The first person she saw was the alluring shifter she'd spotted just minutes before. Piercing blue eyes, unruly short brown hair that made her want to brush her fingers through it, shoulders so broad he could carry three children on his back and still be room for one more. His biceps and deltoids were impressive, but not the body-builder type. His muscles were more like the kind acquired through hard, physical work. The light blue t-shirt highlighted his well-defined jawline and that delicious dark stubble made it impossible for Janet to look away. He was sitting at the bar now, looking prepared to ask some questions. He was probably searching for someone.
"How can I help you? What can I get you?" Janet put on her confident, sociable face and asked the behemoth.
"Can I get your best local beer? Black?" he asked with a serious, neutral expression.
She giggled. "Matt, the owner, would love you! We have access to this awesome micro-brewery that makes mouth-watering unfiltered beer, but around here it's only a few people who like it. Let me get it for you."
Getting the bottle from the one of the more isolated mini-fridges, she took a hammer-shaped bottle opener and popped the top. "Are you looking for someone?"
He took a swig of his beer and smacked his lips with satisfaction. "This stuff is good. And yes, I am looking for someone. I'm in town for a few days and I need a guide. I want to take some shots up in the mountains."
"You can't go hunting, that's protected area!" scandalized by the idea, Janet reacted.
He grinned. "I know. I'm a photographer, not a hunter. Relax."
"Oh, I see. What brings you to North Bloom Lake....?" She paused because she didn't know his name.
"Sean. I'm Sean."
She wanted to shake his hand, but ended up not doing it. Instead she put a hand over her cleavage and nodded. "Janet."
"This place's nice. A friend recommended it. Shifting Impulse. That's an uncommon name."
She started washing glasses on her side of the bar. "It's too long if you ask me. Everybody just uses SI. Short. Clear. Memorable. Mysterious." She had to stay relaxed. He was a shifter and could detect all her moods based on her hormones. Based on his size, he was a bear. Janet could bet her whole salary on it. Too bad the guys weren't here to confirm her guesses. In the end it didn't matter what animal he kept inside. The way he looked at her with those blue eyes made her melt. She had to stop those thoughts. She wasn't in the mood to date another shifter. Who said anything about dating, girl? Having a good time with him sounds like a good idea to me. There it was, her fantasy of going at it with a shifter as capable as this one. Not like her ex. Her good-for-nothing-ex wasn't capable of anything but bragging, as far as she was concerned. The problem was that every shifter now reminded her of him. That wasn't fair!
Batting her eyelashes, she asked. "Are you avoiding my question?" she tried to seem mean, but couldn't hide her amusement.
Sean wasn't avoiding it. Controlling his animal in this town had been torture. It had been restless ever since he arrived three hours ago. What was it with this town? Controlling his restless bear wasn't the difficult part. Refraining himself from kissing her was what he struggled with. His bear had calmed down ever since he set foot in this club. Maybe there were some chemicals here that did that to the animal or... her. He didn't like where this was going if it was the latter. He had to test it out. He had to know if the bear was interested or it was just numbed.
"Your boyfriend won't be too happy about you flirting with me, beautiful," he said with that serious look on his face. He could sense another shifter's scent everywhere in this club and he could bet there was a claiming mark on her shoulder, but he couldn't just tell those things to a probably clueless human. Once the bear realized that, a low rattle came out of his throat.
"I'm not flirting. Wait. What? How did...?" she didn't get to say what she wanted to because he rushed in to explain.
"Let's just say I have a feeling a gorgeous woman like you can't be single," he said looking straight into her eyes. "Don't worry. I'm not here to hook up with anybody. The thing is I'm here just to hang out, get some information and head back to my hotel room. It's my first day in town and the friend who invited me here recommended this place." That was only partly true. His intention had been to come meet some people, get some tips on great spots to take pictures, have a drink and then head back to his hotel room. Now, however, something was up with his bear. The animal was completely in awe with the stunning curvaceous woman in front of him. Astonished, yet aroused as hell. That had never happened before. He had been with women, of course, but it was always his human side that was attracted to them. His bear had never reacted like this. Could he trust his animal? Only Ellie had some magic way of connecting with his bear, but that was a different type of connection, nothing like this sexual attraction he felt now.
Her face turned cold for a second, then it went back to the same radiating expression it had before. "Don't worry, I'm just messing with you. Your presence here is refreshing for some odd reason. It's not the best of nights. I wasn't even supposed to be working tonight. My friend over there -" she pointed to Celine who was talking to that gold-digger that she called friend "- is celebrating her birthday. I organized the party and I was supposed to be out there having fun with them."
"But instead you're stuck with the likes of me. I get it," he feigned offended.
Is he flirting with me? "I can't complain. Talking to you has its perks. You are as massive as you are intimidating, so all the stinky drunks who usually offer to buy me a drink and show me a good time have backed off. Plus, I look busy on camera," she winked.
That snarl again. Shifters. Weirdos.
Just then he did something unexpected. He laughed. She couldn't believe it. He actually laughed with both his mouth and his eyes. His whole face had lit up. Janet almost froze there. He was comfortable with her. This was bad. She couldn't get involved with another shifter. Not after her ex had treated her like she was damaged goods and thus useless. She was damaged goods, but she thought a shifter would somehow be a different type of person. She had been so wrong. He was gone now and she was grateful for being free to date other people. Only she didn't want just any other person. Her body wanted this guy. Another shifter. She had to do something to get out of this situation. His laughter was contagious so she couldn't help but crack a smile too. She didn't like to laugh. Her face was too chubby and she looked like a husky puppy. Only without all the hair. It wasn't a pretty sight.
"You're funny. Really funny. I'm here because my friend, Dean, has his first group photography exhibition on Sunday and he invited me. We belonged to the same photography club a few years back, but then he moved here. He visited North Bloom Lake once and fell in love with it. From the photos I've seen, it looks like a magical place to live and work in. How long have you lived here, Janet?"
Pretending to be busy arranging something behind the bar so she didn't have to look into his eyes, she answered. "All my life. Born and raised here. I love it here. So... what was it you said you needed?" She was happy the drunks were kept at bay, but she prayed for people to order something so she could get out of this situation. Maybe he would go away and never come back. She prayed he would leave.
Rubbing his day-old scruff like he was deep in thought, he forced her eyes to look at him. "Tell me about North Bloom Lake. I want an insider's tips on it. I'd be grateful if you could recommend a guide, too."
Two girls made their way to the bar. By the way there were walking, Janet could see how drunk they really were. One of them was Celine's "friend" - Samantha, the gold-digger. They were probably on the prowl for fresh meat. They were headed in her direction. Wait, not because of her. Surely because of him. She was going to get rid of him. The problem was Janet didn't know if she ought to be happy about getting rid of him or not.
Samantha put the glass on the bar and sat on the stool right next to Sean. "Another glass of that fantastic red wine of yours, Janet," she looked from Janet to Sean and acted all surprised to see
him there. She looked like she had practiced that so many times that she almost got it perfect. "Oh, hi there. I'm Samantha. Are you a friend of Janet's too?" she asked as she touched her lips in the sluttiest way possible.
Janet's fury was bubbling up and she saw red. She'd just seen Samantha pull the same stunt on Ryan less than ten minutes ago and there she was, doing it again. Only this time on her man. Wait. What? Whose man? She was in desperate need of a good night's sleep. She was already delirious.
"If your friends all look like this, I should hang out with you more often, Janet," the gold-digger continued as she grinned, trying desperately to get his attention.
Sean's face went blank and all businesslike. "I'm Sean. Nice to meet you, Samantha."
Having forgotten about her friend standing behind her, Samantha grabbed his bicep and squeezed. "Even our names start with the same letter. It must be fate. I just had to check if this is real muscle. Janet's too fat to deserve friends like you."
Janet was too shocked by what she'd heard to even move. She just stared at stupid, dolled up Samantha. She was getting tired of her bitchiness and she had to think of a way to get rid of her.
A snarl rattled Sean's chest. His bear was absolutely disgusted with the gold-digger's behavior. "Is that so?" he retorted as he peeled her hand off his arm. "Fortunately for me, she's just my type, so I hope she won't just be my friend. You see, her curves drive me crazy and in the few minutes I've been sitting here, I've imagined her in at least three of my fantasies, so if you don't mind, you've just interrupted a great date," he smirked at her horrified expression.
Her right eyebrow lifted in disbelief and Samantha' voice went louder. "Men!" she shouted and huffed. She rolled her eyes, forgetting all about her glass, spun on the chair as fast as she could without falling, grabbed her friend's arm and rushed back to where she came from.
Sean just went back to cradling his beer and his piercing blue eyes that had somehow turned darker settled on her. He seemed completely at ease and satisfied with his performance. If she didn't know better, she'd say his eyes spoke of sex. The body-melting type.
"Great joke. She even believed you! You have to teach me," she declared without any hint of amusement as she hid her eyes from him. She couldn't understand what had just happened. He had defended her. That was good. What he said though, that was what she couldn't get.
He looked slightly embarrassed now. "It wasn't a joke. I don't know what possessed me to say that. I'm not usually that rude, but it was all true. I should go, beautiful," he whispered as he stood, left a twenty dollar bill on the bar and headed to the exit.
Watching him walk away saddened Janet, but she didn't ask him to stay. She needed him to leave. She had to stay away from him even though he had stood up for her in the sexiest way possible. He had said he wanted her. Badly. She craved for his touch too, but she had to bury her feelings and how attracted she was to this guy she'd briefly met.
He was really gone.
CHAPTER TWO
Sean's hotel was about twenty minutes south of the club where he had just met the most stunning woman who could tame his inner grizzly with only a shy look. Shifting Impulse. He'd reached the hotel in half the time and was now sprinting to his room.
Damn! This was fate's way of playing him. He'd already been burned once. Burnt so badly he could still feel the raw skin on the wounds he carried deep inside him. He didn't intend on making the same mistake twice. His bear shook him from his roots. Mine. This was bad. Why did she have to be human? Why didn't his bear just pair up with a shifter? Why didn't his bear just stay asleep like he had been until now? Sean was so riled he wanted to smash everything around him. He had to find a forest. He adjusted the front of his really uncomfortable jeans for what probably was the tenth time tonight, fished his key from his pocket and unlocked the door to his room. It smelled like clean sheets and spring flowers softener. He didn't use to care about the way a room smelled, but now it reminded him of her. Everything made him think of her. He took off his light blue t-shirt and pressed it to his nose. He inhaled and was suddenly transported back to the club. Her milky-coffee round eyes mesmerized him and he was her prisoner. That deep vanilla aroma that tickled his nose every time she brushed her hand through her hair made him incapable of moving. Incapable of thinking. Incapable of going away.
"Mine," he heard himself confide to the breeze blowing through the open window. He shook his head, threw the tee on the bed and muttered, "I have to leave. I can't have you."
Taking off his shoes and socks, throwing his camera and phone on the bed, he locked the door, went downstairs and followed the fresh aroma of a nearby forest. Maybe this was what Dean liked about this city. Even though it was almost a metropolis, it was surrounded by unbroken forests. He had to let his bear loose. He had to run. To claw his frustration away on tree trunks. To make the troublesome bulge in his pants go away.
Janet. What a name. Her name.
Only the thought of it made his whole body light up.
Ready for her.
NO!
When she finds out that I am a shifter, it will all be a mess. It would just mean repeating history and experience told him he had to stop himself from making the same mistake again. He had other people to think about. People who counted on him. People who needed him to see straight and be responsible.
He allowed his feet to lead him to the forest. His shifter senses never failed him. Except for now, when all his body was yelling at him to go back to her. Talk to her. Touch her. Make her yours. Being separated from her made his bear enraged. His human side felt somehow cold. No way. His body temperature was higher than a human's. He barely felt cold in winter. It was summer now. That was odd. His bear was driving him crazy. She drives me crazy.
Sean's relationship to his inner animal had always been one of respect. The animal's senses protected the man, helped him when he was in the wilderness tracking animals and locations for his shots, showed him who to trust, what decisions to take in order to sleep better at night, how to heal. Sean was an only child, but his bear made him feel complete. He had someone he could count on. Better than a brother. Better than a partner. Better than a friend. His other half. Now their relationship was changing. He didn't know if it was good for his animal to be so attracted to a human woman. The human part of him was content with his life. He balanced his personal life and work as best as he could and things were going well. He was a wildlife and landscape photographer who traveled enough for his bear to be sated and entertained. He had his own place. He didn't owe money to anyone. He had a loving family whom he helped and who did the same for him. He had friends all over the country. He had kept himself focused on work and his family and it worked fine for him. The wounds Monica had carved into his soul the day she left were still there, but as long as he didn't think about her, he could keep it together. He had to.
Unfortunately, now his bear had new cravings. He wanted a mate. Sean didn't need a woman. He had trained himself to physically exhaust himself at the gym or in the forest and it had worked so far. He hadn't been in a relationship for almost five years. Since Monica. It had been hard and he had been tempted more times than he wanted to remember, but his motivation was simple. Getting hurt wasn't an option anymore. His family, his friends and his readers depended on him keep it together. He had become quite good at it.
Until now.
It was well over midnight so there were very few people roaming the streets. Nobody even looked at him. Maybe they were used to seeing shirtless guys walking barefoot all the time. Funny city. His bear interrupted his train of thought. He could feel the electrifying impulses that preceded every change flowing through his body, making all his bulging muscles contract and relax uncontrollably.
Vulnerability. He was vulnerable. He was losing control of his own body. His bear was ripping him apart. He clenched his fists. Unclenched them. His bear's urgency to take his body was maddening. It was kind of a wake up call. He wasn't really in control. The bear had allo
wed him to be in charge, but now it was taking back his power. He was about to change into a tiny voice at the back of a furious grizzly in the middle of town. Among people.
NO! Wait! You can have my body. Just wait. He was running like mad. The familiar, earthy, comforting scent of oak and pine trees got more and more humid. It was close. So close.
He drew in a sharp breath and focused his eyes on the trees, taking in all the dense forest had to offer. Its essence. Dew drops. Pheromones. Moss. Silence. Peace. Rodents. Bears. Foxes. Deer. Twigs. Solid branches. Wet bark. Fallen pines. Refreshing streams that he could already hear.
His bear was already working on reshaping his bones and thick, pointy, short hairs pierced his skin, forming the chocolate fur that already covered his body. Fighting the change only made it more agonizing. Sweat covered his upper body and his face burnt. Everything burnt. The bear was winning this battle.
His father had taught Sean the forest was his friend. The forest didn't judge. The forest just accepted everyone. Mother Nature accepted everyone. The mad. The wounded. The broken. The rejects. The happy. The sad. Everybody. They would spend hours and sometimes days there bonding while he was growing up, until they couldn't anymore. The day his father died, Sean was left in charge of his family. He didn't resent the old man. He didn't choose to die. Nobody even knew why he had died. They had just found his lifeless body on the porch one morning. Sean was fifteen then. Being in charge of helping his mother and paying off the mortgage on the house and the loans for their businesses had kept him busy for years. As a young adult he could only get menial work, but the physical activity of working on construction sites kept him sane. Both his parents were shifters. His father was a grizzly and his mother a panther. They blended in and nobody suspected anything. To the people in their small town his family was just a regular one. They owned a few shops, organized community activities and his father owned several construction sites and teams. When he died, all of them were left in his uncle's care. Sean helped him, but all he wanted to do was travel and become a photographer. His uncle called that running, but his mother had supported him. His uncle was nowhere near the dominant grizzly Sean's father had been so he couldn't guide him. At challenging times as these, Sean missed his father. He wished he was still here to roam the forest together.
Shifting Impulse: A BBW Bear-Shifter Romance (Complete Edition - Books 1-3) Page 18
