Page 24 of Omega's Bears

“We needed the money,” Luka says. “We have to get money from somewhere.”

“Money for what? You don’t pay rent. You stole the gas for the bikes. What is the money for?” I can’t believe I’m finally asking the questions that have been plaguing me for so long. I’m so afraid of what I might be about to find out. Are the Bears secretly involved in some kind of drug ring, or some other illegal activity I don’t know about because I’m too new? What if they really do have guns? How deep might this thing go?

But apparently, I’m not going to get answers today. Luka shakes his head. “This is Jack’s business,” he says. “It’s not for me to talk about. You have to ask him, if you want to know.”

“I don’t think he’ll tell me,” I say. “Jack and I don’t really talk.” I don’t go into what it is we do do, but I can’t help but be reminded of how things played out the last time I was on my own with Jack. Maybe I should seek him out and try to talk to him. I don’t believe I’d get any answers, but maybe I’d get something else.

God. I have got to get myself under control. I keep doing the same things, making the same mistakes, landing myself in the same complicated situations. I can’t let the allure of Jack’s body make me forget why I shouldn’t be pursuing him.

“You don’t think the others are going to find it weird that you’re here with me alone in the middle of the day?” I challenge Luka, mostly because I don’t want to get into why things are uncomfortable between me and Jack with him. Every conversation is like this lately—full of mines. I feel like I need to be on the alert at all times. If I don’t watch my step, everything could blow up in my face.

“What’s weird?” Luka asks. “They don’t have any reason to find it weird that I’m spending time with someone in my clan. That’s a perfectly normal thing to do.”

I hear what he’s really saying. They don’t have any reason to suspect us. They’ll never guess that the time we spend together isn’t innocent. And as much as I hate to admit it, I know Luka’s right, because I can see him here in front of me assuming that he’s the only one I’ve been doing anything with. I’m pretty sure it’s public knowledge that Ryan has still been keeping his hands off me, and why would anyone guess that steady, rational alpha Jack would act on impulse, and without consulting the rest of his clan.

And Luka. Easygoing, friendly Luka. Who would have ever thought that he had it in him to be so masterful and passionate? Who ever would have thought that he could have his way with me so thoroughly, that all it would take would be the sight of him outside my den to make me weak? He’s right. Even if the others realize we’ve spent the day together—even if it becomes a regular occurrence—no one will take it for what it really is.

Not that I have any idea what any of this really is. I’m beginning to think I never will.

That doesn’t stop me, though, from leaning in when he steps closer to me, from arching my body when he rests a hand on my hip. His eyes are dark, pupils blown wide, and I can see the throbbing of his pulse in his neck. He’s on the verge of shifting, I realize. He’s so close to his animal self right now. The bear is right below the surface, shining out at me from behind human eyes. Luka’s jaw works as he walks the tightrope between bear and human, keeping himself right on the edge.

It’s hotter than it has any right to be. His fingers dig into my ass, holding my hips against his. We’re both gasping for breath even though we’re not doing anything more than pressing against each other. It takes me a few minutes to realize that I’ve been dancing with my own bear self, that the swirling whirlpools in my mind aren’t simple attraction but rather animal lust. I want to bare my teeth. I want to rip off Luka’s shirt with my claws. I want to roar, to give voice to my intense arousal.

I don’t know how long we stand there, panting like beasts, holding each other, but eventually, our thoughts settle and our heads clear. I laugh weakly, wrapping my arms and legs around Luka and burying my face in his neck.

His hands wrap firmly around my breasts, squeezing them hard, and flicking my nipples with is forefingers. His hard cock penetrates slowly into my juicy vagina, filling me with a wholeness that makes me feel complete.

After that intensity, the actual sex is an exhale. We move together gently, setting a relaxed pace, mouths locked together the whole time. We breathe as one. Every time we break the kiss to look into each other’s eyes, we both laugh, even as the pleasure mounts. This is the most intimate experience of my life. It’s not just about passion or pleasure today, although those elements are certainly here. It’s about the experience we just shared. It’s about the fact that we’re bears, and the fact that we’re animals together, and part of the same clan.

I’m not ever going to be able to stop doing this with Luka. I know that now. I don’t have the willpower, and what’s more, I don’t even want it to stop. Any time he finds me alone, I know I’ll be his. The only question that remains is what that will mean for the rest of the clan when they find out. How will Jack respond? And will Ryan be angry, given that his claim preceded either of the others’? Aside from myself, Luka is the lowest ranking Hell’s Bear. If the other two decide we’ve done something unforgivable, it will be us who are forced to leave.

And that would put us in danger of being found by the wolves.

I need to figure this out, and fast.

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