Page 19 of Grizzly's Bear

Chapter Eight

Rissa woke with a start, jerking against the arms restraining her.

“Shh, it’s just me.” Slade’s voice broke through the terror that grabbed her by the throat.

Another worthless bear. I have more of those females than I’ll ever need for my experiments.

“He has them. Talbot, I mean.” She was shaking and couldn’t seem to stop even with Slade hugging her close.

“Who?” Slade asked, and it took her a minute to process what he meant. Everything was so chaotic in her head.

“Female bears. I’m guessing members of your den.”

“Our den,” Slade corrected, but there was no censure in his voice. “Did he say where?”

“No. Not that I remember.”

“What do you remember?”

Rissa took a deep breath and blew it out slowly. “Bits and pieces. It’s all a bit jumbled. I remember meeting Ariel. Walking to the edge of the property with her. I remember the darts. The voice of the man in charge. The thrum of the motor when they threw us in the back of that truck and took off.”

Slade nodded then sat up, easing her along with him until she sat in his lap. “You’re right here with me. Don’t forget that. What’s in your head is just memories. It’s not here. Not now.”

She nodded. “I remember Talbot being angry. They’d taken the wrong blonde, the wrong brunette. He wanted Kenzie Marshall and Em. He wanted to get his hands on Em.”

“Never going to happen,” Slade vowed, squeezing her tight. “Laramie would shred anyone who tried to take her.”

“What if he’s not with her?” All Rissa could think of was Em finding herself in a situation similar to what Rissa had been in. Alone and vulnerable, thinking she was perfectly safe when she wasn’t.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t there,” Slade whispered, and she heard the guilt and self-loathing in his voice.

“I don’t blame you for what happened, Slade, and you’ve got to stop blaming yourself.”

“I told you that you’d be safe on Holloway property. Swore it and they took you anyway.” His chest and shoulders were tense, and Rissa rubbed her palms over him, seeking to soothe him.

“And you came for me. You found me. You saved me. I would have died if not for you.”

“Don’t—”

“Yes,” she cut him off. “If not for you, I wouldn’t be here right now. Not with you. Not with anyone. My arrogance and cockiness led me to the boundary of your land. I was so sure I could take care of myself no matter what. I swore I’d prove to everyone that I didn’t need you.”

“Fuck.” His soft expletive hit her right in the heart.

“Because I did need you, Slade. I wanted to be at your side more than anything, but I felt completely unworthy of you.”

“Because of Jack?” Slade asked.

Rissa nodded. “Even after listening to Adam, I still feel guilty. My brain plays the what-if game to no end. I know I can’t change what happened, but part of me will always wonder if I could have saved Jack. And that part felt guilty for finding you and realizing you’re the man I’ve been waiting for. You’re the one I took one look at and wanted to mark as mine. So I ran. When I wasn’t enticing you into steamy make out sessions or begging you to fuck me, I ran.”

“Don’t run again,” Slade warned.

“Little late to run, mate,” she emphasized. “You’re everything I’ve ever wanted, and I won’t punish us both by denying that.”

“You’re not angry that I forced you to mate me?”

Rissa chuckled. “You didn’t force me. I made the choice. I said the vows, and I meant them. No matter what comes our way, I’ll always trust in you.”

“I won’t let you down.”

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