“You look a… presentable,” I mutter. That’s the understatement of the decade.
“Good,” he says as he takes my hand. “Let’s go inside.”
My heart is hammering in my chest with the feel of his strong hand swallowing mine. He’s so big. Everything about him.
I didn’t think it was possible to feel tiny with all of my curves, but Cameron makes me feel that way. I barely come up to his bearded chin and his body dwarfs mine even though I’m usually one of the bigger girls in a room.
I keep stealing glances at his obliques, his pecs, his nipples, his arms, at everything. I just want to freeze time, pour a glass of red wine, and then shamelessly admire him for a couple of hours.
Didn’t I hear somewhere that shifters love curvy girls? My mind begins to race, wondering if that’s true.
A guy stares shamelessly at me as he exits the shop while we’re walking to the entrance. I just roll my eyes and ignore him, but Cameron doesn’t.
I feel his body tighten. His muscles flex beside me as a low rumbling growl seems to be emanating from his chest. Is that his bear?
I look up at his face and gulp. He looks furious.
“What the fuck are you looking at?” he snarls as he wraps a possessive arm around my shoulders and pulls me into his hard body.
The guy drops his eyes to the pavement and wisely runs to his truck.
I laugh as he accelerates over the sidewalk and onto the street with his tires squealing.
“I don’t like the way he was looking at you,” he mutters as he holds me even tighter. I let him hold me close. He smells too good to fight it.
I just smile. I love the territorial way about him. It’s so primal. It’s so possessive. It’s like walking around with a caveman who thinks he owns me.
Normally, I’m a proud feminist, but this is hitting something deep in me that I didn’t know existed.
It feels good to have the strongest man on the block watching out for me.
It’s like he saved me and that allows him to claim me for his own. The weird thing is, I don’t have a problem with that. At all.
We head into the store and I look around as Cameron speaks with the owner. It’s all farm equipment, seeds, cattle feed, stuff like that.
I notice that Cameron’s body gets all tight when I wander too far away, so I stay near him. I don’t mind. My body feels better when I’m close to him. I get a little twitchy myself when I get too far. I guess my crush is stronger than I had thought.
“I’m low on feed because of the drought,” the owner tells him. “I’ll sell you what I have and order the rest for you. It will be delivered as soon as it’s available.”
I play with my hair as I listen with worry. I wish I could do something to help.
“It might rain later this afternoon if we’re lucky,” the owner tells Cameron. “There’s a storm passing through, but it’s fifty-fifty that it’s going to hit us or not.”
“That would be great,” Cameron mutters and I say a little prayer to the rain gods to help him out.
After he pays, we go around the back to where the bags of feed are stocked. Cameron pulls the truck around and I watch him with awe as he loads up the heavy bags onto the flatbed of his pickup.
I don’t think I blink the entire time. He’s grabbing heavy bags of feed as if they’re stuffed with feathers and easily tossing them into the truck. With every movement, his muscles clench and ripple and curve and flex. I’m practically drooling all over myself as I watch this unbelievably sexy show.
He’s so incredibly strong. A sleek sheen of sweat starts to cover his body, making him look shiny and so damn lickable.
This is getting me so turned on. The summer heat is not helping, but I feel like my blood is boiling as I watch with my thighs clenched together.
He doesn’t take one break and I wonder what his stamina is like in other parts of his life.
After the last bag is thrown on top of the pile, he takes a deep breath and puts his hands on his hips. My eyes follow a bead of sweat from his upper chest as it rolls between his pecs, through the deep ridges in his hard abs, along his pelvis, and into his jeans. I picture it continuing down to his big cock that I know is hiding in there.
It’s hardly hiding. I can see the long thick outline of it behind the dirty faded denim.
I’m wondering if he has a girlfriend when I remember about shifters and their fated mates. If I remember correctly, male shifters have one girl for them and that’s it. They don’t want anyone else. I can’t imagine how amazing that would be for the girl. I’ve always been the kind of girl who thought I’d be with one man for my entire life. I’m not into the hookup culture and I’ve never been on Tinder. It’s fine for other people, but I’ve just never been into it.
“Do you have a mate?” I ask and then instantly regret it. Maybe I’m prying too far.
He nods with a firm stare. “I do.”
“Oh,” I say, trying not to look as disappointed as I feel.
But what the hell did I expect? Really? A man as gorgeous as him isn’t going to be single. He looks like he’s in his early thirties. Of course he was snatched up by now.
I’ll probably meet her when we get back to the ranch.
My stomach twists in agony as I wonder how gorgeous she’ll be. How fit and perky. How unlike me she is…
It was stupid of me to think he’d be interested. He’d never go for a girl like me. Let’s be honest.
“I can just go home,” I say as he opens the door to the pickup truck for me.
I can’t bear to look into his eyes, so I just look at his outstretched arm instead. A tattoo of a grizzly bear stares back at me.
“You’re not going home,” he says in such a forceful, dominant way that it sends warm shivers trembling through me. “You’re coming home with me where you belong.”
My heart is fluttering and I’m all lightheaded as I climb into the truck without arguing. He closes the door, looks at me for a long moment through the window, and then walks around to the driver’s side.
I’m hoping he’s going to slip his jeans off and drive naked like he did before, but I think my luck has run out. He gets in with his jeans on and starts the truck.
His words keep banging around the inside of my head… You’re coming home with me where you belong.
What did he mean by that?
And why does it feel like I’m already home for the first time in my life?
Chapter Five
Willow
Cameron dumps the feed into the big machine and mixes it with some hay that he already had on the ranch. I just lean against the truck and watch him work.
A man with a cowboy hat catches my eye in the distance and I watch as he approaches on an enormous black horse. He’s just as big as Cameron and just as shirtless. He must be a shifter. He’s too perfect to be human.
This man is pure eye candy as well, but I’m not really interested. I keep glancing back over at Cameron as he works. He’s the one for me. My crush keeps growing with every minute that passes.
“You got some protein supplement?” the man asks in a deep voice as he rides his horse up to Cameron. That’s when he spots me. “And you got something else it seems?”
A low warning growl comes from Cameron and it makes the man’s horse back up with a squeal.
“Easy, boy,” he whispers as he pets the horse’s ink-black neck. “Fuck, Cameron. Calm down.”
Cameron shakes his head and takes a deep breath. “Sorry, Logan. I haven’t been myself for the past few hours.”
He seems to understand because he’s nodding as he steals a quick glance at me. “I can see why. She’s the one?”
Cameron smiles as he puts his hands on his hips and looks at me. “Yeah. That’s her. Isn’t she spectacular?”
“If I agree,” Logan says with a chuckle, “is your grizzly going to rip my arm off?”
“Probably,” Cameron says with a grin.
I’m so confused right now. I’m t
he what?
“Let me take over,” Logan says as he grabs a bag from the truck and dumps it in with the hay. “You two go and enjoy each other.”
The truck is already half empty and there’s a lot of cows coming to the fence to investigate what’s for lunch.
“It’s all the store had in stock,” Cameron says with a worried edge to his voice.
“It’ll be okay,” Logan says, although he doesn’t seem so sure. “It’s got to rain soon.”
I look at the bright blue sky and see some clouds in the distance. Hopefully, they’re headed this way.
“I’m really happy for you,” Logan says as Cameron is about to walk away. “You’re a lucky fuck for finding her. Don’t screw it up.”
I pretend that I’m not listening, but my mind is racing as it tries to figure out what they’re talking about.
“You’ll find your mate too,” Cameron says in a low voice.
“Fucking when?” Logan asks with a sigh. I can hear the anguish in his voice.
“She’ll come. Just hang in there.”
Cameron comes over after their heart-to-heart and my own heart starts doing little flips.
Don’t get your hopes up.
Even though I can feel something between us and he keeps giving me all these signs, I just can’t let myself believe that this man is into me. I don’t want my heart to shatter when I inevitably see a gorgeous girl walk out of one of these houses and kiss him on the lips.
“It’s too hot today,” he says as he puts his arm around my shoulders and guides me to the stables. “Let’s go to the lake and cool off.”
“But, I don’t have my bathing suit.”
His lips curl up into a grin as his brown eyes darken. “Perfect.”
My pussy clenches at the thought of being naked in front of him. I’ve never been naked in front of anyone before.
I swallow hard, wondering what he has planned when he guides me into the stables. I gasp as I look around at all of the horses. They’re gorgeous. I walk up to each one and they come over, nuzzling their noses against me or checking my hands to see if I have any food for them. I wish I had some apples or something to give them.
“You can ride Artemis,” Cameron says as he shows me to the most beautiful white horse. My breath catches in my throat as I stroke her soft hair. “She’s a nice horse, but a bit feisty. Like you. You two will be best friends.”
We’re already best friends. I’m stroking her face as Cameron gets some riding pants for me.
“You can’t wear that skirt riding,” he says as he hands me the pants. “These are Jane’s. She’s our gardener. I’m sure she won’t mind lending them to you.”
The pants are a little tight, but I manage to quickly slide into them as Cameron takes Artemis out. I’m still in awe as I hurry out and watch him strap the saddle on her.
“Have you ever ridden before?” he asks as he helps me onto her back. His hands are not shy to touch my ass as he lifts me up.
“A few times when I was a kid,” I say as I settle into the leather saddle and grip the reins. “I’m sure I’ll be fine.”
“Do you remember how to go?”
“Yeah,” I say with a nod. I’m acting way more confident than I’m feeling. I don’t remember horses being this high. Or being this unsteady. “I just have to squeeze her with my thighs, right?”
I squeeze the horse hard and she just takes off in a full sprint.
“No!” I scream in panic as she bolts so fast across the plains that I’m sure there will be a trail of fire behind us. “Slow the fuck down please!”
Artemis is not listening to anything I say. She’s just going faster and faster as I hold on with everything I have, trying not to fall off.
I quickly turn around and see Cameron sprinting back to the stables.
My crazy horse keeps flying through the field, sending my hair flying back in the wind and nearly giving me a heart attack.
Did I say we were best friends? Because I hate this psycho bitch.
“Slow down!” I shout but it just makes her go faster. “Do you speak English?! Slow the fuck down! Please!”
She’s heading straight for the thick forest at the edge of the property. I quickly look over my shoulder and am thrilled to see Cameron on top of a huge brown stallion. He’s standing in the saddle and slapping the reins as he comes bolting after us.
Finally, Artemis slows to a trot as we approach the dense trees. My heart is pounding. I’m so sweaty. Fuck, I nearly died because of this lunatic horse.
“What is wrong with you?”
She just knickers as she slowly wanders along the edge of the forest, going wherever the fuck she wants.
I feel eyes on me from somewhere among the trees and I gasp when I spot a huge grizzly bear inside. The bear is even bigger than Cameron’s bear and it’s glaring at me like he’s daring me to enter his territory.
“Let’s go,” I whisper to Artemis (who must be hard of hearing). “There’s a bear in there. Go the other way. No! What are you doing?! Look! Bear! Fuck you, you stupid horse! You’re going to get me eaten!”
With a roar, the grizzly comes charging out, growling and snarling menacingly at us. He’s fucking enormous. My hands start shaking as I look for somewhere to flee to, but there’s nowhere to go.
The grizzly’s eyes are locked on me as stalks forward on huge paws that could crush me in an instant. His head is low. The hair on his back standing straight up. Teeth out. Murderous look in his eyes. He’s the scariest thing I’ve ever seen. Even scarier than the three guys who attacked me earlier.
I squeeze my thighs together, but Artemis doesn’t move. She’s either frozen with fear or too stupid to know that now is the time to stretch those legs.
“Move! Come on, you stupid horse!”
The heavy thundering of hooves fills the air and I turn just in time to see Cameron charging in on his horse. He stands on his back and then leaps into the air, exploding into his grizzly bear before he hits the ground. His jeans explode into pieces away from him as he lands between me and the deadly bear with a territorial growl.
I can feel the protectiveness flowing off of Cameron’s bear and wrapping around me like a warm comforting blanket. The fear subsides even though the danger doesn’t. Somehow, I know he won’t let anything hurt me.
My guardian bear stands on his hind legs and lets out a roar so loud that I have to cover my ears. The bear from the forest is larger but he reluctantly slinks back into the forest with a huff and disappears. The tops of the trees shake as he goes.
I don’t think I’ve taken a breath until Cameron phases back and turns to look at me. He’s naked once again, and once again, I don’t mind.
He picks up his shredded jeans and then tosses them back down with a curse. I’m not cursing. I’m too busy staring.
“It’s okay,” I say with my cheeks blushing hot. “I just won’t look.”
“You can look all you want,” he says as he jumps back on his horse. “It’s yours.”
He rides off with his bare ass bouncing on the saddle, leaving me standing there in shock. So many questions are running through my head.
What the hell was with that bear?
Why is my horse trying to get me killed?
But most importantly, what did Cameron mean when he said that big cock was mine?
I squeeze my horse again and she takes off running, following the two giant stallions—the brown horse and Cameron.
This time I don’t mind her moving fast.
Chapter Six
Willow
“That was your brother?!” I ask in shock as we ride side by side.
I’m trying to focus on Cameron’s face and not on his long cock bouncing around with his horse’s every step.
“Yeah,” he says with a sigh. “Adrian has always been a little recluse.”
“Recluse? Cameron, he lives in the forest.”
“All right, maybe primal is the better word. His bear is on the feral side. He’s not
very civilized yet.”
I remember the way the grizzly bear’s ferocious eyes were locked on me and I shiver. I quickly check over my shoulder to make sure he’s not following us. We’re good.
“Adrian is the middle brother,” Cameron explains as I try not to look down at his lap. “I’m thirty-two, Adrian is twenty-nine, and Julian is twenty-seven. That’s the three Bowen brothers.”
“What about Logan? Isn’t he a brother too?”
“He is,” Cameron says with a nod. “Probably the best one of us too. He’s thirty-two like me. My parents adopted him when his dad died.”
“And what about mates?” I ask nonchalantly, casually, not jealous at all.
“Adrian doesn’t have one. We’re hoping that if he ever finds his girl it will calm him down. That it will civilize him.”
“Let’s hope he doesn’t eat her first.”
Cameron laughs. A deep belly laugh that makes me smile.
“Yeah, let’s hope for that. Though, I don’t think he’ll ever leave the forest to try and find her.”
I pity the poor girl who has him as her mate. I hope she’s a tough one and that she can run really fast.
“What about the other guys? Do they have mates?”
“Nah,” he says as he looks up at the mountains.
I swallow hard and force out the words. “Where is your mate?”
His eyebrow raises as he looks at me. “What do you mean?”
“Wouldn’t she have a problem with you taking me for a ride while you’re naked?”
His horse comes to a stop as he stares at me with a heated look. My horse stops too and suddenly we’re right beside each other, our legs touching.
“Willow,” he says in a low voice that’s charged with emotion. “It’s you. You’re my mate. Didn’t you realize that?”
“Oh, yeah,” I say with a wave of my hand and a nervous laugh. “Totally. I knew that… the whole time.”
“Come here,” he says in a husky voice as he leans toward me. “You’ll know it now.”
Carnal Alpha (The Alpha's Obsession Book 1) Page 3
