Glacier National Park, Montana

Elianna would never have thought she could spend this much time inside a vehicle with a strange man and like it.

They had left San Francisco two days ago, visited Justin’s favorite store, which was now her favorite, on the way to Oregon and explored beautiful giant trees along the way. 

Redwoods.  She wanted to show Nico. He would look like a bug in that forest. 

Justin never tired of any request she made. 

He did not change his mind about staying in the same hotel room, but she had no complaint. How could she, when she woke to see so much of him sprawled on the second bed every morning?

That never got old.

Feeling safe was nice, too. 

He called today’s travel a “Sunday drive” through amazing national forests in Idaho. She would like to take Nico on Sunday drives some day. 

Every stop Justin picked had been perfect. 

She felt better about coming to this country even if she only had now three and a half days left to travel. 

This was no vacation. Justin might think so, but she needed to know this land for the future. 

From the passenger seat, Elianna studied the map of Idaho spread across her lap, amazed at how many roads connected every place here. She stopped trying to figure them all out and just enjoyed the view as they rode through beautiful country. Now she understood Justin’s confusion when she told him PK had no roads connecting it to anything else in Russia.

If there had been even one road out, she would have taken Nico and ridden a bus north.

Maybe she could have saved her mother, too.  She doubted that, but she would have tried. 

Her mother would not have left Alexandre even though it sounded as if Elianna’s father had not misled her mother.  Still, every time Elianna recalled how her mother had died, her chest ached. 

“You doing okay, Eli?” Justin asked from where he drove this big vehicle with one hand. So at ease and happy.

Silly man would not stop calling her Eli.

She should correct him. Next time. 

He wore his confidence as he wore his jeans. Comfortable. She would like to be that secure and to learn how to drive.  “Okay, yes.”

He chuckled.

“What?”

“I like the way you say yes.  Might be my favorite two words, especially spoken in that hot accent of yours.”

If he had been making fun of her, she might have taken offense, but he called her hot. She knew what he meant, just not as how that word applied to her.  “Not true.”

“You don’t believe me?”

“No.”

“Annnd ... my least favorite word is back. Why don’t you believe me and don’t say it’s because I tricked you in the hotel room.”

She lifted her eyebrows at him. “Ah ha.”

He stopped grinning.  “Hey, I’m not admitting to tricking you.”

“Sound like yes.”

“Stop changing the subject.  Back to you.  If I say you’re hot, you are hot.”

“Not what you say first day.”

Scrunching his forehead, he asked, “What are you talking about?”

“You tell me use one hour to fix self.”

He drove along on the smooth highway that felt as though she were floating over land. When he cut his eyes at her again, he asked, “Do you mean when I told you to take an hour to freshen up that first night?”

“That.”

He started laughing and scratched his chin.  “Eli, I wasn’t saying you needed an hour to get pretty. You’re already pretty. Hot, in fact. I just wanted you to have extra time to relax.”

“Oh.”  She turned away, studying the tall signs and trees that flew past her window. 

“Is that why you were so mad at me the first night?”

“Not mad,” she muttered, embarrassed at facing the truth.

“Don’t forget that I’m a shifter. You can’t get that past me,” he said, calling her on the lie. “Okay, so now that we’re clear, you’re hot. Got it?”

“Crazy bear.” But her heart lifted with knowing he had not been criticizing her appearance. 

Ignoring his foolishness, she lifted the map, intending to get out of this topic.  While his ridiculous comments made her insides melt, she had to stay on track and beat down this attraction she felt for the grizzly. 

She could shift and that would end all flirting.

But she liked his flirting, so no shifting.

Run. Run. Run, her bear chimed in.

She spoke to her bear silently. Please, no trouble. You run soon. And swim. Be good, please.

Her bear grumbled, but settled down.

She had to keep her attention on gaining as much information as possible.

Justin had been very helpful, answering her million questions, but she had not asked about the one thing she’d been avoiding.  “Do you know Clan Boudreaux?”

The relaxed look on his face slowly tightened into one of no emotion unless that muscle twitching in his jaw counted. Why was he angry?

“Yes, I know about them.”

“How much?”

“Lots. I grew up there.”

He had not sounded happy about it.  “Bad clan?” she asked, growing concerned about the deal she had made in blind faith.

“Not bad for everyone else. I just ... didn’t like it so I left at eighteen.”

Maybe not so bad.  He had been a young man wanting to go out on his own, but she still wanted to know more.  “Why leave?”

He didn’t answer her at first. When he did reply, he said, “We had a difference of opinion on some things. I decided to part ways instead of staying, which created conflict. There was nothing in Clan Boudreaux for me.”

If this powerful grizzly shifter who had carried himself as an alpha had no place in that clan, what kind of mate would she end up with eventually?

Thinking about that made her stomach hurt. 

Seeing Justin unhappy made it worse. She looked around, realizing they’d been rolling for a while. “Is Idaho?”

His shoulders visibly relaxed.  “We left that an hour ago. We’re in Montana.  Look for the map in the door pocket.”

She found it and opened the map, then started checking signs.  “Is Glacier Park?”

“Yep. Glacier National Park and we’re almost there.” 

She got excited every time they went around mountains, especially this far north. She had a map of the entire country and Montana was next to Canada.

In the next few minutes, they drove along a river that was one long picture she would keep in her mind forever. 

This reminded her of the home she loved.

“What is Go To ... “ she read out loud, trying to figure out the strange road name.

“Going To The Sun Road. If we stay on this highway it will climb to the top of the mountains. Really spectacular views.  We’ll drive out that way when we leave and exit on the other side of Glacier so you can see what I’m talking about.”

As he usually did when they visited new places, Justin pointed things out to her, explaining history behind the names and locations. 

She had been so busy taking it all in, she lost track of where they were when he pulled off on a dirt road. 

Before she asked why they were stopping, he said, “I’m going to show you one of my favorite spots.  I was born just over the border in Canada and we migrated through these mountains.”

“Not Louisiana?”

“My mother’s brother was down there. My dad died in an accident so my mom moved south. Louisiana is beautiful, really. Don’t misjudge it because I left. It had nothing to do with the territory. I’m just not a hot-weather person and I like the mountains.”

The importance of this place was evident in the longing Justin didn’t try to hide.

“Is special?”

He leaned forward, looking for something and murmured, “Yes.”

Slowing down, he crept along, leaning forward and squinting at everything until his expression changed to one of relief.  He sat back and turned off the dirt road, then drove carefully through a path that had not been evident at first.

He found a place and parked.  Giving her a sly smile, he said, “I worked as a guide at one time for a group that was gathering evidence of the natural grizzly bear population decline.  We used this spot to park and hiked out of here, rather than tourist trailhead areas. I figured you might like to do a little hike.”

“Okay, yes,” she said in a voice much like Nico’s when he got to go fishing. She shoved the map away and scrambled out of the truck, meeting Justin at the back. 

He was already opening the rear entry and pulling a backpack to him, which he began stuffing with packaged food, water, and a long-sleeved shirt for each of them. 

“So much,” she mumbled.

“It’s going to be much cooler at the top of these mountains and we have to drink lots of water.”

She would not be cold, but he had done everything she’d asked since taking off yesterday morning and he’d never complained. She could do this without pointing out he wasted his energy carrying so much.

Instead, she asked, “What mountain?”

Looping the straps over his arms, he closed up the truck and locked it, pocketing the key.  “We’re headed to Heavens Peak.  You’ll love it.”

“Yes, okay.”  In her excitement, she almost repeated her words as her bear had a habit of doing. Inside, Elianna was jumping around and clapping her hands, but outside she kept her pleasant, but controlled, profile.  To do otherwise would be inappropriate and make her out to be a silly woman, which she was not. 

After watching her for a minute, Justin shook his head.

“What is wrong?” she asked,

“Nothing.” He stepped back and looked up at the sky. 

She felt certain his nothing was something.

Did he think she was unhappy with this choice? She said, “Good place to walk.”

He said, “Uhm-hmm,” but his answer got muffled by him facing away.

She added, “Glad for break.”

She got a grunt in reply. He was quickly ruining her good mood. “What wrong?” she grumbled.

He replied without facing her. “I don’t think you’re ready to hear the answer to that question.”

She gave up. “Why backpack? My backpack.”

“Yes, it is yours, but I’m going to carry it so you can enjoy just looking around and be careful to watch where you step. I know you’re a bear shifter that can climb this terrain, but I also know this area like the back of my hand and you don’t.  The backpack is because I thought we’d spend the afternoon up on that ridge,” he pointed in the distance. “Maps can’t give you a true sense of the land.”

He was right. All mountain areas looked the same to her.

He kept explaining, “We may be shifters, but we’re going to expend energy reaching that altitude. We’ll need food and water as we burn calories.  I only packed fruit, energy bars and water we picked up at the last gas stop.”

She definitely wanted to explore this area.  “Good.”

“Ah, so that’s two things I’ve done right today.”

“Yes.”

From the way he stopped talking, she assumed he waited for something else from her, but she didn’t know what it could be. 

Then he gave another headshake as if to himself and suggested, “You might want a jacket once we get up there.” 

“Am good.”  What was that all about?  Why did he keep waiting for her to do or say something, then act disappointed when she couldn’t guess what was going on inside his hard head?

If he wanted something, he should say so.

An hour later, she glanced around to find they had covered a lot of ground and the view got more breathtaking with every step.  Based on what Justin said when he slowed to point out an eagle soaring, they still had a ways to go to reach the spot he wanted to visit. 

She no longer thought about the miserable voyage to this country, the wolf attack or the confusing man walking ahead.

Lie, her bear muttered.

Elianna was surprised her bear had left her alone this long, but the demanding animal was correct.

She wanted to ignore Justin, but he would not allow it.

His very presence swarmed her senses, making her notice everything from the scent of man and outdoors intermingled to the nice view she’d had of his backside on this climb. 

She would like to follow Justin with him wearing shorts. 

And maybe no shirt.

Her bear said, Want see bear. Play, play, bear play.

No, Elianna told her animal silently, not surprised it still wanted to meet Justin’s bear.  She pleaded, Please wait.

The only reply she got was, Now.

She mentally sent back, No.

Mean.

Elianna couldn’t stomp and shout out loud at her bear without Justin wondering if she’d lost her mind, or asking questions she didn’t want to answer.  Holding her patience, she told her bear, Yes, I am mean.  You should have picked better shifter.

When she heard nothing after that, she considered it a positive sign. Maybe her aggravating bear would sulk in silence for a while. She had too much to do over the next three days to lose opportunities like this where Justin was willing to teach her more.  Her bear would have plenty of time to play as soon as she had Nico and control of her life.

Once Clan Boudreaux got a look at her bear, Elianna would be sent on her way. 

Then her bear would be able to run every day.

Justin paused and Elianna ran right into him, which was her bear’s fault for distracting her. She bounced off his big body and started sliding back down the sharp incline. 

Moving faster than she thought even a shifter could, Justin grabbed her shoulders before she slipped back down the last ten feet they’d traversed.

Her shoulder had not entirely healed, but Justin had been careful not to touch the damaged area, yet he still managed to keep her from falling. 

He pulled her up to him and stared down with panicked eyes. “Hey, I’m sorry, Eli, babe. I should have given a hand signal that I was stopping.  Damn, you could have tumbled down the mountain.”

Her heart raced as if that had actually happened. 

She should be calming down now that she was safe, but the feel of his hands on her encouraged her heart to beat even faster. Of course, her hands clutched his upper arms, which were almost too large around for her to manage a strong grip.

That was different. She had big hands for a woman. 

She told him, “I am fine. I would roll like ball. Not break neck. But I like not fall.”

She was ready for him to release her, though she was in no hurry to give up his touch.

Next, he did something she never expected.

Lifting her in the air, he turned and walked up six more steps to a flat area and set her down.

Too shocked to speak, she could not move her gaze from his face.  Her heart continued to show how fast it could race.

His heart thumped just as quickly.

She realized her hands had moved from his arms to his chest.  When had they done that?

Energy rifled through her body again, unlike anything she’d ever experienced near another shifter.

Justin lost his worried expression, but the one that replaced it now worried her.  Hunger burned in his intense gaze.

The kind of hunger that had nothing to do with a meal and would normally send her running. 

Not this time. 

The longer he stared at her as if she was everything he needed in this moment, the more her body came awake, wanting what that gaze promised.  Deep in her mind, a voice warned her to back away, that she had a goal and it did not involve an irresistible grizzly shifter. 

One that would be appalled the minute he saw her bear.

Justin leaned in and she panicked, backing out of his grasp.

He let her go without argument, but that heavy gaze didn’t let up. 

Her skin felt too tight. Everything inside her wanted to step up and take what he offered, but she could not make a mistake right now. This was the only chance she had to find a place to hide when the time came to take Nico and run. 

She must be careful and make good decisions. Every one of them would affect her and Nico.

Why did it feel as if she were turning her back on something amazing that she’d never see again?

The moment disintegrated when Justin looked out over the mountainside and said, “We have a little farther to go and we’ll take a break to eat.”

Half of her was thankful he acted as if nothing was going on between them, but not the half that felt abandoned. She couldn’t blame that on him.

The choice had been left in her hands.

“Ready?” he asked in a sober tone that left her feeling chilled. 

“Yes.”

He struck out again, but took a more easterly direction over rolling terrain with tall trees and cool air. 

She could not keep her mind on hiking. Not when she fantasized what it would be like to throw off all caution and give in to this aching need that ate at her more and more, the longer she was around Justin.  Her breasts felt heavy and wished for his touch.  That was nothing compared to the need between her legs.

She had lived without a man’s touch for close to two years after the one time she’d let her guard down with the polar bear shifter.

Hadn’t she learned anything from him? 

The minute his bear had seen hers, his polar bear had turned his back, disgusted by the mixed-color coat of Elianna’s bear.

Back in human form, the man had tried to blame it all on his bear, but after he walked away she realized the human side had been just as put off. 

It was a simple fact of nature to desire your own kind. 

She had no kind. She was other.

Polar bear and grizzly shifter males wanted the cubs that represented their dynasties to be pure.

She couldn’t blame them, but it didn’t make her feel any better to know she’d be rejected over and over again, except for whatever mate she ended up with in Clan Boudreaux.  Had the alpha there already chosen someone, or would he allow Elianna to choose?

What grizzly shifter would accept her bear once he saw it?

The Clan Boudreaux alpha, and her father, wanted strong blood for expanding their clans and allies. They didn’t care what anyone else wanted, certainly not a bastard female shifter.

She felt sympathy for the poor male stuck with mating her if he could not refuse her, but that would be disastrous. Still, she felt more sympathy for herself and Nico. She wanted Nico to have a good life.  She wanted that for herself as well.

How could she mate someone who would despise her from day one?

How could she mate someone she cared nothing for?

Watching Justin move smoothly ahead of her, she wished he was still at Clan Boudreaux.  He would be a strong mate.

What was she thinking? As nice as Justin was being, he would also step back as soon as he saw her bear.

She had no hope for a happy future with any mate and wishing she could have Justin would only make it more difficult to accept someone else.

A smart woman would prevent Justin from continuing to flirt.  Moving this mountain would be simpler than stopping Justin from something he was determined to do.

Still, she was the one who could end this attraction before they turned around to leave.

Swallowing against the thickness in her throat, she made up her mind and searched for the perfect spot to ruin a wonderful day.