[Bears of Grizzly Ridge 01.0] His to Protect Read online

  “Really, it will only take a minute, man. I just want to know about your guests?”

  Something in the man’s voice set Axel on alert. He stood tall, towering over the smaller man. “Guests?” Alarm bells went off in his head, but he kept his composure. “What makes you think we have any yet?”

  “Just a hunch,” Bruce said. “And the truckload of businessmen who showed up when we did. Are they the only guests you have? Or are there others?”

  Kevin elbowed his buddy and regained control over the situation. “Anyway, we’d like to talk to them,” Kevin said. “Some of them anyway.” If he’d noticed Axel’s animosity, he didn’t show it. “It would be good for the piece to see what kind of guests the Ridge is attracting and what they think of their experience here. More of a real-life perspective, ya know?”

  He didn’t. “I don’t think so.”

  “It would be good to get their photographs, too.”

  Axel turned slowly toward the photographer who’d continued to chime into the conversation. He shot him a glare and the man looked back down at his camera.

  “Definitely not.” Axel wanted to grab both men by the back of their necks and drag them off the mountain and far away from his mate, but on some level he was cognizant that he still had a business to run and he couldn’t risk them writing anything negative about Grizzly Ridge.

  But he also couldn’t risk them around his mate. Not yet. Not until he figured out whether they could be trusted or not.

  Damn. Was that what it was going to be like from now on? Now that he’d found her, was he going to be suspicious of everyone she came into contact with? Not because he didn’t trust her, but because he was protecting her?

  He shook off the thought. Surely this would pass. It was just a phase. Especially because it was all new. So new he hadn’t even had a chance to check in with Harper to make sure she felt the same way. First things first, though. “Look.” He refocused on the man in front of him. “I’m not trying to be difficult, but our guests’ privacy is of the utmost importance to us. We have a few new arrivals, as you saw. We had a group from New York who came in. Maybe they’d be willing to be interviewed. In the meantime, I’ll go find Luke for you, and he’ll be sure to run you through all the activities Grizzly Ridge has to offer.”

  Kevin opened his mouth, likely to object, but Axel was already walking away. “Wait right here—I’ll go get him.”

  He tried to swallow his impatience when all he really wanted to do was get to Harper. Fortunately, he ran into Luke and Nina as soon as he stepped back into the Den.

  “I thought you were going to find Harper?”

  “I was,” he answered her. “I am. But those damn reporters got in my way.” He turned to Luke and started to explain what he needed from him, but Nina interrupted.

  “Reporters? What reporters?”

  “The new arrivals who showed up unexpectedly,” Luke explained. “We didn’t know they were coming, but we can’t afford to turn away any press.”

  “Press?” Nina looked confused. “I’m press. I wrote a piece for Lifestyle. I can’t imagine better press than that. And I posted a teaser online already. Why do you need more coverage?”

  “You put something online already?” Axel’s mind spun. “You didn’t mention Harper, did you?”

  “Of course not. I always mention a traveling companion, but that’s it.” Nina waved his concern away. “Who are these guys, anyway?”

  “Kevin something and Bruce something,” Luke said. “I don’t remember. I don’t suppose you know them?”

  “Well, based on that information...” She rolled her eyes. “No.” Nina laughed. “But maybe I’d recognize them if I saw them. Let’s go find them.”

  “That’s a good idea,” Axel said. “There’s something I don’t like about these guys.”

  “You don’t like anyone right now,” Luke said pointedly as he shot Axel a look. “Not since you and—”

  “Don’t say another word.” Axel pulled his shoulders back and stepped up to Luke. He didn’t want to, but if his brother was going to provoke him, he’d do what was needed to remind Luke who the alpha was. And his little brother clearly had something he needed to say. Something Axel didn’t want to hear.

  Luke stood his ground for a moment, but finally shook his head and looked away. “You know what,” he said. “I won’t say anything. Not yet, anyway. But if you don’t pull it together soon, big brother, then we are going to have a conversation.”

  Nina looked between the two brothers, concern on her face. He didn’t want to scare Nina. Not only because she was a guest, but because she was Harper’s best friend and he was pretty sure he’d already done enough scaring of her earlier. Which he needed to go fix. Now.

  “So…are we going to go find this Bruce and Kevin or what? Because I can also do a little digging into it and see who they work for, what kind of reputation they have…that kind of thing.”

  “Yes,” Axel answered quickly. “That’s a good idea. The more information we have about them, the better. I’d like to think they’re legitimate.” He made a point to look at Luke when he said that. “But we need to be careful. In the meantime, Luke, I need you to set them up with enough activities to keep them busy until they can get their asses back down to Blackwood Ranch,” he ordered his brother, more to make his point about who was in charge than anything else.

  Luke bristled, but nodded.

  “Good.” Axel turned to make his exit. “I have some business to take care of.”

  “Sure you do.”

  His hands clenched into fists and he growled as he turned to face his brother again. “Watch it, Luke.”

  “I mean it.” Luke spoke through gritted teeth. “Sort it out, Axel. Quickly.”

  Axel heard what his brother didn’t say. Grizzly Ridge and all of their futures depended on Axel’s focus. Focus that was completely consumed by his mate. Luke might be reining himself in for the time being, but he could only tolerate so much before he hit his limit. And he was almost there.

  A sharp rap followed by the door to the cabin flying open and banging against the wall jolted Harper awake. Instantly, she was on edge but when she saw Axel in the door, looking rugged, and wild, and so damn sexy, she relaxed a little. But just a little. She still had a lot of unanswered questions.

  A lot.

  She pulled her legs up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, hugging herself.

  “I didn’t mean to wake you.” He stepped into the room. “I didn’t realize you were sleeping.”

  “I must have dozed off.” She smiled a little. “I was talking to John and it was all so…never mind. I guess I just needed a little rest. It’s been kind of a crazy day.”

  Axel’s handsome face was instantly lined with concern. He sat on the edge of the bed. Far enough away to give her space, but close enough that she felt calmed by his presence. Despite everything that happened in the woods—things she still couldn’t begin to wrap her head around—just being close to him calmed her in a way that felt almost instinctual.

  “Harper, about what happened earlier. I need you to understand…” He looked down at the quilt for a moment, but she waited and when he looked up again, he looked her directly in the eyes. “I love you, Harper.”

  She felt as if she’d been slapped backward. Love? After only a few days? It was ridiculous. And…as the shock of the words faded, a different feeling replaced it. But she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. She opened her mouth, but closed it again.

  “Don’t say anything.”

  She couldn’t even if she wanted to.

  “I need you to just listen for a minute, okay?”

  She nodded.

  “I’ll explain everything.”

  “Everything?”

  He nodded and scooted closer to her on the bed. The mattress shifted under his weight and Harper’s leg pressed up against the hard length of his thigh. The heat of him burned through the layers of their clothes and warmed her. “I know th
is sounds crazy,” he began. “But I’m not an ordinary man.”

  Well, she knew that. From the moment she’d laid eyes on him, she’d known there was not one little thing that was normal about Axel Jackson.

  “The bear you saw in the woods,” he continued, his eyes holding hers with their deep gaze. “That was me.” She shook her head as a reflex, although deep down she already know he spoke the truth. “I know it sounds crazy, but I’m a shifter. It’s not like in the movies or anything. I’m not evil or dangerous or anything.” He spoke quickly, obviously nervous about what he was telling her. His nervousness endeared him to her a little more and she reached for his hand. The relief in his face at her small gesture was clear and when he continued speaking, he calmed down. “The bear inside of me is an important part of who I am. It’s as much a part of me as…well, anything. I know all of this sounds crazy, but—”

  “It doesn’t.” She couldn’t explain it, but it didn’t sound crazy at all. In fact, it all made perfect sense to her. Axel was a bear. Just thinking those words and not wanting to run screaming for the hills was insane. But at the same time, it wasn’t.

  “Do you have any questions about it? Anything you want to know?”

  She laughed and pulled herself down the bed to be closer to him. “Questions? Oh, I have questions. Lots of them, but…” One question did pop into her head above all others. “You said you loved me.” He nodded. “How? I mean, love…so quickly…it doesn’t make sense.”

  “It does make sense.” He smiled and cupped her face in his large hands. “You’re my mate. We’re meant to be together.”

  She would have shaken her head if he hadn’t been holding her firmly in his gentle grip. “That doesn’t make sense.”

  “Everything I just told you, and that doesn’t make sense?” His thumbs stroked gentle circles on her cheek, calming her with their movement. “I never believed in it myself, but my little sister sure did.” His eyes took on a faraway look for a moment before refocusing on her. “In the bear world, there’s a legend about fated mates and how there’s only one bear out there for each of us. The perfect match. And when we meet him or her, we’ll know it instinctively.”

  Instinctively. The word resonated.

  “Wait?” Another word resonated. “What did you say?”

  “Instinct?”

  “No.” She shook her head, releasing herself from his hands. “About a bear. There only being one bear for each of you. How can it be that you think I’m your mate?”

  “I know you’re my mate.”

  “But I’m not a bear.”

  Axel didn’t say anything right away, but just looked at her. His intense eyes fixed on her with a gaze so full of love and need and…knowledge.

  “Axel?” Harper’s mind spun with everything he hadn’t said. A bear? That didn’t make any sense. Axel being a bear…okay. But her? No. That wasn’t possible. Not that any of it was possible, not really, but… “I can’t be,” she said, finally. “I’d know. I would have known.”

  “I wasn’t sure at first either, but…” He nodded and his hand squeezed her thigh, stilling her. “Did you feel an instant attraction to me?”

  She nodded.

  “When we made love, did it feel…different?”

  “Well, yes. But that’s only because I’ve never had…” She was going to say that she’d never felt the way she felt about Axel with anyone else. But wasn’t that the point of what he was saying? “When I’m with you…” she started. The thoughts formulated in her head. “I feel at peace. Like I’m where I’m supposed to be. With you, I feel like I’m right where I should be.”

  He couldn’t contain the smile that lit up his face. “That’s because you’re my mate.” Before she could say anything else, he continued to explain. “There are more of us than you might think. In fact, many of us don’t even know that we have shifter blood in us.” He stopped and squeezed her hand.

  “So, you think…”

  “I think you have some shifter in you, Harper. Maybe not a full-blooded shifter. But somewhere along the line…there is definitely bear blood in you.”

  Harper shook her head, but even as she did, what Axel was saying made perfect sense. Well, maybe not perfect sense. But something told her that she couldn’t just dismiss what he was saying out of hand. Something deep inside her knew what he was saying was true. “I never knew my father,” she said. “When I was old enough, my mom told me she’d met him on a trip to Canada with her girlfriends. She fell hard for him, but after she returned home and found out she was pregnant, she couldn’t get in touch with him again. Do you think…”

  Axel nodded and Harper laughed. “That’s ridiculous,” she said.

  “Is it?”

  He reached for her and pulled her easily into his arms. With him, she felt so tiny, so protected, and so completely…animal. The word popped into her head, but it fit the situation perfectly.

  Axel leaned closer to her, bringing his lips to her forehead, then the tip of her nose and finally, her lips. He kissed her softly but thoroughly. “Is it really so ridiculous the way we’re connected?”

  Without a doubt in her mind, Harper shook her head. “No. It’s not ridiculous at all.” It was her turn to kiss him, and when she did, her whole body lit up with the reaction he never failed to elicit in her. She had to pull away, only to finish saying what she needed to say before her brain was completely clouded with passion for the man. “I have never in my whole life felt about someone the way I feel about you. It might be crazy. It might be too soon. It might be a lot of things. But one thing I know for sure—bear or not, I am absolutely, completely, body and soul, in love with you, Axel Jackson.”

  It was all he needed to hear. His mate loved him. She was his. He was hers. They would be mated as soon as they consummated that love.

  His mouth covered hers and he kissed her long and hard until she made that little whimpering noise that drove him crazy. He wrapped his hand in her hair and tugged her hair to the side so he could kiss his way down her neck. The cotton collar on her t-shirt quickly got in his way and with a swipe, he tore it from her body.

  Harper gasped and pulled back. “That’s how you…before…you…” She laughed and shook her head. “You’re going to need to simmer down with that or I’ll need a whole new wardrobe.”

  “Baby, I’ll buy you whatever you need.” A surge of love and protectiveness welled up inside him. “I’ll give you everything you need from now until the end of time. I love you. You’re my mate and I swear you’ll never want for anything.”

  Harper laughed a little and ducked her head. “Those sound oddly like wedding vows, Axel.”

  “No.” He shook his head. “Not wedding vows. Much more meaningful than that. We’re mates and we’ll be connected forever as soon as we finish mating. I’m just making sure you—”

  “Wait.” She put a hand on his chest but didn’t push him away. “We’ve already had sex. Does that mean we’re mated?”

  He should have explained it to her. It was too easy to take for granted that she already knew everything about the bear world. He was going to have to keep reminding himself that she was new to all of this. He’d have to be patient. With Harper, that was never going to be a problem. He had all the time in the world for her. “No,” Axel said slowly. “The mating process is really quite simple and I don’t want you to be scared.” He could see on her face that was the wrong choice of words. “It won’t hurt. Not really. Well, to be honest…I don’t really know.”

  “You don’t know?”

  “Well, I haven’t done it before. You’re my mate.”

  She laughed a little. It helped defuse the tension. “True, I guess. So tell me…”

  “I’m going to bite you.” Again, it was the wrong thing to say. But it was the truth. He reached for her, trailing his fingers slowly down her neck until she closed her eyes from the pleasure of the touch. It never failed to affect him, the way she responded so readily to him. “It’ll be fine.” He press
ed his lips to the sensitive skin below her ear and felt her shudder in need. “I promise.”

  Axel moved slowly, pressing Harper back into the pillows until he was on top of her, surrounding her. She looked so beautiful laying beneath him, with her hair spread over the pillow, her luscious full breasts bared to him, and her face flushed with need for him. He moved so he could take one perfect breast in his mouth. Her nipple hardened to a firm peak almost instantly and he flicked his tongue back and forth until she moaned from the pleasure of it. His hands kneaded the soft flesh while his thumb brushed over the other nipple, giving it the attention he knew it also craved.

  “God, you have the most beautiful tits.” He buried his face between them, allowing himself a moment to enjoy the perfection of his curvy mate before he kissed his way down her body until he reached her belt. Axel’s first instinct was to rip her jeans from her body, but he stopped himself and fumbled with her belt instead.

  “Get rid of it.” Harper’s eyes were heavy with desire as she ordered him to destroy her clothes. She needed him as bad as he needed her.

  Axel growled and did as she wished. His mate, perfect in every way.

  When she was stripped bare to him, Axel resumed his worship of her body, kissing, licking, and nibbling until he reached her apex. He slicked a finger through her heat. She was so wet. So ready for him. The knowledge that he could turn her on so quickly, so easily, only fueled his desire. He added another finger and pressed inside her, making her gasp. He grinned and moved in and out of her while his thumb brushed over her sensitive nub just enough to build her to a frenzy of need. He instinctively knew what she needed, what she craved from him. He was more than happy to give it to her. He’d give her everything she wanted.

  Always.

  “Axel?”

  He paused his movements and looked up in question at her gorgeous face, made even more stunning by the flush of passion on her cheeks.