Page 4 of Grumpy Special Ops Bear: Ep. 1
The bear sidled up to me, tilting its head in inquiry. I almost swallowed my tongue when it reared up on its hind legs and growled. I shouted out in terror.
I sat straight up in bed, gasping, as I’d done for the past several nights. The dreams had become more intense, and each time the same bear would appear.
I swung my legs over the edge of the mattress and leaned forward with my elbows on my knees and my face in my hands. My heart was racing as I tried to shake off the overwhelming uneasiness, thinking these dreams were a negative omen of things to come.
Something was terribly wrong, and I didn’t know what it was. I had a bad feeling it was linked to my upcoming trip with Josh Price and his team.
My final meeting with them had been one of the oddest interactions I’d ever experienced with any client. After we had gone through the itinerary, he’d wanted to get to know me a bit. He’d asked about my family and my friends and if my absence from home during the holiday season would be an issue. Most clients wouldn’t ask about my personal life, and I really didn’t like it when people pried. I’d managed not to tell him anything about myself because, frankly, my life wasn’t that interesting.
My story was like most other orphans. I hadn’t seen the point of explaining where I’d come from. Honestly, I didn’t care that as a baby I’d been abandoned and brought up in a series of foster homes. My childhood strengthened me. And being a bit of a loner didn’t define me.
I hoped I’d last the whole four weeks and not come back with bruised and broken clients for my bosses to deal with. They’d gone twenty years without a lawsuit. I was pretty sure they’d fire my ass if I were the one to break that streak.
The best-case scenario would be if Josh and his team tapped out before the four weeks were over. They wouldn’t be the first clients to do so, and that was why my bosses had a no-refund policy.
Hence, I had a contingency plan. If Josh and his team couldn’t make it through the whole four weeks, they would have to handle their own transportation out of the wild.
Chapter 4
Trinity
Day one of the trip,I tried to relax as the helicopter dropped us off at our starting point. In four weeks, we would circle back to this point to be picked up. I’d planned everything, so as long as we stuck to our schedule, we’d be on time.
Halle handed my pack to me and glanced around at the rest of the group. “I wish I could stay with you. Some of these guys are hot. Damn, even the two women are pretty attractive,” she whispered. “And they’re all freaking rich. That’s always a big plus. I took a glance at the check Mr. Price wrote. Holy shit, Trinity. If you were looking for a sexy billionaire, I’d say he’s your man.”
“I’m not interested,” I proclaimed, trying to keep it light. But the hair on the back of my neck was up again. I was used to that sensation when I was getting ready to leap out of an airplane or go bungee jumping but never when I was just standing around people.
I’d noticed my apprehension elevated mostly around Josh.
Over the past couple of meetings, I’d gotten the same weird reaction when I was near him, but all the background checks had come back clean. He was the new CEO of a Manhattan-based company that was doing extremely well. And as my bosses had reminded me, he was bound to do business with them again if he was satisfied with this trip. They’d drilled it into my head that I should ensure Mr. Price had a wonderful time so he’d come back and tell the rest of his board members and friends about it. They’d do anything to draw in more rich clients. If I weren’t being paid as much as I was for this trip, I would’ve swallowed my fake smile and told my bosses to fuck off.
“Yeah, well,” Halle responded with a shrug, “have fun without me. Everything is in your bag. You have the satellite phone, and the walkie-talkies are already set to the local channels of the Alaska state park rangers. I think I also packed enough first aid kits to save you from a bear attack.”
I glowered. “Really? If one of us is attacked by a bear, I don’t think bandages will help.”
She snickered quietly. “You never know. All right, it looks like your group is ready to go.” She gave me a quick hug and then waved goodbye to everyone else. “I’ll see you all in four weeks.”
We watched Halle get back into the helicopter, and then it took off.
I turned around to address the group and flinched when I saw Josh watching me intently, almost hungrily. For a second, I thought about calling Halle back, but then he smiled and came to stand beside me. It was a weird shift, and I tried not to let it bother me. I wasn’t exactly a greedy person, but my bosses had been paying me well for five years. I could handle a few peculiar people for four weeks.
“Trinity, we’ll follow your lead,” Josh announced.
I nodded and cleared my throat, hoping the sudden nervousness would disappear once we were under way. “Everyone has their packs on tight? We’ve got a few miles to go today before we get to our first campsite.”
“I think we’ll be all right,” Josh stated.
“We’ll keep up. If not, just leave the newbie for the bears,” Boyle, one of the other associates, drawled with a wink as he gave a friendly shove to who I thought was Owen.
Boyle was large, taller and burlier than Josh. A scar ran up the side of his right cheek and disappeared into his ebony hairline. I’d noticed it yesterday, but today it stood out from his harshly lined face.
“Owen’s got enough meat on his bones to slow down a bear.”
I sighed and reminded myself to maintain my cool. They were new to this. I would have to give them a few days to understand what they had gotten themselves into.
I eyed the entire team—Josh, Boyle, Ian, Owen, Brian, Maggie, and Brenda. “If a bear attacks us, we won’t be leaving anyone behind,” I scolded. “You’ll do exactly as I say and nothing more if you want to live.”
“Oh, come on, Trinity. We’re just having a little fun,” Josh told me.
