Beauty and the Bear (Werebear Shifter Billionaire Paranormal Romance Standalone) (5 page)

The grounds were covered in lilies and hyacinths, a
beautiful riot of color against the green simplicity of the castle’s yard.
Bella gloried in it, seeing it even from the window as she prepared herself for
the wedding. Today would be perfect. She was marrying the man she loved, and
together they would break the curse. She believed that their love would do it.
And then, finally, she could feel his body pressed against hers and no longer
need fear spending the night with him.

They were ready.

Bella walked down the aisle at her father’s side,
dreamily listening to the chords of Pachelbel in D floating over the hushed
assembly. It was such a beautiful day - one she knew she would remember
forever.

But as she approached the altar, her joy turned to
horror. She had only the briefest of moments to register the look of horror on
Arthur's face as he began to change.

No! Bella stared wildly at Arthur's twisted form as he
struggled against the curse. Not here, not now. It was day; how could this be
happening? They thought they had unlocked the key to breaking it.

Would Arthur never be free? She bit back a sob.

With a roar of pain, Arthur's body shifted and twisted,
sinews lengthening and fur growing as he burst from his Italian suit.

With a cry of her own, Bella yanked her arm free from
her father’s grasp and ran through the panicked throng to her beloved. She had
to get to him before he hurt someone. She had to get to him before someone hurt
him
.

The transformation completed, the great bear towered
over the priest and the assembled. His teeth glistened in the sun, beautiful
even as they were deadly. Bella thought she saw someone faint out of the corner
of his eyes. He was a massive bear and terrible, but she knew it was up to her
to keep him safe. He could kill her with a careless paw, and she should have
been terrified. But strangely, she wasn’t. This was her Arthur. He wouldn't
harm her. They could handle anything.

She slowed to a walk as she approached, not wanting to
frighten the bear that her fiancé had become. “Arthur,” she called softly.
“It’s me.”

The bear roared again in response, a noise so great it
nearly deafened her. Ignoring her shaking knees, Bella took another step
forward, keeping her eyes on Arthur’s. “Hush, love. It’s me, you're safe.”

She reached out a hand to him. It held steady. She
wasn’t afraid.

Slowly, so slowly, in a moment that felt like years,
the bear dropped to all fours below her. He leaned his head forward to rest it
against her outstretched hand as the crowd dissolved into murmurs of
incredulity.

“I love you,” Bella whispered.

The bear sighed softly, leaning into her caress.

She turned to face the crowd, some of whom had begun to
draw weapons. “No one will harm this bear. He is your lord, the baron of this
town.

“Many of you have heard stories of a great tallest
roaming these hills. Now you know why. But even though Arthur is not fully in
control of his actions as a bear, he has never harmed anyone, only scared some
unwary travelers. That is why he has kept himself locked away for so long. To
keep you safe.”

Bella took a deep breath, feeling her throat clench
with sorrow and worry. “We had hoped this wedding would bring an end to the
curse that has haunted not only the baron but also our whole town.

“But what we did, we did not only do to break the
curse. We wished to wed for love. You can see the truth of it here. Even as a
savage beast, Arthur wishes only love from me.”

And then the most surprising thing of all happened.

“Well done,” came a strange voice, melodious and
carrying over the hubbub of the crowd.

Bella turned to see the oldest woman she had ever seen.
Leaning on a cane. But her voice was the strong and true, the voice of an
actress or singer, and it captivated the crowd as Bella had captivated the
bear. With a thrill of foreboding, Bella thought she might know who this woman
was.

“You have taught this selfish beast the true lesson the
curse was designed to impart.” The woman smiled, a smile both beautiful and
cruel. “By sacrificing yourself for him, you have taught him the true meaning
of sacrifice, and thus of love.

“The two of you were correct when you surmised that
what would break this curse was a wedding, but what you did not expect was that
love, true love, had to be at the heart of what bound you.”

The crone lifted her arms, and Bella shivered,
instinctively leaning back to the safety of her werebear fiancé’s embrace.

“Behold! From this day forth, Arthur von Ursus shall
live as a man. He shall retake his place among those who can walk in both night
and day. He has learned love, and thus he has learned compassion.”

As though by magic, a deep tolling rang out, a sound so
low Bella almost felt more than heard it. It shivered through her bones,
releasing the stress and fear she had carried. Suddenly, she felt as though she
truly knew all would be well. She and Arthur would be together. Forever.

“Thank you,” she whispered. And then, as though the
crone had told her, she turned to Arthur, already knowing what she would see.

He was changing once more. This time, he stood on his
hind legs, rearing his full beastly form towering high above her. She gazed up
at him with only love, no fear, and watched as he became a man in full. His
bones shortened and shifted, his fur fell away, and once more, the man she
loved more than life itself was standing before her.

And, miracle of miracles, still devilishly handsome in
his custom-tailored Italian suit.

“Thank you,” she said again to the crone, meaning it
with all her heart.

The crone winked at her.

And then, suddenly as she had arrived, the strange
woman was gone from the day. And, Bella hoped, from their lives forever.

She faced her fiancé and held his hands before her. “My
lord,” she murmured, her breath coming quick at how handsome he looked, “shall
we proceed?”

For a moment, Arthur had a dumbfounded look on his
face, as though not knowing quite how to process his sudden transformation and
then release from the curse that had haunted him for so long. Then he laughed,
his joy loud and unfettered for the first time since Bella had known him. “Let’s!
My lord priest, I have a passionate desire to marry this woman immediately.”

Bella took his hands, and stood before the priest.
Finally, everything would be perfect.

~

Much, much later that night, they came up for air.

“Darling?”

“Mm.”

“What will you do, now that you can be a man always?”

Arthur propped himself up on one arm. She couldn’t help
but eye his muscular chest as the sheet fell away from it. Married, true, and
they had already consummated that marriage twice tonight, but she couldn’t help
but be aroused by the firm lines of him. He was a god among men, as he once had
been a beast.

“Truly? I want to be a good husband to you, Bella. And
a good Baron to this town. I have sadly neglected them recently.”

She kissed him, marveling as always how well their
mouths fit together. “How good of a husband?”

“Mm.” Arthur kissed her back with ardor. “Does that
mean you’re ready for me again, Baroness?”

She drew him down. “Always.”

As she said the word, a shudder came over him, tensing
his whole muscular body. His dark eyes flashed even in the dim light. "Are
you sure?"

"Sure?" Bella laughed, a strangled sound.
"Arthur, if you don't take me now, I think I might die."

Their eyes locked, held, for a long, charged moment.
The electricity of his gaze made Bella tremble and ache all the more. She could
almost feel his hands on her. She craved his touch.

He put a hand between her breasts and gently pushed her
down. She let him, closing her eyes and waiting for everything he was going to
give her.

Then she felt his mouth on her. His lips were smooth
and sweet, sending the nerves running down the core of her, excited and eager.
She felt her pussy quiver and drip, reaching desperately for him. And then he
opened his mouth, his tongue finding her swollen nipple, and she gasped in
relief at the feel his mouth.

His lips were so sweet and demanding. She moaned
desperately, and it was all she could do to keep from grabbing his head and
forcing him down, forcing him to suckle her and send waves of pleasure coursing
through her pussy until the pleasure overwhelmed them both. He had been beast
and man both to her, and loved her with an animal ferocity as both. She ached
for everything they did to each other.

“I love you, my beast,” she whispered.

She felt his lips curve into a smile against her skin.
“You're perfect.”

And then his mouth found hers, and  she opened to him,
gasping in his breaths and shuddering as his tongue brushed hers, the spice of
him filling her nose and throat. She was caught, lifted, rising on a crescendo
of need that started and ended with his lips on hers and reached to the very
core of her, piercing all that she was and making her whole.

She felt more than saw his big hands fall on either
side of her. Arthur lifted himself over her, never releasing her mouth. She
moaned as he lay himself over her. She felt flesh on hers and her cunt clenched
in desire.

The Baron's fingers slipped lower then and found her
slick lips, sliding between them with an ease that had Bella panting. Gently,
he moved first one finger, then two, between her folds and stroked her lightly,
as he might a bird. Her whole body quivered, taut, ready to explode but fearing
the explosion. The sensation he drew out of her radiated to her ears, her
fingertips. She could feel them in the back of her throat as she kissed him and
longed for release.

But he teased her still, working her with a skill that
coaxed wave after wave of pleasure from her shaking form, but brought her no
closer to climax. Her need was a tangible force now, a ball of desire that
clenched within her and demanded all of her attention, all of her. His eyes
held her firmly, and she knew, in that moment, what it was to be truly loved.

"Arthur," she whispered.

"I'm here."

It was enough.

With movements achingly slow, he penetrated her with a
finger, exploring her pussy. She shuddered as he felt within her, stroking her
walls and teasing her in all her desperate need. His finger - first one, then
two - slid into her with ease, and out, slowly pressing the desire within her
to painful heights.

"Please,” Bella whimpered, “more.”

And then her Baron rammed his fingers into her, his
knuckles bruising her clitoris and making her scream with desire as he fucked
her with his hand.

"Oh, oh, oh," she whimpered again, her cries
punctuated by the wet sounds of his hand against her cunt. He was working her
fully now, forcing his way into her, curling his fingers insistently along her
G spot with every other thrust.

As suddenly as he had started, his hand pulled free of
her folds, and Bella felt herself gaping, crying in frustration.
"Please," she wailed.

When she felt the tip of Arthur's cock against her
swollen and bruised lips, it was all she could do to lift her hips, an offering
from the purest temple of need within her. Her passion was at terrible heights,
and she could not think, could barely even breathe. She ached, lost in the
crashing pleasures within her.

He stroked her lips softly, pressing his cock just
between them. It shuddered and bucked at her touch, but there was still beast
in her man, and he was strong, and only placed the barest hint of himself at
her threshold.