Page 21 of Grizzly's Bear

“I’ll move in just a minute. As soon as I can breathe.” His breath teased her ear, and she reached behind her with one hand to touch his back and hold him to her.

“Later,” she murmured, borrowing a word from him. Much later. Right now, she wanted him against her. Needed the sensations he caused within her. The emotions his touch always ignited. The luckiest day of her life had been the day she’d pulled up in front of the Holloway cabins and stepped out to see him standing there as if he’d been watching for her.

He moved off her, and she gave a growl of displeasure. He merely scooped her up then held her high against his chest with one arm while tugging the covers into place with the other. Then he crawled between the sheets with her and settled them so she lay against his chest. One big hand stroked along her spine, from the top of her neck to the top of her buttocks. It was soft, soothing, and she found herself sliding toward slumber again.

“I love you,” she whispered as sleep tugged her under, and in her dreams, she heard him whisper the words back to her.

Chapter Nine

Slade slipped out of the bedroom, careful not to wake Rissa and headed toward the kitchen and food. They’d both slept through dinner, and it was late now. His stomach was already growling. He was sure hers would be when she woke up.

“How is she?” Jensen asked, glancing up from the table.

“Sleeping. How the hell did you get in here? I know I locked that door.”

“Talked Tah out of the spare key, so I could bring over dinner and check on Rissa.” Jensen eyed him up and down then glared. “I told you not to let her overexert herself, you idiot. Her head was hurting.”

Slade growled. “You also said to keep her from trying to force the memories. We talked, then I distracted her.”

“Did she say anything about what she remembers?”

“Did you say you brought dinner?” Slade asked instead of answering his brother’s question.

“Yes. Sit down. They put aside food for the two of you.” Jensen pointed Slade toward a chair before rising and removing a plate from the oven. “Eat. Then we’ll talk.”

Slade devoured the meatloaf, green beans, and baked potato. It went a long way toward restoring his energy and clearing his mind.

“She remembers Talbot saying he had plenty of female bears. She thinks he has members of our den being held somewhere.”

Jensen growled. “Walker said something to Xandra about giving some of the females to hunters. If Talbot knows where they are, then we need to make him talk.”

Too easily, Slade recalled how Rissa had looked after such a short time with hunters. The attack on them had happened years ago. Too many years. Who knew if any of the women had survived? Or what condition they might be in if they had? Mentally, physically, and emotionally. He couldn’t fathom the hell they would be in. For all the stories he’d heard over the years, he’d never been in the hands of hunters. His father had been tortured and murdered, and he’d never forget how his larger than life father had looked when he’d been brought back to them. People could say what they wanted about the alpha of the Holloways, but Laramie had protected all of his brothers. None of them had ever been captured or harmed by hunters. As far as Slade knew, the supremist group had never set foot on Holloway land until they’d taken Rissa and Ariel.

“Did you find out where Tony’s keeping Talbot?” Slade asked.

Jensen shook his head. “Tony was out of reach when I went back up to the main house. Not sure what happened yet. Adam headed over to see what he could see. From what Tah told him, they’ve had a few attempts to gain access to Talbot or at least, to find out where he’s being held. Both shifter and hunter. Seems no one’s real happy he’s being held.”

Slade snorted. Shifters probably wanted him dead, while hunters wanted him back in the lab, devising new ways to torture shifters in the name of science. “What’s Tah’s take?”

“Seems they think Talbot might know something about a missing member of their inner circle. Murphy Dockery.”

“Shit,” Slade growled. Murphy and his brother, Finn, had spent some time with the Holloways in Wyoming. Slade liked the Irish brothers. “What happened?”

“Murphy disappeared when they were in Illinois. He and Daniel walked in on a swarm of hunters. Daniel was shot, and Murphy hasn’t been seen since.”

“Fuck,” Slade muttered. That didn’t bode well for Murphy. “What else did you find out?”

“Tah took me over to the medical facility, in case we have need of it while we’re here. I spoke with Gideon, was introduced to Diane, and finally met Professor Mueller.”

“And?” Slade prompted when his brother paused and shook his head.

“He’s younger than I expected or at least, doesn’t show his age. You can feel the energy coming off him. His mind is like a computer. I swear he could run even a bear into the ground. He knows things, though, and what he doesn’t, he keeps digging away at.”

“What does that mean?” Slade demanded.

Jensen shrugged. “He’s one who won’t give up on anything. He asked me for blood. Asked me at least a hundred questions about bear shifters and mating. Hell, at one point, he pulled my lip down and poked at my teeth. Then he asked if he could see me shift. Wanted to assess me in animal form and see how the blood changes. Asked me what I’d studied and what lab tests I run. Like I said, a hundred questions.”

Slade whistled. The professor definitely sounded like an interesting character.

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