Bear's Kiss (Bear Heat Book 2) by Natalie Kristen Read Free Book Online Page A

gloriously, miraculously alive.
    She shook her head hard and
clenched her clammy fists. Enough.
    These morbid, paralyzing
thoughts were doing her no good at all.
    She would not be cowed and
intimidated by a bunch of bullies and murderers. Shapez and his men
were just cowardly bullies with big guns and dirty money.
    She would not let them get to
her!
    Prisha forced herself to take
in the scenery and listen to the soothing sounds of nature around
her. The weather was beautiful, and a walk would do her good, she
decided. Clear her head and calm her nerves. Getting some fresh air
and exercise would surely lift her spirits.
    Prisha flipped the switch to
lower the tall ladder to the ground. She climbed down shakily and
paced around the huge tree, stretching her legs and rolling her
shoulders.
    Breathing in the clean, crisp
air, she gradually felt better, calmer and bolder. She began to
stroll towards the lake, stopping now and then to admire the wild
flowers.
    As she approached the edge of
the lake, she heard a twig snap behind her. Whirling round, she
scanned the woods and moving grasses.
    Nothing. Just some birds
flitting from tree to tree.
    She gulped and tried to tamp
down her rising panic. Her heart was beating too fast. Her skin
prickled as the air seemed to chill around her.
    Prisha shivered even though
she was standing in a patch of sparkling sunshine.
    Very slowly, she turned
around.
    Someone was watching her.
She could feel it.
    She could sense eyes on her.
Unfriendly, hostile eyes.
    She wanted to run back
towards the tree house but her feet wouldn't move. Her legs felt
stiff and heavy, like they had turned to blocks of cement.
    A shadow fell in front of her
and she jerked her head up.
    “Hello, Prisha.”
    She choked back a cry and
stumbled back. “Terrence!” She shook her head in
disbelief and dismay.
    How did he find her?
    She thought that she had left
him behind for good when she left her small town. But it seemed he
had followed her all the way to the city. He was still stalking her,
haunting her.
    Why wouldn't he just give up?
    It was over between them. He
should just let her go and move on.
    “You don't look happy
to see me, Prisha. It's been a long time. How have you been?”
Terrence smiled, but there was a malicious glint in his gray eyes.
    “I...”
    “Oh, I know how you're
been. I see everything you do. I know where you live, where you
work, who you've been with.” Terrence turned and spat. “And
you've been with another man! He's not even a man. He's an animal.
You've been fucking an animal!”
    Prisha shook her head and
kept backing away. Terrence looked crazed, homicidal. Her heel
knocked against a rock, and Prisha flicked her eyes down quickly.
She could use the rock as a weapon. It was the only thing she could
use to defend herself.
    Terrence prowled sinuously
towards her. He was tall, but not as broad and powerfully built as
Caleb. She stared at his cruel, hard features and wondered how she
had ever found him handsome. She supposed some women would still
find him attractive. But the look in his eyes chilled her to the
bone.
    “W-what do you want,
Terrence?” she said, fighting to keep her voice steady.
    He wrinkled his nose. “Don't
worry. I don't want you. Not anymore. Not after you're spread your
legs for a beast.” His fact twisted as he hissed through his
teeth, “You reject me, to fuck a monster?”
    “Caleb is not a
monster.”
    “He's a half man, half
bear! A monstrous freak!”
    Prisha kept her face straight
as she slowly lowered her hand to the rock.
    “I wanted to take you
back,” Terrence went on. “Really, I did. But that was
before you decided to become a bear's whore. Now, it disgusts me to
touch you. But—I do have another use for you.”
    His smile was cold and ugly.
She could tell he was preparing to lunge towards her.
    “Stay away from me,”
she warned, snatching up the rock. “Don't come near me! Don't
touch me!”
    His laughter stopped
abruptly.
    “I won't