Protected by the MC: Bear Shifter Biker Reverse Harem Read online

  “I’m scared,” she continues. “Like, all the time and of everything. I wish I was angry instead.”

  “Be angry then,” I smile. “Who’s stopping you?” She doesn’t say anything, I just hear her deep breathing, in rhythm with mine. “When you get angry, come here. We’ll be angry together.”

  I turn to her and our faces are so close. There is nothing between us. My breath is her breath, just a thin strip of reality separates her lips from mine. Without thinking, without caring about anything else other than this single moment, I lean towards her and kiss her. She tastes like the beach, of salt water and sand, as my hand finds her cheek, to keep her pressed against me. She gives herself to me, she lets go, her lips melt and turn to lava, to chocolate, to seawater, to everything delicious I’ve ever tasted.

  Our kiss seems to last forever, when we both pull back suddenly, at the same time. Her face is a crimson red, her sweet cheeks like red apples, as her lips smile shyly. Somehow, I believed she’d run away as soon as I let her go, but she’s still here. She’s not saying anything. She doesn’t need to. I can hear her heartbeat and that’s all I want to listen to.

  Chapter 23

  Theron

  This is crazy. This is absolutely insane. She’ll probably punch me in the face for doing it. I shouldn’t. I probably shouldn’t.

  I walk past the silent and empty shacks, on the way to mine. Isabel is still staying there. She’s expressed a desire to keep it as her temporary home, as she’s already gotten used to it. Of course, I agreed. Her well-being is all that matters right now. Our business can slow down, then pick up again, it’s a wavy line. Never steady, always changing. But her health is crucial for us all, in more ways than she herself understands.

  I don’t know if this is a good idea. Actually, I think it probably isn’t, but I can’t stop myself. I reach my shack and I try the door. It gives in to my pressure and opens up easily. The place is dark. Even the small lamp has decided to take a nap, along with Isabel. I can see just vague shadows of objects I usually recognize. Slowly, I walk over to the bed, with a slumbering body in it. She is lying on her side, facing me. I can’t see her sleeping. I’m simply assuming she is, from the way her body rises then lowers down again. A few crickets are heard from the outside, followed by some other soothing sounds of the night in the woods. I always thought, there’s nothing more restful than a night somewhere in the woods. The city can never come close to it. So, why am I going to wake her up now?

  I reach out to her and press my hand gently on her shoulder. She doesn’t move. She’s sleeping too deeply. I try to shake her a little and she releases that sweet sound, some mumbling, some moaning, but she doesn’t seem to wake up quite yet.

  “Isabel,” I whisper her name and she stirs a little.

  Her head suddenly jerks up and even though I can’t see her face clearly in the dark, I’m sure that her eyes are wide open. I immediately reach out and turn the little lamp on.

  “Theron!” she sounds surprised to see me. “Is anything wrong?”

  She looks like she’s about to jump out of bed and spring into action.

  “No, no,” I speak calmly, assuring her that everything is fine.

  “What is it then?” she wonders, her eyes glazed and dreamy. If I let her close them for longer than a single second, I’m sure she’d immediately drift off back to sleep.

  “There should be a meteor shower in about an hour or two,” I tell her, hoping that this doesn’t sound like a stupid thing to wake someone up for. “With everything that’s been going on, I thought maybe you’d like to see something like that.”

  She looks confused for a moment, her eyelashes batting in the darkness that’s now partly illuminated, as if the moon is in the room with us. She props herself up on her elbows, then glances over at the chair. Only then do I realize that her clothes are lying on it.

  “Could you get me my clothes, please?” she asks, a little smile dancing in the corner of her mouth.

  “Oh, yes, of course, of course,” I rush over and bring them back to her.

  Politely, I take a few steps to the door.

  “I’ll wait for you outside,” I tell her.

  “You can just turn around,” she tells me, sending ripples of excitement through the relatively calm pond of my heart. I do as she tells me.

  In the darkness, I hear her moving, as her shadow spreads across the floor, dancing, her arms stretching out and long legs pointing to some invisible spot on the wall. I wait for her further instructions. Some more commotion and a moment later, I find her standing next to me. She smells of comfortable beds, of warm glasses of milk just before bedtime. I just want to take her in my arms and go back inside with her, but I resist the temptation.

  “I’m ready,” she grins, beaming brighter than that lamp in the corner.

  “Let’s go,” I smile back, leading the way out.

  As we walk silently, I wonder if she’ll ask about Dex or Zarael. Will she insist on inviting them to come along? If she does, I can’t say I’ve got a good enough reason to say no. All I can do is hope. She treads carefully by my side and by the time we’ve left the shacks behind, I’m relieved. It’ll be just the two of us. I’ll be able to sip her words slowly and all her smiles will be just for me.

  I lead her to a small clearing in the middle of the woods, not far away from the shacks. I’d like to go in deeper, much deeper. But, it’s not a good idea to go too far away. Even though Leo hasn’t done anything yet, this doesn’t mean he’s not planning to. The forest is dark, darker than any hidden corner of a room could ever be. And, scarier, too. But she doesn’t seem afraid. She walks straight to the middle of the clearing and looks high up. The sky is dark blue, without a single cloud visible. The moon is hidden, so we should have a good view of the meteor shower.

  “This place is something else,” she tells me, still gazing up, so that her swan-like neck stretches long. “Is the lake near here?”

  “No, not really,” I shake my head, minding my step. “We’re on the other side.”

  “Oh,” she sounds a little disappointed.

  The lake is Zarael’s spot. From the first time we were here, we all chose a special place that we now call our own. There was a silent agreement about it and for me, this is it. There is nothing special about this clearing. Zarael’s lake is beautiful, especially when the morning sun bathes in it. No doubt about it. Dex has his gym shack, or whatever he calls that place. It’s not my thing, but I must admit, I did use it once or twice. It’s great, if you enjoy that sort of thing, of course. Dean likes to wander the woods with his bird watching notebook and just bird watch. Even now, that sounds a little ridiculous. A bear shifter who likes bird watching. But, I guess, that’s what makes him more human and less like a shifter. Less like an animal. For me, this clearing represents simplicity in its truest form. Nature takes care of it. Nature makes sure that the weeds and wildflowers that grow here are maintained. I don’t have to do anything. I just come here and let the fragrances wash over me. It’s all about being here, not about doing anything.

  As I look at Isabel, I realize that she understands it. She can feel the simplicity in the same way I can. I walk over to her and stand by her side. We both gaze at the empty sky, listening to the sound of each other’s breathing.

  “I don’t think I’ve ever done this,” she giggles a little as she says that, the sound of a little girl’s awe at trying that long-awaited candy for the first time.

  “Woke up in the middle of the night?” I ask her.

  “Woke up in the middle of the night and went out star gazing,” she corrects me.

  “How is it?”

  “It’s good,” she nods, lowering her head. “I like it. Even if I see no shooting stars tonight, I’m enjoying the solitude.”

  “It’s almost like therapy, isn’t it?” The moment I say that, I realize how wrong it sounded. “Sorry, I - “

  “Don’t worry about it,” she shakes her hea
d reassuringly. “I know exactly what you mean.”

  I sigh with relief. I don’t know why exactly I brought her here. It’s not to make a move, of course. That would be just barbaric. She is so sensitive still and the last thing I’d ever want to do is confuse her even more with something romantic. No. It’s not that. Even though the thought did cross my mind, embarrassingly many times.

  “I still don’t have nightmares,” she continues softly, as if trying to reassure me there’s nothing wrong with her. Of course, I know that. I’m just wondering why she still hasn’t reached that conclusion.

  “Do you think about it?”

  “It seems like a distant memory,” she sighs. She takes a few steps forward, then gazes at the sky again. I can only see the outline of her sweet self, that I want to protect with every fiber of my being.

  “You know you’ll need to face it to overcome it.”

  We both hear a sound coming from somewhere behind us and we turn around at the same time.

  “Cicadas?” she wonders.

  “Cicadas usually call during the day,” I explain. “Those are crickets and katydids.”

  “Katydids?” her voice echoes.

  “Bush crickets,” I continue. “Before, people used to call them long-horned grasshoppers.”

  “I didn’t know that.”

  “Not many people do,” I smile in the dark and it doesn’t matter if she sees it or not. She knows.

  “What else can you hear in these woods in the night?” she asks.

  “Well, let’s see,” I try to hear something, but apart from crickets, there are only owls heard. “That was an owl. Foxes tend to get all amorous in the night.” She chuckles. “Deer, too. Hungry hedgehogs scavenging for food. All sorts of little critters.”

  “The place is so alive, isn’t it?”

  “Sometimes, it seems it’s more alive at night than during the day.”

  “Yeah, I really… hey, look!” she shouts, pointing at the sky.

  The first shooting star appears, leaving its trail on the night sky. Immediately, another two follow.

  “That’s amazing!” she exclaims and her eyes light up as if she’s watching the 4th of July fireworks.

  We spend the following two hours just watching and in awe of what’s happening. More often than not, I catch myself staring at her. How perfect she is. How easily she expresses her amazement at the smallest things, things so many people have forgotten about. She still has that child’s way of looking at the world and it makes me fall in love with her even more, if such a thing is even possible. I know that by the time we return, there will be no going back for me.

  The first rays of the sun are pointing the way back and I know that the magic of the moment is gone. Of course, nothing lasts forever. I stand a few feet away from her, just waiting for her to float back down to reality. She is so impressed with what she’s seen, that wide grin is contagious. I have no idea how I’m going to explain this to my brothers. I’ve taken her out into the woods in the middle of the night. I myself know that’s not safe. But I couldn’t resist. I’ll accept my punishment gladly.

  At that moment, she turns around and I swear I can see a halo around her head. I know it’s just the sun and my mind is playing tricks on me, but it is so easy to believe it. She runs over to me, locking eyes with mine. She doesn’t notice a root in the ground, but I do. Her face changes from bliss to surprise in an instant, as her arms fly forward. Without thinking, my instincts focused and raw, bent on keeping her safe from any harm, I catch her in the right moment, just before she’d hit the ground. We both stumble down, but she is unharmed, as my hands rest on her bare upper arms. She feels cold.

  “This must be the tenth time you caught me,” she manages to muster and I can see her cheeks blushing. She looks like a little lost lamb, nestled in my arms, where I’d like to keep her forever.

  “Just keeping you safe,” I lie. Technically, it’s not a full-blown lie. It’s just not the whole truth.

  “Promise me you’ll always do that,” she whispers again.

  She rests her hand on my chest. If she wanted, I would have given her my heart for safe keeping. Her head follows suit and my heartbeat is now lulling her to sleep. I can feel her relaxing, her whole body becoming like a puppet, soft and malleable. Her breathing becomes controlled and I know she has fallen asleep, like a little child who was allowed to stay up past her bedtime to watch her favorite movie, but couldn’t make it till the end and simply fell asleep.

  “I promise,” I kiss her on the forehead and slowly head back to the shack.

  Chapter 24

  I wake up the following morning pretty late. The alarm clock lazily tells me that it’s almost noon, not even apologizing for letting me sleep this late. I put on just a tank top and some cutoff jeans, as the previous few days were pretty hot. The events from last night come back to me slowly, like taking photographs out of an old family album, one by one. I remember moment by moment, then words and smiles. Then, I realize I fell asleep in his arms.

  “Great, just great, Isabel,” I tell myself loudly, because if I just think it, it won’t be nearly as scolding. “You forgot to kiss him.”

  I quickly glance at the door, to make sure it’s closed and sigh with relief when I see that it is. I feel a sudden need to talk to Vanessa, so I head on over to Dex’s shack. I catch him on his way out.

  “Hey, little lady,” he grins at me cheekily. “Where you headed?”

  “Morning,” I smile.

  “No, it’s not morning anymore,” he chuckles. “Did you just wake up?”

  “Kinda,” I reply, blushing a little. “Listen, do you mind if I call my sister?”

  “The phone’s on the table. Help yourself,” he nods. “I’m going to the lake for a dip. You coming when you’re done?”

  “Um… sure,” I nod, uncertain whether I’ll really be going. That kiss got me all confused and with Theron last night, I think it might be a good idea to just spend the day on my own, to clear my head a little. “I’ll see you later.”

  He waves at me and I enter his shack, closing the door behind me. I sit down on the chair and immediately dial my sister.

  “Please, pick up, please, pick up,” I say loudly after the first ring.

  “Hello?” Vanessa’s cheerful voice flows out of the phone.

  “Vanessa!” I shout her name loudly.

  “Isabel!” she replies by calling out my name. “Mom told me what happened. My gosh! Are you OK? When are you coming back?”

  “Hopefully, soon. It’s the weirdest thing,” I reply, a little calmer now that I’ve heard her voice. “I feel fine. I mean, my jaw has healed nicely, but I think there’s something wrong with my head.”

  “Your head?”

  “I think my mind doesn’t want to go back yet.”

  “What do you mean?” she sounds more and more confused.

  “I think I can’t leave this place before I face what’s happened.”

  “So, face it and come on back. We miss you, Isabel.”

  “I know,” I nod, feeling saddened by her words. “I miss you, too, so much. But, it’s not that easy. I mean, I don’t have any nightmares, I barely even think about it. I’m focused on wanting to come back home.” This is a lie, but she can’t tell. It’s so easy to weave a tapestry of half-truths over the phone.

  “Mom says we should come and get you.”

  “Mom feels guilty that she allowed me to do this in the first place, doesn’t she?” I frown.

  “Of course.”

  “So, she wants to come here and rescue me. But, she can’t. Someone already rescued me.”

  “You’re talking about those bikers?” Vanessa sounds intrigued. I know she wants to hear all about them and I’m dying to dish, but I can’t. It’s only the three of us here now, but I can never be sure that one of them isn’t just around the corner. Who knows what they might overhear?

  “If I told you half of it, you would
n’t believe me,” I chuckle, pleased.

  “Girl! By the time we get you back you won’t be single anymore,” she giggles on the other end of the line. I miss her so much.

  “Yeah, that won’t be the problem,” I lower my voice.

  “What will be the problem?”

  “Choosing just one,” I whisper and we both burst into roaring laughter.

  At that moment, I hear a knock on the door and I see Zarael there. I knew it. I just knew it.

  “Listen, I gotta go,” I tell Vanessa.

  “Do what you need to do, beat up someone, fuck all three, just get better and come back home, you hear?” she tells me and I blush so bad, as if someone’s holding me like a little marshmallow, over open fire. I squeeze the phone in my hand, happy that Zarael is too far away to possibly hear Vanessa’s voice.