Would Bryce’s ass feel just as good as Ahm hoped his lips would? He was dying to find out. Ahm was also dying to sink deep inside Bryce’s ass and hear the man calling out his name.
Ahm arched his back, his seed erupting onto the shower wall.
But he still felt so damn lonely. Jacking off, even to the image of Bryce’s gorgeous body and face, hadn’t sated the fire burning inside of him. Ahm wanted the bear. He just wasn’t sure how to have his mate and keep his tribe. It was eating him up within, and Ahm wasn’t sure he could hold out much longer.
Chapter Four
Ahm squatted down on the thick tree branch he was watching Bryce from. He was high enough and far enough away that his mate wouldn’t spot or scent him. Bryce was sitting atop his horse, gathering the cattle, driving them back toward the back pastures.
His eyes flickered over his mate. He had watched Bryce over the years from afar, always drinking in his handsome face, his sexy build, and the beautiful way his face lit up when he laughed.
This was the only way to see the bear in his natural form, no pretenses, no anger. As long as he knew Ahm wasn’t watching him, Bryce acted himself. His mate had said Ahm didn’t know anything about him.
It was the farthest thing from the truth. He knew more about Bryce than the man would ever know. Bryce liked to hold his head back and soak up the sun. His mate also liked riding his horse hard, feeling the freedom from the speed.
Bryce also liked playing with the cubs living in his house. Ahm often spotted Bryce with his younger brother Cole and his nephew, Oscar. They played in the backyard, his mate the gentlest of creatures.
But what drove Ahm to the brink of madness was when his mate sat out on the porch looking as if he were the loneliest bear on the planet. Those were the times Ahm truly considered leaving his people behind and pulling the man into his arms, wiping that saddened look from his face.
Ahm stood to his full height, brushing back his long hair when the wind fanned the strands over his shoulders as he watched Chauncey ride toward Bryce. That brother was a troublemaker. But admittedly, he was also the sibling that made Bryce lighthearted and laugh the most.
“Need a hand?” Chauncey called out to Bryce.
Bryce turned and narrowed his light-grey eyes at his sibling. “You should have been here an hour ago.”
He was also the one who pissed Bryce off the most.
“Sorry.” Chauncey laughed. “Curtis was being a little frisky this morning.” The bear wiggled his brows at his brother, making the side of Ahm’s mouth twitch in what should have been a smile.
But he wasn’t feeling happy lately. Not for the last few hundred years if truth be told.
Before Ahm could shimmer away, Bryce’s head turned and the bear was looking him directly in the eyes. Ahm watched as Bryce headed toward him, his muscles flexing as he held on to the reins, the Stetson on his head blocking out the sun, allowing his mate to glare at him unhindered.
Bryce stopped under the tree Ahm was standing in. “Spying on me?”
“Merely observing ranch life.”
Bryce gave him a look that said he didn’t believe Ahm. He rested his scarred hands over the saddle horn, looking every bit as handsome up close as he did from afar. “Why don’t you come down from the tree?”
Ahm shimmered to the ground. He leaned against the large trunk, crossing his arms over his chest. “Now what?” He wasn’t sure why he was playing this game. Ahm knew he wasn’t going to take anything further, but he couldn’t help the feeling of raw need driving through him as he stood there talking with Bryce.
* * * *
It was only early spring, but Ahm was standing there without a shirt on. Bryce forced his eyes not to focus on his mate’s sculpted chest or his flat abdomen. He wasn’t thick with muscles like Bryce was, but he was nicely chiseled. Bryce spotted the necklaces Ahm seemed to always be wearing. They looked handmade, but Bryce refused to ask.
“Now you tell me why you were sitting in a damn tree watching me.” Damn if it didn’t please Bryce to know his mate had been spying on him.
“I was ensuring you weren’t out doing anything to jeopardize your safety.”
Bryce cocked his head. “Yeah, because I can get into so much trouble hanging out with cows.” Ahm dipped his head, but not before Bryce saw the smile edging the man’s lips. Dismounting, Bryce prayed the man didn’t shimmer away as he walked toward Ahm.
Grabbing his mate’s chin, Bryce was surprised Ahm allowed him to lift the guy’s head. He expected to see a murderous glare in Ahm’s dark-blue eyes. But he didn’t. What Bryce saw shocked him.
There was so much loneliness in the man’s eyes that Bryce could actually feel the emotion deep down in his own body. “Why?” Bryce asked. “Why have you denied us both for so long?”