by Amelia Jade
Jade Crew:
Haunted Bear
A Paranormal
Shapeshifter Romance
By Amelia Jade
Jade Crew: Haunted Bear
Copyright © 2016 by Amelia Jade
First Electronic Publication: January 2016
Amelia Jade
All Rights Are Reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded or distributed via the Internet or any other means, electronic or print, without the author’s permission.
NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR:
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental. The author does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for third-party websites or their content.
All sexual activities depicted occur between consenting characters 18 years or older who are not blood related.
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Jade Crew: Haunted Bear
Chapter One
Cole
The day tasted of failure.
Slumping down into the chair at an empty table, he snatched up the menu on the table and flipped roughly through the pages, looking for something to eat. Part of the problem was that he hadn’t eaten, he knew that.
I’m working on that, he snarled to himself, slamming the laminated sheet of paper down.
“What can I get you, sweetie?”
He jumped. The menu flew from his hand, falling to the floor. The woman who the voice belonged to bent down without a word and grabbed it, slipping it easily back into his frozen hand.
Smooth.
“H-Hi,” he stuttered out, fully turning to look at her even as his face caught fire from his sudden inability to speak.
The first thing he saw were a pair of black flats on her feet, obviously well-worn from her profession, he noted.
Look up, you idiot, those are her feet.
Obeying the small sliver of his brain that still seemed to be functioning, he dragged his eyes upward.
The moment his eyes locked onto the sky-blue orbs set into her face, he realized what he had done wrong. Although she didn’t completely arch her eyebrow in a questioning manner, her eyes reflected her attitude nonetheless.
Genius. Sheer genius. You just gave her the old-fashioned “elevator look” without any shame. Did you enjoy it?
As a matter of fact, he had, he told himself, thinking it over in his mind once more. Her legs were hidden behind a pair of black pants, though the material could not hide the thickness of her thighs from his slow-moving gaze. Above that, she was wearing a flame-red buttoned shirt with her nametag emblazoned above her right breast, and the logo and name of the restaurant on her left. The shirt also could not hide her large breasts as—unless he missed his guess—there was at least one, if not two more buttons done up than normal on the shirt. This had the effect of drawing it tight across her chest on top, and having it tucked in to her jeans below meant he got an excellent idea of what lay beneath.
None of which did him any good as he stared into her eyes now, both of them knowing full well what was going on in his head. Which is when he surprised them both.
“I’d like the best you have to offer,” he asked without blinking, wanting her to know exactly what he meant.
Now it was the waitress’s turn to be embarrassed, though he had to give her credit; she took it in stride, doing her best to maintain her professionalism.
“Well, that depends on how hungry you are, sir. If you’re just looking for a quick lunchtime appetizer,” he carefully did not react to the slight note of disdain in her voice, “then I’d recommend the chicken and quinoa salad. But, if you’re up for something a little bigger and fulfilling,” he kept his face still with iron-willed control at her purposeful choice of wording, “then I’d recommend the ribs, whether half or full rack,” she said with a polite smile.
Behind it, however, he could see her eyes twinkling.
Now that it was his turn to reply once more, he found all his anxiety from earlier returning, making it hard for him to choose a line. He needed to say something witty, something that would make her come back. Spending more time around her was just what he wanted after a fruitless morning filled with frustration.
Then it came to him.
“Well, I’ll take the full rack please,” he glanced at her nametag once more, “Trestin. I’ve always enjoyed having a little more meat on the bone.”
This time she definitely blushed at the pointed reference to her own figure. He liked the way the slight reddening didn’t stop at her cheeks, but ran softly down her neck, disappearing under her collar. Part of him would absolutely love to see how far down she could blush.
“Excellent. I’ll put you down for one full rack of ribs then, Mister...” she trailed off.
“Cole,” he said, sticking out his hand in greeting. “Cole Lovac.”
She grabbed his proffered hand awkwardly, his massive paw engulfing her soft, creamy hand almost completely. He was surprised at just how soft her hands were, despite working in a restaurant all day. Calluses and dry skin were what he had expected, but there was none of that. With a smile she shook his hand and then grabbed her pen once more.
This women took care of herself, he thought, risking another glance at her as she scribbled down his order on her notepad. Her jet-black hair hung down to her shoulder blades from the ponytail she had it currently wrapped up in. It looked thick and full, which probably made it a nightmare to maintain, reminding him of a time when he had grown his own dirty-blond hair out to shoulder length.
“And anything to drink today Cole?” she asked, interrupting his train of thought with a voice as smooth as honey. He could listen to her talk for hours on end; she had that sort of voice. There was no shrill, nagging type squawk to it, unlike the last one...
“I’d love a beer, but I should probably have a nice tall glass of water. Hold the ice, if you don’t mind?” he said with an awkward “please forgive me for the specificity of my order” smile.
“Not a problem at all. Makes my job easier,” she said with a cheerful grin, stuffing her notepad and pen into her back pocket and gently snatching the menu from his hands after he failed to remember to hand it over.
He watched her go, mesmerized by the sway of her step. There was something about this woman.
No, he corrected. About Trestin. What an unusual name, he thought, running his mind over it several more times, trying to get the inflection on it just right. He loved it, and it fit her just perfectly, of that much he was certain.
She was back shortly with a pitcher of water, which she slid expertly onto the center of the table. Then she produced a pair of glasses. Without waiting for an offer, she slid into the chair opposite him and began to pour.
“I hope you don’t mind, but I’m done for the day after you’re finished. You’re the only table left in my section, so I figured I’d join you.”
/> Cole looked around the restaurant in a mild panic. Origin Sandwiches and Cafe wasn’t a small place, but it wasn’t huge either. He noticed there was nobody at the tables around him, which also meant that nobody seemed to care that the waitress had sat down in front of him. Swallowing hard, he steeled himself to try and talk with her over the course of his lunch. Small talk was not his forte, despite the pair of good lines he had managed to conjure from nothing earlier.
In fact, talking with women was not his forte. As a bear shifter, Cole was used to his natural good looks and large muscles doing the talking for him when he felt the urge to bed a woman. While he had a feeling Trestin appreciated those facts, the truth of the matter was he would need to talk to her. Trestin wasn’t someone he was interested in bedding. At least, not immediately or solely, he corrected himself hastily as she looked up from pouring his water. He could definitely bed her. Internally, he felt his bear stir with agreement.
That caused an ice-cold sliver of fear to shoot through his body as he mentally clamped down on his bear. Hard. The last thing he needed was having his animal side make an appearance in the middle of a very public, and—despite the emptiness around him—very crowded place. He took a deep, soothing breath, forcefully calming himself.
“Everything okay?” Trestin asked, eyeing him askance as she slowly pushed over a glassful of water with no ice in it.
Snatching the glass, he took a long gulp. “Much better,” he said with a sigh and a slight smack of his lips, sitting back into the curved bars that formed the back of his chair. The bright red metal groaned under his weight, but it held. Thankfully Cole rarely had to worry about things giving way beneath him. Although he was a bear shifter, he was smaller than most. In situations such as this, it worked to his advantage.
He chuckled softly as he pictured Russell, or even Evan, leaning back into one of the chairs the way he just had.
“Funny enough to share?”
“Sure,” he said with a smile, thankful for the easy segue. “I was just picturing what would have happened if one of my larger shifter friends had sat back the way I just did.”
“Oh?” she said.
“Yeah, they would have broken it and ended up flat on their ass,” he laughed, his stomach contracting with humor and butterflies as Trestin giggled, then laughed outright.
“You know, that happens at least once a month here, and every time I still laugh my ass off about it. The look of shock on their faces, it gets me every time. You would think that by now—”
“They would be used to it!” he finished with a cry.
“Exactly!” she said, slamming her palm down onto the table as they both dissolved into laughter once more.
“Thank you for sitting down,” he said several moments later as he took a deep breath, focusing back on the two of them. “I really needed that.”
“You did look a little worse for wear when you sat down,” she admitted, looking across the table at him expectantly.
“Had a frustrating morning, and I waited too long for food,” he admitted.
“Ah, so you’re hangry!” she said with a smile, combining the words hungry and angry to form an apt description of his mood.
“I was,” he said, a smile tugging at his cheeks. “Now I’m just hungry.” His voice was softer as he looked right at her while he said it.
Trestin blushed again, this time a little more thoroughly than when she had been maintaining her professionalism earlier. “Well, glad I could be of assistance,” she said after a moment.
“You’re being lovely,” he said.
“So, what does the afternoon hold for you?” she asked, looking him right in the eyes once more.
He loved the way her eyes reminded him of the open sky on a perfectly sunny summer day. Of being out in the forest, in the middle of a meadow, lying on his back without a care in the world. Those were the memories she evoked, and Cole needed every one of them he could get to help hold back the thoughts of the night.
“More of the same, I think,” he said dully. “I don’t even know what I’m looking for, which doesn’t help.”
“Back up there Cole. Looking for what?” she said, using his name deliberately to get his attention. She succeeded, because the moment she said it, he sat up straighter, leaning a little across the table toward her. She was flirting with him, and he was flirting with her. He knew it, and he was going with it.
You’re being an idiot Cole. This is not going to end well, and you know it. Cut if off now, before you hurt yourself. And her.
“A present. For a girl,” he clarified as this time Trestin did arch an eyebrow at him.
He saw her eyes cloud over instantly, and he realized the horrible mistake he had just made. By not mentioning who the girl was, he had insinuated to Trestin that he was shopping for his girl. Which, considering who he was shopping for, was completely not true.
“It’s for my Alpha’s mate,” he explained hurriedly, trying to fix the situation. “She’s always treated me better than the rest, and I found out that it’s her birthday soon by accident, when he mentioned it without thinking.”
Trestin looked confused.
“I guess she’s not big on celebrating her birthday,” he explained, shrugging his shoulders to show he wasn’t entirely sure why it was being kept a secret either. “But I want to get her something, as a thank you.”
“So what are you getting her?” Trestin asked after taking a moment to compose herself.
He could see that she had accepted his explanation, even if it would take her a bit to open back up to him again. Cole cursed his stupid choice of words, wishing he could take back that entire sentence, but he knew he would just have to keep talking and hope he didn’t set off any more of landmines.
His meal arrived. A busboy in the same uniform as Trestin, black pants and fire-red shirt, set the plate down in front of him using a cloth to grip it.
“Careful sir, the plate is extremely hot,” he cautioned as Cole reached for it to move it in front of him.
“Thank you,” he said, ignoring the warning and grabbing it anyway. It was warm, he had to admit, but to his toughened hands it was not uncomfortable in the slightest.
“If this is as tasty as it looks, I’m going to be very glad I listened to your recommendation,” he said across the table.
The ribs were divvied up into three sections for easier handling, and while he had been given a stack of napkins and wet-naps in a bowl, which he assumed were for the bones, he had not been given any cutlery. His search on the table must have clued Trestin in to what he was looking for.
“Just use your hands,” she admonished. “I’m not going to judge you for it. That’s how they’re supposed to be eaten.”
As she said that, the same busboy returned and deposited a half rack of ribs in front of her. She didn’t wait for him, but dug in with gusto, inhaling the first one as he watched.
Cole barked a laugh of approval, and then dug in to his own food as well. Much to his delight, the food was, if anything, better than it looked, which was saying a lot. The bowl in front of him quickly became filled with bones as he tore at the savory hunks of ribs, the perfectly basted meat falling apart in his mouth. The sweet honey-garlic barbecue sauce they used left a lovely tang in his mouth as he devoured the meal.
“Delicious,” he said at last, pushing the bowl full of bones away from him as he began to clean his hands. That was always the part he hated, the cleanup. Food like ribs and chicken wings were delicious, but they left his hands messy and covered in grease.
No pain, no pleasure, he thought to himself as the wet-nap in his hands began to fade from its pristine white to an off-red color as the remnants of his meal became trapped in it.
He looked around the cafe as Trestin finished the last of her food. It was a corner unit, right at one of the main intersections in Origin, the sole town—it was too small to be referred to as a city—in Genesis Valley. Its prime location meant that even in the town of only a few thousand, th
ere were always people there.
The doors were set at a forty-five degree angle from the other walls, and tables spread out and around to the left and right of them, while straight ahead and slightly to the left was the bar, up against the rear wall. Just to the right of it was the entrance to the kitchen. All told, he figured there were thirty or so tables, all covered in the same red and black checker-patterned cloth.
Everything on the ceiling was painted black, and the bright white lights greatly accentuated the look. It was a great place, he decided, and one he would visit more often. Especially if Trestin was working.
“So, do you have any idea on what you’re going to get her?” Trestin asked as their plates were cleared away.
Cole had thought she would leave, but it appeared that Trestin was in no rush to depart.
Perhaps... he thought to himself. No, definitely not.
“Not a clue. Care to come help me out?” Shit. He had asked it anyway. Cole really wished the two halves of his brain would get on the same page. Flirting with her was one thing, but he had to be cautious that he didn’t invite her in too close. She would get hurt, and he didn’t want that. Couldn’t have that.
“I don’t normally go on dates with customers,” she said, awkwardly avoiding the fact that she had sat down at his table without invitation to have lunch.
Cole wisely decided not to mention that little detail. He was educated enough to know he shouldn’t point out her hypocrisy like that. But there had to be some way to convince her. Besides, he needed her help. He was having no luck on his own deciding what to get Emma for her birthday, so perhaps an outsider’s perspective would be of assistance.
“Don’t consider it a date then,” he said quickly, before she could get another word in. “Consider it,” he paused for emphasis, “an adventure!” He stuck his index finger straight up and affected the air of a stereotypical ship captain from some horrible swashbuckling movie he had seen once.
Trestin was howling with laughter, he realized after a moment. So loud, in fact, that several other patrons were looking this way. Still, he had to admit, he liked the way she laughed. It was natural and unforced, a very likable sound.
