Growth of the Bear (Bear Kamp Book 3)

by Rachel Robins

  After several tries to get up to get her laptop, she realized she was going to need help. As much as she hated to, she pushed the buzzer the nurse had given her. When the nurse arrived, Roni was positive her face couldn’t get any redder. Asking the nurse who had spent hours training to save lives to please hand her the laptop was humiliating.

  “Thank you. I’m sorry to have to buzz you for that.”

  “Don’t worry about it. I’m here for whatever you need, even if it is just to hand you something. I’m happy to do it.”

  “Thanks again.”

  Once the nurse shut her door, Roni opened her laptop and started to research. Years of college and grad school had taught her how to find any information she wanted. After an hour of reading through multiple sites, Roni leaned back and rubbed her eyes. If she truly was Justin’s mate, he should be jumping for joy and showering her with love and affection. Instead he was pushing her away.

  Whatever threat he felt from his family was part of it, but not all. He seemed to be caught on the fact that he was the runt of his pack. It was ridiculous because he seemed gigantic to Roni. She decided to look up more information on being a runt. There wasn’t much information on it, but from what she could tell it wasn’t a problem in present day. Years ago, they would leave them behind or cast them out of the pack, left for dead. It was heart-wrenching. Justin’s family hadn’t physically cast him out, but they had emotionally. Roni hoped one day she would get the opportunity to tell them how ignorant and disgusting they had been.

  With that thought, Roni looked up the organization. The first article she found explained what the organization did to help children. It seemed ironic that the family spent their life helping children who were abandoned or struggling, and yet they left their youngest son alone, feeling those exact things. Then she saw an article on his grandfather. The article doted on him, and just reading it made her love the older man. His kindness to Justin growing up alone made her heart grow bigger. The next article she came across made her heart shatter into pieces. It was an obituary for the older man, dated three weeks ago.

  Roni wasn’t sure what do to with her newfound information. Her instinct at first was to tell Justin. But the more she thought about it, the more nervous she got. He didn’t know anything right now, and seemed content that way. Finding out his grandpa was dead would be hard for him since he was the only person Justin felt a connection with. If Justin was looking into his family, though, it would only be a matter of a time before he stumbled across the information.

  She picked up her cell phone and called him. He didn’t answer, which she had expected. She sent him a text that she really needed to talk to him. Still there was no reply.

  “Ugh!” Roni screamed out to nobody.

  The nurse came back in and gave Roni her pain medicine. The medicine won out, and Roni drifted off to sleep. She dreamed of her mate and the love that they would share. One day when the time was right.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Justin

  Justin hit ignore on his phone. He was working the horses out since Daniel hadn’t had a break for two days. Roni had an entire team of medical personnel at her disposal so he knew she was well cared for. The giant shifter Austin had hired was patrolling the main house so he knew she was safe. His bear begged to differ, and desperately wanted to rush to her side.

  The comment he had made about timing had royally pissed her off. He knew that, and he felt a little guilty, but there was nothing to be done about it now. He said it, and he meant it. Not only was he not where he wanted to be financially, but also there was his family to contend with. Whatever they were up to, they had involved Veronica for a reason.

  His phone beeped with a text alert. Justin knew without looking that it was Veronica. Again his bear wanted to go to his mate. It wasn’t that Justin didn’t want to go to her; he just knew he had nothing for her right now.

  Justin continued working the horses, and then sat down in his office to get an order ready for more feed and grain. He liked the silence of the stables. Every now and then a horse would neigh or whimper, but that was it. Work helped keep his mind from drifting to Veronica. A knock on his office door brought him out of his daze.

  “Justin, you got time for that talk now?” Jerry asked casually.

  Justin pushed back from his desk and took in the man. The conversation he had been dreading since the moment he laid eyes on Veronica was here. No matter when he decided to make Veronica his official mate, telling her father was staring him in the face now.

  “Sure, Jerry, come in.”

  “How are the horses doing?”

  “Great. We’ve got added security out here as well. You don’t need to worry.”

  “I can see that. I appreciate your efforts. I hope you know that I’m happy to foot the bill for this.”

  “These men are pack; they don’t expect monetary gain.”

  “All the same. If it’s needed, I’m here.”

  “Thank you.”

  “So my daughter seems quite taken with you.” The statement was more of a question, but Jerry seemed to already know the answer.

  “Sir, I hope you know that I did not know Veronica before I took this job.”

  Jerry smiled, but didn’t say anything.

  “When I met Lucy, we were only eighteen years old. I saw her leaning up against her red mustang at the Lafinierre Park. She was gorgeous. Long blonde hair, great tan and her smile could stop a mac truck. I knew the moment I saw her that she was the one for me. I’ve loved her every day since.”

  “I didn’t know you two had been together for so long.”

  “Every day may not have been a good day, but I ended them all tucked in bed with that woman. She gave me a beautiful daughter, to whom I’d give my heart and soul to make happy. If you are who makes her happy, that makes me happy.”

  Just like that, Jerry had taken a conversation Justin had dreaded and made it easy. To him it was that simple. If his daughter was happy, he was happy.

  “Sir, I don’t have two pennies to rub together. Veronica is my mate, and I plan on loving her the rest of my life. Right now, though, she deserves so much better than an apartment behind a horse stable.”

  Jerry laughed a deep laugh.

  “Son, you may love her, and she may be your mate, but you have a lot to learn about my Roni.”

  Justin’s bear growled. Justin waved his hand to dismiss the growl. Jerry just laughed harder.

  “Now tell me about the attack.”

  “Veronica got a letter from an organization for a job. That organization is run by my family. For some reason, they are doing this. I don’t know why or who specifically, but I’ll find out. Until then I’ll do everything I can to keep her safe.”

  “This organization, does your family own it or just run it?”

  “I think my grandpa owns it, but the family has run it for years. They would never hire outside of their inner circle. If they wanted to interview Veronica, it was only to get her alone. If she gets any other mail from them or phone calls, I’d like to know. I’d also like Veronica to not know.”

  “We can do that. What you need to do is look into who actually owns the company and how it’s set up. If they’re coming after you then it could have something to do with money. It usually does.”

  Justin thought Jerry’s comment over. He had been too young to know any of that when he lived there. Hopefully whatever Austin was digging up on them would be able to answer that question. Jerry had to be right, though. The only reason his family would come after him would be if he had some sort of tie to money, possibly his trust fund.

  “I had a trust fund. Do you think somehow it’s still intact and maybe they can’t touch it without my permission or me being dead?”

  “That’s a possibility. Most trust funds are downright impossible to take.”

  “That has to be it then. They must need that money. Those firecrackers were meant for me. I still don’t want security to back off of Veronica, though. If
they’re watching, they’ve probably figured out she’s my mate. That puts her in danger.”

  “I’m in agreement. As untimely as this is, Lucy and I have a trip we can’t put off. We’re leaving tonight and we’ll be gone for several days. I expect updates while I’m gone. Don’t hesitate to call if you need us. Most importantly, keep my baby safe.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “You’re a good man, Justin. I don’t know what happened with your family, but for you to have left them behind, money and all, it sounds like they didn’t deserve you.”

  Justin just nodded, unable to speak as he watched Jerry leave. The man had already said nicer things to him than his dad ever had. Justin wished he could have grown up with a dad like Jerry. Maybe then, though, Veronica wouldn’t have had a dad like Jerry, and Justin wouldn’t trade that for the world. Having Jerry’s approval meant the world to him. Having Jerry genuinely like him meant more.

  His order was only halfway done, and he knew he needed to finish it. Justin didn’t realize how easily paperwork piled up with him being gone for just a couple of days. There were orders to be placed, and calls he needed to return. With the late hour he’d made himself a list for the next day. As much as he wanted to see Veronica before he went to sleep it was too late to go over.

  Just as he was about to fall asleep, Austin texted him. He was following up on a couple of leads, and would be over in the morning. Knowing Austin had some information for him made him feel better. If Austin hadn’t already checked his family’s financials they could go over that in the morning, too. Once this was all put behind him, he could then focus on his mate. He pictured her beautiful smile and long flowing hair as he slipped into a much needed sleep.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Veronica

  Roni woke up sweating. She slowly moved her body, afraid of the pain that usually accompanied any movement. It was still there but much weaker. She slowly slid her body upright, and then realized she wasn’t alone in bed. Her eyes flew open and her adrenaline spiked. Then she realized it was Justin’s warm body next to hers.

  Just as slowly she snuggled back down next to him and laid her head on his chest. He smelled wonderful to her. Her bladder wouldn’t let her lay there any longer, though. She eased herself out of bed. Roni felt victorious because for the first time since the accident she stood up all by herself. Her head hurt quite a bit, but the pain was manageable.

  Horrified at what she saw in the mirror, she couldn’t believe Justin had any interest in her at all. Making quick work in the bathroom she managed to take an extra second to throw on some mascara and lip gloss and run a comb through her hair. It didn’t help with the bruising and the giant goose egg, but she had to try. Justin was awake by the time she got back to her room.

  “Why are you up by yourself? You should have let me know, I would have walked with you.”

  “Good morning to you, too, mate. I’ll have you know I’m feeling much better today.”

  “You still should have let me help. You could have fallen.”

  “Okay.”

  Veronica looked over his features. He was ruggedly handsome. A day’s worth of stubble littered his jaw line, and Roni couldn’t help but touch her fingers to it. His eyes smoldered at her touch, sending a rush of desire through her body.

  “What are you doing here?”

  “You texted me that you needed to talk to me.”

  She laughed. His smile was lopsided and made her want to kiss him even more. Then her reason for wanting to talk to him came back to her. Her laughter faded, and she felt nauseous.

  “Justin.” Before she could go on, his phone rang.

  “Hello?” He paused to listen, then responded, “Okay, sounds good. I’ll be there.”

  He got out of bed and extended his hand to hers.

  “My friend, Austin, is coming over. He has some information. Since you’re feeling better, do you want to come down and have breakfast and hear what he has to say?”

  “Yes. Let me get dressed.”

  Roni tried to hurry, but her movements were still hard. She finally had to break down and buzz for help from the nurse. Justin, who had been right outside the door, came in having heard the buzz. Roni was tangled up in her bra, in nothing but her shorts.

  “Oh, um, I...” Justin stuttered as his eyes washed over her. Roni felt her face blush at his appreciative look, but then the nurse bustled in and showed him out.

  Once she was dressed, the nurse helped her down to breakfast. Justin was already there, along with Daniel and another guy she didn’t recognize.

  “Veronica, this is Gabe. He’s on loan until you feel better.”

  “Nice to meet you,” she said, a little disappointed she and Justin were sharing their breakfast. With her parents out of town she had hoped they’d be alone more.

  The conversation was light and genuine amongst them all. Gabe was a shifter, and had very little experience with horses. Roni didn’t like the idea of leaving Daniel with such a big workload, but Gabe promised what he lacked in training knowledge he could make up for in shoveling crap. That made Roni laugh. A knock on the door caused her to jump. Justin went to answer it while she cleaned up their plates.

  “Feel better soon, Roni,” Daniel called as he and Gabe headed back out to the stables.

  Justin came around the corner with the shifter she recognized from the bar.

  “Veronica, this is Austin. You remember him from The Kamp?”

  “Yes, nice to see you again.”

  “You too. How are you feeling?”

  “Much better today.”

  “I’m glad. Are you ready to see what I’ve got?” Austin asked, directing his question to Justin.

  “Yes, and Veronica will be staying with us as well.”

  “Okay.” Austin started to tell his story, but Roni interrupted him. Until now, she’d never thought about how Justin’s grandpa’s death may tie into what was happening.

  “I’m sorry, hold on. I need to tell Justin something first.”

  “It can’t wait?” Justin asked.

  “No, it may be related. I was looking up information on your family’s organization yesterday, and I came across something. Your, um, your grandpa… he died. About three weeks ago.” She chewed her lip, waiting for his response.

  “You’re sure?” Austin asked.

  “I found the obituary, and then another article on his life’s work.”

  “Your grandfather is the sole owner of the organization, which he has set up as an LLC, so that means he would name his successor.”

  “I don’t think it has anything to do with that. I’m sure my mom is the new owner. Jerry mentioned yesterday something about money. I have a sizeable trust with them. I assumed they had already drained it, but what if they couldn’t and they need me either dead or in a position where I would be forced to hand the funds over to them?”

  “It’s not your trust. I looked. It’s already been drained. One of your brothers must look enough like you to walk in and transfer the money into a checking account. That money has been long gone.”

  “I figured that. It was a long shot. I don’t know how my grandfather’s death would have anything to do with me.”

  “Until we prove that it doesn’t, I have a feeling it has everything to do with you.”

  “Don’t all LLC companies have to keep a copy of their bylaws on file with the state they do business in?” Roni asked.

  “Yes, they do. Let me make some calls and see what I can find. Until then you all sit tight. I’m going to amp up security. If we’re talking about an entire organization being shaken up, they may bring in the big guns. Especially since they failed the first time,” Austin said. He pulled out his laptop and started typing.

  “How are Kate and the baby?” Justin asked. He felt bad taking up so much of Austin’s time, knowing he had a newborn at home that he would probably much rather have been with.

  “They’re doing great. Emma was over with them today. Her grandma also tagg
ed along; she can’t seem to stay away.” Austin’s smile was wide and the pride and adoration apparent on his face. Justin hoped one day he would be able to have that same look when talking about his and Veronica’s cubs. His bear ruffled at that thought. Apparently he liked the sound of that as well.

  “I’m going to do some searching here, if that’s okay. It’s hard to find quiet at the house right now. Not that I’m complaining, but for this I want to be focused.”

  “Take as much time as you need,” Roni said as Justin led her out of the room.

  “So now what do we do?”

  “You need to go rest. You’ve been up and done more today than you probably should have.”

  “No, I’m tired of sleeping. Let’s go for a walk or something.”

  “We can’t go for a walk. It’s too dangerous.”

  “Can I go see the horses?”

  “I think that could be arranged.”

  “Justin, I’m so sorry about your grandpa.”

  “I am, too. He was the only person from there that really mattered to me.”

  “He’d be proud of you, ya know.”

  “I don’t know, he probably would have expected me to have amassed my fortune by now.”

  “You of all people should know that money doesn’t mean a damn if the person isn’t a good person.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Justin

  Justin tried to keep the emotions of his grandfather’s passing at bay. His bear was heartbroken. As a cub, his grandpa had taught him how to be a shifter, and had been his main source of comfort. To have the only person who knew him at that point in his life gone without having been able to say goodbye was soul-crushing.

  He pulled Veronica against his side. Feeling her helped soothe him. They walked out to the stables, and she grabbed a handful of sugar cubes as soon as they walked in. He shook his head; she was always spoiling the horses. She went to them one by one and offered them words of love and a sugar cube. When she got to Bri’s stall, the horse stood at the back and refused to come forward.