Tempted by the Bear - Complete (12 page)

I
sabelle

I
resisted moving
in with Luke because I know our bond isn’t forever. But after a couple weeks of watching my brother with his true mate, I couldn’t take it any longer. My love affair with Luke may be manufactured by biting each other, but it’s all I’ve got.

The large flat-screen TV is on, with some woman interviewing celebrities and making people laugh. I have a dozen magazines in front of me, and the pages are slippery in my fingers as I flip through one. I find it annoying that nothing seems to capture my interest. The publication slaps down on the pile when I throw it, and I stand up to pace over to the thermostat.

My hair is stuck to the back of my neck, and I lift it up as I check the temperature. It’s sixty, and even though I’m naked, I can’t seem to cool off. I’ve probably had four cups of coffee. Other than my daily workout at the gym in the afternoons, I’ve got nothing to do.

I wander into the kitchen, where the tile is cool under my feet. Leaning against the stainless steel refrigerator door, I sink to the floor to sit and yawn as I stretch out my legs to have more contact with cold things. I stare at my painted toenails and notice a chip. Maybe I’ll give myself a pedicure.

The familiar noise of the elevator sounds in the distance. Well, at least I know what I’m doing for the next hour. I bet my mate has come home between classes for sex, but even that doesn’t appeal to me today. I don’t move to greet him and wait as the door snicks open and his footsteps thump lightly on the carpet. I detect his arousal, and it should turn me on. God, I’m in a pissy mood, because suddenly our relationship feels cheap.

“Isabelle?”

I mumble. “In here.”

Luke comes around the counter and tilts his head at me. “What are you doing?”

“Nothing. Absolutely nothing.”

“Uh-oh. Is my girl bored?” He raises his eyebrows. “I can fix that.”

The idea that I’m here for sex whenever he wants it niggles at me, and I decide to turn the tables. “Strip.”

Luke begins to take his clothes off, and I bark out. “Stop. Give me some Magic Mike. Let me see the sexy swagger that drives women wild.” My mate thinks he’s the best lover I’ve ever had and brags about how women can’t get enough of him. I’ve done nothing to let him think otherwise, but the truth is every guy I’ve been with believes that.

I hold back my laugh as he swings his shirt over his head and lets it fly across the room. I smile and say, “Give me some hip action.”

Now we’re talking. Luke begins to move and drags his hands down his chest. He turns as he lowers his pants so I get a view of his round butt. I growl a little to encourage him. When my mate turns back around and straddles my legs in a standing position, his cock is at my face, and I know what he wants, but I raise my hand and say, “Back up and start at my feet. Seduce me.”

He frowns but does as I ask.
That’s right, buddy.
I smile as he gets on his hands and knees and kisses my foot.
Today it’s all about me.
By the time Luke’s mouth gets to my thighs, I’m warming up. I spread my legs and slouch down against the fridge to enjoy my mate’s talented tongue. Luke doesn’t disappoint, and my mood improves greatly after my first orgasm.

Luke doesn’t stop there, though, and I wonder why he’s not taking what he wants when he lifts me up to the kitchen counter and begins to give me a repeat performance. I lean back on my elbows and gaze at the man between my legs. He’s working me over as if I’m all that matters. I thread my fingers through his hair, and he lifts up to shove his fingers inside me. “Izzy, what is it?”

My eyes flutter shut as he hooks his finger and massages my g-spot. “I don’t know. Things just feel wrong today.”

“Let me chase the blues away.” Luke continues to work me with his hand as he lowers his mouth to suck, too.

Oh god.
I scream with my climax this time. My mate is relentless, and he doesn’t ease up with the sweet torture of his tongue. He is making it all about me. I revel in the attention and let him bring me up again.

I lose count of my orgasms and am a puddle of quivering muscles when he finally stops. I’m sprawled out on the granite countertop, and Luke asks, “Can I carry you to the bedroom? I’m not even close to done yet.”

I lift my head up. “What?”

“I haven’t been taking care of you, Isabelle. I’m so sorry.” He scoops me up in his arms and begins to walk. The scent of me is on him, and my bear growls with pride. Luke whispers, “Let me make it up to you.”

An hour later, I’m sleepy as I cuddle into my mate. He plays with a strand of my hair and asks, “What can I do to make you happy?”

“Nothing. I’m just in a mood today.” I sit up when I realize how long he’s been home. “Wait. Don’t you have class?”

“I’m skipping it. You’re more important.”

“I am?”

“Yes.” He lifts up to kiss my thigh above my knee. “It’s my job to take care of you. So I’ll ask again.” His mouth moves up higher on my leg. “What is it that you need to be happy?”

I open my thighs as he moves to the inside of them. I can’t believe I’m wet again considering he’s got to have broken any orgasm record I had. “Something to do.”

Now his breath is hot on my sensitive slit, and I begin to tremble. “What interests you?” He asks.

He sucks my clit in, and I arch up. “I don’t know.”

Luke lifts his head to hover over me as he thrusts fingers inside me. “Then we’ll just have to find out.”

I nod as I fall back on the bed and let my thoughts be all about pleasure.

I
return
from the bathroom after a quick shower to find Luke is missing. The sheets are a tangled mess, and the room reeks of sex. My body is deliciously sore as the wood of a drawer scrapes when I open it. I’m due at the gym in a half hour, and I pull on workout clothes.

When I’m dressed, I go to the kitchen for a snack and find Luke dumping fruit in the blender. He smiles at me. “One protein smoothie coming up.”

I’m reminded of the sweet things Tristan would do for me when I was having a bad day.
Luke cares about me.
The whirl of the blender sounds, and when it’s done I say, “Thank you.”

“I have something else that might cheer you up.”

I take the drink from him and swallow down a creamy mouthful. “What’s that?”

“You need something to do, and the Robichaux warriors need to step it up. How would you feel about being the assistant trainer?”

“But I train with the Le Roux.” I slide onto a stool and glance over the counter at him.

Luke leans on the surface toward me. “Exactly. Your job is to make sure whatever they do we do better.”

The plan.
I grin at him over my glass. “I like it.”

Luke reaches for my hand and holds it tight. “I love you, Isabelle. Together we’ll both get what we want. We’ve got a wonderful future ahead of us.”

“I love you, too, Luke.” I imagine a life with him and picture a wedding and small blond children. I smile at my mate.

He cups my cheek with his hand. “I’m your family now, Izzy. I’ll take care of you. Promise.”

Warmth spreads through me at his words.
He really does love me.

“What are you saying?”

“I had this whole thing planned where I was going to take you to the restaurant where we first met. But I can’t wait.”

I recall the way he fingered me to an orgasm under the dinner table before we’d even ordered. “Patience isn’t our strong suit, so don’t.”

“Marry me.”

I lean over the counter. “Yes.” I grab the back of his head and kiss him. While our kiss usually turns into so much more, I hold on to the simple connection this time, because it’s a symbol of love. The kind of love I crave.

When we break apart, Luke says, “You make me so happy.”

Tears burn in my eyes, and I whisper, “You want me forever.”

His teeth gleam in the daylight. “Yes, Izzy, I do.”

A
nnie
- I finally get the family I crave with the arrival of Tristan’s triplet daughters. But Helga De Rozier, Tristan’s mother brings something completely different. Her sweet exterior hides an evil that shakes me to the core. While my love for Tristan knows no bounds, I wonder if it will be enough.

I
sabelle - If hell
had a field agent, it would be my mother, Helga. She may have Annie fooled, but Tristan and I know what her presence really means, and the horrors that I’ve damned up in my mind have come flooding back. This time I’ll be the one to win.

A
nnie

T
ristan holds
a cut-crystal glass of clear liquid up to the daylight shining into the kitchen of our new home. He swirls it and watches as if something unusual might happen. I wait for him to speak his mind. He lifts the drink to his nose and says, “Did you know that besides the sting of alcohol, humans find vodka nearly odorless?”

My mate inhales the scent of the cup’s contents and closes his eyes as he savors it. “They love to speak about the bouquet of a fine wine. The undertones, the overtones, the body.” He holds the glass out to me. I lean down to sniff it as he continues, and my nose burns. “But vodka? They can’t detect a thing.” He lets out a growl. “They’ll never fully appreciate this.”

Tristan has brought his family business to Maine by reinventing it. While his history as a distiller is the De Rozier clan making illegal moonshine in a shed, he’s taken his knowledge and created a trendy handcrafted vodka brand.

Arctic Ice Vodka will debut in a few weeks. Between the new business and building our house, I’ve been so busy that I can hardly believe it’s late spring. The glass thumps on the table when I set it down. I say, “It doesn’t matter. They don’t know what they’re missing. And it certainly won’t stop them from buying.”

My true mate’s dislike for humans was a surprise. He grew up interacting with very few, while the Northeast Kingdom werebears led normal human lives in the public eye, paying taxes, going to the public schools, and being treated as equals. The Northeast Kingdom is so integrated into the human population that many werebear even get romantically involved with them before choosing a mate.

But Tristan believes humans are the reason he no longer has his kingdom and has to rebuild a life for his clan here in Maine. His prejudice is understandable, but I hope one day he’ll see how good humans can be.

Tristan comes over to stand behind me and wraps his arms around my waist. I lean back against his chest and bask in the heat of him as I gaze out at our land. Freshly cut garden beds of dark, rich earth glisten with frost in the early-morning sunlight. I’m looking forward to planting my favorite perennials next month.

Tristan is unusually quiet this morning, and I ask, “What’s wrong, love?”

He gives me a squeeze before relaxing his arms and grabs the cup on the table. “Nothing.” The odor of alcohol wafts toward me as he dumps the contents of the glass into the sink, and it splashes on the stainless steel. When he turns to me, a smile covers his face. “I’m off to the distillery. What’s your plan for today?”

My mate has done a one-eighty with his mood, and I wonder about his morning ritual of pouring himself a drink he never takes. It started with the first batch of vodka, and at first, I thought he was monitoring the process. But now that his recipe has been perfected, I question the reason. I say, “The landscapers are coming, and I’ve got the painters starting on the upstairs bedrooms.” I glance at the clock on the stove. “They’ll be here any minute.”

Tristan places a quick kiss on my lips. “Well, then we’d better start our workday.”

I grab his shirt. The starched cotton is stiff between my fingers. “Wait.” I’m not sure what’s churning in my mate’s head, but I need to break through his icy exterior. I tug him close and kiss him with passion. He seems startled but warms up quickly.

When I pull away, he growls, “Thanks. I needed that.”

I reach up and place my palm on his freshly shaven face. “Think you can push the papers off your desk for—” I pause and waggle my eyebrows at him. “Lunch?”

He nips at my neck with his bear teeth. “You know I will.”

“Good.”

I watch him leave, and I am happy I could make him smile. But my worries set in. Once Arctic Ice Vodka makes its rounds with the critics, it will need to be put into production. That means hiring workers, and the plan is they’ll be from the De Rozier clan, who have yet to arrive. While I would love to provide homes for the families, we can’t afford to buy eight houses for them. We opted to build a dorm-like structure for the clan members to use for free until they’ve accumulated enough savings to venture out on their own. Tristan assures me that it will be luxurious compared to their current accommodations.

Plates clash as I open the dishwasher to put Tristan’s glass in. He hides his past well. My mate’s appearance is one of wealth, even though his family riches are long gone. But it’s not only the accommodations I’m worried about. I wonder how the clan is going to assimilate into a world that isn’t familiar. If Tristan is prejudiced against humans, I suspect his clan is, too.

A dull ache forms behind my eyes as I ponder what I signed up for being next in line as the De Rozier prima. I’ve got hellion children, an evil mother-in-law, and numerous bigoted polar bears coming soon.

I force myself to think of happier thoughts, like our wedding. I wanted to do it here, but Carly insisted we have it at her house so she could take care of the details for me. A quick glance out the window at the dirt pile that is my lawn makes me glad I agreed. I make my way down the hall to the front door to greet the painters clamoring on the porch and shake my head that I was so distracted I didn’t hear them pull in.

Once I’ve let them in to do their work, I pull out my sketches for the gardens. The paper rustles as I spread them out on my kitchen table. I want to mimic the gardens at Brady’s house, which I designed and cared for. Only instead of a fountain as the focal point, I think a pool for Tristan’s children would be nice. I’m sure they’re full of energy, and swimming year-round should help exhaust some of it.

The roar of a motorcycle catches my attention, and I smile to myself. Gabriel’s on his way, and even though the temperature is still frigid outside, he’s on his bike because the roads are clear. I grab the teakettle, and the gas stove flickers when I turn it on. I pull out the Earl Grey tea he favors and a container of honey.

Movement outside catches my attention, and I discover Gabriel is taking stock of what’s been done to the yard. I go outside through the back door and call to him, “I know you’re going to make this mud pit look amazing, right?”

“Of course I am.” His blue eyes sparkle as he loosens the ponytail he must have worn for his ride. His hair is shoulder length and dark blond, like that of many of the Le Roux.

“Come on in, and let’s take a look at my plans. I’m hoping you’ll give it your magic to make it sing.”

Gabriel removes his shoes at the door, and his sock feet thump softly as he walks to the table. He pores over my drawings as I prepare his tea. Water splashes into the large mug, and Tristan’s voice sounds in my head.
“I hope I’m not interrupting you, darling.”

“Never. What is it?”

“I just got word my mother is on her way, and I want you to be prepared.”

“Should I practice my self-defense moves?”

My mate chuckles before he answers,
“Perhaps. But you only have two days.”

“Two days? Your mother will be here in two days?”

“Yes.”
Tristan sighs.
“Our honeymoon may be over before we start it. Please remember why you love me, because she has a way of poisoning all that’s good about me.”

“Tristan. I don’t believe it.”
But my stomach clenches, because I don’t want to share my mate with a woman he hates.

I glance over at Gabriel, and he asks, “Everything okay?”

I nod. “It will be. But when we’re done here, let’s take a walk. I need you to help me decide where my future mother-in-law should live.”

The vision of a chain-link fence topped with swirled barbed wire flashes in my mind. Unfortunately, I don’t think that would be the best way to welcome Tristan’s mother, so I tuck the image away and put on a brave smile as I hand Gabriel his tea and prepare to listen to his plans for my lovely gardens.