A low growl-like sound rumbles from his chest. You’re not just anyone, you’re my mate.
“Stop saying that.” I pry his fingers off my shoulder.
“Saying what?” Chad asks as I climb over Blaine, not caring that half the diner is watching me.
“And you” —I point at Chad when my limbs are untangled from Blaine’s— “We’re through. That’s never going to change.”
“Harley—”
“Wait—”
Both men start to stand, but I turn on them both.
“I’m going to walk out of here, and unless you want the whole town to see me lose my cool, don’t follow me.”
Chapter 11
Blaine
Every cell in my body screams at me to follow Harley, but I get that she needs space. Plus, it gives me a chance to sum up the dickhead that sits across from me.
“She’s too good for you,” he sneers, dark eyes cold and calculating.
“I don’t doubt that,” I say. “But she’s still here and she will be mine.”
He laughs, and it’s a vicious sound. “Just because you screwed her, you think she cares for you? Harley is in love with me. And she’d still be in my bed if I hadn’t fucked up. And she’ll be back in it again before the week’s out. You don’t know her like I do. The woman wasn’t meant for this.” His lip curls up in disgust as he looks around. “What can you give her? Some dingy little cabin in the woods where it’s dark half the year? Maybe there are girls that like that sort of thing, but Harley isn’t one of them. She needs an upscale lifestyle. Fancy restaurants and designer stores. She needs someone to control her.”
I wonder if he’s talking about the same woman.
“Maybe you don’t know her as well as you think. The Harley I know is wild, adventurous, and doesn’t like being told what to do.”
He chuckles. “What she likes and what she needs are two very different things.”
I realize now why she pushed so hard against me. If I was ever like this chauvnistic asshole, no wonder she hated me.
“And you think what she needs is you?”
“I know it.” He smirks at me and starts to leave, but I hear him say over his shoulder, “And soon she will too.”
After Chad leaves, the waitress, Dinah, an old friend of my mom’s, brings out another tray of piping hot food.
“Where did they go?” she asks, frowning as she starts placing hashbrowns and a Western omelet on the table. And an order of French toast and a freshly baked cinnamon roll. The table was already so full that now it’s crammed to the brim.
“Who ordered all this?” I ask.
“The fiesty one.”
“Harley?” My lip twitches with a smile. I may be frustrated at the way she climbed over me and left the diner, but there is something so damn cute about that tiny thing ordering a menu full of food.
“Yeah, the city-boy said he was paying, but it looks like they left you with the bill.”
“It’s fine,” I say, picking up a fork. “She’s my girl, not his.”
Dinah raises her penciled-in eyebrows and takes a half-eaten yogurt parfait from the table. “Your mama know you have a girl?”
I break off a forkful of hashbrowns. “I’m guessing after a scene like this in a crowded restaurant, everyone in Bear Valley is gonna know.”
After eating a week’s worth of calories, I think about the fight I had with Harley. How it all started. The sex was fucking perfect, the shower more than memorable, but then we walked out of the bedroom and were hit with the reality of our differences. She said my cabin was cold. But I always thought of it as orderly. No nonsense.
But maybe I went overboard. Maybe it went from simple to sterile. And as much as I don’t want that fucker Chad’s words to get stuck in my head, he mentioned more than once how Harley is used to a different kind of lifestyle.
Maybe Harley really does like things a little more fancy. Walking down Main Street, I consider my choices. Dig in my heels or try to give my mate the life she wants. She clearly hates protein shakes, so that seems like an easy enough place to start.
Even though food is the last thing I want to see right now after that breakfast, I head to the grocery store. Next time Harley comes over, there’s gonna be all sorts of shit she can eat. I grab the biggest cart I can find and start roaming the aisles.
But before I can even make it to the produce section I run into my mother. Or more accurately stated - she finds me.
One look at her and it’s clear after Dinah spoke with me, she then headed straight for her phone to call her old friend. Mom has that look in her eyes. Like she knows something. Too much.
She takes the cart from me and begins walking toward the bakery section. “So is this how it’s gonna be, Blaine?” she asks. “I have to find out from Dinah that my eldest son has a girlfriend?”
“It’s not like that.” I reach for a pre-packaged pie, but Mom pushes my hand aside.
“I raised you on homemade pie, Blaine Koleman. Not store bought.”
I take the damn cherry pie in defiance. I know Mom is opinionated when it comes to her children, but really? Is she gonna start dictating my food choices?
She purses her lips. “So who is she?” But she doesn’t stay still long enough to hear my answer. She keeps pushing the cart, grabbing a few loaves of bread, then moving on to the dairy. Cheese, eggs, milk, all go into my cart.
When I reach for a package of high-protein plain Greek yogurt, Mom shakes her head and grabs a variety of sugar-riddled fruity flavors. Apparently there is no use interjecting here.
“Harley,” I tell her when we reach the cereal aisle. “It was Harley that Dinah saw me with.”
Mom turns sharply, her face written with surprise. “Addie’s friend?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“Really? The blonde one?” Mom looks pleased, if not surprised. She’s met Addie’s roommates on a handful of occasions. “Not Kate?” Mom reaches for a box of Cheerios, then she keeps rolling the cart, adding pasta, cans of beans, and jars of sauce to the rapidly filling basket.
“Kate?” I frown. “No. I mean, Kate’s nice and all, but she’s—”
“Reserved. Responsible. Reliable. Word is she’s practically running the bookstore all on her own.”
“Okay,” I say slowly. “But I would never date her.”
“Why not?” Mom asks. “You seem alike in so many ways.”
“I don’t want my mirror,” I tell her. “I want...” I shake my head. “Look it doesn’t matter. Harley and I are opposites and I’m not sure it’s going to work.”
“Oh, Blaine, that’s absurd. You wouldn’t be here buying all this if you weren’t interested in making this work. I know how efficient you are when it comes to food. And I know women. One look in your fridge and it would have them running for the hills. I like this,” she says, patting my arm. “Harley is good for you. She’ll soften your rough edges.”
I groan, wondering how I ended up in the meat section with my mother. This is the strangest morning of my life.
“But now that we’ve taken care of the food, how about we go to Linda’s homeware store? You need some throw pillows. Maybe a candle or two? And how about some artwork for your walls. They’re all completely bare.”
I draw the line there. My mother may see this as her project, but I don’t need her picking out my pictures.
“I got that covered,” I tell her, taking over the cart and directing it toward the checkout. “Harley is an artist. If anyone’s paintings are going on my walls, it’s gonna be hers.”
Chapter 12
Harley
“I don’t want to talk,” I say into my pillow, voice muffled, when I hear my bedroom door open.
“I know, but you’ve locked yourself in here for two days,” Adelaide lays down on the bed beside me and stares up at the ceiling.
“I love you, Addie, but I really just need to process some things—”
“Bear things?”
I sit up and stare
down at her. “Wait. You know?”
She gives me a small smile. “Gunnar’s my mate, of course I know. And I was just as freaked out when I found out as I’m sure you are.”
“Wait, so Gunnar’s a bear too?” I groan and flop back on the bed beside her. “And you’re going to have bear babies. Don’t you think a little heads up about the whole sexy men shifting into bears would have been helpful. Do Piper and Kate know?”
She shushes me. “No. And you can’t tell them.”
“Why the hell not? I mean this is kind of breaking news.”
“Exactly, and think how people would respond if they knew? They’d be terrified—”
“Yeah, no kidding! But at least they’d be prepared if they watched the guy they’d just had sex with turn into a bear.”
“You slept with him?” She grins at me. “How was it?”
“Incredible. Mind blowing. And stop changing the subject.”
“You need to talk to Blaine. Gunnar says he’s freaking out.”
“He’s freaking out. What about me?”
“But you like him?”
“I don’t know. One minute I want to practically jump him, and the next I want to punch him. But it doesn’t matter because...well, he’s a bear!”
“You keep saying that, but how does it change things? He’s still the same guy, just with a few extra perks.”
“Like mind reading,” I mutter.
“Wait.” She sits up. “You can communicate without talking?”
“Yeah. Another thing that’s making my head spin.”
A smile tugs at her lips.
“What?”
“You’re his mate.”
“What does that even mean?” I shake my head and stand, starting to pace. “No. Don’t tell me. I honestly don’t want to know. This is all too much already.”
“I know. And I know you’re scared. But if you just give into it—”
“Why is Chad Wickel downstairs in the bookshop?” Kate asks, standing in the doorway.
“He’s still here?” Addie asks.
“I told him to leave.”
“He obviously didn’t get the hint,” Kate adds. “Piper even gave him a piece of her mind, and he just grabbed a travel magazine and plopped down in an armchair.”
“Can you tell him to go?”
“I can get Gunnar to give him the message,” Addie says, a mischievous grin pulling at her lips. “Or Blaine.”
“He was here earlier too.” Kate shakes her head. “I can’t even get one guy to date, and you have two stalking you.”
“Blaine isn’t stalking me, he’s just...”
“Your mate,” Addie whispers, so that only I can hear, then winks, and says loudly. “I’ll go deal with Mr. Can’t Keep His Dick In His Pants.” She points at me from the door. “And you, talk to Blaine. It’s really not as scary as it seems.”
I grunt as Addie walks away, but catch Kate’s worried gaze as she moves toward my bed.
Sitting down beside me, she twists her hair into a bun, sighing as she looks at me. “I swear there’s some secret cult in this town that nobody wants to invite me to.”
“You want to be part of a cult?”
She shrugs. “It’s better than spending every night alone.”
“You’re not alone. You have us.” I hug her, feeling slightly grounded by our conversation. Because I know that no matter what happens in this life, from exes showing up to lovers shifting into bears, I have a stable group of friends who will always have my back.
“So you and Blaine, huh?” she asks. “Was he good enough for a round two?”
I sigh. “He was good enough to take myself out of the game for good.”
“You do know how jealous I am of you and Addie.”
“I’m sure there’s a bear out there for you too.”
“Bear?” She raises her eyebrows at me.
“Um..” Shit. “I meant brother. There are a few more Kolemans.”
She chuckles, getting up from the bed. “Yeah, well, I’d probably take even a bear at this point.”
I flop back down on my bed when she leaves, grabbing my cell from the charger and scrolling through the messages from Blaine.
Call me.
We need to talk.
I shouldn’t have run out on you.
If you have any questions, anything at all, I’m here.
There are more, as well as a voice message. I erase them all.
But it’s his voice in my head that I can’t delete. Come to me, Harley.
I seriously need to find a mute button for him. And yet at the same time, I can’t help but revel in the connection, which just makes me even more frustrated.
Addie comes back. “Chad’s gone, but I don’t think he’s going away. Have I ever told you how much I hate that guy?”
“Several times. And I feel the same way.”
“So you’re not thinking about getting back together with him.”
“Ew. Of course not.”
“Good.”
“I mean, I miss Seattle. But I’m learning to like it here.”
“That wouldn’t have anything to do with Blaine?”
I sigh. “Maybe a little. I just don’t know if I can get past the whole bear thing.”
“Why don’t you go talk to him. You can take my Jeep. Let him explain.”
“What’s there to explain? He’s a guy who can turn into a bear. Aren’t you even a little worried that your kid is going to come out furry and—”
She tosses a pillow at me. “That’s not how it works.”
“Even if I can accept it, there’s also the whole cold, aloof, alpha-thing he’s got going on. Everytime I’m near him we butt heads or I can’t keep my hands off him. It’s not exactly a solid foundation for a relationship.”
She laughs. “He’s strong-willed. So are you. But from what Gunnar’s told me about him, he’s been hurt too. Maybe you should let him tell his story before you decide anything.
“Maybe you’re right.”
She smirks. “I usually am.”
“So this whole mate thing. What is it?”
“From what I understand, it’s like their bear marks you.”
“Marks me how?”
She shrugs. “I don’t know. It’s just this primal thing. Something to do with the first kiss.”
The river. His lips. Everything changed after that.
“So what, I don’t get a choice? I’m just...his?”
“You do.”
“I can walk away?”
“Yes.” She frowns. “But they can’t ever mate again. And even if you’re with someone else, he can’t be. His bear won’t allow it.”
“That’s horrible.”
“When you both love each other, it’s actually pretty freaking amazing.”
“I guess that’s the problem. We don’t love each other.”
Liar, my heart screams. Because I know without a shadow of a doubt that I’ve never, not even with Chad, felt the way I do about Blaine.
Chapter 13
Blaine
I was full of goddamned optimism after my shopping day with my mom. But that quickly fell apart. Harley won’t return my texts or calls, and as I pace around my cabin, all I can think is that the stupid vanilla and cinnamon scented candle I bought smells really fucking fake. Nothing like the real deal. Nothing like Harley.
And the fact that she is refusing me makes it all the worse. I was ready to open up to her, make her breakfast in bed and all that shit and then she ghosts me.
I roam the forest for hours each night, and each time I return home I am more restless than when I left. My inner bear is hungry for something I can’t find in the woods.
It’s my mate I need.
And she doesn’t fucking want me.
All those old emotions of when Laney and I split keep rising to the surface, and the more days that pass without hearing from Harley, the less confident I feel in what we had.
It was real, wasn’t it? I thought w
e both knew that. Then why is she refusing me? For three days I pace outside like this, replaying every conversation Harley and I shared in my mind.
I call to her. Come to me, Harley.
And finally she answers.
A text comes in on my phone.
Is now a good time for me to stop by?
I don’t play games by waiting to reply. I tell her exactly what I think of her question.
I’m waiting for you.
When she pulls up in Addie’s Jeep thirty minutes later, I’m ready for her. Ready to show her that I hear her, that I was listening. She doesn’t need Chad. She needs me.
I open the door before she knocks. Eager, sure, but there are worse things than wanting this gorgeous woman in my life again.
“Wow,” she says, stepping inside. She is in a short sundress that accentuates her curves. She looks beautiful. Her eyes flit about the room, and I can sense her absorbing the details. “It looks… different… kind of like your mom’s house, actually.”
I frown. “What?”
She laughs, touching my arm playfully. “Sorry, I just mean, the candles, the pillows. And is that white wine on the counter, Blaine Koleman?”
“Riesling. It’s a sweet wine.”
She twists her lips. “I know what it is. It’s just I’ve only ever seen you drink beer or whiskey. Didn’t take you for the dessert wine type.”
My shoulders tense defensively. “I did this for you. To make you comfortable.”
“I like white wine, but I don’t need it to be comfortable. Or scented candles or ...” Her eyes widen. “Is that a coffee pot?”
“Yeah, I uh, just picked it up.”
Harley smiles, setting down the tote bag she carried in. “Well, I do need that. Waking up without coffee is just cruel and an unusual punishment.”
Hope flares in my chest. “Does that mean you plan on staying the night?”
She licks those pretty pink lips of hers. “I don’t know. I mean. You scared me pretty badly Blaine. It took me three days to just process the situation. The bear situation.”
“I know, sweetheart,” I say, reaching for her hands. “The last thing I wanted was to scare you. But I think part of me wanted you to know the truth about me.”
Untamed Lovers (Mountain Men of Bear Valley Book 2) Page 6