Ursa Major (17 page)

He stripped, heedless of the sound of tearing fabric or the fact that with them both naked, going slow was not an option. Lingering to savor her body would come later. Right now he needed the life affirming action of diving into her wet body. Grabbing her hands, he pinned them above her head, backing her once more against the wall. A low growl built in his throat.

“I need you inside me,” Sarah whimpered.

Her slight entreaty undid the last of his self-control. He slid a thigh between hers, lifting it to rub against her. Spreading her legs, he moved between them. “I wanted to make it good.”

“It is good.” She grabbed his shoulders, lifting her legs to wrap them around his hips. The motion brought him in intimate contact with her and with a single flex of her hips, she took him inside her.

Liam groaned. Ever since the ritual this was exactly what his bear wanted, to be buried balls-deep inside the woman he loved. His mate. She belonged to him. He waited, savoring the flutters along the length of his shaft, the tiny sounds she made and the way her channel seemed perfectly fit just for him. Then, when he couldn’t stand the stillness any longer, he began to move.

Long strokes buried him to the hilt. She clutched at him, twining around his body as if she never wanted to let go. He knew the feeling.

Her tiny whimpering cries escalated, the contractions milking his channel growing stronger with every thrust. He suspected it would always be like this between them, hot, wild. And after tonight…

“Liam!” Sarah screamed. Her cry wrested all coherent thoughts from him.

He clung to her, his world narrowing down to the heat of her body and his name on her lips. A low groan built in his chest. He released her hands, the palm of one hand cupping her ass to bring her even closer to him, his other delving between their bodies to play with her clit.

Sarah came. Her sheath tightened, nearly drawing his own release from him. She sobbed his name, her head buried against his neck. Over and over again, she trembled, her gasps and cries only building his own passion.

His balls tightened.

So hard, so fast, he never imagined that it could be like this. With a raw, primal cry he thrust into her once more. The wall vibrated behind her and with a hoarse shout, he came. He spilled himself into her, the aftershocks daring along his limbs and into each nerve. His bear roared. His skin tingled.

Shit! The change! Liam drew deep, harsh breaths.
I’m a man. I’m human. I can’t do this to her.
Fur threatened to erupt from his skin.

“Liam?” she asked, her voice full of worry.

“It’s okay. I’m okay.” He doubted his rough response reassured her.
Damn it, not now!
He yelled at his bear, and the beast receded.

Liam gulped air into his lungs.

“The bear just got a little antsy, that’s all.” He pressed a kiss to her cheek. Tucking her against him, he straightened and carried her to the bed. He laid her down on the comforter, smoothing her hair away from her face. He snuggled beside her. A moment’s pang gripped him. This would be one of the last times he held her like this, if not the last. His shaft hardened with the thought of spending their last night together making love. She could sleep on the plane.

Sarah snuggled into him. “Tell the bear it’s all right.” She flattened her palm on his chest and kissed the skin over his heart. “I understand.”

And she did. Great mother that was why he loved her. She understood the wildness lurking beneath his skin, the desire he had to run wild and free somewhere where humans didn’t intrude. “Make them understand in Washington. I sensed all along that you love this place like I do. It may be my home, but you understand the untamed beauty of nature. You have to make them see.” Damn it, he didn’t want to make it any harder on her than he had to. She had to see. She had to make them believe.

“I will,” she whispered. A sleepy sigh emerged from her throat. “Don’t worry.”

“I won’t.” He pressed a kiss to the top of her head, aware that she’d fallen asleep beside him.

Liam watched her sleep. The darkness posed no hindrance to his vision. Just enough light filtered in through the windows to illuminate her. He grabbed a blanket, not wanting to disturb her by tucking her beneath the covers and tossed it over their naked bodies. Duty pulled at him. Downstairs in his den the always-open phone line to the Quintursa waited. They had to know what Sarah knew.

He breathed deeply, listening to see if Cameron were still in the lodge. The nighttime sounds greeted him, the whirring of the furnace, the hum of the refrigerator downstairs. He heard nothing to indicate Cameron was still here. Damn. Liam hoped Cameron hadn’t taken it upon himself to call the Quintursa. If he had…No, Liam refused to finish that thought.

His arm started to fall asleep from Sarah’s laying on it, but he didn’t mind. Listening to her deep, even breathing, getting the chance to watch her up close and personal like this was a chance he wouldn’t miss. His brothers would laugh if they saw him now. Maybe not Cameron, it’d take him a while to get over Gillian, if he ever did. But his younger brothers would laugh to think of their big, eldest brother brought low by a woman.

He refused to dwell on tomorrow. Liam glanced at the clock on the nightstand. Make that today. He refused to dwell on what would happen later today. When that plane took off, nothing would change, except that Sarah would take his heart back to Washington D.C. with her.

He must have dozed off, because when he woke, their positions were reversed. Sarah sat up in bed next to him. Her fingers lingered on the pillow next to his face. “I should go pack.” She started to rise from the bed.

Liam reached out his hand and snagged her wrist. A glance over her shoulder at the clock showed only about an hour had passed. “You probably should. Though I’ll admit that if there were a way—”

Still naked, Sarah leaned across the bed and pressed her finger against his lips. “There isn’t and it doesn’t do any good to talk about it. I have to go pack.” She replaced her finger with her mouth and gave him a quick, hard kiss. “You better go get dressed.”

The practical part of his mind had to admit that she was right. Watching her disappear into the attached bathroom, and then listen to the shower start a few moments later conjured images that wouldn’t get either one of them to the airport on time. Taking her absence as a respite, he swung his legs over the bed and hurried from the room. Once in his own bedroom he hopped in the shower, aware of the intimacy of Sarah doing the same thing just a few doors down.

She was right. She had to go back to Washington today. Because if she stayed, he’d want to do something stupid like marry her, so she never left his side again. His breath whooshed from his lungs. Leaning his forehead against the cool, tile wall of the shower, he wondered what had brought that crazy thought on and what his brothers would think.

He didn’t have to contemplate on it for very long. Cameron would hate him for it. The others would only see the potential hazard she caused, not the fact that she made him the happiest as he’d been in a while. And among the
Homo interans ursa,
his happiness didn’t matter. Keeping his people safe did. And if Sarah stayed, there was no way she could keep his kind safe, not with her ties to the human world. Ties he couldn’t ask her to sever.

The man standing in the kitchen definitely wasn’t Liam or Cameron. He stood nearly as tall as the twins, but where they looked like light, he was dark. Sable brown hair might have given him a tousled, just rolled out of bed look if it hadn’t been cut military short. Broad shoulders dressed in a black shirt tucked into equally dark jeans and boots gave him the appearance of someone she wouldn’t want to meet in the dark. “Excuse me,” she said as she went to the counter to start a pot of coffee. She knew she needed at least a glass and Liam probably would want one before leaving to take her to the airport.

The man turned. His dark eyes narrowed. He looked nothing like the brothers. “You must be Sarah.” He tapped a button on the coffee maker and it hummed to life. “I’m Johnny Phillips.” He didn’t hold out his hand, tucking them instead into his pockets and leaning against the counter. “I understand you caused quite the scandal up here. You’re heading back to Washington D.C. today.”

For someone she didn’t know, he sure had a lot of information on her. From the tone of his voice, if she hadn’t decided to fly back today, she had no doubts he’d take her to the airport himself and put her on the next plane back to the lower forty-eight. “You must be Liam and Cameron’s brother.”

“Younger brother. Blake is the baby of the family and my twin,” he said.

At least that sounded civil. “Look, I’m sorry for any problems I might have caused. I came here to do my job and do it well. I promise I won’t bother you or your brothers again. And the report I write will do everything possible to keep further drilling from happening up here.” Sarah sighed. She was tired, she realized. The emotional roller coaster of finding out about Liam, making love to him, and now leaving, was taking its toll.

Johnny poured her a mug of coffee and handed it to her. She used the distraction to go to the fridge and add some half and half to it. When she turned back to him, Johnny still leaned against the counter with his own mug of coffee. “I’m sure you will,” he replied.

Frankly, Sarah wasn’t in the mood to be bullied. Upstairs, she heard Liam moving around and her attention involuntarily lifted to where his bedroom was. She’d heard the shower still running when she came downstairs, the mental images of him standing naked beneath the spray nearly enough to make her follow him into the bathroom and not come out until they both were satisfied.

“Liam cares for you, you know.” Johnny said, almost as if he sensed the direction of her thoughts.

Of course, they probably showed all over her face. He didn’t need to be a rocket scientist to figure out there was something between his bother and her. “I care for him too. And that’s why I’ll make sure that nothing happens here.” She licked her lips and brought the steaming mug to her mouth. Taking a sip, she thought of the fancy cappuccino machine back in her apartment. Somehow, it wouldn’t compare to the coffee that she’d drank here.

Johnny strode forward. Under other circumstances, Sarah saw that he could be a very dangerous man. As it was, he glared at her, as if she were single-handedly responsible for the problems between Cameron and Liam. “Look, I’ll be direct because we don’t have much time until my brother comes down and takes you to the airport. You know things that few other humans do. You do understand that it wouldn’t be wise for you to reveal them. Go back to Washington D.C.. Write your report. And forget about anything that’s happened up here. That’s the best thing you can do for all of us.”

Sarah stiffened. How dare he tell her to get out of their lives! What right did he have? “I don’t think that’s any of your business.”

Johnny moved forward enough to pin her between the counter and his body. She had no doubt he could be a very dangerous man. “These are my brothers and my people. It’s very much my business. Go back, Sarah. You may think you belong here, but you don’t.” He backed off and glanced toward the stairs. A few moments later Liam descended.

They must have excellent hearing. Liam seemed to be able to hear things before they happened and now Johnny. She vowed while she was here to watch them closer.

Liam nodded at her, the smoldering look in his eyes the only hint that something other than friendship had passed between them. “I have to go into my den for a bit. Johnny, play nice.” With those words, he disappeared down the hall.

Sarah battled the urge to follow him. Instead she remained where she was, determined not to let Johnny get to her. “Yeah, play nice.” She fixed him with a saccharine sweet grin. Ducking around him, she went to the coffee pot and topped it off. “So you’ve warned me back to D.C. and told me not to reveal any information. Anything else you’d like to glower at me about before Liam takes me to the airport?”

Johnny grinned. “I can see why Liam likes you.”

“Oh?” She didn’t want to get into this conversation with Johnny, but if she gained insight into Liam’s character, then it was worth it. “Why is that?”

“Because you’re stubborn, like he is. You fight for what you believe in. And you’re passionate about it.” Johnny grinned. He set his mug down on the counter and crossed his arms over his chest. “Liam picked well. Too bad he has to send you back to Washington, because you probably could have made it out here.” With those words, he turned on his heel and headed in the direction of Liam’s den.

~* * *~

Liam didn’t need to look up to know Johnny had entered his den. His fingers hovered over the keyboard. He’d been about to contact the Quintursa, hoping for some more information before he had to take Sarah to the airport.

“She loves you, you know,” Johnny said without preamble. He closed the door behind him, then took a chair on the opposite side of Liam’s desk. “You stupid, foolish bear. You sure got yourself into trouble this time, didn’t you?”

Liam didn’t bother with answering his brother’s question. He knew the truth as well as Johnny did. “So what do you think the Quintursa will do?”

Johnny shrugged. “Beats the hell out of me. I came back because Cameron called. I’m not on official business, and I would think, if the Quintursa wanted you, or she, out of the picture, I’d have been activated. Family ties aside, I’m the closest agent. Cameron’s pissed. He thinks you’re a hypocrite, even though Gillian was years ago. Can’t say as I blame him.”

“What would you have me do?” Liam leaned forward and drew a deep breath to control his temper. Damn it, it wasn’t like he’d asked for this to happen. He never asked for Sarah to show up, never asked to fall in love with her. Never asked her to return his feelings. He closed his eyes and drew a shuddering breath. “What would you have me do, Johnny? What?”

“Exactly what you’re doing. Send her back to her world. She might last in ours, but who knows if she’ll regret it. I hear she has a sister back there. A family. I don’t know if she’d like not being able to see them very often, or hiding secrets from them. Seems like to me from the data the Quintursa has that they’re close. So call the Quintursa. Tell them that she knows. They need to know it before they find out on their own and think you have a reason for keeping secrets from them. Then, send her back home. Forget about her. In time, maybe it won’t hurt so bad.” Johnny spoke like a man who know what he was talking about.

Liam didn’t press. He knew his brother had gone into service for the Quintursa shortly after college. He spoke little about what had happened during his college years or what he did in the service of his people’s governing body. Liam never asked. He figured it wasn’t his business. Now, he wished he knew.

He nodded once. “I will.”

“Now, Liam. You have to do it now before she leaves.” Johnny leaned forward and shoved the phone across the desk. “I think they’re waiting for your call. Your actions here could make, or break, this situation.”

Liam stared at his little brother. Memories of them playing outdoors, the four brothers tossing snowballs at each other filled his mind. Snow forts and snowmen had made up their halcyon winter days. In the summer they raced along the meadows, changing into their forms and romping with other grizzly bear cubs to learn lessons taught by nature, not man. Johnny had once been the clown of the family. Somehow, between college and the Quintursa, that carefree young man had gone, leaving this stoic warrior in his place.

Liam picked up the phone. He hit the button that would take him directly to the Quintursa. They answered on the first ring.

“Liam, we were expecting your call,” the agent said. His voice held no trace of emotion, no hint of what might happen.

“I wanted to let you know that Sarah Doyle has learned about us. She’s seen me shift and has been a part of our moon ritual. She is going back to Washington D.C. this morning and I do not anticipate any problems. She will not tell anyone and she will write the report that we need her to write.” Liam kept his voice even, not wanting to reveal more than the basic facts about his and Sarah’s relationship.

“I see. We expected this to happen. She is returning to Washington D.C..”

Did the Quintursa agent doubt him? Did they think that he’d keep Sarah here, his prisoner? He knew what the consequences would be for a mortal kept among them. He wouldn’t subject her to that kind of alienation from her family. “Yes. In fact, I take her to the airport in about an hour.”

“I see. Is there anything else you wish to report?”

Damn it, why wasn’t the Quintursa agent getting mad? Where was the lecture he expected on being a proper
Homo interans ursa
and keeping the mortals away from their affairs? “No, there isn’t.” He refused to tell them that he loved Sarah. He refused to give them that much control over his life.

“Very well, then. Take her to the airport and do not have any contact with her once she returns to Washington. We will have one of our operatives intercept the report and ensure that it furthers our agenda. Is that clear?”

“Yes,” Liam answered, though the thought of any other of his kind getting close to Sarah had him stifling a growl in the back of his throat.

“Are you sure there’s nothing else you want to reveal to us. We will learn the truth of everything.”

Liam clenched the phone so hard he heard the plastic crack. “No. Nothing at all. If that’s all the information you have for me?”

“It is. Thank you.” Those two words were the only concession he’d get from the Quintursa that he was walking a dangerous road. A moment later, Liam hung up the phone. “There, I did it,” he snarled at Johnny. “Are you happy?”

“No, and neither are you,” Johnny drolly replied. “But it’s done. The Quintursa is right, Liam. I know it hurts like a sonofabitch, but you have to forget her. You have to go on and leave the mortals to themselves. It’s safer that way.” Johnny rubbed his left arm.

Liam followed the motion, but knew better than to ask. Johnny didn’t elaborate. “Thank you. I suppose they could have sent in an agent and just killed us.”

Johnny nodded gravely. “Yeah, they could have. Consider this your last warning. Make sure she gets on the plane, brother. This is one mess I don’t want to clean up.” He rose from his chair and left Liam sitting there, staring at the closed door long after his brother had gone.

He spent the next forty-five minutes in his den under the guise of taking care of business. And he wasn’t completely lying. He had a short two-day trek planned next week for a wildlife photographer and his wife. Some minor arrangements needed to be made as well as a list of purchases to make while he was in Deadhorse. He should stop by and see his parents, though he figured his mother would detect immediately what had happened. And he wasn’t quite ready to deal with the formidable matriarch of the Phillips clan. Madder than a mother hen protecting her cubs didn’t begin to describe her when she thought one of her sons might be in danger or have done something foolhardy.

Liam released a sigh and glanced at the clock. Time to do the adult thing and take Sarah back to the airport. He opened the door and found her standing at the large windows overlooking the back yard where they’d held the ritual. From the dining room the stone slab wasn’t visible where he’d made his offering, but he knew it was there. He figured Sarah did too.

“Are you ready?” He figured the question wasn’t necessary, but he didn’t want to just bundle her into the car as if she were nothing more than a suitcase. He glanced at the door leading to the garage and saw her luggage waiting. So this was it then. She really would be getting on a plan and leaving Alaska, getting out of his life for good. He took a deep breath.

You can do this. You have to do this.
His mental pep talk did him little good. He reached out his hand, as if he could touch her though she stood across the room, then let it drop to his side. Sarah hadn’t turned to face him.

“I’m ready,” she said, though her voice held the thick sound of stifled tears. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think it’d be this difficult.”

“This place gets to you. It crawls under your skin and doesn’t let go.”
Kind of like you.
He moved toward her luggage. “There’s a chance you may be contacted by someone in Washington D.C.. If you are, I don’t want you to ask about me. I’ll be…” He searched for a word. “I’ll be here, giving my tours, doing what I do. If you’re not contacted, that doesn’t mean anything is wrong. It just means that my people trust you to follow your heart.”

Sarah rested her forehead against the cool glass of the window. “Liam, if I followed my heart, we both know I wouldn’t go back to Washington D.C..” She straightened and squared her shoulders. “But I understand what you’re saying.” For the first time since he entered the kitchen, she turned to face him. “Don’t worry I’ll make you, and your people, proud.” She took two steps in his direction, then stopped, almost as if she didn’t trust herself to be near him. Instead, she went her luggage and slid the strap of her laptop case over her shoulder. She picked up her purse with her free hand.