Bruins Peak Bears- Complete Series, page 180
part #1 of Bruins Peak Bears Series
She pulled up her message app and typed the text. Are you there?
Chapter 8
A message popped up on Silas’s phone. Are you there?
His pulse raced. I’m here.
I had a good time last night.
Silas’s thumb punched at the screen. So did I. I always have a good time with you.
Do you think it would be like that in person?
I’m sure it would.
Do you still want to meet on the 30th?
Silas cringed. Now, came the moment he dreaded. He had to break this off. Natalie Dodd sat across the living room from him, so inviting, so beautiful, so vibrant. How could he think of meeting Penny when a woman like Natalie lived right around the corner?
He had to get rid of Penny, but he hated even thinking like that. He relied on her for months of contact and support, not to mention sexual playtime. Now, he had to find a way to dump her. He couldn’t risk Natalie discovering that he ever given a human woman the time of day.
I don’t know if I can make it on the 30th after all. Another contract came up, and the others are getting complicated. I have to back out. I hope you haven’t booked your flight yet.
He didn’t want to look at his phone to read the reply. When it came, it knocked him for a loop. That’s okay. I’m busy with work, too. I didn’t want to tell you I couldn’t make it, but now you can’t make it, either, so it’s all right.
Silas’s mind spun. Are you sure? We can reschedule.
That’s okay. I don’t think I can get away long enough to fly across the country, even if we do meet halfway.
I want to.
I want to, too.
I can’t stop thinking about you with me.
What are you thinking about?
Penny could still excite him through the airwaves. I’m thinking about you on your knees in front of me. You’re gazing up into my eyes, and I’m stroking your cheeks and hair as I stand above you.
His blood pulsed between his legs. He glanced up at Natalie. She bent over her tablet. She didn’t see him getting turned on by some online phantom. She would never want to have anything to do with him if she knew.
He never imagined a woman more perfect than Natalie. He wanted to mate with her for life. He wanted to create the Bruin dream with her, to move her into his house and marry her, have children with her, control their tribe together, breed a new generation of MacAllisters with her.
I would love to go down on my knees in front of you and worship you. I would love to see you standing over me.
Would Natalie ever talk to him the way Penny did? Maybe Penny was really a frustrated housewife somewhere. Maybe she would never do in real life what she talked about doing online. Maybe it was all an act.
He would never know, because he would never meet her. Something would always come up so he could get out of it. He no longer wanted to have anything to do with her when Natalie Dodd existed in the world.
He crossed his legs to hide his swollen crotch. He could imagine Natalie on her knees in front of him. Her angelic beauty fired his fevered imagination. He imagined her burning eyes gazing up at him, her fingers grazing up and down his thighs, her ruby lips parting to gasp out a tortured inhalation. Her cheeks flushed, and her nostrils flared to catch her breath.
He could imagine Natalie doing everything Penny talked about doing. If only he could convince her to actually do them, he would die of happiness. He shouldn’t be talking to Penny at all with Natalie right there across the room.
He made up his mind once and for all. He would get off his phone and talk to Natalie instead. Penny was a waste of time. Natalie was his future.
We’ll reschedule, and then you can do it.
Okay. Talk to you later.
Silas stared down at the screen. His thumb wavered. What was going on? Why did she sound so glad to get away from him? This was the second time she didn’t argue when he tried to back out of having anything to do with her.
Had she found someone else? Was she trying to let him down easy? Why did he feel a pang of jealousy about that when he was trying to let her down easy? Nothing made sense anymore.
Natalie looked up from her tablet just as Silas put his phone back in his pocket. She smiled at him, and he couldn’t stop smiling at her. “So…how about that walk around the place?”
Natalie jumped up. “Sure. Let’s go.”
He was never so happy to get out of the house. The sooner he got off alone with her, the better, and the longer they sat in the living room, the more likely Grace would come out and monopolize Natalie’s attention.
He opened the front door for her and ushered her out into the morning sunshine. Natalie took a deep breath of the forest. “This is such a nice Homestead.”
Silas shrugged. Now that he had her alone, he couldn’t relax. What should he do? Should he hold her hand? Should he try to kiss her now, or should he wait until they got farther away from the house?
He strolled down the path, past the garage. That way led to the dairy sheds, but he didn’t want to take her there. She wouldn’t want to see that, and he didn’t want to look at business with her around.
He glanced over and found her looking his way at the same time. He blushed, but when she smiled at him, she attracted him with her stunning beauty. He wanted to gaze at her for the rest of his life.
He guided her through the trees, but he turned their steps into the forest, away from the milking sheds and pastures. The peaceful forest surrounded them. His mind swam. He had to say something to her. “Thank you for delivering that message from Riskin, the one about Rhys.”
Natalie turned away. “I don’t want to talk about Rhys, not right now.”
He rested his hand on her arm. Once he touched her, he couldn’t tear his hand away. Where would it end? He turned her around to face him. “Wait a minute, Natalie. I want to talk about Rhys. I know you two are close. I don’t want…” He broke off.
She searched his face. “You don’t want what?”
He shook his head. He couldn’t get the words out. He didn’t want any conflict to come between him and Natalie, but he couldn’t come right out and say that. They’d known each other all of five minutes, and here he was, planning to marry her.
She waited, but when he didn’t speak, she took the initiative. “I know Rhys caused you big problems in the past, and I know he’s making trouble now. I don’t want anything to come between us.”
His eyes flew open, and Silas caught his breath. Did she just say that out loud? The words surprised her as much as him. She spoke the dreaded words he dared not voice aloud.
So, she wanted the same thing. She sensed it, too. They belonged together.
Natalie looked right and left. She stole glances at his face. “What I mean is, I won’t let Rhys bother you if there’s anything I can do to help it. I’ll do whatever I can to bring Rhys to his senses.”
A shudder passed down Silas’s body. Was he really standing out here in the forest with Natalie Dodd? Were they really looking into each other’s eyes with this weighty tension hanging between them? Was he really touching her arm?
He wanted to touch so much more of her, but he didn’t want to disturb her. He yearned to grab her, sling her over his shoulder, and carry her off to his room, but he didn’t want to push her. He would hate to do anything to make her uncomfortable or nervous.
He summoned all his resolve to take his hand off her arm. Even then, her skin left its imprint on his cells. He could never tear himself away from her until he joined with her for life.
He drew back. “Thank you. I appreciate that. I know how important your brothers are to you. I won’t let Rhys come between us, either.”
A happy smile spread over her face, and her bright white teeth shone between her crimson lips. Man, he wanted to kiss her right now! His whole being screamed for her, but he had to take his time. He had to give her the space to come to this on her own.
To his amazement, she followed him. She took a step toward him, and this time, she touched the stiff cotton of his shirt where it grazed against his sleeve. “You’re a good man, Silas. You’re gonna be a great Alpha when your pop dies.”
He cocked his head to one side. “I won’t be a great Alpha until I find my mate.”
She studied him closer. “Yeah? And where do you think you’re gonna find her?”
His heart thudded so loud he barely heard his own voice. “What I mean is, I’ll be a great Alpha when I get married.”
She smiled again, and his whole world lit up. He would do anything to make her smile, and she understood exactly what he meant to say. He’d already found his mate. He just had to marry her, to make her his own. Everything else would fall into place after that.
He took a deep breath. “Natalie?”
She tried to speak, but it came out as a whisper. “Yes?”
“Do you think…?”
Her breath stuck in her throat. She didn’t blink while she waited for him to continue, but he couldn’t get the words out. He couldn’t say it—not here, not now.
She looked down at his mouth. A squirt of saliva jetted across his tongue. He hungered for her. He ached to kiss her. Did he dare? Would she run away if he tried it?
She stood so close. He caught a whiff of her scent, that Bruin scent that made his head spin. How could he ever get excited about Penny when he never smelled that scent from her? He would never smell her scent, and he didn’t want to. Natalie filled his head full of wild thoughts he couldn’t control.
Impulse and instinct burst out of him. Before he could give himself time to hesitate, he darted forward and kissed her. His lips stuck to her mouth. Her eyes shot open as big as saucers beyond his nose, but he didn’t withdraw. He kissed her until her lips responded. He nibbled once. He prodded her mouth open, and their tongues met.
Dear God, that kiss spoke to his deepest longing. He wanted her like he couldn’t believe. He wanted all of her, right there on the forest floor. He couldn’t get her dirty, though. He wanted to worship her. He wanted to keep her clean and unsullied. He wanted to preserve her for all time.
As soon as he kissed her, all doubt evaporated from his mind. He didn’t have to hold himself back from her. She was his mate. He knew it looking into her eyes, and everything she did, every glance told him she knew it, too. He didn’t have to wonder. He didn’t have to hesitate or fidget around in search of something to say.
He plucked his lips away, and she smiled that glowing smile of hers. He had to smile back. This was only the first kiss of many, many more to come. They both knew it.
He turned sideways and took her hand. “We better get back.”
She said nothing, but fell in step at his side all the way back to MacAllister Homestead. They walked through the door, and into the rest of their lives together.
Chapter 9
The Silas and Natalie walked in the door, Grace barreled out of Don and Iris’s room. She ran straight to Natalie. “Mommy says you’ll read a book to me.”
Natalie laughed. That’s what she came here for, so she might as well do it. “All right, Pumpkin. Your grandparents don’t have any books, so I’ll read you something on my tablet.”
Grace hopped up onto the couch, and Natalie sat next to her. She picked up the tablet and set it on her knees. She opened her Kindle reader. She could only pray to God Max didn’t contact her while she read to Grace.
She selected one of many kids’ books from her library, but Grace pointed to a different one. “I want that one.”
“Again?” Natalie groaned.
Grace held her ground. “I like that one.”
“Don’t you think you might want to try something different for a change? You always choose that one.”
Grace shook her head. “I like the witch.”
Laughter interrupted them. Natalie looked up to find Silas grinning on the couch across the room.
Natalie narrowed her eyes. “Don’t you have some work to do instead of laughing at me?”
He shook his head and turned away, but he wouldn’t stop smiling. “You two sound like a pair of old ladies.”
Natalie bent over her tablet. “All right. If that’s the one you want, I guess we can have it.”
She started reading, but she couldn’t help glancing up every now and then. Silas still sat there on the couch, but he didn’t get on his phone the way he did before. He watched them with his hands in his lap.
While she read about the witch that used her magic potion to turn children into mice for her cat to eat, Natalie floundered in confusion. What should she do if Max sent her a message now? Should she stop what she was doing to answer it? Should she ignore it?
If she answered it, he would send another one. He would keep sending them as long as she talked to him, and Silas would notice. If she ignored it, Max might take offense. He might get his feelings hurt, and…
And what? If he got his feelings hurt, he would stop messaging. That was what she wanted, wasn’t it? She didn’t want him to message.
Fortunately, he didn’t. He didn’t send her one message, during that book or any of the other three Grace asked her to read. In fact, he didn’t send her one message all day. That was strange.
Max made a lame excuse to get out of meeting her in Ross Cove after he suggested it in the first place. He also showed no sign of surprise when she let him go so easily at the end of their last conversation. Maybe he wanted to break it off, too. Maybe that’s what he was trying to tell her all this time.
Heaven knew this ill-fated romance wasted more valuable time she couldn’t get back. She would be glad when it ended and she went on with her life—her life with Silas.
After she read four books and Grace got bored with spending a bright summer day in the house, Silas got up. He dusted his hands together. “Come on, Grace. You and Natalie are coming outside with me.”
Grace rocketed to the door. “Yippee! Where are we going?”
“I’m taking you down to the milking sheds. You can see the cows.”
The little girl shrieked with delight. She exploded out of the house and left all the shadows of gloom and decay behind. The sun blinded Natalie. She murmured in Silas’s ear, “Thank you.”
They walked side by side, but she didn’t take his hand and he never touched her. Grace frisked over the grass and down the path. Silas and Natalie followed at a steady pace.
When they arrived at the sheds, Grace climbed up on the fence. She called to the cows lumbering onto the milking turntable. She shouted at the men working around them and shrieked over every new revelation.
Natalie and Silas hung back. Natalie took in every detail from a safe distance. “This is a much bigger operation than I expected. How long have you been doing this?”
“Do you mean how long have I been involved in the family business, or how long have I been running things?”
“Both,” she replied. “I never knew the MacAllister tribe had this going on.”
“We didn’t. I started milking in the shed when I was about seven. We only had a hundred cows then, and my pop ran everything. When I got to be about ten, I saw a few things that could be improved, and I got the idea to upgrade our equipment so we could run about a thousand head on all our land. I told my pop about it, and he told me to do it.”
Natalie’s eyes flew open. “He what?”
Silas laughed. “That’s exactly what I said. He told me to go ahead and do it. He told me to upgrade the equipment, to replace it with what I thought we ought to use instead, and to purchase the cows, improve the pastures, start running them on our land, and to expand our operation.”
Natalie opened her mouth and closed it again. “He told you to do all that when you were ten years old?”
“Yep,” Silas replied. “I didn’t think I could do it, but I didn’t tell him that. I just went ahead and did it. I got on the internet and started learning. I learned everything I needed to, and I did it. I’ve basically been running things ever since, but hardly anybody knew that. Shaw never knew, and none of my cousins knew, either. My pop shielded me so no one challenged me. He did me the biggest favor anybody could do for me. He gave me a huge opportunity. He believed in me, and he never let anybody question me while I accomplished what I set out to accomplish. Then about five years ago, he started stepping back. I guess he realized he was on the way out, so he started handing over the reins to me.”
“That must have been good for you, too.”
“It was good for me, but it made Shaw mad. We spent a lot of years hating each other. We worked it out, though.”
Natalie listened in rapt attention. “I never knew you were so close to your father. It must be hard to watch him die now, after he did so much for you.”
“I guess he didn’t do any more for me than any other Bruin father does, and it’s not hard to watch him die. I know he wants to die. He’s tired. These last years have been difficult for him. He’s ready to go, and he can go knowing I’m in charge. That’s all he really wanted. He told Arryn Stark he was just waiting for me to come into my power. Now, he can rest.”
Natalie lowered her voice. “What about your ma?”
He gazed across the sheds. “She’s going, too. It’s her time. It will be easier for everyone, including her, when she actually does. It’s the waiting around that’s hard.”
Natalie touched his hand. “I know. It was the same when my parents died. I’m just glad we had Briar and Riskin in place. That’s the main thing a tribe needs when the old Alpha dies. We need a strong Alpha and his mate to fill the gap and keep things moving.”
Silas eyes migrated to her face. “I was thinking the same thing.”
Natalie gasped. She hadn’t meant to turn the conversation to that, but now it stared her straight in the face. If she mated with Silas, she would be the Alpha’s wife. She and Silas would take this tribe through to the next generation.
Grace still studied the cattle getting milked. She kept her back to Silas and Natalie. She didn’t notice anything they did or said.
Silas’s fingers trailed against Natalie’s palm. His hand laced into hers, and he gave her a squeeze. He murmured so low she almost didn’t hear. “We don’t have to stay here. I know this doesn’t interest you.”
