Wade stood and walked toward the door. He needed water in the worst way, and if he had to wait for Kira, he might never receive it. Also, he needed to see his mate again. If she wouldn’t come to him, then he had no problems seeking her out.
When he opened the door, Dani stood on the other side holding a pitcher of ice water and four glasses stacked inside each other.
“Sorry I’m late,” she said, giving him a small smile. “It’s crazy out there.”
Well, it was a start. It took the pitcher of water from her and pulled the door open wider.
“No problem,” he said. “Come in.”
She followed him inside the room, and placed the glasses on one of the vanities.
“Kira, what are you doing here?” she asked.
“I’m taking care of the band, obviously,” Kira said, rolling her eyes. “I was closer, and you were no where around. It’s one of the benefits of being able to move through the crowd quickly.”
“Okay, great,” Dani said. “Please excuse me.”
She left the room and Wade followed her.
“Fifteen minutes, Smalls,” Stuart called after him.
“Got it,” he said, before closing the door.
Hopefully they drank the water that Dani brought, because if they waited on Kira, those men were never getting anything else to drink.
“Hey, Dani,” he called after her.
“Yeah?” She stopped and turned toward him in the middle of the crowd.
“Thank you for bringing the water.”
“You’re welcome,” she said, and continued walking toward the bar.
He followed her, and when she stopped at the counter, he stopped, too, leaving about twelve inches of space between them. He desperately wanted to close the gap and reach out and touch her, but he didn’t. She waved her tray toward the bartender, and once the man nodded in her direction, she turned and bumped into him.
“Wade?” she asked, clearly stunned.
Say something!
“The thing is,” he said. “I didn’t actually drink any of it yet.”
“Um…what?” she asked.
She looked at him like he was crazy, but at least she was looking at him.
“Water,” he said. “I didn’t have any yet.”
“Okay, Dani-girl, what can I get you?”
Wade wanted to growl at the man and his cute nickname for Dani, but he held in the sound. Barely. For all he knew, the man behind the bar was someone important to her.
Like a boyfriend. Or a husband.
Oh god, was she in a relationship?
“A coke and a water, please,” she said.
“You got it.”
The man glanced at him over her head for a split second, and then he left to get their drinks.
“Are you single?” Wade blurted.
Shut up, stupid!
She turned back to face him, her forehead crinkled as if she didn’t understand him. Hell, he didn’t understand himself. He had no idea what the fuck he was doing.
“Excuse me?”
“Sorry,” he said. “It’s been a while since I’ve done this. I was wondering—”
“Here you go, Dani-girl,” the bartender said. “One coke, and one water.”
“Thanks Scott,” she said, picking up both drinks. She turned toward him and handed him the water. “Here, you’d better drink this. You guys are on again in like two minutes.”
He gulped down the glass and saw Stuart and the guys walking toward the stage.
“Shit, I have to go. Will you be here when we’re done?”
“Yeah, I’m here till closing.”
“Good,” he smiled. “I’ll talk to you later.”
“Okay, see you.”
Wade moved through the crowd quickly, and beat the others to the stage. He lost sight of Dani for the first fifteen minutes of their show, but he eventually found her again. Unfortunately, unlike the last time, she didn’t look up at him once.
***
Shit! Shit! Shit!
Dani scanned the room looking for Steph. When she didn’t spot the woman serving drinks, she made a beeline for the restroom. Several women gave her dirty looks as she raced past them and ran up to the stall doors.
“Steph! Are you in here? Steph!”
“Dani?” Steph questioned. “What’s wrong?”
“I need to talk to you,” she shrieked. “Right now!”
“Can I finish peeing first?”
“Yes, of course,” Dani said, immune to her friend’s sarcasm. “But hurry!”
It only took a couple of minutes for Steph to finish using the restroom and wash her hands, but it felt like more than an hour to Dani. She huffed, sighed and bounced around nervously, but Steph ignored her and led the way to the office.
“Okay, what’s so important that you had to hunt me down in there?” Steph asked.
“I think that drummer is going to ask me out,” she whispered.
“Wonderful. What’s the problem?”
“Everything,” she wailed. “He’s a musician, he’s gorgeous, and I really want to say yes.”
“So say yes,” Steph reasoned. “Honey, there’s a big difference between that man out there, and that wannabe rock star you used to date. And you deserve someone gorgeous. You also deserve to have some fun. How do you know he’s going to ask?”
“God, I don’t know. Maybe I overreacted.”
Suddenly, the signs weren’t so clear. Had he been about to ask her out? Maybe, but maybe he was going to ask her favorite food, or what kind of books she liked to read.
Shit!
“I can’t breathe.”
“Calm down,” Steph said, guiding her to a chair. “Tell me everything, but make it quick. We need to get back out there.”
Fifteen minutes later, the two emerged, both convinced Wade had been on the verge of asking her out, and Steph had persuaded her to say yes.
She forced herself not to look at him as she worked the floor, but she couldn’t stop the butterflies dancing around in her stomach, or the wide smile that refused to leave her lips.
It seemed nothing could curtail her excitement, not even Kira’s rude, nasty behavior, and she couldn’t wait for last call.
The band finished their final set and packed up their instruments while the last lingering patrons filed out of the club. Once their van was loaded, the lead singer met with Scott to collect their payment, and the rest of the men stood near the door talking to a group of girls.
Dani walked the room, picking up empty glasses and bottles, and when she stopped by the bar to unload her tray, Wade approached her.
“Hey,” he said.
“Hey,” she smiled up at him.
“We’re going to get a bite to eat,” he said, motioning toward the door. “Do you want to come with us?”
She looked at the group next to the door and tried not to cringe. The lead singer had a woman under each arm, and the other two men were surrounded by a group of at least six more.
Damn groupies. Damn musicians. Just…Damn!
How could she have been so stupid?
Wade was a big, sexy drummer in a popular band, and she was willing to bet he asked girls out all the time. Or, they threw themselves at him when he walked off stage. Either way, the only thing he probably “hadn’t done in a while” was have sex with the token fat girl. She should have known better than to trust another man. Especially a musician.
“No, thank you,” she tried to smile. “I still have a lot to do here.”
“I don’t mind waiting,” he said. “I’ll even help if you want.”
“I appreciate that, but no.” She racked her brain for something to fill the awkward silence. “I have plans.”
“You have plans other than going home?” he asked. “It’s nearly three in the morning.”
Clearly he wasn’t used to being turned down.
“Yes, I’m afraid so,” she said sarcastically.
“Hey Smalls,” one of the men yelled. “
You coming?”
“Yeah, in a sec,” he called back.
“You’d better get going.”
Please, please leave and end this horrible night.
“Yeah, okay,” he said, sadly. “See you next week, Dani.”
“See you.”
She watched the group leave the building, and Steph ran up to her.
“Sooooo?” her friend asked excitedly.
“Shh,” Dani warned, looking around for Kira.
The woman was no where to be found, but voices carried far when the club was empty.
“So nothing,” she whispered. “I was mistaken. He wanted sex, nothing more.”
“Oh, Dani,” Steph said, hugging her. “I’m so sorry.”
“It’s okay,” she said. “Really. The good news is, I was willing to put myself out there again. When the right guy comes along, I’ll be ready.”
“Are you sure you’re okay?”
“Steph, please. I don’t even really know the man. It doesn’t matter.”
“Okay,” her friend said, tentatively. “If you say so.”
“I do. Now let’s get this place cleaned up so we can go home.”
Thirty minutes later, Dani walked into her favorite all night diner. The dive was on her way home, and she often stopped in for warmth, security, or a much needed dessert. Tonight was definitely a dessert night.
She ordered a slice of carrot cake to go, and turned to find Wade sitting in one of the booths alone. His dark blue eyes were watching her, and she knew he’d figured out her lie.
With nowhere to run, she approached his table with her head held high.
“Hey,” she said.
“Hey.”
“I…where is everyone?”
“I’m not sure,” he said. “I didn’t want to be a third wheel.”
“That would have never happened,” she laughed. “There were plenty of women in that group willing to do anything with any member of the band.”
“Yeah, well, hooking up with random women really isn’t my thing.”
“Oh.”
Had she been wrong about him after all? Had he really been interested in taking her out to eat and nothing more? Her mind raced to think of another solution, but nothing plausible surfaced.
“Here you go, Dani.”
The owner of the diner, a cheerful older woman with bouncy red hair, stood next to her holding a small dessert box.
“Sit with me?” Wade asked.
“Well…”
“I’ll go get a fork and some coffee,” the owner said.
“I guess I’m staying,” she laughed, taking off her jacket.
She folded it over her arm, and slid into the booth.
“Good.”
Chapter Three
As if they were connected by some invisible force, Dani knew the moment Wade walked into the club. She turned toward the door and smiled when she saw him. He motioned toward the bar, and she nodded in understanding.
Kira raced toward him, as she had every night Wade visited, but Dani didn’t feel the need to chase her down and trip her on the way. She still wanted to slap the bitch silly, or at least see karma humiliate her for once, but she trusted Wade. They were just friends, but he understood the bad blood between her and Kira, and he never let the other woman wait on him.
Just friends.
It was okay to feel possessive over a friend, right? Even if that friend was an attractive man? Men and women could be friends. She was friends with Scott, and she had been for over ten years. The difference was, she’d never wanted to see Scott naked.
Damnit! I’m in way over my head!
It had been nearly a week since Wade and the band first played in the club and she joined him in the booth at the diner. They’d shared her carrot cake, and then ordered another dessert and split that one, too. The owner had kept the coffee flowing, and when the sun had started to peek over the horizon, he’d walked her home.
“I had fun tonight,” she’d said, holding her keys in her gloved fingers.
“Me too. Next time, I’d like to take you out on a real date.”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t,” she’d explained. “I don’t date musicians, remember?”
“Yes, but I’m not a real musician,” he’d said. “It’s just a hobby for me.”
In those first early morning hours, he’d told her about the drummer, Johnny, who’d sprained his wrist, his real band, The Flurry, who only played cover tracks one night a week, and a little bit about his real job. The details were vague, but he belonged to a team of bodyguards who protected someone important.
In exchange, she’d told him about her parents, and how they’d packed up and moved to Florida when she’d turned twenty-five, her longtime friendship with Stephanie and Scott, and her rules about rejecting band members.
Steph had been right, he was nothing like her ex, but she couldn’t shake the stigma that he could be. She’d liked her ex in the beginning, too, although in fairness, she’d never felt drawn to any man the way she did with Wade.
Still, she was so afraid of getting hurt again.
“I’m sorry, Wade, I just can’t.”
“Can you be friends with a musician?” he’d asked.
“Just friends? No…benefits?”
“Just friends,” he’d laughed. “I want more, and I think we’d be great together, but if friendship is all you’re willing to give, then I’ll take it.”
“I don’t know. I don’t want to lead you on.”
“You won’t,” he’d said.
“Okay,” she’d agreed. “Friends I can do.”
Idiot!
Wade had kept his word.
They’d exchanged phone numbers, and he’d promised to make it back at least one night before Arctic Storm had to perform again the following Friday.
Instead, he’d made it back three times.
After he’d explained his work and rehearsal schedules, she hadn’t expected to see him at all, but his daily texts more than made up for it. He’d sent her at least one random text a day, and though it had only been a few days, a friendship had formed.
Besides words, he shared pictures of food—usually of coffee and beautiful desserts—and even some selfies. He also sent seemingly random photos, but on closer look, they were all based off things she’d told him about in the diner. Polar bears, red sprinkled Christmas cookies and snow capped trees topped the list.
She smiled when she remembered their conversation about polar bears.
“Polar bears are your favorite animal? Really?” he’d asked, incredulous.
“Yes, I’ve always loved them,” she’d said. “They’re just so cute and fluffy.”
“They’re fierce warriors and predators,” he’d stated firmly. “They are not cute.”
“But they are fluffy,” she’d countered.
They’d both laughed, but she hadn’t missed the look of reverence on his face. For some reason, her comments about the bears had made him happy.
In return, he made her happy. He was handsome, funny and kind, but at the same time, he was dominant, protective and powerful. Except for the musician thing, Wade was literally the perfect man, and one day, a lucky, perfect woman would snatch him up.
An invisible band around her heart tightened as she made her way to the bar. Wade wouldn’t stay single forever, and when he did find someone, their friendship would be over. Considering she’d only known him a week, the truth bothered her more than it should.
Wade was free to date anyone he wanted, and she had no claims on him. Other than friendship, she had no influence on his life. Sooner or later, he’d find someone special and she’d be left alone again. How would she survive seeing him on another woman’s arm?
At least he doesn’t want Kira.
The thought gave her some consolation as she watched Kira approach him for the third night in a row.
The first night he’d come into the club again, Kira had practically pushed her out of the way to get to him first.
Wade had been straightforward and definite when he’d explained his reason for visiting had only involved Dani.
The second night, Kira had made several impromptu comments and jokes at her expense, until Wade had politely told her to keep her comments to herself.
Dani had no idea what the woman had planned tonight, but she trusted Wade.
He’d come to see her, as he had the previous two nights, and she was the one he’d be spending the night with and walking home.
At the thought of spending the night with the big, sexy drummer, her pussy clenched and tingled with arousal. The image in her mind had nothing to do with sitting across from him in the diner, and everything to do with sitting on his lap in her apartment. That wasn’t a normal reaction to a friend, even if he was drop dead gorgeous.
She shook her head to clear it as she approached the bar, but seeing him up close only fueled her desire. When she heard him speak, liquid heat dampened her panties.
“Look, I’m not interested,” he said to Kira. “Nothing’s ever going to change that.”
If looks could kill, she’d be dead.
Kira stormed past her, bumping into her shoulder on the way. Dani swayed, but the other woman tripped on her three-inch heel and nearly toppled to the ground.
Dani covered her mouth to stifle her laugh at the same time another patron caught Kira and steadied her on her feet. She continued to storm away without looking back.
“Are you okay?” Wade asked.
“Yes, but I think I’m going to get a lump of coal in my stocking this year.”
“What? Why?” he asked, his eyes sparkling.
“Because I was hiding my laughter, not gasping in shock. Santa will move me to the naughty list for sure.”
“I think he’ll understand,” he laughed.
“I hope so,” she smiled back.
***
Wade took one last look around the angry tundra and then entered the secret tunnel that led into the enforcers headquarters inside Santa’s Village.
The wind had been howling for over an hour, and though his thick, polar bear coat kept him warm and regulated his body temperature in both forms, snow and ice added extra weight to his tired and sore muscles.
He lumbered down the long corridor, and then went into one of the empty changing stalls to shake off all the remnants of the arctic. Once he felt satisfied, he shifted back into his human form, fully dressed, and exited the stall.
Shifter Wonderland: Twelve BBW Paranormal Holiday Shape Shifter Romances Page 55