“What was it about?”
“I can’t say for sure. They don’t have any digital files explaining what the argument was about. But he was fired soon after that.”
“My company is headquartered in New York. All the editors live there. How could he have sent those letters from all around the Seattle area?”
“He moved out here three months ago.”
“I’ve never worked with this guy. How does he even know about me?”
“That, I haven’t been able to pinpoint either. But my educated guess is that he had something to do with your books and got attached to you. When they fired him, he decided to follow you out to Seattle.”
“That’s crazy. Why?”
“It’s a mistake to expect his motivations to be rational.”
“Well, what now?”
“I’ve sent this information to the detective overseeing your case. I’m afraid it’s in their hands now.”
“They aren’t going to do anything,” Willow said, crestfallen.
She’d hoped that Corey would have a plan past just sending the information to the useless police.
“I could have some of my contacts in Seattle look into it. I know some guys who could take care of this man, once and for all.”
Willow looked at him, her mouth dropping open in shock. Was he suggesting they have Charles Shaw murdered?
“You’d have him killed?” she whispered, her voice croaking.
“Of course not. I’d just have him beat up a little and told to leave you alone.”
“I guess that doesn’t sound too terrible.”
“Don’t you want him to leave you alone?”
“Yes. Definitely.”
“Good. I’ll let my guys know. They’re ex-military. Very good. Very subtle.”
Willow stood up from her chair and started to pace around while Corey made some phone calls. He was smiling and excited like this was the most fun he’d had in ages.
Learning the name of her stalker and seeing his face hadn’t made her feel any better. She wished the cops would just do what they were supposed to.
Maybe she should go home and get a restraining order now that she knew who he was. She could legitimately have him arrested for bothering her after that.
She knew that would take forever and it would largely be ineffective if he did come after her. At least Corey was doing something. She was grateful he was taking control of the situation. It made her feel safer.
He hung up his phone sat beside her on the couch.
“My guys are going to look into it. You won’t be bothered by that sicko again.”
“I don’t know what to say.”
“It’s nothing. You saw how easy it was to find him. The cops could have done something similar. But to be honest, they just don’t care that much about this kind of thing.”
“You’re telling me.”
“I’m glad I could help you, Willow,” he said, taking her hand.
He brought her hand to his lips and kissed the tender flesh between her knuckles. A sharp shiver went up her spine and her entire body shuddered.
She didn’t want him to betray his own decisions, but it was too late. He’d pressed his lips hard against hers, and she was lost in the flood of desire that overflowed inside her.
Their tongues tasted each other as they breathed each other in. Willow moaned into his mouth, feeling like she was bound to him by a powerful magnetic force.
“I want you, Corey. But I know you don’t really want me. I don’t want you to betray yourself.”
“I’m a big boy. I can take care of myself.”
“I want more than a casual fling with you, Corey,” she said.
“I…I can’t give you more.”
“But why? I’m your fated mate.”
“Willow, when fated mates claim each other, the bond never ends, no matter what either of them do. Do you want to be trapped in that for the rest of your life?”
“No. I don’t.”
“Neither do I. I don’t want to hurt you. I don’t want to be hurt either. The safest thing for both of us is to end this now.”
“You just had your tongue in my mouth,” she said, incredulous.
She’d known he would hurt her. Sharp pangs of despair shot through her veins. She felt sick, like she might throw up. She stood, starting to the door.
“I’m sorry, Willow. You’re right. I made a mistake. I never should have let it get this far. I got caught up. My bear kept insisting so strongly, I… I admit it. I lost control. You were right to stop me. You can see what the fated mate attraction does to people. Just imagine what it would be like if we mated and I claimed you. We would be forever bound. We would never be free of each other again.”
“Then I’ll say ‘goodbye’ now. Thanks for the help with my stalker. Nice knowing you.”
She hurried to the door and flung it open, running off into the night and away from Corey forever.
Chapter 9
Corey watched Willow hurry away, feeling like a complete tool. Why had he let himself lose control with her? She didn’t deserve this. He was doing to her exactly what his father had done to his mother, and he would never forgive himself.
The best thing for both of them was to break it off right now. He regretted turning her on to him more than any other single thing he’d done in his entire life. He’d seen the terrors of war, and hurting Willow was worse than that.
He sat down in front of his computer, bringing up his latest project. He typed a line of code and then deleted it. He couldn’t focus. All he could think about was how he’d hurt her.
Even finding her stalker couldn’t make up for the hurt he’d caused. Nothing could make up for it. He’d used her animal attraction to him so that he could feel the pleasure of his fated mate under his hands.
He wanted to punch something for being so weak. Instead, he stood from his computer and started to pace the room. He’d called his contacts in Seattle over an hour ago and still hadn’t heard anything back yet. He went to his bedroom and collapsed on the bed, looking up at the ceiling.
His inner bear growled and groaned inside his mind, reminding him that his mate was close. The bear was single-minded in its focus. All it cared about was claiming his woman at the soonest possible moment. The bear would not be soothed and neither would Corey.
He felt ashamed of himself, and it was clear why. He also felt depressed. Seriously depressed. It was an emotion Corey wasn’t used to. He usually didn’t bother with it. If there was something he wasn’t happy with, he’d just change it. There was no use feeling depressed about it. He considered it illogical.
But as illogical as he tried to tell himself it was, he couldn’t make it stop. He was genuinely sad. And why? He searched his feelings. Something Corey wasn’t used to.
He had to figure out what was going on. These feelings were highly uncomfortable and were getting in the way of his work. That’s when he realized why he felt depressed. He loved Willow! The shock gripped his chest and grasped his heart as he gasped. He really loved her.
He’d be lucky to be with a woman like Willow. She was in touch with her emotions in a way that he never would be. He could imagine their life together. Both of them working on their own projects, taking breaks to swim together in the lake. It could be beautiful.
She could open him to his own heart. He could help her keep her life in order.
But it never could be like that. They were fated mates. The pheromones and their animal bond would destroy that peaceful scene and turn it into something compulsive and ugly.
He couldn’t do that to her. He couldn’t do it to himself. Just because the rest of the guys on the crew had found love and happiness didn’t mean it would happen to him. There had been plenty of problems during his friends’ courtships. There was no guarantee that any of them would live happily ever after.
It was a chance his friends had been willing to take, but it wasn’t one Corey was willing to take. His phone pinged as he sat down
on the couch.
“Target cannot be located.”
The text came from one of his contacts in Seattle. Corey decided to contact the police and see what they were doing about the case. When he got on the phone with the detective in charge of Willow’s case, the detective immediately started to interrogate Corey.
“Where did you find this information? Who is your source?”
“I prefer not to reveal my source.”
“How am I supposed to know this is true?”
“I sent you all the information you need to make an arrest.”
“I’m sorry, sir, but there is no reason to arrest this person. You’ve given me some circumstantial evidence. Sending letters to someone isn’t illegal.”
“Those letters are threatening.”
“Indirectly. He never said he’d murder her and cut her up. If he had, maybe we could move on this information.”
“You’re kidding, right? You and I both know these things always escalate.”
“Be that as it may, sir, the suspect still hasn’t done anything illegal.”
“So, you have to wait for him to hurt her before you’ll do anything?”
“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that. I suggest you stay with her to make sure she’s safe, since you are obviously concerned for her safety.”
“Well, thanks for nothing,” Corey said, hanging up the phone.
He felt powerless, a sensation Corey was not used to having. He was a Rescue Bear. An ex-Navy SEAL and a computer genius. There wasn’t much Corey couldn’t do. But when it came to Willow, he was lost.
Chapter 10
Willow went back to her suite, feeling the tears already rolling down her cheeks. She’d covered it up on the way through the lobby, but the moment the door was closed behind her, she burst into sobs.
Ugly crying, she walked from one room to the next, throwing her things into her suitcase. She didn’t care that she had almost an entire week left at the lodge. She had to get away from here as quickly as possible. She couldn’t risk seeing Corey again.
He’d hurt her. Why? Because he was afraid of hurting her? He’d already done exactly what he was so afraid of doing. He’d let himself get carried away on the beach. He’d licked her until she’d screamed for more.
But she couldn’t blame him. She’d let him kiss her. She’d let herself get swept up in the desire that seemed to take over her body whenever they were together.
Why had she allowed herself to be so stupid? She’d come down here thinking she was going to meet a great guy. Maybe things would work out. She’d been willing to give it a shot.
Then she’d arrived just to find a man who didn’t want her, no matter how good they might be for each other.
It wasn’t fair.
She wanted to storm back over to his house and demand he tell her why he was so opposed to falling in love with his fated mate. She needed to know.
But the last thing she was willing to do was see Corey ever again. She wouldn’t have believed it was possible to break someone’s heart after three pseudo-dates, but somehow Corey Bright had managed to do it.
Now she was stuck with a broken heart, writer’s block, and a stalker who was still at large.
Things couldn’t be worse.
She threw her clothes in her bag indiscriminately, shoved her laptop in her laptop bag, and hurried out the door of her suite. It might be late, but she wasn’t going to stay on Fate Mountain for another single second.
She wasn’t going to let Corey mess with her mind or heart anymore. Screw him. His friends. Their mates. And all the people who ended up living happily ever after on Fate Mountain.
She resented everyone and everything, and couldn’t remember being more upset. She threw the key to her room at the front desk in the lobby, not even stopping to see if anyone was there.
“Is everything okay?” a woman said behind her.
“Checking out,” she said in a cracking voice.
She charged out the front doors of the lodge and into the night air. The summer night sky was clear and full of stars above her. She could get lost in those stars if she was willing to look. Just the way she’d been able to get lost in Corey’s eyes.
Why did she let herself fall like that? But she had to respect her feelings. She’d be damned if she would ever be like Corey, a man who insisted on cutting himself off from his feelings. He cut himself off from love and from her. No matter the reason, she just couldn’t understand that.
Willow believed in her feelings. She believed in love. She believed in fate and happily ever after. As she slid behind the wheel of her car, it all came crashing into her awareness.
She lived for love. She lived for the deep sensations she felt every day. It’s what made her who she was.
She could barely see through the tears as she drove out of the lodge’s parking lot. How she was going to make it home like this, she had no idea. But she didn’t care. She had to get away.
In the middle of her meltdown, she could imagine what she had to do with her character. The heroine who didn’t feel anything when the hero left her. Now she knew what her heroine felt. She felt pissed as hell.
Willow sped down the road and turned onto the highway that would lead her back to Portland. The sooner she got back to Seattle to write, the better.
Even through the tears and the pain, Willow could feel her writer’s block chipping away like a brick wall crushed by a wrecking ball.
All the pieces of resistance were smashed away, and her creative spark grew bright inside her. She had to smile, even through the pain. This was what was important. Her imagination. Corey might have hurt her, but it had broken away what was holding her back.
She sniffled as she took a curve on the dark road. She felt hurt and pissed and out of control, and she relished it. This was what love did. This was what it was all about. These crazy, out of control feelings where what Corey was so afraid of. But Willow said, “Bring it on.”
Love was messy.
It could crush you and inspire you at the same time. It was worth it all in the end.
She was in the middle of this breakthrough when she spotted movement in the backseat of her car. She gasped under her breath. Her heart jumped and her limbs felt numb. Without thinking, she picked up her phone and typed out a text to the last person she’d texted.
“Help.”
That’s all she had a chance to do before the man in the back of the car jumped over the seat and grabbed the steering wheel.
Willow screamed.
“If I can’t have you, no one will!” the stalker yelled, driving the speeding car off the road.
They drove off the embankment, flying down a hillside so fast Willow didn’t have time to scream. She slammed on the breaks and pulled the wheel away from the man behind her. The car swerved. Turning, it smashed sideways into a tree. Willow was thrown against the window, and her air bags deployed.
The stalker groaned. The passenger seat window was shattered. Her laptop had flown up in the air and smashed against the side of the car, broken.
She stared at her computer, thinking of her lost work. Her head throbbed, and she touched her temple. She could see blood come away on her fingertips in the dim light of the cab.
“What the hell are you doing?” she demanded, smacking at the stalker.
“You’re coming with me,” he said.
He pulled her out of her seat and started to drag her through the dark forest.
“Why are you doing this?” she demanded.
Her head ached so badly she thought maybe she had a concussion. It was hard to walk on her wobbling legs, but Charles Shaw dragged her on anyway.
“Hurry up,” he grumbled, holding on to her shirt and arm.
“What do you want?” she whimpered.
“You. Of course.”
“But why?” she said, trying to keep up with his fast pace.
Tree boughs smacked into her face as he forced her through the woods. She had no idea where they were,
and she didn’t think he knew either.
“You’re Sandra Collins,” he stated.
“So what?” she said, trying to pull away from him.
His grip was too tight and he was too strong. He turned to her and stopped. She saw his eyes spark in the moonlight.
“Sandra Collins has the most sensitive, erotic characters I’ve ever read. You wrote all that. Why wouldn’t I want you?”
“You’re insane,” she growled.
“No. I’m perfectly sane. What man in his right mind wouldn’t want the woman who wrote those words? Ever since I was the assistant editor on your first book, I knew I had to have you. I was fired just for trying to find out who you are. Did you know that? But I found you anyway. And I’m never letting you go.”
He yanked her forward, forcing her on. They walked through the night until he finally decided to rest.
“Sit there,” he said, pointing at a dark thicket.
The sun was starting to rise, but they must be miles from the car crash by now. No one would ever find her. God only knew what Charles Shaw wanted to do with her.
“Just let me go,” she whispered, her voice hoarse.
“Not a chance. Now that I have you, you’re mine.”
“What do you intend to do with me?”
“Make you mine. Keep you. Love you. Worship you. I intend to give you everything you deserve. That shifter couldn’t do it. He might have made you feel good for a minute on that beach, but I’ll make you feel good forever.”
“You saw us?” she asked, disgusted.
“I should have killed him when I saw him touching you. But I wasn’t ready to make myself known to you.”
“He’s an ex-military grizzly bear shifter. I doubt you could have taken him,” Willow said, taunting the asshole.
“He’s nothing special. I could do anything for love.”
Willow groaned and rolled her eyes. This guy was totally cracked.
“So you really like my writing, huh? Tell me more,” she teased.
“You’re brilliant. Your characters are so real. It’s like I know them.”
“Go on,” she said.