by Cecilia Lane
Still unsure of who she could ask for a favor, Rylee accepted the invitation to a virtual meeting later that morning with some of the team back at the Nevada lab, then shut the screen.
Thoughts of Major Delano followed her even as she gathered clothes and turned the shower up to a wickedly high temperature. Whatever he planned, whatever he wanted to do, she needed to know. Her research depended on it. The people of Bearden would paint her with the same brush if he continued being a huge jerk to everyone he came across. And it was precisely that sort of attitude that made her research so valuable. If she could show that the residents of Bearden were just like everyone else through the interviews she conducted and the samples she collected, then there would be no threat to rail against.
Just like that, Cole was back at the forefront of her mind. He was the bright light during a horrible day. He pushed back on the bullies that were trying to intimidate her.
Cole was everything she shouldn’t want. A giant of a man, with bad boy inked across his skin with numerous tattoos. But the foul-mouthed, surly shifter made her feel more secure than any time in her life. He was a lifeline she hadn’t known she needed.
He’d hugged her, and she didn’t freak out. She didn’t know if it was pure adrenaline from Delano or if she craved touch that much, but Cole didn’t send her spiraling into panic when he crushed her to his chest. No, that wasn’t right. He was huge, but he’d been gentle. It was quick, done and over in the blink of an eye, but it felt right. More than right. Perfect.
Fear still coated her thoughts and made her feel queasy. She knew exactly how terrible the consequences could be to put her trust in the wrong person. She’d been kept awake by those nightmares for years. She fled her safe lab at the mere hint of seeing that man again.
But thinking about Cole, and feeling the heat of the water running over her skin, made desire blossom to life. She thought she’d never feel it again, not after the bruises on her skin and the destruction of her confidence. But Cole Strathorn, loud, huge, shifter, made her mouth water.
Slowly, afraid of the darkness that inevitably closed in around her, she skimmed her hands up her sides. Her breath caught as she imagined her hands as Cole’s. Up and up she touched, until she cupped her breasts. Her nipples tightened into hard peaks.
The scratch of Cole’s eternal five-o’clock shadow would rasp against her skin. Would she like that? Could she see him, smell him, feel him without giving into the darkness?
She held her breath, expecting a shiver of fear and contempt to run through her. When it didn’t, when panic didn’t force her to her knees and bring tears to her eyes, Rylee pressed her forehead against the slick shower wall and groaned.
Cole was off limits. And not just because he was one of her subjects to study. He was a man in a town she’d never settle in or visit again.
Except, a tiny voice in the back of her head whispered. Except that’s the exact sort of man she could get involved with. No strings. No seeing him again if she freaked out. She could ease back into relationships with a man like Cole. He was safe precisely because she’d never step in Bearden again once she was done there. She could kick the dirt and any potential embarrassing humiliation from her shoes at the same time.
Rylee turned the knob and stepped out of the shower. Wrapped in a fluffy towel, freshly showered and ready to start a new day, her confidence soared. She couldn’t let the dark monsters in her past continue to eat away at the light of her present and future.
Despite the confusion Cole brought, she was glad she’d been pushed by fear to enter Bearden. She didn’t want to let fear rule her. It’d hounded her for too long. She didn’t know what would happen between them or anyone who caught her eye, or even if she’d be able to keep her panic locked away. But she wasn’t about to find out by staying inside her hotel room.
She was tired of being stuck in a state of in-between. She was Schrodinger’s cat, caught in limbo by a trap of her trauma. She was well past the time of discovering if she could exist as a normal person or shrink further into herself.
Rylee glanced at the time. Six in the dang morning. Stupid Major Delano and the intrusive worry he instilled in her. She still needed to find someone with access to documents or water cooler talk about Delano’s goals for Bearden.
At least the coffee shop would be open. She’d seen it in passing but hadn’t stopped to visit. Perhaps she could even snag another interview, or at least make her presence known in Bearden. She didn’t want to be the mousy little scientist escorted around by the big bad bear. She wanted to be her own person, unafraid of her shadow.
And if she could claw her way to that ledge without feeling the familiar prick of fear when the first man passed her by, then maybe she could start to relax elsewhere in her life.
She reached for her phone and typed out a quick message to Cole. Getting coffee and heading to the lab early. No need to pick me up this morning.
The sun had barely peeked over the horizon when Rylee stepped out onto the sleepy morning street. She was once again confronted with the sheer adorableness of Bearden. A few hands waved a silent greeting to her as she walked through the town square and toward the coffee shop. And from there, it was only a few more blocks to the clinic and her lab.
The peacefulness extended even into Mug Shot Coffee Bar itself. A trio of elderly women had planted themselves in one corner, and while they didn’t give her a friendly hello, they didn’t outright snarl at her, either. They darted quick looks at another woman sitting alone at a table and staring forlornly at the diner across the street. Town gossips, she supposed, as they descended into hushed whispers.
She approached the woman at the counter, who hummed and drew lines across blocks in the newspaper spread out in front of her. Rylee tapped her lips and shuffled for several long seconds, trying to politely appear like she studied the menu on the back wall. When the woman still didn’t look up, she cleared her throat.
A great rustled of paper and wide eyes greeted her. The paper disappeared from the counter and the marker in the woman’s hand colored her palm in her rush to cap. She straightened her apron and lifted her chin in the air. “Oh! Sorry! I was just looking at the want ads. Nothing good, in case you were wondering. I’m never getting out of here. What can I get for you?”
“Uhm. I don’t usually get anything fancy. Just a coffee?” She’d never had much expendable income for coffee shops, and primarily developed her habit with whatever swill had been brewed that day by a research assistant on campus. The coffee found in break rooms after she graduated wasn’t any better.
“You’re the doctor, aren’t you?” Rylee nodded and the woman stuck her hand out in greeting. “Becca Holden. Half owner of this lovely establishment.”
“Employee! You can’t be trusted with the bagels, let alone owning!” A voice shouted from the back. Another woman bustled through the doors behind the counter and set a tray of pastries on the counter. “Stop bothering the customers, Becks. And shouldn’t you be getting her coffee?”
The woman then crossed her arms on top of the case. “I’m Faith, the actual owner. I apologize in advance for anything inappropriate that comes out of my sister’s mouth.”
Rylee nodded in understanding. “Eldest sibling, huh? I have a whole passel younger than me.”
“By minutes! Older by minutes!” Becca rolled her eyes and shuffled to the big silver pots at her back. “Hey Doc, I can set you up with something sticky sweet to take with you. Or something bagel-y. Whichever you prefer.”
Rylee checked the case Faith was quickly filling. She pointed to the fresh bear claws being placed next to some éclairs. “I’ll have one of those.”
Becca pumped her fist and set a large cup of coffee on the counter before sticking her tongue out at the other woman. “First upsell of the morning, Faith. In your face!”
Faith stood and shook her head. “I’m not praising you for doing your job.”
Rylee shuffled to the register while Becca packaged up her bear claw
and rang her up. But the bickering between fraternal twins didn’t stop even through her transaction.
Becca slashed her eyes to the lone woman still staring out the window, then fixed Rylee with a mischievous grin. “It’s a good thing I can’t find a job elsewhere. Who will take care of the place when you bless me with little nieces and nephews?” Becca leaned across the counter and whispered, “The scene has been set. Enjoy some morning entertainment sure to rival any soap opera.”
Sure enough, the woman slouching in the corner and shooting mournful eyes across the street swiveled her head toward Faith. Faith, in turn, shot daggers at her sister.
“Faith, is this true? You and Tommy are going to give me grandchildren?” She clasped her hands together under her chin.
“Sabrina, you have been warned about bothering us about children. We will tell you when we’re ready to try.”
Tears welled in Sabrina’s eyes. “I just can’t wait to see the little babes. I want to hold them so much. Tommy was such a lovely baby. His son or daughter will surely be the same!”
“Nope. Not discussing this. These are business hours. Tommy banned you from the diner because you wouldn’t leave him alone. I’ll do the same thing, I swear I will!”
The tears turned on in full force. “You wouldn’t treat me like that, would you? Not my darling boy’s chosen mate?”
“Yeah, Faith. Your own mother-in-law just wants to know if you’re doing it enough to make babies. We all want to know,” Becca taunted from the side.
Rylee hid her snort of laughter in her cup.
Sabrina seemed torn between indignation at Becca’s words and continuing her pouting at Faith. Her mouth gaped like a fish and Faith pointed toward the door. “You will know what we want you to know. We will have kids when we want to have kids. Now, out, and I will be telling Tommy about this.”
Rylee followed Sabrina’s slow retreat. “Aren’t you worried that will have some lasting effects?”
Becca waved a hand in dismissal. “That fight’s been coming for weeks and between you and me, I think they’re trying already. She’s been drinking an awful lot of water and won’t go drinking with me anymore. Better to set the boundaries now before Mrs. C goes Old Yeller with the baby rabies.” She eyed her suspiciously. “That’s all off the record. You work by journalist rules, don’t you?”
Rylee pantomimed turning a lock on her lips and throwing away the key.
Becca squinted her eyes and shook a finger at her. “You’re not half bad, Doc. Listen, I’m getting together with some of the girls later next week. If you stay cool and can slip your bearbysittier—see what I did there? Bear-by. Baby. You’ll laugh later, don’t worry.—you should join us for brunch. We like to make Pierre regret updating his menu.”
Rylee blinked at the sudden deluge of information and jokes. A surprised laugh tumbled out of her in her shock. Bearby. She got it. And she knew Cole would hate it. She’d have to find a way to work that into conversation somehow. And Pierre. That was one of the restaurants she passed on her way to the lab.
The timid her, the one she wanted to leave in the dust, would refuse. She’d use her work as some polite excuse, but it’d truly be because she didn’t want to get close to anyone. Rylee wanted to lock that woman away and live her life again. She struggled to stem the flow of unease and embarrassment, and said, “If no one else objects, I think that’d be lovely.”
Becca’s smile widened. “Be there or be square, as the kids say. Never mind, I don’t think they say that anymore. They should, but they don’t. Probably because they’re squares.”
Chapter 8
A repeated buzz by his head drew Cole out of the sweetest dream. Rylee writhed under him, her mouth dropping open in a gasp. Her big baby blues stared at him like she wanted to eat him up, which he was more than willing to let happen.
That damn buzz droned in the background again and Cole opened his eyes in frustration, his dream slipping away. Mostly. His cock stood at painful attention.
He snatched up his phone with a growl that tapered into a groan when he registered her name. He wrapped his hand around his shaft for one punishing pump. She felt so fucking good. Tasted so damned amazing. Sounded like heaven. Smelled like his mate.
And it’d been nothing more than a dream. Would never be anything more than a dream.
Humans weren’t meant for enclave life, he reminded himself again. And magically, his painful erection disappeared. Exactly like Rylee would once her assignment was complete.
At least Rylee had an excuse to leave at the end. There was an entire family holding down his mother, and she’d still pulled a vanishing act.
He’d gotten too close yesterday. Rylee was trouble and temptation in one sweet package. He’d done the gentlemanly thing and steadied her before she fell. He thought her hands branded him through her gloves when she took a sample of his blood, but that was nothing compared to her palms on his skin. His bear pushed closer and overwhelmed all his opposition until there was nothing for him to do but let the sweet scent of her wrap around his throat, grab him by the balls, and force him to try for a kiss.
And then those grade-A assholes wandered in with guns drawn and switched her scent from arousal to straight up panic and fear. They’d saved him from a lapse of sanity and made him want to kill every last one of them for interrupting a moment with the woman he desperately didn’t want to think of as his mate.
He’d give just about anything for a moment alone with Delano. The man was a monster, and not only for his dismissal of the people he was supposed to be impartially judging to be friends or foes. He was a bully, picking on tiny women like Rylee. She’d done nothing wrong, and Delano and his asshole goons fucked with her anyway. They didn’t care that they made her uncomfortable. Oh, no. They reveled in it. They had a taste for fear. Mad dogs, that’s what they were.
It was only a matter of time before the military occupation on their borders turned deadly. And just like the fire that burned down an entire civilian camp, Cole waited for disaster. He just needed to make sure Rylee was safe before that powder keg blew up in everyone’s faces.
“Watch it, dickhole!” Sawyer’s muffled shout filtered through the walls of Cole’s cabin.
“Eat me,” Hudson yelled back.
“Would you both shut. The fuck. Up,” Nolan growled.
Cole grinned and rolled out of bed. Trudging steps and a chorus of grumpy snarls filled the clearing outside his door. He’d usually be up and heading into the firehouse with them if it weren’t for his scuffle with Delano and assignment of watching Rylee.
He tugged on jeans and a t-shirt, then made his way onto his porch to watch the early morning madness.
Leah cracked a yawn from the porch of the cabin she shared with Callum. Dark circles lined her eyes, but she gave Callum a lingering hug. Callum didn’t look much better, which meant he’d stayed up waiting for her to close down the bar where she worked. The Roost was solidly in her hands while Gideon, the owner, was off dealing with his clan of misfit dragons. They were decidedly split on revealing themselves to the world with the rest of Bearden or staying hidden away with every other enclave.
And if it wasn’t work at the bar keeping her awake, it was her bear. The beast had been given to her unwillingly by Callum’s recent challenger, right before his brother dealt a killing blow and defeated the man. Leah took to her bear with more ease than expected, but the beast still gave her trouble. It was like that for forced shifters, and he suspected she worked herself to the bone to keep her inner animal exhausted.
Cole shrugged uncomfortably. He was used to dancing the same jig. Hard work kept the beast at bay. If he hadn’t thrown a punch or put claws to Delano’s face, he’d be readying for a long day of activity. Watching over Rylee wasn’t giving him the active work he needed to settle his bear, but the strange little woman kept him placated, nonetheless.
Callum caught his eyes and grinned. “Aww, look everyone. Someone lost a little puppy. C’mere, puppy. Do you need
a new home?”
Ducking his head and shambling forward like he was shy, Cole threw a punch as soon as he was close enough to reach Callum’s shoulder. The blow sent him staggering back a step with a laugh, until he bounced against Nolan. Nolan turned too late and toppled into Hudson. The plate of food in Hudson’s hands fell to the ground, and a growl filled the air.
“Fuck you. No,” Hudson snarled, but it was too late on both their parts.
Fur slid down Hudson and Nolan’s arms, and their bears ripped out of their skins. Roars filled the clearing and the two beasts slammed into each other.
“What the fuck is Nolan’s problem?”
“Becca. What else? She went drinking with Hud last night.” Callum wiped a hand down his face and waded into the brawl, shouting for them to change back and threatening to not set any broken bones before their shift. Cole crossed his arms over his chest and watched the battle rage on. Fuck, did he miss them.
Leah sidled up next to him and he flicked a glance at the woman that’d quickly become like a sister to him. “You look like shit.”
She threw an elbow into his side without changing her expression. “You do, too. When do we get to meet her?”
Cole thought of playing innocent and asking who she meant, but there was no chance Leah would believe him. “You? Never. You’re a bad influence.”
“Sucks for you. That was just a test.” Leah shrugged and made a show of picking at her nails. “Guess your lady doesn’t share everything with you because Callum and I have appointments this afternoon.”
“She’s not my lady,” he denied automatically. Humans weren’t made for enclave life. Humans couldn’t be trusted to stay.