Bear Naked

by Dana Marie Bell

  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?”

  The sandwich paused halfway to her mouth. “If you hadn’t you wouldn’t be back here with me.” She bit into the ham and cheese with all the concentration she usually gave to her craft.

  Glory was the piercer for Cynful Tattoos, and she took her job seriously. It might sound like a simple little job that didn’t require much thought, but Glory was always looking for a way to improve not only her skills but her stock. She at
tended conventions held just for piercers to learn new techniques and was utterly dedicated to her craft. She kept abreast of all the safety and health regulations, and stayed on top of the latest trends. She’d had to learn anatomy to determine where to safely pierce, such as where saliva glands and ducts were, and where nerves ran so that she wouldn’t do any permanent damage to her clients.

  Ryan was in awe of her. She worked just as hard as he did at something she loved, and didn’t let anyone give her crap for it.

  Her own piercings were subtle. She had a pretty, glittery diamond nose stud, a delicate silver ring in her eyebrow, tiny silver rings up her right ear and another diamond stud he’d heard called a Monroe, right above her upper lip on the right side. As far as he was concerned each piercing only enhanced her beauty, made her more exotic. He wanted to lick each one, to strip her and see if she had any piercings in places he hadn’t discovered yet. Did she sport studs in her nipples, or little hoops he could tug on? Were her labia pierced, or her clit? He shuddered with need just picturing her sweet pink flesh decorated with gold and silver.

  Speaking of piercings, perhaps it was time he asked for one. “If you were going to pierce me, where would you do it?”

  The grin she shot him was so full of evil he nearly backed up. “You sure you want me to answer that?”

  “I’m serious.” He sighed, not sure how to get through to her. It always felt like he took one step forward, but she’d take two steps back. “I want you to give me a piercing, but it will be my first one. What should I get?”

  She sat back, her expression becoming serious, professional. “How adventurous are you feeling, and how will a piercing affect your work?”

  “I’m pretty much stuck in the office, doing paperwork.” He was the head accountant for Bunsun Exteriors, Pennsylvania branch. Thanks to Bunny, he didn’t have to return to Oregon. When Bunny opened the Pennsylvania branch he’d brought Ryan in as the money man and head paper pusher. So far, business was slowly growing, partly on the reputation of Bunsun Exteriors and partly due to the hard work of Bunny, Ryan and Eric.

  She studied him intensely.

  He decided to push a little bit. “Pick something you’d like to look at.”

  She gave him that innocent look that always spelled trouble. “But, Ryan, they don’t make a Chris Hemsworth piercing.”

  He growled, but she just laughed. “Think of something else, SG.”

  She grumbled a bit under her breath at the familiar nickname. Her head tilted left, then right, then left again, and all the while she just…stared. He squirmed under her gaze, wondering how she’d try and emasculate him this time. But instead she surprised him. “I think, considering what you do for a living, we should keep it simple. Do you want one ear done, or both?”

  He was almost disappointed. He’d thought she’d suggest an eyebrow ring or a nipple piercing, though he’d probably balk at a Jacob’s Ladder. “That’s it? An ear piercing?”

  She giggled, the sweetest sound he’d ever heard. He could listen to Glory’s laughter for the rest of his life and never get tired of it. “You want a gauge? I can get one that looks like a tire rim.”

  “Those are the huge ear piercings, right?” That was one piercing he knew he didn’t want. While he didn’t mind the look on other people, it just wasn’t him. “I think if I’m doing my ear we’ll stick to a stud.”

  She made a face, and he wondered if he’d picked wrong. Maybe she’d been testing him, seeing how far he’d go to fit in with her life. “Any particular kind of stud?”

  He shrugged. On this, he could be flexible. “You pick.”

  Glory bit her lip. “I…”

  “You?”

  “I have something. Wait here.” She got up, her sandwich half finished, to root around in her piercing stores. She pulled out little drawers, rooting through the jewelry within them until she pulled something out with a satisfied “Ha! Found it.” She held out the little stud by his eye, nodding in satisfaction. “It’s a titanium stud with a London blue topaz. What do you think?”

  She held out a stud much larger than he’d thought it would be. The dark metal made the blue of the gem stand out. It was unique, just like his mate. “I like it.”

  “It matches your hair and eyes.” Her startled expression was quickly suppressed. She must not have meant to tell him that.

  “I’ll wear your stud with pride.”

  She rolled her eyes at him, but that delicious pink tone raced across her cheeks again. “It’s not an engagement ring, Mr. Williams.”

  He kissed the fingers holding the stud. “Not yet, anyway.”

  She snatched her hand back, but he could tell she was wavering in her resolve not to go out with him. “I’m so charging you full price.”

  He grabbed her hand and held it between her own, the stud digging into both their palms. “Go out with me.”

  “Ryan…”

  “Please. We’ll make it a lunch date rather than a dinner date, something nice and casual.” He put some of the desperation he’d been feeling for months behind the plea. “Please, Glory.”

  Her shoulders slumped. “I’m going to regret this.”

  “Yes?”

  Those pale blue eyes were full of uncertainty. “Yes.”

  Ryan leapt from the table with a war cry. “She said yes!”

  Immediately Glory was surrounded by her friends, all three women chattering a mile a minute. Ryan stumbled as Alex pounded him on the back. “Congratulations, cuz. How did you get her to agree?”

  “I used the Williams charm.”

  “Oh,” Alex drawled. “You dazzled her with bullshit.”

  “Exactly.” Because if Glory thought Ryan was going to stop at a single date, she had another think coming.

  Ryan didn’t stay in the back for long. Oh, no. He had that look in his eye, the one that said he was up to something and Glory had better watch out. The last time he’d gotten that determined look he’d nearly ripped the head off of Cyn’s ex-boyfriend, the one Glory had chosen to flirt with.

  Glory pretended not to notice when Ryan pulled Tabby aside for a little chat. Too bad she didn’t have that super-shifter hearing her friends now had, because she’d love to know why Tabby suddenly shot her a sly look before whispering in Ryan’s ear.

  This couldn’t be good.

  It got worse when Cyn joined them, also whispering in Ryan’s ear. Ryan grinned at something Cyn said, laughing out loud when Tabby added a quiet remark that Glory barely heard.

  So Glory pasted on her most innocent smile and strolled over to them. “What are you three talking about?”

  “Uh…” Tabby shot Ryan a look chock full of guilt.

  Ryan took hold of her hand. “I have to go home to Oregon for a week or so, and I was asking them to keep an eye on you.”

  Glory’s blood ran cold. He was leaving her again.

  “Glory?”

  She could barely hear him over the roaring in her ears. Her chest hurt, her hands and feet tingled. God. She hadn’t had one of these in years, but she recognized all the signs. She had to calm down.

  “Shit. What’s happening?” Ryan’s voice, so distant, was thick with fear.

  She doubled over, unable to catch her breath, nausea racking her until she began to dry heave.

  “Glory!”

  She couldn’t catch her breath, damn it.

  “…panic attack…”

  Spots danced before her eyes, blocking her vision. The edges went dark, and Glory knew she was about to pass out. Cyn and Tabby must be freaking the hell out.

  “…lay her down…”

  The voices of her friends barely registered, but Ryan’s arms, his scent, enveloped her. Dizzy, she clung to his shoulders, barely aware he’d picked her up.

  No. She had to leave, had to find a place that was safe. Ryan was leaving.

  Leaving.

  She needed to get away.

  She began struggling violently, desperate to run, to flee from the knowledge that the ma
n who was supposed to stay by her side, had promised her he wouldn’t leave, was once again going away.

  A deep hum shattered the fear, the notes off-key yet soothing, a masculine lullaby that slowly but surely chipped away at the edges of her terror. Glory blinked, the spots receding, her breath coming easier as that hum enveloped her in warmth. She could feel it moving inside her, soothing her pain, helping her find her center.

  When she could focus enough to see past the panic, she realized she was firmly on Ryan’s lap, being rocked like a child. He held her close, her head under his chin, her arms firmly around his waist. He was humming something that was probably a lullaby but sounded more like a cat with a hairball trying to purr.

  “You okay, sugar?” Tabby was kneeling beside Ryan, her hand stroking Glory’s curls.

  Glory’s breath was coming a bit easier now. “How long?” When Tabby frowned, she explained. “I lose my sense of time when…” She couldn’t finish. She was just too embarrassed that this had happened again, especially after such a long period of time had passed since the last attack.

  “When you have a panic attack.” Cyn’s no-nonsense tone was almost as soothing as Ryan’s off-key hum.

  “Yeah.” There was no sense in denying it. She’d had panic attacks frequently when she first moved in with Cyn and her family. Cyn knew the signs of one, and had helped head one off while Glory was in the hospital. Hell, she’d helped calm Glory down when they’d met with the Halle Puma Alpha and Curana, Max and Emma Cannon, to discuss how to deal with the man who’d shot Glory.

  Ryan hadn’t been there, either.

  “What happened?” Alex, his hand on Tabby’s shoulder, was studying her closely. “I get you had a panic attack, but why? What set it off?”

  Glory refused to answer. There was no need to share her shame.

  “Ryan talked about leaving.” Cyn sighed as Glory started to lose her breath again. “Glory, he’s not going anywhere.”

  Glory flinched. She couldn’t let Ryan know he was the reason she’d—

  “I did this?” Ryan tucked his fingers under her chin and gently lifted her face to his. “Oh, sweetheart. I’m so sorry.”