Heat (The Grizzly Brothers Chronicles Book 2)

by Alyssa Rose Ivy

  “Fine. I’ll prove it.” Bryant cocked his head to the side.

  “Prove it?” I waited for him to say more. “How?”

  “Go get your mating thing on.” He gestured with his hand. “I’ll wait here with your brother.”

  “This is a trick.” Mara narrowed her eyes. “You were all worried that once I mate with Ian I won’t help you.”

  “But you’ll die without me… I hadn’t fully comprehended that part.”

  “Then why do you want a binding?” Mara pointed at Bryant. “I know I want one so you don’t misuse the demon, but why you?”

  “Why are you doing this?” I echoed her question when he said nothing. “You don’t care about Mara, and if you can’t use the demon…”

  “I want a binding.” Bryant seemed to be considering his words carefully. “But it has nothing to do with you mating with him, it’s for after the demon is in my control. I want to make sure lover boy doesn’t try to come after me for kidnapping you.”

  “Because you’re the reason she met the demon in the first place.” And I would come after him eventually.

  “See my point?” Bryant crossed his arms. “But she’d have met the demon eventually. Willem was already going to hire Lochlan. I just interceded.”

  “What do you get out of all this?” I wasn’t satisfied with his answers. “Why are you going to such great lengths when you will be restricted in how you use the demon, and we all know you don’t care about Mara?”

  “There are plenty of other ways to use the demon—and Mara is the only way I’m going to get him. Besides, I’ve only promised not to use this demon for bad purposes. Maybe I’ll learn a thing or too.” He winked.

  “Will you really stay here and out of trouble?” Mara asked.

  “Already chomping at the bit to have your bear?” Bryant laughed.

  “Just stop. Don’t.” She frowned. “I don’t want to hear it.”

  “Fine. Run along and have fun you two.” He gestured for us to shoo.

  I took Mara’s hand in mine and gave Noah a look that I hoped told him to keep his eyes on the Pteron. I needed time alone with Mara, and I wasn’t going to wait a moment more.

  19

  Mara

  Ian. I was back with Ian. I was overwhelmed with relief, but it felt selfish. What about Netta? She was still all alone wherever she was. I’d promised to help her, and I had no plans to renege on that. I wondered idly if I’d have the same conviction if my own life weren’t at risk. I wanted to believe I would, and I supposed it didn’t really matter. I was at risk—that is if Lochlan was right. I had nothing else to believe. I’d witnessed the demon, and I’d felt him. I doubted he was going to let anyone slip by him that easily. Either way I had to act. Sitting back idly was no longer an option. I’d never forget Netta’s voice or the fear the demon had sent straight to the deepest depths of my soul.

  “Are you really all right?” Ian closed the door behind him. I walked into his home feeling like it was a lifetime ago since the last time I’d entered.

  Discovering my Séancer side had changed me, and in some ways I no longer felt like the same girl I was the last time I’d stepped inside his door. And into his bed. What was I doing? Was I really ready to mate with him? My head and heart were overwhelmed with thoughts and feelings.

  “Yes and no.” I wanted to be honest with Ian. I wanted him to understand what I was feeling and going through.

  “Tell me everything.” Ian took my hand and led me over to the couch. He sat down, and I sat right beside him, reveling in his closeness. Being near him sent a wave of calmness and protection over me. I let out a deep breath, trying to get rid of the fear and worry that surrounded me.

  “I don’t even know where to start.” So much had happened in such a short period of time, and I was still trying to process it. I’d gone from convinced I had no Séancer powers to the realization that I may actually be a strong one. That shift in identity alone took a lot to digest. Once again I found myself wishing I’d found things out in a normal way, or that I’d had some sort of warning of what was to come. But what then? What would I have done if I’d know this was how my life was going to unroll?

  “Who did that to you?” Ian ran his finger over the red line on my right arm. Surprisingly it didn’t hurt the way it did when Bryant touched it. Instead his touch felt cool, and it took away some of the remaining stinging.

  “The demon.” I forced myself to think of the darkness, the fear. Pretending it had never happened wasn’t going to help.

  “If it was Bryant…” Ian’s free hand fisted at his side.

  “Yeah, I know.” I could see the anger in Ian’s eyes. “Bryant’s not a good guy, not by a long shot, and to be honest he’s scary, but he’s nothing compared to the demon.” But would controlling a demon change him? Make him worse? There were so many possibilities to consider, and I had no clue who to trust. I wanted to believe Lochlan, but I hardly knew him.

  “These marks? Did they hurt?” He touched the line again. It was already fainter. His touch almost seemed to be healing me.

  “Yes, but it was nothing compared to what I already felt. He created this fear that was physically painful. It was like nothing I’d ever experienced before.” I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to stave off the shivers.

  He put his hands on either side of my face. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry I failed you.”

  “You didn’t fail me.” I hoped my eyes conveyed what I was sure my words were failing to. I didn’t blame Ian for any of this. I did however blame a whole host of other people, including my grandfather. Trying to protect me or not, he’d left me at risk, and now I was paying the consequences for the lack of information.

  “I did. I promised you were safe, yet Bryant was able to literally tear you from my arms.” His face was a mask of anger and worry.

  “I was being reckless. I didn’t want anyone telling me what to do or think. If I’d listened to you instead of running outside to be alone it wouldn’t have been so easy for him, but he would have gotten to me anyway. Bryant might just be the most determined person I’ve ever met. And it’s not a good kind of determination, but if it can help us now, I’m more than happy to use that side of him.”

  “Can you tell me more about what happened? You said something about murdered girls? What do you mean?”

  I took a few deep breaths before starting to explain. “Lochlan taught me some exercises to use my Séancer side. They worked. I found a girl who was dead, but somehow stuck in this strange in-between state.” I remembered the first time I heard her voice. The hollow, lonely sound. “She was so sad. So alone. She begged me to help her. I didn’t know what to think—but when she explained that a boy tricked her and killed her. Well, I had to do something. That realization intensified when I somehow woke up the demon who was the one who tricked her.”

  “I thought a boy tricked her.” Ian’s voice was gentle.

  “He appeared to her as a boy.” It sounded so much more convoluted when I explained it.

  “Ok.” Ian nodded. “I think I’m following.”

  “The demon said she wasn’t the only one, and I believe him. I know it somehow. It’s strange. It’s like I connected with the demon and could read some of his warped thoughts. He asked me to help him.” Without thinking I told Ian everything. I didn’t want to hold it back, and I couldn’t. I trusted him in a way I’d never trusted anyone but my Grandfather before he died.

  “Help him?” Ian leaned in. “What do you mean?”

  “He wanted me to work for him. He said it would explain so much, give me power.” I was ashamed even saying the words. I’d never for a moment considered saying yes, but would that conviction ever change? Could I be persuaded by a soul-destroying demon?

  “And what did you say?” There was no accusation in his voice. He only wanted my answer.

  “No, of course. He told me I might be able to outrun him now, but he’d catch me next time. He kept calling me little girl.” Even saying tho
se words annoyed me.

  “You’re not a little girl.”

  “I know. But he knew that bothered me. You know? Like I couldn’t stand someone belittling me.”

  “Demons are horrible things.” Ian’s eyes darkened. “I’ve never encountered one, but I’ve heard the stories. There are some demons that can be redeemed, but a dark demon like a Morte-Demon can’t be. They are only evil.”

  “And this was a Morte-Demon who tortures it’s victims. Like it’s doing with Netta.” My stomach lurched.

  “Her name is Netta?” Ian took my hands in his.

  “Yes.” I nodded. “I don’t know her last name, but it’s nice to know her first.” It made her seem more real. Not that I didn’t know she was real. Her voice and pleas weren’t something I could have invented in my mind.

  “You are a good person.” Ian looked deep into my eyes.

  “This has nothing to do with being a good person; it’s about making sure something evil doesn’t hurt any more innocent people.”

  “I don’t want you getting hurt.” He pulled me into his arms.

  “I don’t want to get hurt. And I really don’t want to get you hurt by somehow dragging you into all this.” I rested my head on his shoulder.

  “I’m going to get involved in anything you’re involved in. You should have figured that out by now.”

  “But you don’t have to.” I buried my face in his shirt. “You can turn around and leave.”

  “No I can’t.” He smoothed down my hair. “And I will never leave you.”

  “Even if I’m more trouble than I’m worth?” I felt more insecure about things between us than I imagined. There was something about coming face-to-face with Ian again that made me scared it was all a mistake—that he didn’t really want to be with me. And it was made all the worse because I knew how much I wanted to be with him.

  “You are worth more than life itself. You and I were made for each other, and I will not allow you to stand in the way of that destiny since I know you feel exactly what I feel.” His lips crashed into mine with an intensity that erased all the insecurities and excuses. I responded immediately, soaking up his taste as I opened up to him, needing him to explore every corner of my mouth as I did the same.

  I wrapped my arms around his neck, pressing my body as close to his as it could get.

  “I need you, Mara.” He broke the kiss and moved his lips to my neck. “I will always need you.”

  “Is it more than need?” I breathed, barely able to think straight as his lips made their way down my neck.

  “It’s want. It’s desire. It’s love.” He moved his lips from my neck and looked deep into my eyes. “I love you, Mara.”

  Love. The word echoed through my head. “I love you too.” I froze, surprised the word had flowed so easily from my tongue, but it was true. Being so close to death made it easier to focus on the emotions that were real and right in front of me.

  His lips met mine again, this time more gentle, as if he was savoring the experience. Although at first surprised by the change, I matched his speed, closing my eyes and losing myself in the kiss.

  “You aren’t ready.” His lips moved to my ear. “I’m not going to let you do something you’re not ready for.”

  “How do you know?” I looked into his eyes.

  “Are you going to deny it?” Ian ran his finger over my cheek.

  “I do love you.” I was absolutely certain of that.

  “Yes. I believe you, but you don’t want to mate yet. There’s no reason to pretend.”

  “We’ve only just met—” That was what held me back. How could I have fallen in love so quickly?

  “Which isn’t a problem for me. But it’s a problem for you.” He kissed the top of my head.

  “But we have to, I need to be anchored—” I couldn’t afford to be so afraid.

  “And that’s why it’s not happening. We’re not doing something so crucial and intimate because you are forced into a corner. We’re waiting until you want it as much as I do.”

  “Then what do we do?” We had no other options.

  “We could come up with another solution.”

  “A solution that still involves me saving Netta.” Because I wouldn’t turn my back on her.

  “We need to talk to Mrs. Peterson.”

  “She knows about this stuff?” That wasn’t the suggestion I was expecting—not that I was expecting any in particular.

  “She pretty much knows about everything. I’m sure she has another solution. Maybe one that doesn’t require us to work with Bryant.” Ian said Bryant’s name with distaste. I didn’t blame him.

  “He’s going to lose it if we cut him out.” And an angry Bryant was a frightening one.

  “I’ll protect you from any of his wrath. I promise.”

  “Are you sure you want to do this?” I needed to ask one more time.

  “Talk to Mrs. Peterson?”

  “Get involved.” It wasn’t a decision he should have been taken lightly.

  “How many times do I need to tell you I’m not going anywhere?” He took my face in his hands. “You’re part of this, which means I’m part of this.”

  “Even if I’m not ready to mate?”

  “Whether we’re officially mated doesn’t change that I know you will be my mate. It doesn’t change the way I feel about you.”

  “So what now? We meet with Mrs. Peterson?” I was nervous about explaining the change of plans to Bryant. He wasn’t going to be happy about it.

  “Yes. And we need to do it without Bryant.”

  “How are we going to manage that?” He wasn’t going to let us just slip out.

  “We can sneak out the back.”

  “And walk to Mrs. Peterson’s?”

  Ian shrugged. “I don’t have my truck anyway.”

  “Why not?”

  “I lent it to Tyler so he could talk to someone for me—I was trying to get info on Willem.”

  “Any luck there?” I still knew so little about Willem, which scared me since he seemed to be the reason I was even in Montana.

  “Not yet, but maybe soon. That reminds me.” He pulled out his phone. “I may be able to help us out on both accounts.”

  He typed something into his phone. “It might take a while to hear back.”

  “Ok.” I looked at him. I looked at the man I barely knew, yet felt more connected to than anyone in the world, and I needed him. I needed him in a way I’d never needed anyone before. I closed the space between us, putting my arms around his neck and pulling his head down to mine. His eyes met mine with surprise before I pressed my lips against his. I demanded access to his mouth, grateful when he opened up to me immediately. This kiss was anything but gentle, and I pressed myself as tightly against him as I could. I didn’t want any space between us.

  He picked me up and carried me down the hall to his bedroom. He lay me down on the bed before following and laying beside me. I reached up and pulled off his shirt, needing the feel of his bare skin. He wasted no time before removing my shirt and reaching around to unhook my bra.

  He tossed my bra into a pile with our shirts and immediately took one of my breasts in his mouth.

  I moaned, closing my eyes.

  “I’ve missed you so much.” His hand slid down my stomach until he reached my jeans, he unbuttoned them and pushed them down enough that he could slip his hands underneath my underwear.

  “I’ve missed you too.” I fumbled with his jeans, pushing them down to his ankles. He kicked them the rest of the way off.

  He pushed my jeans down to my ankles and followed with my underwear. I tried to kick them off, but he stilled my legs with his free hand.

  He then took both of my hands in his and pinned them above my head. “You are so gorgeous.”

  I watched him, struggling to control my breathing as his fingers moved inside me.

  “Relax,” he ordered, running his lips down my neck. “It’s time to let everything else go for awhile.”

&
nbsp; I closed my eyes, focusing on the sensation of his lips and hand while pushing out all other thoughts or worries.

  “My Mara,” he whispered as his lips moved lower down my body.

  His fingers worked their magic, bringing me to a place no one else had ever been able to bring me. “I need you.” I wanted him. I needed him inside me.

  He pulled my jeans and underwear all the way off. “I always need you.” He moved above me, looking down at me with intense eyes.

  “Please.” I hoped that one word would get across the need surging through me.

  He smiled, a wicked smile that fit him just as well as the sweet smiles he usually gave me. “Well, if you’re going to ask nicely.” He thrust into me, eliciting a gasp as he continued to move. He moved faster and deeper until the entire length of him was inside me. I closed my eyes and focused on the pleasure that surrounded me completely.

  20

  Ian

  I would never get enough. Never. I thrust into her again, filling her completely. Perfectly, like two pieces of a puzzle. I’d known we were meant to be together, but the time apart had only intensified my feelings—including my needs.

  I held back despite my desire to bite her neck—to officially make her mine.

  I didn’t want to claim her—make her mine in every possible way- until she was ready. Until she asked me out of desire and want rather than fear and desperation.

  “Ian.” She called out my name as I continued to move inside her.

  I gritted my teeth, trying to calm the instinctual need that pulsed through me.

  She turned her neck, revealing it fully to me. I ached to bite down, to make it official.

  “Mara.” I needed to stop. I wasn’t going to be able to control myself, but stopping wouldn’t be easy. I was in my favorite place, inside of her. Giving her pleasure. Making her scream my name. I was strong enough. I could take care of her without claiming her.

  “Ian.” She wrapped her arms around my neck, pulling me down. “Make me yours. I want to be yours.”