by Elena Aitken
Except once.
Dammit. Why were thoughts of home intruding on her life today? It had been almost two years since she’d left. Two years since her brothers had come looking for her. And two years since she’d turned her back and sent them away. And all for a mate.
No!
For a man she thought had been her fated mate. She’d been wrong. And now there was no going back. She’d made her choice, and she’d just have to live with it. Just as she’d turned her back on her twin brother, he’d very clearly done the same to her. For months, she’d tried to reach out to him. The connection they shared was heightened because of their twin bond. When they were in bear form, they should be able to sense each other. Especially if the other was in some sort of pain or distress. And she had been. Every day since she’d left home, Kira felt the pain of the loss deep in her gut.
But Kade had never reached out to her. Every chance she got, Kira would shift into her bear and run through the forest, calling out for her brother. Even with the distance between them, there should have been something. Some connection to let her know she wasn’t alone.
But there’d been nothing. And she hadn’t tried in months. What was the point?
She’d accepted her new life. Mostly. But days like today when the memories flooded back were hard.
Kira fired up the ATV and put it in gear, headed to the shower house where two of the stalls had been backing up. Dealing with Cranky Carl would be a good distraction; at least she wouldn’t have to think about anything else but clogged drains and broken showers.
There were about a thousand other things Nash North would have rather been doing than sticking his hand down the clogged-up, nasty ass drain of a shower stall in a public campground. When he took the job as the resident handyman for the summer, he hadn’t given the job description much thought. Or any thought, really. All Nash cared about was a place to stay and a few dollars in his pocket while he figured out his next move.
Now that he was elbow deep in other people’s hair and some sort of sludge he probably didn’t even want to identify, Nash was definitely second-guessing taking the job without paying any attention to what he’d be doing.
He wiggled his fingers around the clog and tried not to think about what he might actually be touching when his sharp senses tuned into the footsteps of someone approaching.
A female.
He didn’t look up, but Nash wasn’t surprised when a moment later a sexy, smooth voice, with just a hint of an edge, asked, “What exactly are you doing?”
Without removing his hand from the drain, he looked up into the dark eyes of a woman every bit as sexy as her voice. More so. She was tall, although not likely as tall as he was, with strong, luscious curves beneath her parks uniform. The animal inside him responded immediately to the sight of her long, thick ponytail hanging down her back, her arms crossed over her ample chest, and the fire in her eyes as she stared down at him.
Maybe the job wouldn’t be so bad after all.
“I’m fixing your drain, darlin’.”
She narrowed her eyes. “I’m not your darlin’. And you’re not Cranky Carl.”
“No.” Nash latched on to a wad of hair and sludge in the drain and yanked. “I’m definitely not Carl.” He grinned. “And I’m not cranky. But I just fixed your drain.” He wiped his hand on a rag and stood.
Damn. The woman was even more impressive when she was directly in front of him. And she was definitely not human. He held out his now clean hand. “Nash North.”
Her dark eyes narrowed and she took a moment to look him over. She could have taken all day as far as Nash was concerned. Her gaze felt good. Damn good. Because if she liked what she saw even half as much as he liked the sight of her, it was going to be an interesting summer indeed. Finally, she took his hand.
“Kira Jackson.” Her grip was strong, her skin soft, her touch electric. “Where’s Carl?”
“Cranky Carl?” He raised an eyebrow.
“I shouldn’t have said that.” Kira slipped her hand from his and Nash had to fight the instinct to grab it back. “It’s just that Carl can be a little…”
“Cranky?”
She tipped her head and for a moment she looked as though she might disagree, but finally she nodded. “Yes. He can be a little cranky from time to time.”
“Well then, I guess it’s an appropriate nickname,” Nash said. “I can’t tell you where he is, but I was told that I was hired on because the man before me retired. So perhaps he’s a little less cranky now?”
“One can only hope.” Kira smiled reluctantly.
“At least for his wife’s sake.”
“Oh, I can’t imagine Carl is married.”
“Are you?” The question was out of his mouth so fast, and so smoothly, it clearly took her a second to process it. Nash could see when she did.
Kira shook her head, looked away and took a step to the side. “I don’t think so.”
“You don’t think you’re married?”
“Oh, I know I’m not married.” Kira spun around, her eyes blazing, making them look even darker than before. “Not that it’s any of your business.”
He knew he was being forward and presumptuous, but that had never stopped him before. “Mated then?” Nash could have sworn he heard a growl come from deep within her. And in that moment, he knew. A bear. Damn. He should have seen it right away, but there was something about her. Her animal was muted somehow.
“How the…what…you…”
“Wolf.”
“Wolf?” She almost spat out the word. Nash took a step back and crossed his arms over his chest.
“You don’t have to sound so damned disgusted about it.”
“No.” Kira shook her head apologetically and closed her eyes for a moment. “That’s not what I…sorry…I didn’t realize.”
And that’s what was wrong. She hadn’t realized he was a shifter. It was unusual for a shifter not to recognize another. Even a different species. But then again, he hadn’t recognized her as a bear. Not right away, anyway.
“Is that going to be a problem?” Nash tilted his head and watched her for a moment while she clearly had an internal battle he didn’t understand. “Because, judging by the look on your face…it might be a problem.”
“No.” Kira shook her head quickly and bit her bottom lip, an action that sent a flash of desire right to his core. Damn. The woman was sexy and had no idea. “It’s fine. I was just taken off guard is all.”
“Were you?” He took a step toward her. As he expected, she didn’t back away. Bears never did. Kira straightened and her deep, dark eyes stared directly into his.
“I was preoccupied was all. I wasn’t expecting to walk in here and find a wolf.” It wasn’t his imagination; there was definitely disdain laced through her voice. “I was coming to deal with a clogged shower and Cranky Carl. I was not expecting you.”
Nash took another half step toward her and rubbed the stubble on his chin as he challenged her with, “Well, you got me, babe.”
“I’m not your babe.”
“Not yet.”
“No.” She shook her head and stepped toward him, straightening up to her full height. Bear or not, he wanted her. Badly. “This isn’t happening.” Nash expected her to step closer, closing the gap. In his experience, bears didn’t back down. Especially to wolves. Instead, she turned and walked to the door before she looked back at him. “If you plan on keeping your job, this isn’t going to happen.” Kira gestured between them. “I don’t know if you were told, but I’m the manager of this campground and won’t tolerate—”
“Me?”
“No.” She glared at him. “I won’t tolerate your…your…this.”
She bit her lip again and Nash tried not to react. She’d calm down, but she was right. If he wanted to keep his job—and he did—he couldn’t afford to piss her off. Even if it was fun to watch her get riled up. And it was. If there was one thing Nash enjoyed, it was to have fun with a sexy woman. “I�
�m sorry.” But he also knew when to swallow it and play the game and in this instance, he was all about the game. Especially if it meant keeping his job. “I came here to clean up a clogged shower.” He gave her his most genuine smile. “I definitely wasn’t expecting to meet a beautiful bear while I had my hand down the drain.”
His words didn’t make everything better, but Kira’s shoulders lost some of the tension and she no longer looked as if she was going to go for his jugular.
“At any rate,” he said, pouring on the charm, “I didn’t mean to come on so strong. Please accept my apologies.”
He waited for a moment while she considered it. Nash half expected her to say no and fire him, or at the very least storm out. Bears weren’t known for their ability to calm down quickly or, especially when it came to wolves, be reasonable. But Kira was definitely not a usual bear. In fact, she was very different from any other bear he’d ever encountered. And he was intrigued. To say the least.
“Okay,” she said after what seemed like a very long time. “I accept your apology.” She nodded toward the drain he’d just unclogged. “Thanks for that.”
Nash waited until she’d turned her head and taken a few steps toward the door before he let himself smile. He was really going to like this job.
“Oh, and before you go.” Kira turned around so suddenly, Nash swallowed his smile. “Check the other drains, and I heard there was a toilet that needed snaking. Could you see to that?”
He resisted the urge to salute. “Absolutely.”
She gave him a look and for a second, he thought she might say something else. Instead, Kira nodded. “Good.”
Nash didn’t even try to contain his smile as he watched her juicy curves in her tight khaki pants walking away. Oh, yes. The summer was definitely turning around for the better. Was it really only a few weeks ago he’d left his big brother and his pack in search of something….well, just something? Things had certainly turned around. Clogged drains and toilets aside, not only did Nash have a job for the summer, he had a place to sleep, and with any luck, before long he’d have a very sexy she-bear to cuddle up with to keep that bed warm.
Chapter Two
“A wolf?”
Kira stalked toward the cabins where the staff lived. She’d driven the ATV back from the shower house faster than she should have. Faster than the vehicle should move, period. But she needed to burn off some steam. What she needed to do was shift and let her bear out. But she wasn’t doing that.
Not anymore.
There was no point in shifting.
There hadn’t been for a very long time. But she hadn’t ever before felt the burn in her veins, the heat that coursed through her, threatening to consume her. Something about Nash had triggered a response in her that heightened the need to shift into her bear, to run, to feel the animal inside her.
It wasn’t an option.
“Dammit.” She kicked a stone in her path. “A bloody wolf.”
“A wolf?”
Kira spun on her heel to see Sasha next to the wood pile. “Did you say there was a wolf? Here? In the campsite?”
“No.” She had to think fast. After all, there was a wolf in the campsite, but not one Kira could talk about. “No,” she told Sasha. “I was just thinking about something else.”
“You’re sure? You look concerned about something.”
“I’m fine.” Kira forced a smile she didn’t feel. “And really, it’s nothing. I was just thinking about something I read in the newsletter about the wolves in the park.” That wasn’t entirely a lie. She had been reading about the Yellowstone-wide wolf reintroduction project and how some packs had thrived while others had failed. Kira couldn’t help but wonder which one of those packs Nash had come from. Or whether he was a Yellowstone wolf at all.
Not that she was going to ask.
She was definitely not going to ask him.
“Hello. Earth to Kira.” Sasha waved a hand in front of her face. “Are you okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
Not a ghost. A wolf. A tall, sexy…
“I’m fine,” Kira said. “I was just thinking about—”
“The shower room?” Sasha laughed. “What exactly went on over there?” Before Kira could come up with a decent excuse, Sasha’s pretty face changed and her mouth fell into an O. “You met the new handyman, right?”
“What?”
“The new handyman. You met him, didn’t you?”
“You knew Cranky Carl was gone?”
“Well, I didn’t know know. But I’d heard.” She winked. “And I saw a super hottie in a truck earlier, was that him? Judging by the look on your face, it was. It totally should have been me who went to check on the shower house. Damn.”
Irritation rose in Kira. She didn’t want there to be any look at all about her when it came to Nash. “What look on my face?”
Sasha did a little wiggly dance and her black curls bounced around her head. “That look!”
Kira stuck her hands on her hips and stared at her friend until she stopped dancing.
“Oh come on.” Sasha laughed. “Judging by your face, I’d say you’ve just seen the sexiest man to ever set foot into this campsite. Am I wrong?”
She wasn’t wrong. “I guess Nash is—”
“Nash?” Sasha put her hand to her chest and swooned. “That’s his name? Oh my God. Of course that’s his name. He would have to have a totally hot name. It suits him, don’t you think?”
Kira shook her head. She was not going to have this conversation. She didn’t even want to think about him and his steel-gray eyes that seemed to see right through her and sense her need. Or the way his lean muscles filled out his parks uniform, or— “I guess he’s attractive, if you like that type.”
Sasha snorted a laugh. “That type? Of course I like that type. Who doesn’t like that type? Damn, girl. I only saw him from a distance, but that is definitely a type I’d like to see close up. Really close up, if you know what I mean?”
Kira knew exactly what her friend meant, and it wasn’t going to happen. If Sasha knew Nash was really a wolf shifter, she would freak out. Probably. The alternative was that her friend would be even more attracted to Nash and the last thing Kira needed to deal with that summer was a relationship between a wolf and a human. Particularly when that human was her friend and wolves were… well, wolves.
“He’s kind of a jerk,” Kira lied. Truthfully, she’d kind of liked Nash. Even if he was presumptuous and forward with her. Hell, that was probably why she liked him. Kira had always liked her men strong. Really strong. There was nothing sexier than a man who knew what he wanted and was willing to go after it. And wasn’t that the problem? Nash was sexy. Too sexy.
“Really?” Sasha walked with Kira toward the cabin. “That’s too bad, but then again, we’re used to dealing with Cranky Carl. He can’t be worse than that, right?”
Kira shrugged. “I guess we’ll see. Turns out Carl retired. Not that anyone bothered to tell me. But then again, why would they? I’m only supposed to be in charge around here. Speaking of which…” She turned to Sasha. “Shouldn’t you be in the office?”
“Conner’s in there. I needed a few minutes away. He’s so foul these days. Maybe we can start calling him Cranky Conner?”
Kira resisted the urge to laugh. It would be a fitting name for the man whose attitude had only deteriorated since Kira was promoted to campground manager over him. But now that she was manager, more than ever, she needed to maintain some sort of professionalism and try to make peace with Conner.
“I’ll have to have a talk with him,” she said. “Especially if it’s becoming a problem to work with him.”
If Kira was looking for her friend to tell her it would be okay, she was definitely looking in the wrong place. Sasha shook her head, put her hands on her hips and looked Kira straight in the eye. “It’s not going to be a problem. I’m sorry. I’m not trying to be a whiney employee or make trouble when there isn’t any, but he’s so hard to work w
ith, Kira. I’ll do my best with him but he’s going to need to sort himself out, or I’m going to tell him how to—”
“No.” Kira held her hand up. “I don’t think there’s any need to tell Conner anything.” At least not what Sasha wanted to tell him, which no doubt would only put him in a worse mood, or put Kira in the middle of a very unfortunate argument. “I’ll handle it, okay?”
Sasha nodded, satisfied for the moment, and Kira put dealing with Conner on her to-do list. Right under dealing with the Nash situation. Not that it was a situation, but it would be if she didn’t deal with it. There was no way she was going to have a wolf working with her. Not in her campground. Especially not one as sexy as—no. It had nothing to do with his sex appeal. At least that’s what she’d have to keep telling herself.
Kira sighed and refocused on her friend. “Take your break early then. I’ll take over in the office and if I get the chance, I’ll talk to Conner, okay?”
Sasha skipped off in the direction of the staff housing, and Kira resisted the urge to go with her. The promotion from last summer had been unexpected, and not necessarily what she would have chosen for herself, but it was a good job and considering she didn’t have a whole lot of other choices—like going home—she needed to make the best of it. If that meant making some hard decisions and having some even harder conversations, that’s just what she would do. But it didn’t mean she had to like it.
Kira was just about to go inside the camp office when a green truck pulling into the staff parking lot stopped her. Nash.
She waited and watched while he hopped out of the cab, grabbed a duffel bag from the box of his truck and headed toward the south cabin.
Her cabin.
Oh hell no.
Of course, if Nash was the new resident handyman, he’d need a place to stay and although the thought had crossed her mind, she certainly hadn’t considered the fact that he’d take the spare room in the south cabin, where she stayed. Employee lodging was co-ed, and generally the rooms were assigned based on availability. Surely there must be another vacant room in one of the other cabins?
