Kodiak's Claim (11 page)

Which reminded her… Where the hell was Reid as this all occurred? She would have expected to see him come running at the sound of gunfire. The fact he didn’t made her wonder if he was incapable. Perhaps he lay in the snow, injured, dying, in need of her help.

Help she couldn’t give while two predators faced off, circling each other with low growls. Could she take the chance they were too occupied with each to notice her sneaking out to look for Reid? Too risky. She needed to scare them off.

Testosterone, even the animal kind, couldn’t compete against a gun, or so she surmised as she quickly reloaded the empty chamber with more ammo from her stash in her pocket.

Okay, so when the lights went out, her first thought wasn’t to find a candle but to arm herself. She now thanked her gut instinct that catered to paranoia about protection rather than illumination.

With both chambers loaded, she eyed down the barrel, unable to decide which to hit first, a task made harder as the two furry monsters now grappled with each other. Shrugging, she aimed at the snarling mess and fired.

Yelp. The wolf got the first volley—technically his second, making it his unlucky day. With a low howl—that surely meant,
I’ll be back to get you, bitch—
he broke off from the tussle and ran. The bear seemed intent on chasing it, but just in case, Tammy decided additional incentive was called for, and given the large target before her—AKA its fat, hairy ass—she fired. And hit!

The bear roared, and it was uncanny how that sound made her think of Reid when she clobbered him with a frying pan.
His grandma was right. He does sound like an ornery bear.

Before she could go looking for him, because the newest round of gunfire didn’t bring him running, another giant wolf came bolting from around the side of the house, its shaggy head turning for a moment to peer at her. Its vivid eyes caught her gaze with an intelligence surely imagined. This second canine beast loped after the injured wolf and bear. Well, after the wolf at any rate. The bear had another idea. It seemed her attempt to send it on its way had backfired.

Uh-oh.

Yeah, it was dark, the sliver of moon barely lighting the yard, but there was no mistaking the way the bear halted in its tracks. Turned. Faced her. Snarled. Stood, and oh yes, began walking in her direction.

“Oh fuck me to hell and back,” Tammy cursed as she reeled back into the false safety of the house. Her fingers fumbled for the ammo in her pockets, the simple act of reloading betrayed by the shaking of her hands.

It didn’t help that the upright bear roared. Not a happy roar. As if such a thing existed.

Where was a picnic basket or a park ranger when you needed one?

“Shit. Shit. Shit.” She took her eyes off the monster for a minute and peeked down at the gun. She managed to jam the shots into the empty chambers, clicked the gun shut, and lifted it to aim, but she didn’t fire.

Her jaw dropped, and she might have stopped breathing, as she stared upon not a bear, but a very naked Reid, who, sounding like a very pissed-off bear, said, “Don’t you dare fucking shoot.”

Since the day Tammy, the chubby city girl, dropped into Reid’s arms, she’d done nothing but wreak havoc on his life, body and emotions. She’d also shot him. In the ASS! With silver buckshot no less, and it fucking stung.

So was it any wonder when Reid noticed his beta—who in his wolf shape could run much faster with his unblemished buttocks—streaked past him that Reid turned around to confront the bane of his existence. The siren of his dreams. The woman who dared to reload her gun and aim to shoot again.

Beyond thinking or caring, Reid did something rash, something he would have punished anyone in his clan for. Something so unlike him. He changed, not quite before her eyes, seeing as how she foolishly took her gaze off him for a second to reload her damnable weapon. But close enough, so that when she snapped the gun closed and aimed, she faced a very irate, naked male.

“Reid?”

He could see the confusion in her gaze, hear it in her tone. But he was past rational thought, especially with his butt burning something fierce as the silver reacted with his shifter flesh.

“Why is it every time I turn around you’re trying to either hit me or shoot me?” he bellowed.

She should have cowered before his rage. Even Jan, his rascally receptionist, or Brody, his outspoken second-in-command, knew better than to provoke him once he snapped. Apparently, nobody thought to warn Tammy.

Spine straight, eyes flashing, and cheeks hot with color, she spat, “Maybe if you didn’t sneak up all the time, I wouldn’t have to hurt you. Speaking of which, where the hell is the bear this time, and don’t tell me you didn’t see him, Reid Carver? He was right there. And where the fuck are your clothes? That’s what I’d like to know. Do you know how disturbing it is to have a fight with a man who’s naked?”

“Not as disturbing as getting shot in the ass, I’m sure,” he retorted, twisting his hips to show her his offended posterior.

“How is that my fault?”

“You shot me.”

“I shot a bear.”

“Yup.”

And still she didn’t make the connection. Denial. Some people had it stronger than others.

“Just because you’re big and mean, and awfully hairy in some places, doesn’t make you a bear.”

“Oh yes it does.” Yeah, he told the truth. Yeah, it was against his own rules. He didn’t fucking care.
I make the rules.

“Hate to break it to you, but no, you’re not. Big and hairy, yes, but you’re as human as I am.”

“No, I’m not human like you. I’m a shapeshifter. A Kodiak bear to be precise.”

She snorted. “Seriously? You did not just claim that. I might be a city girl, but I’m not gullible.”

“Then explain how you shot a bear in the ass, but I’m the one with the wounds.” He pointed to his posterior. Impossible as it seemed, she looked even cuter when she blushed.

“I don’t know how you got shot. But I know what I was aiming at, and it wasn’t human.”

“Exactly.”

“Oh my freaking god, you actually believe that. You think you’re a bloody bear.”

Her mocking tone was what did it. Reid had never morphed so fast in his life. Nor had he ever heard such a piercing shriek.

“Ohmyfuckinggodyou’reafuckingbear.”

Well duh. About time she believed me.

Believed and was about to take protective measures. Up came the gun, but before she could fire, he lunged forward and batted it to the side. She squeaked and backed away from him, fear finally making her tremble. But he didn’t want her afraid. He just wanted her to believe him.
And to stop fucking shooting at me.

Given he’d just changed shapes twice in quick succession, he couldn’t manage a third, not for a few minutes at least, maybe longer. However, how was he to reassure Tammy he wouldn’t hurt her, even if she was driving him crazy?

Maybe if I looked harmless?
Although how an enormous Kodiak bear was supposed to look benign, he didn’t know. He could start maybe by not looming over her. He sat down, let out a yelp as his wounded butt hit the floor, and stood up again.

Tammy took that moment to dive for the kitchen island and rearmed herself with, yup, the same damned frying pan as before.

Frightened or not, Tammy didn’t back down. Her wild eyes and tone still held a hint of her indomitable spirit as she brandished the frying pan with a threatened, “Come near me, and I’ll hit you.”

If he could have, he would have sighed, or maybe laughed.
Does she honestly think she can stop me with a frying pan?
Given his vocal cords couldn’t handle normal human sounds, he had to settle for an exhalation of breath.

She took that as a sign of impending violence and waggled her cooking ware at him with a stern, “Stay back, or I’ll bash your brains in.”

More like give him a headache. Since the worst she could do was give him a bump on his noggin, he ignored her for a moment so he could swivel his head and peer at the damage she’d wrought.

My poor ass.
While he would heal quickly from his wounds, he still needed to get the silver shot out first. Given its location, he’d need help.

Where is my grandmother when I need her?

He guessed he’d have to wait until she came home and tended him.

At the triumphant howl of his beta, his ears perked. Sounded like someone was enjoying a more successful evening than him. Reid just hoped Brody had captured the challenging wolf for questioning. Something about the odd attack on his home made no sense.

The wiliness of the truck and trailer disappearances didn’t match up with the sloppiness of this home invasion. Not to mention the stupidity. Reid couldn’t wait to get his paws on the wolf and—

Tammy interrupted his train of thought. “Hey, Reid, or should I call you Baloo?”

She did not just call him that. He rumbled a warning.

“Baloo it is. So now that you’ve proven you’re a freak of nature, do you mind changing back? While I’m adjusting to the idea you might not eat me, I’m not comfortable with the fact I’m in a kitchen with a big-ass, freaking bear.”

He growled.

“Sorry if the truth offends you, but really, you gotta admit, your ass is pretty damned big.”

Why me?
He was beginning to think he preferred her in hysterics over mocking. Where was the respect? The obedience?

Apparently, behind her mighty frying pan shield his city girl felt invincible, or so he surmised, as she tread carefully from the side of the island, gave him a wide berth, and headed for the back door. “If you don’t mind, not all of us have a giant fur coat and a layer of fat to keep us warm.”

Fat? Did she seriously call him fat? He bared his teeth. She ignored him as she swept past and shut the door, locking it for good measure, which, given the broken pane, was oxymoronic. A conclusion she came to as well.

“Got any duct tape?” she asked, a moment before the kitchen flooded with brilliance. Someone had restored the power. He blinked at the sudden glare.

She gasped. “Baloo, you’re bleeding.”

Well duh. You shot me.
Of course, she didn’t hear that, but she must have caught something of it in his expression because she bit her lip. “I guess saying I’m sorry might not cut it this time. Can I take you to a hospital? Or a vet?”

He shook his head.

“At least let me wipe off the blood.”

With less fear, and her pan hanging down by her side, Tammy marched back to the other side of the island and, miracle of all miracles, laid down her weapon. As she ran the water, she ducked out of sight, scrounging in the cupboards.

He took that opportunity to switch shapes, the process taking longer than usual and more painful. He groaned as he found himself on human hands and knees on the floor.

“What the— Hey, you’re back. Not that you were gone. But I see you’re just a naked man again.”

“Just?”

“Sorry, a hairy naked man with holes in his ass.”

“I’m glad you find this entertaining. Meanwhile you’re not the one bleeding on the floor.”

“I said I was sorry, and look, I got you a warm cloth for the blood.” She held up a dripping washcloth.

“Great. That just makes it all better.”

“Don’t get snippy with me. I was just protecting myself.”

“Funny, because I was also protecting you, but that didn’t save me from injury.”

“Are you the type of guy who whines and harps and can’t accept an apology?”

‘I’ll accept your apology once you fix this mess.”

“Fix it how?”

“Grab the first aid kit, don’t forget the tweezers.”

“Why do I need tweezers?”

“You shot the silver into my ass. Now you can take it out.” He couldn’t stop a slow smile from curling his lips.

Did he enjoy her dropped jaw and incredulously wide eyes? Yes, he most certainly did. What he didn’t trust though was how those quickly disappeared, replaced by a smirk and a gaze dancing with mirth. “You want me to play nurse, Baloo? Fine. Go lie on the couch. Exactly where is this first aid kit with the stuff I need?”

“Cabinet over the fridge.” While she fetched the kit, Reid hit the laundry room off the kitchen and grabbed a few clean towels. No sense in riling his grandmother by streaking the couch in blood. She’d probably have as much sympathy for him as Tammy did and would make him scrub it clean if he stained it.

Damnable women. And to think he’d harbored lusty thoughts about the human. Well, he wouldn’t have to worry about that anymore. He was cured. Over her. Not interested.

A lie that lasted all of thirty seconds.

Squashed under her frame as Tammy straddled his thighs and sat down on him, he couldn’t help a spurt of pleasure at the closeness. Not that he showed it. His erection was hidden out of sight in the sofa cushions. He craned to glare at her over his shoulder.

“What are you doing?”

“Getting into a comfy position. It’s bad enough you’ve got me plucking shot out of your cheeks. I’m not wrecking my back hunching over you.”

“Your bedside manner sucks.”

“How would you know? We’ve never gone to bed,” she teased.

He would have retorted but clenched his teeth instead as she yanked the first piece out.

“So, how long have you been a bear?” she asked in a conversational tone as she worked on him.

“Since birth.”

She paused. “You were born like this?”

‘Yes, but we don’t actually turn into our animal until we hit about five or six. If at all. Something about our hormones changes around then and makes the shift possible.”

“Fascinating,” she murmured. “You said we. So you’re not the only one who can do this.”

Damn. She’d caught his ill choice of words. “No, there are others. But not many,” he hastened to add.

“All born that way?”

“Yes.” More or less. But no need to give away all his secrets.

She kept plucking and wiping with her warm cloth, her touch softer than he would have expected, gentle. It soothed his bear, and despite the scenario and his earlier assertion that he wanted nothing to do with her, he couldn’t help the arousal burning through him. He blamed that on the adrenaline from the fight. What man, or beast, didn’t enjoy a good fuck after battle? It had nothing to do with city girl’s soft hands or enticing scent.