Bear Seeking Bride: Trent (Bear Canyon Brides #3) (3 page)

How dare they interfere in his life?

Unable to deal with his emotions, he’d taken her sweet, pure words and used them against her. He’d insulted her, and watched as tears filled her eyes. His brothers had been telling him for years, but it had taken a stranger, his future bride, to knock some sense into him.

He didn’t want to live this way.

His brothers had found someone who might want him, and he wasn’t going to let her get away without a fight.

He picked up the phone and called Bree. His sister-in-law would be able to tell him how to find her.

Olive dried her eyes on the pillow she hugged and took a deep breath. Meeting Trent hadn’t gone exactly the way she’d hoped, but she should have known better. Her history with men seemed to be the new normal, and the encounter only confirmed her previous revelation.

She would die completely alone.

Her stomach rumbled the same time someone knocked on the door. She hadn’t eaten since lunch, and after meeting Trent, she’d come back to her room to cry in private and lick her wounds. She wasn’t afraid, but she felt strange wandering around the shifter town alone.

“Room service.”

Food sounded wonderful, but she hadn’t ordered anything. She got up to tell the man he had the wrong room, and when she opened the door, Trent stood on the other side.

Oh holy hell!

Until now, the closest she’d been to him in person had been half a room away. Even at that distance, she hadn’t been immune to his strong masculine features, but up close she felt as if she might melt on the spot, despite his horrible behavior earlier.

She needed to get rid of him.

Olive opened her mouth, but nothing came out. She could feel the tight, dried salt lines of the tears that had fallen down her cheeks and over her nose, and her hair was wild and untamed. She didn’t care about facing the bellhop this way, but she’d never intended for Trent to see her.

“Hi,” he said carefully. “We need to talk. May I come in?”

“No. We’ve talked enough,” she responded, and pushed the door closed.

“Wait,” he said, stopping the door with his cane.

She peered around the wood to look at him.

“I’m sorry. Please give me another chance,” he pleaded.

“Trent, this is for the best. I’m not what you need and you’re not what I need. Please leave,” she urged.

“But, you are what I need,” he stated.

“No, I’m not. Please leave or I’ll call the police.”

He removed his cane and she slowly pushed the door closed. The look on his face seemed remorseful, but she couldn’t let another lying, manipulative man into her life. She knew if she forgave him today, tomorrow he’d be back to slinging hurtful insults.

The final crack of light disappeared and he hurried out one more thing before the latch clicked into place.

“I was betrayed by a woman,” he blurted.

“What?” she asked through the door.

“I was betrayed by a woman,” he repeated though the wood. “I said all of those nasty things because you made me feel things I haven’t felt since my accident.”

Should she trust him? Could she? If anything, it would be an interesting story. She sighed and opened the door wide enough to let him in.

“I’m going to use the restroom and then you have five minutes.”

“Okay,” he said, taking a seat on the couch. “Thank you.”

She ran into the bathroom and gasped when she saw her reflection. Her hair stuck out everywhere, her eyes were red and puffy, and dried snot and tears stuck to her face to complete the look.

If he’d had any inclination to touch her, which she knew he hadn’t, it would be long gone.

She wiped her face with a damp washcloth and patted down her curls with damp fingers. Her efforts made little improvement, and she threw the rag in the corner and reentered the room. The sooner she heard what he had to say, the sooner he would leave her alone.

She sat down next to him and waited for him to speak.

He cleared his throat several times before the words came.

“Sorry. This is harder than I thought it would be,” he said, his voice soft. “I don’t think I’ve ever told this story to anyone.”

Even though he’d hurt her on purpose, she didn’t want to do the same to him. The look on his face pushed some of her anger away. Whatever the reason for his actions, she wouldn’t force him to explain himself.

“Don’t worry about it. Thank you for coming, and I wish you all the best.”

She stood and waited for him to follow, but he started talking instead.

“Right around the time the government sanctioned land for shifters, I asked my girlfriend at the time, a human, to marry me.”

She sat back down. He’d been married before? How had she betrayed him?

“She said yes,” he continued, “and as a wedding present, my brothers and I built her a dream home on the outskirts of the city. When it was finished, we bought some new furniture for our new home. The day it was delivered, she and I drove out to the house so we could figure out where we wanted to put everything. Once we got it set up, she wanted to role-play in the bedroom and I let her handcuff me to the headboard.”

Olive gasped and grabbed his hand.

“We’d played before, and the handcuffs were just for fun,” he reassured her, but he didn’t pull away. She took it as a good sign.

“She left the room to get into costume, luckily I was still fully clothed, and I fell asleep waiting for her to return. I didn’t wake until she sped away from the house in my truck, but it was too late. Flames licked the walls and door and rapidly climbed to the roof. I was on the second story.”

“Oh Trent,” Olive said, tears filling her eyes.

He held her hand tighter and kept talking.

“When I saw the flames, I realized she’d used silver handcuffs. Silver is the only metal that can hold a shifter. It’s like our Kryptonite. I broke the headboard, but I couldn’t break the metal to free myself. I could hear the wood creaking and I knew that I only had a few moments before it gave out, so I did the only thing I could do.”

“You jumped,” she whispered.

“Yes, and I landed very wrong. My leg cracked in three places, and then I half ran, half crawled as far away from the house as I could. My cell-phone had been in the truck, so all I could do was watch the house fall, and wait until I passed out from the pain and blood loss.”

“Oh my god.”

“When I came to, Travis and Tyler surrounded me, along with the paramedics, while the fire department put out the rubble. The doctors did their best, but they couldn’t make me whole again.”

His pain was palpable and she couldn’t stop the tears that escaped and left new salty trails down her cheeks. No wonder he didn’t like women. As much as she didn’t want to excuse his behavior, she now understood him. She wouldn’t put up with a mean, nasty husband, but if he was a little grouchy once in a while, she could live with it.

She looked into his deep brown eyes, and for the first time she saw his vulnerability.

“You are whole, and you’re alive, which is amazing,” she said, willing him to believe her. “Your leg, your limp and your cane don’t define you; they are just a small part of you.”

“I know,” he said.

“Do you?”

“Yes, but sometimes it’s hard to remember.”

“What happened to your fiancé? Did you ever get closure?”

“Sort of. Travis and Tyler helped the police hunt her down so they could arrest her, but when they found her, she was torturing a cub,” he paused. “They protected the baby.”

She nodded in understanding. They’d killed the woman who had broken their brother.

***

Trent took a deep breath and tried to slow his rapidly beating heart. Telling his story had been difficult, but not the traumatizing event he’d imagined. He had a feeling Olive had a lot to do with it. She cried with him, understood his pain, and reassured him, but she didn’t offer pity or compromise his dignity.

He couldn’t change his past, but he could change his future. It was time to move on.

“I’m sorry about the way I acted earlier. My brothers and their wives sprang your arrival on me this afternoon and I panicked. I was so angry, hurt and confused that I’d decided to push you away the moment after I read your letter. Your words made me feel things I haven’t felt in a very long time, and it scared the hell out of me. I can’t promise I’ll change overnight, but I’ll try. Will you give me another chance?”

“I…,” she studied his face, as if deciding if she could trust him, and he remembered her letter.

“Give me two weeks,” he bargained. “Travis said the hotel is paid up for two weeks. Give me that time to change your mind. If you decide to marry me, I’ll grant you a divorce if you ever change your mind. I’ll even have my lawyer draw up a contract.”

“You know I have nothing, right?” she asked. “When the two weeks are up, I’m homeless and the amount of money in my savings account is barely enough to live on for the next month. I can’t offer you anything.”

“If you decide to stay, you’ll give me your love and that’s enough. We need to talk about your past, but I’ll cover all of your expenses while you’re here. Please say you’ll stay.”

She smiled and he knew he’d won. He placed his free hand on the nape of her neck and pulled her closer. Their lips were inches apart, and their breath mingled together as he waited for her response.

“Okay,” she said. “I’ll give you two weeks, but you have to really try. I don’t want to marry a grouchy old man.”

She was eight years younger than him, but her smile revealed she really didn’t care. He enjoyed her teasing, and leaned an inch closer to her delectable mouth.

“Who are you calling old?” he feigned offense.

“Well,” she laughed, “you’re older than me.”

“That means I’m in charge,” he teased back and closed the distance between them.

He gently brushed his lips against hers, and then repeated the action. She followed his lead and carefully kissed him back, and his cock instantly hardened. Her lips were soft and warm, and he wanted more.

He pulled her closer and swiped his tongue against her lips. She gasped and he plunged his tongue inside her mouth. Her hands shot up to his shoulders as if to push him away, but she held on and scooted closer. Their thighs were plastered together, and if she moved any closer she’d be sitting in his lap. Not that he minded. He placed his free hand on her ass to keep her from moving away.

Searing, white hot, electricity raced along his skin when her tongue dueled with his, and he wanted to strip her bare and fuck her on the couch.

He’d never reacted to a woman in such a primitive manner, not even his ex-fiancé, and his bear surged to the surface, ready to mark its mate.

God damn
her mouth tasted like heaven. He could kiss her all night.

Her stomach growled, the loud roar filling the room, and he broke the kiss.

As he tried to control his breathing, Olive’s cheeks heated and she stared, unmoving at her lap. Her hands were clasped together tightly and he knew something had happened, but he had no idea what. It had been a while since he’d kissed anyone, and he hoped he didn’t hurt her. Once their mouths touched, he took everything she’d offered.

“Olive,” he said softly. “Olive, look at me.”

He waited until her glossy eyes met his.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I know I’m not any good at…that. I should have told you before—”

“Wait, what?” Why was she apologizing? “What are you talking about, sweetheart?”

“Kissing, and…” she took a deep breath, “and sex. I know I’m not any good at those things.”

“What? Who the hell told you that?” he roared.

She jumped at his outburst, but she didn’t move away from him.

“Um…everyone,” she answered slowly. “Well, I’ve only been with three guys, but I couldn’t satisfy any of them. I’m sorry. I should have told you sooner.”

She looked down at her lap again and he wanted to pound the three losers who had dared to tell her she wasn’t good enough. He grabbed her hand and placed it on his rock hard cock. It was a bold move, but he was desperate for her to understand.

She gasped and looked up at him, but she didn’t pull her hand away.

Good!

“I doubt your inability to satisfy them had anything to do with you, sweetheart. One brush of your lips and my dick is so hard I feel like I’m going to explode. I didn’t stop because you weren’t any good. If I had my way, I’d take you right here, right now.”

Her cheeks darkened, but she didn’t look away or remove her hand. He considered it a good sign when she leaned toward him, but he had to take care of her other needs first.

“The reason I stopped, is because your stomach growled and it reminded me I haven’t fed you yet. When was the last time you ate?”

“Um…I picked up some lunch in the car earlier.”

“That was hours ago. Let’s go get something to eat, but be warned. I expect you to explain that part of your letter, too.”

Fear passed over her face so quick he almost missed it. He had a feeling he wouldn’t like what he heard, but he had to know. Someone had hurt his soon-to-be mate, and they would pay if he had anything to do with it.

“Okay. I’ll be ready in ten minutes,” she said, standing.

“Take as long as you need, sweetheart,” he said and leaned back on the couch. “I’ll be right here waiting for you.”

His comment was more truth than she could know. Somehow, in the course of a day, he’d gone from a grouchy, angry, and single man, to a patient, engaged, and happy one. Maybe happy was too strong of a word, but the mere act of talking to Olive made him feel lighter. Without even trying, she eased his burdens, and he knew they were meant to be together.