Page 14 of Mated to Four Bears

She stared at us both, waiting for more. The look on her face was that of someone who hadn’t had any close dealings with shifters before, which suggested to me that she was from a small town. Most shifters preferred to remain in highly populated areas where we could find jobs in which we could be useful.

“Thomas can heal,” I jumped in, just so we cleared this all up for her as much as we possibly could. “And William canfeelthings. His gut instinct is what’s always driven him.”

“Richard has fantastic eyes and ears,” Henry added. “And I have a great nose. That’s how we track you down when you ran away, and that let us know you had an unwelcome guest in your home. We just wanted to help you.”

“And how am I supposed to believe that?” Samantha demanded, but there was an obvious tremor in her voice.

“We can show you that we’re bear shifters, if that’s what you want.”

Samantha shook her head at my offer. “No, I don’t want to know that you’re bear shifters. I want to know for sure that you aren’t working for Antonio.”

“I’m a detective,” I told her. “And William and Henry work for the magical police force. That’s why he came after you today. He’s just trying to do his job. Obviously, this Antonio isn’t one for using magic in ethical and lawful ways. We wouldneverwork for anyone like that.”

“Certainly not against you,” Henry jumped in, possibly a little too eagerly. He needed to back off a little bit, so we didn’t put her off. If we were going to keep Samantha safe, we needed to tread carefully. “All we want to do is help you, Samantha.”

“Why?” she asked, suspicious, as she slowly rose to her feet. “Why would you want to help me? You don’t know me. That really doesn’t make any sense to me.”

Henry smiled to himself, but it was a look that didn’t go amiss. Samantha definitely picked up on it. “Because we likeyou, Samantha, and it’s our job to help out. Working for the magical police doesn’t mean we should just punish crimes. We should also help people.”

“And you want to help me? Because I really am just a no one…”

I shook my head adamantly. “Everyone is worthwhile, no one is worthless. Everyone deserves help when they need it, and it seems like right now, you need it.”

Samantha bristled. “I don’t need help. I will get another job. I’ll figure it out…”

“But what about Antonio?” I reminded her. “It seems like he’s targeting you for some reason. We can help you out with that. We can keep an eye on you at all times. Whether you’re at college, or working. We can be there.”

She didn’t look like she was too keen on the idea. Although at first, it seemed like she just didn’t wantuswatching her. But I started to latch on to something else. Maybe William wasn’t the only one with gut instinct. I started to realize that Samantha didn’t want to be where she was. That man breaking into her home had her unnerved to the core.

“You know, we have a lot of space at our place,” I said with a soft smile. “If you come back with us, bring all your things so that you can make yourself feel more at home. We have spare bedrooms and everything, so you can actually have a decent place to sleep. You can make yourself at home for a little while.”

“It might even be a good idea to give up the lease on this place,” Henry said. “Just stay with us until this all blows over. Then you can find somewhere else to live. It’ll give you some time to find a job and save up some money to get back on your feet. It’s a win both ways, right?”

I could see Samantha going through a wide range of emotions. This was a lot to drop on her all at once, but I had afeeling that if she went for it, she wouldn’t regret it. The food, the bed, the safety…it was surely everything she needed right now.

“Yeah, maybe,” she finally whispered. “That might be a good idea. I don’t know…”

“You will have your own space,” I reminded her. “But you will also have us around if you need anything. Trust me, no asshole will magically break into our place. Whoever this Antonio is, he would bestupidto try to take us on. He won’t survive that battle, no way.”

Did she feel it? Could she sense how serious we were? Henry and I weren’t the only ones who wanted to keep Samantha out of harm’s way. William and Thomas were just as determined. I didn’t need to ask them to know they would be happy about this. The more we could look after this delightfully intriguing woman, the better.

“I…I suppose I could do that,” Samantha finally cracked and agreed. “Just for a little while. I don’t want to impose or anything, but I do want to be safe. I don’t want to behere.”

“Just until all of this is over,” I agreed in sheer relief. “Do you want some help with packing?”

As Samantha and I got to work, packing her all up, Henry went off to call William and fill him in on all the details. Henry also let us know that he was going to contact the building manager to sort out Samantha’s lease, something she was truly grateful for.

She didn’t say much as we packed, and she didn’t seem to want to look at me either. I kept my body language open and honest, so she felt like she could trust me more. But still, she didn’t say a thing. I had no idea what Samantha had been through in her life, but I had a feeling that the load pressing down on her shoulders was a heavy one. If there wasanythingI could do to help her carry that, I would. If only she would let me.

Maybe over time, especially when she was living in the same home as me, she would see that I was someone who only wanted the best for her, and someone who could help her. I honestly didn’t just feel that way because I was so intoxicated by her, I really did want the best for her. Of course, it did help that she was so easy on the eyes, and that my heart pounded at the sight of her. I knew that my brothers had the same feelings, I could smell it when we were all together, but that did nothing to dampen my feelings. I wanted her more.

“I don’t have a lot of stuff,” Samantha finally muttered. “Thank goodness. Makes it easier to move around, I guess.”

“You have a lot of college books, though,” I chuckled. “So that’s something.”

A blush flooded her cheeks. “Well, studying is important to me. I want to do well in college so I can make something of myself. I need that. It’s the only way I’ll be able to do something decent, you know?”

“You sound like you have a strong drive.”

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