by Marie Mason
“Dirk.”
And as abruptly as he had appeared, he walked out the door, leaving another swirl of snowflakes and cold in his wake.
CHAPTER FOUR
MERCY PARKED HER small compact car on the street next to the Christmas tree lot. It was only two weeks until Christmas and business was booming. She bit her lip in indecision. Dirk was probably too busy to talk to her. Heck, he might not even be here. He could be out delivering a tree to another customer.
A female customer.
It didn’t surprise her when she felt a sharp slice of anger at the thought. She liked Dirk. Really, really liked Dirk.
She decided this had not been a good idea. Not a good idea at all. The man had literally run away after kissing her senseless. It was obvious the kiss hadn’t meant as much to him as it had to her. After all, he hadn’t attempted to contact her since.
Turning, she stumbled on her higher than normal heels. She’d dressed this morning in anticipation of stopping by the tree lot on her way home from work. She wore a pair of dark brown knee high boots and black tights. She remembered the touch of Dirk’s calloused palm as he’d caressed her beneath the dark fabric. The red sweater dress hugged her curves like there was no tomorrow. She’d even left her hair long and loose,
“Whoa there, little lady.” A pair of strong hands wrapped around her arms and kept her from performing an embarrassing, not to mention painful, nosedive onto the graveled lot.
Even as the man stabilized her, the plastic cake holder in her hand threatened to smash to the ground. In a dazzling display of coordination, he not only kept her upright, he prevented the cake from falling.
Once the earth had stopped spinning, Mercy looked up at her rescuer… and up and up. Marcus Abrams, owner of the Christmas tree lot, held her in his arms, his dark eyes smiling down at her. “Oh, thank you, Marcus. That would have been very embarrassing.”
“No problem, sweetheart.” He stepped away from her once she had gotten her footing again. “Whatcha doing here?” he asked, innocence dripping from his voice.
“I, umm.” Had Dirk talked about her with the other bear?
He smiled at her again, as if amused by her confusion.
“I, umm.” Another stutter and her face flooded with heat. “I brought a cake. To thank Dirk for bringing the tree by the library yesterday.”
“Mmmm.” The man rubbed his chin as if contemplating her words. “That’s nice of you, but shouldn’t I be getting the cake, since I was the one that donated?”
Oh, crap, Mercy thought, her mind working at warp speed to get out of this situation with her dignity intact.
“What kind of cake is it?” She saw the amusement dancing in Marcus’ eyes and cursed the other bear. Holding the cake holder next to his face, he took a long, deep sniff.
She snatched the cake away. “It’s chocolate.”
“Really? I prefer a honey cake, darling.”
Mercy, being a woman after all, felt her insides clench at his low, velvety drawl calling her darling. Damn, he was almost as good looking as Dirk.
“It’s for Dirk.”
“Well, isn’t Dirk a lucky man.”
Another devil-may-care smile and Mercy realized she needed to step away from this shifter.
She cleared her throat and did just that. “I’ll just go give it to him.”
“He’s not here.”
Mercy felt her spirits deflate.
“He’s at his cabin. Up the mountain.” Marcus stood there, his hands in the front pocket of his jeans, watching her.
“I guess I’ll see him later.”
“Don’t you want to see him now?”
“Yes, but I can’t just show up at his doorstep.”
“I’m pretty sure he won’t care especially if you’re still intent on taking him that cake. I know I wouldn’t mind it.”
Mercy narrowed her eyes and stared at the bear shifter. Sure, she’d been flirted with before, but something about this whole exchange seemed a little off.
“His house is just past mine. Follow the road for about a mile, and then you’ll see a turnoff to your right. The road’s a little rough, but you’ll be able to make it. Just go slow.”
“I, thank you.” Her spirits lifted and she gave the man a smile.
That earned her a wink and she wondered again why this man hadn’t been taken off the market.
It took Mercy almost an hour to reach the turn off to Dirk’s cabin. The bravado she’d displayed at the tree lot faded as she made her way up the mountain road. All around her were groves of evergreens. Pines, spruces, firs. The snow that had fallen this week hadn’t melted off yet so the green branches were decorated with a frosting of white. It was beautiful.
She was so engrossed with the scenery, she almost missed the turnoff to Dirk’s cabin. There were no distinguishing landmarks or obvious signs that a road even existed. Feeling a little foolish, she almost used the driveway to turn around and high tail it back to her empty house. Then she remembered the small smile she’d coaxed out of the grumpy bear. Followed by those panty-melting kisses.
Not to mention the draw she still felt. Even though Riverton was a shifter town who boosted many happily mated couples, she was pretty sure that would never happen for her. That did not mean however, the she couldn’t be heart clenching attracted to a male shifter. She sighed sadly. Or, just because one might not be attracted to her, that she couldn’t fall in love with one.
She’d always had the impossible wish that, once she was an adult, a shifter would suddenly sweep her off her feet and declare his undying love. That hadn’t happened and she was pretty sure it never would.
She gasped when the cabin, as Marcus had so inadequately described it, came into sight. It was more than a cabin. Before her stood a house the likes of which she had never seen before. It was a one story, sprawling… log cabin? Maybe Marcus hadn’t been so far off the mark in his description. It was a cabin. The walls were built with huge wood logs, the outside surrounded by porches and decks that seemed accessible from any entry. It was surrounded by mature pines that stood straight and tall under the weight of the snow.
It was beautiful.
Sighing softly, she debated again about turning around. Going home and being happy with the life she had. A warm house, well most of the time it was warm, food in her stomach and… absolutely no one to share it with.
Courage, my child, courage. One of her aunt’s favorite sayings popped into her mind. She loved her aunt but knew the woman wouldn’t have encouraged Mercy to seek out a grumpy bear shifter. Or a man at all.
Her aunt had tried to raise her in her own image—an unhappy spinster.
Gathering her courage—and the cake—she turned off the car engine and climbed from the seat. The sidewalk from the graveled driveway had been shoveled so there was no ice or snow to slip on. The wide front porch steps had also been swept clear of snow.
A firm knock later and she was waiting with anxious breath for Dirk to open the door. When a few minutes passed, she knocked again. It was a large house after all, so maybe he hadn’t heard her. She looked for a doorbell, but discovered there wasn’t one. No doubt he didn’t need it with his shifter hearing.
After another five minutes had passed, the cold was seeping in underneath her coat. Just because Marcus had said he was home that didn’t mean he was inside the house. Or that he wanted to answer the door. Debating about whether she should leave the cake or not, she didn’t hear the rustling of the pine at the side of the house. The next thing she knew a large bear was standing at the end of the porch, its front legs braced against the railings.
“Oh, my God!” Mercy’s eyes widened and she took a step backwards, almost tripping over the wooden rocker that sat by the front door. “A bear,” she said. “There’s a bear.”
When the bear didn’t move, just stood looking at her, some of her fear disappeared. She laid the cake on the seat of the rocker and took a tentative step forward. “Please be Dirk, please be Dirk,” she
chanted as she walked the length of the porch, getting closer and closer to the two-ton bear. She had only ever seen a couple of shifters in their bear form. A few of the boys on the football team in high school and a couple who liked to wander around the edges of town. She wasn’t afraid of shifters. But was this really a shifter?
A foot away she stopped, studying the bear. His fur was almost a medium brown, no doubt darker now in the winter months than he would be during the summer. She didn’t know what kind of bear he was. A brown bear or a grizzly. Were there bear species specific to shifters?
All she knew was he was big and his paws sported sharp black nails on the ends. Paws that could knock her flat with one swipe and nails that could gut her like a fish.
Her gaze traveled back to the bear’s face and the last of her fears fled. This bear’s eyes were the same dark gray as Dirk’s. And she couldn’t explain it, but somehow she saw the man within the animal.
She moved closer, a smile on her face. “You are beautiful.” Without hesitation, she reached out to touch him. He chuffed and moved his head closer, almost like a dog who wanted to be petted. She laughed and raised both hands, running them through the fur on top of his head and down his back. The action moved her closer, the animal’s hot breath hitting the front of her chest, warming her. Exciting her. Which was just a little weird if she thought about it. But then, this wasn’t just a bear, it was Dirk.
She jumped a little when one paw came out to bat her closer. She stilled when he pressed his nose against the curve of her neck and breathed in deeply. Oh, my God, I’m letting a bear sniff me. I’m not only letting a bear with sharp, deadly teeth near my throat, I’m giving him complete and total access, she thought, realizing she had bent her head to the side, basically offering this bear—Dirk—her throat.
Dirk thought he had died and gone to heaven when he’d caught Mercy’s scent the moment she’d stepped from her small sedan. Now, with the nose of his bear pressed against the delicate skin of her throat, he’d be willing to die and go to heaven. Or hell. As long as he could take the scent of her—his mate—with him.
The animal roared with the admission, even though it had been nudging the man to accept his fate for days. The man had hesitated, unsure. Well, unaccepting of the fact. Not that Mercy wouldn’t make a perfectly good mate for a bear shifter. It was just that he didn’t want one. Didn’t think he deserved one.
And he still thought that. No matter how damn delicious she smelled.
He pulled back slowly so he couldn’t hurt her with his sharp claws. Dropping to his feet, he still reached the top of the railing. A big man, he was even bigger in his bear form. With one last lingering look, he turned and walked back into the trees, needing to put as much distance between him and the woman who could make him forget everything.
Even his haunted past.
Mercy watched as Dirk lumbered away, turning once when he reached the edge of the tree line to look back at her. She gave a small smile and waved. He continued on.
Sighing she thrust her hands in her pockets against the cold, slowly walking across the porch and down the steps.
“Don’t go.”
She swung back around to see Dirk standing where he’d just stood as a bear. Her eyes widened when he put his hands on the rail and jumped onto the porch. He moved toward her dressed only in a pair of form fitting jeans. Bare, broad shoulders tampered down to a muscled chest and chiseled abdomen. His large feet were bare. And damn sexy she thought offhandedly.
“I brought you a cake.”
“Thank you.” No smile, just the simple words.
“I, that’s really all—” Before she could say anything else, he had taken her arm and was ushering her through his front door. Her footsteps halted as the beauty inside his house made her gasp. If she’d thought the outside was heavenly, the inside was as beautiful as she’d always imagined the Taj Mahal being. The front door opened into a giant—and she did mean giant—open room. To the side she caught a glimpse of a kitchen but the wall of windows captured her attention completely. She’d seen immediately upon entering his home that he did not have a Christmas tree. Not a single twinkling bulb to light the dark, winter night. But as she walked closer to the windows, she realized he didn’t need it. Nature had given him her own Christmas decorations. She walked forward as if drawn by an invisible thread until her nose was pressed against the window, looking at the scenery much like a kid in a candy store would do.
“It’s beautiful.” Outside were more pines and bare limbed oaks and maples. Interspersed throughout the scene were trees whose autumn leaves were still hanging on tightly. The beauty of those colors topped with the sparkling white of the freshly fallen snow made one ache with the sense of peace it invoked.
“Yeah, it is.” Her eyes refocused, seeing Dirk’s reflection in the window. He was standing directly behind her, watching. Waiting. Shivers ran down her spine, knowing he spoke of her and not the beauty outside.
She turned around, her back pressed against the cool glass. She felt the chill seep through her coat. The setting sun shadowed his eyes but she felt his need. How, she didn’t know, but it reached out to her, tendrils of want, lust twining around her body, into her heart. Before she could lose her nerve, she took a step forward and put a hand on his bare shoulder. Leaning up, she kissed the corner of his mouth. She wasn’t quiet brave enough to touch his firm lips with her own. Not yet anyway.
His hands snapped in place on her arms, holding her away, or waiting to drag her forward, she didn’t know. She knew which one she wanted. To be drawn close to the perfectly masculine body just inches from hers.
“What are you doing?”
“Kissing you?”
He gave a grunt but she was rewarded by what she considered a smile curving his full lips as he asked, “Aren’t you sure?”
“Not really.”
“Then whoever has been kissing you hasn’t been doing it right.” His voice was a low rumble, part man, part bear. It did delicious things to her insides, like soak her pussy. Her body shivered reading the intent on his taut face. He was so going to do it right she thought, clenching her thighs together. She hoped with every fiber of her turned-on-body that he would be doing everything right.
When she’d shown up unexpectedly on his property, she’d expected him to tell her leave, to stop bothering him. Instead, he was looking at her with hunger in his eyes. He moved slowly, laying his hand along the side of her face. She tensed knowing exactly what would happen. Her bones seemed to liquefy and her senses spun out of control. She looked up and saw a muscle jerk in the hollow of his cheek, and felt the strength of his body, perhaps even a hint of the animal he carried inside. The deep gray color of his eyes danced with fire. She had plenty of time to pull back. Instead, she leaned into his touch, wanting it more than she’d ever wanted anything in her life.
“Dirk.” Her breath floated across his lips.
His breathing grew heavy and then he was lowering his head and capturing her lips with his.
And it wasn’t just any kiss.
He dragged her up against his chest, his lips covering hers in a kiss filled with passion and power. Because she wanted him so much, she opened her mouth willingly beneath his. His tongue thrust instantly inside, sweeping past her teeth, tangling with her tongue. Her arms curled around his neck, trying to pull him even closer. Oh, yeah, he was right. The few men who had kissed her hadn’t been doing it right.
One of his large hands cupped the back of her head, tilting her head to a new angle. Now he was thrusting in and out of her eager mouth, challenging her to keep the pace. After several moments, she had to pull back in order to draw air into her lungs. “Wow. Feels forbidden… and fantastic.”
He growled a throaty purr of agreement against her throat. “More.”
She felt his breath against her neck and before she could answer, he was kissing her again. A tremor moved through her, followed by a wave of heat that burned through her body right down to her toes. His lip
s worked their magic as he coaxed hers apart with his teeth and his tongue. Each nip of his teeth on her bottom lip had her head spinning. Each quick flick of his tongue made her tremble. She felt as if she were burning up with a fever, inside and out.
Suddenly the touch of his mouth wasn’t enough. She wanted him to touch her everywhere. Her breasts, and heavens above, her pussy. She wanted him to stroke the fire that burned in the very heart of her. She wanted him to stroke her desire, then hold her as she exploded. Her need made her greedy. Briefly admiring the broad chest of burnished copper, she ran her hands over hard muscle and dark hair then down the well-hewn plane of his belly. Her hand slid down his tight stomach and undid the top button of his jeans, then the zipper. Before she could touch him, he placed a hand over hers, stopping her even though his eyes were hot with the same raw need, the same need that burned in her.
“I don’t think you know how close I am to fucking you.”
Mercy slipped her hand free and found her way inside the denim of his jeans. He wore nothing beneath the rough fabric and all she touched was warm, hard flesh. She trailed her fingers over his groin. She squeezed his cock before dropped down to cup her hand over his balls. The arms he had braced to either side of her head at her first touch trembled and his jaw tightened.
“Mercy,” his growl grew deeper as she released his balls and ran her small hand up and down the length of his cock.
“I need this, Dirk. I need this so badly, I can barely breathe.”
Dirk’s bear roared inside him as its mate confessed she was hurting. He could sense it, smell it on her. She did need this. But more than that, she needed him. Still, something, some civilized part of him needed to give her the chance to back away. Leave before something was forged between them that they’d never be able to break away.
“Be sure, Mercy. Be very sure.”
The smile she gave him threatened to buckle the big bear’s knees, but he needed her to say the words.
“I’m sure. So very, very sure.” Again she stood on her tiptoes and placed a feather light kiss on the corner of her mouth. A kiss so chaste and sweet, so opposite of the lust pulsing between them, pulling them closer and closer to that edge of no return.
