I Married a Bear (3 page)

Idiot. What gave you the balls to think you can undo decades of hatred between skinwalkers? You
should've spelled out boundaries instead of trying to be her friend.

My bear rumbled angrily deep inside me.

I didn't want any fucking boundaries between us. Didn't much want to be her friend either. I wanted her in a way no sane bear ever should, much less an Alpha.

I snorted, stopping at the edge of my property where the forest began. I dropped my robe in the snow and fell to the ground naked, my grunts becoming an inhuman growl.

For a brief second, I was a mangled mess of flesh, bones, and fur, but then I got up on four big legs, in my primal state once again.

My bear had emerged. I was the biggest, baddest grizzly in all Denali. If I encountered anyone in the woods, human or bear state, they moved the fuck out of my way fast with nothing more than a respectful nod.

Being Alpha was supposed to be a ticket to the good life. So they said.

If that was true, then why the hell did I feel like complete shit stomping through the brush?

My human senses were normally duller when I let the bear come. Today, they were right there with the powerful sense of smell and enormous claws, taunting me whenever I thought about Laura.

And I thought about her constantly.

Another bear practically got the drop on me when I was deep in the woods. It was just after sunrise while I bowed to the stream for a drink. Hoped like hell the water would help put out the raging fire inside me, the need to unravel the curvy tigress at my cabin and make peace with her, however bitter.

The bear bleated behind me, announcing its presence. I spun, bowed up and ready to charge, but relaxed at the last second when I caught its familiar scent.

Hannah stepped behind the brush and shifted. She barely allowed the trees to cover her nakedness.

“Great Gods, James! You find a dead porcupine in your bed this morning or something? Thought you were really going to charge me.”

I dropped to the ground and shifted. When I stood up, wiping dirt off my knees, I saw a different kind of fascination in her eyes than concern about my attitude.

“None of your business. Long night. The wedding was yesterday. I'm sure you heard all about it.” I glared.

Unlike her, I didn't bother to cover up anything. An Alpha didn't need to.

Hell, there wasn't anything to hide anyway. I didn't get hard when I looked at her, and I didn't need to see her whole body to recognize all the telltale signs of arousal she had for me. Hannah was a looker, but she didn't have half the supple curves and bright eyes my new wife did.

Make that my pretend wife.
My bear snorted unhappily at the thought.

“That's right! You're a married man now. Uh, congratulations?”

I snorted and forced a smile. Turned back toward the water, waiting until she emerged and came up to my side.

“So...what's she like?” Hannah asked.

“Like a tiger. A little spoiled. I'd swear she had the heart of a human if she wasn't from Tiger Bay, though. You know the way their wealth and fancy living goes to their heads.”

Hannah laughed and shook her head. Her gesture tried to say she understood, but she didn't have a fucking clue. Besides, I wasn't in the mood for her flattery today.

“Hmmm...it's too bad she's not a bear, or a real wife. A big Alpha like you could teach her a thing or two about how to behave around a man.” She smiled and licked her lips. Subtle, but not subtle enough.

“Seriously, can't you turn her out to her own place or something?”

I furrowed my brow and put distance between Hannah and I. The girl was trying to seduce me again, and I wasn't having any of it.

“It's too early for that. She needs time to settle in. Tigress or not, she's still a guest among the Denali Clan. I'm gonna make damned sure she's treated with hospitality too. Be friendly if you see her, Hannah.”

Her smile melted. She folded her arms over her breasts and pouted like I'd just asked her to scrub the floors or something.

“You're really trying to make good with her? Well, I guess a man's got to do what a man's go to do.”

She turned, so slowly I had a perfect view of her ass. Just the way she wanted it. “Don't drive yourself crazy, Alpha. We all know what happened with Joe and Lydia.”

My growl told her I remembered. I watched her shift and dive back into the brush, satisfied that she'd had her daily dose of seduction – and rejection.

Too bad no matter how many times I rebuffed her, she just kept coming.

Joe and Lydia were the last bear and tiger forced to pair up for the treaty. Old Joe retired as Alpha when I was just a kid, and Lydia died a couple years ago.

There used to be plenty of rumors in my father's time about Joe and Lydia getting closer than any bear and tiger ever should. Some folks said the lady had a hybrid cub that didn't survive, and then their relationship went ice cold, with Lydia moving across town to her own cabin.

The shameful rumors weakened Joe's leadership. The Elders pressured him to step down early, and he complied, keeping mostly to himself and turning the Alpha position over to my dad.

Fuck, I wished Hannah hadn't reminded me of that whole sorry situation.

I shifted, summoning my bear to walk deeper into the forest.

Letting the bear vent for both of us felt good. I stopped every few paces, angrily scratching at fallen branches and dirt when the urge got to me. I wanted to turn the whole world upside down in frustration, wondering what the hell I was thinking about being so welcoming to Laura.

I wasn't the smartest bear in Denali, but I knew how to learn from history. At the next stream, slurping up the glacial water, I vowed not to let myself get closer to her.

Don't give a damned how sweet her curves are or how good she smells. I'm not gonna end up like
Old Joe, and she sure as hell won't end up like Lydia.

This is an arranged marriage, and nothing more. Time to fucking treat it like one.

For once, I wished Hannah was still around. Maybe I would've taken her out for a drink later and given into her raging lusts. She wasn't mate material, but a quick fuck wouldn't hurt, anything to quiet the relentless wildfire Laura sparked.

One thing was for sure: when I got home, she was gonna meet the other side of me.

I was done introducing her to the welcoming, civilized Alpha. Laura was going to meet Mister Bad Bear, and treat him with respect, even when I made it clear there was absolutely nothing real between us.

“Wake up. Nobody should sleep past noon.” I had to bite my tongue to hold off on calling her
beautiful.

I wanted to curse her for looking so beautiful curled up on my sofa. Wanted to curse my own ass even more for gawking like a stupid cub.

Fuck.
Giving her the cold shoulder wouldn't be easy.

Laura rolled on the sofa and opened her eyes. Her hair was a mess, and the blanket she'd taken from the back of the chair was tangled over her, but damn it if she didn't look good anyway.

“Hey, what the hell? I thought you were only coming down here to drop off your schedule? So we can keep our distance, of course...”

She sat up fast, holding one hand against her forehead. I guessed it was a hangover or some painful build up from all the stress yesterday.

“All that's different now.” I sat down in the empty chair across from her, clutching the armrests.

“Look, I didn't come down here to make you like me. The whole point of this arrangement's to make peace between our clans for another generation. I can't do that if you're spitting in my face in public and in my own home.”

She blinked in surprise. Her cheeks flushed a little pink. Wasn't sure if it was embarrassment or anger.

“I'm not the one who came up with this stupid ritual. If you're asking me to pretend everything's okay in this bears' den, forsaken by the Gods, you're asking me to do the impossible. And I won't!”

Her foot stamped on the ground. I ignored the ripple it sent through her curves, sexy and teasing.

“You wanted fucking boundaries between us? You've got 'em. You were right about last night. I must've lost my brain trying to be your friend.”

Hurt flashed in her eyes. I almost apologized, but then I saw the same sour look she'd given me when our dinner ended last night. This look pushed lightning deeper into my blood.

It made me want to fuck her, fight her, and own her. It was a look that captured everything about the spoiled shits in Tiger Bay, but it was unique to her, uniquely sexy in
make me
kind of way.

“You act like I haven't done my part. I've gone along with everything. I married you and let you drag me to this damned cabin, didn't I?” A low sound followed her words, more like a hiss than any human sound.

“Yeah, you've got a handle on the formalities. Thing is, this arrangement doesn't stop there.” I paused, flexing my hands. “What do you think happens when we're supposed to show up for the Harvest Moon, or when the clans need to remind the Feds where our territory begins and ends? This marriage isn't worth shit if we're at each other's throats constantly.”

Laura sighed deeply. Her long hair wavered as it rested on her breasts. Fuck me if my eyes weren't drawn to her chest, straight to the faint cleavage sticking up above her robe.

I thought she'd been a knockout in that tight white wedding dress yesterday. But today, in a simple robe that was a little big on her, she made me want to jump out of my chair and tear it away.

My bear smacked his lips, needling me to do it. Had to hold that greedy bastard back.

“You're right. I guess we can be mature adults about all this. Just because you're – what? – ten years older than me doesn't mean you've got a monopoly on reason.”

I almost let out a snort. The girl didn't look a day over twenty.

What the fuck did she know about common sense, anyway?

Didn't know if she was short on it because she was beautiful, young, or just a natural spitfire. She was right about one thing.

Her good looks and exotic scent were driving me insane. No wonder I could barely hold a stern discussion here without babbling like an idiot. I shook my head slightly, fighting the flashes of testosterone in my blood, the bear's growl raging in my head, calling out to claim her.

She looked up when I didn't answer.

Fuck.
My eyes were still glued to her breasts, hot enough to burn right through the robe and expose her supple flesh in all its glory.

Her hands went up, and then came down on her thighs hard. She pulled her robe tighter, curling her lips in annoyance.

“There's something else making this so difficult, isn't there?” she said in a low, uncertain tone. “It's not just hate and distrust that's screwing things up here.”

Alarms clattered in my skull. I wanted to leap right over the coffee table between us, shake her, and tell her she was wrong.

I didn't want to admit I'd been caught red handed ogling her sweet body. And if I was, then I wanted to show her she was wrong about it screwing things up. Wrong in every wrong, sweaty, unstoppable way.

“Yeah. You're right,” I admitted.

Damn it. There goes the hard line I needed to fucking take here.

My bear grinned at me from within. He knew there was only one thing getting hard here.

“I get it. You're a pervert.” The redness on Laura's face deepened. “You're some kinda sicko who wants me, even though we're a completely different species.”

What the fuck? Did she really just say that?

I stood up, one octave away from a full on roar. Rage came shooting up my throat, hot and painful.

Just when I thought I figured out how to tame this little tiger, she got her claws into me again.

Catching an Alpha off his game once in a blue moon was nothing unusual. Catching him twice?

Hell fucking no!

“If that's what you think, then maybe you should look in the mirror, baby.” I stared her down, puffing out my chest.

Her lips parted and she gasped in surprise.

I took a step toward her. My bear snorted restlessly, feeling the same sensation he got when he was about to tear into an enticing morsel.

“That's right, Laura. I've seen the way you've been looking at me since we got to the altar together.

You have the nerve to call me a pervert when you're the one who passed out at one sight of these guns?” I folded my hands and flexed my muscles as hard as I could.

“Please!” She rolled her eyes, but the flustered sweat on her brow and beet red sheen to her cheeks told the real story. “I would never–“

“Bullshit, you wouldn't. You want me. Bad. You hate it, and you tell yourself it's sick and twisted.” I rounded the table and snatched at her arm with one hand.

“Keep telling yourself, little tiger. You're acting out because you're secretly hot as hell for this old bear.”

She squealed in surprise as I pulled her close. Didn't stop with my hold on her wrists. They swung around her back, dove low, and cupped the full ass I'd been waiting for what felt like a fucking eternity to get my hands on.

A ferocious growl pushed past my lips when I squeezed her there. She jerked like I'd hit her with an electric current.

“You're crazy. Insane, demented, barbaric bear!” She wrinkled her face in pathetic fake disgust, and I only squeezed her harder.

The robe slipped down her shoulders now that she was standing. Her breasts were almost bare as I smashed them against my chest, separated only by two thin layers of fabric. I could feel how tense her nipples were, how perfectly rough her need matched mine.

My cock jerked hard in my pants. I held her, refilling my lungs slowly.

Big mistake. Breathing only fed the blaze kicking up in every muscle. Once it got going, there was no holding me back, and no more denying the bear's bestial urges either.

“Fuck, you smell as amazing as you look. I'm man enough to tell you every part of me's screaming right now to throw you to the floor and push between your legs with everything I've got. I'm not gonna run away from this desire, baby, no matter who tells me it's fucked up and forbidden.”