Bodyguard Bear: BBW Bear Shifter Paranormal Romance (Protection, Inc. Book 1)

by Chant, Zoe

  “Are you hurt?” Ellie demanded. “Hal, answer me!”

  “No.” He couldn’t have her fussing over him while he was trying to make sure they weren’t being followed.

  Fear and frustration sharpened her voice as she said, “Then why are you clutching at your side? Hal, I know you took a hit!”

  “It hit my vest. I think the impact cracked a few ribs.” Hal spoke on auto-pilot. He’d say anything to give himself space to protect her, and deal with the consequences later.

  “Oh.” Ellie sounded relieved. “Yeah, that hurts a lot. I could tape them for you later.”

  “Sure. Thanks.” He checked the rear view mirrors again. “No one’s following us.”

  Ellie put her hand on his shoulder. “Hal, you saved my life. I know thank you doesn’t even begin to cover it, but... Thank you.”

  It made him feel a little better. No matter what else he lost, he hadn’t lost his mate.

  The sky was iron gray, the storm clouds massed and ominous. He got on the freeway, heading out of the city.

  “Aren’t you going to Protection, Inc.?” Ellie asked.

  “No,” Hal said. He knew he had to explain, but his jaw felt stuck.

  The pain in his heart far outweighed the pain in his side. He’d known what had to have happened the instant he’d seen the hit men in the elevator. But saying it aloud made it feel more real.

  “Hal, what’s wrong?” Ellie seemed to hear what she’d just said, and added, “I mean, apart from us both getting shot at.”

  “I know what you mean.” He unlocked his jaw. He had to tell her. “Someone told those hit men where I live. The only people who know where I live are you and my team.”

  Ellie stared at him. “You think someone on your team sold you out?”

  “I don’t want to believe that. But I have to consider the possibility.”

  “Which one could it be?”

  Hal winced. There was something else he didn’t want to think of. Even considering them as traitors made him feel like a traitor to them. “Well... Lucas is new. I don’t know him as well as the others. Nick has a shady background. Fiona has a different sort of shady background. And Shane’s isn’t even shady. It’s more like pitch black.”

  “What about Rafa?” Ellie asked. “There’s no way he’d betray you, right? You said he was your best friend!”

  “No, Rafa would never—” Hal began, then stopped. “Well... I hate to say this, but I can think of one reason he might. And the same goes for Destiny. They both have family they’re really close to. Including little kids. If Nagle threatened Destiny’s baby brother or Rafa’s nieces...”

  Ellie looked as dismayed as Hal felt. “Isn’t there any other way someone could have found out?”

  “Oh, sure.” As Hal listed off the possibilities, he prayed that one of them was true. “I missed someone following me there. Or one of my team missed someone. They’re all very competent, but anyone can screw up once. And once Nagle knew where to find me, he could hire a hacker to get his men inside. But... I can’t risk contacting my team yet. Not till I know more. Ellie, I can’t risk you.”

  She leaned over and kissed his cheek. The butterfly brush of her lips brought him some comfort.

  More than anything else, he wanted to tell her he was hit, and let her tend his wounds and hold him in her arms. He wanted it so badly, it made his heart hurt that he couldn’t have it.

  But she was a paramedic. And while he wasn’t sure how badly he was injured, he could feel that he was bleeding a lot. She’d take one look at all that blood, and demand that he go to a hospital. And if he was in a hospital, he couldn’t protect her.

  Shifters healed faster and better than humans. Hal was reasonably certain that he didn’t need a hospital. But he couldn’t explain that to Ellie without explaining that he was a shifter.

  He bit his lip, wishing he’d already told her. She practically already knew— maybe not literally, but she’d correctly guessed everyone’s shift forms from the photos at Protection, Inc. If he could sit her down in a calm atmosphere and gently explain it, he was pretty sure she’d be surprised but not frightened or horrified.

  Evading hit men in a speeding car, while they were both already shaken up and coming off a murder attempt, while he was wounded and bleeding and barely able to get his thoughts together, was the opposite of a calm atmosphere. God knew how she’d take it. She’d probably think he was delirious. And he had to get as far from town as fast as possible. He couldn’t afford to lose time by pulling over and hiking into the forest to demonstrate.

  “Where are we going?” Ellie asked.

  “A cabin in the woods,” Hal replied, relieved at the easy question. “My family owns it, but no one’s there now. And only my family knows about it, so it’s safe.”

  “Oh. Okay.” She peered into his face, looking worried. “Do you want to stop now, and have me tape up your ribs? You look like you’re in a lot of pain. And I’d like to examine you. A blow hard enough to crack ribs could have caused internal injuries.”

  Hal was touched at her concern. “You can check me once we get there. I want to get out of here as fast as I can.”

  “Let me know if you start feeling dizzy or sick or short of breath, or if the pain gets worse.”

  “Okay.”

  Hal did feel dizzy and sick and short of breath, and the pain was getting worse. But he could take it. He was strong and tough. He was a shifter. And he’d do anything to protect his mate.

  Hold on, his bear rumbled. Keep your mate safe.

  Hal pressed his hand tighter against his side, and drove on.

  Chapter Six

  Ellie

  Hal was silent as he sped along the freeway, his body tense and his rugged features taut with pain. As they passed the city limits, a hard rain began to fall. Ellie huddled in her seat, cold despite the hot air coming through the heating system. Now that the initial shock had worn off, the reality of what had happened was sinking in.

  Nagle had tried to kill her, and had nearly succeeded.

  If Hal was right, he’d been betrayed by one of his own team members. No wonder he was so quiet and grim. The thought of it saddened her, and she’d only just met them. It had to be ten times more of a blow to Hal, who thought of them like his family.

  If Nagle could get to Hal’s own team, Ellie really wasn’t safe in Santa Martina. She might not be safe anywhere.

  Ellie stared blankly out the window, lost in depressing thoughts. She barely noticed as the city streets gave way to broad highways cutting through fields, then narrow highways cutting through a forest. The rain turned to hail, clattering off the roof and windshield like thrown pebbles. Finally snow began to fall. The white flakes fell lightly at first, then more heavily. The black strip of highway became salt-and-pepper, and then pure white.

  Ellie turned to Hal to ask him if he had snow chains for the tires. The road must be getting slick and treacherous with ice and snow.

  “Do you—” She broke off, staring at him.

  Hal’s tanned face had gone pale. Though the car was merely warm, he was sweating heavily. He stared straight ahead, eyes glassy and jaw clenched. His entire body was stiff with pain, his right hand locked around the steering wheel in a death grip and his left still pressed to his side. Now that the loud clatter of hail had turned to the silent fall of snow, she could hear him breathing, shallow and fast.

  Ellie’s heart stuttered with fear. Hal’s injuries had to be more serious than he’d realized.

  “You are hurt.”

  “Just the cracked ribs.” His voice was strained.

  “Do they normally make you sweat like that?” Ellie touched his cheek. His skin was cold, a sign of shock. She put a finger beneath his jaw, feeling for his pulse.

  He tried to pull his head aside. “Stop it. I’m fine.”

  She kept her fingers where they were, though they slid against the cold sweat that drenched his skin. His pulse was weak; she had to press hard to feel it all. When she d
id locate it, she didn’t need to check her watch to know that it was too fast.

  “Pull over,” Ellie said. “I need to examine you. I think you have internal injuries.”

  “Can’t. Have to keep going.”

  Anger surged through her. Hal must have known for some time that the bullet had done more damage than cracked ribs, but he’d said nothing while she’d uselessly sat and stared out the window, refusing to let her help him even though she was completely qualified to do so. Didn’t he trust her at all?

  “Goddammit, Hal, pull over,” Ellie demanded. “I’m a paramedic. I know what I’m doing.”

  “I know,” Hal replied. She could hear now how hard it was for him to talk. “But I need to get you to safety. We’re almost there. You can check me when we arrive.”

  “We’ve already wasted too much time,” Ellie retorted, frustrated and worried. “Hal, what part of ‘internal bleeding’ did you not understand? You need to go to a hospital. Immediately.”

  He shook his head, wincing. “I can’t. Nagle’s men might be there. It wouldn’t be safe for you.”

  Ellie couldn’t believe her ears. “For me? Safe for me? Forget me! You could die!”

  Hal pried one hand off the steering wheel to touch her shoulder. He probably meant it to be a reassuring pat, but his hand was clumsy and graceless. It smacked into her shoulder, then slid down and hung limp at his side. He leaned forward, blinking and frowning at the road ahead.

  “It’s so dark,” he muttered.

  The snow was falling hard, making it hard to see much beyond whirling white, but the light was no dimmer than it had been a minute ago.

  Darkening vision. Loss of coordination. Probable internal injuries.

  “Hal, pull over right now!” Ellie’s voice rose in a shout. “You’re passing out!”

  Hal’s gaze snapped into focus. “Oh, shit.”

  He turned the wheel to steer for the side of the road, and she saw his foot start to move from the gas pedal to the brake. Then his foot dropped, his hand fell to his side, and his eyes closed. Before she could catch him, he pitched forward over the steering wheel.

  The horn blasted and kept on blaring. Ellie tried to push Hal back, then aside, but he was much too heavy for her to move. Her heart pounding, she caught the edge of the wheel and steadied it, steering the car along the deserted highway.

  Much as she desperately wanted to check Hal’s breathing and pulse, she had to get the car stopped first. She couldn’t help him if they were both killed in a crash. Keeping a firm grip on the wheel, she managed to work her left leg up and over until she could kick his foot off the gas. Then she slowly braked as she steered the car toward the side of the road.

  The car slowed, hit a bump that made her heart lurch, then came to a stop off road. She put it in park and turned off the engine. The silence was so complete that Ellie felt like she’d gone deaf. She fumbled for Hal’s pulse and was tremendously relieved when she felt it, beating faint but steadily beneath her fingers.

  Ellie hit the button to tilt Hal’s seat back. She supported his head and eased him down with the seat, until he was lying almost flat. Then she tipped back her own seat, so both seats were like side-by-side benches.

  “Thank God for luxury cars,” Ellie muttered. Her own cheap-mobile had seats that tilted about six inches either way.

  Hal didn’t stir, but lay still with his eyes closed and his strong hands slack. It was scary to see him so vulnerable, when he’d always been so strong and protective.

  She unbuttoned his black overcoat, then pulled it open. The shirt beneath his coat was soaked in blood.

  “Son of a bitch!” Ellie yelled.

  Hal’s eyelashes fluttered, and his hazel eyes slowly opened. He looked confused for a moment, and then she saw memory return.

  “Sorry.” His voice was a low rumble, barely audible.

  She unbuttoned his shirt, then unstrapped the heavy vest. “Some bulletproof vest! You ought to sue.”

  Hal tried to smile, despite his pain. “The vest worked fine. A ricochet went under it.”

  Ellie eased the vest off, then took a pair of scissors from her purse and sheared off his undershirt. There were two huge black bruises on his chest where bullets had struck the armor plates. But she was more concerned about the wounds in his side, just above his hip. The bullet had gone through and through, leaving a small entrance wound and a larger exit wound. Both were still bleeding, though slowly.

  “Is there a first aid kit in the car?” Ellie asked.

  “In the trunk.”

  She lifted his hand and held it to the wounds. “Keep pressure on them.”

  He pressed his hand against his side, wincing. Ellie remembered how he’d steered with one hand for the entire trip, keeping his other hand tight against his side. And how he’d claimed that it was because he had cracked ribs.

  She bit her lip against yelling at him, much as she was tempted to. He didn’t need her scolding him right now. “I’ll get the kit.”

  She turned on the ignition and cranked the heat to maximum. Hal needed to stay as warm as possible. Then she hit the button to release the trunk and opened the car door. The blast of frigid air made her shiver even before she got out.

  Her feet sank into snow, nearly up to her ankles. Alarmed, Ellie took a look at the car. Not only was snow piling up around the car, but the rear tires had sunk deep into either a pothole or a mud-hole.

  Shit.

  She needed to treat Hal as quickly as possible, then drive him to the nearest hospital before they got trapped by the falling snow. Ellie could only pray that they weren’t trapped already.

  She hurried to the back of the car. The trunk was thoroughly stocked, as if Hal had been preparing for a zombie apocalypse, crammed full of easy-carry trunks with labels like FIRST AID, GENERAL SUPPLIES, and FOOD AND WATER. She grabbed a FIRST AID trunk and two folded blankets, then scrambled back into the car.

  She was relieved to find that Hal was still conscious. Ellie checked him again, surprised but pleased to find that his skin was warmer, his breathing easier, and his pulse slower. It was amazing how sometimes something as simple as turning up the heat could help so much. It undoubtedly also helped that Hal was strong and fit.

  “You’re tough,” she said.

  He tried to smile. “Sorry I scared you. I’ll be fine. I promise.”

  “You better be, you macho idiot,” she retorted as she opened the first aid kit. “Would it have killed you to tell me you got shot?”

  “You would’ve tried to drag me to a hospital. Nagle’s men would have tracked us there, and I wouldn’t have been able to protect—”

  Ellie swabbed antiseptic over Hal’s wounds. He broke off, gritting his teeth against the pain. “What about a private hospital? They’re much more discreet.”

  “I don’t need any hospital.”

  “Yes, you do,” Ellie repeated, with emphasis. She applied pressure bandages to the wounds, stopping the bleeding. “Unless you’ve got IV fluids and oxygen and an X-Ray machine and maybe an anesthesiologist and a surgeon stashed in the trunk?”

  Hal gave her a frustrated glance. “I told you, I’ll be fine. I just need a little rest. But we need to get out of here—” As she opened her mouth, he quickly said, “Not to a hospital! To my cabin. You drive. I’ll direct you.”

  Ellie closed her mouth. This argument could obviously go on forever, and there was no time to waste. Once she was in the driver’s seat, she could take him wherever she liked. “Fine.”

  “Let’s switch seats.”

  That was easier said than done. Though Hal’s car was big and roomy, he was a huge guy and too badly hurt to move easily. Ellie worried that he wouldn’t be able to sit up at all, but once she got her arms under his shoulders, she was able to help him up. Once he was sitting up, he leaned against her, breathing hard.

  “Sorry,” he said. “Just give me a second.”

  “Take as much time as you need,” Ellie replied, squeezing his broad shoul
ders. “You’ve been shot. Give yourself a break.”

  He didn’t reply. His silky hair mingled with hers, their heads pressed together. She could feel his chest rise and fall as he breathed. His muscles were hard as steel, tensed with pain.

  Ellie rubbed his back in slow circles, hoping that would ease his pain. Since she intended to deliver him to a hospital, like it or not, she didn’t want to offer him any painkillers. They’d assess him again there, and a doctor could decide what sort of medication he needed. Besides, he’d undoubtedly refuse any drug that might knock him out.

  Hal’s deep voice rumbled in her ear. “Okay. Let’s switch.”

  She supported him as he moved from the driver’s seat to the passenger seat, then helped him lie back down in it. Then she took off his shoes, to make him more comfortable.

  But when she reached to unbuckle his belt, he raised a hand to stop her. “My gun.”

  The holster was attached to his belt.

  “Okay. I’ll leave it.” She covered him with the blankets she’d gotten from the trunk, thinking that he wouldn’t even be able to draw his gun, let alone fire it. But if it made him feel better to keep wearing it, he could wear it.

  Hal reached up with one big hand and cupped her cheek. As always, it was startling how gentle his touch could be. She started to lean into his warm caress, but he lowered his arm to his side as if it was too heavy to hold up for so long.

  “I should’ve...” he mumbled. His voice trailed off.

  She caught his hand between hers. “Rest, Hal.”

  “Ellie... I should’ve...” His lips parted as if he meant to say more. Then he closed his eyes.

  Uncertain whether he’d passed out or was simply resting, she pressed a kiss onto his forehead. He didn’t so much as smile. Passed out, for sure.

  She slid into the driver’s seat, hit the button to raise the back, and turned the key in the ignition. The engine raced as she pressed down on the gas, but the car didn’t move. The wheels were stuck fast in the mud.