by Anna Lowe
“Pick something. Hurry.”
She stared. “What?”
He stirred the air with his hands. “They’re looking for a woman in white.”
She scowled down at her dress and muttered, “I knew it wasn’t cream.”
What that meant, he had no clue, but he decided to let it slide. “Like I said, they’ll be focused on finding one woman wearing white. Not two people in dark clothing.”
She stared at the bundle of clothes. “You think that will work?”
He nodded. He’d done enough surveillance to know how hard it was to make that kind of mental leap. “Not guaranteed, but a good chance. What’s your shoe size?”
By then, she had the clothes clutched to her chest like the world’s flimsiest armor. “Um…eight.”
A few minutes later, they were at the counter, pulling price tags off the clothes she’d already thrown on — a blue sweatshirt and pink sports shorts that were a size too big. But, hell. It worked.
“I’ll pay you back,” Hailey said firmly when he pulled out his wallet.
He nearly said, That’s the least of my worries right now, but the words caught in his throat when she leaned over and undid her bun. Long, silky, blond strands cascaded over her shoulders then bounced around as she finger-combed it all back and asked, “Better?”
He gulped. Worse, because how was he supposed to concentrate on extracting his target when he could just stand and stare at that?
He cleared his throat and stuck a pink baseball cap on her head. “That’s better.”
She took it off, grimacing at the big, loopy script on the front. “Aloha?”
“Aloha,” he growled and stuck it back on.
The salesgirl bundled the white dress into a bag, ran his credit card, and waved them off with a hearty Mahalo before going back to her phone.
“I’m only trusting you temporarily, you know,” Hailey whispered when he grabbed her hand and walked toward the doors.
“I’m only helping you temporarily,” he shot back as a reminder to his inner bear.
He peeked down the hall. None of the men he’d spotted earlier was in sight, so he strode out, trying to amble and not rush. When they came out at the food court, Hailey moved closer to his side.
Nice, his bear hummed inside.
Well, it would have been nice under different circumstances, and his mind veered off into all kinds of fantasies of what those might be. Him and her out on a Sunday stroll, with nowhere in particular to get to and no one to get away from. Getting to know each other, laughing, having a good time.
Silverware clattered, and he yanked his attention back to the present.
Temporary, he hissed at his bear.
“Now what?” Hailey whispered in his ear.
So close. So nice. His bear closed its eyes, still dreaming away.
Tim pointed to the escalator. “Over there. Once we get down to street level, we can catch a cab or disappear into the crowd.”
Which was a good plan, but as their escalator rolled down, the opposite one rolled up, cutting across at a diagonal. The moment Hailey looked down, she tensed.
“Oh God…”
Three reporters were coming up, cameras at the ready. What was that all about?
With no time to ask, Tim turned to block her body from view. Then he slid an arm across her shoulders the way a guy might with his girl and whispered in her ear.
“We got this. Don’t worry. Just look down. See anyone else there?”
She nodded in short, choppy jerks and gestured toward the sidewalk. “Over there. And there.”
The people she indicated were easy enough to pick out thanks to their fancy clothes and shiny shoes. Like church had just let out or a big gala event had just broken up.
He picked out a route with his eyes and tugged Hailey forward as soon as the escalator bottomed out. The sidewalk wasn’t far, but he took a meandering path from storefront to storefront, pausing at window displays or touching items as if he were interested in buying them. His heart started beating faster because they were almost outside. A few more steps and—
Hailey pulled up short and made an abrupt U-turn. “Those two.”
Tim looked for a new option, but damn. Three men and one woman stood behind them, scanning the crowd.
“Oh God,” Hailey murmured. “That’s Isabelle…”
Tim had no idea who Isabelle was, but clearly, the woman was bad news. He and Hailey were surrounded on three sides, with a store on the other. No way out. Except one…
“Don’t take this the wrong way,” he whispered before hustling Hailey over to a support column and leaning close.
Her eyes went wide as he closed in as if for a kiss. Really close, until barely a millimeter separated them. Her minty breath came out in shocked little gasps.
“Shh,” he whispered, putting his arms on either side of her head, blocking anyone’s view of her face. All anyone would see was a guy kissing his girl.
And it nearly came to that too. He was so close, and despite the urgency of the situation, his brain started to shut down. Her honeysuckle scent filled his ears, and his blood rushed. Their legs bumped, and with each deep breath, their chests touched. When Hailey tentatively slid her arms around his waist, he nearly sighed.
It wasn’t a kiss, but it was close.
So good, his bear groaned.
Hell yeah, it was. So good that it took everything he had not to close that last millimeter and cover her lips with his. Hailey might not have even minded, judging by the way her eyes went from startled to dreamy and distant. His had to have been the same — or worse, glowing outright.
Mate, his bear murmured. She is my mate.
Behind him, two men swept past so quickly, one of them bumped the shopping bag that held Hailey’s dress.
“Sorry,” the man muttered, hurrying on without a second thought.
Go. Now, a voice screamed in Tim’s mind. The exit was open; it was their chance to escape.
But he barely heard, what with the way Hailey looked at him and the effect of the word that kept echoing through his mind.
Mate…
He gulped. Every shifter knew what that meant. A chance encounter with a soul mate, all engineered by fate. A single look that could change a man’s life.
But for that to happen to him? Here? Now?
Hailey’s lips twitched, brushing his, and a heat wave rolled through his body along with a reckless sense of hope.
Yes, a voice rumbled from the depths of his mind. She is the one.
Her eyes flashed, and he wondered if she’d just heard the same thing, turned around to mean him. Yes. He is the one.
But, damn it. Behind them, people were barking orders and hurrying around.
“Try that way,” one man hissed to another. “We have to find her.”
Have to protect her, his bear snarled.
Tim nearly snarled too. He’d just found his destined mate. Couldn’t the world let him process that?
Then another scent hit him, and he jolted.
Shifter? He grabbed Hailey’s hand and led her toward the exit. Her first few steps were shaky, and he kept her close, resisting the urge to look around.
Was the man he’d seen chasing her first a shifter? Was he nearby?
Tim hurried forward. The exit was right there, and it was clear. A second later, they were outside, and Hailey blinked hard. Tim wanted to blink too. That feeling of being blinded wasn’t just in his eyes, and it wasn’t from the sudden change to broad sunlight. It was inside him, filling him with a warm glow.
Mate… his bear murmured, as blown away as he was by the thought.
“Go,” he said, all but shoving Hailey into a cab. The traffic had parted just enough to let the cab squeeze through if they moved fast.
“Where to?” the driver asked.
Tim stared at Hailey, terrified she’d give an address where he’d have to leave her forever. But she stared back at him, looking equally blank.
“Um…Pearl
Harbor,” he said, throwing out the reference point that jumped into his mind. A mind rapidly cluttering with new options and ideas, because a bear always had to have a plan.
The driver had the radio on, and a cheery voice rattled off reports on Honolulu’s sunny weather, miserable traffic, and an outrigger canoe race. Tim huddled closer to Hailey, keeping his voice down.
“Where are you staying?” he whispered.
She motioned behind them. “Back there.”
He glanced out the rear window. No one had appeared in hot pursuit — yet.
“I have to get away,” she said hoarsely. “Far away. I have to hide.”
He thought it over. White dress. Reporters. Men in hot pursuit. What exactly was going on? “Listen, if you’re in trouble with the law…”
She shook her head quickly. “It’s not that. I swear I’ll explain later.” She shot a hard look in the direction of the driver. “Right now, I need to find someplace to hole up in for a few days. Someplace off the beaten path.”
Tim sat very still, because he knew a place exactly like that. Koakea Plantation, his home on Maui, was about as far off the beaten path as anyone could get. But he couldn’t bring a perfect stranger into the midst of his fellow shifters. They lived apart for a reason, guarding their secrets from prying human eyes.
Still, Maui was full of little hideaways. Surely, he could find a place for her to stay somewhere.
His bear nodded eagerly. Someplace where we can guard her.
He took a deep breath, fighting that spinning, out-of-control feeling that was rapidly taking over his neatly ordered life. He’d come to Oahu with a clear plan, and Hailey wasn’t part of it.
She is now, his bear growled.
He looked at Hailey, unable to say yes, unable to say no.
“How does Maui sound?” he found himself whispering at last.
Hope brightened Hailey’s eyes before doubt clouded them again. “Maui would be great, but how can I get there? My wallet is at the hotel. I have no credit card, no ID.”
Tim felt a funny little stretch set into his cheeks. A smile? What the hell was he smiling about at a time like this?
Destiny, his bear chuckled. It has to be.
He leaned over the front seat and spoke to the driver. “Can you take us to the heliport, please?”
The driver nodded, but Hailey grabbed Tim’s arm. “Heliport? As in, a helicopter? You have a helicopter?”
He grinned. No, he didn’t. But his brother did.
“Do you trust me?” he asked, holding his breath. Even if her options were limited, she didn’t necessarily need him. She could go to the police, call a relative for help, or find someplace to hide on Oahu until she sorted out her problem, right?
And yet he wanted her to trust him. Desperately.
His heart thumped as he watched her lips. Were they forming a round no?
She searched his eyes for a long time before nodding slowly. “Yes. At least, temporarily.”
He broke into a wide grin. The yes part felt as good as the sun coming out on a cloudy day, no matter how temporary it might turn out to be.
“All right then,” he said, trying to keep cool. “Maui.” He pointed to the horizon.
Hailey looked. Maui wasn’t actually visible from there, but the ocean sparkled between the buildings they passed.
“Maui,” she whispered, and her throat bobbed.
She was quiet for the rest of the drive, but her fingers never stopped playing with the single pearl that hung from her necklace. A lumpy, oblong thing that didn’t go with the fancy clothes she’d been wearing when he first spotted her. When they stepped out of the cab at the heliport, she clutched the shopping bag like her first line of defense. Which he supposed it was. The question was, what made a woman desperate enough to leave everything behind?
What the hell? a deep voice growled into his mind.
Tim whipped around and spotted his brother, Connor, standing beside a brown helicopter decorated with red and yellow stripes.
“Hailey, meet Connor,” Tim said in his most uncompromising voice.
Connor shook politely and said, “Nice to meet you.” At the same time, he grunted into Tim’s mind.
Who the hell is this?
Tim didn’t really have an answer, but he wasn’t about to back down. The chopper had four seats, and only two of them were spoken for, right?
She needs help. And quit intimidating her.
I’m not intimidating anyone, Connor said as he glared.
Hailey gulped and eyed the distance to the parking lot.
You came to Oahu for your contractor’s license, and you found some woman instead? Connor did not sound impressed.
Tim couldn’t quite believe it himself. For the past few months, nothing had distracted him from his goal of getting that license. Now, all he could think about was Hailey. How exactly had that happened?
He replayed the first half of the morning in his mind. He’d gotten up early and flown to Oahu with Connor. The helicopter was due for inspection, so Tim had grabbed the chance to tag along. The Honolulu office of the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs had walk-in hours, which meant he could get his license faster than waiting for the monthly date on Maui. He’d been so excited about it too — the idea of checking off every requirement and walking out, ready to go into business for himself. Timber Hoving, general contractor. Bit by bit, the dream of running his own company was coming true. He could be his own boss and maybe even hire a couple of extra hands someday.
It had all gone to plan, right through the point when he had run a couple of errands at the mall and stopped at the food court for lunch. But then Hailey had blown into his life like a typhoon no one had spotted on the forecast.
I’m helping her. Temporarily, he told Connor. Then aloud, he added, “Hailey needs a ride to Maui, and we’re it.”
He hoped that would put her at ease, but Connor did the opposite when he crossed his arms and widened his stance.
“And what is Hailey going to do when she gets to Maui?”
Stay with me, Tim’s bear nearly whispered. Forever.
Tim shoved the thought way, way back into the back of his mind. “We’ll figure something out on the way.”
“You’ll figure something out?” Connor said in a dull, disbelieving tone. A bear who never does anything without planning the next five steps is suddenly flying by the seat of his pants?
His brother might have been glaring, but Hailey had gratitude pouring from her eyes. Then a car raced into the heliport parking lot, and her face fell. It was just some hot rod pilot late for his shift, but Tim motioned for Connor to hurry up.
“We’ll talk on the way, okay?”
Connor didn’t budge, though, and they glared at each other for the next minute. Really glared, fighting an inner battle so intense, he started to sweat.
We need to take her with us, he insisted.
Tell me why, his brother snapped. It was an order, not a request, making Tim clench his fists.
His brother was alpha of their little pack, and while Tim was used to speaking his mind, he rarely challenged a direct order. He’d never needed to. Connor was the oldest; he’d always been in charge. That was just the way it was.
Except his bear was suddenly rebelling, bucking rules that had never rankled him until now.
Hailey shifted nervously from foot to foot, watching them both.
Fine, Connor finally muttered. But you’d better have a goddamn plan soon.
Within ten minutes, they were all strapped into the chopper with headsets on and views of Pearl Harbor expanding rapidly beneath. Hailey laid a hand against the window, looking down at the memorial site with an inscrutable expression. Then Connor swung the helicopter around, and her eyes moved over the busy strip of Waikiki and the ridgeline that climbed toward Diamond Head. What could he possibly say to put her at ease?
Just in case you’re crazy enough to think she can stay with us, she can’t, Connor barked into his mind. Yo
u know Cynthia will back me up on this.
Tim stared straight ahead. Cynthia was the co-alpha of their shifter clan — a young dragon widow with a mysterious past, a young son, and an uncompromising leadership style. But surely, she would have a heart for Hailey, a woman on the run?
Tim glanced back just as Hailey looked up at him. Those pure, blue eyes so full of fear and hope. Those full lips, quivering the tiniest bit. He barely noticed when his peripheral vision shut down, gradually narrowing his world to Hailey and nothing else. His mind was the same way. All his carefully laid plans and dreams became a blur, and everything ceased to exist except her.
Destiny, his bear murmured.
He gulped. Destiny? Could it really be?
Chapter Five
Hailey clutched her seat and peered out over the water as the craggy mountains of Maui grew closer and closer. The helicopter had already flown over the long, low hump of Molokai, and she couldn’t believe the views. Of course, it would have been a hell of a lot easier to enjoy the stunning sights if it weren’t for her current predicament.
Her eyes darted between the two men in the front of the helicopter. On the right was the man who’d helped her escape the mall. Tim — the one with mesmerizing eyes and a soft yet powerful voice that counted more on resonance then sheer volume to get a point across. She still couldn’t believe she’d trusted him, but something about him put her at ease. Something she couldn’t begin to explain. Plus, it was getting harder and harder to assume he had anything nefarious up his sleeve. There was no way Jonathan could have posted Tim in the mall as a trap, not when Jonathan had been so sure she would accept his proposal.
She swallowed a groan and bumped her head against the window. Jonathan. What had she ever seen in him? How could she have been so dumb?
“You okay?” Tim asked.
He was too far away to touch, but it felt as if he’d reached out and given her a hug. A hug that shouldn’t feel that good because he was a perfect stranger. Yet something about him screamed honor, justice, and You can trust me.
Temporarily, she reminded herself.
She sighed and stared out over the mottled water. The ocean was a deep, dark blue in some spots, and a brighter, friendlier turquoise around the islands’ shores.
