Her Wild Bear (3 page)

Chapter 7

Tawny felt fear twisting her insides. Her ankle felt swollen and bruised from where it had smacked against a rock during her race to get away from the raging bear. She tried getting her bearings from the silhouettes of the mountains, but nothing looked familiar. As she stood there in the dark she listened for any indication that her friends had followed her. Everything was deathly quiet.

“Hello?” she whispered.

There was no answer. She let hot tears stream down over her cheeks, too scared to cry out louder for fear that she would attract the bear. For all she knew, her friends were dead.

She flailed her hands out in front of her and stepped forward, but quickly ran into rough tree bark. When the bear attacked the camp Tawny had sprinted back toward the road, toward the cars: the only safety she knew. But she realized she must have missed the trail, and instead she had wandered for hours in the wrong direction. The mountain air was chilly and cruel at night, and she shivered in her thin shirt, without the comfort of either a coat or the campfire.

“Help me,” she called out softly.

Again, no response.

There was a rustling to her left, and she stiffened as it came closer. She turned slowly, waiting for it to find her, wondering if this was the end.

But a second later it scurried off into the night, probably frightened of her. She didn’t bother trying to stifle a painful sob as she stared around, bewildered and helpless. She was lost, and there was no way to find camp before morning.

She felt her way along the tree and sat down at the base of it, nestling uncomfortably between its roots. She curled up and cradled her head between her knees. There she sat and cried, exhausted, waiting for dawn.

***

Hunger drove Matt from his bed before dawn. Grumbling, he shifted into bear form and trotted down to the river, waiting for the first glimmer of sunlight before he scanned the water for fish. There was a flicker of hope in his eyes when he spotted the first salmon of the season, its shimmering scales catching the light.

He pounced on it and dragged it to the bank as it flopped helplessly in his mouth. The meat was rich and filling. After he’d eaten, Matt loped back into the cold water, tumbling playfully in the brisk current before he ambled up onto the bank and lay in the tall grass to absorb the sun.

But as he lay there, thoughts of her began to haunt him once again. Over and over again he replayed in his mind how she’d looked at that young man the night before, how she’d tugged at her hair, how she fondled him as well as her own body. He found himself fuming with both jealousy and desire.

As he shifted back to human, the breeze cool on his exposed skin, he was unnerved to find himself with a full erection. He hurried back into the cabin and pulled on some buckskin clothes and an old pair of hiking boots before setting out to check on the small camp.

As he approached, he could see that one of the tents was still torn down, the fire was out, and the only person in camp was a blonde girl. She sat on a log by the scattered fire pit, rocking back and forth quietly. Her long blond hair was mussed and there were smudges of dirt on the pale skin of her face and arms. She wore a thick vest, her arms wrapped tightly around her stomach.

The girl looked up with excitement as she heard Matt coming up the narrow trail, but her expression dulled, then turned to fear, as she saw him. She stood abruptly, stepping away as he came into camp.

“Is everything alright?” Matt asked. He stopped and put up his hands as he saw the terror in her eyes. “I’m not here to hurt anybody,” he assured her. His eye twitched as he recalled the previous night, when he had approached the camp intending to scare them off.

“Who are you?” the girl asked, her voice cracking. She looked around nervously. “The others are going to be back any minute now.”

Matt gave her a friendly smile. He looked at the scattered equipment, the open backpacks, and the cold fire. She wasn’t there — no one else was. An uneasy feeling clutched his stomach.

“I’m Matt,” he said. “Is something wrong?”

She eyed him suspiciously for a long moment. “I’m Denise,” she offered weakly. She wrapped her arms around herself again, shaking nervously. “We were attacked by a bear last night.”

“Attacked?” Matt gasped. He took a step backwards. “Is everyone alright?”

Denise sobbed suddenly, covering her trembling lips with one hand. She shook her head, struggling to get her voice. “One of my friends is lost. She ran into the woods last night. I think the bear may have gotten her. The others went out to search for her, and I’m staying here in case she comes back.”

A cold chill crept up along Matt’s spine. “What does she look like?” Matt felt his mouth going dry as panic set in.

Denise struggled to keep from bawling, looking around the camp and up to the tree tops in helpless despair. “She’s a little taller than I am, long brown hair with a little red in it, green eyes . . . I don’t know, she just looks normal, you know?”

Matt’s heart fell to his feet. It was her. “Okay,” he said as calmly as he could manage, “I think I can probably spot a lost girl. Where are her things?”

Denise's brow furrowed as she stared at him. “Why? What does it matter?”

Matt shrugged. “I’ll go out looking for her. Seeing something of hers might give me some idea of where she might be.”

Denise slowly shook her head, her eyes fixed on the tall stranger dressed in leather. “Are you serious?” she moaned.

Matt squared his shoulders, hoping to sound confident. “I’ve lived out here most of my life, Denise. I know these woods and how to track people. But I don’t know this girl. The more I know about her, the better my chances are of finding her. I only hope your other friends don’t get themselves lost out there hunting for her. Now, what’s her name?”

Denise swallowed hard. “Tawny,” she said finally. “Her name is Tawny. She’s really good in the outdoors, and goes camping a lot. I think she can take care of herself — mostly.”

“And where are her clothes?”

Denise bit her lip with worry, but she pointed to a tent where one of the backpacks lay open.

Matt knelt at the tent’s opening, pulled out the backpack, and yanked out a thick sweater. “Is this hers?” he demanded.

Denise nodded fervently.

Matt pressed his face into the yarn and took a long, full breath. The scent of her drenched his senses, and his brain reeled from how good she smelled. His pulse quickened, and he suddenly longed to be next to her. He took several long breaths, then looked up to see Denise staring at him, her face twisting in confusion and disgust.

“I should go look for her,” Matt said flatly. He stood up and attempted an awkward smile.

“Um, you don’t have to,” Denise said. “The others will probably find her. And one of them has a gun, by the way.”

“Yeah, I know,” Matt huffed.

“What?”

“I mean, I figured out here somebody would have a gun,” Matt tried to cover his mistake. “We’re miles from anywhere or anything, alone up here in the wilderness, no people at all . . .” He watched Denise’s face tighten in fear.

“I’m leaving,” Matt sighed and turned around. He hurried back down along the trail and out of sight. As soon as he was sure Denise wouldn’t be able to see him he took a long, slow breath of air in through his nose.

Dozens of scents drifted in on the breeze. The sweet fragrance of late blossoms, squirrels in every direction, bird droppings and rotting bark, all swirled into a ménage of revealing information. But there was no hint of Tawny nearby. There were, as it happened, several raccoons and a distant skunk, but no Tawny.

Matt stopped, his heart thudding anxiously. He looked down along the trail to where the cars would be parked — but if she had gone that way, her friends would have no problem finding her. Had she gone very far to the south, she would find Woods Creek, and had she gone to the east, the dense forests would have forced her to turn back. With the cliffs to the north, Matt determined the best direction to search would be to the west, which was back in the direction of the cabin.

Matt worked his way between the trees, staying near the river. He wound along the most level ground he could find, taking the easiest route, the one a scared, lost girl would be most likely to take. But there were no signs of Tawny having been through the area. Matt clenched his jaw in frustration.

He scanned the ground and low brush for footprints and broken twigs, and sniffed at the air. He considered shifting to a bear to cover ground more quickly, but thought better of it when he imagined being the beast when he came across her.

“This is pointless,” Matt grunted to himself. “There’s probably three thousand square miles of thick woods, and she’s standing in one square foot of it.” He turned back toward the little camp, eager to check to see if she’d been found.

A squirrel darted across his path. A few feet ahead, it clambered up a tree, chattering angrily. Matt snarled at it, then stopped and listened. The birds to his left chirped as usual, but to his right, they were quieter. Cautiously, silently, he stepped off the little path and into the bushes, making his way down along the hill into a ravine. At the bottom, he stepped up onto a rock and sniffed the air.

Nothing. He listened intently, but there was only stillness.

Matt grunted and started to clamber back up the slope, but stopped as the breeze shifted.

A very faint scent captured his attention and he gazed back down along the bottom of the ravine. Nothing stirred, and as the wind again shifted, the vague smell was gone. But Matt scurried back down to the rocky floor and carefully made his way along the ravine, following the scent. He knew it could have been a curious blend of fragrant flowers, but he had to be certain. And, as he rounded the bend, the smell was undeniable — as was her voice.

“Damn it!” she cursed, still hidden from Matt’s view behind the brush.              

She fell quiet, rubbing at her bruised ankle. Matt moved closer, slowly, listening to be certain which direction she was in. As he pushed aside a thorny blackberry bush, the thistles gouging his arm, he felt wave of relief and shock as he stared down at her. She sat on the ground, her back to him, holding her calf.

“God fucking damn it all to hell!” she screamed. “I hate the god-damned woods and the god-damned bears and the fucking rocks!”

She lowered her head and sobbed in despair.

“I can’t tell you how often I’ve felt the same way,” Matt sighed.

Tawny squeaked in terror, spinning around and falling back on her elbows. She shoved herself away from him, staring up in shock and sudden fear.

“I’m Matt Darlin,” he said, waving sheepishly. “I’ll be your rescuer this morning.”

Her wide eyes fixed on his face and she lay there speechless until Matt fidgeted awkwardly. “Can I get you anything?” he asked.

“You’re here,” Tawny gasped.

Matt shrugged weakly, furrowing his brow. “Oh,” he replied. “Thank you?”

She kept staring for a long moment. In utter disbelief she looked up and down the entire length of him. Her gaze drifted softly from his gentle eyes over to his full mouth, along his tough jawline, and again down over his buckskin clothes. She looked back up to see his inquisitive expression, and she felt her face go hot.

“I’m lost,” she muttered. “I didn’t think anyone else was out here.” She looked him over again, catching her breath as she took in his broad shoulders. She swallowed hard. “Are you going to hurt me?” As she heard her own pleading words, she felt a disturbing craving stir within her.

Matt shook his head. “No, I’m not,” he assured her. He struggled to subdue his painful longing as he carefully studied her face.

Her eyes brightened at his gruff reply, and she pushed herself up into a sitting position, instinctively arching her back to press her breasts further out, and glanced down and away from him.