Tempted by the Bear - Complete (44 page)

I
sabelle

E
lectricity shoots
out of my fingers with a crack, and a wall of translucent purple haze appears before me. Talullah, the Ouellette’s medicine woman, says, “Wrap it around you.”

I gaze at the Native American woman who stands on the other side of my wall. She can’t be more than five feet tall, but her stout little body is strong, especially when it comes to magic. I frown in concentration as I curl my fingers in an attempt to get the edges of my protective barrier to come over me like a dome. The wall flickers and then disappears. I sigh. “Let me try again.”

Jean Luc is insistent I learn to use my powers as another way to keep myself safe. Apparently my sheer size and strength as a polar bear isn’t going to work for the dangers that lurk in Ouellette territory. My mate won’t tell me what I need to fear, and the secrecy is starting to get to me. While I trust Jean Luc completely, being in the dark is not something I do well. I suspect the threat has something to do with guns, and that usually means humans. But whenever I ask questions, Jean Luc shuts down and tells me one day I’ll understand.

I take a deep breath and inhale the salty air. We’re in a clearing surrounded by a thick forest. It’s deceiving though, because the rocky coast is only fifty or so yards away, and a seagull cries out as he flies overhead. I focus on the power within me. This time when my wall appears, it grows up from the ground to hover over my head with a faint buzzing sound before it breaks apart and floats away like a fine mist. Talullah claps her hands in glee. “I know you don’t believe me, Isabelle, but you are very good at this.”

“Thanks.” We started off with a small shield last week, and I discovered that it couldn’t be penetrated when Talullah shot an arrow at me and it bounced off. If I can learn to surround myself with the barrier, we’ll move on to including other people in my protective bubble. And Talullah said that if powers are combined, then the area can be multiplied.

I close my eyes to visualize my intentions, and when I snap them open again I throw out my hands to let the magic flow. The power explodes with a zap this time, and the wall builds as I lift my arms up over my head and swing them downward in an arc. I shout to Talullah on the other side. “I did it!”

“You certainly did. Now stay focused, and see how long you can hold it.” A rapping sounds as she knocks on my wall. “Very nice construction.” I twirl slowly as she walks around me. I watch through my purple filter as she kicks and pounds to test the strength. When Talullah throws her portly body against the shield, I chuckle. My concentration breaks as I think of how ineffective her physical presence is, and it makes my wall fizzle away.

“Sorry,” I say. “I lost my focus.”

“Yes. But that’s okay.” Talullah’s eyes shine with her joy. “I’ve never met anyone with your level of power, Isabelle. Are you sure you never experienced magic before?”

“Positive.” I imagine how nice it would have been to throw up a wall to keep my mother from hurting me physically. “Trust me, I would have loved to have the ability to use magic as a child.”

“Well, it’s probably a good thing. Just think of the trouble you could have gotten into.” She winks at me. “Something tells me you were a bit of a terror.”

I grin back at her and recall the temper tantrums I used to have. The ones that haven’t even hinted at reappearing since I bonded with Jean Luc. “You are a wise woman, but those days are in my past.”

I believe they really are. Ever since Jean Luc and I completed the true mate bond, I’ve been happy. Deliriously happy at times in the way I imagine most people are when they first fall in love, but it’s more. My optimism runs deep. I no longer dread what my day might bring, and I wake with the urge to get out of bed and enjoy life. Finding Jean Luc was like the sun breaking through the overcast state of my life.

I ask, “I suppose you’re going to want me to practice this.”

“Yes, dear. Throw out your hands and make a dome when the mood strikes you.” Talullah demonstrates how she imagines I would do it, and I watch in amusement as she almost topples over with the force of her movements. When she’s done she tugs on her shirt to rearrange her clothing into order again and says, “Tomorrow, you’ll include me, and if all goes well maybe we’ll build one together.” She clasps her hands in excitement. “That’s going to be so much fun.”

It’s hard not to get caught up in her enthusiasm, and I find myself replying, “It will be.”

Talullah says, “Okay. Time to move on. How’s your telekinesis going?”

“Great. I’m driving Jean Luc crazy by floating things around the house.” I grin at her. “But Grace loves it.”

“Probably because her son is annoyed,” says Talullah. “The next trick I’m going to teach you is hard, but I have a feeling you’re not going to struggle much with it.” She shakes her head as her train of thought wanders. “I can’t wait to brag about you at the next gathering. I don’t think anyone’s had a werebear as powerful as you are. Goodness, when that cranky old Tok—”

I break through her tangent. “Talullah! You have something new for me?”

“Oh. Right. Sorry about that.” She lowers herself to the ground in a cross-legged position and says, “Sit.”

I place myself across from her, and she grasps my hands with ice-cold fingers. “You’re going to learn to read minds.”

I frown as I ask, “You mean like the way werebear communicate telepathically?”

“Not quite. You’re going to learn to know what people are thinking, but you won’t be able to hear it, and they won’t be trying to share it.” She squints for a second and then says, “It’s more like you see it.”

“I don’t understand.”

“I know, I’m not explaining it very well, so let’s just try it.” She squeezes my fingers. “Close your eyes, and let visions pop into your mind.”

When I lower my lids I see a black screen, and I recall Talullah as she was kicking at my dome. Suddenly the vision of her steps through the wall with two ice cream cones in her hands and gives me one. I ask, “Did you just give me ice cream?”

“I did. Now tell me what flavor it is.”

My eyes are still closed, and I stare at the cone she’s holding out. It’s green with little dark spots. “Mint chocolate chip?”

“Yes!” Talullah releases my hands, and I open my eyes to gaze at her as she asks, “Where were we?”

“You were kicking my dome like before and then stepped through it to get to me.”

“So you visualized a memory of me and it led you to what I was thinking. I had us at the Dream Cream.”

She’s talking about a local ice cream place. I say, “I didn’t see that part. Should I try it another way?”

Talullah says, “No. It’s pretty amazing you got it so quickly. Let’s work with what you do instinctively.”

We spend two hours working on my mind reading powers before I’m too emotionally exhausted to do more. Twigs snap under our feet as Talullah and I walk back to the house. She says, “It’s important you respect people’s boundaries; now that you are aware of your ability to tap into people’s thoughts, you may get more than you want to know.”

A branch is rough in my fingers as I hold it back for her to walk by. I’m aware that I can be abrasive, and while I’m past caring what most people think about me, I don’t suppose I’d want to be aware of their internal criticisms. I say, “I can imagine.”

“Besides that, you need to know that such a high-level form of magic is extremely draining to your powers. It will leave you weak.”

I lift up my hand to throw up a wall to test her theory. A tiny blip of power drools out of my fingers, and only a spot of purple forms before it dissipates. “Wow. That’s scary.”

“It is,” says Talullah. “Especially if you’re in a situation where you need it.”

I nod as we break through the trees into the side yard of Jean Luc’s home.
My home.
I turn to the medicine woman. “Would you like to come in for a while?”

She places her cool human hand on my arm. “No, dear. Your mate has plans for you.” She taps her temple as a sly smile covers her face. “I wouldn’t be welcome.”

I chuckle because she neglected to tell me she can read minds too. “Got it.” On impulse I hug the woman. “See you tomorrow.”

L
ucy

A
fter spending
time with Luke my decision became clearer. I gave Serge a chance to make things up to me, but a few more dates only sealed my decision in my mind. Sven is the one. This morning I had tea with my mother, Marion, who is also my clan’s alpha, and she cleared my choice for a true mate. I also shared a bit about Luke’s emotional state with her. My mother and I may have our differences, but as I get older I’ve come to appreciate her ability to get things done. She agrees that Luke needs time to work through his grief, and now that she is aware, I have no doubt my brother will get the space he needs to heal.

I’m on my way to Annie’s, and wind blows in my open window as I drive, making my hair swirl around my face and tickle my cheeks. The sun is shining, and the trees along the road are tipped with red and yellow, because early September nighttime temperatures have been cold enough to start the leaves turning for fall. It’s a beautiful day, and I couldn’t be happier to be alive.

I can’t wait to tell Sven I’ve chosen him to be my true mate. While I’m not looking forward to letting Serge know about my decision, I think he’ll be happier in the end. He strikes me as the kind of guy who needs a dependent girl who makes him feel needed.

Unfortunately my stop to see my mother this morning means Sven isn’t going to be at Annie’s when I arrive. But I can’t race off to see him at his new job, because I’m helping a few of the families with rides for after-school activities. Sven’s begun working at a construction company, and they’re at the Orono college campus renovating a dorm today.

I think about Tori and the fact she’s the Veilleux alpha now. With her new responsibilities she’s switched to part time to finish her degree. That means I don’t have a roommate or my best friend at my disposal. But then Sven’s face floats back to the forefront of my mind, and I realize I won’t be missing her too much, because I’ll be busy with a newly bonded true mate relationship instead.

When I arrive at Annie’s, I find her in the kitchen of the De Rozier dorm. Cans scrape across wood as she moves them around on shelves. She jots down something on a piece of paper before she glances over at me to see my smile dominating my face. “Lucy, you look happier than I’ve seen you in days. Did you—?”

I nod and say, “It’s not official, but I know.”

“And?”

“Sven.”

Annie squeals, “I knew it!” She grabs me and squeezes me in a hug that almost hurts. “This is such great news. You must be relieved.”

I flash back to the way Serge acted when I told him I wanted to be with my brother when he was drunk at the bar, and I say, “More than you know.”

Tristan enters the kitchen and asks, “Did I overhear that you’ve decided?”

“Yes. It’s Sven.”

Annie’s smile is gone, and she says, “I can do the taxi run if you want to leave early. You know, so you get there in time for lunch.”

“Really?” I kiss Annie on the cheek, but her joy for me seems to have disappeared, and I wonder if she and Tristan are fighting. “You are the best.”

As I scurry out the door she yells, “I hate to see anything stand in the way of true love!”

As my feet tap down the steps in a jog, a growl sounds, and I discover Nadia out of the corner of my eye. I keep walking as if I didn’t hear her, because the last thing I want to do is get into another scene with my true mate’s wife. She’ll be finding out Sven is mine soon enough. Unfortunately, she’s not so willing to let things go, because in a flash she’s standing before me, blocking my way. She asks, “True love?” Her hands are on her hips, and I brace myself for a quick shift as I glance around for help.

“What do you want from me, Nadia?”

“I want you to bond with Serge, so Sven and I can get on with our lives.”

I shake my head and begin to walk around her. She grabs my arm but remains human. “All you have to do is let him bite you, and this will be all over.” Sadness clouds her eyes. “If you take Sven from me, I’m left with nothing. Please don’t be so selfish.”

She’s good, because her pleading makes me feel sorry for her. I can imagine what it would be like to lose the man you love to someone you think has a choice. I say, “It’s not that simple. Destiny has plans for me, and if I pick the wrong twin, we’ll all suffer.”

Clearly that’s not what Nadia wanted to hear, because she growls louder this time, and her claws dig into my skin hard enough that I’m sure she’s drawn blood.

“Nadia!” We both turn to Tristan’s alpha voice. “Come here.” The girl walks over to him with her head down. He gazes at me as she does. A hint of a smile plays on his lips as he says, “Go make Sven happy, Lucy. And welcome to the De Rozier clan. I’m glad to have you.”

“Thank you.” I turn and almost dance my way to my car.

In twenty minutes I’m at the University of Maine at Orono campus and head straight for the construction site. Students stroll along the sidewalk, and a shout carries through my open window. I notice a girl glancing around as if she’s lost. I guess she’s a freshman, and I recall similar feelings of confusion when I came here two years ago. I wondered if I’d ever figure out my purpose in life. So much has happened to me since then, and I can truly say that my unsettled feelings that left me an emotional mess back then are gone now.

I tug my shirt down over my shorts as I walk toward the men working, and I spot Sven right away. He’s standing at a table using a band saw. Sweat on his muscular back glistens in the sunlight, and I inhale deeply to capture a hint of his scent. It races through me to ignite desire all the way to my toes. Sven is my true mate and the man I’ll spend the rest of my life with.

The whine of the saw is loud when I move to be in Sven’s line of vision. He glances up and smiles before he flips the machine off to say, “Lucy.” When he lifts up his safety glasses a mask of clean skin surrounds his eyes, while his cheeks are covered in a fine dusting of sawdust.

“Hey there. Got any plans for tonight?” I step around the table to get closer to him.

“I thought we might hit up the Lobster Shack one more time before they close for the season.”

I place a hand on his chest, and it’s hot and damp under my palm. “Okay.” I drag my finger down the defined line between his pecs. “But let’s make it takeout and go back to my place.”

A low rumble vibrates through Sven, and I know he’s aware of my physical attraction as he answers. “I’m not sure I can be alone with you and stay in control.”

I reach up and grab the back of his head to pull him down for a kiss. “You don’t have to.” I nip at his lower lip and say, “I choose you.” I attack his mouth with weeks of pent-up sexual frustration. Our kiss makes me lose awareness of the people around us, but a guy’s voice snaps me out of it when he yells, “Sven. I needed that piece yesterday!”

Sven pulls back and takes a deep breath. “So you’re mine, Little Bear?”

I nod. “Tristan and Marion have given us their blessing.”

He exhales loudly. “This time I’m biting you before anything else gets in our way.”

The man’s voice is practically a growl as he yells, “Sven!”

“Later, Big Bear.”

Sven grins as he lowers his glasses to his nose and flips on the switch to the saw. “Later, Little Bear.”

I let the sound of his nickname for me sink in and hold on to it as I walk away. In a few short hours I’ll be mated to Sven forever. I spy the confused girl I noticed earlier and whisper, “Hang on. One day you’ll know exactly what you’re supposed to do.”