Authors: Jane Wakely
Wanting
to see his face, her eyes moved up and up and up. She was six feet tall, but he
was taller. Much taller. If she had to guess, she’d say he was about seven
inches taller. She quickly glanced at his feet before meeting his eyes and she
saw his mouth turn up in a smile on one side. This man was humongous—and it
seemed he was that way everywhere. Christina actually felt petite. She’d never
felt that way in her entire life.
Deep
chocolate, almost black, warm eyes stared back at her. His black hair was cut
short on the sides and it spiked out on top with the help of a styling product.
He was
absolute perfection and Christina had to consciously close her mouth and
swallow to sooth her parched throat. His hand still held her wrist and she was
sure he could feel her rapidly beating heart.
“Who’s
Derek?” He asked again, and though she didn’t know him, she opened her mouth to
answer.
“One of
the many, many guys she’s dated in this town.” The guy at the counter yelled
back. Christina had forgotten all about him and she could feel her cheeks
heating.
“Was I
asking you?” Mr. Perfection yelled back and the clerk paled and stepped back
from the counter. In her eyes, he went from a ten to a one hundred and ten. He
was loud. Very loud. His voice echoed all around the store surrounding them.
Christina savored the moment. She’d finally met a man louder than herself.
There was no way she would ever top the volume that came out of his mouth.
She
stared up at him, pretty sure her mouth was open again, but she was too
impressed to care.
He
looked back at her, his hand still around her wrist.
“Who is
he?” His voice was normal again, the same tone he used when he first spoke from
behind her.
“A guy I
dated once,” she responded breathlessly. She wanted him. No man had ever
captured her interest like he did.
“He’s not
your boyfriend?” He was frowning now. It seemed he didn’t share her attraction.
“No. I
only went on one date with him.” Christina could only stare and answer his
questions even though they were inappropriate. They didn’t know each other.
“Are you
dating anyone now?”
“No.” It
was none of his business, but she wanted him to know.
At her
response, he let go of her hand and took a step back.
“Okay.”
It was a dismissal.
Disappointed,
Christina walked to the counter and paid for her coffee and the newspaper that
had been tucked under her arm the whole time. The guy behind the counter didn’t
say anything else to her except to relay her total and she exited the store
with her held high.
Once she
was safely inside her apartment, she let a few of the tears filling her eyes
fall even though it was ridiculous. She told herself she was crying over the
clerk’s harassment, but she knew it was a lie.
Instead
of looking at the newspaper, she turned on the TV and flipped the channels
until she found a movie that kept her mind off her lacking love life and the
man in the market. She sipped her lukewarm coffee, but still fell asleep on the
couch before the movie was over.
****
Bull
walked into the market and paused in the entryway, letting the glass door close
behind him. The market smelled extraordinary, like fresh mountain air after the
first snow and sweet strawberries ripe on the vine in the summertime. How could
that be? It was fall, there wasn’t any snow outside and there were no
strawberries that he could see anywhere inside. This market didn’t sell
produce.
He
looked around feeling more content than he had in years but not knowing the
cause. He focused his attention on the coffee station. A blond stood with her
back to him. She had to be the source of the fragrance. Could it be? Could she
be the one? Could he have found his mate his second night in town?
Casually
he walked up behind her, racking his brain for an intelligent thought, when the
clerk behind the counter yelled out.
The girl
tensed, her breathing accelerated slightly and she fiddled with her coffee cup
again. Rage washed over him and every ounce was directed at the clerk behind
the counter. His bear snarled and begged him to shift and hunt the man down for
hurting his mate.
His
mate.
Anger
was replaced by shock which was ultimately replaced by fear. Who was Derek?
When she
turned to walk toward the counter, he voiced his concern.
“Who’s
Derek?” Too late he realized his mistake and he wrapped his hand around hers to
stop the coffee from sloshing out of the lid and burning her.
She felt
wonderful. Her skin was soft and silky smooth and he held on longer than he
needed to, not wanting to let her go. Her eyes roamed his body from top to
bottom and he couldn’t help the half smile when he saw her glance at his feet.
When her eyes met his, he couldn’t breathe.
Blue
eyes stared back at him from her beautiful, round shaped face graced with
delicate features. The shape of her lips, the curve of her upper lip just below
her cute little nose, wide round eyes and delicate cheek bones detailed her
face. She wasn’t what he expected, but she was everything he wanted. Her long,
wavy blond hair had big curls around the bottom and he wondered if they were
natural or if she’d styled it that way.
Once
again he asked about Derek. He had to know where he stood. Was she married, did
she have a boyfriend, what were his chances?
When the
clerk not only answered the question but insulted his mate, Bull responded.
Loudly. Satisfied he’d scared the clerk, he turned his attention back to the
girl, only to see he’d scared her too.
Her
mouth hung open slightly as she looked at him like she was in a trance. Bull
knew he should let her go, but he wanted the information so he asked questions
that he had no business asking as his mate stood there in terror.
She
answered breathlessly and with each answer he realized what a terrible
situation he was creating for himself. He’d snuck up behind her, yelled at the
clerk and held her wrist while he asked inappropriate questions about her love
life.
Bull
wanted to pay for her coffee and newspaper—the exact two things he’d went into
the store for—but if he did and offered to walk her home, she’d probably call
the police. He had to let her go and hope he got another chance to show her he
wasn’t a crazy giant.
“Okay.”
It took every ounce of willpower to step back and not follow her out of the
store, but he let her walk away. He would have to try again.
When she
was out of sight, he realized the only thing he knew about her was that she was
single. What was her name? Did she live within walking distance of the market
or did she drive? Did she live in Chestnut Rock? He thought about questioning
the clerk, but decided to wait until he was desperate. He didn’t want to add
stalker to his list of crazy. Bull skipped the coffee and the paper and walked
out of the store and back to his hotel.
He’d
finally found his mate, the one thing every shifter hoped for, and he’d messed
it all up. Fighting back the depression that threatened, he hoped Matt or Jenn
could help. Maybe they knew who she was. If he found her again, he’d make it
right and never let her go.
Chapter Three
Christina
rolled off the couch when the shrilling ring of her cell-phone vibrated on the
end table next to her head. Half-asleep, she reached for the phone three times
before she found it and touched
answer
after she read Jenn’s name on the screen.
“No
normal people are awake at this hour. Why are you calling me so early?” She
said into the phone, settling back on the couch and closing her eyes again.
“Christina,
it’s eleven o’clock, I thought for sure you’d be up by now,” Jenn laughed.
Cracking
open one eye, Christina saw the sunlight shining through the curtain and
glanced at the clock.
“’Why
are you calling me?”
“To make
sure you’re awake and to invite you to a barbeque later. Matt’s best friend is
in town and I wanted to ask you something. Call me back after you have your
coffee.”
“I’m
awake. What did you want to ask me?”
“Well, I
thought maybe because I left you without a roommate—and Matt trusts Bull with
his life—that he could stay with you until he found a place of his own.”
“Bull?”
Christina asked, sitting up and rubbing her eyes. What kind of name was Bull?
“It’s a
nickname, I’m not sure of the reason. I thought we could meet him and you could
decide if you wanted to extend the offer. He’s staying in a hotel right now.”
“You
haven’t met him yet?”
“No, he
just got into town. He got here sooner than we expected. We offered him our
spare room, but he didn’t want to impose.”
Christina
rolled her eyes. More than likely he didn’t want to be around the new couple.
She loved Jenn and Matt, but they could be a little over the top sometimes. She
definitely wouldn’t want to live with them, even if it was only for a few days.
“He can
move in here.”
“Don’t
you want to meet him first? I haven’t met him yet, Christina.” Christina
understood her friend’s caution, but she trusted Matt and his judgment. If it
didn’t work out, she’d get Matt to tell him to leave.
“I’ll
meet him today, but if Matt trusts him, I’m sure it’ll be fine.”
“Okay,
come over around four. You don’t need to bring anything. Matt’s going to cook burgers
and I’m going to pick up some salad from the deli.”
“Sounds
good. I’ll see you then.”
Christina
hung up the phone, made her way to the kitchen and started filling the coffee
pot. She glanced at the newspaper sitting on the counter where she threw it the
night before. If she was going to have a roommate, she didn’t need to look for
an apartment anymore. At least not right now.
Her
thoughts drifted to the man in the market. His dark brown gaze was imprinted in
her brain. Too bad he hadn’t been as mesmerized by her as she was by him. She
wondered why he asked all those questions only to dismiss her afterward. Why
had he wanted to know? Was he disappointed that she
wasn’t
in a relationship?
The
whole scenario played out in her mind again and she was more confused than
ever. None of it made sense. She didn’t understand their reaction toward each
other. Why had he let her go? Remembering his frown, she realized something
she’d said disappointed him, but she had no idea what.
Christina
knew over-thinking the encounter would only drive her crazy. More than likely
she’d never see him again and would never know the reasoning behind his
actions. It was best to let it go.
She
pushed aside the memory and swallowed down the rest of her coffee before
stepping into the warm spray of the shower. She did her best, but deep down she
couldn’t fight the tiny worry that she’d never find another man that made her
feel the way he did.
Chapter Four
After
replaying the night before over and over until he was too tired to think
anymore, Bull finally drifted into a restless sleep and slept until noon. He
woke feeling tired, groggy and worst of all, cranky. Wanting to shake off his
crappy mood, he showered and took a walk to the nearest fast food place for a
quick lunch.
His bear
itched to shift, run and hunt; angry that his mate got away. He controlled the
urge, barely, because he didn’t want to be late to Matt’s and he knew he would
be if he gave in.
Chestnut
Rock was a beautiful town and he enjoyed exploring while on his walk. Bull was
used to people moving out of his way, his size and voice was intimidating to
everyone in his path, and today was no different. Normally it didn’t bother
him, but today their reactions made him think of his mate and her response to
him.
Growing
up, he’d spent a long time coming to terms with his size and telling himself it
didn’t matter. Most of the time it didn’t. He was happy with himself and he
didn’t want to change anything—except his mate’s reaction toward him.
Shaking
his head to clear it, Bull bought a coffee in one of the specialty shops and
walked back to the hotel as he chugged it down. It had been a long time since
he’d seen his friend and he was excited to meet Jenn. He didn’t want to be a
downer when he got there.
In the
hotel parking lot he dug out his keys, jumped into his truck and drove to
Matt’s.
****
Jenn was
perfect for Matt. Bull was tremendously happy for his friend. Since they’d
talked last, Jenn had decided to become a wolf like Matt and they’d formed a
mating bond. A shifter could find his mate and live a long and happy life
without changing her, or the pair could form a mating bond. While both pairings
were good, a bonded pair shared more.
A mate
is changed by tasting the shifter’s blood. Once the blood is tasted, the mate
will change into the same animal as the shifter and a mating bond is formed
when both mates shift together for the first time. Mates already have strong,
sometimes powerful reactions toward each other, but a mating bond is a deeper
connection.