A Mate For The Bear: BBW Paranormal Alpha Shifter Romance (Bear Brides Book 4) (4 page)

Dalton read through the
document quickly. “Deal.” He signed at the bottom and
waited until Randell finished putting his signature on the document.

Dalton went to take JD's
clammy hand. “She doesn't work for you any more,” he
told Randell. “She doesn't owe you anything.”

Randell laughed. “No.
She owes you now.”

Dalton didn't reply. He
simply pulled JD roughly out of the room with him.

At Randell's signal, the
bouncers parted to let them through. Dalton waited for JD to pull on
her jeans and t-shirt and collect her belongings before walking out
of the club with her. His clan members automatically fell into step
behind them. Curtis and Connor were nudging each other and
whispering furiously with Bruno and Jason. When JD glanced over her
shoulder at them, the four of them straightened up instantly and
flashed wide grins at her.

When they reached Dalton's
car, Connor cleared his throat and said, “Um, I think we'll be
staying in town for a little while more. We'll catch a cab home
later.”

“Yeah. The night's
still young. There's plenty more fun to be had. And I'm hungry,”
Jason said, rubbing his stomach. “Let's go for an
all-you-can-eat buffet before checking out another club!”

“Sounds like a plan.”

They turned to wink at Dalton
and JD. “You two...have fun!”

“Goodnight, and it's a
pleasure to meet you, m'lady!” Curtis said, giving JD a
sweeping bow.

“Joyce,” she
blurted out. “My name is Joyce. Thank you all for your help
tonight. It was...I could have...” A strangled, hiccuped sob
escaped. “I...I really don't know how...”

“Oh. You're welcome,
Joyce,” the four young werebears said quickly and began to back
away. It was clear they wanted to make a quick getaway.

They could face a ferocious
pack of enemy wolves without flinching, but a woman's tears were
something else. Something way scarier.

“Bye, Beta!” they
called out, tripping over one another in their haste to escape.

“And, um, bye, Joyce.
You...take care!”

And with that, they were
gone.

Joyce sniffed and swiped at
her eyes. These were tears of gratitude and relief, but her tears
seemed to have made those nice young men uncomfortable. They had
stammered and stuttered and beat a hasty retreat at the first sight
of her tears.

Leaving her alone with her
very handsome benefactor.

Standing beside the elegant
car which cost more than she made in a year, Joyce dried her eyes on
her sleeve, trying to compose herself and not look like a silly,
weepy fool.

“Thank you,” she
said at last, blinking up at the tall, handsome man beside her. She
had seen his face in the crowd while she was up on the stage. She
stared at him for a moment, wondering if he was an illusion. He had
wavy brown hair, chiseled features and a long body that was tanned
and muscular. But it was his eyes that caught her attention. They
were intelligent, intense and kind.

He was exactly how she
imagined her online friend, DJ, would look like. The face that
appeared in her mind whenever she was chatting with DJ online was the
face that was gazing down at her right now.

She shook her head. No, he
couldn't be.

How could he be…?

Before she could marshal her
wayward thoughts, he stepped closer to her and said softly, “Joyce.
You are...JD.”

She gasped and jerked her
head up. “What?”

“JD. Your profile name
on that dating site.” His face split into a wide, winsome
smile. “I'm DJ. Dalton Jameson. We meet at last.”

“I...how?”

“Your eyes. I
recognized your eyes.”

She stared at him, shaking
her head slowly.

Seeing her look of shock and
disbelief, Dalton pulled his phone out of his pocket and typed a
message quickly. “Check your phone. I just sent you a
message. I really am DJ. This is not a prank, Joyce.”

She heard her phone ping in
her bag. Her eyes rounded when she saw his message.

I've always known that
you're beautiful.

She
blushed. “DJ...”

“Dalton.”

She
blinked at him, staring into his deep brown eyes for a long while.
Finally,
she stuck out her
hand.
“Joyce Donovan. I'm pleased to meet you too,
DJ!”

Her hand disappeared into his
large, strong hand and she felt the heat tingle up her arm and down
her body. She was suddenly very aware of how close they were
standing, how powerful and masculine his body was, and how attracted
she was to him.

With a gasp, she pulled back
abruptly. She shouldn't be having all these naughty, inappropriate
thoughts about her online friend, who had just burst out of
cyberspace into her life. It was great to finally meet DJ, but she
rather regretted the way they met.

She closed her eyes briefly
and began, “Dalton, half a million dollars is no paltry sum.
And you promised to pay the full amount in three days. That's
not...”

“Don't worry about it,”
he said, shrugging. “I'll pay up promptly and get the wolves
off my back. They won't be bothering us.”

“I'll pay you back,”
she said firmly.

He opened his mouth, but she
cut him off. “No, Dalton. If you won't let me pay you back,
then I can't accept your help. I'll just go back in and tell Randell
that I'll continue working at Candybar to pay off the debt myself.”

“Joyce,” he
growled in exasperation. “You...”

“My job as a
receptionist doesn't pay that well, so I might take a while, a very
long while, to repay everything. If you...”

“Wait.” Dalton
held up a hand. “I know what you can do to pay me back. I
have a job for you.”

“What kind of job?”
she asked slowly.

“I need a housekeeper.”

“Huh?”

“I stay alone in a big
bungalow, and I'm rarely home. I hardly clean and when I cook it's a
disaster. My brother and cousins can attest to that. I need someone
to keep my house in order. If I don't hire you, I'll need to hire
someone else, but it's not easy finding someone good and trustworthy.
Good help is hard to find these days.” He shrugged. “There
are documents and financial details regarding the clan and the
business in my office. I'm the Beta of the Nightfire clan and
co-owner of Nightfire Landscaping. I don't want a nosy housekeeper
snooping around our financial records and plans.”

“A housekeeper,”
she breathed.

“Yep. You'll stay in
my house and keep everything in order. I'll pay you of course, and
lodging and meals are provided. But you'll have to cook your own
meals. I'm hopeless in the kitchen.”

Joyce released her breath
slowly. It was a really good arrangement, thoughtful and practical.
She knew she would enjoy working for Dalton. He would be a good,
fair employer and it sure beat working at her dead-end job which paid
peanuts. And since lodgings and food were provided, she could save
up quickly and repay him as soon as possible.

Joyce nodded, her eyes
shining. “I'll take the job. Thank you so much, Mr Jameson.”

His whole face lit up at her
words. “Oh, that's wonderful! You don't know how long I've
been looking, but I just never managed to find someone suitable.
Thank you, Joyce! But—” He planted his hands on his
hips and pretended to glower at her. “If you call me Mr
Jameson one more time, you're fired.”

“Yes, Mr Jam...Dalton,”
she grinned.

“All right. Since your
employment has commenced, I'll drive you home and you can get your
things packed. You will be moving in tonight.” He opened the
car door for her.

“Tonight?” she
gasped.

“Yes. Call your office
on Monday and give notice of your resignation. If they require a
month's salary in lieu of notice, I'll pay it.” She began to
protest but Dalton said smugly, “I'm your new boss now, so I'll
cover all my employee's necessary expenses. You'll find that I'm a
very good boss. You can ask those four young men you met tonight.
They're all Nightfire bears and top-notch landscapers in Nightfire
Landscaping.”

Joyce laughed as she got in
the car. She settled in the plush leather seat and admired the
Jaguar's beautiful interior. Dalton was certainly doing very well.
He could afford this luxury car and his own huge bungalow. And he'd
bailed her out of her debt without batting an eyelid.

But more importantly, he
was a real friend. He was caring, considerate, and he made her feel
better about everything. He had offered her a job and made her feel
proud of the work she would be doing for him. It was honest,
respectable work.

She glanced at Dalton as he
started the engine. She frowned a little when she realized that he
hadn't even tried to seduce her. He'd just saved her, undertaken a
massive debt for her. She owed him. Yet he didn't use his power and
position to pressure her at all.

Dalton didn't even try to
kiss her. He had only held her hand and put his hand chastely on the
small of her back as he helped her into the car.

He didn't try to bully her,
or take advantage of her, or make her feel indebted to him. Well,
she was very much in his debt, but he didn't rub it in her face.
He'd handled the situation with supreme skill and sensitivity. He
had been so savvy and subtle that he'd made it sound like she was
actually doing him a huge favor by accepting his job offer.

She could see how he might
use his tact and diplomacy to advance the interests of his clan.
Every organization needed a leader who was good at building bridges
and relationships. Public relations was important. And she was
aware of the complex power plays and politicking in the shifter
community.

Joyce turned to trail her
eyes down his handsome profile as he drove.

Dalton Jameson was a very
desirable male. Rich, confident, powerful. He was the
second-in-command in his clan, and he had power and influence, but he
didn't abuse his authority. Joyce had seen first hand how united the
clan members were. The four young werebears had been ready to fight
and die for their Beta. They showed no fear even though they were
outnumbered and surrounded by a pack of ruthless wolves.

It was obvious that the four
Nightfire bears respected Dalton, but they weren't scared of him.
They didn't fight for him out of fear. There was affection and
respect in the way they addressed their Beta. She'd heard them
joking together and even teasing Dalton good-naturedly. They were
like...a family. Irreverent, irrepressible but fiercely loyal.

It would be really nice to
belong to a family like that.

Joyce let out a small sigh.

When she married Felix, she
thought that they would build a happy, solid family together. He was
her husband, and she would love and support him, But it turned out
that the love and support only went one way. Felix used and abused
her love, her trust, her money. He refused to go out and get an
honest, decent job. Instead, he kept dreaming of striking it rich,
hitting the big jackpot. All without lifting a finger. When she
pleaded with him to stop gambling, he shouted at her and told her not
to mess with his plans. He knew what he was doing. He was going to
win big.

Joyce had finally divorced
him after realizing that he would never change. But even with him
out of her life, he still managed to drag her into his debt.

She had no family, and Dalton
here was her only friend.

Dalton seemed to sense her
mood, and he left her alone with her thoughts for a few minutes.
Then he said casually, “I'll introduce you to the rest of the
clan tomorrow. You'll meet my brother, Tony, and my cousins, Cole
and Brad, as well as their mates. And you'll meet the newest,
youngest members of the family, Daren and Rita! They're Brad and
Lisha's twin cubs.” His smile grew as he told her more about
his family and clan.

Joyce returned his smile and
said, “I can't wait to meet them. You have a really big
family.”

There was a pause before
Dalton replied quietly, “We, the Jameson bears, used to be a
really big clan. But when I was eighteen, we were attacked by a
rival clan in the middle of the night, and our entire clan was
massacred. Only the four of us escaped. We came to Moonstone Creek,
and I founded the Nightfire clan with Cole, who is now our Alpha. I
had a really big family, and I watched them all perish.”

“I'm so sorry, Dalton,”
Joyce whispered, putting her hand on his arm.

He shook his head. “It
doesn't matter if you have a big family or not, Joyce. The four of
us were the only survivors, but we didn't just survive. We made it.
We built a future from the ashes of our past. We stuck together,
fought together, became strong together. You're one of us now,
Joyce. You...are now under my employ, so as your...” He
swallowed before continuing, “...boss, I'll look out for you.
And I trust you'll carry out your duties diligently and faithfully.”