He felt the strong pull himself, perhaps even stronger, but he forced himself to keep his dick in check to avoid pissing her off. As much as it pained him to admit it, he didn’t think right that moment was a good time to take her up on her offer. Or request. Demand. Ugh.
He leaned closer and kissed her forehead, allowing himself to inhale deeply of her scent. Yeah, she was even more aroused now that he’d tugged her into his embrace. That didn’t help his position at all.
Keeping himself from mauling her was his only goal, that and moaning out loud or adjusting his cock.
She blinked up at him, licking her lips. Her chest rose and fell with every breath. The sheet had slipped to expose the upper swell of her gorgeous tits. Another inch or two and he’d have her nipples in his line of sight.
She opened her mouth to speak, but he stopped her by settling his thumb over her lips. “Shh, baby. You make it very difficult to be chivalrous.” He set his forehead against hers and closed his eyes. He needed help.
“Mom…”
“Isaiah? Honey? I’m here. You have me so worried. You’ve been blocking me all day.”
“I know. I needed to be alone with my thoughts. I didn’t want outside influence.”
“I get that. She shifted, didn’t she? I can feel it. I can feel her.”
“Yeah.”
“And the Arcadians are still hovering?”
“Yes. I don’t know what to do.”
“You have to follow your heart, son. And your instincts.”
“My gut says to bind her to me right this second and challenge the council.”
“I’m sure your gut is making itself known, but what does your mate say?”
He chuckled into his mother’s head, holding Heather closer. “She’s skeptical. Reluctant. And I won’t force her.”
“I’ve raised you right.” He could hear the smile in her voice. “I know you’ll do what’s best for both of you.”
“I’m scared, Mom. What if the Arcadians insist on taking her from me? What if they insist on taking her even if I do claim her as my own?”
“Then you go with them and don’t let her out of your sight. They’re reasonable people, Isaiah. I have to believe that. I force myself to assume they won’t act rashly.”
“I hope you’re right. Mom?”
“Yes?”
“When did you know?”
She understood him without a lengthy explanation. “Immediately.”
“Seriously? You knew Dad was your mate when you met him?”
“I did. And so did he. It isn’t always that way. Falling in love doesn’t follow a strict set of rules. It just is. And I could tell your heart was leaning toward her the moment you stepped into the house this morning.”
“Thanks, Mom.” He blew out a breath and cut off communication again.
“Isaiah?” Heather’s voice came from far away, and he realized he’d been concentrating on his mother for at least a minute.
“I’m here, baby.”
“You get this glaze over your eyes when you’re communicating with someone else.” She gave a strained chuckle. “Should I be jealous?”
He grinned and lifted his head to put a few inches of space between them. “Only if you’re worried about my mom.”
She scrunched up her face. “So you’re saying that while I’m lying here begging you to have sex with me, you’re talking to your mom?”
He smiled broader and shrugged. “Yeah, I guess that’s what I’m saying. I needed a little moral support.”
Her smile grew larger too. “I think I like that.”
Chapter Ten
Heather grabbed Isaiah’s forearm where it rested at her neck and tipped her cheek more fully into his palm. Maybe some women would find it creepy that their man had a healthy relationship with his mother, but not Heather. She found it endearing. And frankly, they needed outside advice. If he had it easily available through telepathic communication, awesome.
“Did she advise you to sleep with me?” she teased.
He laughed. “No, but she advised me to follow my heart.”
“And what does your heart tell you to do right now?”
“Feed you.”
“Pardon?” She blinked. That wasn’t the answer she was hoping for.
He scrambled over her body, straddling her along the way, and hauled her to the edge of the bed. Before she knew what he meant to do, she was in the air, tossed over his shoulder.
The sheet fell away, leaving her totally naked with his hand on her bare thighs. “Isaiah,” she squealed. “Put me down.”
“Never.” He clambered from the room and down the hall until he reached the kitchen. He set her on the island so quickly she was dizzy and had to grasp the edge of the tile surface with her fingers.
She wouldn’t have fallen, however. Not with him steadying her with both hands.
“You need to eat. You must be starving.”
He was probably right. If only she could think past the arousal that forced her to squeeze her legs together. She bit the inside of her cheek to keep from moaning or begging.
He moaned in her stead and tipped his face to the ceiling for a moment. “I can smell your arousal. It’s potent and killing me.”
“And you’re choosing to ignore it why?” Soon she would develop a complex.
“Because you’re vulnerable and just shifted for the first time. I don’t want to influence your decisions. I want you to make them with a clear head.”
“My head hasn’t been clear since the moment you found me this morning.”
He gritted his teeth before squeezing her thighs with both hands and continuing. “All the more reason.”
“Maybe I’ll be able to think more clearly if you take the edge off this insane horniness.” She felt her cheeks flushing again. Since when was she the sort of person who would beg a man to have sex with her? She didn’t recognize herself. And it was irrational for her to be having this conversation. But she needed him inside her again.
Maybe it was a result of the transformation she’d obviously undergone a few hours ago from a human to a bear shifter. She still couldn’t fully comprehend that part of the day, but she did recognize the magnetic pull to fuck.
Was it Isaiah? Or would she feel the need to fuck anyone who happened to be around?
Isaiah flinched, gripping her thighs.
If she wasn’t mistaken, she would swear he heard her thoughts.
He shook his head as if clearing it. “If I didn’t know better… I mean, I do know better. I think I’m picking up on your thoughts.”
She winced. “Bummer.”
“Yeah, that last one was a bummer.” He smiled through a wince.
“Not sure I like the idea of you being in my head.”
“Me either if you’re going to ponder sleeping with other men.”
Lord, he was in her mind. “I wasn’t exactly considering the option. It was more of a musing. I was wondering if my arousal is specific to you or just because you’re in the room.”
“Hopefully it’s specific to me. I can’t speak for you, but the way I feel about you isn’t something I’ve ever experienced before.” He set his nose on hers, needing any extra contact. “You’re mine. I know it in my soul. I know it’s a lot to swallow, but I’m going to be right by your side while you figure it out.”
She shivered, her fingers reaching for his waist to dig into his hips. She leaned forward and put her lips on his ear. “No pressure though,” she quipped.
He chuckled and leaned back, releasing her.
When he was touching her, she feared for her sanity. When he wasn’t touching her, she wished his hands were back on her. It was a never-ending circle.
“Why am I not cold?” she asked as he opened the fridge and started pulling out containers.
He kicked it shut as he spoke. “You won’t ever get as cold as you used to. We run hot. And you’re hotter than usual right now.”
She tried to ignore the fact that she was naked
in his kitchen. “Wait. There are several bear people outside you say?” She swung her head around in every direction, fear that someone would see her naked crawling up her spine.
He set his armload of items on the counter and glanced over his shoulder. “No one can see inside, baby. All the blinds are closed. I don’t share.”
That was a relief. “I don’t share either,” she felt compelled to add.
Isaiah set something in the microwave and turned to face her again. He sauntered her direction in his damn boxer shorts that left nothing to the imagination. She could easily see the outline of his impressive cock, not to mention his rock-hard chest and thighs.
His face was serious when he reached her, setting one hand on either side of her but not touching her skin. “I would sooner stab myself than cheat on you.”
She nodded, a little shocked by his vehemence.
“I realize we hardly know each other, and it will take time to rectify that, but there are a few things you should know. I’m monogamous for one. Never doubt that. I’m overprotective. Can’t help it. I’ll probably smother you. And I’m dominant.”
She flinched at that last word. It wasn’t as though she hadn’t seen evidence of his dominance throughout the day. The man was cocky as hell and bossy in all things. But hearing him proclaim it was another thing altogether.
He dipped his head toward her lap and inhaled long and slow.
She squeezed her thighs together, even though it did nothing to keep her pussy from leaking.
“I’m not sure what my favorite food was before today, but now it’s you.” He spun around and headed back toward the microwave as if it were dire that he retrieve the food immediately.
The moment he opened the small door above the stove, however, she got a whiff of something delicious that helped get her mind off sex and direct it toward food. In fact, her stomach picked that moment to growl.
“Do you cook?” she asked to steer the conversation in a safer direction than her growing arousal.
“I can. Occasionally. But my mom made this stew this morning. My sister brought it over.” He nodded toward the counter as he stirred. “Biscuits too. My mom’s biscuits melt in your mouth.”
Heather’s mouth watered. “Perhaps I should put some clothes on so we can eat.” The only thing she was wearing was a hair band on her wrist, and she plucked it off to pull her hair back.
He grinned her direction. “Clothing isn’t a requirement for dining. At least not in the house while we’re alone.”
It felt like the two of them were playing a mind game. One got ahead for a few plays and then backed off and the other got ahead. She watched as Isaiah carried the stew and biscuits to the table and then grabbed two water bottles.
Feeling awkward, she crossed her arms over her chest as she watched him. Without a word, he headed for the couch in the living room behind her and returned a moment later with a throw blanket, which he draped around her shoulders.
He lifted her to the ground. “Better?”
“Thank you.” She wasn’t accustomed to being so openly naked with someone. Not that she had any issues with her body, but she was uncomfortable, and the thought of sitting down at the table with her chest exposed unnerved her. Apparently he caught that vibe.
He pulled out a chair for her, and she took it, tucking the throw around her front sort of like a toga.
“You’re hearing my thoughts.”
“Some of them,” he agreed as he sat at the end of the table and began dishing out the stew into bowls.
It smelled wonderful and looked even better.
“I don’t mean to pry. I’m trying to stay out of your head, but you aren’t capable of blocking me yet.”
“I’m not even capable of understanding how you’re catching my thoughts, Isaiah. It’s weird. I’m not hearing yours.”
He grabbed her hand and squeezed it. “You will. You’ve only transitioned a few hours ago. It takes time to fully acclimate.” He pointed at the food. “Eat. Then we’ll talk some more.”
The first bite made her mouth water for more, and she ate twice as much as she normally would eat for dinner. Then again, she’d had very little in the last two days, so she was famished. And apparently shifting into another species took energy. She shuddered at the thought. Had that really happened? If she put it out of her mind, maybe she could ignore it altogether.
“Tell me about your life. What do you do? Where do you work? Do you have other siblings besides Wyatt and Joselyn?”
He wiped his face on a napkin, took a long drink of water, and then leaned back. “My extended family has been in this area for over a hundred years. Some of us lived south of here, as far south as Montana until more recently.”
“You lived in the US?” She was shocked to hear that detail.
He nodded. “My parents did for a while. I was a baby when they moved to Alberta. But we still traveled some to Montana off and on.”
“Why did your family move north?”
“Partly because the bear population in the US is dwindling significantly. Grizzlies are so endangered in Montana that it’s no longer safe for shifters to inhabit the area.”
“I read that there are less than a thousand grizzly bears in Alberta.”
“That’s true and far fewer in the Banff National Park. We’re careful to avoid detection even this far south. Eventually we may be forced to move farther north again. However, now that the government has banned the hunting of grizzly bears in this area, the population is growing. Their numbers don’t include my people. The counts they have are for full bears, not shifters.”
“And you don’t worry about hunters?” She shuddered. The idea of being shot to hang as a trophy in somebody’s home made her blood stop flowing.
Isaiah shook his head. “We do. We’re diligent, especially during the months when black bear hunting is legal. We don’t want to be mistaken for another species.”
She glanced around his cabin, needing to shake off the fear of hunters and change the subject. “Where do you work?”
“We own a microbrewery in town. My family started it thirty years ago. We opened one year before the Tarbens opened theirs, which did nothing to dampen the rivalry.”
“You mentioned a feud. What’s that all about?”
He leaned forward, setting his elbows on the table. “It goes back more than a century. And frankly, I think it’s absurd.”
“What? You don’t speak to each other? You all live here right next to each other and no one has any relationships?” That was intense. How sad. And irrational.
He shrugged. “I didn’t say that.” A wry smile lifted his lips. “We have relationships, especially among my generation and those who are younger. They’re just clandestine.”
She widened her gaze. “Sounds like Romeo and Juliet.”
He chuckled. “No one has poisoned anyone or committed suicide yet, as far as I know, but it could happen.”
“Have you? Had a girlfriend from the Tarben family I mean?”
He shook his head. “No. But my best friend is a Tarben. Hopefully you’ll meet him someday soon. His name’s Austin. And you need to keep that to yourself. I’m not kidding when I say it’s private. No one knows about us. We’re super careful, especially since his brother Antoine is a foulmouthed dick.”
“Damn. That’s awful. I’m sorry.” She studied his wrinkled expression. It was unimaginable that he’d had a secret friendship for years, all because of some stupid family feud. “What started all this fighting in the first place?”
“Water.” He sighed. “Namely who owned the rights to which fresh springs and rivers and lakes in the area. Things escalated when the Athabasca Glacier started to melt. Now we’re suffering from a drought that will only get worse until there’s a severe shortage of water in the area where once it was abundant.
“Since both families operate their own brewery, I’m afraid tensions will escalate. And it doesn’t help at all that one of their own attacked a human yesterday.” H
e grabbed her hand and rubbed the back of it with his thumb.
“Why would he do that if it’s against your laws?”
Isaiah shrugged. “No clue. Maybe to stir things up? Or maybe he went crazy? I just pray he worked alone and no one in the pack knew what he was planning. If they did, we’re in for a war.”
She flinched, stiffening her fingers in his grasp. “Over me?”
“Yes. With relationships strained, our elders will be meeting with theirs first thing tomorrow. The only reason they haven’t met yet is because every able-bodied bear shifter is out looking for Jack Tarben.” He glanced down, inhaling deeply without meeting her gaze.
“Do you wish you were out there helping?” she asked softly.
“I wish it hadn’t happened at all.”
“But it did. And it wasn’t your fault.”
“Mmm.” He made the noncommittal noise and then released her hand to stand and collect their plates.
“Isaiah…”
He loaded the bowls in the dishwasher and then turned around and leaned his ass against the counter, crossing his arms.
“Please tell me you don’t blame yourself for what Jack did.”
He lifted a brow. “I was there. I’m larger. Wyatt was there too. We should have stopped him. And now your life is a hot mess, forever altered.”
She shoved away from the table and padded toward him, holding the front of the blanket together between her breasts. “You didn’t scratch me. Jack did.”
“I should have stopped him.”
“You telling me you could have and you chose not to?” she asked, knowing that was where he was going with this.
“Maybe.”
“Not buying it.”
He shrugged. “Wasn’t selling anything.”
He was vulnerable concerning this issue. She hadn’t seen him as anything other than strong and sure. He shoved off the counter and stepped around her, his hands fisted at his sides, not touching her.
Grizzly Mountain (Arcadian Bears Book 1) Page 11
