“Leland Kincaid. Haven’t seen you around these parts in a long time,” said the bar owner as he filled Leland’s second pint.
Leland knew his name was Drew Bock, a member of the Rescue Bears crew. The shifters in this town knew each other well. Too well. The gossip moved fast.
“Drew. Looking good, friend. How’s the family?”
“We’re doing well. My mate Quinn is pregnant with our third cub. We couldn’t be happier.”
“Good to hear.”
“Speaking of mates… I can’t help but scent something is going on here.”
“You can smell it too? Where is she?” Leland blurted out, looking around the bar.
He was already feeling the effects of his two beers. Mixed with the heady feeling of his mate being in the room intoxicated him further. When he finally saw her walking toward him from the bathroom, he was stunned into silence; she was like a vision from a dream.
She was wearing a smart blue shirt suit with nude pumps. Her hourglass curves were so gorgeous they slapped him right across the face. Her thick black hair hung in soft waves all the way to the small of her back. Horn-rimmed glasses perched on the bridge of her delicate nose, and her luscious, full lips were painted an enticing shade of red. If he hadn’t been sitting on a bar stool, he might have fallen right onto the floor.
Mate! Mate!
His grizzly growled and scratched in his mind. She walked right up to him and smiled shyly. Without a word, she showed him the screen of her phone. There was a picture of him with the words “100% Match” over the top.
“Boss Bear, it’s you,” she said with a giggle.
“Sweet’n Sassy,” he said, holding up his own screen.
“That’s me. My name is Sylvia.”
“Leland,” he said, reaching out to shake her hand.
“This is so strange. I never expected this to happen. I thought it was a scam, to be honest. I mean, how can a website predict your perfect match?”
“I didn’t even know I was still signed up for that site.”
“Then we’re both equally shocked.” She laughed nervously, looking around.
“Please, join me,” he said, remembering his manners and motioning to the seat beside him.
She slid onto the stool and he ordered another round of drinks. He was so excited and nervous, he couldn’t quite think straight. How had his mate ended up in the brewery at this exact moment? He was from Fate Mountain and knew that fated mates had a way of finding each other around here. But he’d never fully believed it until it happened to him.
“So, you want to get married and have babies?” he teased.
She blushed furiously. “I thought it was a scam,” she reiterated.
“Ha. I’d probably think that if I were you too. What brings you to Fate Mountain?” he asked her, trying to put her at ease.
“I’m here on business,” she said, drowning her own nerves in another pint of beer. “And you?”
“I’m from here, originally. Just came back after a long time. It’s been rough.”
He didn’t want to get into the drama with his ranch with her, not on their first meeting. Learning about his father’s debt, and his brother’s lack of involvement didn’t seem like first date information. He had to play this cool. His woman was obviously a professional and probably too good for a crusty old cowboy like him.
From her profile, he’d learned she was six years younger than him, and from Portland. She had her whole life ahead of her, doing her thing in her own life. If he wanted a chance with this woman, he couldn’t scare her off.
Instead of telling her about his ranch, or his problems, he asked her about her life. He asked her about her childhood. He asked her about her family. She told him about her parents; her mom who set her up on one bad date after another, and the lack of good men out there.
When she mentioned that, she put her hand to her lips and apologized. He could tell she was getting tipsy and it suddenly dawned on him that neither of them should be getting too drunk. She was in town on business. And he had an important meeting, first thing tomorrow morning.
“We should probably pace ourselves,” he said, when Drew asked if they wanted another pitcher of beer.
“You’re right,” she giggled. “I’m pretty tipsy.”
“Can I walk you back to your hotel?” he asked, trying to be a gentleman. He should have thought about that before she’d gotten so lit up. She was curvy but still a lightweight. He reprimanded himself for not taking better care of her.
“Sure. I’m just at the Fate Mountain Inn,” she said, sliding out of her stool.
She slid her little hand into the crook of his elbow and the sensation almost did him in. It was the most gentle, sweet gesture he’d ever felt. He put his own rough hand over her smooth one and held it there for a moment, looking into her pretty brown eyes.
“Let’s get you back,” he said gently.
She nodded with a smile and they made their way out of the brewery, leaving the sound of music and the smell of beer behind them. They walked down the street to the Fate Mountain Inn and took the stairs to the second floor.
“This is me,” she said, tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear.
He should have held back. He should have been a gentleman, but the scent of her skin and the twinkle in her eyes made his grizzly rear up inside his mind. He leaned in and cupped her cheek in his hand, pulling her toward him as he brushed his lips over hers.
The scent of the warm gush of her desire washed over him as she met his kiss. She pressed hard against his lips, groaning softly. His tongue slid through her lips and the heat of her mouth enveloped him. That was all it took. There was no stopping the beast now. He started walking her backward through the open hotel room door and kicked it closed behind him with his work boot.
She looked up at him with her big wide brown eyes, her lips parted. The expression on her face was so vulnerable and beautiful it made the grizzly inside him crave so much more. Sylvia was his mate and he had been waiting so long for her. He didn't realize until that very moment that his life had been incomplete before she had stepped into it.
He gathered her to him and kissed her deeply, sliding his tongue over hers in a splendidly erotic dance. They were entwined in each other's arms, touching and caressing and holding each other tight. Leland pulled her out of her coat before sliding her suit jacket off her shoulders. With deft hands, he undressed her as he kissed her and she kissed him back. She was left standing in her bra and panties.
He growled and picked her up, striding across the hotel room to lay her gently on the bed. She looked up at him with wide vulnerable eyes while he peeled out of his own clothes. He was with her in the bed, only seconds later, climbing over her and resting between her legs. They were so lost in a daze of desire and need. Under the haze of alcohol. It was impossible for him to stop, and she didn't ask him to.
Leland had gone through so much stress and pain in the last several days that he wasn't going to let this bright spot of hope pass him by. He needed to feel her. He needed to know her. He needed to express the promise of what it meant to be fated mates.
He pulled her out of her bra and panties, kissing down her body until his mouth rested against her stomach. Her honey brown skin glistened in the low light of the bedside lamp. She was so beautiful, so perfect. He could smell the scent of her arousal wafting through the air, intoxicating him further.
He growled as his grizzly clawed behind his eyes. He needed her. He needed to be inside her, to see her eyes when she came. At that moment, he believed that her pleasure could save him. As ridiculous as it might have been, in that moment, it all made perfect sense.
He slid his tongue up the slit between her legs, eliciting a long low groan from her lips. The flavor of her nectar lapped over his tongue: sweet and tangy like an exotic fruit. He growled against her clit, darting his tongue in and out of her channel.
Sylvia writhed below him and he held onto her thighs as he continued to driv
e into her sweet core. She threaded her fingers through his hair and gripped hard as he felt her body pulse with climax under his tongue. It was so beautiful; it made his grizzly rear up inside him, growling and clawing and roaring for more. He had to be inside her. He couldn't wait a second longer. Climbing over her on the bed, he slipped out of his boxers and sank between her legs, kissing her gently on the cheeks and jaw.
"I need to be inside you," he whispered into her ear.
"Yes," she said in a soft voice, running her hands up his back.
Leland slid through her wet folds. Her nails bit into his back as she gasped at his size. Tilting back slightly, he relieved the pressure only to thrust deeper. Sylvia was both languid and rigid under him, taking what he had to give. Inch by inch he buried himself inside her, coming to the place that he knew was his true home. When he sank to his base inside her, he held her tight and rested there, not ever wanting to break the spell or move away from this perfect place.
Her hands ran up and down his back as her thighs shook against his hips. He drew back and slid slowly back in with a soft thrust.
"Leland," she panted.
"You are my everything, Sylvia," he said into her ear.
He didn't know what had come over him. The sweet softness of her body under his hands soothed his soul and soothed his pain. He needed her. Now more than he'd ever needed anything.
He held her softly in his arms and moved in waves inside her. He thrust harder and could feel her body clench around him again. The feeling of her soft, velvety pussy throbbing against his cock undid him, and all at once he felt the driving urge to come himself.
He growled and thrust again three times until he released all of his need, his pain, his desire, his frustration, his love inside her. Everything he was and everything he had to give. He showed her all of it as the jets of his cum pumped against her cervix. She was still clenching around his shaft as the last drops of his semen pumped inside her.
Breathless and spent, they held each other for a long time.
"You're everything I need, Sylvia," he said, pulling her against his chest as they sank under the soft comforter of the hotel room bed.
"That was so hot," Sylvia said, her own voice hazy and distant.
They fell asleep under the dim light of the bedside lamp, sweaty and sticky from sex.
Chapter 7
Sylvia woke the next morning, reaching out to wrap her arm around Leland’s waist, but she found the bed empty beside her. Opening her eyes, she saw the last glimpse of his perfect behind sliding into his dark blue jeans. He turned to her and climbed back into the bed to kiss her on the forehead.
“I have an important meeting soon, and I’ve got to get going. I’ll call you as soon as I’m done,” he said, standing back up to pull his fur-lined denim jacket over his shoulders.
“What time is it?” she asked groggily, rubbing her eyes.
Her head ached from the beer the night before. She sat up in bed, trying to orient herself.
“It’s already eight thirty,” Leland said, stepping in to give her one last kiss on the mouth. “I’m sorry about leaving so soon. I wish there were another way around it.”
He cupped her cheek and smiled as he stood back up.
“It’s okay. I’ve got a meeting too. I can’t believe I slept so late.”
“I’ll call you later, okay?” he said, stepping toward the door.
“I’d love that.”
“We’ll talk soon,” he said, slipping outside.
Sylvia threw back the covers and climbed out of bed, still totally naked from the night before. She put her hand to her forehead, feeling fuzzy and confused. She’d let herself get swept up in the moment last night, and she should regret it, but she didn’t. Not one bit. Being with Leland had been the most amazing experience of her life.
After meeting him, she was beginning to believe in fated mates. She hurried to the bathroom and took a shower. As she wiped off the mirror to start on her makeup, she could barely keep her mind off the night before. Even though she’d been pretty tipsy, she remembered everything. And all the choices they’d made.
She barely knew Leland, but that didn’t seem to matter last night. It was like they had a connection that was above knowing how he spent his childhood or…even his last name.
What was his last name? She couldn’t remember if she’d ever even asked him. After finishing her makeup, she went on to blow out and straighten her long black hair. With that done, she went back into the bedroom and opened her suitcase, pulling out her most professional black pinstripe pant suit. This should give the right message when she showed up at Timber Bear Ranch.
Regardless of her new and unexpected love affair with the mysterious and gorgeous shifter she’d met the night before, she still had a job to do. She’d been given a big case, and she knew it could lead to bigger and better things, if she could manage to collect the debt.
She slipped into her suit pants, a white shirt, and then the jacket, before stepping into a pair of black suede heels. Knowing that the ranch was probably a muddy mess this time of year, she also grabbed her rain boots. With everything in hand, she made her way down to the car. After checking the GPS for the address again, she started up the mountain.
She slipped in the motivational CD she listened to before difficult on-site audits to get herself psyched up as she drove, repeating the power phrases she knew so well.
By the time her GPS told her to turn off the highway onto a dirt road, she was feeling confident and ready to take on the world. And it was a good thing too because she honestly had no idea what to expect.
She was already forty minutes late. She hated being late to meetings, but she was an auditor. Coming early or late was kind of her prerogative at the end of the day. Evasion was a serious crime, and the Kincaid family needed to know who they were dealing with.
Usually, she’d do a preliminary interview with the payer before the audit, but because it had been Jim’s case, she’d had to skip that part.
She pulled up into the gravel driveway of the Timber Bear Ranch and pushed open her car door. Grabbing her briefcase and purse from the backseat, she centered herself and took a deep breath. Letting out her relaxing breath, she started up the gravel path to the front porch of the old farmhouse, noting the value of the items around her. The home alone was worth several hundred thousand. She stopped at the screen door and looked for a doorbell. There wasn’t one so she pulled back the screen and knocked on the carved oak door.
When the door opened, her knees almost buckled.
“Leland?” she croaked.
“Sylvia?” he said in a gruff voice.
His eyes were dark and hooded, his expression unreadable.
“How did you know where I lived?” he asked, stepping back to welcome her inside.
“I…” she started, unable to form a complete thought.
“Come in, can I get you anything? Coffee?”
“Yes. Please. That would be great.”
“Cream and sugar?”
She couldn’t believe what was happening.
“Yes,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
“You look great in that suit,” he said, moving to the kitchen. “I thought you had a meeting? Did you track me down through the gossips in town or something?”
“Um…”
How was she supposed to break it to him? When he came back into the front parlor holding her coffee cup, she stood there like an idiot gripping the handle of her briefcase. She took a sip of her coffee and smiled. He sat across from her on a red velvet couch and picked up his own coffee mug.
“I’m sorry I can’t be a better host right now. I’ve got a meeting with an auditor. He should have been here an hour ago.”
“He isn’t coming,” she muttered.
“What do you mean?” he said, shuffling through a handful of documents.
“He isn’t coming, because they sent me instead,” she said, deflating entirely and sliding down into the armch
air across from Leland.
“They sent you?” he said, looking up at her, the realization finally dawning in his eyes.
She nodded, pressing her lips together, unable to speak.
“You’re my auditor?” he said in a gravelly voice.
She wasn’t sure if his tone was angry or what, but it made her heart jump in her throat and all she wanted to do was run away and forget this ever happened. It was a nightmare. The night before had been magical. Erotic. Beautiful. She’d wanted it to never end. Even if they’d just met. Even if they’d never been on a date before. The smell of him, the feeling of his arms around her. He’d told her she was his everything, and she felt he’d meant it.
“I’m afraid so,” she said, the feeling starting to come back to her numb fingers and toes.
She popped open her briefcase and pulled out her files.
“Shall we begin?” she said, trying to remember her professional manners.
“Sylvia?” he questioned.
“Leland, I’m sure we can handle this like two mature adults. I do these audits all the time. This shouldn’t be any different.”
“But you’re my fated mate,” he growled. “We made love last night.”
“True. There is a conflict of interest now. It might be better for me to assign this case to someone else.”
She could see the brightness of his beast shine through his eyes, making her recoil. Sylvia cleared her throat, not sure how to respond. She was the auditor here. She was supposed to be in charge of this investigation. The waves of palpable dominance rolling off of him made her question her ability to keep this thing under control. There was a loud banging at the door, saving her from the heat of his gaze.
“Hold on,” he said, standing from the chair.
He went to the front door and opened it.
“What the hell is going on with the company credit card?” growled a deep male voice.