Free Embraced by the Bear by Vicki Savage

 
    Chapter One
     
    Her hands were no longer bound.
    That was the first thing Shae became aware of when she woke up. Instead of being tied to the headboard, her hands were free to move about as she wished.
    The second thing she noticed was that her head hurt like a motherfucker. Blinking in rapid succession, she raised her hand—now free— and shielded her eyes from the bright light.
    “Who’s there?”
    “Oh, I’m sorry.” The harsh light dimmed and footsteps echoed through the room as someone stepped closer. “I was going to let you sleep, but figured that you might want some food, and considering your . . .” He cleared his throat. “Your state , I thought it might be best to bring you something here rather than have you eat down at the bar.”
    Shae glanced down at her body and noticed that the blankets were only half covering her naked torso. Her full, round breasts were in plain view pebbled as she realized the stranger could see her nakedness. A dull ache formed between her legs, and she groaned as she imagined the stranger climbing on top of her and spreading her thighs wide . . .
    Stop it. Shaking the erotic fog from her head, she pulled the covers up to her chin and blinked at the man standing beside her bed. Tall and in his late thirties, the man’s pasty white skin seemed familiar, as did his glasses and receding hairline.
    “Edward? Is that you?” Shae rubbed her eyes and noticed that her limbs felt heavy. In fact everything felt rather dreamlike, as if she had consumed an entire bottle of wine in the past hour.
    “It is. I’m so glad you’re okay.” As his features came into focus, Shae recognized his familiar profile, but something about him had changed. She felt an odd pull, a connection with this man that she hadn’t felt before.
    “Where the hell am I?” she asked as she rearranged the pillows and sat up in bed.
    “In Sunshine Lodge. The best place for winter fun in Alberta.” The familiar tag line helped her to focus her muddled brain. Home. Well, not home exactly, but at least this lodge was familiar. She had moved up to Canada from the Caribbean to get away from her parents and had been working as a guide on the property for the past few months. The last thing she remembered was going out to look for a lost family in a snow storm, and then falling into a ditch.
    “You found me.” Shae moved into a sitting position as he set the tray on a nearby end table.
    “Yes, we did.” Edward’s gaze didn’t quite reach her eyes, and Shae looked down to discover that during her repositioning on the bed, her breasts had become exposed once more. Her body immediately responded, and she resisted the sudden urge to slide her hand under the covers and touch herself. Instead she averted her gaze, and found herself staring at the bulge in his pants. She wondered if he was the one who had undressed her and put her to bed. Did he like touching her bare skin? She wondered if he would be willing to touch her again . . .
    Oh for the love of . . . What was wrong with her? She didn’t remember ever being this horny before. Shae resisted the urge to grab her boss and yank him into bed with her. Instead, she pulled the blankets back up to her chin and tried to think more practical thoughts.
    “Where are my things?” she asked.
    “You had nothing on and nothing with you when we found you in the snow last night.”
    She furrowed her brow. For the life of her, she couldn’t remember stripping off her clothes in the middle for a blizzard. Perhaps she was losing her mind. “You found me out in the snow?”
    Edward nodded, his gaze still focused on the patch of blanket that covered her breasts. The weird connection between them strengthened, and her pussy started to throb. This was . . . intense. And not like her. She had to take charge of this situation before things got out of control.
    Shae cleared her throat. When he glanced up, she pointed at her eyes as if to say ‘I’m up here.’
    “How long