Scottish Werebear: A New Beginning: A BBW Bear Shifter Paranormal Romance (Scottish Werebears Book 4) (5 page)

She plopped down on the sofa and started typing again. Now that this initial hurdle had been crossed, there was a whole lot more for the both of them to talk about. The night was still young, and she didn't want to miss a moment of it.

Leah had come home late. The custom order that had come in earlier in the day for two hundred spring themed wedding favor bags meant a trip into the city for supplies was in order.

She didn't mind the drive so much, nor the traffic, because she knew that at the end of the day she had a quiet home to retreat to. Hers wasn't a city life anymore.

So when she unlocked the door and stepped inside, she could breathe a sigh of relief. Here she was, away from the noise and confusion. Here she could relax.

Leah started to unpack her shopping. The much needed supplies were put away for later in favor of the groceries she needed right this moment. She popped a ready meal into the microwave and poured herself a glass of wine while waiting.

One of these days, she'd decided to learn how to cook from scratch as well, but not today. Leah had more pressing things to occupy herself with, such as messaging Matt, which had become a welcome ending to every day since they started talking shortly after she'd moved into the place.

"What a day," Leah started the conversation

"Oh yeah?" Matt responded instantly, as usual.

"I'd almost forgotten how busy the city can be."

"I wouldn't know. Cities aren't my thing."

"Anyway, glad to be back home. I'm enjoying a ready made lasagna."

"Say what? Sawdust with cheese on top?"

"We can't all be awesome cooks like you."

"Can't or won't?"

Typical. Won't leave the house but has opinions about everything. Leah let out a chuckle, then opened the camera app and took a close-up of her plate.

"If you serve it up nicely before eating, you can't tell the difference," she wrote as a caption to the picture.

"Wanna bet?" Matt wrote, along with a photograph of a very inviting looking steak covered in creamy peppercorn sauce. Damn. He was right, of course.

"Trying to make me jealous? Watch it, or I'm coming over there demanding a share," Leah responded, only half joking. Their daily exchanges had progressed from innocent small talk to merciless teasing and flirtations. What would happen if he allowed things to progress to the logical next step?

Would she be as comfortable with him in person? Perhaps... Or perhaps the chemistry they felt was limited only to characters on a screen.

"What makes you think there'd be any left?" Matt responded. Something told her that the day he let his guard down and allowed her in closer, there would be. But he wasn't ready yet, and she wasn't about to force things.

"Anyway, I stopped by this new micro-brewery on the way home. If you're nice, I might leave you a bottle," Leah wrote.

"I'm always nice."

Ha!

"Give me a moment while I sort out the kitchen. BRB." Leah put the phone down and got to work. The advantage of not actually cooking was that there wasn't much to tidy away afterward either. Soon she was done and keen to properly relax with a second glass of Merlot.

Leah retrieved the phone, switched off the living room lights and retreated to her bedroom. As comfortable as the living area was, her bedroom was her safe haven. It helped that it was also the part of the house closest to Matt.

"Okay, I'm back," Leah restarted the chat.

"You want to watch a movie together? Tune in to Channel 4."

Leah frowned; this was new, but why the hell not? She didn't have a TV in the bedroom, but then again she didn't need one. The Internet had everything, even live TV.

"Dracula?" Leah asked.

"What's wrong with Dracula? This version is a classic."

"All right then, just checking." Leah settled into her pillows and wrapped a throw around her shoulders. The air in the bedroom was chillier than the living room, but soon that wouldn't matter anymore.

In between sips of wine, and the odd comment or remark, Leah soon became immersed in the movie. It had been ages since she'd seen it last. The first time around, she'd dismissed it as silly and a bit camp. This time, though, something spoke to her; she could feel the attraction. How tempting it might be to give in to the darkness, to get close to a man (or vampire) so dangerous.

It was because he'd suggested it, and they were watching together, even though they were apart probably. That was what made her enjoy the film. Maybe one day they'd be in the same room, the same bed even? Leah could only hope so.

As the movie came to a climax, something sent a chill down Leah's spine. A noise. A clicking sound had disturbed her that hadn't come from the speakers on her tablet. She muted it and listened out for more.

"Hey, I just heard something," Leah typed.

"What?"

"A noise-" Leah barely managed to write that much when another, louder sound cut through the silence. Shit. This was definitely close, maybe even inside the house.

She wrapped the throw tighter around herself and got up to investigate. Years living on her own in the city had made her cautious, but she wasn't a wimp. Like that one time someone burgled the flat next to hers while her neighbor was out. She'd heard the whole thing and called the police just in time.

Damn. Footsteps
. She didn't even have anything to defend herself with! Hiding was the only remaining option.

Leah snatched the phone from the mattress and got underneath the bed. Zero bars, all she had was the Wifi. So much for that plan. She opened Whatsapp again.

"There's someone in the house," she messaged. "I don't have a network. Call for help." Her bedroom door creaked open just after she managed to send the final message. She tightly pressed the phone against her chest and held her breath. Her heart was beating so hard it was all she could hear.

Maybe they won't find her. Maybe...

She let out a short shriek when a hand closed around her ankle and pulled her backward.

Matt stared at his phone for a second. Call for help? Was this some kind of weird joke?

He didn't get much time to analyze the situation. A distant scream pierced through his entire being. It wasn't loud, and he doubted any other neighbor would have heard it.
Her voice. This was real. Shit.

His body sprang into action before his mind did, and the transformation was over within a fraction of a second, leaving his clothes on the floor in tatters. It didn't matter what shape he was supposedly in; he knew he had to step up. There was no way he'd let her down.

Although he'd never been in any sort of scenario like this, instinct kicked in. If he charged in there without a strategy, this whole thing could end badly for the both of them. Instead, he opted for stealth.

He checked through the kitchen window, looking for any sign of activity. All seemed quiet now, except for a shadowy figure, loitering around Leah's front steps. There was no way he could get in without tipping this person off.

Matt headed for the backyard instead, opening his back door as quietly as he possibly could and listening for movement on the other side of the fence. Nothing. A quick check through the wooden slats suggested all was clear. This was to be his entry point.

With swift movements, he picked up his heavy wooden picnic table and placed it beside the boundary, before climbing on top and jumping over the top of the six-foot-tall fence, landing in the soft grass and crouching down immediately for cover.

There was no way anyone could have heard him unless they had the same super sensitive hearing he had. Looking down, the sight of massive furry paws where his hands should have been was distracting, but not enough to throw him off track. It's just a trick of the mind.

Some light filtered through the gap in the curtains, revealing two silhouettes standing across from one another. They seemed to be arguing, but he couldn't make out the words, so he crawled ahead and crouched underneath the window.

"She's just a human. We can't do this!" a younger sounding male voice whispered.

"She said this was the place. You've got to learn to follow orders, soldier!" this voice sounded older, more authoritative.

"But..."

"Decide quickly where your loyalties lie. With the Sons or the scum we're hunting. Because if you're not with me now, I'm going to take it very personally."

"Fine. Let's do this."

Shit, what exactly is it they're planning on doing with Leah? This didn't seem to be a regular break-in. For whatever reason, these people targeted Leah's house on purpose. But why?

"All right missy, you're coming with us," the younger guy barked.

Leah let out a muffled squeal.

"If you behave, we can take the gag off. Understand?"

She didn't react, or at least, she wasn't vocal about it. There was a pause.

"What do you want from me?" Leah whispered at last.

"Don't play dumb. You must have known this could happen - that we could turn up."

"I don't know what you're talking about!" Leah argued.

"Stop it, or I'll gag you again."

What the hell was all this about? Had Leah been hiding something? Perhaps there was a reason she'd abruptly moved out of the city and into this house. Not that it mattered, of course, Matt owed it to her, as well as himself to do something about this.

He got up just far enough to be able to see inside. Luckily, the darkness gave him a good amount of cover so the intruders inside wouldn't be able to spot him.

The two men stood off to one side, again discussing something or other, then the older one headed out the bedroom door, leaving behind his uncertain companion, and Leah, of course.

This was Matt's chance.

He got up and checked the window. He could just about get one of his claws underneath the bottom edge. It would give; he was sure of it.

Given the element of surprise was on his side, he could make it. He had to make it.

Matt gave it his all, pulling at the window, which opened up even more easily than he'd foreseen and jumped into Leah's bedroom in one swift move. The man swung around; his face turning white as a sheet when he saw Matt.

"Fu-" he exclaimed, but Matt didn't give him the chance to finish, instead disabling him with a strong blow to the chest.

Then he turned to check on Leah, who looked equally shocked. She was even more beautiful close up than he had dared to imagine. If only the circumstances of their first proper meeting had been better.

"Please..." she whispered, her voice completely choked with fear. "Shit."

"Don't worry. I'll keep you safe," Matt said, but it was no use. He could tell from Leah's expression that his words weren't getting through to her at all. In fact, she'd started trembling all over. Seeing her this way cut right into his core.

He wanted to console her, to convince her that everything would be fine now. But there was no time to worry about that, because the door swung open, revealing the guy who'd seemed to be in charge of the strange operation.

"I knew it! This is the right house," he said only partly triumphantly, while holding up both his hands as if surrendering and backing out of the doorway into the hallway. His right hand twitched subtly before reaching for something. Matt didn't want to find out what, instead charging for the guy and pinning him down onto the ground.

The second kidnapper hit the floor so fast it knocked him out instantly.

Two down, one to go.

But Matt never got the chance to take care of the third guy. Instead, he was faced with the last thing he ever expected to see: Another great big brown bear, flanked by a smaller, blackish one. What the hell?

"Matthew Argyle, I presume?" the first bear seemed to say. How ludicrous. Bears can't talk. And how would he know his name anyway? This wasn't even Matt's house.

"Uhh..." That was all Matt could utter. What in the world was going on? Had he finally lost his mind completely?

"Looks like we got here just in time," the smaller one, a female, remarked. Her snippy tone rubbed Matt the wrong way, no matter how bizarre the situation was.

"I had it under control," Matt stammered.