They could probably both use a drink right now.
When they got inside, Bonnie was surprised to see the bar was all but empty. Granted, it was a weeknight and still only barely past sundown, but she would have imagined more people inside. Instead, there was only a quiet older couple seated in a booth at the far end, eating dinner, and at a corner of the bar, a tired-looking, middle-aged man nursing a tall glass of beer.
Maybe after a few drinks, she’d be able to forgive Jesse. Maybe not.
She motioned to a small booth near the entrance. The table was clean, and it bordered a window that was so dusty she couldn’t even see out of it. Seth didn’t besmirch the place too much, given how picky he usually was.
A minute later, a waitress approached them and took their order.
As they waited, Seth interrupted the silence. “So you made your point.” He gave her a tight, awkward smile. “Can we both promise we’ll never kiss again like that?” he said with an awkward smile, easing the still-lingering tension between the two of them a little.
“Yes. Definitely. Never again,” Bonnie replied, agreeing. Though she didn’t see her and Seth ever being best friends from here on out, it was good to know they were at least on the same page.
Unlike her relationship with Jesse. Just thinking about the incorrigible, insufferable man made her tingly with awareness and furious with rage at the same time.
The thought of being controlled, of being used for purposes other than her own, put her on edge.
Just as their drinks arrived, the door to the bar opened and a very tall man with ice-blue eyes and blond hair walked in.
Speak of the devil.
Jesse looked around and spotted her and Seth a few booths down. His eyebrow rose cautiously, asking a question without saying anything. In response, Bonnie shoved her finger toward him and pointed at the other side of the bar, showing very clearly with her expression that she wanted him as far away as possible right now. She still needed time to process all of it.
“It’s the bear again. He won’t let up, will he?” Seth mentioned curiously as he took a sip of his drink. “I’m sorry I messed with things. Screwed things up for the both of us. I get it now.”
“Good,” she said. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry it couldn’t work.”
He nodded, and the next few minutes passed in relative silence, the two of them only making light, awkward conversation while Bonnie occasionally looked back to see Jesse, eyeing them incessantly and looking more impatient than a squirrel. If that was his idea of giving her space, he was doing a poor job of it.
Outside, Bonnie heard voices, and a second later, a half dozen or so men meandered into the bar, all wearing various combinations of dusty clothing typical to the ranchers she had met. Several came up to the bar and sat on stools a few feet away from their booth, while others found booths of their own and began placing orders with the servers.
After receiving their drinks, one of the men at the bar turned around and looked at Bonnie.
“Hey, are you one of the ladies from over at the McAllister ranch?” he asked. The man was young, probably somewhere in his mid-twenties, with a toothy smile and short brown hair.
“I’m just in town visiting a friend. I’ll probably be headed out soon.” She could feel Jesse’s eyes boring into her from across the room, begging her not to do what she was doing.
“Oh, so you’re not actually with any of them?” he said, sounding surprised.
“Not at the present,” she replied curtly, her eyes meeting Jesse’s, denying his silent challenge. No matter how good of a lover Jesse had been, no matter how happy she thought she would have been with him, he had drawn a line with the mating thing, and she refused to give in to him just because of it.
“And you two are?” the man asked, pointing between her and Seth, clearly probing the dynamic of their relationship.
“Friends,” both she and Seth said at the same time.
“Oh. Interesting. Mind if I join you?” he said, sounding cheery.
“Why not?” Bonnie replied neutrally. She’d be lying if she said she was in the mood for additional company, but her even talking to this guy was clearly annoying Jesse, based on the amount he was fidgeting in his seat as he tried to appear uninvolved. And the man seemed nice enough.
The man sat across from her in the booth, next to Seth, who seemed very conflicted about the general state of dustiness the man was in.
“My name’s Johnny. Pleasure to meet ya,” he said, exchanging introductions with both of them.
“So where are you coming in from?” Bonnie asked casually, not wanting to be impolite.
“Wyatt’s family’s ranch. Me and the other guys are part of the crew he hires during summer to keep up with all the extra work. During the winter, I go back home and work in the lumber mill a friend of mine runs,” he said, his focus intently on her.
“Interesting,” Bonnie said, only half listening while she watched Jesse squirm, shifting back and forth in his chair and looking frustrated.
In that moment, another man from the crew that Johnny came in with walked up to their booth, a mug of beer in his hand.
“Hey, Johnny, what are you doing sitting over here?” he asked, his voice gruff.
“Vern, these folks are from out of town. This is Seth, and this is Bonnie,” he said, pointing to them both.
“Oh, really?” Vern said, sounding interested, but his eyes locked solely on her. “Mind if I join, then? I always like meeting new people.”
Bonnie scooted in a little so Vern could join them, feeling uncomfortable about the whole thing, but not wanting to make a scene by saying no to Johnny or his friend. And aside from Vern’s wandering eyes, they hadn’t been doing anything untoward.
As Vern sat down, Bonnie saw Jesse stand and start making his way toward them. Bonnie pegged him with her gaze, and he stopped, looking confused and angry.
He had to understand she was her own woman and she could handle this. He raised his hands in defeat, and she pointed at the door, motioning for him to leave.
Anger tightened his expression, and then he shook his head and stormed out, the thump-thump of his footsteps fading as he went down the staircase outside the front door.
Good.
Now she could have a normal conversation between consenting adults without him hovering and acting like a caveman on the sidelines.
She couldn’t help but find it ironic that when she'd met Jesse, he had been such a calm, placid person. But somehow, the mating instinct had turned him into an over-possessive monster.
Well, that was fine, but she didn’t have to deal with it until she made the decision to be with him for herself.
“Is everything all right?” Johnny asked, running a hand through his hair and looking in the direction Jesse had disappeared.
“No, it’s nothing,” Bonnie replied. She was going to have a normal conversation with other people, dammit. And he wasn’t going to have another say in the matter.
A few minutes later, Bonnie was starting to feel like normal conversations with other people were overrated. The men Johnny had walked in with were all now around the booth, and she could feel hunger in the air as they watched her, perusing her unabashedly with their gazes.
Meanwhile, Seth seemed to be growing uncomfortable. He’d already had a few drinks and seemed to be boozing his issues away as best he could. But now the situation unfolding at the table seemed to be adding to his queasiness.
It stood to figure. Seth had never been very protective or possessive.
“Excuse me,” he muttered, his cheeks bunching as he fought the urge to vomit. “I have to go outside.”
Bonnie shrugged, feeling her claws ready to extend at the thought of being alone. But it was fine. She’d been alone a long time. Seth pushed his way out of the booth and ran for the exit, holding his stomach. She heard sounds of retching outside and shook her head in disbelief.
What a man…
Johnny and his friends moved
back into the booth once Seth was gone, caging her on all sides. The conversation was still mostly friendly, but the tension in the air was rising, and she could see them exchanging leers between one another.
Bonnie looked around her and took stock of the situation. Thankfully, from what she could see, none of the men that had come in were shifters, so probably only Wyatt and his family were cougars.
Even though she was a cat shifter and had a lot more strength than these men had, Bonnie was still outnumbered and surrounded. And the last thing she wanted to do was make a scene in a place like this. Diplomacy would be best.
She fought to keep her nails in check.
“Excuse me, I need to use the ladies' room,” she said, scooting over to get out and go after Seth. But to her surprise, Vern didn’t budge an inch.
“Why don’t you head back to the ranch with us? You can use the bathroom there. And we’ll show you a good time,” Vern said, his speech slurred, clearly drunk.
“Hey, Vern, that’s no way to talk to a lady,” Johnny scolded, but obviously in a playful way, not in any way that showed concern about her own feelings on the matter. “Forget about that drunk bastard. I’ll take you back to my room and give you the ride of your life, little missy,” he said, reaching a hand out to cover hers.
She pulled her hand back, but her skin where he touched still felt icky, like it was crawling with bugs.
Even though this kid was more of a smooth talker, it was clear what his real intentions were.
“I’d like to leave now. I’ve had enough,” Bonnie said, attempting to stand politely but being shoved back down by Johnny from across the booth.
“Now, don’t get feisty or we may have to take you back ourselves and teach you a lesson,” Johnny said, his voice no longer cheery or friendly.
Bonnie was furious now, and she could feel her claws extending into sharp talons as she readied herself to pounce on the bastard.
All of a sudden, the dusty window of their booth flew upward and open, and a huge fist came from outside and slammed into Johnny’s face. A split second later, the same hand grabbed him by his flannel shirt and pulled him through the window like he was being sucked out by an angry vacuum.
He let out a shriek and then disappeared into the darkness to the sound of bushes rustling.
“What the fuck!” Vern said to her right.
Several of the men from the crew came up to the booth, attracted by the sudden commotion.
Everyone looked outside, but it was fully night now and there were no lights in the parking lot and the bar was surrounded by a thick row of untrimmed hedges.
“What happened?” one of the men at the head of the table asked.
“Someone got Johnny,” Vern said angrily.
For a few moments, there was a commotion between the men, some arguing they should go outside, others who were too spooked to do so, and one or two who were too discombobulated to care either way.
“Is there a problem here?” a voice said from behind the men who were peering over the table and out the window and arguing amongst themselves.
Bonnie looked up and saw Jesse, towering and furious, looking down at the men in and around the booth. All of a sudden, she knew he'd been the one at the window. But how had he come into the restaurant so quick and noiselessly?
The men turned around and looked up, stunned. Someone muttered something about where Johnny had gone.
“Oh, your friend? He’s in the trash where he belongs,” Jesse said, folding his arms.
“Wait, isn’t that one of the McAllisters?” one man whispered to another.
“You better back off if you know what’s good for you,” Vern said, standing but looking not at all intimidating next to the 6’6” bear of a man.
“I think you have something of mine, and I’ve been nice long enough. Now I want it back,” he said, nodding to Bonnie in the far corner of the booth.
Bonnie could feel her cheeks burning with anger at the insinuation that she belonged to anyone, let alone this presumptuous hick.
And she could have handled this herself. At least she was pretty sure she could.
Vern spoke up. “This one’s ours. She said she don’t belong to anyone else, and we mean to—”
The ranch hand was interrupted by a swift uppercut to the jaw that sent him reeling to the side. Just the sound of it sent a chill up Bonnie’s spine. The speed and the strength with which it was delivered was staggering.
“My mate doesn’t belong to anyone,” Jesse said, glowering. “Except me.”
In that moment, all hell broke loose in the bar. Jesse became a whirlwind of punches as the ranchers from Wyatt’s place tried to pile on to him.
He knocked one man off his feet with a hook to his cheek, then knocked the wind out of another with a hit to the gut. Another man grabbed a stool and made to swing it at Jesse’s head, but he spun around and stopped the chair mid-swing, then kicked the man with one long leg that sent him careening backward and overturning a table.
From their stools and booths around the bar, other men from the Wyatt ranch joined in, seeing their buddies and coworkers embroiled in a one-man brawl.
Some rushed at Jesse with anger, only to be knocked back or thrown headlong into old wooden furniture that splintered and shattered with aplomb. Others (the drunker ones) let out hoots and yells, sounding like they were having the time of their lives, despite the answering strikes from Jesse that swiftly silenced their raucousness.
Despite being outnumbered, it was clear Jesse was on the warpath because he was protecting her. By all other means, Jesse was the calmest and most mild-mannered of the three McAllister brothers (except in instances when Mav needed the only form of communication that he could listen to—a punch to the face).
Bonnie didn’t know if she should be flattered or furious at the whole display.
She had to admit the sight of her mate fighting for her was a little hot. But she still felt ambivalent about the whole situation.
Two men came at Jesse, one from each side, and he just grabbed them both and hoisted them up by their collars, his huge muscled arms fully extended and gloriously ripped from the exertion, tan skin showing under his torn denim shirt.
For a split second, it made her think of being in bed with him, but then she was suddenly reminded of why she was angry with him.
“If you ever try to lay a hand on my mate again, I’ll kill you,” Jesse said to the two men flailing in his grip, suspended midair by sheer supernatural strength.
As if they were two sacks of potatoes, or two bales of hay, Jesse tossed the men toward the door. They rolled across the floor, then scrambled to stand and bolted outside, lucky to have escaped a fate more unfortunate than the myriad of other unconscious and groaning men surrounding the booth where Bonnie was seated.
“You. You’re coming home with me,” he commanded, pointing to her.
She wasn’t sure how to respond. The more feral, primal part of her was stunned and turned on by the display of strength and wanted to be in bed with him this very instant.
But the woman that had spent her entire life controlled by others and had been deeply hurt by this man was still angry, still hesitant to trust him again.
“I’m not sure I want to,” she replied, stalling for time in the hopes that her heart and mind would agree for once.
“It wasn’t a question. I want you safe where I can see you. You’re my mate, and I’m not going to beat around the bush about it anymore,” he said, his voice deep and powerful.
Bonnie wanted to disagree vehemently but felt herself hoisted from her seat in the booth onto his wide shoulder. She struggled against him but felt his impossibly powerful arm surrounding her, holding her there.
“Put the bill on my tab, Joe,” Jesse said, turning and speaking to the quiet man behind the bar, then walking outside, Bonnie still firmly perched over his shoulder.
The bartender just nodded and went back to wiping off shot glasses.
Chapter 9
Jesse knew he’d just blown it all again.
He didn’t know what was wrong with him, but he couldn’t just sit and watch while his mate was surrounded by other males. Even if he knew she was a wildcat who could probably take all the humans on without issue.
She was his. His.
It kept pounding through his brain, whether it was right or wrong. His bear was screaming it. He should have stopped them somehow. Should have realized how much it meant to her to stay independent.
He could only think of one option. Get away from her and give her space from the possessive bear screaming inside him. He didn’t know how else to go back to the man he was before she’d come into his life.
And she didn’t seem to want him around at all.
He’d loaded both her and the totally drunk Seth into his pickup and headed out, and she was fuming quietly and leaning on the window as he zoomed up the curvy roads toward the ranch.
When he’d seen Seth stumbling out of the bar, he’d immediately gone on red alert. He hadn’t thought he could be more disgusted by the man, but he was wrong.
So he’d crept up to the window, just to see what was happening. And when he’d seen one of the men shove Bonnie into the booth, he saw red.
The next thing he knew, Johnny was in a trashcan and he was in the bar, ready to tear heads off.
Mating was a dangerous thing.
He should have known it from the start. Maybe he should have just told her right after it happened and then left to give her space to deal with it, instead of driving around all day, trying to buy presents and giving room for another man to move in.
Even if the last trip of the day, the one that had taken him until after dinner to complete, had been to buy her a ring so he could propose. The ring was still sitting on the dinner table at home, and he wondered if he should move it before he took her back.
But he didn’t want her staying at the main lodge. Not with Seth there, drunk.
Even if the grabby dude seemed a little more interested in harassing Jesse at the moment.
“Bonnie, he’s hotttt…” Seth mumbled, reaching around the front seat to feel Jesse’s shoulders.
Rancher Bear: BBW Bear Shifter Romance (Bear Haven Book 2) Page 8
