Page 244 of Hate to Love You
Smiling at the man on the chair, I turn and walk out of the ring, hopping over the guard rail. That’s when I hear the commotion near the entrance, which happens to be behind Sean.
Walking through the rusty green metal gate, is my largest soldier.
Jeremy, a seven-foot monster of a man, wearing dirty jeans, suspenders, a white tank-top walks into the room…with a bear.
A 1400-pound behemoth, affectionately named Baloo, grunts and grumbles, walking alongside his beloved trainer and handler.
A smile returns to my face, especially when I look down and see Sean hearing the sounds of the bear snorting and dragging his six-inch razor sharp claws across the dirt.
“What…what is that?” Sean asks, terror blanketing his face as the gigantic bear nears.
“As I said, Mr. McCleary,” I say, clicking my tongue. “This is balance.”
I spread my arms wide, laughing darkly to myself.
“...And frankly, it’s just plain fun.”
I nod to Oleg, who with the help of Trevor, carries the hind leg of a dismembered deer into the ring. The two of them drop the bloody hunk of meat, and back away slowly before quickly climbing over the fence to safety.
Baloo raises his nose in the air, huffing deeply, smelling the scent of food nearby.
Perfect.
“What’s up fuckers.”
A male voice sounds behind me, and I jump, nearly pulling my gun as I whirl around, finding Lev standing there.
“The fuck are you doing here?” I ask.
“Jeremy phoned and said you asked for my bear,” Lev shrugs, staring me down coldly. “I go where he goes.”
“Technically he’s my bear,” I snort, rolling my eyes.
“You know as well as I do that Baloo is not your bear. He barely even recognizes you,” Lev says, crossing his arms and glaring at me. “Father may have gifted him to you, but I was the one who took care of him.”
“What, are you expecting a medal or something?” I snap irritably. “Because I’m a little busy here, Lev.”
He stares at me saying nothing.
“Nope,” he clicks his tongue inside his mouth. “As I said, I’m just here to make sure that nothing happens to him.”
“Oh my God!” Sean suddenly yells as the giant bear slowly picks up the dead deer leg and drags it in front of him, gnawing on the meat. “That’s…that’s…that’s a fucking bear.”
“Yup,” I reply to Sean, but deliberately look over at Lev. “He’s a bear alright. Just a bear.”
“Yeah, and Caesar was just a dog,” he snaps back, now glaring at me. “And look where he ended up.”
My fist clenches and my jaw tightens.
“Careful, brother,” I growl, lethally as Sean begins to scream in terror. “Do not test me. Not tonight.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Lev says sarcastically, his quiet rage unusually loud behind his eyes tonight. “I understand you’re the big Boss and all, but forgive me for wanting to make sure that my animal is safe. Otherwise, who knows, you might grow tired of him and just decide to send him off to Chicago…with Jaxon Pace.”
Now I understand.
Lev is pissed about Pasha.
Which…to some extent I understand.