The Cowbear's Curvy Christmas (Curvy Bear Ranch 2) (11 page)

“Come out here, bear-man,” Ben taunted.

Mack crawled across splinters of wood toward Ben’s voice. As he passed under the window, he considered slipping out to get his gun from the truck, but that would mean leaving Madison alone with Ben. That sure as hell wasn’t going to happen. He needed another plan.

Right now, Ben would be expecting him to come through the living room. If he circled around through the kitchen, he might have a chance.

His bear roared with rage. The beast wanted to be unleashed, but Mack held him in. If he was in his bear form, he’d knock things over left and right, leading Ben right to him. He’d also only have his claws and teeth to use as weapons. He’d never be able to get close enough to attack because Ben would shoot him first. If he could somehow lure Ben out of the house, then he’d be able to shift.

Buoyed by the new plan, Mack crawled into the kitchen, then slowly stood. If he touched any of the obstacles in his way, the sound would give away his location. He picked a path through the various pots, pans, and kitchen utensils as he moved toward the foyer. If he could reach the door, he could draw Ben away from Madison.

Two steps from the foyer, footsteps rushed out of the living room. Ben skidded into view and leveled a sleek black gun at him. “Going somewhere?”

Still semi-crouched, Mack rose to his full height. He wouldn’t let this pathetic excuse for a man intimidate him. And he sure as hell wasn’t going to let this maniac get his hands on Madison. He’d die before he saw her hurt again.

Mack held up his hands. He needed to get the guy talking until he could find a way out of this. If Ben had intended to kill him, he would have done it already. Mack had no idea why Ben hadn’t shot him, but he could use that to his advantage. The man obviously wanted something from him.

“Madison won’t leave with you,” Mack said.

“She will. She has no choice. I won’t let her make me look like a fool in front of society again.”

“You shouldn’t have cheated on her.”

Ben waved the gun. “One dalliance and she loses her mind.”

“She had every right to be mad.”

“What do you know about it, cowboy? You have no idea what it’s like in a big city when everyone’s looking to you as their leader. Everything must be perfect. Everything
was
perfect until she left me. I saw them whispering. I saw them laughing at me behind my back.” Ben’s voice rose. “I’ll punish her for making me the laughingstock of Seattle. Hell, she should be lucky I still want her. Any other man would cast her aside.”

“Why don’t you just let her go?”

“Never. She’s mine until death do us part. When I put that ring on her finger, I bound her to me. Even though we haven’t been officially married, she’s still my wife. Now and forever.”

Mack’s belly clenched. He wasn’t dealing with a rational person. The guy was completely delusional and Mack had no doubt that he’d hurt Madison if given the chance.

Ben continued, “Enough talk. I want you to turn into a bear again. I want to hang your head on my wall, a trophy made from the bear-man who almost took my wife away from me.”

“No.”

“Now, bear-man!” Spittle spewed from Ben’s mouth as he pointed the gun at Mack’s chest.

Mack stared into the barrel of the gun and prayed he wasn’t about to make a deadly mistake.

Chapter 11

Madison bolted upright in bed. Angry voices shot up from downstairs. She glanced at the chair where Mack had been sitting. He was gone.

After sliding out of bed, she hurried to the door. When she opened it, she recognized Mack and Ben’s voices.

Ben yelled, “Get on your knees.”

“No!” Madison screamed as she flung herself out of the room and down the stairs.

When Ben whirled to look at her, Mack leapt onto his back. Madison screamed as Ben’s arm jerked to one side. The loud pop of a gunshot registered a second before the bullet lodged itself in the front door.

“Madison, run!” Mack yelled.

She raced from the struggling men into the hall. But she wasn’t leaving. She had to do something to stop Ben.

As she yanked open the closet with the cleaning supplies, she spotted a long-handled broom. She heaved it out from behind a bucket, knocking aside bottles of bleach and ammonia. She clutched the broom and hurried back toward the melee.

Limbs twisted and scraped across the floor as fists flew in a tumble of rage-filled testosterone. She raised the broom overhead. The second she could find a good shot, she’d take it. As she frantically waited for an opportunity, a glint of black metal caught her eye.

The gun!

In the same second that she lunged for it, Ben broke away from Mack and tackled her. The crack of her chin against the floor rattled down every vertebra in her spine. Temporarily stunned, she gasped as Ben scrambled across her in an attempt to grab the gun.

Her eyes went wide as she jerked her knee into Ben’s stomach. He cursed and rolled away from her. When the tip of his finger touched the butt of the gun, she knew she had to act fast.

She threw her body across his and yelled, “Get the gun.”

Already on his feet, Mack circled toward the weapon and snatched it up. He’d just trained it on Ben when he kicked Mack’s knee. Mack went down with a growl, giving Ben just enough time to fling open the front door. Ben hooked an arm around her throat and dragged her outside.

“Stop fighting me,” he snarled.

Madison clawed at his hands. She couldn’t breathe. Her heels dragged through the snow, leaving a trail down the porch steps. They’d only made it a few yards from the house when Mack jumped onto the porch. A roar blasted through the air. Ben froze but didn’t release his grip.

In a twisting mass of rippling muscles and emerging fur, Mack transformed into an enormous grizzly bear. He stood on his hind legs and clawed at the air with paws the size of her head. A shiver went through Ben. Her heart filled with relief. Ben wouldn’t be able to outrun or outfight Mack’s bear.

Ben yelled, “Come any closer and I’ll kill her.”

She yelped as his grip tightened around her neck.

Mack roared, shaking globs of snow from the trees. He bounded down the steps, only stopping when he was less than a foot from Madison and Ben.

Her eyes watered as she struggled to remember the videos she’d seen about self-defense. She couldn’t remember what to do, so she went limp. It diverted Ben’s attention for a second, giving Mack the chance he needed.

As Ben tossed her to the side, she rolled through the snow. She turned to watch Mack stalk toward Ben. There was no doubt in her mind that the bear side of him was a predator. The look in his eyes and the glint of saliva on his teeth held an aura of feral intent.

Ben glanced at her. “Do something! Don’t let this
thing
eat me.”

She had absolutely no sympathy for Ben. He’d just tried to strangle her. As she got to her feet, she brushed the snow off her nightgown. Icy spikes of pain pierced her bare feet. In the rush to help Mack, she hadn’t had time to grab her shoes.

Each step brought another slash of agony. Frozen to the core, she hobbled toward the main house. If she could rouse his brothers, they could help Mack capture Ben. Hopefully that was Mack’s intent, but she wasn’t sure. She’d never seen such rage in his eyes.

“Logan! Drew! Hank! Cody! Brady!” She screamed their names as she stumbled through the snow. Behind her, the bear’s increasingly rough pants terrified her. Would Mack actually eat Ben alive?

She rounded the corner of the house and nearly slammed into Logan. Clad in only a pair of flannel pajama pants, he rushed toward her. He held a shotgun in both hands, poised to fire.

“What’s going on?”

She pointed. “Mack. My ex. He’s going to kill him.”

He sprinted past her. “No one’s killing anyone tonight.”

Although she couldn’t match Logan’s long strides, she stayed just steps behind. When she rounded the corner, she spotted Mack. As he advanced toward his prey, steamy air puffed from his nostrils.

“No!” she screamed.

As much as she hated Ben, it wasn’t right to kill in cold blood. Ben crab-walked back, his butt scooting through the snow. A thin trickle of blood spread from a claw mark on his cheek.

“Don’t eat me!” he shrieked.

Logan stepped between the fallen man and the bear. He leveled the shotgun at Ben but addressed Mack. “I have him covered. Shift back and we’ll call the sheriff so he can deal with this piece of crap.”

Mack roared and with one swipe of his paw, shoved Logan to the side. The blood in Madison’s stomach flooded into her legs. Without stopping to think, she lunged for the bear’s back. As she landed on his side, she grabbed two fistfuls of fur. He shook his entire body in an attempt to dislodge her.

“Stop it,” she yelled.

Logan nudged Ben with the shotgun. “Get up. You’ll be safer inside. Madison, let go. He won’t shift until he discharges all his rage.”

Madison released her hold and slid down until her feet hit the ground. The bear turned his angry gaze on her. She backed away slowly. She had no idea if Mack could control himself in his current state and she didn’t want to risk her life to find out.

She joined Logan and Ben. The three of them walked backward, and then around the corner until they couldn’t see Mack. Logan directed Ben into the main house. Madison followed behind.

“Is Mack going to be okay?” she asked.

“Once his temper cools down.” Logan turned to Ben. “You’re lucky he didn’t kill you. Sit down. I’m sure Sheriff Hunt will be happy to lock your dumb ass up.”

Madison peered out the front window. The bear stood at the bottom of the steps. He gave her a mournful look as his bones snapped loud enough to hear through the closed window. His fur receded. The huge paws became hands and feet. The elongated snout retracted to form Mack’s nose. With the shift complete, Mack regarded her warily.

Her heart broke. What would her life be like if she chose to live with someone who would turn into a bear if he couldn’t contain his anger? She couldn’t imagine ever feeling truly safe.

***

An hour later, Sheriff Hunt slapped a pair of handcuffs on Ben.

The sheriff turned to Madison. “I’ll be back to take your full statement after I lock him up. I doubt he’ll be getting out anytime soon, but you might want to get a restraining order in case he makes bail.”

“I will. Thank you,” she said.

“Don’t thank me, thank Mack for being alert enough to hear Ben breaking in. I’d hate to think of what would have happened had Mack not heard him.”

Mack glared at Ben. “I would have heard him.”

Sheriff Hunt chuckled. “I’m just glad you boys didn’t claw his face off.”

Logan said, “It was close, but Mack’s pretty good about controlling his bear.”

Ben simpered. “You know about this too? What kind of cop lets monsters run around his town?”

“Monsters? I don’t know what you mean,” Hunt said.

“What the… you’re in on this! You’re covering it up! Wait until I tell CNN. You’re going to have the media so far up your ass you’ll wish you never took this job.”

“Son, now you’re just talking crazy,” Hunt chuckled. “I might have to just go straight to the local judge and get a psych eval ordered. Rolling Pines Mental Hospital isn’t too far from here. We’ll be there by sunrise.”

“You can’t do that!”

Sheriff Hunt said, “If I think you’re a danger to yourself or others, I have the authority. Besides, with you going on about bear-men and other crazy notions, I don’t think I’ll have any problem getting you declared insane.”

“My lawyers will have your job.”

“Doubtful. Now get up. Rolling Pines is a solid two-hour drive and I want to get on the road.” He grabbed one of Ben’s arms and hauled him toward the door. “You folks have a good night, at least what’s left of it anyway.”

Logan yawned. “We still have a few hours until the sun comes up. I’m going back to sleep. You can thank me later for saving your ass.”

“Saving my ass? I was doing fine without you,” Mack snapped.

“You almost killed a defenseless man. That’s not like you at all.”

Mack walked to where Madison sat on the sofa. “I had to protect her.”

Logan gave him a wry smile. “That, I can understand. You two have a good night.”

As soon as Logan left the room, Madison stiffened. Although she was grateful that Mack woke up in time to save her from Ben, she still didn’t know what to think about Mack’s ability to shift into a bear. A freakin’ bear!

Mack slowly approached her. “So…”

“I should probably get back to bed.”

“Yeah, I’ll have Harriet come back out here tomorrow to check on you.”

“I’m fine.”

“Can I at least walk you back? I don’t want you walking through the snow in the middle of the night alone.”

She nodded. “Okay.”

Mack hurried to a closet by the front door. He opened it and retrieved a thick winter coat. “Here, put this on. I don’t want you to catch a cold.”

“Thank you.” She slipped her arms through the holes and zipped it. The jacket was a couple sizes too big for her.

Mack held the door open. She stepped onto the front porch and shivered. Even with the jacket, cold seeped up through her bare feet.

After glancing at her feet, Mack said, “I’ll carry you.”

“Oh, no. I can—”

Before she could finish, Mack scooped her into his arms. She wrapped her hands around the back of his neck to stabilize her body. Pressed up against his broad chest, she tensed for a second. He was so big and strong that he could do anything he wanted with her and she’d be powerless to stop him.

But instead of scaring her, molten heat rolled through her body. His lips were mere inches from hers. If she leaned in, she could kiss him. Maybe she was crazy for wanting him, but ever since she’d met him there’d been an undeniable attraction. The reckless part of her, the emotional gut reactions that she’d always ignored, screamed that she should do whatever it took to stay in his arms.

The conscious, rational side of her cautioned not to get caught up in the moment. Not only was she not ready for another relationship, but she also wasn’t ready to drag another man into the aftermath of her relationship with Ben. If only she hadn’t gotten pregnant.

She sighed.

Mack squeezed her closer. “We’re almost there.”

He walked into the bed and breakfast, then kicked the door closed. As he carried her up the stairs, the war between her heart and her mind intensified. He’d been nothing but sweet and caring to her the last few days. She’d made a complete fool of herself that first morning when she’d almost burned down the kitchen, but he’d stepped in and saved her. He could have sent her away at any time, but instead, he’d chosen to help her.

After he laid her on the bed, he sat on the edge of it. “Can I get you anything?”

“No.”

He ran a hand through his hair. “I’m sorry if I scared you when I shifted.”

“I guess I’m more surprised and confused than anything. Can you control it at all, or does it just happen?”

“Most of the time I can control it, but when my bear thought you were in danger, he became so strong that I couldn’t stop him from coming out. And honestly, I didn’t want to stop him.”

She propped up against the pillows. “So the bear part of you is like a different side of your personality?”

“Not exactly. The ancient bear clans told stories about being taken over by bear spirits. But that’s not really what happens. I guess the best way to explain it is that my bear is the part of me that is concerned with basic needs like food, safety, and, well... other things.”

The flush on his cheeks gave her a pretty good indication of what “other things” he meant.

He clasped her hand in his. “I wish I could explain it better. If I could, you’d understand why my bear burst out.”

“I think I understand.”

He looked away for a moment, then turned back to her. After pressing his lips together, he licked them. She sensed he wanted to tell her something but was afraid.

“What is it?” she asked.

“I know we haven’t known each other for very long, but sometimes… do you ever get a gut feeling about something? You know without a doubt that it’s true but you don’t know why you know it?”