Jax: Mating Fever (Rocked by the Bear Book 6)

C
opyright
© 2016 by V. Vaughn

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Editing by Jodi Henley and Red Adept Publishing

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S
asha Rivard is
an assassin with one thing on her mind -- eradicate werebear at all costs. When she's captured and held as a prisoner, she's rescued by the impossibly gorgeous Jax Vachon. Her savior wants her for something, and the truth she finds out might be worse than death.

J
ax Vachon was beginning
to lose hope he'd find his partner for life when he discovers her in an unlikely place -- handcuffed to a chair in his living room. When he whisks her away from certain death, Sahsa's not happy about what he reveals, and Jax must convince her that the species she hates most in the world is the one she's meant to be.

T
he mantra
of the Eradicators is kill or be killed, and our mission is to rid the world of the evil known as werebear. I wonder if werebear can hypnotize people, and I think I might be the first to actually spend time with the animals. Not only do the shapeshifters appear amazingly bright and articulate, but the one that’s driving me in a late-model SUV has been deceivingly kind.

A car whooshes by us on the road, and I steal a glance at the impossibly gorgeous werebear named Jax as he drives. He claims he’s keeping me safe from his clan’s warriors, but I think he might be kidnapping me to have as his own. I was caught trying to kill the female who murdered my partner, and she and her boyfriend decided to hold me as a prisoner instead of murdering me. When Jax came home and discovered what happened, he told them he was taking me because I’m his true mate. My insides tremble at the thought of what he might want me for, and I hate myself for being so weak.

The metal chain of my wrist cuff jangles as I adjust my position again. I’m attached to the panic handle on the roof by a leather restraint that is lined with a soft furry material, and I can’t seem to get comfortable. It’s an odd choice for handcuffs. I so don’t want to fantasize about werebear sexual practices, but my mind can’t help but take me there, with Jax and me as the participants.

I look at Jax again and notice his strong jaw. The light stubble makes me want to feel the rasp of his face against mine, and I shake my head at myself.
Focus, Sasha.
He inhales sharply, and his nostrils flare as if he’s a dog scenting a trail. When he fiddles with the vent, a blast of cool air comes my way as if he’s trying to get rid of my stench. I snarl, although considering I haven’t showered in two days, I don’t blame him.

My jeans swish against the worn leather seat as I slide closer to the door. Once my partner, Rand, was killed and I contacted our leader, Drake, I was ordered to stay until I killed the two werebear who murdered Rand. Now that I’m being held against my will, it could be days before I get to consider hygiene again. Right now I have to figure out how I’m going to get free and complete my mission.

I sigh and finally understand why Rand said you never get close to your target, because the idea of executing Courtney and her boyfriend, Jared, makes my stomach roll. Courtney seemed like the kind of girl I’d be friends with in different circumstances. A small huff escapes my lips, because Courtney isn’t really a girl. She’s the
enemy
.

I turn my thoughts to Jax as I stare at him and wonder how I can get away. His vivid blue eyes dart along the horizon, and I recall they were the first thing I noticed when I met him, but once I got past his mesmerizing gaze I discovered he’s totally cut, like guys who train in a gym every day. He’s not someone I want to fight, because without my gun I’d be sure to lose. The strangest thing happened when he touched me too. It was as if an electric current raced through my body, and it left me trembling with sexual desire. He’s got some sort of powers, and I hope I’m able to block them when it matters.

I avert my stare quickly when he glances my way to ask, “Do you ever stop moving?”

I shrug and glance out the window.

“Are you hungry?” he asks.

I’m about to say no, but my stomach growls. The last meal I had was yesterday. “Yes.”

“Okay. Do you eat burgers?”

“That’s fine,” I say. Jax could have asked if I’d eat road kill, and I’d have said yes. While werebear blend in with the human population easily, if they’re provoked they turn into feral beasts. That’s when they get dangerous, because they have no control over their animal side and kill innocent people. Until I can escape, I’m going to be as agreeable as possible.

“Can I trust you to be good in the drive-through line?” asks Jax. The blinker ticks as he slows to turn into a fast-food place.

I scowl, because as much as I’d like to scream for help, I know better. The police think we’re as crazy as the Sasquatch hunters, and they’d never believe me. Apparently werebear infiltrated law enforcement decades ago, and they have a history of corruption that helps keep other werebear safe. Besides, with this guy’s mind-control power I’d probably be the one to get arrested. “Yes,” I say. “I’ll be good.”

Jax pulls into a parking space, and the car clunks into park before he turns to me. Sunlight glints off the key to the cuff, and he grins as he leans over me to unlock my wrist. When I catch a whiff of his musky scent, heat rushes through me and desire burns low in my belly. I’m going to hell in a handbasket, because I can’t control my lust for the man who’s kidnapped me.

A low rumble comes from Jax as he removes the cuff, and his hand is hot on my skin as I do my best to control my trembling. He quickly attaches the restraints to both of us so that we’re handcuffed together. He says, “We may need to use these later. I can tell what they do to you.”

“What?”
Oh god.
He does plan to use me for sex.

He says, “I can smell you want me. The way
I
want you.”

I jerk back as I pull my hand away and say, “Stop it.” My voice becomes a whimper. “Please.”

“Look at me, Sasha.” His voice is stern, and I’m afraid not to comply. “I can’t make it stop. It’s our destiny to be together.”

I snap out of my trance at the ridiculousness of blaming this on destiny. “Really? Then why did you have to kidnap me?”

“Because while I don’t think you could ever kill me, I’m not so sure you’d show the same restraint with my brother and other people I care about.”

He’s got a point. I say, “Fine.”

Jax chuckles as he backs the car up.

I ask, “What’s so funny?”

“Fine is girl code for ‘I’m pissed off, but you don’t deserve the breath it would take to tell you why.’”

Before I catch myself, I smile.
What the hell is wrong with me?
I turn away to glance out the window. A family is walking to their car, and the little girl swings her box of food as she skips. She has no idea of the danger that I protect her from, or the evil sitting beside me.

“What do you want?” asks Jax.

I say, “Number three with diet soda.”

The chain that connects us jingles as Jax says, “I need to get my wallet out of my back pocket.”

I turn back to face him and let my arm willingly move with his. As he lifts his hip my hand grazes his jeans, and I imagine how his butt would feel in my grip. I roll my eyes at myself, because my attraction to Jax must be his magic at work. I’m going to have to remain vigilant with this guy.

Jax winks at me as if he can read my thoughts, and I glare at him. It makes him chuckle again before he says, “I’ve always liked feisty.”

I open my mouth to speak but snap it shut instead. He’s not worth the insults. I turn my head to gaze out the window as Jax orders our food. A man walks from his car to the restaurant, and he reminds me of Rand, my partner and the man who trained me as an assassin. He was my mentor, and now
he’s dead.
When I froze and couldn’t shoot Jax’s brother, Jared, the other day, Rand took over. But it was too late, and Rand wouldn’t let me come when he went to finish the job at Courtney’s apartment. If I had been there, Rand might still be alive.

When the take-out bag rustles in Jax’s hand I turn to him and take it. Anger burns in my veins as I think about how easily Jax’s kind will take a human life. My soda cup chills my fingers when I grab it. I recall how Courtney said that the reason she and Jared killed Rand was because he attacked them. It’s true, and it hits me.
Rand could murder a werebear just as easily as they can kill us.
It was what we’d been trained to do. Maybe Courtney was right when she said we’re not so different after all.

J
ax drove
us to an empty section of a shopping mall parking lot, and I guess it’s so our bound wrists won’t cause unwanted attention. We face each other as we eat. Jax doesn’t appear to be having any trouble managing his burger with one hand, but I’m struggling. A tomato is slippery in my fingers as I retrieve it, and Jax asks, “Do you have any sisters and brothers?”

“No. I was an only child.”

“Interesting. It must be the human half of you. Our kind usually has multiples.”

I ask, “Half?”

He swallows a mouthful of food and says, “You don’t know what you are, do you?” I shake my head as I scowl. Jax says, “For us to be true mates, you must be part werebear.”

I spew out the soda I have in my mouth before I say, “I don’t think so.”

“It’s true. Did you grow up with both biological parents? Because back when we were born werebear weren’t allowed to stay in the clan if they wanted to be with a human, and it’s hard to stay away for long.”

My father adopted me after he married my mother when I was too young to remember, but that doesn’t prove anything, so I say, “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

The ice in Jax’s cola rattles as he sips. He says, “Okay. And I suppose those sexy dreams you had about a guy and a bear aren’t unusual?”

Oh my god.
I blink as I stare at him. When I was in high school, I went through a phase of having dreams like that. The bear caused me great pain, and I thought it was a sign I should become an Eradicator.

Jax pops a fry in his mouth and says, “Thought so. Face it. You’re the very thing you want to kill.” He raises his eyebrows at me as if he’s amused.

I shake my head. “Nice try. But I don’t buy it.” I flex my fingers in his direction. “Wouldn’t I grow fur and claws when I get mad?”

“Nope. Your bear is dormant until you change. And you’ll learn to control your anger pretty quickly once you do.”

I snort. “Once I do?” I tear into a fry, and the salty flavor coats my tongue as I chew and wonder why I’ve been taught that werebear can’t control their anger. Jax appears to have a lot of control over his life. “And I suppose you make me a special tea to drink to change me.”

Jax grins as he leans in close. He lets out a low growl and says, “I have to bite you.”

I jerk back as he laughs, and I flash to part of my old dream where a bear’s mouth is wide open and coming toward my face. This is creepy.

Jax laughs, and he says, “The bite part, when done right, is awesome.” He frowns. “But the change is brutal.”

The thought that there might be some truth in Jax’s words is freaking me out, and I ask, “Is your plan to bite me?”

Jax stares at me for a moment before he says, “Not unless you want me to.”

I lick my lips as my body trembles with sexual desire I don’t understand. Some guy sinking teeth into my flesh and making me his forever shouldn’t turn me on. “Tell me what you really plan to do.”

“I’m taking you to meet my alpha.”

My stomach clenches, and betrayal washes over me. I’m not sure why I was beginning to think I was safe with Jax. I whisper, “So you are going to kill me.”

Jax shakes his head slowly. “Tori won’t kill my true mate, but I’m not sure what she’ll do.”

I imagine a harsh old woman passing judgment on me. I’m so going to die.
Unless--
Jax seems to believe we’re meant to be together, and I can use that to my advantage. I don’t know if I can convince some powerful alpha, but I might be able to get Jax to help me escape. The trick is to make him think I’m beginning to believe we’re meant to be together too. I reach out and touch his chest. The jolt of electricity that runs through me stops me for a second before I ask, “Do you feel that?”

Jax nods and places his hand over mine. Intense heat warms my cool fingers like a soft mitten as he says, “That’s our connection. It’s how I know we’re true mates.”

“Tell me more about what that means.”

“It means we’ll be in love until one of us dies. Nobody can come along and change that.”

“But you hardly know me. How can you love me?”

He shrugs. “That’s how destiny works. We’re matched because we both have something the other needs to be complete.” Jax tilts his head at me, and his eyes twinkle as he says, “Admit it, you can’t help but love me too.”

“What?” I laugh before I say, “No way. You’re making me feel something for you because of some power you have.”

“No. Unfortunately I don’t have any magic powers.” He waggles his eyebrows at me. “Just animal magnetism.”

I grin at his joke, and I realize pretending I like him isn’t that hard. I say, “You’re not that hot.”

Jax shrugs as he slurps the last of his drink. “That’s not what your scent tells me. It won’t be long before you can’t resist my charms.”

Oh boy.
I’m already weak with his touch, and resistance might be futile. But if it works in my favor... I squint my eyes at him and say, “I know I’m filthy from days without a shower.” I reach up and place my hand on his face to feel the stubble I’ve been dying to touch. I lean in close as he does the same. I take a shaky breath, and his musky odor warms me to my toes as I say, “And I can imagine what my hair looks like, but--”

Our lips meet, and I realize my mistake instantly, because something inside me awakens and takes control. I kiss Jax as if we’re lovers who have been apart too long. There’s nothing awkward as our tongues dance with familiar moves I somehow know. Jax reacts in a similar way, and when I have the urge to straddle his lap I force myself to break away.
Wow.
I sigh. So much for having a handle on my situation.

“Yeah,” says Jax. “You’re going to want more of that.”

I slap at his arm. “
You’re
the one that’s going to want more.”

The car seat squeaks as he shifts his hips and tugs on the leg of his jeans. “Already do.”

Paper crinkles as I wad up my burger wrapping. It’s difficult to do with one hand, and I ask, “Could you take these cuffs off us now?”

Jax smiles as he reaches in his pocket. “I still think you like them.” When he retrieves the key he unlocks himself first, and the restraint clicks open. Once mine is removed he encircles my wrist with his large fingers. The heat from his touch has become something I crave, as if I’ve had a hit of a powerful drug that I’ve become addicted to immediately, and I marvel at the way it travels through me as if injected into my veins. “Sore?” he asks.

I shake my head. “The lining is soft.”

He leans in and says “Good,” before he kisses me again.

I get so wrapped up in us that he manages to lift my wrist and connect me to the panic bar before I realize what happened. I pull away. “Hey.”

Jax strokes my face, and it sends a tiny shiver down my spine. He says, “Even I’m not so full of myself to believe you won’t run from me. I may be in love with you, but I don’t trust you yet.”

The chain of my restraint rattles as I yank in frustration, and I snarl at him. “Fine!”

As Jax’s laughter rings out, he starts the car. A breeze flows through the windows before he begins to shut them. They thud closed softly to create a barrier between me and the world I used to know. The world I may never live in again.