Chapter Forty
Chloe
Chloe finds Axel at the front desk, hugging Raif. It’s a sight to see, two big mountain men hugging it out. She stands back and watches as they slap each other's backs a couple of times before pulling away with smiles.
“Everything ok?” She asks carefully. She hasn’t known Axel long, but has never seen him interact with his brothers this way before.
Axel smiles at her softly as she walks closer. They tower over her as she stands next to them.
“There’s some stuff that’s come up with Harvey Group.
I’ll tell you about it. But everything’s ok.
” He strokes his fingers through her hair and kisses her temple.
She folds herself into his side under his arm, it’s her favorite place to be.
When she looks up at Raif, he has a small smile on his face, like it makes him happy to see the two of them together.
“I’ll let you guys talk. See you for dinner tonight?” Raif asks.
“Yeah.”
Raif squeezes Axel’s shoulder and bends down to kiss Chloe quickly on the cheek.
She knows what it means. Raif has accepted her.
She thought he would be the hardest to win over since he seems the gruffest, but he’s really a big teddy bear, too.
She steps out from under Axel’s arm and throws her arms around Raif’s waist, hugging him quickly and pulling back.
He doesn’t have time to hug her back. She hugged him so quickly, but she can see the bright blush blooming on his cheeks.
He bows his head and scratches the back of it.
“I’ll just...make my rounds.” With that, he turns and walks out the front of the lodge.
“That was nice of you,” Axel says, wrapping his arms around her so they’re chest to chest. She puts her hands around his neck and runs her fingers through his hair.
“I think I’m growing on him.”
“You definitely are. You’ve grown on all of us, especially me.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, like a fungus.”
She laughs and smacks his shoulder lightly.
“I’m kidding,” he says, nuzzling her cheek. “I love you, and my brothers have accepted you. Raif even called you his sister.”
“Really?”
“Really. You’re something special, Chloe Barker. I’m so glad we found each other.”
He leads her out of the lodge. He said he had someplace special to take her, and he brings a backpack with him. They walk and talk. He tells her about Harvey Group, how he doesn’t think they’ll bother Axel and his brothers any longer.
Chloe points out that Harvey Group has been playing a long game to get to this point.
Having Maury work for them and steal all the money so they would get to the point of needing to sell.
Russell hadn’t mentioned anything about their new investor and advertising executive Danielle.
So he doubts Russell knows anything about it.
Which is good, it gives them the upper hand in no longer worrying about going under.
Danielle had assured them that when she gets back to New York, she would start on an advertising plan for the lodge immediately and let them know when it was rolling out.
She said they should see at least a twenty percent increase in visitors in the first month.
Chloe doesn’t understand exactly what Danielle’s job entails, but she’s confident her friend can help Axel.
Also, they talked about Danielle helping Chloe set up an office in town, and Chloe is bursting with excitement over it.
She knows it will probably take some time for her to get the townsfolk to trust her, with what Maury did, but she feels like, in time, she’ll earn their trust.
When they’ve walked for an hour or so, he stops.
They’re not on any path, he’s taken her into the woods off the beaten trail.
He strips, slowly. Her eyes flit all over him, strong chest, thick thighs, he’s a sight to behold.
He hands her his clothes one by one, and she puts them in the backpack, assuming that’s why he brought it.
When he’s completely naked, he steps towards her.
“Climb on my back, ok?”
She knows the confusion is evident on her face, but she slings the pack over her shoulder regardless.
He steps back a bit, cracking his neck side to side before he begins to let the shift take over.
He’s told her he can shift quickly, and she’s seen him do it in the blink of an eye.
But now he seems to be slowing it down so she can watch.
His forehead flattens, mouth and nose stretching to a muzzle.
Ears changing, hair changing to fur. His body lengthens, standing up tall till he’s too big and goes on all fours.
He shakes his body, fur rippling across him. He’s full bear now and magnificent.
She steps closer, unafraid. He nuzzles her hand when she holds it up, and she runs it along his face. Walking down his side and feeling the strong muscles under her hand. He’s huge, as big as a real grizzly. Golden brown coat to match the gold in his eyes. He’s beautiful.
Axel lies down on the forest floor. His back is at her chest, and she remembers he said to climb on him. She does carefully, trying to keep her boots from digging into his sides. When she’s settled on his back by his neck, he stands slowly.
She’s riding a fucking bear, she can’t believe it.
She barks out a laugh, and Axel huffs under her.
He must sense that she’s laughing at the situation.
She grips his fur as he begins to walk forward.
It’s similar to riding a horse, as it’s an animal, but that's where the similarities end. He’s big, lumbering between trees.
Her body rocks from side to side as she gets used to the movement.
She pets him, scratches the fur at his neck under her fingers.
It’s soft, softer than she would have imagined.
After a while, she carefully lays her head down against him, legs still straddling his sides.
His fur tickles her nose, and she scratches it, trying not to sneeze.
She closes her eyes, feels the warmth of the sun, the fur gripped between her fingers, the wave-like motion of his slow gait. She could fall asleep like this.
He stops after a long while, lying down again, and she slides off. Kissing his furry cheek when she’s down on the ground. He shifts back, naked as ever and gorgeous.
“I want to show you something, this way.”
He takes her hand, and they walk silently. It’s calm, relaxing. Birds chirping overhead, a slight breeze. She hopes she gets to spend many more days with Axel like this, preferably with him as naked as he is in that moment.
They come to a cave opening. A big boulder makes up a sheer side that goes up from the ground. There’s an opening, dark and deep, but not scary, she knows her mate will protect her from anything.
“This is my cave. Every bear shifter has one. It’s where I come to be myself, my private place. No one comes to a bear shifter's cave, except their mate.”
She feels honored and knows what it means that Axel is bringing her here. It’s the last part of him; he’s giving her everything right now, giving all of himself.
“Thank you for bringing me here.”
“Of course.”
He takes her hand and leads her towards the opening. Helping her up the sheer side into the mouth of the cave.
“It’s our cave now, you can come here anytime you want.” His expression is so soft and open, Chloe can’t help but press a chaste kiss to his lips. He leads her further into the dark till suddenly it’s not dark anymore.
He’s flipped some sort of switch, and the cave is lit up with fairy lights. They go all over, strung from the ceiling down the sides. He’s laid out a soft white comforter on top of what looks like an air mattress surrounded by pillows. It’s beautiful.
“Did you do this for me?”
“Yes, Chloe. I’ll do anything for you.” He sits down on the comforter and pulls her in between his spread legs. She nestles back into his chest. It’s comfortable, safe.
She turns her head back to him, and they kiss slowly, languidly. It’s relaxing, being in his arms like this, surrounded by his scent and the warmth of the cave.
He slips his hands under her sweater, and she raises her arms so he can remove it.
Then she’s shimmying off her bottoms until they’re both naked.
He lays her down gently, reverently on the mattress, and kisses her so softly she feels like her heart might burst. She spreads her legs, and he slides his cock inside her, half hard and stills.
She can feel it thicken up inside her, stretch her walls, and the intimacy of it makes her gasp.
He moves slowly, like they have all the time in the world.
Just rocking into her and pressing sweet kisses to her lips.
He runs one hand through her hair and along her face, locking eyes with her as he picks up speed.
She can’t look away, doesn’t want to break this moment of deep intimacy they’ve created.
So she looks deep into his eyes as he makes love to her.
She can feel the warmth building between her legs.
It spreads up her spine in a slow, lazy crawl till it’s warming her chest. His pelvis rubs against her clit as he rocks deep within her, his body pressed close.
It’s intimate, more intimate than anything she’s ever done in her life, and she knows this is what it feels like to have a soulmate.
He kisses her again, and the raggedness of his breath against her face is her undoing.
“Come with me, baby, I want to feel you milk me.”
She clutches his shoulders, and he shudders against her, spilling deep within her as she rides out the longest, deepest orgasm of her life.
It goes on and on till her whole body is trembling.
They stay like that for a moment, just enjoying the feel of comfort in each other.
And the moment touches her heart so deeply, she tears up.
“You ok, baby?” Axel asks her as he turns her gently towards him and brushes a tear off her cheek.
“I am, I really am. I never thought I could have all of this, really have it. This much love, and a family, brothers. But it’s not a dream or a fairy tale. It’s real, you’re real. And I love you more than I can express.”
“I love you too, Chloe, so much. I gave up on finding my mate. But when I saw you, when I scented you, I knew you were it. You’re the best thing that has ever happened to me, and I’ll spend every waking moment for the rest of my life loving you.”
He kisses the side of her head and tightens his arms around her waist. Her perfect man.
She thought for so long that she would be alone forever.
That her goals in life were to be a partner in a job she didn’t like and have a nice apartment.
Now she has Axel, all because she came on a vacation she didn’t want to go on.
She has people she can consider family, brothers.
A place she can really call home. Now she has love, she has everything she’s ever wanted. She has Axel, she has her soulmate.