by J. K Harper
But first, how to deal with her sweetly nosy sister.
"Spill about what?" Her voice was as casual as she could make it, but Alina the hairdresser had been hearing secrets told or kept for years. The woman knew full well when people in her chair were being truthful or not.
“Spill about why you're glowing.”
Irritated or not, Brynna couldn't help a small smile as she thought about Wyatt. Behind her, Alina made a little noise in her throat and shook her head, which Brynna caught in the mirror as she looked up. "I knew it. You've got that dreamy little smile you always used to get when you talked about him. Oh, this is so wonderful," she said more softly, her face suddenly serene. “I've always known he was the one for you, Bryn.”
Brynna swallowed hard and said nothing. For long moments, there was no sound in the little shop except the sound of cars driving by outside, the Christmas music coming from the speakers, and the soft snip and swish of Alina's scissors.
Mate, the voice inside her insisted. Her reindeer. The little voice always with her, always reminding her she was a reindeer shifter, no matter how far she tried to run from it. And that her reindeer side knew the other truth, no matter how hard she wanted to run away from it.
Wyatt is my mate.
"Fine," Brynna finally, slowly conceded, feeling a sweet little flush even as she said it. "You're right, Ali. Wyatt is—he's the same he always was. And I still love him. So much," she breathed, her voice getting all choked up in her throat as she said it. “Oh, my gosh,” she whispered as a flood of emotion roared through her. “I still love him, so much.”
She'd never stopped loving him. She'd just run away from it, as far and as fast as she could, because she'd been such a fool. Terrified he would hold her back, just like she’d always been terrified this town and her shifter heritage would hold her back.
Wyatt had never held her back. He’d let her run away from him, break his heart—she knew that as surely as she knew anything—and hadn’t tried to stop her. He wanted her to be happy, and he’d let her go to try and find the happiness she thought she wanted.
She’d been wrong. What she wanted in order to be happy, what she needed in order to be happy, was Wyatt. Her mate.
Alina grinned hugely in the mirror even as she paid careful attention to her trim job. But her voice was soft when she answered. "I know. I've always known. But you needed to realize it yourself."
Brynna sighed, tapping her fingers on the arm of the chair under the plastic sheet Alina had clipped around her neck. “I think I really knew because...because my reindeer won't shut up about him.”
Alina squealed with delight at the same time Brynna's reindeer indignantly huffed inside her mind. Despite herself, Brynna laughed. “I've been feeling her more and more each day I've been back home. Back here in Deep Hollow, I mean,” she quickly corrected herself, but Alina had caught it.
Home.
In the mirror, her sister's face softened. “Oh, baby girl, it's not that terrible here, is it? Even though I know you can't wait to leave again.”
Brynna watched dark strands of her hair drop onto the plastic sheet and slide down as Alina neatly sliced away with her scissors. She sighed and shrugged. “You know why.”
Alina finished the trim and put the scissors into a little container on the counter under the mirror. “It's only one night a year, Bryn. It's not that bad. And it's fun. It's really, really fun.”
“Hmm,” Brynna murmured. “But you've always liked being a reindeer. Why should I have to be part of holidays I hate, when I never even signed up for being a shifter?”
Alina's eyebrows knotted up. She shook her head. “No one ever forced you. It's just—it's tradition, Bryn. That's all. And there aren't that many of us in the world, you know,” she added, meeting Brynna's eyes in the mirror and holding the gaze. “It's a pretty cool responsibility. A tradition that's loved by many people around the world. And I don’t believe you really hate Christmas. I think you’ve just never given yourself the chance to really love it like you could.”
Before Brynna could reply to that, her phone abruptly belted out its jolting ringtone. Alina jumped a bit, then looked down at it. Eyebrows raising and her mouth making a little circle of appreciation, she smiled at it.
“What?” Brynna demanded, twisting around in her chair to reach for her phone.
Her sister smiled, suddenly looking more like a crafty vixen than an innocent reindeer. “If I wasn't head over heels for Thor, I could find Wyatt pretty attractive.” She chortled as she looked for her broom to start sweeping up Brynna's hair from the floor, smiling with such a knowing expression that Brynna gritted her teeth.
Fine, so Wyatt was hotter than hot. She stared down at the screen, where his wildly sexy face stared back up at her as he called. At their impromptu dinner, she'd snapped his photo to put in her phone along with his number.
So he looked totally lickable. So just looking at his face made her stomach quiver with butterflies, made her lady bits quiver and clench, too. It just meant she could admit he was crazy hot. Nothing more than that.
Mate, her reindeer insisted.
Well, yes. That too. Yes, he was her mate.
And, I still love him, her own words echoed in her mind.
She slowly exhaled, staring at his smiling face on her phone as it rang.
Alina nudged her shoulder with her hand. “Answer that sexy man before it goes to voicemail. Don't lose this chance, little deer. He still loves you too, you know.”
Brynna took a deep breath, then pressed the screen. “Wyatt—” was all she got out before his booming voice came through loudly enough that both she and Alina startled like, well, deer.
“Brynna, where are you? I have to see you. Now.” His voice, edged with a molten promise that boomed through the small, thankfully empty salon, seemed to thunder through Brynna's entire body. “Please,” he added so softly, so gently, that she almost dropped the phone. Did he sound—nervous?
Nervous? Wyatt Walker Webber, fearless deputy, growly possessive bear, was nervous? About calling her? About wanting to see her?
She had to swallow a few times, wetting her dry lips, before she could answer. “I'm getting my hair cut at Alina's hairdresser shop.”
“Okay. I'm on my way. I'll explain everything when I see you. Just—don't leave, Bryn. Not just because I don't want you to leave. I want you to do and be whatever it is you want to be. But don’t leave before I get a chance to tell you what I need to. ” His voice suddenly turned gruff. “Besides, I have a Christmas gift for you. I’m hoping you'll like it. Wait for me,” he commanded, then hung up.
Brynna sat with her mouth dropped open and her body shivering with something that might be delighted hope. Such intense protectiveness had filled Wyatt's rough voice that her already hitching breathing hitched even more. Instead of being pissed, was she suddenly getting all girlishly turned on because he was acting like such a big, possessive bear?
Well, yes. Yes, she was.
The strains of “All I Want for Christmas is You” gently echoed around the room as Alina, her eyes shining, met Brynna's gaze in the mirror. “He's running right to you this time. Don't run away from him again, Bryn. That big ole bear of a man will have another broken heart he'll never recover from this time. And so will you,” her sister added in a whisper. “You know shifters need their mates, or you’ll never be really happy or fulfilled. Besides, he’s bringing you a Christmas gift. Wait to see what it is. And,” Alina tapped the side of her nose as she gave Brynna a thoughtful look, “I have an idea. Something I think might make everything work out the way it always should have.”
Brynna's entire body trembled as she nodded. Okay. Yes. She wasn't going anywhere just yet. She would listen to Alina’s idea. She would wait for Wyatt.
My mate, her heart sang, sending another flood of wild joy surging through her. Her mate was coming for her, finally. Her entire body sizzled with nerves and a blast of giddy excitement.
Home, her reindeer whi
spered firmly.
Yes. Yes, she just might be home.
6
Wyatt pounded along the snowy sidewalk, half-running from around the block where he’d parked his truck on the other end of town from the sheriff’s station. He drew more than a few stares but he didn't care. He had to find Brynna right now, no matter what. His bear roamed around inside him, barely restrained beneath the surface. He had to get to her. Had to see her. His sweet, sexy, stubborn little reindeer mate.
Ducking and dodging passersby, he headed straight toward Alina's shop, which of course he remembered from before he’d moved away. Alina had always liked to mess with people’s hair and had opened her little place only a few years after they all graduated from high school. The pretty storefront window proclaimed Alina's Hair Design, with a fancy pair of scissors painted onto the sign below the name. Reaching forward, Wyatt yanked open the door, then lunged inside, quickly skidding to a stop on the slick floor.
Brynna sat in a chair in front of a mirror, swiveled around to face the door, her dark hair floating in loose, pretty waves around her face, her eyes wide as she stared at him. Her sister Alina stood beside her, holding a hair dryer, wearing a beaming smile.
Suddenly feeling like a reactive idiot, Wyatt took one more step toward Brynna before he stopped, his heart racing. "Uh...hi."
"Hi.” Brynna's voice was tentative, but not angry. Thank fuck.
He scrubbed a quick hand over his eyes. He needed to focus. He couldn't screw this up again. Never again. Taking a breath, he reached out and gently laid his hands on top of Brynna's shoulders, leaning forward to look directly into her eyes. She shivered slightly under his touch, but it was an appreciative shiver. Touching her felt right. "I want to talk to you, Brynna. Seeing you again the other night was—I don't know. A sign, maybe. Then again yesterday. Almost like it was meant to be."
Feeling somewhat ridiculous as he said that, he searched her face for any trace she was laughing at him. She just nodded, looking as serious as he suddenly felt.
His heart thumped hard at how beautiful she was. At just how Brynna she was.
"And you’re still here. You haven’t left yet. But," he gave a quick glance at Alina, who was still smiling at him as if he were some sort of rare object of which she clearly approved, "could we talk in private? If that's okay with you."
He suddenly felt tentative. She had been pissed at him for being so domineering the other night, then such a jackass with Thor yesterday morning. Who, he abruptly recalled, was Alina's fiance. Feeling a little embarrassed for what a possessive jerk he'd been, for how snarly he'd been with Brynna's sister's mate, he shot another glance at Alina. But she still smiled at him. Clearly, if she knew about that incident, she didn't care about it.
There was silence in the small shop as Brynna looked at him even longer. Shit. He'd pushed too hard earlier, with his over-the-top protectiveness, and she wasn't going to listen. Could he really blame her? But to his relief, she finally nodded.
"I'll go with you and listen to whatever it is you have to tell me." Her face softened. "I have something to tell you too. A few somethings, actually."
He let out a breath he hadn't even realized he'd been holding. "Okay. Let's go. I'm taking you to my place."
Alina whooped. “About time!”
Brynna smiled as she stood up, about stopping his heart with her beauty. “Let's go,” she said, looking at Wyatt and holding out her hand. “I'm ready.”
Wyatt took her hand, feeling the softness of her skin yet the strength of her fingers. His Brynna had two sides like that. Yes, his Brynna, no matter what. As long as she was cool with it too. He sure as hell hoped so. This time, he swore to himself, he'd better not fuck it up again by acting like a damned he-man who wanted to throw his mate over his shoulder and march off to his bear cave with her.
Even if he did.
On the short drive through the snowy streets to his house, they were silent. Brynna stared out the window, obviously thinking about everything. But he caught a smile on her pretty mouth more than once.
When they got to Wyatt's place, Brynna didn't say anything for a long moment. She just sat examining the small house as he killed the engine. He'd just barely managed to put a down payment on it with what he'd saved from a deputy's slim salary over the past several years, but the place was his. Feeling suddenly self-conscious, Wyatt said in a gruff voice, "I just bought it. I know it's small, but I swear it's pretty decent inside."
She puffed laughter. “Wyatt. I’m not worried about the inside. The outside looks you invited Christmas over for a visit, and it decided to completely take over.”
Oh. That. “Well, you know me.” He sat back and tried to look at his house the way Brynna must be seeing it. Yeah, he hadn't been shy about decorating his place the second he’d moved in. He didn't think it was completely over the top. But it was definitely filled with holiday spirit.
His snug little house in the middle of town was covered in twinkling lights. Colorful outside lights and white ones that blinked from inside where he'd carefully draped them around the windows. Gaudy plastic reindeers, enormous fake snowmen, and a cheerful Santa decorated—desecrated, he’d bet Brynna was thinking to herself—his snow-covered front yard. A smiling elf head bobbed out from his mailbox on the street. His tree, which he'd brought down from the mountain himself on a tree-getting mission with Slade and his other cousins, presented itself in the front window. It glowed with lights, which were set with a timer to come on before dusk.
Yeah, he was a holiday-loving guy once more, and that was that.
He glanced at Brynna again. Christmas might be her least favorite holiday, but she knew he loved it. He couldn't and wouldn't hide that from her. To his relief, a smile played on her face. She glanced over at him. “Well, some things definitely don't change. Now,” she said, opening her door to get out. “Let me see the inside.”
Frantically, he sifted through his memories of the morning, trying to decide whether or not he'd left the place a pigsty. He decided it probably wasn't too bad, as long as he kept her away from the kitchen. Another grin tip-toed onto her face as she got out of the truck and went up to the front door, then stopped to wait for him. He opened the door and somewhat shyly gestured for her to go inside.
Damn. This suddenly felt like a really big deal. He'd bought a house of his own. This was his personal bear cave, so to speak. The need for Brynna to like it seemed wildly important all of a sudden.
When they stepped inside, she made a cute little startled sound. "Oh! This is nicer than I thought it would be."
"Hmm. What exactly were you picturing?"
Brynna laughed, the sound sending actual fuckin' flutters through Wyatt's body. It was nuts. But he liked it. "Well, I know you, so I figured it would be practically empty except for maybe a beanbag chair and some pizza boxes." She shot him a side-eye look, an even bigger grin sneaking onto her face.
Wyatt snorted, relaxing into the familiar repartee. This was the Brynna from dinner the other night. The Brynna he'd known years ago. "I'm not a frat boy. I've grown up some since I was last here.”
She gave him a probing look, as if trying to see his grown-up side. Then she just nodded, her hair flowing prettily over her shoulders as she looked around. She turned in a slow circle, taking in the place in all its holiday glory. When she finally had spun all the way around to face him again, her eyes studied him for another long moment, leaving Wyatt felt stripped bare. It was unsettling and exciting at the same time. He wanted her to know him. He wanted her to see him. The real him that she used to know. Apparently, so did she, based on her next words.
"Wyatt, tell me why I'm here with you right now.” Her voice wobbled for a brief moment, but she didn't break her eye contact with him. “And then I’ll tell you why I never should have left.”
7
Brynna studied Wyatt as he stared at her, her heart hammering in her chest so loudly she was half surprised he couldn't hear it. The bright, naked hope that sprang into h
is expression told her everything. He did want her to stay. And everything in her—especially her pushy little reindeer, she thought, almost giggling at the irritated huffs that blew around her mind—wanted him to give her the right reason she should.
Wyatt's mouth ticked up at the corners. A smile. "I've always been able to tell you everything, Bryn." The low rumble of his voice sent a heated flicker through her core, thrumming along her nerves in all the right ways. Despite her roller coaster emotions about him, she'd been aroused ever since he burst into Alina's shop like a sexy warrior, ready to claim his woman.
"You remember I told you what it was like to grow up without a mom. To see what it did to my dad. To be one of the only shifter kids in town without a mom." He watched her carefully as he said that. They had touched on it during their stroll after dinner last week, but they hadn't discussed this part quite so boldly.
Brynna nodded, feeling held by the intensity of his bright blue eyes. Just as carefully but very clearly, she responded. "Yes. And how her leaving tore apart your family, and made your dad the way he is. Made you the way you are," she added more hesitantly.
Wyatt visibly shut his mouth on whatever words he had been planning to say. He crinkled up his face at her. "The way I am? How am I?"
She paused, assessing him. He could take it, she decided. Lying to Wyatt, even by omission, wasn't something she'd ever want to do anyway. For some reason, she couldn't bring herself to ever be false to him.
“You,” she started slowly, dragging out the word as his brilliant eyes seemed to try to pierce into her soul, “are guarded, too. You never really shared all of yourself with me, you know. Not even when you planned to ask me to marry you.” He flinched at that, hard, but she pressed on. She had to. “I know we told each other everything, but you held back on me.”
He drew breath to speak, his brows lowering, but she shook her head and went on more quickly. “No, hear me out. I don't believe you ever lied to me about anything, Wyatt. Never,” she said as firmly as she could. He relaxed a fraction. “But,” and he tensed again, “you weren't completely there. Not really. You trusted me with your secrets, but not everything. I could still tell that, at dinner the other night. What is it that you're still not telling me, Wyatt? I think that after we somehow came back into each other's lives, after all this time, I deserve to hear it all.”
