Primal Desire: a BBW Bear Shifter Paranormal Romance (Shadowlands Bear Shifters Book 5)

by Olivia Harp

  He hurt it. Finally hurt it.

  The Shadow creature moved away from him and hit the ceiling, destroying part of it, making the very structure of the building tremble.

  Steel beams fractured the ceiling and dropped down in the middle of the room, fire consumed all.

  The being embraced one, the fire and heat and destruction gave it strength, making it grow larger.

  Every spike on its body, every sharp tentacle elongated until it practically filled every corner of the apartment.

  This was gonna be one hell of a fight.

  He sprung at it, its paws ripping away every tentacle on their wait, it's searing hot blood burning his fur. And yet, it wasn't enough. The monster caught him, sinking a billion needles deep in his skin. His roar fused wrath and pain.

  The magma-like blood dripped over his head, but that didn't stop Enzo from taking a bite at the center eye.

  It moved away but not fast enough.

  He clenched his jaw, it was like chewing steel, a battle where no one could come out unscathed.

  The tentacles squeezed him, boiling his skin, hot blood poured out of the eye into his mouth and chest. He would take this fucking creature with him even if it was the last thing he did.

  "Enzo!" he heard his mate yell, he saw her on the corner of his eye, standing on the hole in the wall they just made, "you are the fire!"

  What does she—

  And then he knew.

  Audrey.

  She was the smart one, after all.

  He saved all his energy to bring her back to health.

  This thing was made of fire. It would be his end.

  He clenched his jaw and felt the heat around. A biting, powerful force, unleashed upon him.

  I owe you my life, love.

  Fire no longer felt like his enemy. He was it. The same element that meant destruction, could be used for good. And could be stopped and tamed.

  The flames that licked the walls, the floors, the ceiling... they were at his disposal.

  This thing thought it could control a dangerous force of nature and come out alive, but no. Even fire was meant for something bigger than just destruction.

  Enzo clenched his jaw and ripped part of the eye away, then roared and the flames began to dampen, as if in fear of their new master.

  The tentacles stung in Enzo's body suddenly felt much weaker, much smaller.

  Fire still raged on but it was his fire. The beast had no control over it. Its red hot blood turned into black plasma, and when Enzo looked into its eye, he caught one thing.

  Fear.

  His muscles exploded with power, his eyes saw everything clearly. Nature chose him, chose the White Paws to protect the world from these things. He was stronger than he had ever been.

  He knew... the bear knew who to thank for this newly found power.

  Audrey.

  She acted in the moment of deepest despair. She taught him to stop fighting what he really was. To accept the darker, wilder part of himself. That would set him free.

  He looked up, calm, like a bomb.

  The flames disappeared, he didn't need them. The room turned dark, and a small, fearful creature looked at the White Paw bear, its big center eye tingling in fear, trying to find a way out, trying to save itself.

  Enzo vaulted at it and it knew its moment had come.

  CHAPTER 44

  Audrey didn't care about the obliteration of her home. She didn't mind about the creature she'd just seen. A monster out of a horror movie.

  She wasn't scared of it at all. Not here, in Enzo's arms.

  He carried her effortlessly downstairs. The wounds in his face, big gashes at first, healed right in front of her eyes. She knew shifters could do that but seeing it in real life was something else.

  She almost fainted just a few minutes before.

  After Enzo destroyed the Shadow... thing that attacked them, her body felt heavy, and she couldn't keep standing anymore.

  "You're past the adrenaline-rush, love," Enzo told her, reaching down for her and picking her up, "your body's finally able to relax."

  "Don't, you're hurt," she tried to argue but it was pointless.

  She held him, and he held her back tighter. Even after the disaster, the only thing that mattered to her was him.

  She could hear a rattle coming from the first floor, shouts and noises mixed in chaos. Then, just as Enzo stepped down on the second floor, a team of firefighters intercepted them, their face full of surprise.

  "Sir, all you all right?" the first one shouted behind a mask, he was a young man, no older than twenty-five.

  He stepped to the side as Enzo passed him, the four firefighters behind him did the same.

  Enzo looked as if taken out of a fireplace, covered in ashes and sweat and blood... and completely naked. It must have been shocking to go in, thinking people were trapped in the building, and face them like this.

  "There's no one upstairs," Enzo said curtly, "keep safe, boys."

  They didn't respond. The first one gave an axe to the man following him and ran down, shouting some orders, the rest of the team kept going up.

  Before she knew it, paramedics surrounded them, covered them with blankets and guided them to the ambulance.

  CHAPTER 45

  Enzo stayed with her on the ride to the hospital. He said he didn't need help and refused to take any medication. He was fine, she knew it.

  Audrey felt... good. She wasn't injured, didn't feel pain, and the heat she was exposed to did not seem to hurt her.

  Enzo had healed her body.

  She wanted to refuse the help but Enzo didn't allow it. He asked her to please comply, he wanted to make sure she was truly all right.

  He never let go of her hand. She saw worry, and love, and regret in his eyes.

  "I'm sorry you went through all this," he said, "it's my fault."

  She squeezed his hand, the roughness of it something that she had grown very fond of.

  "I'm glad I did."

  That caught him off guard. The paramedic riding back to the hospital with them didn't say a word. He knew not to interfere.

  "Why?"

  "Because it brought you to me."

  He smiled.

  "I promise this will never happen again. Not ever."

  She didn't reply. She trusted him, and he would never let her down. She just closed her eyes and waited for his kiss.

  His lips and hers fused and it felt like home. Nothing else in the world mattered.

  ***

  The door opened softly, the air rippled throughout the room, waking Enzo up.

  He could feel everything now, his channeling sense was much stronger... perfectly attuned to the world, synced with nature.

  His bear paced inside, grouchy as always, but he kept it in check. For the first time in years, it was willing to obey without putting up a fight. It wasn't a pain in the ass. Not anymore. It knew not to mess with its master.

  Damien was the first to come into the room. He locked eyes with Enzo and smiled. There was this... aura of power around him.

  As the alpha of the clan, the Primal Bear himself, he radiated strength, the room filled with his energy, something Enzo hadn't sensed before.

  "Can we come in?" Damien whispered.

  "Doctor?" Audrey replied before Enzo could say a word. She was fully awake, one hand entwined with his, a magazine in her other.

  Damien was whispering because he was asleep, not because of her.

  "Come in, man," Enzo said, "Audrey, this is Damien, alpha of the White Paws."

  ***

  Audrey gasped, embarrassed. She tried to fix her hair but Damien stopped her.

  "Don't worry, don't worry," he said, and a host of people came into the room.

  Big guys with their wives and children, all in all, more than fifteen people came flooding in.

  "Whoa!" Enzo said half laughing, "you brought everyone?"

  "We wanted to come," said a curvy, beautiful woman next to a tall, white haire
d guy who carried a child in each arm.

  "Hi there!" A teenage girl said to her, waving her hand, and before Audrey could reply she turned to Enzo. "you were in a fight?"

  "Deeandra..." the man carrying the children said, side pushing her with his hip.

  Everyone laughed.

  "That's Deedee, honey," said Enzo, then proceeded with the introductions.

  It was a lot of people, the younger kids tried to be quiet but they obviously couldn't, which made her laugh.

  "How did you know I was here?" Enzo asked.

  "Dude, we're a crew," said Maverick, "we know when stuff like this happens."

  "That, and we felt you fighting... You're stronger than I thought," said Damien.

  "I called Thomas," Franklin said, "and told them about the incursion down here. Everything's taken care of."

  "You woke that fucker up at this hour?" Enzo asked.

  "He's a bureaucrat, he needs to work from time to time."

  Thomas, the White Paws contact in the government. He helped with the PR regarding all this mess. No one would know what really happened.

  "Do you need anything?" said Sophie, Franklin's wife.

  "No, we're good—" Enzo began saying.

  "We brought you food," Deedee said and pulled up chips, chocolate bars, and all kinds of junk food from her little purse.

  "Real food too," said Damien, "the bags are outside, we weren't sure you wanted them."

  Audrey's stomach rumbled so loud she went from relaxed to complete embarrassment in a second.

  The kids laughed, their moms reprimanded them and they all had a good time. Deedee brought the bags. Not surprisingly, it was enough to feed everyone twice.

  The kids sat at the floor, their moms either with them or on the small sofa in the room.

  Audrey had lost everything but she felt better than ever. She felt happy. Truly happy. Material things could be replaced, but the way the man you love looks at you and you know in your heart that you're the most important thing in his life is irreplaceable. She was happy he was alive.

  "So, are you gonna come live with us?" Deedee asked while munching a burger.

  Everyone stopped.

  "Oh," Dee said, "what did I do now?"

  Audrey's heart pounded heavily in her chest.

  "I don't think—"

  "If she wants to, she knows I'll gladly have her," Enzo told Deedee.

  Audrey looked at him. Was he being honest? Live together so soon?

  He looked back at her.

  "It'll be a while until you get everything up and running again," he said, "you can stay there until you figure what to do."

  "Thanks," she replied.

  They didn't touch the subject again. The crew stayed with them for about an hour. She was starting to get tired right at the moment they said their good-byes and left.

  "Nice people," she told Enzo when the calm returned.

  "The best," he said with a smile.

  "You should go home, I'm fine, really."

  "Hey," Enzo said, suddenly serious, "I meant what I said about going to my place. I'd love to have you there, but I won't take offense if you don't want to do it so soon. I'll make preparations and get you a place here in Rosenberg, or wherever you want."

  "No, Enzo, I don't want you to spend any of your money—"

  "Don't worry about that. I'm good."

  "But still—"

  "Audrey," he said, " The government needs my crew, you saw why. They pay us handsomely for our work. I have money. Lots of it. Let me spend it, I want you to feel comfortable."

  "Okay, I'll tell you what. I'll come with you for a day or two while I find a place to stay."

  He smiled, "I'm fine with that."

  CHAPTER 46

  The bell rang and the students poured out of the school. It was the last day of classes before summer break, and Audrey was ready for her vacation.

  She got a text on her cell phone, it was Enzo. He'd wait for her outside, she knew where.

  "The basketball courts," she said out loud, smiling.

  They'd been living together for over a year now. The day or two she was supposed to stay with him turned into a week, then a month or two, then, there was an incredible apartment she could move into, but it was too late by then. Neither of them were ready to part ways.

  They realized they built their new life around each other and couldn't even think about living apart. That whole notion was ridiculous.

  She laughed at the whole situation. Her apartment burned down and that was the moment her life improved in absolutely every way.

  No. It was before that. It was the moment I stepped into the school and met him. Oh my gosh. She was being so cheesy. Romance wasn't her thing, she told herself again, without really swallowing the lie. She rolled her eyes and walked out of her office.

  "Good-bye, Darcy, have a great summer."

  Darcy nodded and waved her goodbye, she couldn't reply. She was on the phone with Peter, telling him where to meet for lunch. The pair seemed happier than ever.

  ***

  Duke threw the ball but just before going into the net, Layne jumped and blocked it. It would have been a foul but this was the street. No place for such silliness.

  "Denied!" Layne yelled, with a laugh.

  The game was tied, 19 to 19. The teams fought for the last shot to victory.

  Kids will always brag about how tough they are, but this time it was just friendly teasing. The community was better than ever.

  "Come on kids, school's over, you want me to end this with a tie?"

  The thirty-plus kids who witnessed the game all said 'no' in unison. He called it Ultimate Street B-Ball World Championship, but everyone knew it really was Jefferson's High unofficial b-ball tournament. My name hasn't caught on, yet.

  Enzo organized it and refereed some games, especially this one, the final game of the school year.

  The kids moved and ducked and passed the ball, until Cyrus blocked a pass and the ball rolled away.

  A tall guy in a suit picked it up, a bearded black man wearing shades, his smile big and proud.

  It took Enzo two seconds to recognize him.

  "Cameron!"

  "Hey!" he said.

  He looked sharp. Enzo jogged up to him to shake his hand, but Cameron pulled him over and gave him a hug.

  "What up, Mr. Gallagher."

  "Nothing, just playing. You trying to dazzle us with your outfit?"

  "Don't need it, bro," he bragged.

  "How have you been?"

  Cameron shrugged, he didn't need to say anything.

  "Come, man, let me introduce you to the students."

  They walked over to them, all of their eyes curious, some tried to look tough, some didn't, but all of them tried to hide their admiration.

  "Hey kids!" said Enzo.

  "This is my friend Cameron Jones, he graduated a year ago. He's an engineer now at MIT. Full scholarship."

  The kid's eyes bulged, but they didn't say a thing. They kept their cool.

  "Not an engineer yet, working my way to it."

  "You miss this place already?"

  "What, you want me to get beat up?" he said with a wink, "I don't miss school. Too cool for that."

  Enzo laughed. The kid had made it. Even with everything against him, he made it. Smarter than he thinks.

  "Hey there!"

  Everyone turned and there she was. Enzo's girl. Stay professional, he thought, but the bear inside growled. It was delighted to see her.

  "Hi, Miss Rodriguez, how've you been?"

  They exchanged pleasantries, Cameron went to take a look inside the school, maybe see the new gym they inaugurated after his graduation.

  Audrey took the ball and walked to the court, "so, are you done with the World B-Ball Championship? Who won?"

  The way she said it made the kids laugh.

  "Don't mock the name," he said.

  "Are we doing this or what?" said Duke, "we're one shot from winning!"

&nbs
p; "Keep dreaming," said Layne, "Miss Rodriguez, pass the ball?"

  She was too far.

  "Sure," she said.

  She won't do it.

  "Catch!"

  She did. She took her shot.

  Everyone gasped when the ball went in clean.

  "I'll wait for you to finish."

  Enzo's heart pounded just like the first time he saw her. He was so in love he almost yelled in happiness.

  "All right," he said with a proud smile, and sounded his whistle.

  CHAPTER 47

  The hot Colorado sun hovered over the west, dyeing the sky with oranges and yellows, summer seemed as if it would last forever.

  Enzo rowed their small boat. It took them two days on the road, including the stops at restaurants and sights, to get to their lodge, down in the middle of the mountains.

  It was paradise. Enzo reserved a small, cozy cabin, right in front of a calm lake, hidden from the world. The whole place looked like a Bob Ross painting, from the water to the house to the sky and mountains. Time didn't seem to pass here.

  They hopped on the boat and she brought wine and some crackers, along with a parasol.

  The lake reflected the red mountain peaks, along with the bright blue of the sky. She could breathe freedom out here.

  It was a fun little adventure, and both enjoyed being alone with each other.

  She lay down at the front of the small boat and just admired her man. She couldn't believe how everything turned out, as if their story was taken right out of a fairy tale. He was strong and handsome and protective, treated her with such unending adoration that sometimes, when she woke up, she still couldn't believe how lucky she was. But the dream was real.

  His strong arms rowed and rowed, the sun already tanning him. She smirked, he did look like a model. Big and ripped as hell, dark hair paired with light hazel eyes. She sighed. She was so in love it almost made her cringe.

  I'm so cheesy, she thought.

  The worst thing was he felt the same way. This is the kind of love you find only once in your life. You either hold on to it with all your might or lose it. And that's what they did. They never let go. She was thankful.

  "You like it out here?"