Page 48 of His to Defend

“I’ll need a couple of days for the paperwork.” Tyler switched into business mode and started listing off the things that were necessary on his end to get the shoot going, but Ryker wasn’t listening. While his editor was talking, he’d pulled his camera out of his pack and flicked it on.

“I’m ready now,” he interrupted. “How about I take off a little early?”

“No can do. Just hang tight, Ryker. I’ll get everything sorted and we’ll have you on a plane before you know it. Take a few days and relax,” he continued. “I’ll be in touch.”

He hung up and Ryker stared at the phone for a minute. He should have been thrilled by that phone call, for a number of reasons. Not only would it be one of the most thrilling shoots he’d ever done, a once-in-a-lifetime experience, it could also make his career. And of course it had the added benefit of taking him as far away as possible from Nina.

It was perfect.

His eyes dropped to the camera in his hands. While Tyler had been talking, he’d clicked over to the review pane and the series of shots he’d taken of Nina only a few days before appeared on the screen.

His bear roared at the image of her on her stomach with her round ass presented to him. Her light hair fell over her smooth, sexy back, and there on the back of her neck was the mark.

His mark. The one that bonded her to him.

Two days. He just needed to survive two days before he could get on a flight and get away from Grizzly Ridge. And Nina.

He touched a finger to the screen and her image.

Two days before he could leave her safely behind so she could have the future she deserved.

One without him.

It was only two days, but Ryker had no idea how he’d be able to survive them.

Nina was confused and frustrated by the time she walked up to the front porch of Ella’s cabin. It was the cabin tucked the farthest away from the others, with the most privacy. She had no idea why Harper had insisted on meeting her out there, or why she couldn’t simply tell her whatever it was she had to tell her earlier. It was all starting to get a little annoying.

Before Nina could knock, a rustling in the trees next to the cabin caught her attention. She turned in time to see a magnificent grizzly bear. She jumped back reflexively, but the bear didn’t seem to be threatening in any way. It sat calmly next to a pine tree, watching her. Nina took a step back toward the front door of the cabin, never taking her eyes off the bear.

There was something familiar about it. But that was crazy. How could a bear be familiar?

There was a flash of movement next to the bear and a moment later, another one appeared. But this bear was different.

Smaller. It was a black bear.

Nina should have been scared. Two bears only feet from her? She should have been screaming and panicking.

But strangely, she wasn’t.

There was nothing threatening about the animals. Instinctively, she took a step toward them, keen to get a closer look as the door to the cabin opened and Ella and Kira stepped outside.

Nina glanced between the women and the bears before Ella and Kira joined her on the edge of the porch.

“I don’t…what…”

“There’s a lot we need to tell you,” Kira said softly. “Harper didn’t want to scare you.”

“Harper?” Nina flipped back quickly to the bears, who had come to the edge of the porch and watched them with a tilt of their heads, as if they understood them.

Did they?

Again, Nina looked quickly between the animals and the women.

What was going on?

“It’s kind of complicated.” Ella put her hand on Nina’s shoulder. “But Harper and Chloe…”

“Chloe?”