by Cecilia Lane
Nolan’s eyes dropped to the inch of leg she bared. “Playing games, sweetheart? You’ll lose.”
“You gonna punish me?” She raised the hem another inch.
His hand shot out and slid around to the back of her neck and deep into her hair. Becca stilled. So much power resided in that embrace. He was a rough sort of gentleman in public, but there was no doubt who had control when they were alone. There was no question how she responded to it, either.
He crowded her against the counter and already she could feel the thick bar of his erection against her thigh. There was hardly anything between them. Would be even less, given half a second.
His lips crashed down on hers, firm and demanding. Hot. Her mouth parted with a gasp, and he slid his tongue against hers. They twisted and tangled together, lips moving and breath mingling.
Becca groaned into his mouth. He remembered everything. While she’d done her best to forget their time together and move on to a dismal life, he’d stocked away all those tidbits. He’d waited for her to return.
And she felt a little sick that she’d tried so hard to forget him.
“Nolan...”
He pinched her chin in his fingers and brought her eyes back to his. “Stop. Whatever is worrying you, whatever is swirling in your head right now, just stop. I want you, Becca. It’s always been you. I don’t care what happened since you left as long as I have you now.”
Trying to ignore the shiver working up and down her spine, she gave him a teasing smirk. They were verging too close to a serious conversation she wasn’t ready to have. “So you don’t care about the romance novel cover model? Or the Australian doing a tour of America?”
A low growled rumbled in his chest and entirely contradicted his grumbled, “No.”
She caught his lips between her teeth. “The cover model had a tiny dick, and the Aussie tried to stick his thumb up my bum. You have nothing to be jealous of.”
He picked her up and set her on the counter, then stepped between her thighs. “Good, because that ass is mine.”
He peeled open the shirt one button and kiss at a time. Her heart thudded a quick beat by the time he dragged a slow, heated gaze from her navel to her chest and finally met her eyes.
His front door banged open and boots thudded through the short entryway. “Nolan!” Hudson shouted.
“Son of a—” she muttered.
“Get out!” Nolan yelled.
The primal power that he flung in Hudson’s direction stopped the man in his tracks and froze the breath in her lungs. Strong bear. She wondered if he was usually so forceful or if it was all because of her. How did Callum feel about having such a wild beast in his clan?
“Shit. Sorry. I didn’t know you had anyone over. Is that Becca?”
Nolan pulled back on his bear enough that she could breathe again. She peeked around Nolan’s shoulder and wiggled her fingers. “Hey, Hudson.”
A renewed growl and sense of power kicked Hudson into gear and out the door.
Becca closed Nolan’s shirt around her and pushed her hair behind her ears. “I should get going anyway. I don’t think I can be hours late multiple times in a month and still keep my job, even if the boss is my sister. She’ll want to order me around for the street fair, I’m sure.”
“You running out on me, sweetheart?”
“For now. Guess you’ll have to chase me down tonight.” Shit, shit, shit. She was making plans. With Nolan. Date plans. Sexy date plans. What the fuck was wrong with her?
He sipped at her lips and that ugly voice went silent. Her chest burned, but not in the ate-too-many-tacos sort of way. It was something she hadn’t felt since before... everything. Before she left Bearden.
Before she left Nolan.
He pulled apart just enough to press their foreheads together. “Tonight, then.”
Chapter 18
Becca glanced up and down the street in front of Mug Shot. Familiar white tents had sprung up overnight and the hum of voices filled her ears as shop owners and volunteers set to work for the first day of the Summertime Fest.
Bearden had a problem with celebrations. They overdid it for everything. The seasonal celebrations were the worst, and she wasn’t sure if summer or winter were the primary offenders. The Winter Wonderland Bash spanned several days, but the Summertime Fest turned the whole town into a fairground. Tents for local food and business went up at the same time the rickety fair rides, and neither came down until the final hour of the final day. And at the end, prizes went to those with the most popular booth.
It felt a little odd watching the preparations after a funeral the day before. She could remember when Ephraim marched up and down the street, making sure no one violated fire codes. Her chest tightened to know that the man wouldn’t be making an appearance ever again.
A glance across the street showed the Strathorns starting their day. They put on smiles, but grief held their shoulders stiffer than usual and slowed their movements. But they still put in the work because it was expected of them.
Nolan saluted her with a spatula from his spot under the tent. The firefighters served up burgers and hot dogs in the afternoon, but her private chef was already checking and triple checking his supplies.
The others were busy setting up the house fire trailer. It mimicked a home with a bottom floor and upstairs and was meant for small children to learn how to recognize a fire and find a quick escape. The Strathorns would settle kids into their “beds” and then trigger the fire alarms as a drill. It was as popular an attraction as some of the fair rides.
The door behind her dinged and Becca heard her sister’s footsteps approaching. She planted her hands on her hips and inhaled deeply. “I love the smell of competition in the morning.”
Faith bumped her shoulder as she passed by with a huge tray of baked goods in her hands. “Competition? Or is that cologne? From a certain firefighter you swore to hate for all eternity?”
Red flooded her cheeks, but Becca grinned through it. “The end of the eternity arrived a bit sooner than I imagined.”
Faith snorted and shook her head. “I can’t believe this is how you dump fresh gossip on me. You’re absolutely giving me all the details. Now, get to work, slacker. Mara is prepping the coffee right now, but I still need trays brought out and the booth set.”
The morning passed in a blur of serving drinks and pastries to anyone who approached. The crowd that passed through split evenly between the tent for Mug Shot and Tommy’s Diner. Even though Tommy and Faith were a mated pair, they didn’t hide their competitive streaks. The two shouted frequent updates to the number of people they served.
When the mid-morning lull hit with a final count of fifty-four for Mug Shot and an even fifty for Tommy’s Diner, Becca rolled her shoulders. Her sister and her mate descended into good-natured bickering of whether family groups counted as one or as individual tallies.
It was her other companion that caught her attention. Mara stared across the street at the Bearden Fire Department tent.
Her inner fox grumbled with more than a hint of jealousy and desire for blood until Mara’s gaze bounced. From one man to another, she searched for someone in particular.
Becca stroked a calming hand over her animal. Mara wasn’t interested in Nolan. Nor was she interested in the only other unmated male present, Gray. But two men were missing from the group.
She leaned a little closer to Mara. “The firefighters will be hit hard for the lunch rush. Then we’ll be hit by everyone looking for desserts. We have some time to kill if you wanted to sneak over and say hello.”
“Oh,” Mara startled. “That’s not necessary. They probably have a lot of work to do.”
“More reason to disturb them. Momma Faith.” Becca stretched out the syllables and scuffed the toe of her shoe on the ground. “Since it’s slow, can I take Mara around since she’s never been to one of our shindigs?”
Faith pursed her lips and put on her best motherly look. She was getting far too good at i
t. “I suppose so.” She shook a hand towel in their direction. “Go on, get. Be back here in an hour for your chores.”
Becca mugged a childlike delight and linked arms with Mara. But before they could cross the drawn battle lines, a group of humans approached.
“Sorry to bother you. Rylee said one of the ladies at the coffee shop helped put the trail ride together. We were wondering if that was you?”
With everything else going on, she’d completely forgotten she pushed Trent and Ethan to combine forces. She was glad they took her advice. The faces that beamed hopeful smiles at her looked like they’d had a good time.
“If everything went well, I’m your girl. They didn’t try to eat you, did they? That’s not on me and I’ll deny all involvement.”
A few chuckled, including their ringleader. “No. We did get to see one of them shift. That was a new experience for some of us. We were hoping you had some more recommendations while we’re here. We want the full experience of what it’s like to be a resident of the enclave.”
“A freak, you mean?” To a person, they all frowned. Shit. Foot, meet mouth. “Just kidding. I’m bad with gauging my audience. Could never do stand up because of it.” The frowns turned off and a few more smiles dotted the group. “Enjoy the Summertime Fest. That’s a big one. We love our celebrations around here. There’s a nice waterfall maybe an hour’s walk from the square. Lots of lovebirds go up there for romantic picnics. Let me get a list together for you guys and I’ll pass it along to Rylee.”
With the group nodding and murmuring their thanks, she and Mara made their escape across the street. Nolan pulled a plate of already-formed burgers from a cooler and fiddled with the grill. The rest of the clan not detailed to watch over the fire safety demonstration stood back and let her bear work. All except Hudson. “Where’s Hudson? I wanted to let Mara meet him. She’s got a thing for the brawny warrior types.”
Mara lightly slapped her arm. “I said no such thing. Lies and slander.”
“Yeah, but you were thinking it,” Becca teased and gave herself a silent congratulations when Mara simply shrugged and didn’t object.
“Food run,” Nolan growled.
Her lips twitched when she peeked at him through her lashes. Green eyes found hers and no sign of his dimple remained. Sexy man didn’t like others stepping on his toes. She wanted to poke that bear and see what he did to her.
She gestured to the spread before her, and the sad, flat hamburger buns that threatened to fall off the edge of the table. “Is Nolan being picky?” she teased.
“Nolan is being as picky as he needs to be, unless everyone wants a repeat of the lettuce buns?” He rounded on his clan, spatula in his hand. “You can’t pile on three patties and all the toppings and expect these,” he flicked the spatula dismissively at the unopened bag, “to hold up.”
Becca raised her hands. “And on that note, we’re going to use our time wisely before Faith finds something she needs us for.”
“Hey.” His mouth hitched up at the corner and that damnable dimple reappeared. “Come here.”
She took a step closer to the table and squeaked with surprise when Nolan slid his hand around the back of her neck and crashed his lips against hers.
Becca’s hands fluttered at her sides. This was happening. They were going beyond speaking to each other. They were getting very public with… with… whatever the hell they were.
Balls. That was a problem before. Boyfriend, girlfriend, friends, mates. They never decided on a label when they thought they had all the time in the world. It bit them in the ass when their lives turned too serious, too soon. They couldn’t claim to be hurt if they never claimed the other in the first place.
There was a challenge, too. He was daring her to do something to stop him. Or keep kissing him and let herself be tied tighter up in him. Clever man played her like a pro.
With a growl, Nolan practically pulled her over the table between them and she lost her train of thought.
He tasted so good. All Nolan. Pure. Woodsy. He slowed the kiss and caressed his thumbs over her cheeks, like he wanted to memorize how she felt in that moment. And she let him. There was no pulling away from him.
Her fingertips slid up his forearms. Her fox watched and waited. There was no insisting on mating him then. Only a casual expectation of it happening. Little beast toyed with her head because Becca couldn’t find an objection to save her life.
Sparks built under the contact of their skin and a soft rattle built in Nolan’s chest. Flawed, sexy man. He continued to sip her lips and slowly devour her.
The festival faded to nothing around them. No sight, no sound. Only Nolan existed and that was enough for her. She’d let herself slip and fell straight into his arms and she didn’t understand why she’d held him away for so long.
He eased back and pecked her lips once, twice. Then nipped at her with a grin. “See you tonight, sweetheart,” he murmured.
And then he stepped back.
Oh, that man! She wanted to sink her teeth into him and bite out all the bits that thought he could get away with teasing her like that. Quips and final words were her thing. He was stealing her bit.
Unwilling to give him the satisfaction of pulling a snarky one-liner from her, and not at all because he’d stolen her ability to form a coherent thought, she grabbed Mara’s hand and dragged her away from the BFD tent.
“Sooo,” Mara said to the air in front of them. “That vow against Nolan lasted a long time.”
“We should get tickets and find the most dangerous ride to go on. You’re right!” Becca loudly non-answered.
Mara jerked her chin at the humans that had approached her earlier as they wandered from tent to tent. “Aren’t you a little envious of them? They can leave whenever they want and blend right back into the background.”
Becca surveyed the group. They were given space in the crowd, though it wasn’t immediately obvious. The handful of protectors spread around them were similarly well hidden unless one knew where to look. Even wandering in the thick of a crowd that could rip them to shreds in moments, they all looked content. But there was no hiding for them.
“What do you mean?”
“They can leave and be human. Let’s be honest. Now that the enclaves are exposing themselves, it’s only a matter of time before they want all of us registered. They’ll never experience that.” She shrugged and flicked a glance at Becca. “Everyone here knows your business. There’s no privacy. Maybe it was better outside where you can pretend to be human.”
There was a hesitation in her scent that gave Becca pause. Her words didn’t sound like a lie, but there wasn’t much conviction in them, either. But maybe she had a point. News of her and Nolan spread like wildfire. She could practically see the gossip jumping from group to group. There wasn’t anything too hateful about it, but she received more than a few curious appraisals.
She rolled her eyes. They probably all thought she’d leave again. Which, up until a few days ago, sounded like a good idea.
“Been there, done that, the t-shirt doesn’t fit anymore,” she said finally. “I’ve been on the outside. It’s not always better.”
“What made you decide to come back?”
Becca’s fox rose up and she automatically pushed the beast back. It was the same with the memories coated in red. She couldn’t afford either intrusion. “It was just time to come home. I didn’t have much luck out there, and realized maybe all my problems living here were the imaginings of a stupid teenager.”
And damn if she didn’t believe those words. She stood in the middle of a Bearden celebration with a woman that might just score an invite to the brunch club she had with Faith, Leah, and Rylee. But the biggest, scariest change came with Nolan. Maybe there was a future with him. Maybe she could leave behind the nightmares and simply be happy again.
They wound through the craft and food booths lining Main and the town square, then followed more exhibits toward the clearing that held the rides.
>
“Ever had your fortune told? Maybe you can see if Nolan is your one true love.” Mara pointed to a red tent standing on its own, then spun around to walk backward toward it.
Becca’s fox stretched in her mind. The little beast was utterly content after a night with their bear. Becca didn’t need a fortune teller to inform her of what her fox already insisted, but she trailed after Mara. “Every day in the horoscope section of the Bear’s Den Gazette. I’ve eaten fortune cookies with more accurate advice.”
Mara backed through the flap. “Time to get your palm read. Is your lifeline broken?”
Maybe, maybe not. But she’d definitely broken someone else’s. Unease settling in her stomach, Becca followed Mara into the tent.
Strong spices filled her nose and made her eyes water. Whoever ran the joint was used to human senses instead of supernatural ones. There wouldn’t be much business if the woman didn’t cut back on the sage.
“I find the extra purification is needed for work inside enclaves,” an accented voice boomed from the darkness.
Becca and Mara whirled, but there was no sign of a woman anywhere inside the tent.
Shadows shimmered in a corner, and a young woman dressed like a generic Esmeralda stepped into the light. The gold belt dangling from her purple skirt jingled with each tiny step. Instead of dark hair, red locks curled and floated around her shoulders with more volume than should be humanly possible.
Becca inhaled and tried to catch the woman’s scent. She could smell nothing but herbs.
“We want our fortunes told,” Mara said.
“Then you have come to the right place. I am the greatest teller of fortunes this side of the veil,” she boasted. She swept her hands wide and gestured to the table in the center of the room. Funny, that. Becca couldn’t remember it being there before. “Sit, sit. We will begin.”
Feeling like she was caught in a thick cloud of something, Becca’s body moved toward the hard, wooden chair. She tried to run a mental hand through her fox’s fur, but the little creature curled into a tight ball.
It should have set her into a panic. She could only rest her hands on the table.