A Bear For Christmas Read online

  “Come on Meg!” Alyssa called up to her. “You’re doing great! Just imagine hot Mason from last night is down here waiting for you!”

  The mention of his name set Megan’s heart a flutter again and she nearly lost her footing.

  “Don’t tease me!” she shouted down to Alyssa. “I’m in a vulnerable position right now!”

  Alyssa shook her head and laughed, and a moment later Megan was skidding to a stop next to her as the girls hi-fived.

  “You’re not so bad at this after all,” Alyssa grinned. “I think it was the Mason incentive.”

  “More like I would never want him to see me ski so badly,” she laughed. “God, I need to impress him the next time we see each other If we ever see each other again that is...”

  “Don’t be ridiculous, it sounds like you’ve impressed him already!” Alyssa squeezed her arm. “I’m jealous, he’s gorgeous.”

  Megan hugged her arms around herself and smiled. She hadn’t been able to get him out of her head since, and it was as if she could feel him with her.

  She had never had such an intense and exciting reaction to anyone before, and she didn’t want to lose the feeling. When the girls had gotten back to their lodge the previous evening, Megan and Alyssa had sat up and chatted about him until the small hours. And Alyssa had determined that the only logical explanation for why Megan felt this way, was because he was… the one.

  Megan barely even dared think it.

  But these feelings were something else.

  She took a deep breath and tried to shake him from her mind. As she had been making her way around the mountain, she had felt as if someone had been there, always just a little bit behind them. and in her heart she was wishing it was Mason. All she wanted was to know that he was as determined to see her again as she was.

  He had been the one who had left in a hurry.

  It had been so strange, as if he had suddenly spooked. As if he had felt it too and knew that he had to run.

  Megan wanted to run. But only because of her past hurt.

  She also wanted to run right towards him with open arms, and she couldn’t believe how quickly her mind had changed from never wanting to be with a man again, to suddenly being able to do nothing but think about Mason.

  “Come on,” Alyssa pouted, before pointing down the mountain to the following trial where they needed to be. “You ready?” she asked.

  As she said it a group of men hurtled past them and started wolf-whistling. Megan found herself flinching, but she wasn’t going to let it deter her. Her confidence was already starting to come back. She could feel it.

  “Let’s do it,” Megan smiled and pushed off before Alyssa had the chance to zoom off ahead of her.

  After a day on the slopes, exploring, and seeing some of the most fabulous views Megan was sure must have existed on earth, the girls walked back to their lodge, exhausted and weary.

  “Hot tub,” Alyssa said, out of breath, as she climbed the steps to the terrace.

  She flicked on the fairy lights and lit the tiki torches and candles, whilst Megan pulled the cover back on the tub and the steam began to weave into the cold air.

  “I’m going to get my bathing suit and I’ll be right back out,” Megan called back to her as she walked through the hallway down to her room.

  She closed the door behind her, and pulled her things out of her suitcase. She still hadn’t unpacked and had no intention of doing so whilst she was this busy and carefree. She didn’t even care if her clothes got a bit crumpled, plus most of the things she had brought with her were far too dressy for après ski.

  As she closed the lid of the case she noticed her cell phone, she had turned it off when she boarded the Amtrak back in the city. She had promised herself to just let herself be off the grid for the whole two weeks, but even after forty-eight hours, she was getting nervous.

  She had visions of her mother desperately trying to get in touch with her because of a family emergency, and she rapidly began to imagine her grandmother lying unconscious, her mother crying, terrified, unsure of what to do and needing Megan’s support.

  She turned the cell on and instantly her heart sank as she saw she had a voicemail and several text messages. All from her mother.

  She held the phone to her ear and pressed for her voicemail. It had been left the night before at 6pm…

  Megan, it’s me, I’m sorry to call you honey whilst you’ve just gone off on this trip. I know you need the break, and the last thing I wanted to do was call, but I didn’t know where else to turn…. It’s Cody… He’s been released. I just found out this morning… I know it’s Christmas and I really don’t want to upset or alarm you, but I thought I better let you know just in case, well, I don’t know… I just thought you needed to be kept up to speed and I didn’t want you to find out from someone else. Stay safe my beautiful girl and have a good time. Don’t you worry about him, by law he can’t come anywhere near you, not that he would be stupid enough to try anyway. Call me if you need to. I love you….

  The line went dead. Megan was shaking as she placed the phone down and sat herself on the edge of the bed.

  Cody was out.

  He was on the streets.

  And he could be anywhere.

  Thank God I’m in Vermont, she thought, as she rubbed her head.

  She had always known this day was going to come, but she hadn’t thought it would be so soon. For what he’d put her through, no punishment was good enough as far as she was concerned.

  “Megan?” Alyssa called through. “Are you coming?”

  “Yes,” she shouted back. “I’m just getting changed.”

  She put the cell phone back in her bag and decided not to tell Alyssa what had just happened. She didn’t want the whole night to be about Cody being released, and a counselling session on how she should handle the situation. She had been having so much fun since she had arrived on the mountain, and she was determined her past wasn’t going to ruin it. She peeled off her ski suit and put on her swim wear.

  Fuck it, she thought. And fuck him. You have to pull yourself together and have a good time.

  Chapter Seven

  Megan handed Alyssa her glass of wine as they both slipped down into the luscious, warm, lapping water of the hot tub. The steam rising from it was making a magical mist around them, and the stars were bright overhead. The twinkling, along with the dancing flames of the candles, made the night seem even more unique.

  The view from the terrace was exceptional, Megan could see all the way down to the town square in the center of the resort and she could tell from the noise that it was another wild night. People were in the streets playing with snow, chinking big glasses of beer, and singing and dancing to the music that filtered through the entire town. It was only eight pm and Megan suddenly felt like they were missing out.

  “Maybe we should be down there,” she said. “It looks like fun.”

  “Mmmm,” Alyssa moaned, as she pulled a damp hand towel over her eyes. “I’m exhausted tonight, all the skiing and fresh air…. I don’t feel like I can move. Plus, tomorrow is Christmas Eve… we have big day ahead.”

  “So much for you being the wild one!” Megan smirked as she sipped her wine, desperate to banish the feeling of dread that was rising in her.

  She was determined to put Cody to the back of her mind and not give him any of her attention or thoughts. But it was difficult. Knowing that he was free was making her whole head spin.

  “What about that guy from last night?” Megan dangled the statement as she tried to hook Alyssa’s attention. “He may be back working in the bar. You could go and see him for round two? I promise to be the perfect wing woman this time,” she grinned, just wishing that Alyssa would take the bait.

  “Urgh, I’m not even that bothered about him,” Alyssa groaned as she pulled the towel away from her eyes. “I was just drunk…”

  “Well I can’t sit here all night,” Megan rose to her feet and wrapped her big fluffy towel around h
er, “I want to socialize, that’s what we’re here for isn’t it?”

  “You want to find hot Mason,” Alyssa pouted. “And I don’t blame you…”

  Megan felt her cheeks flame with embarrassment. Even though she was chatting with her girlfriend, just thinking about seeing Mason again was sending her into a frenzy. He was all she could think about, and she felt constantly distracted by the idea that she had to see him. She had to find him in that town before it was too late.

  She chewed her lip and reached down into the water and splashed some up at Alyssa playfully.

  “You just love teasing me,” she said. “You call yourself a friend, but really…”

  She was about to launch into a joking tirade about how selfish Alyssa could be when she wanted to be, but she stopped suddenly as her eyes caught a silhouette on the path just down from their cabin. She squinted to make out the more defined outline and knew instantly it was a man.

  And not just any man.

  A big, muscly man with shaggy hair.

  A man she recognized.

  The silhouette lifted their hand and waved, and Megan’s heart did a little dance in her chest. She knew it was him, as if she and Alyssa had summoned him by magic, Mason was on the path staring up at her.

  “Hello?” Megan called down, as she lifted her hand up to her eyes to shield the light so that she could get a better look.

  “I told you I’d find you,” Mason called up.

  Megan’s heart began to thump wildly in her chest as the memories of the previous evening came rushing back to her. The way he had held her, the sensation of his hands on her, and his lips when they had kissed.

  The way that it had changed her, as if he had left a part of him with her and had been nestled deep within her ever since.

  She swallowed and tried to find her voice, but no words would form.

  “I hope you don’t mind?” he took a step forward, closer to the cabin and he fell into the shine of the security light.

  “Hi,” Megan managed to reply breathlessly.

  Of course she didn’t mind, but she was still having trouble finding her voice.

  She sat up fully and climbed over the rim of the hot tub, grabbing a towel before she walked to the terrace edge, where she leaned over the railing. She smiled down at him, and she saw the familiar glint in his eyes.

  “How did you find me?” she whispered.

  “I told you, I’m a pro…” he smiled as he took another step closer.

  “Want to come up?” she asked, throwing caution to the wind.

  She knew she should really get dressed and go down to the square with him, but she was half naked, loaded with wine, and now she was seeing him again she wanted to feel his skin up against hers.

  She bit her lip and pointed to the gate that led up to the log cabin.

  “I was going to ask you to accompany me for dinner…” he appeared unsure, like he didn’t want to look presumptuous.

  “Come up!” Alyssa called drunkenly. “We’ve already eaten!”

  Megan turned around to look at Alyssa, knowing this was a huge lie, but Alyssa winked and whispered, “You can thank me later… I’m going to go to bed.”

  Alyssa climbed up and out of the hot tub as she wrapped herself in a bit towel.

  “Get him in there, I’m only going to be inside, call me if you need anything.” she grinned as she patted Megan on the shoulder.

  Megan watched with her mouth half gaping open as she disappeared, inside leaving Megan alone on the terrace with only the ridiculously romantic setting and the most amazing man she had ever seen climbing up the steps to meet her.

  “So, do you stalk all the girls that come up here on the mountain? I bet you have maps to all the lodges,” Megan joked as she swayed on the spot, trying to look cute as Mason came closer to her.

  He smiled wryly and stopped right in front of her as he rested his huge hands on her hips, making her feel tiny. The feeling of having him so close to her again was a wave of relief. As if her heart, and her body, had stopped aching. She had felt thirsty and deprived, but having Mason next to her again took all those feelings away. He dipped his head down so that his lips were only centimeters from hers.

  “Only you,” he whispered. “Because I’ve not stopped thinking about you…”

  Megan gasped and felt her knees go weak. There was something between them that she had never felt with anyone before. There had been a part of her that had wanted to deny it because of all the past hurt she had experienced. She had wanted to keep it so that she could walk away without having her heart broken, or getting in too deep with someone again. After all that had happened with Cody, she was terrified of ending up in a similar situation. But as she looked deep into Mason’s eyes, she could see that he was different.

  There was an energy around him that was other worldly, and charged, she just couldn’t put her finger on it. She ran her hands up the coarse hair on his arms as he moved even closer and kissed her deeply. His lips joining with hers created a heat so intense, she felt like she had been lit on fire. Her pussy pulsed in her bikini bottoms, and his touch made her feel alive again. It had been so long since she had had a man’s hands on her, she felt like she unravel right then and there.

  Mason’s tongue slipped into her mouth, and his kiss was so deep and intense that it took her breath away. It had to be the most perfect kiss she had ever experienced, one that she would never, ever forget. He wrapped his arms around her, and engulfed her in them, the sheer size of him overpowering her. And then he lifted her like a doll and placed her on the edge of the hot tub.

  “I’m sorry, I really did intend on taking you for dinner,” he whispered with ragged breath. “I didn’t mean to come up here and intrude.”

  “You’re definitely not intruding,” Megan smiled as she looked into his eyes.

  She knew she was moving fast, but she couldn’t stop herself. Being there with him was inspiring so many emotions, she just had to let herself follow her heart and do what she desired.

  She nervously let the towel fall to the floor, and she swung her legs over the side of the hot tub, slipping into the hot bubbling water.

  “Come in?” she asked in a whisper as she spread her arms out and let the warmth wash over her.

  Mason couldn’t take his eyes off her. And he held her gaze as he undid his shirt and pulled it off over his head. Megan gasped as he revealed his huge, tanned, muscly and tattooed body beneath. And she tried not to show how impressed she was, but it was becoming harder with each item of clothing he took off.

  When he was down to his boxer shorts her eyes fell to his package and she felt her pussy ache just looking at it, he had the most satisfying bulge she had ever seen.

  She bit her lip and tried not to blush.

  He’s too good to be true, she thought as she watched his big frame climb over the side of the tub, and he slid into the water.

  When he was sat firmly next to her, she finally felt his skin brush against hers, and the heat from him raged against her.

  “You’re a bad influence,” she grinned. “I tend not to climb into hot tubs with strangers on a first date.”

  Mason smiled and wrapped his arm around her. He pulled her close to him and she fit perfectly into the crook of his arm.

  “I’m not a stranger anymore,” he said as he looked up at the stars. “And if we’re being honest here, then I think you’re certainly the bad influence,” he smirked.

  “Well I’ve never been called that before,” she laughed. “But if that’s what it takes to get you here, practically naked, then I think I like being a bad influence,” she rested the tip of her nail in the corner of her mouth and bit it seductively.

  She was playing, and she felt so incredibly sexy around him she didn’t know where this confidence had come from, it was bouncing out of her like light.

  He looked deeply into her eyes, and she was sure that she saw something inside of him again, something different and unique, something that frightened h
er, but also intrigued her. But as quickly as it came, then it was gone.

  “I meant it when I said I haven’t stopped thinking about you,” Mason whispered. “I’ve never met anyone like you before and I’m sorry I had to leave last night. I didn’t want to… Believe me.”

  “You should have stayed,” Megan turned to face him.

  She suddenly felt sad, as if him bringing this up was breaking her heart. As if he was already about to tell her they couldn’t be together, even though their chemistry and connection was strong. There was a sadness behind his eyes that frightened her… And it made her defenses rush out and up instinctively.

  “I wanted to,” Mason sighed as he looked down, avoiding her gaze. “But it’s complicated… I’m complicated…”

  Oh great, Megan thought. He’s married… Here we go…

  She pulled out of his safe, warm arm and moved to the other side of the tub. She crossed her arms over her chest and gave him the sternest face she could muster.

  “Explain what you mean,” she said defensively.

  “Nothing like what you’ll be thinking, I’m sure,” he said, half laughing. “I’m not married or anything like that.”

  Megan’s heart rate slowed, and she instantly felt less angry. She had been ready for war.

  “I trust you Megan, there’s an innocence about you that I’ve never come across before, and I want to be straight with you from the beginning, but…” he trailed off and his gaze seemed to settle in the woods that were looming up in the night behind them.

  He shook his head slightly and then he turned back to face her and traced his finger tip down the side of her face before his thumb settled on her bottom lip.

  She gasped, desperate for more of his touch, craving him in ways she had never known possible.

  “But?” she whispered.

  Mason gave her a sad smile and then he pulled away slightly.