Page 16 of Bear with Me

Days ago, she’d stomped off into the woods after an argument with Brock and seriously considered leaving him and the Holloway den behind. Now, she was waking in his bed, wrapped around his body, and wanting nothing more than to feel him thrust inside her. It still seemed surreal, as if she were only dreaming and would eventually wake up to the reality of Brock doing his best to ignore her or yell at her when she wouldn’t let him. And he wanted her to initiate the mating vows? Wanted them to be bound together until death? As badly as her heart begged her to follow through, her brain was still leery of what seemed like a sudden change.

She’d just finished tugging on her boots when there was another knock at the door.

“I’m coming!” she called, standing as the door slowly opened and Helen peeked inside.

“How are you feeling? Are you okay?” Helen asked as she hurried over and wrapped Jemma in a hug.

Jemma wasn’t sure when they’d first started getting close, but they had. She often wondered if Fletch had told his mate about how he’d found Jemma. She’d made him swear he wouldn’t, and as far as she knew, he hadn’t told the Holloways. Mates were different, though. They didn’t keep secrets.

“I’m fine.”

“Jensen said you can’t feel your bear,” Helen shared.

Jemma took a moment to try to reach her other half, but her bear was silent and unreachable.

“Not yet,” she admitted.

“I’m sorry,” Helen told her, and Jemma knew the other woman understood, having just had her bear reawakened after years of hunter drugs locking it down.

“Hopefully, I’ll recover quickly. Jensen won’t give me the antidote to the hunter’s suppressant until he knows for sure there won’t be an interaction with the poison. And he confirms the drug I was injected with.”

“And the other?” Helen glanced pointedly around the room before letting her gaze land on the bed.

Jemma sighed.

“Are you officially mated?” Helen asked when Jemma didn’t reply.

“No.”

“Why the hell not?” Helen demanded. “He rarely left your side while you were out. I think he was terrified he was going to lose you.”

“Why?” Jemma asked her friend. “Why would he suddenly care?”

“He’s always cared,” Helen argued. “The man hasn’t taken his eyes off you since I got here. Hell, I think you both searched each other out to argue, just so you could be around each other.” She moved closer and took Jemma’s hands with her own. “From what I understand, you had your eye on Laramie when you first arrived here.”

“That was nothing more than survival instinct,” Jemma stated. “He was a means to gaining freedom. Or at least, I thought so at the time.”

“I believe you, but think about Brock. He had to know you were his mate when you arrived. Then he watched you throw yourself at his brother.”

“I didn’t…” Jemma winced as she thought of how she’d been focused on getting the eldest Holloway brother, the alpha of the den, to choose her as his mate. She’d seen it as a way to make sure she was never hidden away again. She hadn’t known any better at the time, and the Holloways had immediately thrown her into their hidden den that was a floor below where they all slept. Hidden away. Just the memory made Jemma’s skin crawl.

Brock had even called her out on the fact she’d tried to get Laramie to choose her as his mate. It had been one of the times he’d commanded her to stay inside. He’d said their alpha demanded it. She’d fired back that maybe, she didn’t have an alpha. That was when Brock had thrown her actions back in her face.

You didn’t mind him when you were trying to seduce him into being your mate. What’s the matter, Jemma? Not so happy with him now that he’s mated to someone else?

There was also the time he’d told her he had better things to do than argue with her. How could he accept her now?

“Stop,” Helen ordered.

“Stop what?”

“Questioning if his actions were true then or now. The answer is both. His previous actions were most likely fueled by hurt and anger. The same as yours were.”

“Maybe,” Jemma reluctantly agreed.

“Just don’t make any rash decisions before talking to him. You didn’t see him while you were unconscious. The way he looked at you and held your hand. The way he talked to you.”

“He talked to me while I was out?” Now, Jemma was curious about what he’d said.

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