“Nope. I made very sure that the biker gang who set up the advertising campaign had the strongest motives to tell the truth. I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news,” Braxton said, not sure what else to say.
“Where are you now anyway?”
‘I’m, uh, heading north.” He paused. His explanation was going to sound ridiculous to Xander who knew how he felt about humans.
“What are you doing?” Xander prompted. Braxton took a deep breath.
“Neve’s in danger. The one who helped me to figure out who was trying to bring the clan down. Now I need to protect her.” He tensed, worried that Xander might be angry that he was putting care for her over his responsibilities to the clan.
“I’m glad to hear that, Braxton. You’re doing the right thing. Please take all the time you need.” The tension in Braxton’s shoulders eased.
“Are you sure?”
“Of course. Ryker will help me deal with our rebels.”
“Thanks, Xander.”
Relief washed through him as he ended the call. Ryker would help Xander out, and be chosen as his Second. On the other hand, he would lose everything he’d been working for so relentlessly hard during the past few years. Being a Second has always been his dream. The clan was everything he had in the world, and ever since Xander’s father accepted him, he’d secretly feared that something would change one day. That the clan would decide he wasn’t good enough for them and ask him to leave; that they’d distance themselves because he didn’t grow up there – a change that’d take away the only family he’d had since he lost his own. Being a Second would have given him the security that he was accepted unconditionally. And now he’d never have that. But that was okay. The culprits had been identified, the clan was going to survive, and he was going to protect Neve. Her safety was much more important than his dreams.
12
As dusk began to fall, Neve decided to quit for the night. She was dog-tired, and it had been a day full of unwelcome surprises. She took the next turn-off and followed the sign that read ‘Williston, five miles’, planning to stop at the first motel that looked half decent.
As she drove along a quiet country road, she glanced in her rearview mirror and frowned. From time to time during the day, she’d had the impression that a dark sedan car was following her. Now it was behind her again. Or she thought it was. That’s the same license plate, right? She rubbed her eyes, already getting to the point where she was too tired to think. She couldn’t see the driver clearly; he had sunglasses on.
She pulled a quick, unnecessary right into a narrow road. I’m just imagining things, she told herself. Then her heart started to beat very fast. The car was following her. The small hairs on her arms stood on end. Something was wrong. She stopped the car. A burst of adrenaline exploded in her brain. The other car stopped too. Holding her breath, she watched in her rearview mirror as three men got out of it. Two of them were wearing ski masks, and the other was Kevin. He was wearing sunglasses and dressed head to toe in black. Relief flooding her veins, she opened her door and got out too.
“Kevin! What the hell are you doing? Why have you followed me here? And who are these retards?”
“You’re not leaving me, Neve,” Kevin replied, in a colder tone than she’d ever heard him use before. She gave a bark of disbelieving laughter.
“Um, hello. I just did. But I don’t get it. You’ve spent years acting like you didn’t care, and now you follow me all the way over here?”
“I do care. You’re mine. You’re going to be my wife. You can’t walk away from me like this.” As she stared at him in amazement, one of the guys in the ski mask walked over and gave Kevin a shove in the back.
“Stop wasting our time and get her to tell you where it is,” he said in a rough, phlegmy voice.
“I’m just getting to that.” Kevin’s tone was reedy and wheedling and it made her sick.
“Babe, you’ve got a shoe box in the car, right? It’s got pink and white stripes on. Do you know where you packed it?”
“Why?” she snapped.
“I just put something in there for safekeeping a while back, and I need to get it back.”
“What the fuck, Kevin –?” she started to say, but the end of her sentence was cut off by a pain at the back of her head. Someone was tugging her hair, hard. She yelped, and tried to pull the fingers away, but they only tugged harder, practically lifting her off the ground.
“Stop fucking us around, bitch, and help your loser boyfriend locate what he owes us,” a voice snarled in her ear.
“How the hell do I know where I packed it? It’s at the back of the car somewhere,” she yelled. “Open it and have a look, Kevin.” As Kevin opened the trunk, the pain in her scalp doubled in intensity.
“You’d better hope it’s in there, or Kevin’s not the only one who’s going to be sorry,” the ugly voice snarled.
“How is any of this my fault?” she whimpered.
“I can’t find it,” Kevin mumbled. There was a flash of metal off to the side. Neve strained her head to see what it was. The other guy had a gun. And he was pointing it at Kevin.
“Hurry the fuck up,” he grunted.
“Get her to find it!” Kevin said with a kind of strangled wail. Now the gun swung in her direction.
“Help him,” the guy ordered.
“Wh-what?” she squeaked in disbelief. “You got him to turn a gun on me?” The hand in her hair loosened, leaving her scalp tingling, and she tripped and fell on her knees as something pushed her hard in the back.
“Get up and help him, bitch,” the hair-puller spat.
Suddenly, a low growl from somewhere behind her cut through the air.
“What the fuck –” one of the men yelped. “A fucking bear?” There was a snarl, followed by a wild scream, and the gun went off. She spun around and gasped at the sight of a huge brown bear, a bare meter away from her, holding her attacker’s throat between its jaws. The man’s body was limp, and she realized with a cold shock that he was dead. She stifled a scream as the bear locked eyes with her – eyes that were very familiar. Braxton? she questioned, and at the same moment, she saw a movement in her peripheral vision. It was Kevin. He wasn’t rooting in the back of the car. He was standing up, and he had a gun too.
“Put that down!” she screamed. He stepped closer. His hand was trembling slightly, but the gun was aimed right at the bear. If he shot it, he was unlikely to miss.
After that, everything seemed to happen in slow motion. Kevin clicked the safety off, and there was a flash of movement to the side. With a massive leap, the bear pounced right at him. His gun went off, and she screamed and her eyes automatically squeezed shut. When she opened them again, Kevin was lying on the ground. She blinked hard. He wasn’t dead, and he didn’t look hurt. The bear had just knocked him down. But the other guy was lying flat on his back, a bullet hole piercing his forehead. Kevin killed him, she realized dazedly. Her lazy, couch potato boyfriend just shot someone. With his own gun. She was beginning to realize that there was a lot she didn’t know about the man who had shared her trailer for so many years.
There was a hissing sound. Like air escaping from something. At the same moment, her nostrils picked up the smell of gas. Did I leave the engine running?
That was her last thought, before the bear dived toward her and seized the back of her shirt in its jaws. Suddenly she was being lifted and carried fast, in the opposite direction from her car. So fast that she didn’t have time to breathe. And then there was an almighty boom. She was gently deposited on the ground and she spun around to see her car going up in flames. Her car with all her stuff inside it. She stared at it, frozen in horror, until a very familiar deep, rumbling voice said, “Neve, don’t look. Come here.” She turned again. Braxton was right there, towering above her. There was such an expression of pain in his eyes – as if a long-remembered suffering was resonating in his mind. Impulsively, she threw her arms around him, and he hugged her tight, holding her against his
bare chest, as she began to sob.
He stroked her head, and whispered, “baby, we have to get away from here.” She lifted her head, wiping her eyes.
“What about Kevin?” she said.
“I saw him run away before the explosion. He’ll be fine. It seems like he knows how to protect himself.”
Taking her by the hand he led her quickly to his car, and, as soon as she’d shut the door, he hit the gas.
He drove like crazy. She eyed the speedometer as it hit 120, 130. They didn’t speak. She was too numb to say anything. After a while, he slowed a little and squeezed her knee.
“It’s going to be okay,” he said. She gave a strangled laugh.
“All my stuff’s gone. And my car.”
“But you’re okay. That’s the main thing.” Her mind drifted, and she was vaguely aware that she was in shock.
“Kevin put my life at risk,” she said in a flat voice. “For the sake of something – drugs, I think.” Braxton nodded.
“Yup. Looks like he kept a stash in your shoebox, and he only remembered when you left.”
“That fucking asshole,” she said. “I knew deep down that he wasn’t a great person, but I didn’t know he was that bad.”
“Don’t be so hard on yourself. You probably grew apart over the years, but it happened so gradually that you didn’t realize.”
“But he never had any money. I just can’t believe it.”
“The guys who take the risk of storing the drugs aren’t usually the ones making the dollars.”
“He was storing them in my stuff! Can you imagine if the cops had searched my place? It would’ve been me who got caught, not him.” She was silent for a while. “Despite everything, I am glad he managed to run away from the explosion.”
“You have a very big heart, Neve,” Braxton said gently. She turned her head to look at him, her eyes flicking over his strong, straight jaw, his gorgeous eyes, the hands that steered the car so skillfully. The numbness was beginning to dissipate.
“You kept following me,” she said. “Why?”
“I sensed that you were in danger,” he said simply.
“But how? I didn’t even know I was being followed by Kevin at that point.” He shrugged.
“It’s a bear thing.”
“You can tell if people you know are in danger?”
“Only very specific people.”
“Like?” He flashed her a glance, but stayed silent.
It had been dark for more than an hour by now. Neve watched the scenery passing by.
“Where are we going?” she asked.
“If you don’t mind, we’re going to Broken Hill,” he said. “I think it’s better if we spend the night somewhere where you’ll feel safe.”
“Okay,” she said, lacking the energy to argue, or even think.
“Can you do one thing for me though? Call the cops and report what just happened. Tell them everything.”
“Sure.” She made the call, and relayed the events of the last two days. How she’d decided to move to Wisconsin and leave her boyfriend. How she’d found the note from him. How he and his friends had followed her all the way here and searched her car, threatening her and pointing a gun at her. And how a stray bullet had caused her car to blow up, with her entire life inside it.
A while later, Braxton parked the car a couple of streets from a diner, put on a fresh set of clothes, went inside and ordered take out. They ate fast, Neve surprised at how hungry she was. Soon afterwards, she drifted off to sleep. She woke briefly a couple of times, once when Braxton laid a jacket on top of her, which smelled of leather and his own spicy, sexy smell. The second time was when Braxton was lifting her out of the car.
The next thing she knew, she was in a bed, with fresh white sheets, and a glass of water beside her. Somehow, she felt safe, and she allowed herself to fall back to sleep.
13
Braxton sat on the end of his bed, watching Neve sleeping. She looked like an angel, her auburn hair fanning out across the pillow and her cherry-pink lips softly pursed. He’d spent the night on the sofa downstairs, and he’d slept very little, memories of the explosion crowding into his mind, one after another. That was the second time in his life that he’d faced bullets and a fire. The first time had taken everything away from him. But the second had enabled him to save Neve. Your mate, his bear reminded him. He finally knew it. He’d known it the moment he’d discovered that she was in danger. It was a deep, visceral reaction, that was totally unmistakable. The thought of her being hurt was like a stab of pain in his chest, and he’d readily kill anyone who wanted to do her harm.
Your mate. He tried it out for size. Neve – a human – living with him as his mate, sharing his bed, bearing his cubs. It would take a little getting used to, that was for sure. But there was nothing on earth that he wanted more than to spend his life loving and protecting this beautiful, amazing creature. He only hoped that he hadn’t stuffed things up so badly that she’d never want to be with him.
Neve let out a little whimper, and her head thrashed from side to side. And then she gave a moan so sad and broken that he couldn’t stand it. He went over to her and gently took her hand in his. Immediately, she opened her eyes. They were so bright and clear, like headlights focusing on him. She blinked quickly, and to his relief, her lips parted in a smile. He picked up the glass of water and handed it to her and she drank it all down.
“I was having the worst nightmares,” she said. “I kept reliving the explosion again and again.” She bit down on her lip and her eyes teared up. “I just can’t believe that yesterday happened.” Instinctively, he opened his arms, and she fell into them. He held her, rocking her gently, while she rested her face against his chest, his nostrils filling with her sweet scent. It felt so incredible having her in his arms. He longed to run his hands all over her, to give her pleasure, as well as security.
At last, she lifted her head up and looked at him.
“I’m sorry for being so harsh yesterday, when you were trying to help me,” she murmured.
“It’s okay,” he said. “I hurt your feelings badly. I know that, and I’m very sorry.”
“I do like you. But I understand you don’t want to be with a human. So I’m happy with just being friends.”
Braxton’s gaze flickered all over her face, taking in every lovely feature.
“But, Neve, I do want to be with you,” he said. She let out a little gasp – so soft and sexily feminine. He couldn’t hold back any longer. He dipped his head and pressed his lips to hers. His bear purred, and he drew her closer, his arms around her waist as the tip of his tongue slid between her lips. When it found hers, his hips jerked of their own accord. Damn, he wanted to mate her so bad. Her hands began to run all over his chest, feeling his pecs, his abs, sliding into the waistband of his jeans. Her touch felt so good, and he longed to feel it without the barriers of clothing. He slid his own hands underneath her shirt, feeling the curve of the small of her back, every whisper of skin-on-skin sending his senses into overdrive.
He began to lift her shirt up, and he got half way to her bra, before she stopped him, laughing.
“Uh, I need to freshen up,” she said.
“The bathroom’s right there,” he said, pointing to the ensuite. “And there are fresh towels in the linen closet if you need them.”
“Thanks.” She threw him a coy glance over her shoulder as she closed the bathroom door. A minute later, he heard the shower turn on, and he sat on the bed, waiting tensely, convinced that she’d have too much time to think and decide it was all a bad idea. His bear, on the other hand, had no such qualms. It was prowling inside him, intent on mating her, on claiming her as its own the second she emerged.
14
Neve stood under the rainforest shower in Braxton’s beautiful bathroom, washing herself as quickly as she could, worried that Braxton was in the process of having one of his freak outs that she was a human. Not this time, she reassured herself. He’d got her so heated
up from his kisses that she was already wet, that tender place between her thighs aching like crazy. Her skin was already so sensitized that it tingled all over from the pressure of the water. She couldn’t imagine how it would feel when he touched her.
She turned the shower off, wrapped a huge, fluffy white towel around herself and, still damp, came back into Braxton’s bedroom. His strong good looks took her breath away, his jaw so firm and masculine, and a strand of his dark hair flopping onto his forehead. And the look in his eyes when they locked onto hers told her all she needed to know. It was fierce, primal, and she could sense his bear just below the surface. But it wasn’t scary; it turned her on to know that his animal was there, ready to mate her as well. He held his hands out and she went over to him, her hands sliding into his.
“Neve,” he murmured, his voice thick with desire. “I want to make you mine.” A tingle ran all the way through her, ending in her clit, which began to throb. He unpinned her hair and it fell down, cascading around her shoulders. He ran his fingers through it, smoothing it out, as if he wanted to make her look perfect. She was standing in between his thighs, his desire for her clearly evident, as he drew her down for a kiss. As she bent toward him, leaning her hands on his shoulders, her towel slipped, came undone and fell all the way to the ground. She let out a gasp, and tried to free her hands to cover herself up. But he’d got them in his strong grip and she couldn’t move. As his glowing eyes ran over her curves, a little sound, somewhere between a purr and a rumble came from deep in his throat.
“You’re so beautiful,” he growled. “So perfect.” As she continued to struggle, his gaze roved all over her body, while he murmured compliments. Little by little, she began to relax. Knowing that he liked what he saw gave her confidence. As the ache between her thighs became unbearable, she acknowledged that it was hot to be looked at with such hunger by this incredibly sexy man. His head dipped to her breast, and as he took a nipple into his mouth, she cried out and clutched at his hair with both hands. He sucked slowly, exquisitely, on one and then the other, and then he lifted her onto his lap so she was straddling him. Her weight came down on his cock, as it strained at the crotch of his jeans, and she moved her hips back and forth, yearning to feel him inside her. Impatiently, she tugged his white t-shirt over his head, sighing as his velvety, tanned skin pressed against her breasts. Then he helped her ease his zipper down, and strip him fully naked. She’d fleetingly seen him naked yesterday, after he’d shifted, but this was very different. His cock was big and swollen with lust, and when she wrapped her hand around the base of it, he shuddered.
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