Chapter 4
Chapter
Four
BECK
Iunloaded the dishwasher as the first rays of morning sunlight crept through the kitchen windows.
My hands moved on autopilot, stacking plates in the cabinet, lining up mugs, and slotting silverware into the correct places in the drawer.
I’d been guiding Charlotte for three days, and I was in deep, deep trouble. She was smart as hell and just as capable as she’d claimed. She climbed like a mountain goat, never complained about the cold, and her scientific knowledge left me in a permanent state of awed befuddlement.
And my bear wanted to scoop her up, carry her off to a quiet cabin, and make her forget her own name.
That was more dangerous than any mountain trail.
Every morning when she came downstairs, the scent of tuberoses flooded my senses. When she bent to collect soil samples, my beast tried to rip from my skin. Every soft smile and husky laugh left me hanging on the edge of a crumbling cliff.
I was fifty years old. She was twenty-three. A relationship between us was impossible. But my bear was increasingly restless…and insistent.
The beast was convinced Charlotte was ours. Mine. And it wanted to claim her and fill her. My bear wanted to stash her in my bed and satisfy her. It paced in my mind, growling with the need to fuck her until her belly swelled with my cub—
I slammed the dishwasher shut with more force than necessary, making my coffee mug jump on the counter.
Christ. I had to get myself under control.
The worst part? Charlotte wasn’t indifferent to me.
I’d have to be blind not to notice. She’d stolen plenty of looks over the past three days, her gaze lingering on my shoulders before dropping to my hands.
She bit that plump pink bottom lip when she thought I wasn’t watching, her cheeks flushing the same deep red as her hair.
She’d been checking me out, and her interest only encouraged my bear.
I pulled my phone from my pocket and stared at the darkened screen. One call to Everett, and I’d have my answer. He could test Charlotte’s blood and tell me within the hour if she was compatible with bear shifters.
One phone call.
One blood test.
My thumb hovered over his contact.
Wood creaked overhead. I shoved the phone in my back pocket.
A moment later, footsteps descended the stairs. Charlotte appeared in the kitchen doorway with her laptop clutched in both hands. Her hair was a red cloud around her shoulders, and she wore sweatpants and a Colorado State University hoodie that made her look achingly young.
And so far out of reach she might as well have been in a different solar system.
“I want to show you something,” she said, a determined glint in her eyes.
My stomach tightened. In my mind, my bear stiffened, the beast on high alert. If she meant to leave…
Shushing my beast, I nodded toward the table. “Have a seat.”
She held my stare for a second, then obeyed, but the determination in her eyes held steady as I filled a second mug and carried the coffees to the table. Setting her cup in front of her, I settled in my chair and gestured to her laptop.
“If there’s math involved, you’re on your own. I stick to alphabet soup.”
She didn’t smile. Just turned her laptop so I could see the screen. A heat map filled the display, colored zones spreading across a satellite image of Bear Cove and the surrounding mountains.
“This is a composite of my readings over the past three days,” she said. “Notice anything?”
Of course, I did. The blank spaces formed a ring around the town, the circle encompassing every area I’d steered her away from.
In my mind, my bear paced, a growl rumbling in its throat.
“These are the areas you refuse to take me,” Charlotte said quietly. “They’re all clustered in a specific pattern. Why?”
Excuses raced through my mind. Drawing on the calm I used when I mediated disputes between my brothers, I gave her what I hoped was a neutral expression. “It’s private property. I wish I had a more exciting explanation, but the reality is I don’t have permission to take you there.”
She arched a brow. “All of it?” She tapped the screen. “This is over a hundred square miles, Beck.”
My name on her lips slid straight to my dick. I gripped my mug, letting the heat seep into my fingers until it burned. “People around here are territorial. It’s not unusual for one family to own a large tract of land. We have plenty of it in Alaska.”
She studied me, her gaze unwavering. “You’re lying.”
My beast bristled, its ire putting a real growl in my throat. No one challenged me like this. No one dared. But Charlotte was different. She was human.
And a mate, a little voice murmured.
I gripped the mug more tightly. “Charlotte, listen—”
“You’ve been lying to me for three days,” she said, a hard edge entering her tone. She swung the laptop around and shut it, the snap loud in the quiet kitchen. “I don’t know why. I thought we were—” She clamped her jaw. “I thought you were helping me.”
The hurt in her tone tightened my throat. I leaned forward. “I am.”
“By sabotaging my research?”
Frustration built. “I’m trying to protect you.”
“From what?”
From me. From a life you probably don’t want.
I couldn’t say those things, so I said nothing, helplessness like a tight fist around my heart.
Charlotte stood abruptly, her chair scraping against the floor. “Fine. I’ll investigate those areas on my own.”
Alarm spiked, driving me to my feet. “Absolutely not.”
“You can’t stop me.”
My bear surged against its bonds, the beast clamoring to break loose.
“Charlotte, please. The terrain is treacherous—”
“I’m not a child!” Her eyes flashed. “I’m a scientist with years of experience in the field. I don’t need protection.”
“You don’t understand—”
“Then make me understand!” Charlotte pleaded. “Tell me the truth!”
We stared at each other across the kitchen table.
Tension crackled in the air, along with something else I couldn’t ignore.
My bear shoved harder against its bonds, urging me to take Charlotte outside and show her what she’d asked for.
One shift, and she’d know the truth. But it might break her mind.
Or drive her away for good.
I dragged in a breath. “There are things about Bear Cove you don’t know. Things I can’t tell you.”
She frowned. “Why not?”
“Because…” I drew another steadying breath. “They’re not my secrets to share.”
Another falsehood. As alpha, I was precisely the person to divulge Bear Cove’s secrets.
Charlotte’s frown deepened. Then the color drained from her face.
“Are you in some kind of cult?”
“What? No.”
“Drugs?”
“Of course not.”
“Illegal mining?”
I put up a hand. “Charlotte, look—”
“Then what?” she snapped. “What could possibly be so important that you’d sabotage my research and risk my career?”
The truth hovered on my tongue. But if I told her, I’d have to test her blood—assuming she consented.
And then what? If she wasn’t compatible, I’d have to walk away from her forever. If she was compatible, she’d have to choose: me or the life she’d built.
Did I really expect her to drop everything and decide to stay with me? Leave years of work behind for a life in the Alaskan wilderness with a man she’d known for less than a week?
“I can’t tell you,” I said, the words scraped from the back of my throat. “I’m sorry.”
Her mouth tightened, and the look in her eyes was brittle as she said, “I don’t believe that, either.” She turned and stalked to the doorway.
“Charlotte,” I called. “Wait.”
But she was already gone, her footsteps rapid on the stairs. A second later, the click of her door shutting drifted into the kitchen. Not a slam. That would have been better. Somehow, the final, deliberate sound of her door snicking shut was worse.
I stood in the center of the kitchen, my chest aching and the helplessness sliding into my gut. I’d handled things badly. But what choice did I have?
My pocket buzzed, and I pulled my phone out and swiped the screen. It was a text from Everett.
How’s it going?
I typed back.
Not great
A second later, his incoming call appeared on the screen.
“Hey,” I muttered, putting the phone to my ear.
“She’s figuring it out, isn’t she?” Everett asked.
“Yes.”
His sigh was loud in my ear. “I figured she would. People with scientific brains are curious by nature, Beck. The more you try to keep her away from something, the harder she’ll fight to find out what you’re hiding.”
Swinging away from the doorway, I lowered my voice. “I can’t just tell her—”
“She’s not going to stop. You know that.” Everett paused. “And the rest of the clan wants to know what’s going on. They’ve seen you leading her around the mountains. They’re getting nervous.”
My bear snarled, instantly on alert. A growl lodged in my throat. The thought of my brothers getting anywhere near Charlotte…
“Tell them to mind their own business,” I said, my voice dipping an octave. “I don’t want any interference. None.”
“Beck—”
“That’s an order.”
Everett’s voice went quiet. “Understood, Alpha.”
I swallowed hard, trying to calm the beast pacing beneath my skin. Everett had used my title deliberately. He and the other bears would follow my orders. But they wouldn’t like it if they thought I was steering the clan wrong.
And Charlotte was relentless. Everett was right about that.
“I need to think,” I said.
“Should I call a meet?”
“Not yet.” I rubbed my free hand over my face. “Give me a few more days. Let me figure this out.”
“All right. But Beck? Be careful. With her, and with yourself.”
After I hung up, I went to my office and pulled out the bottle of whiskey I kept for emergencies. I poured a glass and drained it in one swallow, the burn doing nothing to ease the knot in my chest.
I was fifty years old. I’d led men through blizzards and avalanches. I’d made hard decisions as alpha, doling out orders that kept the clan safe even when they cost me sleep.
But Charlotte Mills was the hardest challenge I’d ever faced. Because somewhere between that first moment I’d faced her in the foyer and now, I’d fallen for her.
And I had no idea how to tell her the truth without losing her completely.