“Although,” he said, taking her elbow to pull her close again. Her body seemed to tingle whenever he was in close range. “I’m finding it’s a little dangerous to spend time with you.”
She gulped. “Why?”
He brushed wet strands of hair off her forehead as his hand found its way around her waist, pulling her against him. “It makes me want to do things like this.”
Then his mouth closed over hers.
She gasped and then melted into the kiss. She felt so completely surrounded by him, his hand wrapped around her waist and his other hand gently caressing her hair. She couldn’t believe she was kissing the man who’d made her so mad only yesterday, and kissing him in the ocean on top of that.
He was a good kisser, and he easily got her to open so he could sweep his tongue deep inside. He played and explored, and she wrapped her short legs around him to stay close. His hands moved to her hips to hold her. One moved lower to caress her ass. She didn’t care. His hands on her curves felt amazing.
After this, they might both really regret it, but she didn’t particularly care.
When he finally pulled away, she found herself gasping. Wet and tingling and ready for him to take her right there.
His eyes looked lost and confused, but she could feel the hard bulge of his erection against her beneath the water.
He wanted her. He just didn’t want to want her. And what they were doing was dangerous because his dad was hoping to hook them up and she was just here trying to stay safe. Scott had a soft spot for protecting women, but it was clear that was the only reason he’d be spending time with her.
Well, a combination of that and being attracted to her.
But when Mara found a mate, she wanted it to be more than attraction. She wanted him to love her. She wanted someone she felt safe with, who could always be there. Who would put her first.
Whoever mated Scott would probably be accepting his hotel into the relationship—a threesome.
He sighed and looked to the side. “I shouldn’t have done that,” he said. “This is why I try not to give in to my dad’s ridiculous plans.”
“I’ve heard of worse things,” she said, shrugging. “Shifters are desperate to keep their lineage going and make sure their grandkids can shift. Bears don’t reproduce easily. In fact, I’m really shocked your dad had three of you.”
Scott shrugged. “I don’t know how either. I guess he’s virile.” He gave her a panty-melting grin. “Maybe I’m the same.”
She just wanted to sink into his charm, but she knew that wasn’t what this was about. “But you’re not interested in a mate right now,” she said.
His face fell slightly. “It’s nothing against you. I’m just not ready to give everything to a family. I mean, I have a lot of responsibilities and work, and I would probably just let someone down. So it’s not you; it’s just bad timing.”
“You’re no spring chicken,” she said with a harrumph.
He laughed. “There’s still time.”
“Sure,” she said derisively. Leave it to a man to not feel any pressure to settle down. Of course, she was also just bitter she hadn’t been able to get out and really get involved with anyone, thanks to her stalker turning her life upside down. Three years later and the urge to settle down, to have cubs, was strong. But how could she do that when she and her mate would be constantly looking over their shoulders?
If Scott weren’t so driven and obsessed with work, and so disinterested in mating, he probably would have made the perfect mate. With his strength and dominance, she doubted anyone would bother him.
Oh well, she’d just be happy to borrow him for a while.
When he’d been quiet for a moment, she broke the silence. “I’m hungry. Should we go have lunch?”
He nodded anxiously, and she wondered what had been on his mind. He swooped her up in his arms, and she thought she could get used to it.
She’d ask him what he was thinking once they sat down for lunch.
* * *
Scott’s insides were roiling. He’d kissed her. Why had he kissed her?
Something had happened, something odd and never experienced before, and now a part of him was burning for something he couldn’t even name.
He fought the low growl trying to burst out of him as he carried Mara out of the water and set her down on the towels he’d laid out under their umbrella.
She was… She was…
He remembered the feel of her hot, soft mouth taking him in. Her little wriggles and gasps.
The need to take her had been nearly irresistible, and he was a man accustomed to keeping himself under tight control.
This was why business was better. There was no messy emotional component. Just problems to be fixed. Being here with her, feeling each response of his body to hers as she wrapped herself in a towel and sat watching the ocean, waiting for him to feed her, to care for her—it was waking up something inside him.
Something that thought taking care of her felt a little too right.
He flopped on a towel next to her and opened the cooler to take out a sandwich, which he handed to her. The kitchen had prepared the lunch for them and brought it to him all ready.
But a part of him wished he could say he’d cooked it.
All at once, a possibility of what was happening to him with this female came to him, but he immediately brushed it away.
That wasn’t possible.
He wasn’t a romantic like his dad. He didn’t get caught up in things like that.
Needing something else to focus on, he moved to the next most troubling thing for him.
The stalker.
Just the thought of someone bothering Mara in any way enraged him. He was the oldest brother in his family and could at times be protective of his siblings. They’d quickly grown into huge bear shifters that didn’t need anyone’s protection, but still…
But it’d been a while since he’d seen something like this. Sure, he sometimes had to deal with an unruly guest harassing another, but what was scaring Mara seemed to be on another level.
She’d stopped going outside.
He didn’t go out often because of work, but that was different, his choice.
“So tell me more about this man,” he said. While he waited for her to respond, he took an iced coffee from the cooler and downed it in several gulps. “So I know what I’m up against.”
“Well, he doesn’t know I’m here,” she said. “And if he did, I doubt he’d come all the way here when he knows I have to come back home.”
“Do you, though?” he asked. “I mean, you could probably stay as long as you liked, and maybe that would be best until this guy can be dealt with.”
She shook her head. “He’s not going to be dealt with. I’ve already made myself okay with that.”
Rage formed a bigger and bigger ball in his chest as he saw her just calmly accepting a half life where some douchebag got to ruin things for her.
“No,” he said. “He’ll be dealt with. I’m sorry everyone in your life has been so remiss, but you’ve just told someone who can’t let it go.” He gave her a wry smile he hoped was reassuring. He knew she had no real reason to trust him, but despite his occasional grumpiness, he wasn’t a bad person. “I may be a work-obsessed asshole, but I get shit done. We will solve this, Mara,” he said. “We can work on it at night after I finish my work.”
She nodded. “But what if things get busy? Don’t promise you’re going to help if you’re going to just get caught up in other things. I’ve had too many people make promises and then back out when it was too much for them.”
He gave her a cocky smile and cracked his knuckles. “Oh, I’ll be making sure I’m too much for him, not the other way around. But I get why this is important. And hell, it’s almost as much fun as work, knowing I’ll be solving a problem for you that no one else has been able to.” He stood and stretched. “At least I won’t just be bending to my dad.”
She grinned at him. “Rocky rela
tionship there?”
“Yup,” he said.
“I have one request, though,” she said quietly.
He looked down at her. She was staring at a chilled soda she’d pulled from the cooler, a pensive look on her face. “What?”
“I just… Let’s keep it from being complicated.”
“Complicated?”
Her eyes flashed at him. They were dark and a clear, rich brown with long curled lashes. Adorable eyes. Beautiful eyes. “You know, like what you did out there in the sea,” she said. “I get you’re attracted to me, but I also know that doesn’t change anything. You aren’t looking for anything serious, and I’m just grateful to have a safe place and don’t want to ruin that. So let’s keep it uncomplicated.”
“So I can’t kiss you?” he asked.
“Do you normally kiss people you’re showing around the island?”
“I don’t normally show anyone around the island,” he said, beating around the bush. “I only show clients around the resort.”
“Well, do you normally hit on clients?” she asked.
“If I want to,” he lied. He didn’t really meet any clients he wanted to hit on.
But he didn’t think he could promise not to kiss her if they spent time together, so he decided to be straightforward and tell her so.
“I’m pretty sure if we’re together, things are going to be complicated,” he said, reaching for a strand of her hair. Her full lips parted as he came close. “But I can promise you it’ll be a much more fun kind of complicated than the one you’ve been living.”
“But you don’t want a mate,” she said softly, lips still parted.
“I know what I said,” he conceded. “But I also know I can’t leave you alone to deal with this on your own. And my body just really responds to you.” He stroked a finger down her cheek. “And I know yours responds to me.”
“I don’t want to get hurt,” she said. “I’m not in a good place for it.” She tried to turn away, but he held her gaze. “I just… Things have been such a mess. You’re the first person I’ve told in a long time. If you get involved and then you decide to just leave…”
“I won’t,” he said. “Not until we get this sorted out. I promise I won’t let you go until you’re safe again.” She frowned, and he realized that wasn’t a good enough offer. But it was all he had at the moment. “I’m sorry I can’t give more.”
She took in a large breath and let it out in a slow sigh. “It’s more than I guess I expected. So thank you.” She gave him a small smile and put her arms around her legs and looked out at the ocean, and he turned to look as well.
Damn, he wanted to kiss her.
But he’d try to resist it as much as possible, for their sanity.
He didn’t think he’d be very successful, though.
4
Scott dropped off Mara at her room, saying he had some things to do and she could either come or he’d come over when he was done.
She told him to get work done and said good-bye before taking a nap in her room.
A knock on the door several hours later woke her. She yawned, stretched, and looked out the window at the ocean, which was a dusky blue-gray in the waning light.
It’d been a long day, and she could still feel the salty feel from the water on her skin. She should have showered before getting into bed.
She stood and walked into her bathroom, started the water running, and checked the temp with her hand.
Tonight, Scott would brainstorm with her about ways to deal with her stalker. She had to admit he was attacking it more head on than anyone else had. She’d gotten the police involved, but that had offered no protection whatsoever.
Plus, since her stalker hadn’t ever hurt her physically, she got the feeling the police and some family members didn’t take her seriously about what was happening.
But by the intensity of his obsession, she couldn’t help feeling things were escalating, and no matter how it ended, it wouldn’t be good for her.
She pulled off the clothes she’d changed into after the day at the beach and looked at her naked body in the mirror. There was something empowering about simply looking at her nakedness without fear. When she was home, she could never know if she was being watched.
Here on this island, far away from anything troubling her, she almost felt she could paint again.
Almost.
It hadn’t surprised her that she couldn’t paint once the stalking had gotten bad. Painting was something that came out of the freedom of her soul, and when she felt trapped, she could raise her brush to canvas as much as she wanted, but no beauty would flow.
And she ached to create her art again. In the past three years, she’d thrown herself into other hobbies and even taken a job assisting her mother at her art gallery. But that had been a painful reminder of everything she’d been missing.
If it were a gift, something she’d always been able to do and worked so hard to be good at, then how could it be taken away so easily?
If there were such a thing as painter’s block, she had it.
The shower area was large and encased in glass. She stepped inside and sighed as the steam surrounded her. She poured body wash on her hands and started lathering. As her slick hands moved over her flesh, she closed her eyes and imagined it was Scott.
Sure, he could be an asshole sometimes, but he was hot. Also, he was sort of a capable asshole—someone who got things done—and that was attractive.
She could just picture those hot eyes watching her as he stroked her, commanding her to come for him. Damn, she loved how dominant he could be. She sighed and moved her hands between her legs, gasping at how much more sensitive than usual she was.
Lately, stress had kept her from being able to enjoy any alone time. But she was definitely enjoying it now.
A thump in the bathroom made her jump, and as her heart pounded painfully, her eyes flew open and she found herself looking straight into the blue eyes she’d been imagining.
His jaw dropped and he turned away with a hand over his eyes. “Sorry! Sorry! When you didn’t answer the door, I freaked out.” He stayed facing away from the shower as she struggled to cover her body with her hands.
Damn, how embarrassing it was to be caught masturbating by the man she was thinking of while doing it!
Dammit, dammit, dammit!
“Um, can I help?” he joked.
Her face flamed. He had seen. She picked up a bar of soap and threw it at him over the top of the door, and he slipped out with a laugh.
She leaned against the wall of the shower. When her heart finally slowed, she realized it was actually kind of incredible. He’d been worried about her, not perving on her.
Perhaps it wasn’t such a big deal. But when he offered to help, did he mean it, or was he just easing the tension?
Because now that she thought about it, an orgasm would be amazing. She didn’t have to let it mean anything. But wouldn’t it be nice to be held in his strong arms, completely safe, as she let herself be pleasured?
He was attracted to her. So what if he couldn’t or wouldn’t look for a commitment? Maybe he could just help her out of her shell. They could enjoy time together and then go on their way.
She took a deep breath, drawing all her courage up inside her, and then called out to him. “Um, Scott? Did you mean what you said?”
After a moment, he appeared in the door, head cocked. He was wearing a suit, as he’d been working prior to coming over. “About?”
She kept her hands over her body and then slowly removed them, showing herself to him. She couldn’t believe she was being this brazen, but there was something about him that just made all her reservations slip away.
“Are you serious?” he asked, taking a step toward the shower and unbuttoning his dress shirt as he went. “Hell yes.”
“You offered,” she said huskily. She needed this. She needed to forget, to just be alive for a few moments. He was perfect for that, with his big hands and his
big muscles. Those eyes…
“I did,” he said, his voice uncharacteristically breathy.
She rubbed a hand lightly over her breast, waiting for him to make a move.
“You said you wanted to keep it uncomplicated,” he said. “Now you’re tempting me…”
She grinned. “Keep it simple, then. I just need…”
He stepped into the shower, ignoring the fact that he was in a dress shirt and work slacks. He pinned her to the wall with a hand on either side of her head. “What do you need?”
She drew a finger down his chest, loving the way his muscles became even more apparent in his soaked and transparent dress shirt. She reached for his belt, but he stepped back, giving her a full view as he removed it himself.
“As long as you don’t let this confuse you,” he said. “It’ll be my pleasure.”
“My pleasure,” she corrected.
“Honey, your pleasure is my pleasure,” he said, tossing his belt over the top of the shower and unbuttoning his pants. She reached out to pull his shirt down over his arms, leaving him bared in a wet undershirt. He pulled it over his head with both hands in one smooth movement, and she gasped at the sight of his beautiful body.
Something about having him here with her, alone in the shower, was so much hotter than being in the ocean. Maybe because she was naked. Maybe because the way he looked at her made her feel like the most beautiful woman in the world.
She reached for the waistband of his pants, wanting to pull them down and see what was beneath them, but before she could, he leaned forward and planted a kiss at the base of her neck, sending heat sizzling through her. He brought up his hands to cup her large breasts, and she arched to give him better access.
With the steam all around them, it felt surreal. He’d only been in her life for two days, and she’d been angry with him for one of them, and now he was the first man she’d been naked with in over three years.
It was crazy.
Almost as crazy as how good his hands felt on her breasts. He swirled slowly, catching her nipples between his thumbs and forefingers and pinching lightly. She gasped and threw back her head. It wasn’t fair she was naked and he wasn’t, but when she reached for his pants again, he stepped back.
One in a Bear-llion (Polar Heat Book 3) Page 3
