The makeup was a snap, since she rarely wore much more than mascara and lip gloss. She rubbed a little mousse and liquid shine into her long, thick tresses and left it cascading down her back. After one last hair fluff and glance in the mirror, she decided she looked as good as she was going to get and headed out of the room to check the time. The alarm clock sitting on her nightstand warned that her time was almost up. She had thirty minutes to get to the diner and the drive would only take her fifteen.
There was plenty of time to pop into the kitchen and scarf down a quick bite of something to stave off her hunger. Although she wasn’t concerned about being seen as a woman with a healthy appetite, she really didn’t want to be remembered as the lady who was so hungry she ate her own napkin while they were waiting for their entrées to arrive. She was starving and needed to get a little something in her stomach right then, otherwise she’d end up sick to her stomach before he got the chance to eat later. After working all day and eating little more than a couple of stale chicken nuggets during lunchroom duty, her stomach was eager for sustenance.
A peek into her fridge didn’t reveal much unless diet tea and mustard were all the rage. The cabinet by the stove revealed better options in the form of a box of mini peanut butter crackers she’d forgotten buying. She popped a handful into her mouth and chewed as she made her way to the hall closet for a sweater to wear over her dress. Since there were only half a dozen garments hanging from the rod, finding the one she wanted should have been a snap. However, her favorite black sweater was missing. She thought back over the last few days, trying to remember the last time she’d worn it and subsequently left it, and drew a blank. She would have sworn she’d placed it back in the closet. Shaking her head at her own forgetfulness, she snatched a simple black shrug off its hanger and pulled it on. There would be time to worry about her sweater later. Now she needed to get to the diner on time and make a good impression on the handsome man who’d asked her out, so tonight would only be the first date of many.
She darted back into the living room, grabbed her purse and keys off the coffee table, and hurried out to her car. The short drive was uneventful. Before she knew it, she was pulling up in front of the diner and parallel parking along the curb.
Despite being a few minutes early, she found Toby waiting outside the entrance. Pleased that he seemed to be looking forward to this date as much as her, she smiled brightly at him, and went in for a hug. She slid her arms around his broad chest and held him loosely.
He froze, as if surprised by her touch, and then he lifted his big, strong arms and wrapped them around her, surrounding her in his warmth and scent—a dark, earthy aroma with a hint of pine. She breathed him in and relished the brief physical contact for a moment before easing back and looking up into his dark eyes. “Thanks for inviting me to dinner.”
“Thanks for saying yes.”
She smiled brightly. “I hope you brought your appetite because I’m starving.”
“Me too.” He stepped back. “Ready to go in?”
She nodded. “Lead the way.”
He opened the door and held it for her. She walked in ahead of him and glanced around, already familiar with the restaurant. She’d eaten there more than she cared to admit since moving to town. The small-town vibe was evident all over Pleasant Valley, but nowhere quite as much as right there at the diner, with its charming vinyl booths and vintage jukebox. Although she knew how to cook, she found it a waste of time to create a big meal for one person. She could never manage to eat all the leftovers before they went bad and throwing out uneaten food made her feel wasteful. Most of the time it was easier just to pick up something to eat on her way home from work, even if takeout was harder on her waistline.
She glanced back at Toby. “Where do you want to sit?”
He nodded toward the right side of the L-shaped restaurant. “The back okay with you?”
“Sure.” She followed him to the rear booth and slid into the seat opposite from him.
Almost as soon as they sat down, a waitress came over to the table. “Howdy. What can I get you folks to drink tonight?”
“Sweet tea,” they both said simultaneously.
“All righty. I’ll have your drinks out in a jiff.” The waitress sauntered off.
“I guess we have that in common,” Zoe said.
“I guess so.” Toby smiled at her, revealing two deep dimples. “I’d say that’s a good sign.”
“Me too. I love tea.” As soon as the words popped out of her mouth, she wished she could take them back. I love tea? Could she have sounded any more ridiculous? “So, do you come here often?”
“Not really,” he answered. “It’s easier for me to just throw a piece of meat on the grill and nuke some kind of side at the end of the day. By the time I get off work, I’m usually filthy and not fit for being seen in public.”
“I get that. There have been plenty of days when I’ve left the school covered in craft supplies thanks to the kids in my class.” She reached for one of the laminated menus stuffed in behind the napkin dispenser, which was pushed back against the wall next to the salt and pepper shakers and a bottle of ketchup. “What exactly do you do for a living?”
“Technically I’m an arborist, but I usually end up bouncing around, doing a million different odd jobs for the Parks, Recreation, and Forestry departments.”
“Oh really?” She looked up from her menu. “That sounds interesting.”
“It can be. I love my job in the spring and fall, when I can be outside working on the properties around the county. Unfortunately, I spend a lot of my time in the summer on a lawnmower and most of my hours in the winter clearing snow. I can’t really complain though. For the most part, I enjoy my work.”
“Me too. I mean, this is my first teaching assignment since I finished college, but I really love it so far. I’ve always wanted to be an elementary school teacher. I can’t imagine doing anything else.” Glancing back down at her menu, she made a final decision on what she wanted. She snapped the menu closed and returned it to the holder.
The waitress returned with their drinks and set them on the table. “Are you ready to order?”
Toby looked at Zoe. “You good?”
“Yeah.” She glanced at the waitress. “I want the chef salad, with Italian dressing and a side order of fries, please.”
The waitress scribbled on her pad and then turned her attention to Toby. “And you?”
“I’d like a cheeseburger with everything, and fries.”
“All right. I’ll put your orders in and have them out to you as soon as possible.”
“Thanks,” Toby said.
They made small talk until their meals arrived and then dug into their food with relish. Even as famished as Zoe had been when they arrived, her appetite didn’t hold a candle to Toby’s. He ate twice as fast as she did, demolishing his burger before she’d made a dent in her salad. Thankfully, he slowed down once he started in on his fries, giving her a chance to catch up.
Before she was finished, the waitress came over and asked if they wanted dessert. Toby ordered a slice of apple pie a la mode. Zoe went with the house specialty, which was strawberry banana shortcake. The sweets arrived just as Zoe was finishing up her fries. The waitress set their plates in front of them and cleared the other dishes.
Toby ate at a bite of pie and ice cream. “The pies here are great. They make them from scratch.”
“Oh? I didn’t know that. Maybe next time I’ll order what you’re having.” His pie did look good. The crust was flaky and the apple filling looked sweet enough to induce a toothache.
“Want a bite?” He leaned across the table and offered her forkful of pie.
Unable to resist, she met him halfway and slid her lips over the fork tines and pulled the pie into her mouth. She sat back, chewed, and swallowed. “Yum. Tastes like homemade to me. Thanks for letting me try it.”
“Anytime.”
“You want a bite of mine?”
�
�Nah. I don’t care for bananas.”
“Really? I like pretty much all fruit. Blackberries and raspberries aren’t my favorites because of those little seeds that always get in your teeth, but I’ll still eat them.”
“Yeah, I know what you mean. Those are a little aggravating.”
Zoe turned her attention to her own dessert and took a bite. The taste of tart strawberries, rich bananas, and sweet cream burst over her taste buds and made her groan at how good the flavors worked together. She quickly dug back in and popped another spoonful into her mouth. The second taste was just as good as the first, maybe better. “Mmm. This is so good.”
She glanced at Toby and found him looking right back at her, with his fork hovering over his plate as if he’d forgotten the utensil was in his hand. It took her a second to realize why he might be staring, and then her cheeks heated at how she must have sounded to him, oohing and ahhing over her food.
A sudden streak of playfulness hit her and she decided to tease him a little more. She dipped her spoon back in the whipped cream, twirled it around until it was good and coated, and then brought it up to her mouth and slowly licked the white, creamy goodness off the front and back of the utensil. She peeked at Toby through her lashes just in time to see him slam his eyes closed.
Concerned, she reached across the table and rested her hand on top of his. “Are you okay?”
“Yes,” he growled, his voice a fraction deeper than normal. Without opening his eyes, he turned his hand palm-side up and held onto hers like a lifeline. His chest expanded and retracted with every deep breath he sucked in. “I just need a second.”
“Okay.” She sat there, watching him breathe in and out, and tried to figure out what was going on. One minute he’d been fine and the next he’d wigged out and shut down. She didn’t know what had happened to set him off. Surely her little trick with the spoon hadn’t earned this kind of reaction. She just hoped it hadn’t been anything else she’d done. The college she’d attended was integrated—allowing both human and shifters students—but she’d mostly kept to herself and focused on her studies. What she knew about shifters was minimal at best.
After a moment, Toby opened his eyes and offered her a weak smile. “I’m sorry. I haven’t lost control of my bear since puberty.”
“It’s all right.” She pulled her hand out of his grasp and sat back. “Can I ask what happened?”
“It’s you.”
“Excuse me?” She couldn’t think of a single thing she’d done to upset him.
Toby’s expression grew grave. “You didn’t do anything wrong. It’s just being near you while we’re surrounded by all these other people is riling my bear up and bringing out all my protective instincts.”
“Is something wrong? Do you think someone around poses a threat or something?” She glanced around, trying to find the source of his discomfort, but everything looked virtually the same as it had when they’d come in.
“No. It isn’t anything like that. The concern isn’t a rational one.” He leaned forward and rested his elbows on the table. “There’s something I need to tell you. I wasn’t going to say anything tonight—I didn’t want to scare you off—but things will make more sense once you know.”
That sounded ominous. “Okay,” she said, drawing the word out. “What is it?” Was he married? Feral? Something worse? Was anything worse than a potentially married, feral werebear? It would be just her luck if the first man she’d been attracted to in ages turned out to be some kind of cheating psychopath.
He gazed into her eyes and said, “I’m pretty sure you’re my mate.”
“Oh.” She hadn’t expected him to say that. Although she didn’t know much about shifters, she knew enough to grasp the gravity of the situation. “How certain are you?”
“On a scale of one to ten, I’m at about an eleven.”
“Wow. That’s pretty sure. How can you tell?” She was curious to hear why he believed she was the one for him. Not that she was complaining—he was damn handsome and seemed like a nice guy so far—but she had to know what it was about her that called to his inner animal.
“It’s the way you smell and the way instincts react when I’m near you, the connection I feel between us that resonates all the way to my bones. You’re supposed to be mine and I’m supposed to be yours. I knew it the second I saw you. That’s why I was so tongue-tied when I met you yesterday and why I’m having so much trouble controlling my animal now. The bear doesn’t care that this is our first date. He already sees you as his mate and is urging me to stake our claim on you. Since I’m not acting on the bear’s desires, he sees all the men around us as rivals and is fighting to break free and assert his claim.”
“To be honest, that sounds a little intimidating. Like you’re only seconds away from launching yourself over the table.”
“Don’t worry. I would never hurt you. You have my word on that. As foreign as all this sounds to you, it’s just as new for me. I’ve never felt like this before and it’s a little overwhelming.”
Zoe grabbed the paper wrapper she’d pulled off her straw earlier and rolled it into a ball between her fingers. “What happens now? I mean, I believe what you’re saying, but I’m nowhere near ready to just jump off the deep end on your say so. Can we take things slow and get to know each other a little bit before we do something irreversible?”
“Of course.” Toby’s shoulders sagged. “I want to learn all about you too. I didn’t tell you because I thought the news would make you pledge your undying love to me right here and now. If anything, I was worried learning the truth would scare you off, but it didn’t feel right keeping something so big a secret. You deserve nothing less than complete honesty, even if it killed my chances with you.”
“You haven’t killed anything.” She dropped the scrap of paper and folded her hands on the table in front of her. “I am going to need some time to get used to idea of being someone’s mate, but I like you and I’m not afraid of a challenge.”
“You have no idea how glad I am to hear that. I just want a chance to get to know you and see what happens. I’m sure there are fated mates out there who haven’t worked out for one reason or another, but I’ve never heard of any of them. I really hope we aren’t the first here in Pleasant Valley.”
Zoe hoped he was right. Toby was handsome, educated, and seemed like a nice guy. More importantly, there was definitely some chemistry sizzling between them. While you could learn to love someone, you couldn’t force attraction.
The waitress stopped by their table. “Can I get anything else for y’all tonight?”
Toby glanced at Zoe—who shook her head—before replying. “Just the check, please.”
The waitress tore their check off the pad and set it on the edge of the table. Toby pulled it over, glanced at the total, and pulled out his wallet.
Zoe ticked off a couple more mental checkmarks in Toby’s favor. He was considerate and had manners, plus he was nice to the wait staff—a big plus in her book since one of the part-time jobs she’d worked in college had been waitressing. It was harder than it looked and a pretty thankless job most of the time.
“Do you want to split the bill?” she asked.
Toby shook his head. “My treat.”
That was sweet. “Thank you.”
“My pleasure.” Toby set a wad of cash on top of the bill in the center of the table. “You ready to go?”
“Yeah.” Zoe slid out of the booth and followed Toby outside.
He stopped on the sidewalk and offered her his hand. “Walk you to your car?”
“Sure.” She placed her hand in his and led him toward her car. She stopped by the driver’s side door and looked up at him expectantly. “This is me.”
“Thanks for meeting me for dinner.” He ran the pad of his thumb back and forth over the side of her hand.
Goose bumps cascaded up her arm. “Thanks for inviting me.”
He moved in closer, near enough that she could feel the heat radiating
from his body. “I hope we can do it again sometime soon.”
Zoe inhaled and breathed in his unique scent. “Me too.”
He gazed deep into her eyes. “I really want to kiss you.”
Butterflies burst into flight in the depths of her stomach. She wet her lips and tilted her chin up, silently giving him permission to take what he wanted.
She didn’t have to wait long. Using the hold he had on her hand, he pulled her up tight against him and slanted his mouth over hers. His lips were soft and warm and caressed back and forth until she found his rhythm and joined in, following his lead.
Everything around them faded into oblivion as she lost herself in the taste of his kiss and the feel of him pressing against her. Desire buzzed through her, heating her blood. The slick glide of his tongue over her lower lip surprised and excited her, prompting her to part her lips and invite him inside. The tips of their tongues touched, retreated, and met again. The second touch was confident, more resolute. Toby’s tongue slid alongside her own with purpose, exploring the depths of her mouth. She returned each stroke and tried to remember the last time she’d been kissed so well. Her mind drew a blank. No one had ever kissed her like this, as if she were cherished and desirable, something special. As first kisses went, this one was epic.
A motor rumbled down the street and someone wolf whistled.
Toby kissed her lightly and eased back. “Sorry. I guess I got a little carried away.”
“Don’t apologize.” She blinked up at him. “You can kiss me like that anytime you want.”
Toby grinned and ducked his head. “That’s good to know. For what it’s worth, the feeling is mutual.”
Chapter Three
After their date at the diner, they’d talked on the phone every night and slowly gotten to know each other. Although Toby enjoyed their conversations and learning what he could about his mate, talking had only made him long to see her all the more. His bear didn’t understand why he could hear Zoe, but not see or smell her. The confusion infuriated the bear, which led to Toby needing to shift and run off his aggression every night in the National Forest land behind his house.
Pleasant Valley Bears: BBW Paranormal Shape Shifter Romance (Pleasant Valley Shifters) Page 20