Beauty and the Bear: Denali Den #1 (Alaskan Den Men) Read online

  He gripped the back of her hips. “God, you’re beautiful.”

  Her heart beat so fast, she thought it might explode. The yellow glow of his eyes mesmerized her. She’d never seen anything like it.

  “Wrap your legs around my waist,” he grunted.

  He was bossy, but she liked it. A helpless moan escaped her.

  “Do you want to stop?” he immediately asked. “We will, if you want. This is completely up to you.”

  “No. I don’t.” She hooked her legs around his back.

  “Good. Because I don’t want to stop either. I want to bury myself deep inside you. And like we agreed—we’re going to do this every day.”

  She locked her arms around his neck. Her face lolled against his shoulder. “Do it.”

  His hardness pressed against her. She squirmed, urging him inside, not wanting to wait another second. She was so ready.

  He entered her, slow and thick. The fullness of him consumed her, but she wanted more. “Yes,” she heard herself say.

  “Are you all right?” he asked.

  “Yes.” She unlocked her hands from his shoulders, wanting to see their joining. He was tall and big, and for this moment, completely hers. She raised her hips to meet him, so he could easily enter her. “I want more. You aren’t moving.”

  He sank deeper into her. “I just wanted to make sure you could take all of me.”

  “Yes,” she cried, and she realized it sounded like a sob. She wanted, no needed this so much. More than she could have understood.

  “What’s my name?” he crooned, his teeth grazing her neck.

  “Silas.” She looked into his eyes. Something about their joining was different, was incredible. The flecks of gold she’d seen before now almost entirely encompassed the colored iris of his eyes. A pull of something raw clawed at her insides. “Get on with it, Silas. Do it.”

  A growl erupted from his throat. His hands shimmied under her ass and he lifted her off the mattress. He plunged into her, stronger, faster. “Is this what you want?”

  “Yes.” Her entire body jerked. Her cries came higher and closer together, but she still managed to say, “More.”

  With a swift adjustment, he impaled her harder and at a more frenzied pace. “Tell me again.”

  Her body rippled with a full body spasm. He plunged deeper into her, holding her in an iron grip. Her cries came higher and closer together, but still she managed to say, “M-more.”

  She buried her fingers into his muscled shoulders and clutched on to his strength. The connection she felt toward him, being one with him, was more than she’d ever experienced. She opened her eyes and looked into his golden ones. A muffled cry emitted from her throat as spasms vibrated through her body.

  His neck flexed and he groaned a deep guttural noise like she’d never heard before.

  A deep heat riveted through her body and she felt like she was drowning, but drowning in what, she couldn’t say. She’d had orgasms before, but this was different. He was different. She was different.

  The arrangement was sexual, but something else existed between them. A raw need to have him draped around her like heat from a fire. And like heat, it couldn’t be seen, but she knew it was there.

  She clung to him, grasping for something so profound, she dare not lose hold of it. She couldn’t lose him. In these very brief seconds, she was one with him, joined together, but now, even though nothing had been said, she could feel him slipping away.

  “No—no—no…don’t,” she whispered. “Stay with me.”

  “Did I hurt you?” The golden color in his eyes subsided, replaced by a deep chocolate brown.

  “No. I feel amazing.” The truth of their situation crashed into the reasonable part of her brain. There would be no forever. They weren’t in love. This was nothing more than a summer fling. She had to keep her perspective…and yet, there was something more happening. “I—I— That was way better than your blueberry muffins.”

  6

  Mine.

  That was all Silas could think. He fought his inner bear to stay joined with Blue. His bear said to kiss her, brand her, make her his, and take her again. But his brain said it would never work. He couldn’t let his bear emotions rule his rational thoughts.

  She was a human.

  Slowing things down, he made a trail of kisses up her throat to her neck. He nuzzled her there, breathing the flowery scent of her skin.

  The need to kiss her full on the mouth nearly consumed him. He pressed his mouth to hers. Her lips were tender and soft. She opened to him and swiped her tongue against his. Her bare breasts scraped across his chest as she whimpered again and clutched onto his shoulders. Her sound combined with her smell formed a sugary drug he had to have.

  This had to be what it was like to join with one’s True Mate.

  But it couldn’t be. It wasn’t possible. They could never be a true mated pair. She’d never understand his inner bear. She could never go Native with him.

  “Silas. I—oh, God,” she cried. “I want you again. It’s like I can’t get enough.”

  Maybe she did understand.

  She lifted her hips and pressed the sweet juncture of the thighs against him. He was still hard and ready to go again. He just needed a fresh condom.

  “You’re pulling away from me,” she pleaded. “I can feel it.”

  He pushed off the mattress, determined to end their time together. He had no choice. “We’ve met our sex quota for the day. It’s time for me to go.”

  “Don’t go.” Her blue hair lay scattered behind her like a storm cloud.

  “I need to.”

  She sat up with her elbows propped behind her. “No. We agreed to have a practice session to make sure we are compatible—and there’s no doubt, no doubt at all that we are.”

  “I said sample the goods.” He needed to get out of here—fast. Before he said something even more stupid.

  “Yeah, whatever. Clearly we are sexually compatible.” She swung her long legs to the side of the bed and gathered her terry cloth robe. After tying the sash, she handed the piece of paper to him. “Here’s the contract I wrote up.”

  He stared at her trying to figure out this human woman. He wanted to jump her again in the worst way, only maybe go a little slower this time.

  “We talked about a contract. I know it’s silly, but read it. Tell me what you think,” she insisted.

  He took the paper. “Once a day sex,” he said the words aloud more like a question than a statement.

  “Well, that’s what we called it. We can call it something else if you want. It could be full hour sex, so then we can do it however many times we want.”

  He eyed her and wanted nothing more than to remove the robe covering her body and cover every inch of her with his tongue instead. He wanted to lap up her juices, sniff every crevasse of her skin, and sleep with her all night.

  “Or.” She gave him a delightful half smile. “It can be twice a day if you want. I’m good with that.”

  He forced himself to look back at the paper, willing his bearishly carnal thoughts out of his head.

  “Kinkiness optional?”

  “Well, yeah, you said you wanted dirty talk and um, I could add that if you want.”

  He set the paper down, took his used condom off and tossed it in the garbage. For a brief moment, he considered putting another one on and going with the twice a day option. His bear was calm, not clawing to get out, but content in this woman’s presence.

  “What do you mean by kinkiness?” he heard himself ask.

  She shrugged. “I’m pretty conservative actually—”

  “Says the girl with the blue hair.”

  “That’s different. I lost a bet.” She paced across the hardwood floor to the window. “I’ve never been able to say no to a dare or a challenge. It’s silly, I know, but you only live this life once and I don’t want to miss anything.” She spun around, sat her bottom in the window sill, and crossed her arms. “Do you always stand aro
und completely naked like that?”

  “More than you know.”

  “It’s really a turn on.” The lines around her eyes crinkled. The edges of her smile curved up.

  He needed to douse the sexual fire crackling between them, not encourage the flames to grow bigger. Looking at this blue-haired female with glittery brightness shining in her eyes, he thought everything was possible. That maybe he could be with a human, but he knew his errant thoughts were merely the aftereffects of sex. That was all it could be, because any other option was unreasonable. His family would never accept a human mate in their family tree.

  She pushed off from her sitting position at the window and approached him. “Your eyes aren’t as golden colored now.”

  Time to get out of here, before his disorganized thoughts caught traction. He grabbed his boxers and pulled them on.

  “Are you leaving so soon?”

  “I need to get back. I’ve got things to get prepared for breakfast in the morning.” Which was a complete lie.

  “But I put an hour on the contract. It hasn’t been an hour yet. I wanted time to talk.”

  He pulled his tee shirt over his head. “This isn’t about talking, it’s about sex.”

  “But you said you wanted dirty talk.”

  Reaching for his jeans, he said, “I changed my mind—just sex is good.”

  “Actually, I thought it was better than good.” She raised both eyebrows and placed her index finger on her bottom lip. “In fact, I’d have to say, it was better than your muffins.”

  “You said that already.” A smile tugged on his mouth. “And there’s a lot more where that came from.”

  Tossing her hair over her shoulder, she said, “I can’t wait.”

  So much for diffusing the situation. He didn’t need to go anywhere. All he wanted was to have her under him again, but he couldn’t—they couldn’t. His bear only wanted what it wanted—which was sex, so it agreed to anything—even when it wasn’t possible.

  “Are you going to sign it?” she asked.

  “I can’t believe you actually wrote up a contract.”

  She put herself into his personal bubble of space and placed a hand on his chest.

  The heat of her hand singed his skin, even with the cotton fabric between them. “I didn’t think you’d go through with it. I expected to see a note on your door. I thought you’d chicken out.”

  Stepping closer, she rubbed her soft cleft against his hardness. “I thought I might too, but I’m so glad I didn’t.” Her hands snaked up his chest and around his neck. “I can’t explain it, but I feel this connection with you. It doesn’t make sense because I barely know you.” Her mouth opened, then closed again. “It’s the sex, of course, but it’s more than that. I’m sure of it. I just can’t articulate it.”

  No. He couldn’t listen to this. He needed to go back to his Internet site and back to making arrangements to bring Ava to Alaska. This entire thing was a mistake. “I need to go.”

  “If you have to, I can’t stop you, but I wish you’d stay.” She gave him a coy smile. “Are we signing the contract, at least?”

  “I don’t think we need to sign anything. We are in agreement.”

  “You’ll come to my cabin each night at eleven?”

  It was on the tip of his tongue to say “no.” His brain also said no, but his nether regions had other ideas. “Yes.”

  “I look forward to it.”

  After two quick strides, he reached the door.

  “I’ll never compare your blueberry muffins to an orgasm again. The real thing is so much better.”

  He shook his head. “I’m glad you know the difference now.”

  “Me, too.” She placed her hand on his shoulder. “And whatever you did for that boy, Evan, earlier today, it worked. I saw him at dinner completely relaxed and laughing with his cabin mates. He wasn’t uptight and anxious anymore. You really helped him.”

  His hand on the doorknob, he turned to meet her eyes. “I love kids. My brothers and I wouldn’t have started this place if we didn’t.”

  She nodded. “This camp is great. I’m so glad I got the job and get to spend my summer here.”

  He looked back at the door, unable to keep eye contact with her, or he’d most certainly take her back to bed. “Me, too.”

  “Are we also in agreement about the fact that…well, you don’t need a mail-order bride now, right?”

  “I wouldn’t say that.” He still needed to find his True Mate. Granted this arrangement with her gave his sex-drive a bit of a reprieve, but he wasn’t stopping his search. “I’m still looking to marry.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes, really. Is it that hard to understand?”

  “No, I guess not. It’s just that normally you get to know someone first and usually it’s the women who are all hot and bothered to get married, not the guy. This is atypical, is all.”

  “Yes, I’m different from what you’re used to.” Hot and bothered didn’t begin to describe it, but she knew nothing of a werebear’s need to breed and bond.

  “Oh, yes.” She sighed. “In so many ways.”

  “Listen, I need to go. I’ll see you tomorrow.” He opened the door and left her cabin.

  He couldn’t get away fast enough. She was right about the connection between them. It was much more than sex. He’d bonded with her on an emotional level—that had never happened. Ever.

  7

  The next day Lexi decided she’d landed the best job of her life. After the amazing sex with Silas, she’d slept like a log, despite the midnight sun shining in through her cabin windows. She felt a sense of contentment she’d never experienced before. Since both of her parents died when she was an infant, her grandparents raised her, and while they were wonderful, she’d never had a true sense of home, except for now.

  Being with Silas last night was the closest she’d ever felt to being home. Maybe it was why she’d chosen a profession in mental health—because she didn’t understand her own mental wellbeing, but now everything in her life was filled with new prospects.

  Whatever happened with her job, she knew she couldn’t leave. Whatever existed between them, she would stay, she would fight for it. She wasn’t looking to marry, but Silas made her think in new ways and realize new possibilities. Surely he wouldn’t continue with his Internet bride idea, would he? He didn’t completely answer the question when she asked him directly and this bothered her. She’d always been a risk-taker when it came to dares, but risks with her heart were another matter.

  Today, she’d been assigned “lake duty” where she got to take the campers canoeing.

  She swore she’d landed in a wilderness heaven. Canoeing across a lake with the mountains towering in the distance, mallard ducks swimming across her path, and the mosquitoes kept at bay because of a slight breeze; she couldn’t imagine any place in the world she’d rather be.

  Except maybe in Silas’ bed again. Because of their deal, she knew she’d see him tonight, and she knew she’d get another night of mind-blowing sex, followed by another, and another, and another. In fact, she’d get him every day all summer, and if she had anything more to say about it, she’d opt for twice on Sundays (since it was her day off).

  But she had to consider that Silas wanted a bride. Then again, he’d said he needed to marry because he wanted to have sex every day. Since she had that covered, she hoped he’d abandon his idea of marriage, at least for now.

  From the back of the canoe, she paddled in time with two girls, Brielle and Aria. Suddenly, in the distance, as if her thoughts conjured up the image, Silas appeared on the opposite side of the lake. He wore his jeans, and nothing else. His wet hair lay slicked back away from his face. Had he been swimming? Lexi shook her head, realizing she must be seeing things, and her fantasy image of the Alaskan wilderness man had taken form in a grand hallucination.

  “Miss Lexi, isn’t that Silas, the cook?” sixteen-year-old Aria asked from the middle seat.

  So she was
n’t hallucinating. “I believe it is. What is he doing this far away from camp? Is there a swimming area I’m not aware of?”

  “I don’t think so,” Aria said. “At least if there is, they never told us about it.”

  Silas turned away from the lake and walked into the thick trees, effectively disappearing, but Lexi couldn’t help but notice, even from this distance, that his feet were bare.

  “That’s weird.” Brielle placed the paddle in her lap. “He’s kind of scary looking if you ask me. He’s so big, and when you see him in the dining hall he never says a word. Reminds me of a big, broody bear.”

  Lexi decided Brielle was right. He was like a growly bear, especially when you interrupted him early in the morning when he wasn’t expecting you.

  Late in the afternoon with her lake duties complete, Lexi hit the shower, then headed to her cabin to change for dinner. She couldn’t wait to see Silas in the dining hall.

  With her hair still wet, she piled it in a messy bun on the top of her head. Sorting through her clothes, she donned a white peasant top with flutter sleeves. She felt particularly feminine because she knew Silas would visit her in her cabin tonight. After selecting a coral and navy floral A-line skirt, she slid it over her hips, put on her scandals and bolted for the door, but before she departed, she had an idea and went back inside.

  Bending over, she pulled up her skirt, stripped off her panties, and flung them across her cabin where they landed on her bed.

  She giggled to herself as she made her way across camp to the dining hall. Silas’ brother, Stryker, emerged from the administrative intake cabin and he waved at her. “How are you doing, Lexi?”

  “I’m good.” She nodded. “And hungry. I guess a day of paddling around a lake will do that to you.”

  “How are you liking the job so far?”

  “I love it!” she exclaimed. “As far as I’m concerned this is my dream job—helping teens, being in the wilderness, comfortable cabin, amazing food…it’s all fantastic. I’m so thrilled you hired me and gave me this opportunity.”