ROMANCE: Bear Naked Seduction (Billionaire Bear Trio Book 1)

by Audrey Storm

  Then, the creature closed its mouth and bowed forward. Slowly, it shrank, its fur disappearing and its eyes becoming more…human. Within a moment, it seemed to have collapsed in on itself until it retained the shape of a man.

  Melinda’s head spun. She hadn’t breathed in several seconds, and she couldn’t muster the strength to do so now.

  “Mel,” Andrew whispered. He was—the man-shape was crawling toward her. “Mel, it’s okay. It’s me.”

  Andrew. Andrew was…what?

  It took her much too long to process all that she had witnessed. It wasn’t until Andrew laid his trembling fingers on her arm did she react.

  Screaming, Melinda flung herself back. Breath entered and exited her lungs at a rapid, desperate pace, the need for escape searing through her very being.

  “Mel, it’s okay,” Andrew repeated, his voice broken. “It’s okay, I will never hurt you.”

  “What are you?!” She hadn’t realized she was moving until her back hit the wall. Her hands slapped back against it, and she felt around for a window or a door—anything she could throw herself through. “What the hell are you?!”

  “I’m a bear-shifter.”

  “What?!”

  Andrew was also breathing strangely; it sounded like he was wheezing. “I can shapeshift into a bear. I’m one of the few people on this earth who can.”

  Maybe it was his tone of voice, or maybe it was how slowly he said each word, but Melinda finally managed to make herself go still. She stared at him—or, at least, at his darkened form.

  “It’s supposed to be kept secret,” Andrew continued, choking on the words. He sniffled loudly and wiped at his face. “That’s all I know, I swear. My dad died when I was little, and my mom didn’t tell me much about what I am—just that it needed to be kept secret. I don’t know anything else about bear-shifters, okay? But I know that I am never a threat to you. Never.”

  Going slack, Melinda leaned back against the wall. Everything was so…crazy and absurd and she didn’t know what to make of it. She was a little relieved that there wasn’t a real bear-monster in the apartment, but a bear-shifter? She couldn’t comprehend it—any of what she had just seen or heard.

  “Please,” Andrew whispered, reaching out for her without moving toward her. She could see his arm shake against the little light that managed to slash its way into the apartment. “Please, believe me. You’re the best thing that had ever happened to me, and I would have told you about everything sooner if I thought…if I thought it wouldn’t scare you away. Please, just…just say something.” A small sob shook out of his throat, and he slapped his hand against the floor as he bowed forward. “Please, Mel.”

  Melinda inhaled deeply. She had never seen Andrew express this much emotion—this much vulnerability. His sincerity, and her trust in him, soothed her fears somewhat. And as she calmed, she remembered what she had thought to herself earlier that day: it only had to be as complicated as they made it.

  She would have laughed at such a thought now, except that she was still struggling to think and feel past her overwhelming shock.

  “Okay,” she managed to breathe out. She swallowed thickly. “Okay…you’re a bear-shifter…that’s unexpected, but at least you’re not a rapist.” When he didn’t say anything right away, her eyes widened. “Right?”

  “Right,” he said, sniffling. “You’re okay?”

  She gave herself a moment to think about her answer. “Yeah. Yeah, I am. I’m stunned and probably in some form of denial right now, but I think I’m okay.” Her gaze flittered over him. “Are you?”

  Andrew snorted, the sound coming out sloppy.

  Melinda smiled. “Right. Stupid question.”

  They remained motionless and quiet for a long while, uncertainty heavy between them.

  “Can I come over there?” Andrew whispered. And his voice sounded so small, it made it even harder to imagine that he had ever been a bear.

  Melinda smiled again and rubbed the spot over her hammering heart. “Yeah. It’s okay.”

  Slowly, Andrew crawled his way over to her. When he was in front of her, he shakily reached out and grabbed her shoulder. The feeling of his calloused hands on her eased away the rest of her tension, and she released a taut breath.

  “Hi,” she blurted, relief making her dizzy.

  An abrupt chuckle popped out of his mouth. “Hi.”

  She grabbed his wrist and squeezed it. Everything was—messed up, baffling, shocking, twisted—fine. Everything was really fine, and despite the craziness of it all, she knew she was safe with the man before her.

  “I love you,” Melinda whispered to him. She could feel herself slowly come back to her senses, and the realization of this calmed her further. Confident, she gave Andrew a watery smile. “I love you, and I want to make this work.”

  “I love you, too,” he whispered. “So much.”

  Her heart soared. Letting her instincts take over, she carefully pressed her hands against his cheeks before leaning forward to press her lips against his own.

  “Let’s go to bed,” he whispered over her mouth, his hand skimming over her hip.

  “I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep after all that.”

  “That’s okay.” He kissed her cheek before nuzzling against it. “That’s perfectly okay, so long as you’re next to me.”

  Melinda nodded, tears pouring from her eyes. “Okay.”

  Epilogue

  It was a little over a week later when Melinda saw Travis’s obituary in the paper. Sitting at Andrew’s table, her breakfast going cold, she handed her boyfriend the paper and showed him Travis’s picture.

  “It says he was mauled by a bear,” she said, her breath catching in her throat. She eyed Andrew as he squinted at the paper. “You didn’t…did you?”

  “No,” he said indignant. “I told you I don’t do that.”

  She sighed, relieved. She rested her elbows on the table and brought her hand to her forehead. “Just thought I’d double check. He was a jackass.”

  Andrew hummed in agreement.

  Melinda would have returned her attention to her breakfast, but Andrew was still squinting at the paper like he knew something. Weariness weighed down on her breastbone. “Do you know who did that?”

  “No,” he said quietly. “But…I’m not entirely surprised this happened either.”

  Melinda tensed. “Why?”

  Andrew hesitated, glancing between her and the paper before setting the paper aside. “I told you the truth that I knew nothing about my kind, other than that my mother told me to always keep my true self a secret. I think it’s because that whenever a human discovers one of us, other bear-shifters…they…” He winced, tilting his head back in forth. “Take care of the problem.”

  Melinda paled, her hands going clammy. “What about me?”

  Andrew’s eyebrows shot up, even as his eyes softened. He grabbed her hand and squeezed it. “Mates are excluded from this.”

  “How can you be so sure?”

  “My mother was human, and she knew what my father was—what I was. And she ended up dying from cancer, not from…well…” He glanced back at the paper. Then he squeezed her hand harder before returning his gaze to her, his eyes blazing. “Even so, I would never let anything happen to you.”

  “Not even against a bunch of bears?”

  “I’d win that fight. For you, I could do anything.”

  Melinda calmed, a warm smile spreading her lips wide. Though anxiety still fluttered beneath her trust, she didn’t let it get the better of her. She kept her sight on Andrew—her love.

  “You know I love you, right?” she said.

  He smiled back at her. “Yes. And I love you.”

  Satisfied, she squeezed his hand back.

  It only had to be as complicated as they made it.

  THE END

  GO TO THE INDEX

  Knocked Up By The Doctor

  Knocked Up by the Doctor

  Dr. Glen Marrone stood and star
ed at the destruction he’d wrought. He’d sped toward the front doors at the screech of brakes, just like any other doctor would have. A fender bender, nobody was hurt, but he’d had to check. Melissa had gone outside with her phone, ready to call 911. He’d heard something falling from the front desk, but he hadn’t had the time to see what he’d done.

  “Shit!” Melissa’s purse had fallen open, discharging all its contents. Pens, her wallet and...what was this?

  He picked up a book, staring at the cover. A woman in chains, a lurid title. “Bound for Pleasure.” Interesting! He had no idea she was into this.

  Glenn stroked the cover the book, wondering what he should do about this new development. He had no idea Melissa was so interested in this sort of thing, or what kind of interest it was. Was it mere curiosity over the new and trendy thing in literature, movies, and, in some cases, real life?

  She could join the club then. BDSM. Melissa, his mild-mannered nurse, had seemed rather virginal. He wouldn’t have expected her like these books, even if they were all the rage these days. Not that many people understood BDSM, real lifestyle or scene BDSM rather than what some authors wrote. It was something that Glenn and his friends the club laughed about sometimes. When they weren’t cringing about that stupid movie or worrying that innocent people might get caught in situations they had no knowledge to overcome.

  Above and beyond all that, he needed to think about what to do about this. Glenn found Melissa very attractive, but he didn’t think they had much in common outside the office. She was younger than him, by about 10 years, and while she got along with everybody in the office, there was a certain quietness, and a certain distance between them that seemed to go beyond professional courtesy.

  She was also a girl with curves to spare. It's not that he didn’t like curvy girls, but he’d never actually been with one. Outside of doing scenes at the club with one of the curvier regulars, and while those had been good, he had never wanted to date anybody he done a scene with. This might just change, with Melissa in the picture. Provided of course, that this wasn’t just a passing fancy on her part.

  He watched Melissa come back in, gave her a little nod and a smile. “You did well out there,” he told her. She’d rushed out seconds after the screech of tires, phone in hand, and he’d joined her a minute later. If there had been any actual injuries, her speed might have helped to save the day. As it was, her consoling manner had set the nervous people to calmer.

  Melissa looked from him to the spilled purse, and her face reddened, first getting a little bright around the ears and then going right down to her cheeks in a natural blush that no makeup could possibly compare to.

  “How do things look out there,” he asked trying to distract her. “Are they calm and settled? Any idea why they hit the pole?”

  “I think that everybody’s going to be okay,” she said trying to gather up all her things.

  He gave her a little smile as he realized she’d picked up a personal hygiene container, he hadn’t seen one of those for a while. Sure, he knew that women carried them in purses but hadn’t expected to see one at work. And that wasn’t even likely to be the thing that caused her the most embarrassment.

  Melissa’s her eyes tracked to the book, the very same book he held in his hands. She made a grab for but he pulled away shaking his head with little smile.

  “That’s mine,” she exclaimed and he could tell that she was both nervous and embarrassed.

  “Yeah, I know. But I was very curious about it. I thought you would read one of the Shades books.” Glenn arched a brow, giving her a little wink. “You realize that those books have no basis in reality.” He wasn’t commenting on the one he held; he had no basis to compare that one yet.

  “I really have no idea,” Melissa said. Her face was bright red. He’d never seen her so uncomfortable before, though it was a cute human moment for his very quiet nurse. Glenn wanted to relax her, to put her at ease.

  “Melissa, it’s okay. There are many people into this lifestyle, and if you’re one of them, I’m never gonna judge you.” She arched a brow at that, and it was clear that she didn’t quite know where to go with what he was saying to her. He handed her the book, resting a hand on her shoulder before he pulled away.

  “Melissa, if you really want to learn about that lifestyle, we’ll talk.”

  Her eyes widened and she looked at him, assessing him. “Exactly what you mean?” she asked. “Are you coming on to me, Doctor?” Her eyes flashed fire for a moment, he saw the spunk inside her. Oh, this was good. This was very, very good.

  “No, Melissa,” he said softly, causing her to lean in. “I’m not coming on to you. This is not a sexual harassment issue.” He regarded her steadily for a few minutes, waiting for her to speak. When she didn’t, he found that he was very impressed with how much composure she had in this situation.

  “Melissa, it may come as a surprise to you, but this is my lifestyle. I don’t like the popularity that that book is brought to my life, and to my friends. There are things that are very, very wrong about it, and people are getting hurt. At first it seemed as if it was a bit of a passing fancy, something for people to dip their feet into before going elsewhere. But now, now there are innocent people doing things that they have no business doing and getting hurt in the process.”

  Melissa watched him, her expression was inscrutable. Finally, she spoke, “I just read the books, Doctor,” she said meeting his eyes for a fleeting moment, before looking down. “This isn’t my lifestyle. This isn’t my life.” She emphasized the “my” and he gave her a little smile. She had no idea that she was broadcasting her interest, regardless of what she said.

  “Melissa, I’m a student body language. Whatever you say, your actions are speaking louder than words. If, and I repeat if, you’re interested in exploring this, together or alone, I can help you get through it.” He leaned in, brushing her hair off her shoulder and gave a little smile. “I’ve been there before, Melissa,” he whispered. “I know what it is like to train somebody. If you want to be trained, or if you just want to explore the lifestyle, I’m your man. It will never interfere with our working life. You think about it, and you tell me if you’re interested. If not, I won’t say another word to you.”

  Melissa couldn’t quite believe what was happening. First, there was the car accident, thankfully only a fender bender. The people inside, an elderly couple, had been a little shaken up, but they had not wanted her to call EMS. Then, she’d returned to the office to find her purse was open, disengaging all of her personal items onto the floor. It hadn’t been bad enough that her feminine products had been lying out there for anyone to say, but that book, her current favorite book, had fallen out, too. Dr. Glenn had held it in his hands stroking the cover, an unconscious gesture. She had a feeling that he had no idea he was broadcasting his own body language cues, and expressing his interest to her, whether he intended to or not. Not that she had ever considered that he was a student of BDSM. But now that she knew, she was driven crazy with thoughts of him wielding a whip, handcuffing some beautiful young woman, exerting his will over strangers. Dammit, she wanted that to be her.

  Melissa stuffed her book, and her other things, back into her purse trying not to blush, resisting the urge to fan herself, but only barely. She’d work for Dr. Glenn for a long time now, six years, and change. In that time, the entire office staff and turned over several times. They were the only two who had stayed. And they formed an interesting bond, not quite friendship. Not quite boss and employee. It was somewhere in between, a gray area of professional respect and personal lines drawn for the betterment of their working bond.

  And as such, she was never quite sure how to approach the doctor. Sometimes they were friends, and he would dispense advice about boys, men really, and other times there was a distance between them. Like when Rose, his former girlfriend, had left the country. Dr. Glenn had been very quiet that, and Melissa had known how to get him out of his shell. Since they were the only consi
stent employees in the office, she felt a responsibility to keep the office running smoothly, even though that wasn’t her job. They had a very capable office manager, who was at lunch right now, thank God. Cathy would have been all over this if she’d seen what was happening. Heck, she probably would have live blogged it to her friends.

  The office was rounded out by a very part time receptionist and a medical biller, both young and just out of college. They wouldn’t stay, Melissa knew that.

  Most of their employees were here for a short time, either starting anew after divorce, or a change in life, or they were college kids, looking for something bigger and better than $15 an hour. It was a darn shame. Dr. Glenn was both generous, and compassionate. He wasn’t only known for his bedside manner, but he was known for being a generous individual in their city. Every charity event opportunity that came past their doors, every invitation, he did something, no matter how small. She could respect that he seemed plugged in and invested in their community. So many others wrote checks and were done with it, but Doctor Glenn actually went out and physically assisted the charities.

  “Melissa, are you okay? Are you thinking about what I had to say?” Dr. Glenn looked at the doors. Melissa realized that Cathy would be back soon.

  Melissa looked up at Doctor Glenn. How could she possibly answer his question? “Oh yes, I’m thinking about it. I’m thinking about all the ways it would be a bad idea.” She clapped a hand over her mouth, wishing she could pull her snarky response right back in, but it was too late.

  “But you’re thinking about it aren’t you,” Glenn said with a little smile. She couldn’t think of him as Doctor Glenn right now; that would be too confusing, and yes, way too arousing.

  “So now that I know your secret, Melissa, what are we gonna do about it?” H had a little smirk on his face. A part of her wanted to wipe that self-confidence right off his face, and the other part of her liked the sight of it, his arrogance, and his surety that things would work out for him in the end. It was as if they had a little secret against the world.