Forbidden Alpha Bear Read online

  “You smell the pine?” Sean asked as he sniffed in deeply. “Wonderful, isn’t it?”

  Pamela raised her eyebrows and nodded before she looked back down at her phone and closed the apps.

  “What’s the plan then?” she asked as she leaned forward across the table. “Are we heading out tonight or would you rather leave it until the morning?”

  Sean reached up and ran a hand through his hair before he brought it back down and laid his arm along the full length of his bag, blocking her view of the files inside.

  “I think we rest and go out at first light,” he said, and suddenly, Sean the joker had disappeared and he was back to all business. “See what information we can gather at that time of day, and then stagger it out.”

  Pamela thought on what he was saying and nodded in agreement. He was right, if they were going to get a good cross section of what was happening in town, they were going to have to do the same tests at different times of the day, and what better place to start than at dawn…

  “Okay,” she said. “And what about getting around, do we have transport arranged or are we going on foot?”

  Sean picked up his cellphone and tapped it to life. She saw him open an email and scroll through it.

  “Transport will be there if we need it,” he said as he shut the email down and smiled up at her. “You seem nervous.”

  The change of tone took her by surprise, and she found herself lost for words.

  “This is your first time being sent out into the field,” he said genuinely. “I get it, it is a bit nerve-wracking, but I wouldn’t take it all too seriously, just do your job, gather what information you’ve been assigned to, and then, when it’s all over, we get out of here and let the other’s take over. Simple as that.”

  “Yeah…,” Pamela said as she gazed back out of the window. “I know, you’re right.”

  She saw the flicker of light in among the trees, as if the sun was catching on a pane of glass, and it was quickly followed by another. She sat forward and watched as a small smattering of log cabins came into view, followed by a long winding road, and then some other buildings. She cocked her head to one side and took it all in. Sean had been right when he said she was in for a surprise. The cabins and buildings all looked so quaint, like nothing she had seen before, and she could tell that this was just a taste, they were nowhere near the main hub of town.

  “They look so cool,” she smiled. “Like something out of a movie…”

  The cabins began to fade into the distance, and she remembered the Christmas films she used to watch when she was younger. She always loved the idea of going out to the mountains with a big family, with a mom and a dad, a brother and sister maybe. But, in reality, all Pamela had ever known was her mom. She had been raised by a strong woman, she had never known her father, and for that reason, she had all but sworn off men. She had seen the heartbreak that had come from a man leaving her and her mother behind, and she was determined that it would never happen to her. And she certainly would never put a child through it.

  It was the main reason she had focused so much on her career. She found that the more time and attention she gave to pushing forward with her education and then her work life, that she didn’t have time to even think about meeting men anyway. And she, for one, was glad of it.

  Some more cabins flashed into view and she felt a pang of want, which she quickly buried. It had been a childhood fantasy and nothing more. Now that she was in her mid-twenties, there was no way she was going to let herself be sucked back into the fairy tale ideal that was shoved down girls’ throats since the second they opened their eyes.

  There was no such thing as a prince to come and save them, and the perfect nuclear family was surely all but dead.

  She felt herself grumbling and closed her eyes.

  She couldn’t let her past keep creeping up on her like that. She had her first serious job, and just because she was going out to a mountain town, which was completely new and unfamiliar, didn’t mean she had to worry like she was.

  She glanced down at her hands crossed in her lap and smiled.

  She had already come a long way, and she had proven herself successful, now a big government agency had seen her worth too, and she was going to smash it.

  She pushed her insecurities to the side as the train glided into Bridge Hollow. This was a new chapter for her, and she was determined to enjoy every moment.

  3.

  As the private car made its way out of the train station and into the main stretch of town, Pamela couldn’t help but stare out the windows with wide eyes.

  If she had been impressed by the look of the mountains and cabins on the journey in, then the actual town itself was like that but amped up to the max. The buildings were almost like gingerbread houses from the fairy tales she had read when she was a child. They were wooden, with red and green painted windowsills, some had thatched roofs, and others were decorated with hanging baskets of multicolored flowers and twinkling lights. It reminded her so much of Christmas and Easter together, but in the middle of the summer months, and everything seemed to have the most welcoming vibe to it, that she already felt completely at home.

  She watched the people of the town conversing with each other. She saw the way they all smiled, how they walked with a spring in their step, how they all seemed to know each other. Coming from a big city, Pamela had never seen anything like this before, she was more used to avoiding eye contact and being shoved aside on the subway.

  Bridge Hollow was cute, and she was looking forward to exploring this place and learning a lot more about it.

  “Not what you were expecting?” Sean asked, clearly aware of the look of delight on Pamela’s face.

  “No,” she laughed. “I guess not.”

  “The legends and rumors about this place,” Sean snorted and rolled his eyes, “I mean, they must have some real nutjobs around here desperate for this place to be a tourist destination. But I guess they have to earn a living somehow…”

  Pamela shot him an annoyed glance and leaned forward.

  “What do you mean?” she asked. “Surely, there must be something behind it, no smoke without fire or whatever you want to call it.”

  Sean shrugged his shoulders and instantly looked disinterested.

  “I’m here to prove fact,” he said sternly. “I’m a scientist, not a fantasist.”

  She found herself looking completely in the other direction and rolled her eyes herself. She had heard plenty about the town of Bridge Hollow before she took the job at the agency, but since she had been assigned this task, she had looked it up even more and had been surprised by what she had found.

  There were deep legends that spanned back decades. Details online were vague, but she had found a few forums where fanatics had been discussing the ins and outs of the town, and it had sparked her interest. She liked the fact that there were so many people determined that the legends were true. She read about the sightings of strange bear like creatures, or huge wolves and other monsters lurking in the forests and mountains around town. The place had become famous for it, and the tourists had flocked there every year, all year round, to try and catch a glimpse of one of the infamous and elusive monsters. It had become so popular a legend that the town even had an annual festival where hundreds of people would gather and celebrate all things magical and mystical, of all the legends and crazy stories that surrounded those woods and the land around it. When Pamela had read about it, she couldn’t help but be drawn in and found herself wishing that she would be around to see it happen, but her assignment should be over long before the festival rolled into town, and she would just have to search for videos and pictures online to feel as if she had experienced it herself.

  The car slowed and she turned back to the right to see it pulling up outside a large building. She ducked her head a little, so she could see out the window and read the sign on the front…

  THE HOLLOW HOTEL

  She waited for the driver to stop
and the engine went quiet. Sean opened his door and jumped out into the evening sun, and Pamela followed him, before the driver closed the doors behind them and went to the trunk to get their bags.

  The hotel looked big and old, but it was clear that it had been recently refurbished. When she had done her searching online, she had discovered it was the only hotel in town, and for that reason, they clearly were not short on customers. She grabbed the handle of her wheelie case and made her way to the front door, with Sean at her heels. The doors slid open and she stepped into the quaint and charming lobby.

  Ahead of her, a huge staircase seemed to cut the atrium in two, it went up and onto the second floor, with the balconies of the floors above winding around and up to the top of the building.

  Sean took the lead and made his way toward the reception desk, and Pamela found herself looking from left to right and at the two rooms that fed off from the reception. On one side was what looked to be a library bar, with books lining the walls and several people sitting and enjoying a cocktail hour drink in the dusky light. To the other side, she saw the waiters and waitresses setting tables for dinner, the scent of home cooking was wafting from the kitchen behind.

  “Hello,” Sean said with a sigh as he approached the desk and it became apparent that there was no one there.

  Pamela watched him with a smirk as he undid the button on his shirt and ran a sweaty hand through his hair. It had been hot on the train and even though they had been sitting in the air-conditioned town car since they had arrived, it was clear that Sean had yet to cool down.

  He breathed heavily out his nose and rubbed his temples before he leaned over the desk and started to tap his fingers on the wood.

  “Hello?” he said again, his irritation clear for Pamela to see.

  She cringed inside and hoped that whoever came out from the saloon doors behind the desk was ready for what Sean was going to throw at them, because she had the terrible feeling it was going to be one hell of a bad attitude.

  “Hello?” he said again as he peered behind, clearly able to see that someone was there.

  Pamela stepped up to stand behind him and wanted to intervene, but didn’t see the point, he was her boss after all. If he wanted to act like a jackass, then she may as well let him. It wasn’t going to do her any favors stepping up and telling him to calm down.

  Behind the doors, a large shadow appeared, and then, they quickly swung open. Sean instinctively took a step back and cleared his throat nervously, and Pamela heard the heavy boots of whoever had emerged from behind reception stomp out before the sound of a big pair of hands slapped down on the desk.

  Sean took another step back and Pamela looked up.

  She felt her mouth sag open as she saw the man standing in front of them. She didn’t know what she had been expecting from a hotel like this in the middle of a quiet town, but it certainly wasn’t what was in front of her at that very moment.

  Her heart began to beat fast and she felt herself become nervous. The man was tall and muscular, so tall, his head almost grazed the ceiling of the tiny reception area. He leaned forward, eyeballing her and Sean with menace.

  “What?” he said so curtly it was almost like a bark.

  Pamela’s eyes grew even wider.

  She couldn’t help but let them travel around him. She went from the top of his head and his dark, rusty hair, down to his broad and tanned shoulders and down his incredibly big and powerful looking arms. He was like a brute standing there, and so completely out of place she didn’t know if he had just robbed the place and they should call the police.

  He looked more like a felon than a receptionist, and she could tell that Sean was feeling uneasy too.

  The man looked from Sean over to Pamela and she saw his head cock slightly when their eyes met. It was so slight that if she hadn’t been staring directly at him, she was certain she would have missed it. But when he saw her, it was as if she had taken him by surprise.

  “So…,” the man said, trailing his eyes slowly away from Pamela and back to Sean. “Are you going to tell me what is so important that you can’t wait two minutes for my aunt to get back from the ladies’ room?”

  He crossed his huge arms over his shoulders, and Pamela was completely lost in his eyes. They were so dark and engulfing, she was transfixed. Whoever he was, he was clearly angry with them both, and he had instantly recognized Sean’s irritated tone when he had barged into the hotel and wanted immediate service.

  “I…we… emmm…,” Sean stammered, and he scratched the back of his neck. “I just want to check in.”

  “Well, then, wait your goddamn turn,” the man said from under his hooded brow, and Pamela couldn’t help but let a little giggle escape from her lips.

  Sean looked flustered and was bumbling an apology, and the man glanced at Pamela and caught her eye again. She felt a rush of excitement roll over her, and he smiled back too. It was just a flicker, the quickest, smallest smile she had ever seen, but she saw it and felt it and it made her want more.

  His eyes stayed fixed on her and she was sure she could feel something between them, something hot and powerful, and she lost herself for a moment, before she pulled herself away and looked down at the floor.

  What was she thinking? She wasn’t there to ogle at hot guys, she was there to work and make a good impression.

  She turned her back and closed her eyes, as Sean continued to mumble his apologies and dug himself further into the hole.

  “Can you not check us in? You don’t work here?”

  “No,” the man replied without the slightest hint of amusement. “And when the lady that does gets here, I want you to treat her with perfect respect.”

  Out of the corner of her eye, Pamela could see Sean nodding and it made her smirk again, but this time, she wasn’t about to let the handsome stranger behind the desk see her. She had to remain professional and not get involved.

  “Oh, thank you, dear,” a little voice came from behind the doors and an old lady emerged. She was short and chubby, with perfect silver hair, and she reached up and patted the man on the arm before he wrapped a protective arm around her shoulder and gave her a squeeze. Then, he stepped out from behind reception and kept his angry eyes fixed on Sean.

  “If you need anything, give me a shout,” the man said to the old lady, before he turned and gave Pamela the dead-eye as he moved toward the door.

  She felt her heart crash and her skin prickle with dread. He must have thought she was as rude and obnoxious as Sean was, and she didn’t want to be tarred with the same brush.

  “Thank you, Ryder,” the old lady smiled, “I will.”

  Ryder…

  The name thundered around Pamela’s mind and she found herself looking back over her shoulder at him as he approached the main doors and stepped out and into the dying sun.

  When she finally gained her composure and looked back to the lady at reception, she could see the look of knowing in her eyes and she felt herself blush.

  “My nephew,” the old lady said with a wink. “He pops round to help me from time to time.”

  Pamela smiled and tried not to let Sean see that she was blushing, before she picked up her bag and pulled it away from the desk slightly.

  Sean checked them in to their own rooms and Pamela was in a daze while it was all happening. She didn’t hear a word that the lady said to them, or a word Sean said when he handed her the room key. All she could think about was Ryder and the fact that when he looked at her, something strange had happened.

  She wandered up to the elevator in a dream and when she found herself on the third floor, she dragged her case along in a daze until she found the number written on the key card. She stopped and slid it into the lock above the handle and when the little light shone green, suddenly, a wave of tiredness seemed to knock her off her feet.

  She opened the door and stepped inside, flicking on the light switch and smiling as the room illuminated and came to life. It was a gorgeous room, one with big do
ors that opened out to a balcony and to the vista of the mountains beyond. The sun was setting and it was darkening with each passing second, but she could see that the town was still vibrant and full of life outside, with the lights of taverns turning on, the sounds of music thumping through the streets and the laughter of the tourists and town’s folk rumbling around every corner.

  She pressed her nose against the glass door and watched the scenes in the town below and found her eyes traveling up to the forest and the mountains. This place was so perfectly beautiful, it was hard to imagine such horrors happening there. Surely, there must be a chemical plant or something close by responsible for the mass die-offs of animals. She felt a sadness take hold. To think of this place being poisoned was devastating, and something she couldn’t even bear to think about. She shook her head and took a step back, before she opened her suitcase and started to unpack her clothes into the old wooden closet.

  4.

  By the time she had showered, freshened up, changed her outfit into a cute pair of jeans and a skinny t-shirt and unpacked, it was getting close to 8pm. The town showed no signs of quieting down, and even though she had been tired, she now felt wide awake and eager to get out and see more of the place.

  She looked at her cellphone and the screen flashed with a message from Sean…

  S: I’m heading out to find somewhere to eat, let me know if you want anything!

  She studied it for a moment and scrunched up her lips. She had probably had enough of Sean for one day, and she knew they were going to be spending plenty of time together during the coming weeks, so she decided against taking him up on his offer and wrote a quick reply.

  P: Thanks Sean, but I’m going to head out myself and do a little exploring. See you in the morning, bright and early!

  She hit send and slipped the phone into her purse and slung it over her shoulder before grabbing her jacket. She turned off all the lights, apart from the beside lamps and the room looked so cozy and welcoming, she almost couldn’t wait to get back and climb into bed for an amazing night’s sleep.