by J. K Harper
“You’re going to resolve this case and marry your woman by Christmas?” Maisie asked with a giggle. “Sounds like a tall order.”
“Watch me,” he said, taking a bite of his muffin.
He walked out of the bakery and got back in his patrol car before driving back to the station. When he got inside, all of the Bear Patrol were gathered inside Rollo’s office. He went inside and sat down with his muffin and coffee. Rollo gave him a look, but he just shrugged and kept eating his muffin.
“We’ve just returned from Harper’s cabin,” Rollo started. “It appears that a knife of exactly the same brand and type was found in her cabin. This is an old knife. Not common anymore. It is most likely a paired set.”
“Do we have enough to book her?” Heath asked.
“Of course not!” Knox said, almost choking on his coffee.
“What did you find out from the wife and employees?” Rollo asked Gauge.
“The female employee, Stephanie Small, just went into labor. We weren’t able to ask her any questions. The male employee, Michael McDonald, was scheduled to work today but called in sick. He seemed to have the flu. We questioned him about his whereabouts, but he’d been at home all morning. A message was found on the bank answering machine indicating that he had called in sick to work that morning.”
“And what about the wife?” Rollo asked Gauge.
“We talked to her, she was still in her night slip when we arrived. She claimed to have been sleeping. She didn’t offer much. What I gather from questions I asked around town, her relationship with Mr. Black was on the rocks.”
Knox was simmering but at least Gauge was on the right track. He couldn’t believe that Rollo was even considering Harper. Why wasn’t Damien using his magical computer software to solve this crime? Couldn’t they see that Harper was innocent?
“Should we order a warrant to search Mrs. Black’s home?” Heath asked.
“We don’t have enough evidence. I want you to find me something more.”
“But she is the spouse,” Knox objected. “She’s at the brewery almost every night with everyone but Mr. Black.”
“Knox, you need stay out of this. We need to stay impartial. The humans are scrutinizing us, and I don’t want to make any more human enemies in this town. We need to keep the peace. If Harper is innocent, we will prove it.”
“You’re all taking too long,” Knox growled.
With that, he stood and left the room. They were wasting time. Rollo was being a stickler for the rules when he’d bent them himself for his own mate.
There had been problems with the humans in the past. People had questioned the police department being run by shifters. Rollo wanted to prove to the humans of Fate Mountain that shifters weren’t corrupt. But these protests couldn’t have come at a worse time.
Rollo had always been helpful to the shifters of Fate Mountain when it came to their mates. Knox knew that Rollo didn’t want to show favoritism, but Knox needed to protect his mate no matter what.
He left the police station at the end of the shift and drove his car home. He grabbed a beer from the fridge and sat in the living room, clicking on the remote to find a sports game on TV.
He picked up his phone, realizing that he didn’t even have Harper’s phone number. He tapped on to the Mate.com app and sent her a text.
“I miss you so bad.”
“I miss you too.” The response came almost immediately. “I’ve been waiting for you to contact me all day.”
“I’m doing everything I can to make this better. Rollo’s being a hard ass. I don’t know why he’s doing it to me. He and I go way back.”
“Maybe he thinks you can handle it.”
“I think he’s just being a dick.”
“LOL.”
Knox chuckled to himself, happy that his mate could still find humor in a dark time like this.
Chapter 8
When Harper’s new branch manager called her and told her she could come back to work two weeks later, she was relieved to have something to do besides sit around the lodge. She’d taken walks and eaten free meals at the five-star restaurant. It had been a lovely vacation, but she was ready to go back to work.
The Bear Patrol had asked her a lot of questions over the last two weeks, and she and Knox had had to stay apart. But they’d talked on the phone and texted each other every night. Even Commander Rollo couldn’t keep them from doing that. But he wouldn’t let Knox work on the case.
Knox made her understand that Rollo was trying to keep up appearances, but Harper knew that she was still a suspect in the case. She had to believe that they would find the truth and it would set her free. Then she and Knox could finally be together.
When she arrived at the bank first thing in the morning, she greeted her new branch manager, Patricia Ward. They shook hands and Patricia looked her up and down skeptically. Everyone knew that Harper had been at the scene of the crime. But Patricia had to allow her to come back to work when the bank reopened. There was no reason to fire her. So Harper was able to come back. She took her position behind her teller window and let out a long sigh.
Michael was there beside her but Stephanie was absent. Harper had learned that Stephanie had gone into labor the day that Mr. Black had been murdered. The news must have been a shock to her.
“I can’t believe he’s gone,” Harper said.
“You didn’t even know him,” Michael muttered.
“But he gave me a job. He was kind to me.”
“You didn’t know him…”
“Maybe not. But it’s still a shock when someone dies.”
The last two weeks had helped her heal, but Harper was still shaken by what she had seen. She longed for this all to be over and to be able to finally be with Knox in the open. It was torture to be without him and their nightly texts and calls were the only thing that was keeping her going.
When she was done with her shift, she stopped at the grocery store on the way back to the lodge. She had a refrigerator in her room and she liked to keep things in it to make in the microwave.
As she walked down the aisle, she glanced down at the pregnancy tests. She knew it was time for her to find out. A few weeks ago, she never would have imagined being in this position. She had just met Knox, but now he was everything to her, even though they couldn’t be together. She knew she wanted to be with him. After feeling his arms around her at the murder scene, that was all it took to let her know she wanted to be with him for the rest of her life. She’d never felt so protected.
When Knox had seen where she was living, he wouldn’t allow her to stay there. He made sure she had a place to stay, that she was safe, and that she wasn’t going to spend every dollar in her bank account to do it. He was taking care of her, and she knew that he would always take care of her.
They’d gotten to know each other so much better over the last two weeks. There was a lot that you could say and learn over the phone and over texts. The initial instinct she had had proved to be correct. Even through the darkness of it all, they had laughed and teased and enjoyed each other more than she had anyone else.
It had never been like that with Colin, not even in the beginning. She knew that what she had with Knox was special. There was definitely a bond and a connection between them, even though he hadn’t marked her yet. She longed for the day when he finally would mark her, and they would be connected the way that shifters talked about. She couldn’t wait to feel that connection to Knox.
It was the best thing she could imagine.
She grabbed the pregnancy test and threw it in the cart with her fruit smoothies and cups of soup. Her heart pounded as she made her way to the checkout. The woman behind the counter scanned her things and gave her a smile when she scanned the pregnancy test.
Harper beamed back, hoping more than anything that it would be positive. It didn’t matter what was going on, it didn’t matter that she didn’t have a place to live, all that mattered was her and Knox and what was between th
em.
She grabbed her bag and made her way out to the parking lot where she climbed in the car and drove to the lodge. She took her bag up to her room and put her things in the fridge.
She held the pregnancy test as she sat on the bed and read the instructions. She couldn’t calm down, her heart pounded so fast she could feel it reverberating through her entire body. Harper took the box and went into the bathroom to follow the directions.
After peeing on the stick, she set the test on the counter and waited, watching the fluid move through the windows of the little boxes. She held her breath as the pink lines began to form. It was only the test screen at first.
Harper turned away, unable to look. She closed her eyes and sat on the side of the bathtub, waiting three minutes until the test was done. After what seemed like an eternity, she scrambled up and looked at the test.
There was a plus sign in both windows, indicating that her test was positive. She was pregnant. She covered her mouth as she burst into ecstatic screaming. She was carrying Knox’s child. After composing herself, she scurried out of the bathroom and grabbed her phone. Without hesitating, she texted Knox.
“I’m pregnant.”
Chapter 9
“You’ve got to take Harper off the suspects list,” Knox said.
For the last two weeks Rollo had kept him in the dark on any progress on the case. But Rollo also wouldn’t let him see Harper openly, admitting that she was still a suspect.
“I can’t do that. A match to the murder weapon was found at her house. We’re still digging into the wife, but we don’t have anything solid.”
“Not being with her is killing me,” Knox said.
“I understand how you feel, Knox. But I think we’re closing in on something. You’re going to just have to trust me on this.”
“I’ve waited long enough, Rollo. We’ve been friends all our lives. And you know me well enough to know that I’m not going to sit back and watch this happen without doing anything to protect her.”
“Knox. We have to follow protocol. The protests just keep getting worse. I can’t believe these humans want to stand out in the snow all day. I don’t even recognize half of them.”
“Protocol be damned. I’m going to prove that she had nothing to do with this. I’m tired of waiting. You want to stop me, Rollo, you can kick me off the force.”
Knox turned and stormed out of Rollo’s office. He heard Rollo say his name before he slammed the door, but he didn’t stop or turn around. Knox wasn’t playing around anymore. He and Rollo had known each other since they were kids. Played football on the same team in high school. He wasn’t going to let his old friend push him around anymore.
If Rollo didn’t approve of Knox’s tactics, then he could kick him off the force. Knox meant that. His mate was in trouble, and he wasn’t going to wait around for somebody else to do something about it. Not even Damien had been able to solve this case with his computer skills.
Knox went to the evidence locker and pulled out everything on the case. He spread the information out in front of him on his desk, not caring if anyone saw him digging into the investigation. As he was reading through the files, he saw a photograph of a man he recognized from somewhere. He lifted up the file. The man was one of the employees from the bank. His name was Michael McDonald. Knox read through the man’s file, finding nothing of note. He’d worked at the bank for seven years. Before that, he had worked in another bank. He claimed to have had a cold the morning of the murder.
Just as Knox was closing the file on Michael McDonald, his phone pinged. He picked it up and found a text from Harper.
“I’m pregnant.” It read.
Knox gasped and stood up from his chair, almost knocking it over. He looked around the office, Rollo was eyeing him from behind the glass of his office window. Knox narrowed his eyes at Rollo and then grabbed his jacket from the back of his chair, making his way to the exit of the police station. He didn’t care what Rollo thought anymore. He was going to his mate whether his alpha liked it or not.
He hopped in his patrol car and turn on the siren, speeding through traffic until he made it to the parking lot of the lodge. He shut off the car and hurried up the front walk and through the front doors of the lobby. He was in the elevator and speeding up to her floor in mere seconds. The elevator doors opened and he practically charged out, striding down the hallway until he came to her door. He knocked loudly and she threw it open a second later.
She stood in front of him so beautiful and petite, her face open wide with expectation. He stepped through the door and kicked it closed behind them. She threw herself into his arms and he picked her up off her feet, carrying her through the room toward the bed.
“I knew you would come,” she said.
“Nothing could keep me away from you now.”
He laid her on the bed and crawled in beside her, leaning in to kiss her for the first time in two weeks. Her lips were sweet like candy and her arms felt like heaven around his neck. From that moment on, Knox would never let her be alone again.
Chapter 10
Harper fumbled with the buttons of Knox’s uniform, trying to get her hands on his skin. He slid his palm up her leg and cupped her sex, making her gush with warmth at his touch. She needed him, now more than ever.
“I’ve missed you so much.”
“I’ll never leave you alone again.”
He said it with a growl that made Harper’s skin prick with excitement. He was so protective and strong for her. She had never felt anything like the focus of his attention. It was intoxicating. It was addicting. She could never get enough of it and hoped to spend the rest of her life basking in his feral glory. She ripped at the lapels on his uniform and the buttons popped away, revealing his hard, muscled chest. She ran her hand over the curves of his pecs and leaned up to lick his neck.
His eyes shadowed and Knox went into swift motion, pulling at her clothes. He didn’t stop until both of them were completely naked. Her curvaceous, petite form was covered in gooseflesh in anticipation of what was to come. The first time they’d been together, they were intoxicated strangers. Now, they were lovers, longing to be together. They had the knowledge that they shared the seed of a growing life now planted inside Harper’s womb. They would be parents and partners. The bond between them had exploded in just the last hour.
He cupped her cheek and gazed into her eyes. She bit her lip, looking up into his masculine face. Harper ran her hands over his broad shoulders and down his rippling, muscled arms. He was as strong as steel and as imposing as the mighty redwood tree. Harper sighed, relaxing into her own feminine receptivity. The power of him above her cast a spell over her mind that she wanted to dive into. She had never felt so safe or so needed.
He kissed her cheek softly, running his soft lips over her flesh and exploiting her desire. Their lips met and the tips of their tongues touched in wet, liquid heat. It sparked down her spine and erupted in her core.
He gripped her hips as he kissed her deeply, drawing out the deep recesses of lust that had been hiding inside her, waiting for him, waiting for this moment.
He kissed her face and down her neck. His lips and tongue ran over her chest, nipping at her taught nipples as he made his way downward. He nestled between her legs, smelling her scent with utter reverence.
"I can’t get enough of the smell of you," he growled.
Harper groaned as he dove into her sex. He lapped up the taste of her with his slick, wet tongue.
Harper's mind was throbbing with the rhythm of her heart. She couldn't get enough of him either. He'd come out of nowhere and now he was giving her everything she'd ever dreamed of, everything she'd ever wanted. Everything she could imagine.
As she erupted with pleasure, she threw her head against the pillow and arched her back. Knox put his big hands on her hips and flipped her over on her stomach, pulling her up on her hands and knees.
Harper was still throbbing with pleasure, her mind reeling from the power o
f it. He ran his slick shaft between the wet folds of her core, wetting himself with her juices. He tilted forward and slid the head of his thick cock inside her entrance. She groaned and bit her lip, his width pressing the walls of her sex wide open.
He held her hips in his hands and moved with a rocking motion, slipping in and out of her. Harper leaned down on her elbows, resting her cheek on the pillow. She panted, willing herself to open for him. The next time he pulled back, he thrust forward and pushed inside her another inch. But he didn't pull back, he slipped further and further inside her until he was buried deep in her core. The feeling of him filling her up with his shaft made her burst into another magnificent orgasm. Lights sparked all around her vision, fireworks exploding behind her closed eyes.
Harper let out a long groan as Knox pulled back and thrust inside her again, impacting her sensitive parts and pushing her pleasure to another level.
Knox wouldn't hold back any longer and continued pivoting and thrusting his hips as he held tight to her thighs. He bounced her off his solid form, making her breasts jiggle and her entire body reel with pleasure.
Her orgasm didn’t subside. It just rolled on and on as the fireworks display popped again and again inside her mind. She groaned and bit the pillowcase under her mouth. Knox ran his hand down the small of her back and under her breast. He pulled her up and held her back against his chest as he moved slowly inside her.
With one hand grasping her breast, he pushed her long black hair away from her neck with the other. From behind her, he licked a spot behind her ear.
"I'm going to claim you as mine now, Harper. I'm going to mark you as my own," he whispered into the crook of her neck.
Harper went stiff with anticipation but the feeling of his lips and tongue on her neck made her go languid in his strong arms. He thrust his hips hard against her and pressed his sharp teeth to the pulse points on her neck.
"Do you want this?" he said, his teeth brushing over her flesh.
