Grizzly Secret (Arcadian Bears Book 3) Page 19

  Yes. Pure Joselyn. His.

  She giggled. “You’d rather make out with my pillow than me?”

  He dropped the pillow and lowered over her once again. “We’re taking that with us.”

  “In a few days, everything in your apartment will smell like me, Alton.” She ran her hands up and down his biceps.

  “Mmm. Maybe, but not as overwhelming as something only you have touched for several years.”

  Her face flushed as she held his gaze. “I love you.”

  “Eh, it’s just the binding. You can’t help it now. How will I ever know for sure?” he joked.

  She giggled out loud again. “I’ll remind you every day.”

  “Good plan.” He looked at the way her hair was panned around her face and thought he’d never seen anything more beautiful in his life.

  Just as he was about to act on his need to claim her body, a door opening and slamming in the front of the house grabbed his attention and made him flinch. He groaned at the intrusion.

  “Wyatt,” she whispered, not pressuring him to get off her.

  “He doesn’t live here,” Alton pointed out unnecessarily.

  “True.” She smiled. “But he’s here now, and he’s heading this way. I’m pretty sure he won’t hesitate to barge in whether you’re on top of me or not. Your call.” She grinned wider.

  He sighed. Part of him wondered what Wyatt had come to say. That same part of him felt a bit defiant, thinking maybe it would be best to remain right where he was and let Wyatt challenge him. But that would be childish and unnecessary, so he opted to swing his leg over her body and climb off the bed.

  He was straightening his shirt while Joselyn scampered to the edge of the mattress and Wyatt rounded the open door.

  He didn’t look mad. In fact, he grabbed the frame and closed his eyes before he made a full appearance. He even covered his face with one hand as if shielding his view. “Is it safe to come in? You aren’t naked or something, are you?”

  “No thanks to you,” Joselyn grumbled, as she stood next to Alton and leaned into his side.

  Wyatt was grinning when he dropped his hand playfully. “Sorry. I thought you might come here, so I headed this way as soon as you left the office. Dad told me what happened. I was out in the plant.” He stepped more fully into the room.

  “What made you think we’d be here?” Joselyn asked.

  He ignored her and reached out a hand toward Alton. “You bound yourself to my sister, and I didn’t hear about it until afterward.”

  “Sorry, man,” Alton responded as he shook her brother’s hand in a firm grip. “You weren’t the only one.”

  “Yeah. I heard that too.” He turned toward Joselyn and set a hand on her shoulder. “Are you happy?”

  “With my decision to bind to Alton? Yes. With the behavior of our pack members? No.”

  “Fair enough. And to answer your question, I figured you’d come by the house to pack some stuff. Easy deduction.”

  “Of course.”

  Alton could tell Wyatt adored his sister. He released her shoulder, but not before toying with a lock of her hair. His voice softened. “Was it as bad as Dad said?”

  “Worse,” she responded.

  He groaned, glancing at Alton. “I’m sorry. That was uncalled for.”

  Alton shrugged. “We expected something similar. Not shocking, really.”

  “Have you gone to your family yet?”

  “Nope. Heading there next.”

  “To the brewery?”

  “Yeah.” That’s where everyone was. They would all be at work, same as her family.

  “You think that’s a good idea?” he asked, his face drawn, skeptical.

  Alton sighed. He had no way of knowing. “Honestly, no idea. But we have to face them at some point. Better to see everyone’s true colors today while we’re on a roll. If a war’s going to break out over the two of us binding, it might as well get all the ammunition it needs on the same day. At least we’ll know where we stand.”

  Wyatt turned back to his sister. “And where do you feel like you stand after that powwow in Dad’s office?”

  She sighed. “Halfway to the Saskatchewan border, to be honest.”

  “That’s what I suspected.” He turned back to Alton. “I know things are ugly. And they might get uglier. But I want you to know that not everyone in my pack is a jackass. Could be the majority. Not going to lie. But not everyone. Please do me a favor.”

  “Sure,” Alton said, knowing in his heart that Wyatt would never request something of him he couldn’t deliver.

  “Don’t take my sister away without telling me. It would tear my parents apart if it came to that. I understand it’s a possibility, but I’m begging you to keep us informed so we have a chance to work things out, or at least say goodbye.”

  If Alton wasn’t mistaken, Wyatt’s eyes glazed over with emotion. He truly adored his sister.

  “She’s my only sister. The baby. I was eight when she was born. I changed her diaper. I rocked her to sleep. I don’t want to lose her unless it’s absolutely necessary to ensure her safety. Don’t run from this town to avoid hurting her mother and father. They’d rather give up their business and their homes than lose their daughter. Isaiah and I agree.”

  Joselyn gasped at his side. “Wyatt…” Her voice was soft.

  He grabbed her arm again. “I mean it, sis. Don’t run from this out of some sense of guilt.”

  The man was insightful if he’d learned of their binding only an hour ago and already knew what was going through her mind and by extension Alton’s.

  Joselyn took a deep breath. “You know it could be worse than giving up the brewery or losing me. Dad could be voted out of his role as pack leader.”

  Wyatt nodded. “I know. But neither Mom nor Dad care about Dad’s role within the pack as much as they love you.” He reached out and stroked a hand gently over her hair. “None of us do.”

  Joselyn threw herself into her brother’s side and hugged him tight. She didn’t say a word.

  Alton knew the reason she didn’t speak was because she couldn’t make the promise he was asking for. Alton knew his mate well enough to realize she would leave the province in a heartbeat if she thought it was for the best to save her family’s status in the community and the pack.

  Wyatt returned her hug, kissed the top of her head, nodded at Alton, and turned and left the room. Moments later, the front door opened and closed again, and he was gone.

  “We should probably get some of your stuff packed, Jos. The sooner we face the Montagues, the sooner we’ll know where we stand with them.”

  She winced. “You really want to compare this to Romeo and Juliet? It makes me cringe.”

  He lifted a brow. “You see much of a difference?”

  She smiled and lifted onto her tiptoes to kiss him briefly. “Well, yes. I for one have no intention of committing suicide over my family’s hatred. Do you?”

  “Nope. Not gonna happen. But I won’t let you be treated badly, either.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  “Why do I think this is a horrible idea?” Joselyn asked as they pulled into the parking lot at Mountain Peak Brewery.

  Alton gripped her hand but didn’t say anything.

  “How about if I wait in the SUV. Or better yet, I should probably wait at your apartment. If your family reacts anything like mine, you’re about to get ripped to shreds in there.”

  “And you don’t want to witness it?” he joked.

  “I don’t want to have rotten tomatoes thrown at me.” She waited while he rounded the Explorer to open her door and take her hand to help her down. This was not going to be fun. Today would surely go down in the books as the worst day of her life.

  At least she hoped so. A worse day than today would break her.

  They walked to the front of the building in silence, the tension building with every step. Alton never released her hand. Except for the few times he’d had to round the SUV to get into the driver
’s seat, she didn’t think he’d stopped touching her since last night.

  She liked that about him. It was comforting in the face of mayhem.

  When they reached the front door, Alton pulled it open, but a broad enormous man stood in the doorway, legs spread wide, arms crossed, brow furrowed. “She’s not welcome here.”

  Joselyn tugged her hand, trying to back up a pace. The man was almost seven feet tall, taller than most men she knew. Grizzly shifters were known for their height and huge frames, but this guy was outrageous. She hadn’t seen him before.

  Alton didn’t let her retreat. He didn’t even let her step behind him. He kept her at his side, his equal. “Don’t be an ass, Weldon. I work here. She’s my mate. Get out of the way.”

  “She’s an Arthur.”

  “You’re so astute. Now, back off.” Alton didn’t move physically, but there was no denying he projected a sense of power.

  Weldon’s phone buzzed, and he tugged it out of his pocket. “Yes.” He looked fit to kill as he nodded a few times and then backed up two paces. “Your father would like you to join him in the boardroom.” He didn’t say another word about Joselyn as she and Alton passed the burly man.

  “Great,” Joselyn communicated to her mate as she followed him into a lobby not much different from her own family’s lobby. “The welcome committee is waiting for us in the boardroom.”

  “Do not let them get to you. The ones who matter will understand and welcome you. The others don’t mean fuck to me.”

  Intellectually she knew that to be true. It was the same in her pack. However, it still hurt to have people screaming in her face as if she had a vile disease.

  She could hear raised voices shouting over one another as they rounded the corner in the sterile gray hallway and then stepped into what had to be the boardroom.

  A dozen people were sitting around an enormous oval table. The remnants of bagels and Danishes were scattered on the top on small plates. Napkins and half-empty coffee mugs littered the surface also. They’d been in there a while.

  The room held eight men and four women. Among the women was Beth, Alton’s mother. His father sat next to her at the head of the table. She stood and worked her way around the chairs to reach the entrance. When she reached her son, she cupped his face and then turned toward Joselyn and wrapped her in a warm hug. “Do not let these fools get to you,” she communicated silently.

  Joselyn calmed, marginally. At least Beth was accepting. Not that she’d doubted his mother would be anything less than kind and loving.

  Someone slammed a hand on the table, making Joselyn jump in her skin. She glanced around Beth to see a man who was undoubtedly one of Alton’s uncles fuming as he stood. He had the same square jaw and dark eyes as Allister. “You have got to be kidding me. What nerve you have bringing that woman here.”

  Allister stood at the head of the table. “Good God, Espen. What’s the matter with you? Do you not have any manners?”

  Joselyn placed Espen Tarben in her head as the father of Jack Tarben who had gone rogue a few months ago and scratched Heather, forcing her to transition into a grizzly shifter against her will. He was now in prison, held by the Arcadian Council in the Northwest Territories.

  “We’re in the middle of a serious situation here. We don’t need the enemy listening in on our conversations.”

  Alton stiffened. “Joselyn’s not the enemy. And as you can tell, we’ve completed the binding. So, I’ll ask you to show her the same level of respect you’d show anyone’s mate in this pack. Your implication is insulting. It’s obvious someone inside our own offices stole information from Glacial. She’s not the guilty party.”

  Maybe this wouldn’t go so badly after all, especially since Alton had a point. At her office, they were investigating the possibility of a leak. At his, they were looking for the thief himself. There still existed the chance that whoever leaked the plans from Glacial was unaware they’d done so.

  Someone in the Tarben clan had maliciously and intentionally stolen the information. If anything, they should be treating her far more kindly than her family treated him.

  But it didn’t seem several of his family members agreed.

  Another uncle of his groaned. “You’re a fool, Alton. And you need to stop the cocky attitude. You’re our primary suspect.”

  Alton gasped. “Are you insane, Uncle Quint? Why on earth would I steal company secrets from my own mate? Don’t you think that might put a bit of a damper on my relationship?”

  Espen spoke again. “Who really gives a fuck who managed to weasel the information from some stupid Arthur?” He smirked. “I don’t understand why we’re even investigating this. The important thing is that we stuck it to the Arthurs good.”

  Alton stiffened. Maybe she was wrong. Maybe his family was as completely screwed up as hers. It didn’t seem like any headway was going to happen here any more than it had at her pack’s brewery. He had the same family division—two reasonable uncles and two hard-headed assholes. Split down the center.

  “That’s not how we run a business, Espen,” Allister stated. “I’d prefer we earn our recognition in the community without using nefarious means.”

  “Then you’d be holding us back, big brother. Don’t be such a fool. It’s a cutthroat world out there. If some prick over at Glacial leaked information to one of our people, they deserve to lose this round.” He glared hard at Joselyn as he spoke.

  She shuddered inwardly, keeping her head held high. Finally, she broke her silence. “If you mean to imply that I would undermine my family’s business to help yours, you’ve lost your mind.”

  Espen flattened his palms on the table and leaned forward. “Watch who you’re speaking to, missy. You’re on thin ice as it is. I should have Weldon toss your ass out in the street.”

  Joselyn started to respond, but Alton beat her to it. “You’ll do no such thing, you old fool. Get your head out of your ass, and don’t speak to my mate again with that tone.”

  Everyone started shouting at each other, actually discussing the merits of tossing not just Joselyn but Alton out the door.

  When someone stepped up behind Joselyn, she tugged on Alton’s hand to get his attention. They were still blocking the door.

  A gangly young man shoved his way past Joselyn, forcing her to flatten her body against Alton’s side. He held a pile of papers in his hand and rounded the table to hand them to Quint. “Found these in Alton’s office, sir.” Before anyone could respond, he fled the room as if it were on fire.

  Joselyn nearly choked when she recognized the colorful photos. They were hers. Her marketing designs. Early mockups from months ago, but definitely hers. “Alton?”

  He wrapped an arm around her, holding her back to his front. “I see them. You know they didn’t come from my office.”

  She nodded subtly. He was right. She knew in her heart he didn’t steal anything from her. But who planted those mockups? And why? More importantly, when? Probably in the last hour if she had to guess.

  Espen held up one page after another. “Looks like the work of the marketing manager for Glacial.” He looked pointedly at Joselyn. “Isn’t that you?” He asked unnecessarily.

  Alton, still holding her against him, stepped more fully into the room, reached across the table, and snatched the pages from his uncle’s hands. He tossed them in the air so they fell spread out all over the table, wafting to the surface like feathers. “Do I look like a damn idiot to you people?” He looked directly at Espen. “Even if I did steal company secrets from my own woman, do you think I would leave them in my office for anyone to find?”

  “He’s got a point,” his Uncle Riddell stated, tapping his chin. “The boy’s not stupid, Espen. Besides, what did you do? Get your damn errand boy to riffle through Alton’s office without permission? Did you plant these papers yourself, or did you have Tavion plant them first? Hell, did he even go into Alton’s office? Or just show up here saying he’d found them in there?”

  Espen�
��s face was bright red. “You calling me a liar, brother?”

  “I’m saying you had no authority to lure that young man into your web and ask him to do your dirty work. Tavion’s only been a member of our pack for a few years. Don’t corrupt him with your shit. Neither you nor anyone else has business going into Alton’s office.”

  “I didn’t go into anyone’s office. I simply had Tavion take a glance in every corner of this building this morning to get to the bottom of this while we’ve been in here wasting time.”

  Voices rose again.

  “Every one of you has lost your mind if you think I had anything to do with this. I suggest you dig a little deeper and not waste your time on bullshit if you want to find the culprit.” Alton pointed at the scattered papers. “I’m taking the rest of the day off.” He turned toward his father. “Call me if you need me.”

  Allister nodded at his son and switched his gaze to Joselyn, sending her a pained look of sorrow.

  Joselyn was crawling out of her skin by the time they left the office. They had only been there half an hour, but it felt like a lifetime.

  Alton didn’t say a word on the way back to the SUV. He nodded politely at the few people they passed but didn’t engage. She could feel the stress wafting off him. It wasn’t until he pulled out of the parking lot that he finally blew out an audible breath.

  “You know I didn’t believe them, right?” she pointed out.

  He shot her a glance. “Yes. Of course. I mean, I would hope so. You did doubt me for a while two days ago,” he half-teased.

  She glanced at her lap. He wasn’t wrong. She’d done exactly that.

  Without a word, he pulled over to the side of the road and put the SUV in park. When he turned to face her, he took her closest hand and leaned toward her. “Look at me.”

  She lifted her gaze, but couldn’t stop the tear. “I’m sorry I ever thought anything bad about you for even a second. It was uncalled for. I wasn’t in my right mind. I was freaking out, and—”

  He cut her off by cupping her face with one hand and drawing her lips to his. “I know,” he muttered against her mouth. “Stop beating yourself up. We’re connected now. You’ve let me all the way into your wonderful mind. I can see your thoughts. Don’t waste another moment on the other morning. If the tables had been reversed and I’d been in your shoes, I’m sure I would have had similar concerns.”