Bear to the End (Bear Claw Security Book 5) (2 page)

C
harlotte pushed
hair out of her eyes as she heard whoever was at the door knock again and then ring the doorbell.

She was embarrassed by the state of her apartment. Not that it was any different than usual, but when the handsome guy at the security place had told her someone would come by, she really hadn’t pictured what that would mean until she came home after work and saw the mess she was in. Boxes from a past move still lurked in the corners. She had one sad chair and a small table. A TV in the corner. Her tiny kitchen was basically a fridge and a stove and one inadequate counter. The tired linoleum led straight to the worn carpet of her small living room.

She looked around with a sigh and folded her arms. No point trying to hide the inevitable.

At least she wasn’t hiring that rich guy from the office, the one with the strikingly handsome face and all the top brands, who reminded her of something she never wanted to be reminded of.

She couldn’t imagine what a man like that would say upon entering her place, even if he could probably guess at it just from being in the neighborhood. But the man who was coming, Bronson, had seen the darker areas of life as a soldier and a man who’d left behind a life of wealth.

They had that in common at least.

She let out a breath and pulled the door open with a whoosh… and gasped when she looked up at the man in front of her.

He really was the spitting image of the man she’d met earlier that day, which made sense since they were identical. But she hadn’t expected to be just as powerfully drawn to him as she was to the other man.

He wore a black tee shirt that emphasized powerful biceps which was tucked over rock-hard abs into oversized cargo pants that pressed over thickly muscled thighs. His hair was styled messier, like a woman had her hands in it.

She wanted that woman to be her.

She licked her lips nervously. Where had that come from? She’d thought she was over the men thing. Over lusting. Over trying to find
the one
. She obviously had no taste in men, given that her last one had landed her in this situation, so she’d be better off keeping her space from the handsome stranger at the door.

“Charlotte is it?” he asked, tilting his head to look at her. Even his voice was the same as the one from the office. She narrowed her eyes, trying to make sure it wasn’t him.

But of course it had to be the right guy. Who would lie about that and why?

Plus, this man looked and acted completely different. He carried himself much more loosely, unlike the stiff man she’d met before.

He gestured at the door, and she realized she was being rude leaving him on the step. She stepped back and waved him in. He’d have to see her place at some point.

“Yes, it’s Charlotte. And you’re Bronson?” she asked as the big man moved past her into the room. She felt a wave of pheromones rush through her as he passed, and she nearly went dead on her feet at how strong they were.

Now
this
was a man.

Why couldn’t I have found him before I found Clay? And why do I have to be his client?

He nodded. “But you can call me by my middle name. Mark.”

She blinked. “Mark. Okay,” she said. She wrapped her arms around herself and looked around the room nervously. “Sorry, I know it’s not much…”

“It doesn’t matter,” he said. But he did look perturbed as he surveyed the scene. As he looked at the beat-up doors and windows, she saw a little of the stiff disapproval his brother had. “I can make it more secure, I think.”

“You think?” she asked, taking a step back. “You aren’t sure?”

He raised an eyebrow. “Will you let me do my job?” His tone was polite but impatient. He wasn’t anything she’d expected. He walked to the window, tested it, opened it, and frowned when the old wood creaked like it was breaking. Then he turned and faced her, leaning on the wall, his long body on full display.

“So tell me about the guy who’s after you,” he said.

She sat in her worn-out chair. “All right,” she said. “He’s my ex-husband. Rough biker type. He hasn’t found me yet, but I just… It’s my intuition.”

“And you know he’s stalking you?” he asked.

“He didn’t let me go willingly before,” she said, biting her lip as she remembered it. She didn’t want to think about it, but she had to if she wanted this man to help her. “And last time he found me, I had to move.”

“When was that?” he asked.

She cocked her head. “Three years ago.”

The wind blew another burst of his scent, fresh and spicy and masculine, in her direction, and she held back a sigh at how nice it was.

“So you just have a feeling he’s going to find you again?”

“I have a feeling he’s watching me,” she said. “I don’t know if he’ll do anything about it. But I think maybe when I go to work or home from work, someone’s there.”

He cursed. “And you let me wait until six to come over here?”

She shrugged. “I thought you were busy. And I obviously thought I’d be safe in broad daylight. He might have the guts to watch me during the day, but I doubt he’d do anything.”

He folded his arms. “You never know what a complete psychopath will do.”

“Sounds like you know from experience,” she said, slightly teasing.

A dark, bitter look flashed over his face for a moment. “Maybe.”

“Who?” she asked. For some reason, she had no problem asking questions of this straightforward stranger.

He waved a hand. “Don’t worry about it. I’m here to help you.” He looked her over. “Have you eaten yet? You look stressed.”

She grinned and wrinkled her nose. “It’s not much, but I have a frozen pizza in the fridge if you want to share it with me.”

“I have a better idea. I’ll order takeout, and you can tell me everything about your schedule and what you need from me while we eat.”

She hadn’t had takeout in a long time. Her job at the shelter didn’t exactly allow for a lot of luxuries. But it was the most fulfilling part of her life. “That sounds great.”

As he sat on the floor by her small table, pulled out his phone, and began ordering, she felt herself relaxing already.

He hung up the phone, ran a hand through his tousled blond hair, and gave her a polite smile that sent shivers down to her toes.

“They’ll be here in about fifteen. I’m going to start setting up some security equipment in the meantime.” He walked out the door and shut it behind him, and she let out a pent-up breath.

The man was gorgeous. She should be thinking about how to utilize him as a bodyguard, how much safer she would feel while working with him…

But instead, the bear in her was just screaming for a mate.

She supposed putting that goal on hold indefinitely wasn’t the smartest thing if she wanted to keep her inner bear happy. But at the time, the idea of another man coming close to her was the worst thing possible.

But getting close to
this
man? For some reason, that didn’t bother her at all.

Maybe it was his height, his width, and the gentle but precise way he moved. Maybe it was his soft, sharp gaze that was more thoughtful than predatory.

He was nothing like Clay, and that was good.

He opened the door again and came in carrying a heavy duffle bag full of clanking equipment. Just as he was setting it down, the phone rang.

“Sorry, I’ve gotta take this,” he said, swiping the phone screen and holding it up to his ear as he walked out the front door again. A normal person would be a little apprehensive standing out on the porch in this neighborhood, but nothing seemed to scare him.

Then again, he was a giant, powerful bear shifter male. She hadn’t been around a lot of them, so maybe that was typical.

She tried not to eavesdrop on his phone call, but his voice was right outside her door and was rising.

“I didn’t have a choice,” he said. “She needs protection ASAP. I know. I know.”

She frowned and picked up a magazine she’d left lying around, opening to hopefully at least look like she was reading if he came in.

“No, I don’t think it’s a bad idea. We’re fully booked. What’s your idea? No, I can’t do that. You know I can’t. All right. Fine. When this is over, we’ll talk. But I’m taking the job.”

His normally calm tone was angry, and she heard him set his hand heavily on the metal railing outside. Then he let out a long breath before he came back in.

His apologetic blue eyes met hers. Eyes like a Caribbean sky. “Sorry about that,” he said. “As they probably told you, we’re super booked. I know you didn’t want to work with my twin, so…”

She nodded. “Sorry. I’m glad you could fit me in though.”

He cocked his head, lips pursed into a line. “What was the problem there? He’s a nice guy. Well trained.”

She bit her lip. “It’s not that. It’s just… I have personal issues; that’s all. He reminds me of something I’d rather not think about.”

He was quiet at that and leaned on her wall, just watching her. “Maybe you shouldn’t judge just on first impressions.”

She shrugged. “Sometimes first impressions are right. I mean, when you wear certain things, you’re sending signals. He was sending signals that he’s the type of person that comes from a lot of money and doesn’t mind showing it. That’s all.”

“And there’s a problem there? I think it’s pretty admirable he’s doing security work when he has all of that.”

“He’s your brother,” she said. “You would think the best of him. Anyway, I’m more comfortable with someone like you. Someone like that, would he really understand my life anyway? Would he even be comfortable here? I don’t need to be judged while I’m being protected.”

Mark looked around the room. “Well, I’m glad it worked out. Or will work out. Or whatever.”

“Were you going to set up equipment?” she asked, breaking the awkwardness.

He grinned. “Right.” He picked up the bag again and began rummaging through it. He pulled out what looked like door and window sensors for security systems and adhesive to attach them. “This isn’t going to work the best with the really old hinges and framing, but we’ll do what we can.”

She nodded. “Thank you.”

“I suppose even if I told you we had a company apartment where we can take clients, you’d want to stay in your home.”

She nodded. “If at all possible.”

“It’s possible,” he said, bending his large frame to start the installation. He gave her a heart-melting grin over his shoulder. “As long as I’m here, you’ll be perfectly safe.”

His words made her heart pound. Looking around her scrubby apartment, everything felt better with him here.

“So are you married?” she asked, wanting to pull the words back into her mouth the minute she’d said them.

He raised an eyebrow. “No.”

“Just wondering, you know, because a wife wouldn’t really like you staying over on security jobs.”

“A wife would trust me, hopefully,” he said. “If I had one, I’m sure I wouldn’t be able to look at anyone else.” He gave her a long, slow look. “Even if they were as beautiful as you.”

“Excuse me?” she asked, choking back how pleased she felt that he noticed her like that. It’d been a long time since she’d been hit on, since she’d felt like a woman. It was surprising the first man to notice her that way would be a handsome bodyguard type.

“I’m a man,” he said, putting up his hands. “Sorry, it’s just kind of something I notice, when there’s a gorgeous woman around. But I can be a perfect gentleman.”

She didn’t want him to be a perfect gentleman. She wanted to push him up against her old door and break it while having naughty. She felt blood run up into her cheeks and was glad he couldn’t see it.

“So what do you do?” he asked.

“I work at SWH, a non-profit,” she said.

The doorbell rang, and she stood, but before she could get the door, he was there in front her, protectively putting himself between her and whoever was there.

He paid for the pizza, gave a generous tip, and then came back to her with two great-smelling, steaming boxes in his hands. She grabbed two plates and joined him at the small table in the center of the room.

“I should have paid,” she said.

“I’d never let a lady pay,” he said with a wink. “Besides, I’ll be the one eating most of it.”

She grinned, opening one of the boxes and pulling out a cheesy piece. “You never know.”

His eyes widened and his grin deepened. “I’d be happy to be proven wrong.”

She grinned as she took a bite of the delicious pizza, trying not to moan at how great it tasted. His eyes narrowed in on her pleasure like it was the only thing that mattered to him. Another little thrill went through her.

“Anyway, you’ll see what I do tomorrow, since you’ll be coming in with me, right?”

He nodded. “I’ll be on you twenty-four-seven.”

She felt blood move into her face and watched his face heat in a deep blush.

“W-wait,” he stuttered. “That’s not what I… Damn.” He rubbed the back of his neck and gave her a sheepish grin. “You know.”

She giggled. “I know.”

“But yeah, I’ll find out more tomorrow. For now, let’s enjoy pizza. Then you can do what you like while I get the system installed. And then we’ll hit the hay.” He looked around the room. “I’m assuming I’m sleeping out here?”

She frowned. “Sorry.”

He shrugged. “It’s fine. I’ve slept in worse places.”

She felt relieved at that. After all he was doing for her, she hated that he had to be on the ground. At the same time, she couldn’t let him stay in her bed.

His comment about being on her twenty-four-seven had sounded just a little too good for her to allow that.

He gave her a charming grin and went back to eating his pizza, and she tried to focus on her own.

Even if there was something in her house that seemed far more tempting.

M
ark was already
up and checking the equipment when Char wandered in, still drowsy from sleep.

She looked adorable in a knee-length nightshirt, and at first, she seemed surprised he was there. Then she let out a little squeak of shock and went running back into her room, slamming the door.

Mark let himself grin, despite the tiredness he felt from the night before. He’d lied when he told her he’d slept in worse places. He’d never slept in anything close to this. Uncomfortable was a very mild way of putting the experience. His apartment was packed with every amenity, including a comfy Cal-king bed that was perfect for his long body.

Definitely this experience was already making him appreciate what he had more.

But he was also loving being round Char. She’d been working on her laptop for a lot of the night, engaging in small talk with him as he set up the security system. He wished he could talk her into coming somewhere nicer or safer, but he knew she was proud of her place, and it was important to stay here.

Besides, if he took her to his place, it’d be that much harder to keep his secret.

But he hated lying to her, especially since the longer they were together, the more content and comfortable he felt. He loved her smooth, dark skin, her soft curls, her smoky eyes, and those killer lips, often bitten by her little white teeth.

Her curvy body was always hidden under something bulky, and he longed to free her from the clothes she wore, but he knew that was a long way out.

She would be mad at him when she found out he lied, even if it had been with the best of intentions.

She looked embarrassed when she came out, fully dressed in another heavy, loose-looking black suit that was professional but still doing its best to hide her gorgeous body. She avoided his eyes as she walked to the fridge and pulled out a yogurt. He passed her a bag of bagels he’d ordered with different cream cheeses, and she took it gratefully.

“You haven’t been up long, have you?” she asked with worried eyes. She looked over at the living room. “Was it uncomfortable?”

He looked at the blankets and couch cushions he’d used as a makeshift bed and considered his words carefully. Luckily, as someone who’d had to do a lot of work with businessmen over the years, he was good at wording things delicately. “It was fine,” he said. “I’m an early riser anyway.” That much was true.

He tried not to look at her rounded ass as she bent to grab orange juice out of the fridge. He turned away and leaned on the counter, facing the only window in the living room, which was now monitored.

He wanted all angles to be safe, even though he’d be here with her. He wasn’t taking any chances when it came to his mate.

Yes, it was clear she belonged to him. Every time she came into his vision, it was plain as day. It made sense. He’d never felt this way about another woman. It would only happen with
the one
.

He wasn’t really sure where to go from here, though. She gave him a look over her glass, and once again, he got the feeling she was just as attracted to him as he was to her.

But would she still be if she knew the truth? How much of that attraction was because she thought he was some badass ex-Special Forces soldier and not a glorified accountant who also happened to be a powerful CFO?

“Whatcha thinking?” she asked, setting her glass down. Her apartment was pleasant in the morning, with light coming from the window in the living room to fill the small space. It looked much more open than at night.

“What do you mean?” he asked, puzzled.

“You looked troubled. Is something wrong?” she asked, folding her arms. “Did I get you in trouble with your boss?”

He wrinkled his nose. Were all mates this good at reading their man’s mood? “A little. But it’s fine. You’re worth a little trouble,” he said, giving her another wink.

He saw her eyes widen and wanted to punch himself. His flirting was both rusty and too smooth. Rusty because he’d never had to flirt with someone he actually cared about. Smooth because he was used to using the typical moves on women who wanted to flirt with the financial guy.

He knew how to flatter while keeping his distance. But he didn’t want to keep any distance between him and Char, his mate.

“Sometimes I think you’re more complex than you seem,” she said, narrowing her eyes at him.

“You ready to head out?” he asked, jingling his keys. “I can drive.”

She nodded. “Let me get my purse.”

He sighed when she disappeared again, relieved to dodge her questions about his complexity. In reality, he wasn’t a very complex person. He liked the nicer things in life, but never put them ahead of other people’s needs. He took care of those around him, infinitely loyal to those he loved.

And he was ready to love Char as well.

When she came back in the room, he felt overwhelmed by the warmth that washed through him. As he held the door and then locked and checked it behind her, he told himself to focus. This was his first mission as a bodyguard, and he couldn’t afford to screw it up. He also couldn’t afford to blow his cover, or she might not let him stay and protect her.

And yes, maybe he could find someone to take his place. But he didn’t want to. He didn’t trust just anyone with his mate’s protection.

“You’re kind of a quiet guy, aren’t you?” she asked.

Only when my brain is exploding just trying to keep my lies in check
, he thought. “Not really. Just a lot on my mind.”

“Gotcha,” she said.

He held the door for her to get into the truck he’d rented (since he didn’t think the Porsche would go over well), and they headed out in the direction she pointed.

When they got to her workplace, he frowned.

Just like her apartment, it wasn’t in a very safe part of town. He wanted to just sweep her up and out of this life to somewhere nicer, somewhere safer.

Then he saw the faded sign on the building. Southeastern Women’s Haven.

She worked at a shelter.

When she walked ahead of him and pushed open the door to go into the small office ahead and started greeting her co-workers, he felt a deep sense of unworthiness. His mate was an angel. He quickly gathered from the flyers around the office that the main point was to help provide means or shelter to women escaping domestic violence situations.

“It’s small,” he said without really thinking.

She shook her head. “This is just the office. The shelter is the next door over. But yes, mainly, we provide help getting women to more long-term set-ups or different shelters or helping them get back on their feet.”

“Pretty cool,” he said. “When did you start working here?”

She didn’t answer that, instead turning to a co-worker who was waiting to talk to her. He didn’t know if she’d avoided answering on purpose or if she really needed to answer another question right at that moment.

When she was done, he folded his arms and leaned on a nearby cubicle. “So how do you keep this thing running?”

“Fundraisers, donations,” she said. “And yeah, some grants. Mostly, it’s a work of love for us.”

The other women in the office nodded. One of them, an older blonde with fluffy hair pulled into a bun on her head, laced with white, walked forward and looked him over.

“Well, hello handsome,” she said.

Char snorted. “Cool it, Connie.”

Connie shrugged, lifting one hand and clicking bright-red fingernails together. “If you want to bring a beefcake like that in here and you don’t want us to talk to him, you’re going to need to claim him.”

Mark had no idea what to say to that, and then Connie laughed and turned on her heel, and Char let out a little sigh.

“Connie’s a hoot,” she said, sounding like she only half meant it. “But she does awesome work here. Just be careful. She’s a bit of a cougar.”

He almost asked if she meant literally, but he supposed Char wouldn’t know, since cat shifters were secretive and couldn’t be scented by other shifters.

“So what would you like me to do while you’re working?” he asked.

She blinked up at him with her adorable milk-chocolate eyes, long lashes fluttering. “Shoot,” she said, shoving a hand down on her palm. “I didn’t think of that.”

“Do you have someone doing your finances?”

She bit her lip. “I mean, part time, yeah. And me and the other girls work on it when we can. When we aren’t meeting with clients.”

“I can take a look.”

She narrowed her eyes, and he inwardly swore. “How do you know about accounting?”

“Well, I own Bear Claw. I have to know some things,” he said, hating passionately every lie that came out of his mouth where his mate was concerned.

“All right,” she said. “Leslie?” she called out, and another woman came out of a back office. She was curvy, like Char, but had messy hair pulled into two thick braids from which hair was escaping, and thick glasses perched on her nose. Plus a lumpy sweater over a too-big maxi skirt.

If Char was conservative about hiding her body, this woman was practically going undercover.

“Yes?” she asked quietly.

“Can you get me the past two months’ financials?” Char asked. “This is my friend, Mark. He’s here to help us for a few days. Maybe a week.”

Leslie eyed him with suspicion but nodded, disappearing into another office that was filled to the roof with boxes. She brought one out and dumped it on the desk, giving Mark a cold glare before disappearing again.

“Sorry,” Char said. “Leslie’s had some bad experiences with men.” She folded her arms over her generous chest. “Most of us have.”

“Understood,” he said, taking the box. He wanted to know so much more about Char’s personal connection to this job, but he knew it was important to let her tell him on her own terms.

One thing was for sure. He wasn’t in Kansas anymore.

He’d thought he was seeing more of the world, working at Bear Claw and being outside the one percent.

But this was a totally different world. He worked quietly at a desk near Charlotte and got to see her meet with many different women over the day. Each time, he was impressed with her compassion and professionalism with the women she met.

And each time, he grew a little more in love with her.

And a little more pissed at the world and the men in it. Were there really this many awful men out there? His own father had been a real piece of work, trying to sell off Mark’s brother for personal gain in the business world.

But still, that had felt like one person in his circle. Now he was seeing women from all walks of life dealing with the same thing in different ways.

Each time he saw a bruise, he had to stop the bear in him from tearing out. He had claw marks in his palms from the amount of times he had to keep focused, put his eyes back on the papers in front of him, and remind himself he couldn’t just go vigilante on everyone in the world who hurt a woman or child.

That’s what really killed him. The ones who came in with kids. Who could hurt a kid? Or the mother of their child? It was some kind of crazy opposite world to him, where the people who were meant to protect were doing the hurting.

By the time they were ready to head home, he felt weary in a way he never had before. Down to his soul. He’d thought he helped people when he could. He donated to charity. He helped small businesses. He worked with his brother to subsidize the costs of operating Bear Claw so all clients could afford it.

Still, now he felt like he was completely inadequate next to Charlotte.

She looked over at him on the drive home, and he could tell she could see how affected he was. Made sense. He felt like the blood had permanently vacated his face.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I should have warned you what I did was a little intense. I guess after a few years, I’ve become kind of numb to it. I have to be or I can’t provide help the way I need to. I need to think logically.”

He knew about that at least. “Don’t be sorry. It’s good for me to see new things.”

She eyed him at that. “I imagine you saw plenty in the military.”

“Not like this,” he said truthfully. He felt like any of the men at Bear Claw, as protective as they were, would be shaken by what he’d witnessed today. And he wanted to do something about it.

“Well, you asked me earlier when I’d started working here,” she said. “I wasn’t sure how much I wanted to tell you. I just… It’s embarrassing.”

He raised an eyebrow as he took a turn. “You have personal experience? Is your ex like those men?”

She nodded tightly, and he curled his hands around the steering wheel.

“It was a while ago. But yes. And when I found this place, they helped me. And then I thought… What about the women who work there? I wanted to do that. I knew it wouldn’t pay well. That it would mean living somewhere like, well, like I live. But it’s worth it, helping women like they helped me.”

He nodded. “It’s admirable. None of that is embarrassing.”

“It feels that way,” she said. “Ask any of us. It’s just that no one ever plans to be in that position. You feel like you should have seen something. That you did something wrong.” Her voice got tight.

He wanted to reach for her but knew it wasn’t right. Not yet.

One day, he’d be the one to comfort her about everything. One day, he’d have the right to. But not today.

They stopped on the way home to order takeout, and after they’d gotten back to her place and eaten, she looked extremely tired.

She hadn’t talked much during dinner, and that had been fine with him. His mind was still spinning after all the stories he’d seen and heard that day without even meaning to. And he was already thinking of ways he could help.

But first, he was thinking of how much more secure he wanted to make her place. And he needed her out of the way if he was going to do it.

But being reminded about how scummy men could be made him feel the apartment they were in wasn’t close to adequate. And sure, he was here now, but what if she got pissed with him and threw him out? He’d want to make sure she was safe.

“You look tired,” he said. “Didn’t you sleep okay last night?”

She rubbed her eyes. “Not really. Just a lot of excitement during the day. Besides, it’s not often I have a hot man in my house.” Then she bit her lip, and he could tell she was blushing as she looked quickly away from him.