Bear with Me (Beast's Mate Romantic Suspense, Book 2)

By Tawny Taylor

Book 2 of the Beast’s Mate Romantic Suspense series. This series is best enjoyed if read in order.

Katie Spenser is looking forward to some R & R with her best friend Abby when she makes the hellishly loooong trip from Chicago to Alaska. Unfortunately, rest and relaxation are not what she gets. Instead, it’s a missing best friend. Men who turn into freaking bears. And crazy-ass bad guys shooting guns at Abby and her new furry boyfriend. Yeah. Not the adventure she was expecting.

The only part of Katie's so-called vacation that's pleasant is Raul Zant. Raulll. Sounds like Rawrrr. And does he live up to his name. The guy is so sexually dominant that a mere glance produces delightful tingles and quivers of anticipation. But with those armed bad guys tailing their every move, the trick will be staying alive long enough to get a nibble or two...or more... from her hot beast.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Novel Mind Books
• Release date: Sep 11, 2014
• ISBN: 9781311144126

Tawny Taylor

Nothing exciting happens in Tawny Taylor's life, unless you count giving the cat a flea dip--a cat can make some fascinating sounds when immersed chin-deep in insecticide--or chasing after a houseful of upchucking kids during flu season. She doesn't travel the world or employ a staff of personal servants. She's not even built like a runway model. She's just your run-of-the-mill Detroit suburban mom and wife. That's why she writes, for the sheer joy of it. She doesn't need to escape, mind you. Despite being run-of-the-mill, her life is wonderful. She just likes to add some...zip. Her heroines might resemble herself, or her next door neighbor (sorry Sue), but they are sure to be memorable (she hopes!). And her heroes--inspired by movie stars, her favorite television actors or her husband--are fully capable of delivering one hot happily-ever-after after another. Combined, the characters and plots she weaves bring countless hours of enjoyment to Tawny...and she hopes to readers too! In the end, that's all the matters to Tawny, bringing a little bit of zip to someone else's life.

Book preview

BEAR with Me (A Shape Shifter Romance)

Beast’s Mate Romantic Suspense, Book 2

By

Tawny Taylor

Smashwords Edition

Published By Novel Mind Books

Copyright © 2014 Tawny Taylor

All rights reserved

Books By Tamryn Ward

Hopelessly Broken

This Crazy Little Thing

Books by Tawny Taylor

Wild Knights

Wicked Knights

Wanton Knights

Wild, Wicked & Wanton

Dark Master

Decadent Master

Dangerous Master

Darkest Fire

Darkest Desire

Claim Me

Wicked Beast

Prince of Fire

Girl Enslaved

Dirty Little Lies

Triple Stud

Enslaved by Sin

Double Take

Behind the Mask

Plays Well with Others

Lust’s Temptation

Wrath’s Embrace

Burning Hunger

Torrid Hunger

Everlasting Hunger

Slave of Duty

Flesh to Flesh

Compromising Positions

Breathless

Pleasing Him

At His Mercy

Ties That Bind

Heart Throb

Burn For You

Her Lesson in Sin

Touch of Fire

His Dark Kiss

Playing for Keeps

Your Wicked Game

Make Me Burn

Make Me Shiver

What He Wants (My Alpha Billionaire, 1)

What He Demands (My Alpha Billionaire, 2)

What He Craves (My Alpha Billionaire, 3)

What He Needs (My Alpha Billionaire, 4)

My Alpha Billionaire (What He Wants, Books 1-4)

Yes, Master

Make You Mine

BEARed to You

BEAR with Me

Surrender

Darkest Ecstasy (Coming in 2014)

What He Desires (My Alpha Billionaire, 5)

Raw, A Dark Romance

ABOUT THE BOOK

Book 2 of the Beast’s Mate Romantic Suspense series.

Katie Spenser is looking forward to some R & R with her best friend Abby when she makes the hellishly loooong trip from Chicago to Alaska. Unfortunately, rest and relaxation are not what she gets. Instead, it’s a missing best friend. Men who turn into freaking bears. And crazy-ass bad guys shooting guns at Abby and her new furry boyfriend. Yeah. Not the adventure she was expecting.

The only part of Katie's so-called vacation that's pleasant is Raul Zant. Raulll. Sounds like Rawrrr. And does he live up to his name. The guy is so sexually dominant that a mere glance produces delightful tingles and quivers of anticipation. But with those armed bad guys tailing their every move, the trick will be staying alive long enough to get a nibble or two…or more… from her hot beast.

SAMPLE

Katie’s earlier thoughts of heading for safer parts were quickly banished from her head the moment Raul leaned over to kiss her. She hadn’t anticipated the kiss, although she’d thought about it enough. Oh hell, if she were honest with herself, she’d admit she’d begun to wonder what was taking him so long.

The kiss was lead-melting hot but not in a pushy or rushed way. His mouth brushed softly over hers at first, teasing and tickling. He had amazing lips. Soft and scrumptious. Then hard and demanding. They made her want to do things she’d never thought to try.

When his tongue got into the action she wondered what it would take to convince her to attempt every single one of those things. Today.

While his tongue stroked and tormented, his hands wandered. They started their journey on either side of her face. They smoothed down her neck, brushed over her shoulders then drifted down her arms.

She broke the kiss to drag in a much-needed breath. Oxygen deprivation had most definitely set in.

Their gazes locked. She saw something strange in his eyes, a shadow shifting across irises the shade of the earth, like someone walking by a window in a darkened room.

His fingers tightened around her upper arms. His mouth pulled into a narrow line. He looked like a guy who was about to lose it.

Her breathing quickened.

I don’t know what it is about you. He lifted one of his hands to her face again. His index finger traced her lower lip, leaving a trail of pleasant tingles behind. No touch is enough. No kiss…

She knew the feeling. Insanity or not, she couldn’t deny it any longer. She wanted him to take her. Now.

She laid her hand over his and closed her eyes. The scent of man and crisp outdoor air drifted to her nose. Her pussy burned. The sound of his heavy breathing echoed in her head. Together, the sensations intensified her desire to new and urgent heights.

Raul, she whispered. What’s happening?

She opened her eyes as he eased her onto her back on the bed. He gazed down at her for a least a bazillion stuttering heartbeats, maybe more.

I’m going to take you, he answered, his eyes telling her he’d accept nothing but acquiescence.

Yes.

He kissed her again. This time his mouth was hard and demanding, punishing. His hands closed over her breasts and kneaded them through the material of her knit top and bra. She reached up and dug her fingernails into the crisp cotton covering his shoulders.

More!

Seeming to read her mind, he shifted positions until his body was pressed against her length and his erection ground against her pubis. The weight felt wonderful, the friction amazing.

Still not enough.

He sat back, caught her wrists in his fists and pinned them up over her head to the mattress.

Now he was getting somewhere!

Yes, she whispered, writhing under him. She needed his cock between her legs. She needed it now. She’d suffered long enough.

She’d been stupid to think she could be friends with this man, that she’d be able to resist the sensual promise in his wicked grin and deep voice, or that she’d be able to stand firm against the desire he’d so masterfully stirred within her. The tormenting had started hours ago. The sly glances and teasing touches. The definitive moment, when her will had been thoroughly defeated, had been in the restaurant. When he’d forced her legs apart with his knees and traced soft, winding lines up her thighs. If his intention had been to seduce her today, he’d succeeded. In a big way.

She willingly submitted. Her body was his. She couldn’t take another second of agony.

Chapter One

Katie Spenser arrived in Anchorage after spending eight dreary hours staring at the walls in Chicago’s O’Hare airport, another fifty-eight tedious minutes cooped up in a grounded airplane—what idiot made up the rule that an airplane with a broken toilet wasn’t fit for flight?—and six miserable hours and thirty-three minutes trying to ignore the woman next to her vomiting nonstop. Only to discover her ride from the airport had pulled a no-show.

Exhausted. Smelly, woozy and abandoned. Wasn’t this a nifty way to launch a girl’s vacation? Where the heck was Abby?

Girl, what’s up? I’m sitting here at the airport. Waiting for you. You’re going to owe me big time for this, Katie said into her cell phone before snapping it shut and stuffing it into her pocket. I can’t believe she isn’t answering her phone, she said to no one in particular as she wearily dragged her luggage behind her, in search of a rental car counter. After signing her life away to rent a truck, and taking a half-dozen wrong turns, she found the remote cabin they’d leased for two weeks.

No Abby. The place was empty.

Now Katie wasn’t just annoyed. She was worried. It didn’t look like Abby had been there at all. No suitcases. No clothes. No food.

Because Abby had left Detroit almost a week ago, that made no sense. Had something happened to her? Or had she decided to stay in a hotel the whole week? It was most likely the latter, but since Katie knew her friend was operating on a tight budget, she couldn’t deny the first was possible. Abby was definitely short on cash and out of her element.

Katie hadn’t worried too much about the fact that she hadn’t heard a peep from Abby in close to a week. She figured her friend had been too busy enjoying her vacation to bother calling. Truth be told, she’d been relieved Abby hadn’t been calling her every five minutes, moaning about being stuck in the Alaskan wilderness alone and making her feel guilty. Alaska hadn’t been Abby’s first choice for vacation destinations. Unlike Katie, Abby was a city girl to the marrow. She’d wanted to go to New York, max out her credit cards, see a show, do some sightseeing, shopping.

Boringgggggg.

Fighting a weird, sick feeling, Katie flopped onto the couch and crammed her hand into her jacket pocket. Her cell phone started vibrating the instant her fingers curled around it. Thank God! She checked the phone number on the lit screen then lifted it to her ear. Hey, stranger! Wh—

Oh. My. God! Abby shouted, sounding close to hysterical. Katie! Where are you? I have so much to tell you but I don’t know if we’ll get cut off.

Where are you? Katie started pacing the room to keep warm. The place was like an icebox. She needed to get a fire started.

I’m not sure. Somewhere in Canada. Abby paused a beat before continuing, giving Katie a chance to digest that first bit of information. We’re next to a road—

Canada? Katie picked up a piece of firewood and tossed it in the fireplace, kicking it into position with her boot. What’re you doing in Canada in the middle of the night? Why aren’t you at the cabin?

Long story. Where are you?

She stacked a second log on top of the first and turned to look for some newspaper. At the cabin, which, by the way, is empty. Where’s your stuff? And I’m not happy with you. You didn’t come and get me at the airport like we’d planned. I had to rent a car. Didn’t—

You’re here? In Alaska? And you have a car? And your phone works? There is a God!

Katie scrunched up her shoulder to wedge the phone under her chin. She needed both hands to ball up some paper. But when she bent over, the phone slipped free and landed on the braided rag rug with a dull thud. She scooped it up, catching Abby say to someone, She’s here! She can come and get us.

Us? Who was she with?

Katie stuffed the wadded-up paper under the unlit logs in the fireplace and reached for the box of matches.

Listen, Abby said, before Katie had a chance to ask her any questions, I’m going to give the phone to somebody else, and I want you to take down some directions. Okay? And make sure you bring all your stuff. And your driver’s license. You’re not going back. Got it?

What’s going on? Katie set down the matches and rubbed her eyes. They were blurry, like they’d been rolled around in Vaseline.

Not coming back? What was with all the drama? Not that drama was anything new to Abby. She was a regular Sarah Bernhardt. A broken heel on a new pair of shoes qualified as a major catastrophe. And the world nearly came to an end a month ago when her credit was cut off by her bank. The bank, of course, had been looking out for her best interest, since there’d been an unusual amount of internet purchases all of a sudden. But get Abby Clumm to understand that. It was like trying to explain the value of honesty…to a politician.

She’d hate to see how her melodramatic friend would react if she faced a real tragedy.

Just get a pencil and listen, Abby said. I’ll tell you when you get here.

Katie sighed and turned to look for something to write with. She found an old Chinese carryout menu and dull pencil in the kitchen.

A man’s voice came on the line, Hello?

Ah, now things were making sense. Abby’d found herself a vacation flame. Interesting.

He must really be something to look at.

If Abby was begging her to pick them up in BFE Canada, Mr. Studly either had unreliable