Lucas stepped farther inside, his shoulders barely clearing the door. "Bear. What the fuck?"
Bear grinned and moved toward his second-in-command. He clasped Luke's arm. "It's so good to see you." He'd missed his friends as he'd roamed the forest, trying to mend. Being in bear form had been his only chance. Now Nessa was.
Lucas lowered his gun and then tucked it in the back of his dark jeans. "Dude. Put on some pants."
Oh yeah. Bear snorted and yanked Lucas inside before shutting the door against the wind. "Lucas, this is Nessa. Nessa, this is Lucas. He's been running the Grizzlies since I, ah, took a sabbatical." Lucas was also his best friend and had been for three decades. They'd both been alone, orphaned years before they'd met. They'd instantly bonded and created the Grizzly Motorcycle Club. Bear strode over to the dresser in the corner and yanked out a pair of jeans. There were a couple of holes down the legs, but they covered everything.
Lucas stepped from one foot to the other, his gaze roaming the room. Finally, he moved to Nessa and held out a hand. "Hi."
Tension rippled down Bear's back. Geez. Lucas was his best friend, and here Bear was, turning possessive. Anyway, no way in hell was Bear mating a witch. Ever. They were full of secrets and intrigue. So why care if Lucas touched the woman? Bear reached for a dark T-shirt to tug over his head.
"Hi." Nessa shook hands and then stood. She edged toward the door. "You gentlemen most likely have much to discuss."
"You're not going anywhere," Bear said evenly. They needed to talk about a few things, including why bounty hunters were on her ass. He had the terrible feeling that if he let her go he might never see her again. Why that mattered, he'd figure out later. He could still taste her-sweetness and woman.
She turned, a fight in her eyes.
Lucas cleared his throat. "When did you get back, what's going on, and why is there a dead witch out front?"
Bear frowned. "Oh yeah. We might want to get rid of him."
"I'll have it taken care of," Lucas said, his brow furrowing. "Um. Wanna catch me up? I thought you'd be gone a few more months."
"I'm feeling better." Bear stretched his neck. Whoa. He really did feel better. A lot better. Tingles of the healing kind spread throughout his body. His natural healing abilities had kicked in again. They had been useless just last week. Excellent. Nessa was amazing. He smiled at her.
She frowned back. "You can't keep me here."
He lost his grin. "Wanna bet?"
The sound of Metallica echoed on the wind. Bear lifted an eyebrow.
Lucas shrugged. "It's Friday night-not even midnight yet. We all just got back from a ride, and now we're having a party."
"Well then." Nessa smoothed her skirt down and turned to leave, prim and proper once again. "I'll leave you to your celebration."
Bear moved to intercept, easily putting his back to the door. "I'm not messing around, Nessa. You're staying here until I know all the facts." And until he kissed her again. Yeah. One more kiss. The first one would've knocked him on his ass had he not already been sitting, but it had to be a fluke, an effect caused by his illness and returning strength. That made sense. Plus, he liked the way she tasted. And he wanted to hear the little sounds she made deep in her throat again.
"Bear?" Lucas asked.
Bear shook his head. He'd totally forgotten his friend. "Sorry. Still getting used to human form. My brain is on one track and hasn't begun multitasking again."
"Uh-huh," Lucas said, looking from him to Nessa and back again. He shuffled his feet. "Are you better?"
"Yeah," Bear said. "I'm back."
"Thank God." Lucas ran a hand through his long hair. His gray shirt stretched tight across his chest. "I hate being in charge. It's been a disaster."
Bear frowned. Had Lucas gotten bigger? "Why?"
Lucas popped his knuckles. "I'll get you all caught up tomorrow. For now, how about we party? Nessa is right. We should celebrate." His grin was infectious.
Bear wanted to know what he was walking into. Especially if Nessa was with him. "First give me a heads up."
Lucas sighed. "All right. When Titans of Fire was blown up and disbanded, the DEA got pissed. They'd had some sort of undercover op going on, and it was lost. Mainly."
"Wait a minute." Bear lowered his tone. "Fire got blown up?" What had his friends done?
"Titans of Fire?" Nessa asked.
"Rival motorcycle club," Bear said. "Human. They were trafficking Apollo." Shouldn't she know that, considering Apollo was a drug that killed both humans and witches? She was on the Council and must know all about Apollo and Titans of Fire-especially since three of the witch Coven Enforcers had gone undercover with the club.