“It’s not going to work out,” Logan muttered to himself as he curled up on the couch that was way too small for him.

Nothing ever worked out for Logan. Why would it start working out now?

Today had been the best day in as long as he could remember. He had spent the day with Bella talking and even joking around. She laughed at his jokes and he laughed at hers.

It had been years since he felt lighthearted enough to laugh. She just naturally brought it out of him and it made him realize how nice it could be to have someone around that he cared about.

But it wasn’t going to work out.

Who was he kidding? Really?

She was a city girl out here for a school project. He was stuck here in the wilderness forever, destined to be alone for what he had done.

In a few weeks or even days, she would pack up and say goodbye. She would return home and get over him quickly, finding a normal boyfriend who she would eventually start a family with.

Meanwhile, Logan would be trapped in the dark woods like a prisoner, spending the rest of every long day thinking about her, obsessing about her, torturing himself with the short precious memories that he had of her soft skin, the sweet smell of her hair, the beautiful view of her in her bra and underwear as she stepped into the thermal pool.

His bear groaned within when he pictured her bending over to grab her clothes and the way that her thin underwear stuck like glue to the dick-hardening curves of her round ass. She was incredible and he really didn’t want her to go.

The loneliness of the past three years had been tough but that would be nothing compared to what it would be once she left for good. It was going to crush him now, smothering him with a sense of loss until he couldn’t breathe. Until he didn’t want to breathe any longer.

Even his bear was attached to her and his bear didn’t like anyone. The vicious, out of control animal was the reason why Logan was out here in the first place and he just rolled over and acted like a teddy bear next to her. He could always feel him inside watching her lovingly.

Logan had considered that Bella could be the one that his bear bonded to but if it hadn’t happened by now, it probably wasn’t ever going to happen. Ferocious bears like his didn’t take on mates. They destroyed lives, they didn’t enrich them.

“Tomorrow,” he said, closing his eyes. “You tell her tomorrow.”

This had gone on for too long. He had gotten too attached for his own good.

The longer she stayed, the more attached he would become, and all that would do is make the pain that much more unbearable when she inevitably left.

Tomorrow he would ask her to go.

But tonight, he would indulge in his fantasy. He dreamed of Bella saying that she loved him and moving in to spend the rest of her days by his side.

It was unrealistic and would never happen, but it was nice to think about. It was nice to dream.

Logan fell asleep with a smile on his lips.

* * *

“When is your birthday?” Bella asked as she fiddled with the coffee maker. Logan was sitting at the table, staring at her big ass but she didn’t mind. She liked how he looked at her abundance of curves.

“February,” he said. “The fourteenth.”

“Valentine’s Day?” she said, turning around with a smirk. “No wonder you’re so romantic. In a barbaric caveman sort of way.”

He laughed, making her chest flutter. “I’m going to buy you a coffee maker for your birthday,” she said, pushing as hard as she could to press the coffee. Only a few drops squeezed out. “I hate this thing.”

“You need electricity for a coffee maker,” he said.

“Then I’ll buy you a generator too for Valentine’s Day,” she answered, throwing her hands in the air and giving up. “Can you do it?”

He grinned as he stood up and traded places with her. Bella bit her bottom lip as she watched his muscular back, the ridges moving under his tight t-shirt while he made the coffee easily.

She grinned as she admired him work. When she had first arrived, he barked at her that she was in charge of cooking the dinners and doing the laundry. He must have seen how hopeless she was at doing both because he had been doing everything since she moved in, spoiling her like some kind of discount princess.

“What are we going to do today?” she asked as he filled the coffee press with more hot water.

His body tightened as she asked.

“We could go see the owls again but they’re probably just sleeping, so fuck them,” she babbled on. “Maybe we could hike to the top of the mountain, or go swimming again.”

He lowered his head, his back still to her. “I think you should leave,” he said in a flat voice.

It was like he yanked the breath out of her throat. “Okay,” she said when she finally recovered. “Why? I thought we were having fun.”

His knuckles turned white as he squeezed the counter top. “It’s better this way.”

“Why?” she asked, crossing her arms over her chest. “Why is it better this way?”

He was so frustrating. Always pulling her in close only to then push her away. She liked him and he liked her, so what was the problem? Why did he keep intentionally trying to sabotage it all?

His big shoulders drooped down as he let out a heavy sigh. “It just is.”

“That’s not good enough for me, Logan,” she said, gritting her teeth. “I need answers. Why is it better this way?”

He turned around with his hard dangerous eyes boring into her. “Because I’m a beast, Bella,” he snapped. His thick veins were snaking up his tight neck and his face was twisted in agony. “I need you to leave.”

“Do you need me to leave?” she asked, staring at him back. “Or do you want me to leave?”

He ran his hand through his brown hair, exhaling in frustration. “What’s the difference?” he muttered to himself.

“There’s a big difference,” she said, not holding back. “So, which one is it?”

He shook his head as he squeezed his eyes shut, rubbing them with his powerful hand. “I should never have brought you here,” he said. “It was a mistake.”

Bella jumped out of her seat and stuck her finger in his face. “That’s really fucking rude,” she snapped back at him. “We’ve been having a good time together and you’re really sweet when you’re not being such a dick! I like you, Logan. Why can’t you admit that you like me too?”

“I do like you,” he whispered, hanging his head. “That’s why you have to go.”

Bella crossed her arms and planted her big ass back on the chair. “Well, I’m not leaving. Not until you tell me why.”

“Fine,” he grunted, gritting his teeth together. “If you don’t leave, then I will!”

“Good,” she shouted at him as he stormed out through the door. “I’ll be here waiting until you get back!”

He shook his head, cursing under his breath as he ran toward the woods, finally disappearing in the trees.

Bella ground her teeth as angry heat flushed through her body. If he wasn’t going to tell her the answers to her questions, then she was going to find them herself.

She marched over to the drawers in the kitchen and ripped open the top one, grabbing the screwdriver inside. She squeezed the handle as she stormed over to the spare bedroom and started unscrewing the lock that was lodged into the door.

Bella took in a deep breath as the metal lock fell to the floor with a clang. She grabbed the door handle and opened it.

“It’s time to find out the truth.”