Shiftr didn’t agree, of course. But Shiftr never had any good matches for him. He’d sat there one lonely night after another, scrolling and swiping on that stupid app, while all his clan had found their mates. Even the ones who didn’t want mates. While he, who wanted to find his mate more than anything else in the whole world, only made matches in the 60 to 70% range. He’d been on plenty of dates, with lots of smart, beautiful curvy girls, but it always became obvious real fast that they weren’t suited to each other. Niall knew that he was a particular character. He had a generous and honest heart, but he loved order. If his date turned up ten minutes late, for instance, he knew it wasn’t going to work. If she invited him into her home and it was messy, same thing. But today’s date was going to be different. The way he felt when he looked into Dolores’ eyes was all new. It was like he’d been stuck through the heart by an arrow of love. He’d been so excited when he saw her profile for the first time that he’d messaged her right away. Well, after he’d spent three hours composing the best message he’d written in his life.
And… she didn’t reply. He’d been crushed. Like someone was literally stamping on his heart. Then he saw that Olsen was exchanging messages with her, and he’d been so mad that he’d almost torn into him. But then he’d gone too far, and Olsen had dominated him instead, with that wicked strength that no other bear could match. Olsen. That mouth-breather. That knuckle-dragger. Niall loved him, of course, as he loved all of his clan. But there was something about Olsen – something wild and dark and feral that always put him on edge, and which, in turn, brought out his controlling impulses. Seriously, he didn’t deserve a girl like Dolores. Sending her a load of dumb pictures, for Christsakes! Like he was at pre-school. No, Dolores was real smart, and she deserved to be with a guy like himself – a guy who could understand her. He pictured Dolores and himself together, talking about deep subjects. Even drinking wine. Not that he liked wine, but he’d deal with it, just for her. She said she wasn’t looking to date, but he’d change her mind. He’d launch the Niall Whitlock charm offensive, and convince her that Shiftr was wrong, and that they were meant to be together.
As he daydreamed, his bear tore through the forest, snatching up squirrels like they were candy. It was full of a pulsing, bounding hunger for Dolores, and there was no way he was going to let it down. When he got back from hunting, he hit the shower and spent a lot of time grooming himself, determined he was going to look his absolute best for his date.
12
Dolores got out of the shower and wrapped herself in her brand-new, rainbow-striped fluffy bathrobe, avoiding catching sight of her body in the mirror as usual. She picked out a pair of black pants and a plain black v-neck shirt. The shirt was slightly fitted, as all her shirts were, to make the most of her small waist, but apart from that, it was very casual looking.
Then she went back to the bathroom and looked at her reflection as she pulled her hair back from her face, wondering if she could wear it in a ponytail. Her long bangs, which were swept to the side, almost concealed the scar. But not quite. With a sigh, she released it and brushed it straight down instead. It was a pain in the ass having to wear her hair down all the time, especially at school where the kids were fascinated by its shininess, and liked nothing better than to try to swing on it.
She skipped makeup altogether and picked out some flat boots – not her first choice, due to her small stature, but Niall said they’d be walking around a lot. She had one final glance in the full-length mirror in her bedroom, satisfied that she looked way too casual to be going on a date, then she went downstairs.
She poured another cup of coffee from the jug in the kitchen, and took it out to the porch to wait for Niall. It was a bright, flawless day, just starting to get hot. She stretched her legs out contentedly, enjoying her new cabin and her new porch, thinking how lucky she was to have ended up with this whole new life, when just a few weeks earlier she’d felt like her entire life was over.
Five minutes later, he arrived in a new-looking black SUV, a whole ten minutes earlier than the time he said he’d pick her up. She watched as he glanced in his rearview mirror, took a jacket from the passenger seat and put it on, then climbed out of his car and walked up the stone and cement pathway to her porch. She’d never met anyone from the Internet before, and she was intrigued to see if he looked like his photos. He did, more or less. His hair was shorter than in his photos, but his kind brown eyes looked just the same. He was dressed far more formally than she was, in a pair of chinos, brown lace-up shoes, a blue oxford shirt, and a sports jacket.
“Hey, Niall!” she called, getting to her feet.
“Hey, yourself,” he replied, and then he came right up to her and kissed her on the cheek. On the side where the scar was. She froze, and inadvertently took a step back.
“I’m so happy to make a new friend in Hope Valley,” she said deliberately.
He flashed an easy, guileless smile. But his eyes remained intense. “Me too.”
“So, where are we going first?” she asked as they began to drive away from the forest.
“Well, you said you hadn’t had much chance to explore the town so I thought I’d show you around the downtown area for a couple of hours, and then we can have lunch at a little place I know.”
“Sounds great,” she said, gazing out of the window as the scenery sped by.
They chatted throughout the journey, and Niall was nice and friendly, always pausing to let her speak, and not talking over her like some guys did. But there was something stiff about his conversation, as if he was planning every sentence in advance. She’d wondered if she’d be nervous meeting him, but she actually felt very relaxed, and felt bad that he seemed to be on edge. She asked him about himself, and he told her all about his clan. It was very interesting. She’d learned a lot about shifters and their lives from Tamika in the past few days, but Niall told her all about how bear clans live their lives, in close family groups, always ready to help each other out.
“That sounds really nice and close,” she said. “I always feel like human family relationships are deteriorating these days. People move apart, and don’t take care of each other.”
“It’s mostly nice,” Niall replied. “Except when you feel like you don’t fit in with the rest of the clan.”
“How do you mean?”
“Ah, just that most of the clan have found their mates, and they’re already having cubs. When you’re a single bear, you start to feel a little left out of things.”
Dolores let him sidelong glance. “I can imagine. Have you been on Shiftr long?”
Niall swallowed audibly. “A while,” he said, in what was supposed to be an offhand tone. “But I haven’t – I mean, hadn’t – come across anybody special.”
“I’m sure the perfect woman can’t be far away.”
He let off a bark of laughter. “Maybe.”
“She’ll probably turn up when you’re not even looking.”
“How about you – you’re new to Shiftr, right?”
“Yup. And I didn’t really get the choice in the matter. Tamika kind of forced me onto it. She said it was a condition of teaching at the school.” They both laughed.
“Tamika’s great. She’s done so much for the Shiftr community. There were so many lonely bears – and other species – around before she came along with that little app.”
They’d arrived in the center of downtown, and Niall pulled into the parking lot. As they got out of the car a wall of heat hit them, and Dolores pushed up her sleeves, wondering how Niall was managing to keep his jacket on.
“Okay, so I’m going to give you the grand tour,” he announced, leading her along a bustling commercial street. He was a great guide, pointing out lots of interesting details about the town, telling her snippets of history. She was amazed that he managed to contain so much information in his head. He was like a walking textbook.
As the day went on, she was enjoying Niall’s company more and more. She sensed that he wa
s a very ordered person. His home was probably immaculate. He was polite, and considerate, and anxious to make her happy. In fact, he reminded her a lot of Marvin, her best friend from high school. She and Marvin had started hanging out together because they were both social outcasts. She, because she put on a lot of weight once she’d hit puberty, and in a class full of scrawny kids from the valleys, she stood out. Not in a good way. And he, due to a severe dose of teenage acne which peppered his cheeks, neck, and forehead. At first they became friends through necessity, but after a while they came to value each other’s personalities, and their friendship bond got very deep. He became her one confidante, who always supported her, and encouraged her to go to school to become a teacher. She’d been dimly aware that he was in love with her, from the puppy dog looks he sometimes gave her, but he’d been too much of a gentleman to confess his love. They’d lost touch once they went to college. His acne had cleared up, and he’d turned out to be a good-looking guy. He started dating a cheerleader, who was paranoid about his close friendship with Dolores, so Dolores had done the honorable thing and stepped back from their friendship.
“Sorry?” she said, suddenly aware that she’d been so absorbed in her thoughts that she’d missed the last thing Niall said.
A faint color rose up beneath his skin and disappeared again. “I was just saying we could stop here for lunch if you felt like it?” He pointed to a large, fancy-looking place with an outside terrace.
“I – I mean, sure if you like?” she stammered, then caught herself. She was so used to being badly paid public school teacher that she’d forgotten that’s Tamika actually paid her a great salary, and she wasn’t poor anymore. “Totally. It looks great.”
Niall bounded up the steps and held the door open for her, and she slipped through awkwardly. She wasn’t a big fan of guys holding doors open for her at the best of times. When Niall gave his name to the host, she blinked. “I didn’t know we had a reservation?”
He shrugged. “Oh – it gets pretty busy here at lunchtime. I just wanted to make sure we got a table.”
As the host seated them at a corner table with linen tablecloths and linen napkins, Dolores fidgeted in her seat. She’d assumed that they’d grab lunch at a sandwich place or something, not the kind of place where a guy takes a woman on a first date when he’s trying real hard to impress her.
Niall pushed her to order a starter, but she resisted. She might have a dessert later, but she hardly ever ate three courses. Instead, she ordered a chicken breast entrée, while Niall got a T-bone steak.
The conversation was good. Except sometimes, she got the impression that Niall had a mental list of stories, and he was reciting them to her one at a time. As one of them came to an end – quite a funny story about him working on the house of an old lady who had a crush on him, and kept watching him through a gap between her curtains – she laughed, and pushed her head back from her face without thinking. And then the smile dropped from her face. Niall was staring at her in horror.
Quick as a flash, she tugged the hair back over her face again, as if she could make him unsee it. But it was too late.
“Oh my God, what happened?” he said.
“I – there was an accident. A while back. But I’m fine. I was lucky; it could’ve been a lot worse.”
His eyes were full of pity. “That’s terrible. You’re so beautiful.”
Dolores swallowed hard. As much as she hated her scars, she couldn’t stand it when people pitied her. She cleared her throat. “Let’s change the subject.”
When the check came, Niall picked it up immediately.
“Let’s go Dutch,” Dolores said.
“No, it’s my treat.” The server appeared, and Niall handed her some cash before Dolores had a chance to argue any further.
“Niall, we’re just friends, right?” she said as they were leaving the restaurant.
“Yeah, of course.” Niall fixed her with his intense brown eyes. “Just friends.”
They spent an hour wandering around a beautiful park in the old part of town, full of flowering trees and stunningly landscaped gardens. Then Dolores said she needed to head home to get ready for the party.
Niall’s eyes widened. “You look great as you are,” he blurted out.
“No, I’m just wearing casual clothes.” She gestured at her simple shirt and pants. “I should make more effort for the party.”
A slightly pained look passed across his features. “Okay, sure thing. I’ll drive you home.”
When they got back to her place, Dolores was hoping that Niall would drop her off, but he insisted on waiting for her. “I’ll drive my own car to the party,” she said.
“It’s okay. I can give you a ride back home anytime you want.”
“No, it’s fine. I’m actually feeling a little tired, and I don’t know how long I’ll stay, so I wouldn’t want to drag you away early.”
“You wouldn’t be dragging me—” he began, but she cut him off by offering to make coffee.
When it was ready, she brought it out onto the deck, to give herself a little privacy in the house. Then she went upstairs and changed into a dress. It was her favorite, and the one she wore to most semiformal occasions. It was black satin with dark-green abstract flowers, and it had a scoop neck, cap sleeves, a nipped in waist, and a loose skirt which flowed over her full hips. It was a nice, sophisticated, and not especially form-fitting outfit. But when Niall laid eyes on her again, she might as well have been in her underwear. A small sound escaped his throat, half way between a growl and a purr, and his eyes widened and changed. There was something wild in them, and for the first time, she saw his bear. The bear that had been in his profile photo casually working its claws on the trunk of a tree. She took a step back, a little afraid.
“You look beautiful,” he said, his voice deep and growly.
“Thanks. Let’s go,” she said, louder than necessary. She slammed the door shut, walked down the steps, and strode along the path way to her own car. Without waiting to see if he was following, she climbed into her beat-up old Honda, started the engine, and began to drive.
She didn’t know the way to the party, but she was certain that Niall would overtake her. And, before she’d gone half a mile, the shiny black Nissan pulled in front of her. She let out a long breath. How had “friends” turned into Niall looking at her like he wanted to eat her alive? She hadn’t given him any encouragement; she was pretty sure. Apart from the fact that she was wearing a dress now. But that was for the party. Seriously. He was a nice guy, but she didn’t feel that spark toward him. And it kind of pissed her off that she’d made it very clear she only wanted to be friends, but he’d turned up with this dating scenario in his head.
She was so annoyed that, without noticing, she’d been stepping hard on the gas and was practically tailgating his SUV. She hit the brake and dropped back 50 yards. Suddenly, she didn’t feel like going to the party at all. Niall was way too much, and Olsen would probably be there. Olsen who hadn’t even replied to her offer of a thank-you dinner. But Tamika was expecting her, and she’d said she couldn’t wait to introduce Dolores to all of her girlfriends. She didn’t want to let her down.
As Dolores parked beside Niall’s SUV, in front of what looked like a huge barn, Niall walked over and opened the driver side door. He held his hand out for her to take, but she pretended she hadn’t seen it as she climbed out of the low seat.
As they passed through the entrance to the building, Dolores was amazed to see how cozy it was inside. The original building had been renovated, and the walls were half wood and half glass, and the glass parts had been retracted to leave the barn open to the summer air. There were buffet tables full of amazing-smelling food, and a bar at the far end of the room. And the entire place was full of big, handsome men, and beautiful curvy women. She stopped and stared, stunned. There wasn’t a single skinny one in there. They were all big, buxom women, with generous boobs and thighs. And maybe half of them had one of those handsome
guys wrapped around them, gazing at them dotingly.
“Dolores! My dear!” Tamika appeared from nowhere, enveloping her in a warm hug. She looked amazing, in a cream silk dress that flattered her curvy shape, and matte gold heels, with her tawny hair hanging in loose curls. “I’m so glad you made it! Come on, I’ll introduce you to all the girls.”
The next fifteen minutes was a whirlwind. Dolores met so many smart, funny, kindhearted women. There was Lauren, Melissa, Dina, Kristin, Andrea, Laurie, Adaira, and plenty more. They were all eager to hear about how she’d found Tamika and the app. And when they learned that she was a teacher at Tamika’s new school they got even more excited. Most of them had babies and toddlers, and said how excited they were to enroll them in the school.
“We’ve had Willow on the waiting list ever since Tamika first came up with the idea for the school,” Lauren said, laughing. She was a sassy, quick-witted woman, with light-brown skin and a cute pageboy haircut, and Dolores found herself warming to her right away. All the women wanted to know what it was like teaching shifter kids, and she was soon deep in conversation, fielding thousands of questions. For a while, she forgot about Niall. But when she happened to glance around the room, he was there, right in her field of vision. Their eyes met, and he strode toward her, drink in hand.
“I thought you might want a glass of wine,” he said, handing it to her.
“Thanks.” He continued to stand beside her, chatting to the other women, who he obviously knew very well. From time to time, she sensed people exchanging glances, silently speculating about her and Niall. She didn’t like it. Excusing herself from the current conversation, she slipped away, walking fast in the direction of the bathroom.
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