Blind Date With A Bear (A BBW Paranormal Romance) (7 page)

The man held out a sealed envelope and Quinn saw the crest of the bear clan. Only high officials had access to this seal. Inside was a letter from the bear representative telling
Quinn the agenda for the day. His father had been approached to serve on the Council. He’d refused because he still had young cubs. Quinn hoped someday his father would reconsider. He was a good man and would serve the shifter world well. He stuffed the letter into his jacket pocket. “Okay, let’s go.”

A moment later, his way was blocked by a large man wearing a suit and tie. Bill Marcum. The reason he was in this city and away from his newly discovered mat
e.

“I think we should talk, Blackwood.”

“What’s there to talk about? My brothers and I found the scent of your flunkies all over our building site.”

“Now how do you know it was my boys, Quinn?”

Quinn gritted his teeth in frustration. He heard the arrogance in the other man’s voice. Marcum wanted nothing more than to see Blackwood Brothers Construction fail. For years, he’d been tossing around unfounded accusations about the brothers. This wasn’t his first attempt at sabotage, but it was the most dangerous to date. During other builds, Marcum had confined his efforts to stolen equipment, misdirected deliveries and other things that had resulted in annoying delays. Not real threat, more like frat boys on a hazing dare.

Two weeks ago, the same things had started on this site. It had quickly escalated into something more sinister. The bolts on some
of the I-beams girders had been seared off. Other girders had been compromised by repeated heavy blows to their sides. Blows that could only have been made by a shifter using the beams as a punching bag. Quinn figured Marcum had his nose out of joint because Blackwood Construction had just won a major government contract Marcum had thought he had in the bag. A very lucrative ten story building renovation. All the brothers preferred new construction, but in today’s economy, you couldn’t be choosey, and you certainly couldn’t turn down a government contract.

Normally, they didn’t bother with round-the-clock security on a job. After the first incident, he’d hired a security company. After last night…now Ryland and
Ryker would be patrolling the area. He grinned, wondering what the jackals would say when two grizzlies came at them. Probably piss their pants and run.

“This is my last warning
to you, Marcum. Cut the crap. I got the contract because I can bring the project in on time and on budget. I’ve put up with a lot from you over the years, but it ends now. If I catch any of your jackals on my site again, you can expect the worst.”

“Now, Blackwood, don’t you think that’s something the Council needs to decide?”

Quinn stepped into the man’s personal space. Marcum was bigger than most jackal shifters, a little over six feet. Quinn towered over him with his seven foot frame, intimidating him. A smile stretched across his mouth. He didn’t mind a bit intimidating this piece of trash. “No matter what the Council decides, remember I’m the one that will finish this.”

Paige knew what Deb was doing. She was trying to distract her from the fact that it was now four-thirty in the afternoon and Quinn still hadn’t called her. Granted, there was no certain timeframe in which the
I’ll call you tomorrow
went from being a promise to the dreaded
I just told you that in order to appease you
. She wouldn’t have been so antsy if Deb hadn’t been so worried. Paige knew Deb Quinn to call before now. The only reason Paige wasn’t falling into a deep well of depression was that Deb had told her Quinn had left town early this morning to deal with the trouble he’d been having at his construction site. She figured because of that, she could add a couple of hours to the deadline for him to call.

“Are you sure Quinn didn’t mention true mates to you? About how a shifter knows?”

“Look, Deb, your brother is great. He's big, strong, handsome, and I like him. I really like him.”

“That’s great,” the other woman gave a huge sigh of relief. “I was afraid he’d blown it.”

Paige held up her hand. “Let me finish. I know what you’ve told me about true mates, and I, uh, did some research.” She’d done a lot of research when she’d seen her first picture of Quinn on Deb’s desk. She’d hoped she’d find a website that told you how to turn yourself into a true mate for a shifter you loved. Not that she’d loved him then, or now for that matter. She did have an instant attraction to him. Something he hadn’t had for her last night. Oh, there had been some sexual chemistry—some fuck me now sexual chemistry. There hadn’t been the,
I’m Tarzan, you Jane.

The uncontrollable something that every website said was the telling facto
r—that the animal overcame the man. An attraction so strong, the shifter had a difficult time not having sex with their mate the moment they met. “If I’d been his true mate, I wouldn’t be sitting here now, and he wouldn’t be gone.”

“That’s not true,” Deb denied quickly. “Jason didn’t carry me off until our second date.” The woman blushed even after seven years of marriage and Paige’s eyebrows rose. That must have been some date.

“He would have known. He would have said something.”

Deb’s eyes narrowe
d. “He didn’t say anything?”

Now it was Paige’s turn to blush. No way, no how was she telling her best friend that her baby brother had practically ordered her to climax as he’d licked and sucked on her nipples. “No, just that he wanted to see me again.”

“My brother is an idiot,” Deb muttered under her breath, but Paige heard it anyway.

Paige smiled her first genuine smile of the day. “No, he’s just a man.”

“An idiot man.” Deb’s mind raced. It wasn’t her place to tell Paige that she was Quinn’s true mate. Even she couldn’t overstep that boundary. Her brother was doing a bang up job—of losing his mate. It was time to get the family involved and knock some sense into the man before he lost his chance with Paige. She couldn’t do anything right now because Quinn wasn’t here. As soon as he returned, however, all bets were off. In the meantime, she didn’t want Paige to be alone, brooding and worrying about why Quinn hadn’t called her yet. “Come on, come by the house and have dinner with me and Jason and the kids. You know you want to see Amy and Joseph.”

“That’s not playing fair, Deb. You know I love your children. But I repeat, I don’t want to have dinner with yo
u.” Paige repeated what she’d been telling her friend for the last two hours. Deb had already offered to go to the movies with her, take her out to dinner, and even go bar hopping. Secretly, Paige thought Deb just wanted to do that and was using Paige as an excuse. She’d been very tempted by that offer, but she’d turned it down along with all the others.

She knew Deb didn’t want her to go home and worry about why Quinn hadn’t called. Which was exactly what she intended to do in—she looked at her computer monitor to see what time it was—in exactly twenty-seven minutes. She planned on having a nice
quiet evening just like always. But first a stop at the grocery store to pick up another pint—or two—of ice cream. She wouldn’t let herself think about the feel and taste of Quinn. Or the fact that her heart was slowly breaking in two. Just one date. How could she be so enamored with this man after just one date?

Deb sighed and rose from the corner of Paige’s desk that she’d been occupying for the last hou
r. “If you change your mind, just come on over.”

“I won’
t.” She needlessly straightened some folders on her desk. The one good thing about being miserable was that it allowed you to focus on your job in order to forget what caused you the misery in the first place. She’d gotten caught up on some back projects and made some good headway on new ones. The last half hour of the day crawled by. Just as she was about to leave, her office phone rang.

“Hello, Paig
e.” The deep dark seduction of Quinn’s voice was guaranteed to make a woman lose her breath and Paige was no exception.

“H
i.” She looked out of her small cubicle to make sure no one was watching. It wouldn’t do for her fellow workers to see her drool into the phone.

“I’m glad you answered, baby.”

The endearment made her feel as if she’d been sprinkled with stardust. Alive and excited. Crap, how did she cave so easily?

Then she frowne
d, Quinn Blackwood was the type of man who handed out more endearments than the Easter Bunny gave out chocolate eggs. You are nothing special, Paige. Yeah, they’d had a good time—try still pussy-clenching—good time. For one night. So maybe it could be two, if you don’t blow it, that throbbing piece of womanhood urged.
Blow, sex. Quinn’s cock. Paige Matthews, get your mind out of the gutter.
“Whatever.”

Quinn laughed and Paige let a smile lift the corners of her lips. She did sound like a surly teenager. “I told you I’d call you, Paige. I’m sorry I didn’t call sooner.”

She wasn’t about to tell him she’d waited anxiously all day and had planned on having a Ben and Jerry binge once she got home.

“I had to go out of town this morning, so we can’t go out tonight.”

“Really? Isn’t that excuse number forty-eight in the bro-code book?”

“Paige.” Mr. Growly of last night was back and dang if her body didn’t respond. She had to clench her thighs together against the rush o
f desire spreading through her.

“Listen to me. It looks like I’m not going to be home until very late Saturday night. Come to dinner at my parent’s house on Sunday.”

Paige’s heart skipped a beat. It quickly settled back down. Deb had invited her to Sunday dinner before. Quinn’s invitation meant nothing. “I don’t think so.”

“Monday?”

“I’m busy.” Paige didn’t allow herself to hesitate. She’d find something to do even if it was cleaning out her kitchen cabinets.

“A date?” His voice was rough as if he didn’t like the idea of her going out with an
yone else. She’d never inspired jealousy in a man before. If that, indeed, was what his tone was implying. When she didn’t answer he gave a little chuff.

“Tuesday then.”

“No.”

“Wednesday? It’ll be our one week anniversary.”

She rolled her eyes even though he couldn’t see them. No man celebrated a one week anniversary. Plus, it implied either desperation—which she was pretty sure he wasn’t—or manipulation. Either way, she wasn’t falling for it. “No.”

“Give a guy a break, Paige.” His tone sounded strained. She was proud of herself when she didn’t give in to her impulse to tell him she’d go out with him wherever and whenever he wanted.

“Lunch then. Any day next week.” Before she could answer, he continued. “Hell, I can already hear the ‘no’. Monday. You’re having lunch with me Monday, Paige. I won’t take no for an answer. I really want to see you, baby.” His voice dropped an octane and her nipples tightened against the lace of her bra. “I need to see you.”

She chewed on her fingernail, careful not to ruin the polish. “Look, I had a good time last night—”

“Me too, baby,” he broke in before she could finish.

“It was just a dat
e.” Yeah, that’s what she’d had, a blind date with a bear. Nothing more.

“It was more than a date, Paige, and we both know i
t.” His tone was hard and commanding. And sexy. “I made you come just—”

“Quinn!”

“It was a date I want to repeat. I want to give you an orgasm with something besides my mouth. Or at least my mouth on a different part of your body. I bet you taste so fucking sweet.”

Her body trembled at the naughty images his words evoked. She was torn. Quinn was looking for a mate. She was looking for something long term, but she wasn’t his true mate and there was no way this would lead to anything but heartbreak, for her.

“Just another date, Paige. Another date with a bear,” his tone was coaxing. “Say, yes.”

Her inner self—the one that longed for love—beat back her logical self that said the bear shifter would wind up breaking her heart. “Yes, I’ll have lunch with you Monday.” Maybe a few days away from his magnetic energy would give her some perspective on the feelings he aroused.

The remainder of the week and the weekend went by
slowly. Achingly, frustratingly, slowly. By Saturday afternoon, Paige was cursing herself for being a fool. If she hadn’t been so stubborn she would be seeing Quinn tomorrow.

Today, instead of invitin
g Ben and Jerry over again, she’d invited Betty. Just as she was scraping the brownie batter into the pan, her phone rang. No doubt it was Deb checking on her once more. “I told you, I don’t want to come over.”

“You damn well better not be going over to someone else’s plac
e.” Quinn’s voice came over the line loud and clear.

“Quin
n.” She hoped he couldn’t hear the rapid increase in her heart rate. “I thought it was Deb.”

“What’s my sister been nagging you about?” He tried to hide the relief in his voice that she hadn’t been going out with someone else. No way, no how. She was his, every luscious inch.

“She said she’d go bar hopping with me.”

“What!”