Bear Naked (Halle Shifters) (2 page)

Glory and Tabby shared a look, then both women shuddered, Tabby covering Mt. Doom with her fingers. “I thought the idea was to keep it from getting mad?”

“Yeah. I mean, why poke a sleeping bear?” Glory grinned as all three shifters rolled their eyes at her. So far, Glory was the only member of Cynful Tattoos who wasn’t furry, and she planned on keeping it that way for a little bit longer. Ryan Williams might be the cutest Bear this side of Winnie the Pooh, but when it had mattered the most, he’d done what every other person who’d ever claimed to love her had done.

He’d disappeared.

Oh, he’d come back, and his sucking-up skills were excellent, but she knew the truth. Ryan was just like her family, and Glory had no intention of ever allowing anyone to hurt her that way again. The only people who stood by her no matter what were standing in front of her, discussing Tabby’s pregnancy hormone woes. Even her twin…

Well. Glory tried not to think about her twin.

Cyn nodded once, sharply. “I think we should call in an exorcist.”

Now Glory was the one who started giggling. Trust Cyn to try and make a bad situation better with that sharp tongue of hers.

“Bitch.” Tabby pouted, looking adorably miserable.

“Takes a bitch to know a bitch, bitch.”

The banter between Cyn and Tabby was so familiar Glory barely paid attention to it. Soon, one of the girls would probably wind up chasing the other through the shop like wild hyenas, and that was just the way Glory liked it. It was fun and full of life, and no one could ever make her trade in her life today for what had once been.

Not even Ryan.

“Oof.” Glory rocked against the chair she’d been standing in front of as she suddenly found a hundred and twenty pounds of green-haired Wolf shifter glued to her back. “What?”

Tabby’s pointy chin dug into her shoulder. Thank God Mt. Doom was on the other side of her face, because Glory didn’t want to be that up close and personal with it. “Ryan and Alex are bringing lunch today. Want anything special?”

A picture of Ryan, stripped bare and covered in chocolate, sprang immediately to mind. “Nope.”

Tabby sighed. “You have to give him a shot.”

Glory wrinkled her nose. “I
was
shot, remember? I wouldn’t do that to my worst enemy. Ow.” She reached up and rubbed the back of her head. Damn Cyn and her sneak attacks. “What?”

“That boy’s gonna pine away for you if you don’t accept him.”

“Exaggerating much?” Tabby couldn’t be telling the truth.

Could she? Glory had seen the dark circles under Ryan’s eyes.

Tabby sighed in her ear. “It’s true. When a shifter meets their mate, it’s supposed to be this magical thing, right? But if the mate rejects you, or holds themselves back for whatever reason, the magic becomes this itch under your skin that never goes away. It’s a burning need you can’t quench. You start dreaming about them, erotic dreams that fill you with sleepless, lonely nights because your mate isn’t really there. A shifter can slowly lose their mind, pining for someone that doesn’t want them.”

Glory stared at Cyn, who was nodding. “Alex told me all about it, before Julian changed me.”

“They’re right.” Heather shot her a complicated look, both sympathetic and hard. As much as they’d come to love Heather, she was still a member of the Bunsun-Williams clan. Alex and Ryan were her first cousins, and they adored the little redhead. “Ryan needs you.”

“But… That was
months
ago!” The weather was slowly warming as the small town of Halle, Pennsylvania prepared for another spring.

Cyn sighed and ran her fingers through her multi-colored hair. Julian, Cyn’s mate, always seemed enchanted by the black, blonde and pink strands Cyn had sported for about six months. “Yeah. Apparently, if they don’t mate us, they…” Cyn shot Tabby a hopeless look.

“Well, he won’t
die
, but he’ll be one unhappy Bear for the rest of his life.” But the uncomfortable look on Tabby’s face told her it was far more serious than that.

Shit.

“But no pressure or anything.” Glory threw herself into the smoky-gray chaise lounge she’d declared her own spot months ago. She loved lying there when she wasn’t busy, chatting with the women she considered closer than her own sisters. Faith and Hope were long gone, but Tabby and Cyn would be with her forever, if only because Glory knew where Tabby hid her favorite shoes.

Tabby settled carefully into one of the chairs they’d had reupholstered from the old shop. Living Art Tattoos was gone now, their lease given over to a small card- and gift-shop. Glory always felt strange walking past the place that had once housed Cyn’s shop, but she had to admit that losing LA’s lease had been the best thing that ever happened to them.

The new shop was theirs in a way LA hadn’t been. Cyn had made both Tabby and Glory full partners, and each of them now had a say in how the business was run. They’d all decided on the new decor, the new flash art on the walls and even the name, much to Cyn’s embarrassment. Cynful Tattoos was just as popular as LA had been, and Glory knew exactly who was responsible for that.

Cyn settled on the lighter gray sofa that she’d fallen in love with at first sight. The black-and-white floral curtains were pulled back, exposing the large picture window. Cynful was sleek and modern, yet still feminine, and Glory loved it with all her greedy little heart.

Hell, even the floors were nicer here, a gorgeous dark oak that had sold them all on the shop. And the new landlady, Mrs. H., made sure they had all the things they needed to feel safe, even at night. Hell, at least once a week she brought them lunch and just sat and chatted with them. She was the mother Glory wished she’d had, but never did.

Maybe she should change her last name from Walsh to H—

“Earth to Glory.” Tabby sat in her favorite chair and propped her feet up on the distressed chest-slash-coffee table Glory had discovered at a secondhand shop. It had seen far better days, but with a little polish and some elbow grease it had become a thing of beauty despite its scars. “You’re going to have to make a decision about Ryan.”

Glory whimpered and tossed her head back. “Why? Why do I have to do anything?”

“Don’t you feel
anything
for him?”

Cyn’s serious tone caught her attention. “I do, but…”

“This is because he left, isn’t it?”

Glory couldn’t look at them. They must think she was crazy.

“Glory, honey. Ryan didn’t leave you. He was—”

“Hunting the bad guy. I know.” And no matter how many times they tried to tell her, her heart just wasn’t hearing it. Every time she thought about being in the hospital, hurting and alone, with Ryan nowhere to be found, she wanted to scream and cry. She had, back in the hospital, crying out for Ryan while half out of it on pain meds and anesthetic.

Ryan never came.

“He went after that guy and tore him into dog kibble. Cut him some slack, okay?”

Glory shrugged. So what? Ryan had destroyed the man who’d nearly killed Glory, but he should have been with her. He was supposed to be her mate, not her avenger. Still, she could understand why everyone, including herself, was frustrated. She
liked
Ryan, but she just couldn’t get past feeling abandoned. “It’s…complicated.”

“Maybe you should talk to someone.”

Glory stared at Tabby, blinked at Mt. Doom (was it
bigger?
) and sighed. “You think I should have my head shrunk.”

“You know I love you, Glory, but you’re being a bitch.” Cyn shrugged when Glory turned and glared at her. “My family is the one that took you in, remember? I know all about your abandonment issues, and Ryan didn’t do that. He’s here, every day, and he’s not going to go anywhere.”

Glory lay down with a sigh. She really needed a chaise like this in her apartment. It was so much nicer than the lumpy couch she had now. “I know that up here—” she pointed to her head, “—but not here.” When she laid her hand on her heart, Tabby began to cry. It seemed she did that when the wind blew, when the bell jingled, hell, when the coffee pot turned off. The woman was trying to drown them all in salt water and pregnancy angst. “Aw hell. Not again.”

The bell over the door jingled, and the deep voice of Alex “Bunny” Bunsun, Tabby’s mate, rang through her like guilt in hammer form. “Why are you crying, sweetheart?”

Before they knew it Alex had Tabby in his lap, cuddling her close and cooing in her ear. It was revolting. Hell, he’d even sat her so the growth was against his chest.

Glory had the sick urge to poke at Tabby’s head and see if the thing was bouncy like a ball.

Ugh. She really needed to get a life.

“Hey, pretty girl.” Ryan squatted next to her chaise and brushed some of her powder-blue curls from her forehead. The hopeful expression on his face had her heart pounding in both fear and longing. God, she wanted what he was offering so badly, but the courage she thought she had disappeared whenever he turned those blazing sapphire eyes on her. “I brought ham and cheese subs.”

At that, her stomach growled loud enough to startle a grizzly. “Spicy brown mustard?”

He nodded.

“Tomatoes and lettuce?”

He was smiling, watching her with all the wonder of a boy with his first love. “Would I bring you anything else?”

She reached with greedy hands toward the bag he was holding between his knees. “Gimme!”

He leaned over her, caging her with his body. “Say the word, and you can have that any time you want.”

There was no doubt what he was talking about, since he was still holding the bag between his knees. She pushed him back and glared. “I want the ham, not the salami.” Behind him, Cyn barked out a laugh. “Gimme.”

Ryan chuckled, and oh God, what that low, seductive sound did to her. It was like feeling his joy feathering over her skin. “Here, you greedy little thing.”

Glory took the bag and dashed off the chaise, heading for the back room. “Meat! Woo-hoo!”

Ryan’s chuckles followed her the entire way.

Chapter Two

Ryan watched the woman of his dreams run away from him yet again and laughed. God, she was so adorable it shattered him. Long, powder-blue curls, pale blue eyes, and a tongue that would make a harpy blanch; she was everything he’d ever wanted and more.

Too bad all she ever did was run away from him.

Too bad for
her
he would follow no matter how far she ran.

“Hi, Heather.” He paused long enough to kiss his sweet little cousin on the forehead. The shy smile he got in return always made him want to protect her from the world. Thank God Julian’s mate had taken a liking to her. Heather was blossoming at Cynful Tattoos, despite Eric Bunsun’s objections. Eric was
very
protective of little Heather, and snarled at anyone who made her so much as frown.

Ryan followed Glory into the back room, laughing harder when he found her hunched over the unwrapped sandwich and muahaha’ing in her best evil overlord voice. “Do I get a sandwich?”

She glared at him. “Mine.”

He shook his head and took his sandwich anyway, aware she wasn’t going to try to keep it. The woman was insane, but she wasn’t nearly as mean as she pretended to be. He pulled a bottle of water out of the mini fridge and sat across from her at the small table the girls had set up for their breaks. “So.”

“Mm?” She had a mouth full of ham and cheese. A smidgeon of mustard was on her lip, and the urge to lick it away was nearly overwhelming.

“I want to take you out.”

She blinked and swallowed. “Like a hit man?”

“Yup, because I’m a total Mafioso.” Ryan did his best fake Italian accent, her little snort of amusement his reward. “No, SG. I want to go on a date.”

She tilted her head in confusion, for once ignoring his nickname for her. He’d totally lied when he said it didn’t stand for Super Grover. He liked his nuts right where they were. No, he’d agreed that it stood for Super Glory, and in return she let him get away with it. “Why?”

This time he was the one who was confused. “Huh?”

“Why do you want to go on a date?” She bit into her sandwich, her expression curious, almost wary.

How the hell to answer a question like that?
Because you’re my whole world
didn’t seem like something Glory wanted to hear.
You’re my mate
probably wouldn’t cut it either. So he decided to go with the simplest answer, the one he hoped would get her to say yes. “Because I want you.” He held up his hand when she started to speak. “Not just in my bed, but in my life.”

“Because I’m your mate.”

He smiled, trying to convey what he was really saying. He’d known Glory for almost a year now, and he’d fallen for her, quirks and all. He couldn’t imagine having a life without her in it, even if she chose not to accept him as her mate. “Because you’re Glory.”

Her cheeks turned bright red. “I’m not that great.” She couldn’t meet his eyes. “I have…issues.”

“Want to tell me about them?” He put his hand over hers, surprised when she started. “Glory?”

She took a deep breath, obviously gathering herself together. “No. I don’t want to tell you. Not yet, anyway.”

That hurt. “Haven’t I earned a little trust?”