised at her entrance. “Do you want this?” He shifted position, his shuffling abrading her nub.
A puff of air pushed from her. Her body gloried in the program, even if her mind found the situation a little wrong and a lot naughty. Santa Claus would knock her onto the naughty list for sure.
“Yes, so much,” she confessed, embracing her naughty girl persona without another blink.
Arve didn’t hesitate. He pushed into her and slid his meaty cock back out. The man—polar bear shifter—whatever, was big all over. His breadth stretched her to the point of discomfort, but his careful entry said a lot about the man. Determination and gentleman in one big package.
He filled her and eased back, her body accepting more of him with each thrust.
“Aw, Fiona. You make my bear happy. You make me happy. I knew something was missing,” he mumbled, retreating and surging into her again with one smooth motion. “Now I understand. Won’t last long. Not this first time. Will make it up to you.”
On his next stroke he filled her, and they both groaned at the perfection of the fit. He increased the speed of his thrusts, an
d Fiona clung to his broad shoulders. When Arve groaned, his big frame tensing, she slipped her hand between them to touch herself.
“No,” Arve barked the order. “I will do that. Give me a second.” He pulled back and sank balls deep, his muscular body trembling as he came in hard pulses.
She watched his face the entire time, the harsh countenance that would scare some women, then the slack pleasure that took over, transforming his features to teddy bear handsome. His eyes popped open to meet her gaze.
“Fiona,” he whispered reverently.
He stayed in position for long seconds before withdrawing from her, leaving an achy emptiness behind.
“Let me make you come too,” Arve rumbled.
He stroked her quivering thighs and eased away the burst of tension that had appeared once he’d finished and she hadn’t. He leaned closer to kiss her mound. He licked and sucked, his mouth a magical thing. Two thick fingers entered her and stroked internally, finding a spot that detonated her in seconds flat. With one final long, luscious lick, he lifted his head and offered her a playful grin. “I enjoyed that a lot. When can we do it again?”
Fiona grinned back, charmed by this gentle giant.
“Mine,” he said happily as he rearranged her body and settled in to sleep.
A thump on the bedroom door woke them several hours later. Arve tensed and rolled her so he lay between her and the door.
“It’s morning,” a voice called. “I’m coming in.”
Arve relaxed. “Josef,” he explained.
“Oh.”
The door flew open and a naked Josef stood in the doorway. “Fiona might like to have a shower. I’m offering to be her washroom attendant.”
Arve groaned and rolled his eyes at her. “Fiona, mine. He is very insistent. He will not give up until you agree.”
Fiona peered at Josef. His golden blond hair twisted in messy yet sexy curls. He grinned at her and she remembered Stig telling her Josef joked around a lot and was the troublemaker of the brothers.
Arve turned to her. He cupped her face in his gentle way. “Josef would never hurt you. He’s feeling left out because all of us have spent time with you apart from him. If you’d prefer to shower alone, I can tell him.”
She peeked over Arve’s shoulder and glimpsed a lost boy—one who acted out to grab attention.
You should not do this. Her good girl trying to exert control.
Fiona beamed instead and went with her instincts. Josef wouldn’t hurt her. His brothers wouldn’t let him.
“Fiona, mine,” Arve protested as she climbed off his bed. “I need a kiss to sustain me while I make us coffee.”
Smiling, she paused to kiss Arve. “You’re more talkative today. I like it.”
“That’s hot,” Josef said, his bear slipping into prominence. “You have beautiful breasts. I imagined but reality is much better.”
Fiona straightened abruptly and sucked in her stomach.
“Don’t be shy, pretty lady,” Josef said, extending his hand.
His fingers twined with hers as she accepted his touch.
“My brothers worship you. They fought Ma on your behalf.” He slung his arm around her shoulders, behaving in a relaxed and casual manner. He nuzzled her neck and inhaled. “Your scent is like my brothers but there’s this edge of wild sweetness.”
“Like honey,” Arve rumbled from behind them.
“Yes,” Josef agreed.
“Do polar bears eat honey?” Fiona asked.
“This polar bear does,” Josef murmured, and somehow, she didn’t think he meant the stuff made by bees.
They made it to breakfast almost an hour later. Leif, Arve, Kirk and Stig were sitting around a round table, the remnants of breakfast in front of them. The faint aroma of burnt toast perfumed the air.
“Do we have any hot water left?” Leif pushed a lock of honey-blond hair from his forehead, and Fiona saw that his deep brown eyes twinkled.
“More important,” Josef said, his arm around her waist. “Is there any breakfast left?”
“Have a seat,” Arve said. “I saved you eggs and bacon. Sorry, I burned it a bit. Coffee, Fiona?”
“I’ll get the coffee,” Stig volunteered.
“We were discussing our plans for next week,” Leif offered.
Josef brushed aside a half-finished polar bear carving to seat her beside Kirk and took the empty seat on her other side. “Yeah?”
“We will sort out the produce and try to sell it all today. Kirk said he’d deliver the dog food. We’ve brought enough to keep them going for two weeks. Since they’re our only customer so far, we figure we can take a week off to spend time with Fiona to take her out on the tundra.” Leif cocked a brow at Josef. “Do you have any suggestions or objections?”
“That sounds good,” Josef said. “Fiona?”
“You don’t have to take time off for me. You have a business to run,” Fiona objected. “I can book a tour and maybe do a helicopter flight.”
“Fiona, mine,” Arve said. “We want to do this. If you’d prefer a tour, say so, but we’ll be able to find the wild bears for you. You have a better chance of seeing them with us. Josef has excellent eyesight, and he can spot animals long before most humans. Kirk reads the weather, and best of all, we’re safe. No one will hurt you with us around—human, wild bear or shifter.”
Fiona blinked at the end of this long speech from Arve. She noticed his brothers seemed astonished too. She studied each of their earnest faces before nodding.
“Thank you. That sounds awesome, but only if you’ll let me work in the shop with you again. That was fun. Oh, and you’ll need to buy me a pastry from Gypsy’s. I have a mind to try them all before I leave.”
Silence fell and their smiles of approval faded.
“What? What did I say?” Fiona demanded.
“We don’t like to imagine you leaving,” Leif said.
“I…I…” Fiona shook her head. In truth, she didn’t want to think about leaving either. “I’m hungry. Where is my bacon?” Not a smooth change, but it worked better than thoughts of departing Churchill.
* * * * *
The locals queued the minute they saw the SUV with the sled park in front of their temporary shop.
“What do you have today?” a woman called. “Do you have more apples? I fancy an apple pie for supper.”
“Give us time to unpack, and I’ll put up a sign with what we have in stock,” Fiona said.
The woman tugged the sleeve of Fiona’s heavy jacket. “You understand they’re different, right?”
Fiona considered playing dumb, but decided it was quicker to admit the truth. “They’re shifters. Hot with a side of rawrrr, right?” A quick glimpse of the woman’s shock had her biting her bottom lip to stem her amusement. She hustled into the store, leaving the woman gaping after her.
Josef gave her a hip bump. “I heard that,” he murmured. “We put the rawrrr in hot and sexy.”
Fiona laughed and squeezed his biceps. “You do.”
Between the six of them, it took no time to unpack the sled and set up the store interior for customers.
Fiona rewrote her chalkboard sign, and they opened for business. Business was brisk with both locals and visitors snapping up the fruit and vegetables in less than two hours.
“Who is that tall dude with the mirror sunglasses?” Josef asked. “I haven’t seen him before.”
“We figure he’s a new guide or volunteer,” Leif said. “He came in yesterday.”
“Lucky I have manners,” Arve rumbled. “Because he didn’t take his eyes off Fiona, mine.”
“Well, she is pretty,” Kirk commented as he collected the empty boxes to stack in the storeroom until they decided what to do with them.
“No,” Leif said. “She’s beautiful and sexy and—”
“Ours,” Stig stated.
Fiona listened to them as she helped clean up the empty store. “You made a good profit.”
“We did,” Leif agreed. “Are y
ou ready to explore the tundra?”
She patted the camera hanging around her neck. She’d already taken a heap of photos today. They’d stopped at the polar bear jail for her to take photos of the exterior and the mural of the bear painted on the side. Leif had explained that no one except the people in charge entered to see the captive bears. They released most back into the wild, and they wanted to keep them calm and relaxed.
“I can’t wait to explore more of Churchill,” she said. “I want to take a group photo of you all too. Out on the tundra is best.
They piled into the SUV and drove back to the house where they grabbed a few supplies, including flasks of tea. Fiona sat in the front, next to the window to make it easier to take photos while they played tour guides.
“That’s the fort. It’s almost restored, and once they’re finished, the fort will open for special dinners and functions,” Stig said.
“Most of the tour companies go out that way.” Kirk pointed to a bus lumbering down the road away from them. “They exchange the vehicle for a tundra buggy that has big wheels and a viewing deck to keep their passengers safe from curious bears.”
“We’re going to take you the other way into the Wapusk National Park. I noticed a sow with two cubs in the vicinity two days ago when I drove out to deliver the dog food. I didn’t see her, but I could sense her presence,” Leif said.
“Arctic fox at two o’clock,” Stig declared.
Leif slowed and halted the vehicle.
“Where?” Fiona demanded, camera poised to snap a shot.
“Open the door quietly and get out. Try not to make any noise,” Arve instructed. “I’ll point out the fox once we creep around the vehicle and it’s in sight again.”
“I still don’t see him,” Fiona whispered.
Arve stood behind her. “See that scrubby bush, off to the right? He’s curled up in a ball right in front. He’s pure white with a hint of black on the tips of his ears.”
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