Home Or Her Bear: BBW Paranormal Shape Shifter Romance (Bear Bluff Clan Book 4) (2 page)

Down he ran, sliding on the ice and snow as he went, feeling his spirits rise. Maybe today would be the day he met his mate. He chuckled to himself. How many times had he thought that? Every day for the last ten years. He knew he was young and might have to wait decades to find the one. However, the tingle along his neck reminded him something had changed, and the further down the mountain he went, the stronger the sensation was. Until he felt as though his destiny was drawing him to it.

Now he was sure, somewhere below him was his mate. He just had to find her.

Melanie woke up shivering despite her hot bear blood; she put it down to shock. It was so cold, and the world around her was white. She sat up, feeling the seat belt pull across her shoulder. Slowly the memory of what happened came back to her and she sat bolt upright, jarring her neck. “Alli!”

Alli was slumped forward, her seat belt tight around her swollen stomach. Putting a hand on her shoulder to stop her falling forward any more, Melanie unclicked Alli’s seat belt and eased her back. She groaned, but didn’t open her eyes. Panic filled Melanie’s chest. What if she had caused fatal damage to either Alli or the baby?

A sob escaped her. What was she supposed to do? She reached for her purse, but when she took her cell out, she saw there was no reception. Looking up she noted the car was slowly disappearing under a covering of snow and she could barely see the outside world. First thing she had to do was open the door and see if she could find help. Or should she stay with Alli, try to wake her?

Melanie felt panic building up inside her, she wanted to cry, to run away and get someone else to deal with this. She wanted Kian. Kian would know what to do.

“Kian isn’t here,” she told herself firmly.

Taking a deep breath, she tried to open her door. It was jammed. Holding the handle down she tried again, but it would not budge. Leaning over Alli, she tried her door too. It moved, but not much, all she gained was a blast of cold air and a sprinkling of snow inside the car. Great.

“Alli. Alli wake up.” Melanie patted her cheek, stroking her hand, feeling how cold she was. “Alli. Come on, I need you to wake up.”

Alli stirred, moaning a little and then was quiet again. Melanie looked around the car, her eyes resting on a blanket used for picnics in warm weather; that would do. She levered herself out of her seat and reached in the back for it. Her fingers closed around the fabric and grabbed hold of it, pulling it to her. Opening the blanket out she placed it around Alli, trying to make her warmer, more comfortable.

Then she turned her attention back to an escape route. The window might be her only option. But she needed the ignition to be on for the electric window to work. She turned the key in the ignition without turning over the engine. Then she pressed the button to lower the window. It began it’s slow descent, which worried Melanie, because it usually went down fast.
Please go down; please go down
, she repeated to herself.

The window opened, the world outside entirely white, as more snow fell from the sky. Once the window was completely open, Melanie took one last look at Alli. She looked so pale, Melanie knew she had to get out of the car and try to find help; staying here was useless. Although she wasn’t looking forward to her next choice, she either stayed by the car and hoped someone passed by, unlikely when the road was usually quiet and the snow would make it even more so. Or, and she couldn’t bear to think of this one, she left Alli and went to fetch help. Would Kian ever forgive her for leaving his injured mate here alone in the snow, with their unborn child?

Still, once she could get out, things might become a whole lot clearer. Standing on the seat, she put her hands on the roof of the car, and boosted herself up. In a rather ungainly way, she got one leg out of the car, struggling to find a place to rest her foot; the bottom of the ditch was far below her, and the bank too far to the right.

Swinging her leg, she managed to get a grip, although she knew it wouldn’t hold long, the snow had made the earth slippy. Hoisting herself up, she got her other leg out, but suddenly she felt odd, the world seemed to close in on her. Damn, don’t say she had hit her head and was going to pass out. If she did, she might well freeze to death in the snow. And what about Alli?

Shaking her head to get rid of the feeling, she tried once more to free herself form the car. But just when she thought she had succeeded, a strange feeling covered her and she fell. Right into he arms of the man she had seen driving the truck earlier. In this, of all places, she had come face-to-face, or back-to-face, with her mate.

“Are you all right?” he asked, his voice choked with emotion.

She struggled against him, frightened by the way his hands felt on her body. This was no time to lose her mind over her mate. She had to help Alli, had to help her unborn niece or nephew. “Let go,” she said, pulling away from him and nearly landing head first in the snow.

Once more, he took control and caught her, his strong hands going under her arms and saving her form a dunking in the freezing cold water in the bottom of the ditch.

“Hey, careful. I won’t hurt you,” he said, and his voice was low and sexy, so seductive.

“Stop it,” she said to herself, although it came out loud.

“Sorry,” he said, holding his hands up. “I was only trying to help.”

The look in his eyes told her how confused he was by her reaction, and she felt so bad for speaking to him so unkindly when he was only trying to help.

“No, I’m sorry,” she said, trying to avoid his eyes. “I need to help my friend, she’s hurt, And she’s pregnant.” The hitch in her voice told him how upset she was, and since she was his mate, he had to act, had to make everything better for her.

“Let me take a look,” he said, going to the car.

“I can’t open the door,” Melanie said.

“I’ll try.” He went around to Alli’s side of the car and brushed the snow off the window. Taking a moment to see if Alli was OK, he then pulled the door handle and braced himself, heaving at the door. It opened a little, the corner scrapping against the bank of the ditch. However, the car rocked dangerously.

He stopped, taking a step back to assess the situation. Melanie, trying to hold herself together, went to join him. “What do we do?”

He looked at her, really looked at her, and she got caught up in the emotions he evoked in her, but then he pulled his eyes away from her, switching back to the task in hand. “I don’t think the car will fall anymore, so we are going to have to risk pulling the door open, There is no way we can get her out through the window.”

“Are you sure it’s safe?”

“Yes, well, I can’t be certain, but it’s either that or I run for help.” He looked up at the sky. “But I’m worried about the weather and how cold she’s going to get.”

“OK.” Melanie looked around the outside of the car, seeing where it was caught on the bank of the ditch. “I think you’re right. So let’s pull together and see if we can get the door open.”

“Ready?” he asked, touching her briefly on the shoulder.

She looked up at him and nodded. The place where his hand had touched her felt hot, as if he had burned through to the skin underneath.
Alli
, she reminded herself. “Ready.”

He took hold of the doorframe and indicated for her to do the same. “One, two, heave.”

Together they pulled for all they were worth. The door digging into her hands as she tried to open it. Then suddenly it gave, and they both went tumbling back into the snow. She lay for a moment breathless, scared that they would see blood when they looked properly at Alli. But he didn’t let her sit for long. Instead, he was up on his feet, offering her his hand, which she took; that same electricity passing between them.

“Alli,” she said, trying to ignore the way he made her feel. There would be time later to assess her emotions, right now sew had to help Alli.

“Let me check for broken bones,” he said, and reached around to check Alli’s legs, arms and then her head. “I can’t see any obvious damage.” Once more, he looked up at the sky, the snow falling in his face, sticking to his long dark eyelashes. “I think we should move her. She needs a doctor.”

Melanie thought about it. The hospital was nearest, but she hated that Kian would be at home waiting for them, worried out of his mind. “OK. Let’s get her to the hospital.” Although she didn’t know how they were going to accomplish that with no car and no signal on her cell.

He undid Ali’s seatbelt and eased her out, picking her up effortlessly and cradling her gently against his chest. Melanie reached in for her purse, checking her cell once more, she knew it was futile, but she hoped for a miracle. Still out of range. But if they walked back along the road, she would no doubt pick up a signal and be able to phone for an ambulance.

“Ready?” he asked, and they began the slow trudge through the snow.

“Thank you,” she said, as they walked. “I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t come by.”

“I felt you,” he said simply.

She swallowed her nerves. “I felt you too.” She lifted her eyes to his, smiling shyly. “I’m Melanie.”

“Nice to finally meet you, Melanie.” He grinned, despite the cold snow settling on his face. “I am Taylor.”

“This should be the best day of my life, meeting you. But I can’t be happy. What if I’ve hurt Alli or the baby?”

“It’s not your fault.” He tried to reassure her.

“Yes, it was. I lost control of the car. It’s my fault we ended up in the ditch.”

“She’ll be OK,” he said.

She looked down at her phone. “I have a single bar; let me see if I can call an ambulance.”

“Listen, it’s fine. You go in the ambulance, and I’ll go and get Kian. Tell me how to find the house.” He hated the thought of being apart from his newly found mate, but he knew she wanted to stay with her pregnant friend, who was now being treated in the back of an ambulance.

“You follow the road; it’s the first farmhouse you come to. There’s nothing else along this road, you can’t miss it.” Her eyes told him she wanted to stay with him, her hand outstretched to touch him, but not daring too.

He leaned forward and kissed her cheek softly. “After Alli wakes up and this is over, we need to spend some serious time together.”

“I know,” she said, looking at him, her desire barely covered by the concern for Alli. “I just hope Kian forgives me.”

“He will,” Taylor said, and then pulled back from her. “I’ll bring Kian to the hospital.”

“Thank you,” she said, dragging herself away from him. Could she feel the pull too, the part of her that wanted to stay with him forever? The bond between them so great, it felt unnatural for them to be apart even though they were strangers who had only just met.

“She’ll be OK,” the paramedic said, helping Melanie into the ambulance. He wanted to rip the guy’s arm off for touching his mate, but he knew that was his bear talking. The paramedics needed to get Alli to hospital; he had no claim to Taylor’s mate. Anyway, Melanie would never give herself to another man, not now.

Watching the tail lights disappear into the distance, he let his heart calm down; it beat erratically in his chest for her. Then he turned and began to jog slowly back along the road. Once he had his emotions under control, he let his bear loose, changing in mid-air to run faster in the deepening snow. He let his bear senses tell him where the road finished and the ditch began as the snow fell down, settling on his coat, and covering everything and obscuring all landmarks.

The miles disappeared and then he smelt wood smoke, he could see it ahead, a soft plume rising up against the snowy trees. Picking up the pace, he ran up the tree-lined track leading to the farmhouse, changing as he approached, hidden under the canopy of trees. However, he didn’t need to knock on the farmhouse door, because there in the drive, was a man, his face filled with worry and mistrust.

“Kian?” Taylor asked, although he knew there was no need. The man in front of him bore a great resemblance to Melanie; they had to be siblings.

“Yes.” A thread of mistrust laced the word.

“There was an accident. Alli is on her way to the hospital.”

“An accident. I was worried when they were so late. Is she OK?” Pain and fear crossed his face.

“Yes, I think so, she was unconscious. But the paramedics treating her say they can’t see any damage to her or the baby. Just a possible concussion.”

“And Melanie?” Kian searched Taylor’s face for information.

“She’s gone in the ambulance too, but she’s unharmed. A little shook up, but not injured. She tried to phone you, but she couldn’t get through. So I said I would come and fetch you.”

“And you are?”

“Taylor. Taylor Munroe.”

“Are you from Bear Creek? I don’t think I’ve seen you before.” Kian was understandably suspicious, but he was moving back to the house to get his keys.

“No, I’m from Bear Bluff.”
And I’m Melanie’s mate.

“What are you doing this side of the mountain?” Kian asked, pulling the farmhouse door to and heading for his truck.

“I came over to visit the bar.” Now he sounded as if he was just after a good time. But he didn’t think it was his place to tell anyone about his bond with Melanie, not when they hadn’t talked about it first.

“Thank you for coming up to tell me. Want a lift into town? You can tell me what happened on the way.” Kian wasn’t so much asking, as expecting Taylor to go with him, and Taylor realised that Kian didn’t trust him entirely.

“Sure, thanks.” He planned to go and wait at the hospital for Melanie anyway, so he might just as well save himself a trek through the snow. It also gave him an opportunity to get to know Kian, his mate’s brother. Damn, he had never felt so nervous in all his life.

Kian pulled off, taking it slow, the snow was getting thicker up here. The farmhouse was on the lower slopes of the mountain and the wind was beginning to blow it into small drifts. At first they drove in silence, Taylor not sure what to say and Kian too preoccupied with thoughts about Alli.