Wed to the Bear (Denali Den Book 2)

by Rebecca Thomas

  “He’ll be fine,” Brett said. “He’s a tougher bear than most. His heart’s beating and he’s breathing.”

  An all-consuming fury bubbled in her belly. She wanted to slug Brett. “Shut the hell up, Brett. You don’t know anything.” She glared at him. “Not a thing.”

  “I know this idiot says he’s married to you.”

  She seethed inside. She wanted to strangle him. “We are married.”

  Brett stood up in all his nakedness and glared at her. If looks could kill, she’d be the one on the ground with blood oozing out of her skull.

  “How could you?” Brett paused to snarl. “You were promised to me. Our families had an agreement. You can never come back to our den now. You’ve shamed yourself and your family.”

  “I know.” She stroked the dark hair on Luka’s forehead.

  “Arrangements like ours are sacred. You agreed to the match. How could you have done this?” Brett asked.

  Stryker stood up and puffed out his chest. “This is the twenty-first century, buddy.”

  “Shut the fuck up before I kill you.”

  Ava stood between them and pushed them both away. “Both of you get some clothes on before another vehicle comes down the road. We’ve got to get Luka to a doctor.”

  “We’ve got a PA on staff at the camp,” Stryker said. “Load him in my truck.”

  “You don’t have enough room in your truck. Put him in my Hummer.” Both men reached down to lift Luka.

  “I said to get dressed first!” Ava crouched beside her brother again.

  Both men went to their respective vehicles and put clothes on. Bears always kept a second set around just for this reason. Brett was right. There wasn’t enough room in the front of Stryker’s truck for three people of their size. She continued to stroke Luka’s hair and willed him to wake up.

  “I have a first aid kit.” Stryker kneeled down beside her and unzipped the miniature duffle bag. “I’m sorry, Ava. I don’t know what happened. Everything went so fast. I barely remember seeing your brother. All I saw was red.”

  “I know. I’m sorry too. This is all my fault. I suspected that Brett might come after me, but I was hoping he wouldn’t. I was going to tell you. I was…I just needed a little more time.”

  Stryker lifted Luka’s neck and dabbed at the blood on the back of his head with a gauze pad. “I think he’ll be okay.”

  “Just load him up in my Hummer,” Brett interrupted. “I’ll take him to the hospital in Fairbanks.”

  Stryker spread Luka’s eyelids open one at a time. “His pupils are dilating. I think it’s a concussion. The hospital won’t be able to do anything for him. He just needs rest.”

  “Let me see if I got this straight,” Brett said. “You’re not only a homewrecker, you’re a doctor now too?”

  “I’m not a doctor, but all my staff are required to have basic first aid and CPR in order to work at the camp. I know enough.”

  Ava couldn’t hold her resentment inside a second longer. “We had no home to wreck. I didn’t want to marry you. You knew it and you did nothing about it. I begged you to come with me to talk to our families, but you wouldn’t.”

  “We had an allocated marriage, Ava!” Brett roared. “You can’t just break contracts and agreements. You were mine.”

  She stood up and put her face inches from his. “You make me sound like one of your contracts. Guess what? I’m not yours anymore.”

  “Quit fighting,” Luka whispered.

  Ava kneeled down again. “Are you okay?”

  Luka blinked several times. “It takes more than a bear fight to keep me down and out.”

  Ava breathed a heavy sigh of relief. “Thank god. I’m so sorry this happened to you.”

  “I tried to stop him, but he wouldn’t listen. You know how stubborn the bears in our den can be.” Luka gave his shoulder a half shrug. “Besides, I’ve always wanted to visit Alaska.”

  “Can we agree to bring Luka to Denali Crossings and have my PA check him out, just to be sure he’s okay?” Stryker asked.

  Ava contemplated having Brett in the same vicinity as Stryker. It wasn’t the optimal choice, but Luka should see a professional and see someone nearby, not a three-hour drive away. “Yes, as long as Brett can agree to be nothing but polite and respectful.”

  Brett glared at her.

  Luka rolled on his side, then balanced on his hands and knees. “That’s a tall order for him, even at home.”

  Ava coiled her hands around one of Luka’s arms. “Get up slowly. Lean on me.”

  Stryker followed her lead by lifting on his other side.

  “I guess I should formally introduce you to my husband.” Even though Luka was standing on his own, Ava wouldn’t let go of his arm. “Stryker Vane, meet Luka Perello. Luka this is my husband, Stryker.”

  “Did you have a nice wedding?” Luka said it without malice, but Ava didn’t miss the dig.

  “We got married at the courthouse.” Ava guided him toward the Hummer.

  “I could have sworn you said the guy’s name was Silas,” Luka said.

  “I could have sworn that I swore you to secrecy.” If she wasn’t so happy that he was going to be okay, she’d wring his neck. “So much for family trust.”

  “You know how Brett is. He wasn’t going to let it go.”

  “I’m standing right here. You can just talk to me instead of about me.” Brett opened the side door of the Hummer. “Don’t blame him. I threatened bodily harm if he didn’t spill.”

  “Looks like you harmed him anyway,” Ava spat.

  “Actually, I’m not sure if it was Brett or your husband who sent me flying. I shouldn’t have entered the fray. It’s my fault.” Luka crawled into the passenger seat of the Hummer.

  “Let’s not blame anyone,” Ava said. “Let’s just get you checked out and make sure you’re going to be okay.”

  “It will take more than a knock to the head to keep me down. You know that, sis.”

  “Just humor me. Okay?” Ava insisted.

  “Fine, fine. Whatever you want.”

  “I want there to be no more fighting.” She glanced across the seat where Brett was buckled in to the driver’s side. “Stryker is my husband. It’s done. I’m married and there’s no changing it.”

  Brett gripped the Hummer’s steering wheel and looked straight ahead, not bothering to make eye contact with her.

  “Just follow us. It’s not too much farther.” She slammed the passenger side door and almost ran into Stryker.

  They walked side by side back to his truck. “I’m glad you said there’s no changing it. You are my wife, Ava. We are True Mates.”

  She eyed the way he clenched his jaw and she also noticed blood on the side of his neck. “You’re bleeding. Where’s that first aid kit?”

  “I’m fine,” he said with finality.

  The first aid kit was sitting on the tailgate, so she grabbed it. Stryker closed the tailgate. They each went to their separate sides of the truck and climbed in. She slid to the middle of the bench seat, put antiseptic on a gauze pad and swiped at the blood on Stryker’s neck.

  “I told you I was fine,” Stryker said.

  “Just let me do this.”

  He turned the key and put the truck in drive. “If you can do it while I’m driving. I won’t turn down you touching me, even if it’s just my neck.” He flinched. “Ouch.”

  “Stop being a baby.” She leaned in closer, pressing against him to dab at the remaining blood. “That didn’t hurt at all.”

  Stryker smiled. “I think I’ll get hurt more often if we get to play doctor.”

  Ava’s heart swelled. Her husband was adorable and, despite everything, she felt an undying sense of uncertainty. Brett’s arrival made her confused and insecure.

  9

  The drive to Denali Crossings was unusually quiet.

  When they arrived, Stryker went immediately to the cabin where their PA, Janet, worked. Ava, Brett, and Luka followed. Janet’s diagnosis was t
hat Luka had suffered a mild concussion. He would need to rest for a day and keep ice on the back of his head, but he would be fine. Stryker made sure his staff showed Brett and Luka to an empty cabin they could use for however long they needed.

  He showed his new wife his office. Silas must have told his administrative assistant, Scarlett, about his recent nuptials because she kept staring at Ava. He’d worked with Scarlett for a long time and understood her moods, but he couldn’t begin to read her thoughts, except she was avoiding eye contact with him.

  “This is nice.” Ava paced across his office, not noticing Scarlett’s stare as she passed through the outer office. She stopped at his oversized window, gazing at the lake in the distance. “It’s really beautiful here. I, ah, I can’t thank you enough for taking care of my brother and for allowing Brett to stay here too. It’s more than I would have done if the situation were reversed.”

  Stryker stood behind her and wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms around her and breathe in her scent. “Can I expect to have any further issues with your ex-fiancé?”

  “What kind of issues?” Her brows furrowed into a V.

  “Issues like, am I going to have to kick his ass again?” Stryker attempted to sound light-hearted.

  “I think the ass kicking was mutual, wouldn’t you say?” She swung around. “Sorry. Listen, I shouldn’t have said that. I’m being sarcastic. I’m sorry this happened. I should’ve told you about Brett. I mean I did, and I didn’t. I didn’t explain the seriousness of the commitments our families had made.”

  “All I care about is your commitment to me,” Stryker stated.

  “If I’m being completely honest, which I’m going to be, that’s a little shaky.”

  Stryker wanted to roar. His bear urged him to take her under his arm and transport her to their remote cabin twenty miles away and never let her leave.

  She was his.

  He swiped his hand over his jaw instead of grabbing her by the arm like he wanted to do. “What do you mean by shaky?”

  “I just mean, I have a lot of conflicting emotions where you’re concerned.” Pacing across the room, she placed her hands on his desk and hung her head. “I had this plan, you know, and it will all be fine. My brother is going to be fine. Then he’ll leave and it will all be fine.”

  “It sounds like you’re trying to convince yourself, but it will, Ava.” Stryker went behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist like he wanted to do before. “We’re in this together. We’re a team. Your burdens are mine. You are not alone.”

  He felt her body shake. She spun around and flattened her cheek against his chest. Tentatively, she wrapped her arms around him. She felt so perfect in his arms, like she was always meant to be there. He rested his chin on the top of her head.

  “I’m afraid my family will disown me for what I’ve done,” she whispered.

  Stryker immediately wanted to say she had a new family now, but he knew that wasn’t the answer she needed to hear. “Your brother doesn’t seem the type to disown you. He’s here, isn’t he? He hasn’t disowned you yet.”

  “No, you’re right,” she mumbled into his chest. “Luka and I have always been close. He’s my twin.”

  Stryker stroked her hair. “Good to know. Twins run in your family?”

  “Yes, they do.”

  “So, you and I could have twins.”

  She leaned back and unlaced her arms from around his waist. “I’m not ready to talk about having kids yet.”

  “Okay.” He had to ask because he couldn’t wait to have kids, but he respected where she was at—which was a place far different than him.

  “I didn’t fully think through what I was doing when I came here. I just knew I didn’t want my life dictated to me, so I ran.” She moved her hand in a circular motion. “It was dumb.”

  He grabbed ahold of her hand. “Ava, our marriage is real. Whatever you need to face or work out with your family, we’ll do it together.”

  She backed away and snatched her hand out of his. “I don’t know if I can do that.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean, maybe…” She turned away from him. “Maybe I made a mistake.”

  “Oh no, you don’t.” Stryker grabbed her arm and swung her around to face him.

  “Let go. You’re hurting me.” Ava backed away.

  Stryker forked his fingers through his hair. He had to do something with his hands or he’d punch a wall. “I’ve got some administrative things to take care of, then we’ll talk. I need to make some assignments for camp counselors and check in with Silas, then you and I are leaving.”

  “Leaving to where?”

  “To the cabin I told you about. It’s alongside a river and there’s a waterfall we can hike to. It’s fully stocked with food. We’re going on our honeymoon.”

  “But my brother’s here,” Ava argued.

  “I don’t care. You’re my wife and we are going on our honeymoon.”

  She glared at him in defiance, but said nothing.

  “I’ll have Scarlett show you to my cabin—our cabin now—I’ll finish my work, then we’ll leave. I was going to introduce you to everyone first, but forget it. We’re leaving, just as soon as we can.” He marched to his office door and opened it. “Scarlett, will you show my wife to our—my cabin, please?”

  10

  Ava had never been so indecisive in her life. If Scarlett had been even the least bit friendly, Ava might have started a conversation with her. Maybe she just needed another woman’s insight to ease her fears. Instead, Scarlett showed her to Stryker’s cabin, said less than five words, and left.

  Stryker’s log cabin was small but comfortable. The single bedroom was just large enough for his king-sized bed and a dresser. The quaint kitchen had all the basic necessities. The living room consisted of a couch and coffee table. The cabin had vaulted ceilings with a half loft. Ava climbed the ladder to the upper level. There was a red throw rug, a recliner chair, and an end table with a wrought iron lamp on it. On the opposite wall stood a huge bookcase, five shelves high, covered in books.

  She approached the bookcase, curious to know what kinds of books Stryker liked to read. A lot of non-fiction about marketing, owning small businesses, and entrepreneurship. Fiction books consisted of thrillers, crime drama, and mysteries. No great surprise there. Ava contemplated Stryker’s no nonsense attitude and decided she could definitely see him as a thriller and mystery reading kind of guy.

  On the bottom shelf to the far left, she noticed four black books with white lettering on the spine. “No way.” Ava crouched down. “You own the Twilight books. Never in a million years would I have guessed that. Now you have surprised me, Stryker Vane.”

  She pulled Twilight from the shelf when a knock sounded. Ava climbed down the ladder and the knock sounded again.

  “Anyone there?” A voice sounded from beyond the front door.

  “I’m coming.” Ava opened the door to a beautiful young woman with blue hair and matching blue eyes. “Hello. Can I help you with something?”

  The woman stuck out her hand. “I’m Lexi Durham, soon to be Lexi Vane.”

  The woman wore a brilliant smile. Ava hesitated a second, but despite her reservations, she grasped her hand. “I’m Ava Perello.”

  “I thought we should clear the air.” Lexi’s smile faded and her expression turned serious. “Do you mind if I come in?”

  “Of course.” Ava stepped back and closed the door behind Lexi. “I could offer you something to drink, but I just got here. I don’t know what Stryker has, but I could take a look in his kitchen.”

  “From what I understand, it’s your kitchen too, because you and Stryker got married. Is that right?”

  “I guess news travels fast around here.” Ava strode in front of her to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. “Looks like I can offer you an iced tea. Is that okay?”

  “Sure. I’d take an iced tea. That’d be great.”

  Ava placed two iced teas on
the kitchen breakfast bar where Lexi had already taken a seat. “I’m sorry I ruined your plans. I’m just going to come out and say it.”

  Ava raised a brow. Nothing like getting right to the point. She did have plans—and they were to marry Silas, not Stryker, but apparently, this human had plans of her own.

  The blue-haired human continued, “I didn’t plan to fall in love with Silas. I would have never intentionally fallen for a werebear, but I have and that can’t be changed now. I told Silas to have you cancel your trip to Denali Crossings, but he said you’d already left.”

  “I see.” Ava continued to size this woman up. She was tough, and for that Ava couldn’t help but like her.

  “The Vane men have an undeniable charm, don’t they? I mean, I don’t know about Stefan. I haven’t met their younger brother yet, but if you married Stryker so quickly, I know it had to have been love at first sight.”

  “I don’t believe in love at first sight.” That had always been what she believed.

  “But you married him within hours of meeting him. At least that’s all I can figure according to when you arrived. That must be love at first sight.”

  “It was a business arrangement.”

  Lexi took a sip of her iced tea and narrowed her eyes. “You sound like Silas. I guess you two are similar in that you had decided to treat marriage like a business, but as I said, I ruined that for you. So rather than be worried about you being angry with me, I decided to own it. Silas is mine. We’re going to be married soon—by the end of the summer.”

  “Good for you and Silas.” Ava didn’t have any interest in Silas—not after being with Stryker.

  “Do you mean that?” Lexi asked.

  “I do.” Lexi reminded Ava of how determined she’d been when she arrived in Alaska. She knew what she wanted, and that was to have a business-only marriage, but Stryker had changed all that. Maybe Lexi believed she had ruined things, but regardless of her previous arrangement with Silas, she couldn’t imagine marrying him after she’d met Stryker. The instant bond, the instant attraction…no matter how much she wanted to deny it, she couldn’t. So maybe by saying her thoughts out loud, she’d understand it all better. “I did want a marriage based on an agreement, or at least I thought I did, but I had it all wrong.”