Taming the Bear Collection (6 page)

      
"Have a seat, my friend," Thorn said, pulling out a chair for Beorn.

      
The old metal thing groaned its protest as Beorn's ample backside lowered into it. He wasn't cut and chiseled like these wolves were, but he had a substantial amount of muscle. At six foot six with shoulders wider than a football field, he was an impressive sight. He'd never weighed himself but he figured he had to be at least four hundred pounds easy.

      
"How is Azyln?" Beorn asked, trying to make innocent small talk. He didn't want to get into the heavy details of what had happened with Hawk; he wasn't even sure it was his place to discuss it.

      
"He's doing just fine," Thorn said casually. "He's a little bit upset that I've decided to come have drinks with you here tonight."

      
"He'll get over it."

      
"Yes, I'm sure he will. I've never met someone with so many jealous bones in his body. We're literally the only two gay wolves in this town, maybe even the state. What does he have to worry about?"

      
"I'm sure you're not the only two. I'm sure some just hide it better than others."

      
"I suppose you're right. Nobody had a clue about me until I told them."

      
"I certainly didn't."

      
Thorn's eyes grew wide and he clamped his mouth shut in mute horror before allowing a smile to trickle back across his face. Before he could say anything Beorn erupted in laughter, forcing Thorn to do the same. The absurdity of that situation finally hit both of them and they couldn't do anything but laugh about it.

      
"Can you imagine if I'd done that to a woman who worked for me?" Thorn asked between guffaws. "I'd be slapped with a sexual harassment suit!"

      
"Does anyone in Bucklin sue for anything?" Beorn asked, still bellowing his laughter.

      
"No!" Thorn yelled, tears starting to stream down his cheeks. "Everything goes to Aster for final judgment! He'd probably slap her on the ass and tell her she had the right stuff!"

      
"I'm glad he didn't do that to me," Beorn said, nearly falling out of his chair. "He might break his hand on my ass!"

      
Both men threw their heads back and roared with laughter as the people around them glanced over nervously, afraid that the two large men were going to be trouble. They had to be humans, because only humans would be worried about two guys having a good time like this.

      
"I haven't laughed like that in a long time," Beorn said after they had both calmed down. "I really needed that."

      
"So did I," Thorn said, wiping the tears from the corners of his eyes.

      
"We should quit while we're ahead," Beorn said, starting to rise from his chair. "Have a good night, buddy!"

      
Beorn plopped back into his chair and both men exploded with laughter again. This time it didn't last quite as long; Beorn's comments had brought the reality of the situation back in front of their faces. There was a reason they were meeting.

      
"I hate to ruin a good time with business talk," Thorn said, staring off into space. It was obvious he didn't want to do this, but he was being left completely in the dark by Rowan and Hawk.

      
"I understand," Beorn said, understanding the pressure Thorn was under. His pack was the smallest one in Bucklin and they never had much of a say in the politics of the town.

      
"My pack has noticed the Oakdale pack has abandoned their farms outside of town," Thorn said, bringing his violet eyes back to focus on Beorn. "The feed store has been closed for over a week, and nobody has seen Rooster Landers since then, either."

      
"Of course not," Beorn said. He realized at that moment that he had no loyalty to Rowan or Hawk. This was serious business and he had to let his friend know so he wasn't caught off guard. "The Oakdale pack has all fled to somewhere in the forest. They betrayed you."

      
Thorn's eyes grew wide as he leaned back. Obviously, he hadn't been expecting that answer. After a moment of it sinking in he leaned forward, his eyes smoldering with intensity. "I thought it would be Crow's pack who would betray us."

      
"Apparently everyone thought that, but he was killed by Abaddon."

      
"I know that, but it doesn't mean he didn't betray us before it happened."

      
"Well, he didn't."

      
"So Forrest betrayed everyone? Why?"

      
"Don't know," Beorn said, gulping an entire glass of Jack down like he was taking a shot. It burned so good he could barely stand it. "Guess you'll find out soon."

      
"What happened with Hawk? Did he find Leena?" Thorn's voice dipped even lower when he said her name, like he was afraid the walls had ears. Knowing the Skyvale pack, they did, and the ceiling probably had eyes.

      
"He found her," Beorn whispered, noting the absolute horror and shock that passed over Thorn's face. "She's at Rowan's house now."

      
"They haven't returned her?" Thorn whispered.

      
"No. As a matter of fact, she doesn't want to go back. Turns out she's been possessed by a demon for the last ten years, a prisoner in her own body. The demon abandoned her for Forrest and he was keeping her captive."

      
"Why?"

      
"We don't know. I have a sinking feeling your little town is caught in the middle of a war between demons."

      
"Why won't Rowan tell us?""

      
"I don't know. Hawk was going to skip town in the middle of the night when he got back, and turn over the pack to his best beta, but he decided to stay until it's all sorted out."

      
"Why would he leave?"

      
"He met a girl in the forest, one who was lost. He ended up claiming her while he was out there."

      
"This is absolutely unbelievable."

      
"I'm sorry, friend."

      
"We have to tell Aster."

      
"Leave me out of it," Beorn hissed. "I want nothing to do with your pack wars."

      
"Let me ask you this, friend," Thorn said, his voice returning to a normal level. "Do you feel safe at home?"

      
Beorn had to admit it was getting harder and harder to go to sleep at night. He could hear the wolves howling in the forest around his cabin. If they were ever at full strength, well, he wouldn't be able to handle them all, especially not a demon.

      
"Exactly," Thorn said, nodding his head. "You're in this just as deep as us, my friend. Your protection depends on it, too."

      
"Fuck," Beorn said, not wanting to admit that his friend was right. "I suppose we do need to tell Aster."

      
"I understand why they wouldn't tell him," Thorn said, pondering the situation. "He won't want to give her back, either."

      
"Does Abaddon even want her back?" Beorn asked.

      
Thorn's eyes opened wide and he snapped his fingers, like a light bulb had gone off somewhere in the dark recesses of his brain. "Beorn, you big cuddly son of a bitch, you've got it!"

      
"I've got what?" Beorn didn't think he was going to like this answer.

      
"We don't need to meet with Aster about this, not yet."

      
"Don't say it, Thorn."

      
"We need to meet with Abaddon."

      
"Fuck, you said it."

      
"This place?" Eva asked, her lip curling in disgust. "Really?"

      
"Where else do you want to go?" Rain asked, exasperated that her friend was suddenly being so picky. "We can't go to Cowboy's Landing because you don't want to go. This is one of the only happening places in Bucklin. I mean, I guess we can go to Sylvester's Bar and Grill, but that place is always full of old-ass wolves. No thank you."

      
"We'll make the best of it, then," Eva said, smiling brightly. "I'm sure there's an eligible bachelor in there."

      
"There are a lot of males in there," Rain said, sniffing the air. "I can smell them, but the problem is they're all the same. Each one of them will want to claim me."

      
"Don't be so pessimistic. Come on, girl, let's go."

      
Rain nearly choked on the smoke that billowed through the door as she opened it. Why the hell would any shifters smoke? There was no way to escape the smell of the smoke; it was irritating to her nostrils. On top of that, the place was filled to the brim with loose young wolf sluts and instinct-driven males looking for a mate. There were also a fair number of humans in the place.

      
"Hey, look at that!" Eva said, excitedly pointing to the back of the room. "Beorn is here."

      
"Who?"

      
"Beorn, the bear. Don't you know him?"

      
"Nope."

      
"Let's go say hi."

      
"No thank you."

      
Rain didn't even look to the back to see the male Eva was pointing at; her spirit was already crushed by the lack of an eligible bachelor in the entire bar. None of these men would be able to satisfy her even the least bit. The wolves would all start out rough, acting like a tough guy as they bit her on the back of her neck, but eventually they would all collapse into an emotional mess as they stroked her stomach and talked softly to her in hopes that they had just placed a pup in her.

      
"What can I get you?" an extremely busy waitress asked.

      
"I'll have a Bud Light," Eva said, still smiling.

      
"Water for me," Rain said, looking down at the table.

      
"What's wrong?" Eva asked, leaning over.

      
"All of these guys suck."

      
"No, they don't."

      
"Just look at them! It's just a bunch of doofus humans and overbearing wolves."

      
"Beorn's not a wolf or a human."

      
Rain's ears perked up as she looked around the room. "Who? What is he?"

      
"He's a bear," Eva said, winking at Rain.

      
Rain had never met a bear before. As a matter of fact, she'd never met any other kind of shifter except wolves. Most shifters frowned on inter-species relationships, but the thought intrigued her and made her naughty bits tingle. It had been a long time since anything had made her tingle down there, but the thought of something forbidden was already doing it for her.

      
"A bear?" Rain finally said. She was at a complete loss for words; had she mentioned she liked the idea?

      
"Yeah, and he's not half bad looking," Eva said, obviously reading her friend. "He's kind of gruff, kind of an asshole. He doesn't like wolves very much and he hasn't had any action in a long time from what I understand."

      
"Really? Where is he?" Rain craned her neck and started looking around the bar like a meerkat popping out of its hole, but she couldn't find him.

      
"He's back there," Eva said, pointing to the back corner of the bar. "The big one."

      
The first thing Rain's eyes fell on was Thorn. She hadn't expected an alpha to be here in the bar, especially not with a half-empty bottle of liquor sitting on his table. He was hunched over at his table, his violent eyes smoldering with intensity as he furiously discussed something with another person.

      
Beside him was the man who immediately caught Rain's eye. He was the biggest man Rain had ever laid eyes on, bigger than even Rowan and Aster. Immediately she could feel the area between her legs getting slick as her body responded to the raw sexuality the man exuded. His large, burly frame was barely hidden by the tiny white cotton t-shirt he was wearing. It sported a V-neck that dipped down to reveal a mat of brown hair that undoubtedly covered his entire chest. Rain hated boys who shaved everything, and the bear was pure man. It was hard to make out his facial features due to the large beard he wore, but his nearly black eyes were the most engaging part. There was great intelligence in them coupled with a burning passion for whatever he was discussing with Thorn. Rain suddenly wanted those eyes to be planted on her naked body, their passion burning for her and only her. There was a rugged quality to him that no man or wolf could ever match. The wolves in Bucklin had become humans who played as animals, but this was an animal playing as a human. He needed to be tamed, he needed a woman to rough up and release his beast with—and Rain was that woman.

      
"What are you doing?" Eva asked as Rain slowly rose from her chair.

      
Rain felt dazed, like she had just woken up from a long slumber. Eva's words seemed distant and hazy; the only thing in her world was the bear.

      
"You can't just walk over there," Eva scolded.

      
Her words fell on deaf ears, though; Rain was going to meet this bear no matter what. Nothing could stand in her way—this was the man she had been waiting for her entire life. It was as if her sexuality had been hibernating through a long winter, but the sexuality of the bear had brought it back to life and it was hungry for love. Her groin ached with desire, demanding to be filled by every inch of the bear. Something inside her begged to have his long tongue run over every inch of her fresh young body.