The Clawed Squad: Royal (The Bear Shifters of Clawed Ranch Book 2) Read online

  She looked into the box of live lobsters once when they were alone and scrunched her nose up. Scrappy jumped up, placing his two front paws on the box and barked at the moving lobsters inside. “I always feel so bad cooking lobsters,” she said, dropping her shoulders. “They’re so cute.”

  Royal stared at her jade green eyes as she eyed the huge pot of boiling water over the fire. She sighed as she looked back into the box.

  Royal’s heart panged as he saw the trepidation on her face. “We don’t have to eat them,” he said, trying to make her feel better.

  “Really?” she asked, raising her eyebrows. “But wouldn’t the other guys be mad?”

  They would be furious actually, but Royal could deal with them. “I’ll handle them,” he said.

  She bit her delicious bottom lip as she looked into the box. “I just feel bad boiling them alive. It’s so cruel. Can we rescue them? Toss them in the lake or something?”

  Royal raised an eyebrow. For someone who had a soft spot for lobsters, she sure didn’t know too much about them. They belonged in the ocean, not a freshwater lake, but if it made Elsa feel better, he was willing to go along with it.

  Royal scooped up the box in his arms and looked around, making sure the boys were distracted. “Let’s go.”

  They raced into the forest towards the lake with Scrappy following close behind. “This is so exciting,” Elsa said, glancing over her shoulder to see if anyone was following them. “I feel like a freedom fighter.”

  Royal smiled. He was on the right side of the battlefield this time. The last time he had encountered freedom fighters was twenty years ago. He was hiding under the bed in one of his family’s extravagant mansions while the freedom fighters were throwing rocks at their windows and trying to light his family home on fire. It was nice to be the one helping for a change.

  The trees thinned and the large lake came into view. He glanced down at the lobsters in the box and grinned. Well, pretending to help.

  Royal placed the box on the sand while Elsa looked around in awe. “It’s stunning,” she said, looking from the dragonflies skimming the water’s surface near the gentle waves that were lapping the sandy shore to the enormous snow-capped mountains that were thrusting into the sky in the distance.

  Royal lowered the box and took a second to look around. The ranch really was magnificent and he kept forgetting that all of this was his now. Well, it would be if all six members of the Clawed Squad got married and took on mates. The lake was sparkling in the summer sun with bugs buzzing and frogs croaking in the nearby reeds, giving a nice soundtrack to the peaceful late afternoon.

  Elsa slid off her flip-flops and strolled into the water, letting the tiny waves lap against her shins. Scrappy followed her to the water’s edge but he was too scared to go in. “Come on,” she said, trying to encourage him. He just barked a high-pitched chirpy bark at the water in front of his paws.

  Royal slipped off his flip-flops and followed her in. The water was cool and the ground squishy. It squeezed through his toes giving him a shiver as the peaty smell of algae rose to his nose.

  “Oh my God,” Elsa whispered, gripping his arm. “Look!” She pointed across the lake to where a deer was drinking the water on the other side. She squeezed his bicep and held her breath as she watched. Her eyes teared up as she watched it. “I’ve never seen a deer before.”

  Royal looked at her and smiled. He had wandered the forests a lot in his lifetime and had seen enough deer. He would rather watch Elsa’s beautiful face over watching a deer any day. It was nice to see her so moved by the experience. She relaxed her grip on his arm but still held on, grinning as she watched the deer while she took deep satisfied breaths.

  The deer got spooked by something and took off running into the forest. “That was incredible,” she said, looking up at him with an enthusiastic gaze.

  Royal was afraid to say anything. He didn’t want her to move and let go of his arm. “They don’t have deer in Grumerland?” he finally asked.

  “Where?” she asked and then quickly shook her head. “Oh, Grumerland. No, we don’t have any deer in the country.”

  He glanced back at the puppy who was barking at the lobsters in the box. “Are you an animal lover?” he asked with a grin.

  She smiled. “Guilty. Animals are nice and loyal. They’ll never abandon you and leave you out to dry like humans will.”

  I would never abandon you. The words were on Royal’s lips but he held them back.

  Elsa released his arm and went to get the box. “Let’s go reunite these guys with their families.”

  Royal bit his tongue as she walked back to the shore. He didn’t have the heart to tell her the truth about lobsters and freshwater. She looked too happy.

  He followed her to the water, the hard sand sticking to his feet and ankles, and grabbed two lobsters out of the box.

  “Be free,” she said as she tossed one lobster at a time into the lake.

  Royal grimaced as he tossed his two lobsters in with a splash. It’s not the ocean but I’m sure they’d prefer this over a boiling pot of water.

  Elsa’s blonde hair was blowing in the breeze and her face was lit up with her brilliant green eyes dancing. “Thank you,” she said with a smile.

  It was the most beautiful sight that Royal had ever seen. She was a true princess. Beautiful, kind, and smart (besides her lack of knowledge of lobsters).

  He was sold.

  seven

  Camilla sat in an Adirondack chair and watched with a smile on her face as the six boys fought over the steaks that were cooking over the fire.

  “They’re not cooked yet!” Stetson said, elbowing Slate out of the way. “The edges have to be blackened.”

  “They’re burning,” Karl complained. “Get them off!”

  “Just leave them!” Royal said, his deep voice making Camilla’s inside stir. “I got them from the store. I’m in charge.”

  “You lost all authority when you threw our lobsters into the freaking lake!” Slate yelled.

  Camilla raised her feet onto her chair and sunk down behind her knees to hide her face. The boys weren’t too happy about their little lobster rescue.

  “I’m taking mine,” Karl said, grabbing a steak off the grill with his bare hands. “Ow!” he hollered bouncing the burning hot steak from hand to hand like a hot potato. It finally flew out of his reach and landed on the ground. “Anyone want to trade?” he asked, looking down at it sitting in the dirt.

  The boys just laughed at him as he picked it up and tried to scrape off the sand, blades of grass, and tiny branches that were coating it.

  Camilla smiled. She was actually having a good time. The guys were a riot and they kept making her laugh with their constant insults aimed at each other and their good-natured joking around. They were like a real family. She could really sense the love between them all even though they were constantly at each other’s throats. She could see that there was a deep love and respect hidden beneath it all.

  “Thirsty?” Royal asked walking over with a bottle of red wine and an empty glass. She glanced up past the breadth of his wide shoulders to his striking brown eyes. “Sure,” she said as she took the wine glass. “I’d love some.”

  She watched his long strong fingers grip the wine opener as he held the bottle in his other rugged, masculine hand. He was sexy and kind. She was beginning to have seconds thoughts about the whole thing. She could just take off and leave. Make up an excuse and just run away and never come back. She didn’t really need the money and had enough stashed away to get by for a while.

  But she didn’t want to leave. She was enjoying the camaraderie and laughs from her new hosts and Royal was really starting to grow on her. She felt so safe and comfortable around him and she could tell from his burning brown eyes that he was kind and thoughtful too.

  “Don’t worry,” he said as he poured her a glass of the delicious smelling wine. “You’re safe here. Your father’s men will never find you and even if they
do they’ll never get past us.”

  No kidding. These six men were all muscles and looked incredibly strong. They weren’t shaped like normal men. And she kept noticing weird bullet hole and knife-sized scars on all of their bodies. “Were you guys in the army or something?”

  Royal took a deep breath and nodded subtly. He glanced back over his shoulder and then leaned down close to her. “I probably shouldn’t be telling you this,” he whispered. “But we were in the military, in a special unit.”

  She held her breath as she watched his sexy lips move. She felt bad for the people who had to go up against these guys, if they were still alive, which they probably weren’t.

  “A prince who fights in the military?” she asked, looking at him funny. It wasn’t adding up.

  Royal sighed. “I don’t talk to my family anymore,” he said as she took a sip of the delicious wine. “They bankrupted my country, stealing everything that they could from my people. They bought yachts, mansions, and private planes while my countrymen were starving.”

  He had his guilt-filled eyes lowered and he was grimacing as he spoke. Camilla’s heart went out to him. He spoke with such pain behind his eyes, such shame and embarrassment. She turned away with a thickness in her throat. His family sounded a lot like her.

  “My people revolted,” he continued as he ran his hand through his silky brown hair. “We escaped the country and I left my parents behind in Europe. I told them I was done with their corrupt way of life and I came to America for a fresh start. I was hoping to right some of my family’s past wrongs. I was trying to bring some honor back to my tarnished family name.”

  “Did you succeed?” she asked, taking another sip of wine.

  Royal sighed. “Not really. I got arrested for beating up some drug dealers who were trying to sell meth to kids and the cops threw me in jail. I was just trying to keep the streets clean.”

  “Hey, Royal,” Tyler said, interrupting them. “Better get in here before Karl steals your steaks.”

  Camilla laughed, watching him bolt back to the campfire as Karl was about to pick up their steaks. “Touch it and die, Karl,” he snapped.

  Karl snapped his hand back and frowned at Tyler. “You’re such a goodie goodie. I would have given you a piece if you would have just kept your mouth shut.”

  Tyler held his chin in the air. “It wouldn’t be right.”

  Karl rolled his eyes as he walked away with his dirt covered steak on his plate. Camilla stuck her tongue out at him playfully as he walked past her.

  “Come,” Royal said as he walked over with two plates, each one with a fat, juicy steak on it. “We can eat down by the lake and have a little privacy.”

  Camilla grabbed her glass of wine, a fresh one for Royal, and took the bottle from the little table beside her Adirondack chair. Her stomach grumbled from the savory smell of the steaks. Scrappy must have smelled it too since he was right on Royal’s heels.

  They walked side by side through the forest and Camilla smiled as she saw the flicker of a chipmunk’s tail dart around a tree. “The trees are so big,” she said admiringly as she looked up at the towering cedars with the thick trunks. “They’re like mountains.” If she stood on one side with her arms stretched out and Royal was on the other side they wouldn’t be able to touch each other’s hands.

  Royal nodded as he looked up at the tall branches, the gentle wind rustling through the leaves. “They are beautiful,” he whispered. “It’s a nice place to settle down. It’s going to be perfect when the ranch is all set up with horses and cattle.”

  “Cattle?” she asked, darting her head towards him. So that’s what’s going on back in the camp. These guys think they’re cowboys.

  A fly landed on a steak and Royal blew it off. “Sorry,” he muttered. “I’ll take that one.”

  “Are you going to build a new royal palace?” she asked.

  “Palace?” he said with a chuckle. “Far from it. We’re just starting a new life. That’s why I don’t have the fifty thousand dollars to give you right away. We spent it all on our cabins, the barn, and the cattle.”

  “Oh,” Camilla said, turning away with a thickness in her throat. He needed the money after all.

  The gorgeous dark lake with the little bugs skating across the still surface came into view and it made Camilla gasp once again. Royal smiled. She was surrounded by beautiful things out here.

  They sat on the large rocks at the edge of the lake and began to eat their steaks as they enjoyed the quiet night only interrupted by the croaking frogs and the wind whispering through the trees.

  Cutting a steak while balancing a plate on your lap was harder than Camilla thought it would be. Royal’s hand darted out and grabbed her plate when it almost tumbled off her knees and into the water.

  “Thanks,” she said, with reddening cheeks. “That would have sucked.”

  Royal smiled as he filled up their wine glasses once again. “So, what is the princess of Grumerland doing in Montana?”

  Camilla’s heart started to beat faster and she could feel the redness creeping up her neck. I should be out by now. This con was getting too deep. She should have been on a train to another state with a bag full of his money but instead she was playing the getting to know you game and he was asking way too many questions.

  “It’s too dangerous,” she said, slipping back into character. She was finding it harder and harder to slip back into character as the day went on. It was just too easy to be herself around him. “I shouldn’t tell you. For your own safety.”

  Royal just grunted as he bit into his steak. “I’ll be fine.”

  Camilla dragged her eyes down his round biceps past his thick forearms to his strong hand that was gripping the fork and making it look like a tiny desert fork. Yes, you will be. She couldn’t imagine any threat, imaginary or real, that he couldn’t handle.

  “Still,” she said, taking a big gulp of wine. “I’d rather not say.”

  They ate in silence for a minute, enjoying the moment and the juicy steaks. Camilla squealed in delight when a fish jumped out of the water and snagged a dragonfly in midair that was skirting over the lake.

  When she turned to Royal to ask if he had seen it, he was watching her with soft eyes, a warm smile, and flushed cheeks. She smiled shyly at him and turned away, the guilt in her stomach making her lose her appetite.

  “I’ll get you the money tomorrow,” he said as she stared out at a duck gliding across the lake. “You can keep the five million,” he continued. “I want you to keep it all.”

  Camilla lowered her fork and exhaled long and hard. Her stomach was turning.

  She scratched her cheek as she bit her lip. “You know, I might not need your money after all.”

  Royal refilled her wine. “Well, it will be there if you need it.”

  Camilla shifted on the rock and thought about diving into the lake and never coming back up. She took a long sip of her wine and pushed all of the guilt back down inside of her where it belonged. Time to change the subject.

  “If you could date any cartoon or TV character, who would you date?” she asked.

  Royal jerked his head back in surprise at the drastic turn of conversation but then laughed. His eyes drifted up to the sky as he thought. “I’ve always had a thing for Belle from Beauty and the Beast.”

  “Ha!” she laughed. A good wholesome brunette. The complete opposite of me. “She’s hot,” Camilla said, nodding. “I can see that. What man could resist her in that sexy yellow dress? She’s got a great rack.”

  Royal chuckled as he took a bite of his steak. “Really?” he said with a sly smile. “I hadn’t noticed.”

  “Sure!” she said with a laugh. “I would have pegged you for more of a She-Ra kind of guy.”

  He shook his head. “I’m more of a Cinderella kind of guy.”

  “So,” she said, turning to him with a smirk, “basically any of the Disney princesses?”

  Royal shrugged his broad shoulders with a guilty smile on his
delicious lips.

  Oh shit! He has a thing for princesses. And he thinks I’m one of them.

  “What about you?” he asked. “Who would you pick?”

  Camilla flinched. “It’s a weird one.”

  “Who?”

  She bit her bottom lip as he watched her with a smirk. “I’m embarrassed.”

  “Well, now I’m intrigued,” he said, shifting towards her. “You have to tell me.”

  She sighed and rolled her eyes. “Tony Micelli.”

  “Who?” he asked, jerking his head back with such a confused look on his face that it made her laugh.

  “Tony Danza’s character from Who’s The Boss?” Camilla used to watch it with Angela when she was a kid.

  “Tony Danza?” he asked, grinning like he had just found out some dirt on her.

  Camilla held her chin in the air unashamedly even though her red cheeks were betraying her confidence. “He’s sexy.”

  Royal was trying unsuccessfully to hold in a laugh.

  “What?” she asked, slapping his shoulder. “He’s sweet and sensitive. All he wants is a family and a better life for his daughter. Who wouldn’t be attracted to a man like that?”

  Royal grimaced. “But that hair…”

  “Shut up,” she said, laughing as she playfully swatted his shoulder again. They talked and laughed as they ate their steaks and finished the bottle of wine. He was fun to talk to and he had her laughing and smiling a lot.

  Camilla kept asking him weird and quirky questions and he answered each one of them with thought and care. That’s how she always liked to get to know someone. When you asked them strange questions it would always catch them off guard and you could get a glimpse of their true personality through their answers.

  “Would you rather be the first person on mars or the person to discover Bigfoot?” She leaned in, waiting for his answer.

  “Mars,” he said after thinking about it for a few seconds.

  “Really?” she asked, studying his handsome face. “Mars is just red rocks. Wouldn’t you like to see something supernatural like a Sasquatch?”