by Terra Wolf
“She's long gone. And don't think I didn't try to call her because I did. She wouldn't even answer. You know half the girls in my phone book wouldn't answer. What the hell is up with that?”
“What the hell is up with that? Are you kidding? You’re a player. That's what's up. Girls don't marry players, they just talk.”
Wasn’t that the truth. But up until just a couple days ago I never minded that. Actually, I preferred it. Screw ‘em and let ‘em go. But now I need one to stay around, someone I could actually spend time with. At least the next four months’ worth.
“So why are you calling me? You know I’m addicted to my work, and single too. Also you know Zion is going to freak out. There’s no way he’s going to go for any of this. Uncle Murray can be a piece of work sometimes.”
“I need to find a girl. Somebody I can spend some time with. Someone, I can marry,” I could hear him chuckling on the other end of the line. “But it's not going to be like that. Just a few months, and then I'll cut them loose. With a huge check to go with it. Shares of the company, Murray is finally going to give me full access to my trust. If I work at the hospital for a month and I get married.”
I could almost see Luke shaking his head. “You can't be serious! No one is going to go for that.”
“I don't have a choice. So, are there any women wandering around that hospital of yours? Anyone who could use some extramarital benefits?”
“Hell no. No one I would set you up with! Any of the single ladies in my unit are smart. And to most of them are married! Hell some of them are older than me. I don't know how to tell you this Aiden, you're screwed. If you’re not willing to call Zion and get this all straightened out, then you’re on your own. I’ve got patients to see, good luck.”
Just then Molly emerged from my bedroom wiping her eyes with my shirt and just a single pair of undies on. Damn, she was hot. My bear grumbled in agreement.
“Yeah okay, buddy. Thanks anyway. Bye.” I swiped my phone to hang up the call.
“Morning sleeping beauty.”
“What time is it?” She whined as she put her hand above her eyes to block out the sunlight coming from my floor-to-ceiling windows in the kitchen.
“After 10.”
She groaned. “I need to text my sister. Have you seen my phone? Wait. Have you seen my skirt? I think my phone was in there.”
I pointed to the couch. “I think that's where I tore it off of you.”
She dragged her feet along the white carpet and flopped down on the couch pulling her phone out of the pocket of her skirt. I turned off the griddle and put two pancakes on a plate for her, grabbing the Bloody Mary off the island and walking into the living room setting it down in front of her.
“You cook?”
“Don't sound so surprised. A man's got to eat. Especially shifters, I eat more than most men.”
“Yeah I get that, but men like you have cooks. Chefs or whatever. They don't usually make their own pancakes and Bloody Marys. By the way, this is really good.” She said as she took a sip.
“I have a proposition for you.”
She pulled her feet up on the leather sofa underneath her so she was sitting Indian style. A single strand of black curly hair fell into her face and it took every fiber of my being to not push it out of her eyes. God, why was I so attracted to her?
I couldn't figure it out. I also couldn't figure out why I was doing what I was about to do. But I didn't have any other choices. I was shit out of luck.
“I'm listening.”
“So last night…”
She picked up the plate and took a bite out of her pancake. “Was great.”
“I was going to say fucking awesome, but great is okay.”
“Okay, so what about it? I thought we were very no strings attached.”
“But what if there were?”
She raised an eyebrow at me. “Strings?”
“Yeah. What if we could keep doing this? Not only would we keep having amazing hot sex, but there was more to it. Something in it for you.”
She set the plate on the coffee table looking confused. “Are you trying to ask me out on a date? Because you kind of suck at it.”
“No,” I put my hands up in surrender. I couldn't remember the last time asked somebody out on a date. I didn't date. I didn't date and I didn't fall in love, I just screwed women senseless. And up until now, it had worked for me.
“No, I don't want to date you. I want to marry you.”
She choked on the Bloody Mary, some of it coming out of her mouth. I grabbed a napkin off the table and handed it to her. “I'm sorry, what did you just say? Because I swear to God I only had four beers last night.”
“Yes, you did.”
“Is this some kind of weird shifter fantasy? Human girl… shifter guy. Hell, I don’t even know what you are.”
“Bear, but anyway here's the deal, I'm wealthy.”
“Consider me shocked.” She said sarcastically. God, I loved it when she was feisty.
“But I'm going to lose all of that money unless I get married. See I had a little run-in with the law recently and my uncle who is the estate holder for my parents wants to pull out my business from underneath me.”
“Business? And your parents?”
“Yes my parents owned a shifter pharmaceutical business, it's very popular, and we do very well. But when they died I went into the military instead, I became a medic and then a doctor because I thought I could apply my knowledge the business. Well, that was the plan. But instead, I came back from war and mostly got drunk and slept with women. And then I stole a boat recently and pissed my uncle off. Oh and I have two brothers who are also doctors and shifters, and they’re angels. I’m the black sheep. I think that pretty much sums it up.”
I surveyed her shocked face, her mouth gaping open just a little bit. She was still in just my shirt and her underwear. Why didn't I think of this as an opportunity as soon as I met her? Why had I been so dumb?
Oh yeah, because now she was looking at me like I was a lunatic and I could see her making an escape plan in her brain. That super smart sexy brain.
“I'm sorry you want me to marry you so you can inherit your parents’ fortune and then what?”
I realized I hadn't told her my complete plan. “We stay married for three months, at the end of three months you get a severance package, a much bigger one than I'm sure you're getting from your current job. Not to mention I can promise you a coding job within the company. Six figures. Or double whatever it was used to make.”
Suddenly she sat up a little bit straighter and I could tell that I picture interest. “What kind of severance package?”
“Half a million. Does that sound fair?”
“And a real wedding? Like with guests and everything? Not some little elopement?”
“No, I’m going have to make it look very real. The wedding, lots of guests. There will probably be a planner and rehearsal dinner and an archway full of roses, if that's what you want. And you will get whatever you want.”
“Oh well, I wanted to only be married once in my life. But… I also didn't expect to lose my job yesterday. And I am single, but not in that crazy cat lady way. I just haven't found the right guy.”
“I could be that guy.”
She rolled her eyes but I noticed a small smile playing on her lips. Those lips that I could imagine wrapping around my cock. Focus Aiden, get her to say yes.
“You could live here. You could live here while I work at the hospital for the next month. That would solve your rent problem.”
“I can't leave Julia hanging out with some big rent bill.”
“You're right, I'm sure I can tap into some of my smaller bank accounts and handle your rent for the next few months. Consider it a sublet. And live here for free, anything you want day or night you have it.”
I failed to mention that what I wanted was her. And that I would have her day or night, whenever I wanted.
But after her moans last nigh
t, I didn't think she would mind.
“I have to think about this.”
“So you're not saying no.”
She picked up the plate of pancakes and started eating again, through a mouthful of carbs she said, “No, I'm not saying no.”
Seven
Molly
“You are doing what?”
Julia said with her hands on her waist looking like a formidable opponent standing in the doorway of my bedroom.
“I'm moving out. But is just for a couple months and then I'll be back, and there's a check on the counter for you that covers my portion of the rent.”
“But I am totally confused, you’ve never mention this secret boyfriend. And now suddenly he comes out of nowhere and you're moving in with him?” She crossed my bedroom and sat down on the bed next to the open suitcase that I'd begun packing. “You tell me the truth right now Molly, what the hell is going on?”
“I started seeing this guy a couple months ago, but he's not really my usual type and I knew that you would be weird about it. Case in point,” I said as I made a face at her.
“I'm not being a way. I am being a way about the fact that you are suddenly moving out after spending your first night away from home in I don’t even know how long. Does he a magical penis or something? Finally slept with him and now you're moving?”
If she only knew the real truth. That sex with Aiden was like nothing I had ever encountered before. Rippling orgasms, feeling of fire underneath my skin. It was mind blowing. And I wanted more. Sure the severance package and the money and covering my part of the rent without a job was awesome, but the sex with Aiden and his shifter magic was even better.
I still couldn't believe I was doing this though, marrying a total stranger. I had thirty days to get to know him before we walked down the aisle. And then another three months to figure out where this was going. Or if at the end of four months we go our separate ways, but right now I was hoping that we wouldn't. And I was not about to tell Julia about the fact that I was getting married in a month. If her freaking out about me moving out wasn't enough, if I told her I was getting married she would lose her mind. It wasn't worth the risk. She might have me committed or something.
“It's not that, it's just that some things change. And I need to change.”
“You lost your job. You lost your job and now you're going to live with your boyfriend. This is what a quarter life crisis looks like Molly. Know the signs.”
“It's not that,” I said as I threw more clothing into the suitcase. I walked down to the kitchen and grabbed a trash bag bringing it back into my room. I started shoving shoes inside.
“Then what is it? What happened with your job?”
I stopped throwing shoes into the bag instead sitting down on the floor looking up at my big sister, just like always. “I got fired. The security system I built got hacked. At least I wasn't being replaced. By I have to move on and this is a really good start. I'm not having a quarter life crisis or mental breakdown, I promise. And what I'm doing is going to be great for me, actually for both of us. You'll see.”
“Fine.” She crossed her arms still looking annoyed. “Tell me about this boyfriend of yours, what's he like? What does he do for a living?”
“His name is Aiden.” I didn't tell her his last name because I realized I didn't know it. “And he's a doctor at that cute little hospital up in the mountains.”
She raised an eyebrow at me. “You're dating a freaking doctor? That's incredible! Where the hell did you pick him up?”
Now I could be honest. “In a little pub, my laptop needed to charge and he offered me his outlet.”
I didn't mention that that was just yesterday, or that the outlet was next to his bed. I couldn’t wait to get back into his bed.
“Offered his outlet, eh? That code for something?”
“You're the one who’s talking about magical penises, not me. But anyway we started seeing each other and realized that we have some stuff in common.” Absolutely nothing in common actually, another lie. “Like he is former military like Dad and his parents are dead. So that's why I haven’t introduced him to you, he's got some family issues. Though he does have two brothers I think he gets along with. And he’s a shifter.”
“How did his parents die? P.S. I’m not ignoring that shifter comment either.”
“I don't know,” I shrugged. “He didn't say, I haven't pressed the issue. But his uncle owns a pharmaceutical company.”
“So they have money.”
“Yeah, they do.”
“So wait, he’s a doctor, former military, shifter, and his parents are dead. And he has money? What the hell do you have in common?”
“We both really like breakfast.”
“So he understands your coffee addiction then?”
“Yep. And my love of pancakes. I don't know,” I said in a dreamy voice, “he could be the one.”
She took a pillow off my bed and threw it at me. “I want to meet him. Make sure he's not a total douche bag or a player.”
I threw the pillow back at her and then continue to shove shoes into the trash bag. “You will, I promise you will.”
Eight
Aiden
I sent the car to get Molly at her apartment while I picked up some food at the grocery store and flowers for her. I figured that my bachelor pad could use a little bit of a woman’s touch. Flowers should be enough, at least I hoped they would be. They made my bear miss the great outdoors though. I was the only bear in the family who maintained a residence in the city. Even Uncle Murray didn’t live here full time, it made his bear go nuts. But for me, a couple runs a month in the mountains was enough.
The guestroom was already set up, I told her that she could stay there and keep all of her clothes and feminine necessities in the bathroom. Suddenly she felt like she had her own space, that she wasn't forced to sleep with me. It was the final thing I needed to convince her.
Why she wouldn't want to stay with me, I had no idea. Just thinking about her from this morning, walking around in my shirt with only a few buttons attached, she knew how to make me hard. I couldn't wait to get back and learn more about her, and about her desires. My phone rang as I was standing in the flower section of the grocery store and I looked down to see a number that he didn't recognize. I answered it anyway.
“Hello is this Dr. Aiden Bradford?”
Nobody called me doctor. “Yes, can I help you?”
“This is Maggie from the Lower East Mountain Hospital, really looking forward to meeting you tomorrow. Your first week of shifts will be three ten-hour days, then four days off. The following week will be twelve-hour shifts as will the rest of the month. I understand you’re on loan from another hospital, I can't tell you how pleased we are to have you on staff.”
“Wait, so what time do I report?” Clearly, my uncle had fabricated a lovely story about my medical background. On loan? Great. I was going to have to come up with even more lies.
“Your shift begins at 7 AM, making rounds on the first floor. I apologize you are coming in right as summer cold season has started. It's been a little bit of a madhouse in here the past few weeks.”
Great, snotty nosed kids. This was going to be a super fun time. Fuck my uncle.
“Yeah, I'm sure that it is, between pollen season and the changing of the temperatures most his immune systems can't keep up. I would like to stay out of oncology by the way.” Kids sick was bad, kids with cancer was worse.
Fuck cancer.
“Of course, we have our regular attendings on staff to hit oncology. You'll mostly be staying on the first floor dealing with minor injuries and the cold season. Is there anything else you require for tomorrow morning?”
Cold shower and to not go into the mountain hospital to work. “Absolutely nothing. I look forward to seeing you, Maggie.”
She hung up the call and I stood looking at the roses again, I had Molly waiting for me.
At home.
Our home. Maybe this
whole fake fiancé thing wasn't so bad after all.
Nine
Molly
“So what does your sister say about all this?” He asked me as he loaded the next box into the moving truck he had sent to my tiny apartment. I don't know why he thought I had a lot of stuff, but the truck was way bigger than it needed to be.
“Not much, she's kind of used to me doing some crazy things.”
He set the box down in front of him “Oh? You like to get wild?”
He knew how wild I could get. That wasn't what I meant in this case.
“Let's just say that I've had some harebrained ideas before. Or at least according to her that's what they were. She's my older sister, she cares about me. Wants to look out for me. Aren’t your older brothers like that?” He avoided my eyes and pushed the box back further into the practically empty truck.
“Not really. Luke cares sometimes, but Zion and I don’t get along. He was much older when my parents died.”
He mentioned that his parents had passed, but I hadn't asked when, he was starting to open up. I started to walk up the stairs towards my apartment again. My sister was at work, so it was just the two of us. As we entered my bedroom to pick up the last few boxes and a couple suitcases I had packed I decided to broach the subject. “You mentioned that your parents had passed. So your uncle is your guardian?”
“Something like that.” He said still not meeting my eyes. I knew I was pushing it, but I also knew that these questions were going to come up. I would have to meet some of his family at some point. If no place else then the extravagant fake wedding that we were planning.
“He mostly runs the money. He always handled the books even when I was a kid. Shifters all stick together, we’re a clan. So he took care of things.”
“Before you got into the military.”
“Yeah. That was always his job. So when my parents passed I guess they had it set up in their will that he would continue to maintain the money. He's done a great job at it, I can't say that he hasn't. But he certainly treats me like a child still.”
