Chapter 53

JO

Avoiding him was like trying to keep ice from melting in an oven.

Sure, he was staying at my hotel and drinking at my bar, but did that mean I had to see his face every time I turned around? His eyes were always on my body one second and then watching my face the next like he was still making his mind up about something.

Most of the other guys had pulled someone in, but he spent most nights alone at my bar trying to talk to me.

My employee Natalia didn’t quit after that rough night, so I was feeling optimistic about her. She was a rabbit shifter, timid but fast and nimble on her feet. She could get a drink put together quicker than anyone I’d ever seen, and I wanted to keep her on.

I wasn’t going to leave her at the bar with these wild dogs, though. Well, I say dogs.

I’d decided that Kray was a bear.

He had the height and the attitude. When he’d come back with the other guys from running in the woods and river, I could smell it on him even from across the room. Now I’m not saying my sense of smell is bad, but there’s nobody else on earth whose smell I’d been able to pick out as easily as I could pick out his.

He smelled like fresh grass and lime, almost a mojito if I didn’t focus too hard on it.

It wasn’t the worst smell to have stuck in my nose, but I would have been happier without it. I didn’t want to let him think I saw him as anything other than a nuisance.

Three nights passed with him trying to change that.

On night four, my new girl was doing better on her own against the crowds, and she didn’t need me there anymore. I still stayed, of course, to help in case anything happened. At least that’s what I told myself, but I’m not sure I could have gone out and left him in the bar with her alone.

Something weird bubbled in my gut at the thought. Jealousy?

No way in hell, he was just some stray biker. He’d be gone in a couple more days and I could wash my hands of this mess.

She didn’t seem to mind the company, so there wasn’t any trouble in me sticking around.

“Come here often?” His voice was deep and friendly, meant just for me. I’d been avoiding letting him know I’d noticed he’d come in, but I could smell him the moment he walked in. The new hand soap I’d put in the bathrooms was on his hands, changing his smell just a little. Annoyed, but not able to act like it because some of my regulars were starting to come

back and I didn’t want to scare them off, I turned to him and sighed. “Beer?” he was predictable.

“No, tonight just a cola.” Maybe not that predictable.

I filled a glass with cola and ice and handed it to him.

“You know it’s cheaper at any other restaurant in town,” I said.

“Yeah, but everything tastes better here,” he smiled. His smile was crooked, and somehow that made my heart start going again. No. No, No, NO! I wasn’t going to get all giddy over this asshole. He said that they were just here to find girls and he’s a good flirt. I didn’t need to fall into his trap.

I needed to clear my head.

“I’m going on a smoke break,” I told Natalia. “Alright, Jo, I’ve got it handled,” she smiled.

I hardly made it to the door when I realized he was following me. “You don’t smoke,” he said as we stepped outside.

“I used to,” I admitted. “Just needed some fresh air right now.” He shrugged, taking out a pack of cigarettes.

“Mind if I smoke?”

I sighed, wanting to say yes, I minded, but at the same time, I hoped that the smoke would block out his smell a little. He smelled so good, it was

cloyingly sweet, calling to me again and again, even though I knew better than to go anywhere near it.

“Go ahead,” I shrugged.

He lit up, and I could almost immediately smell the menthol. It helped the smell a little.

“You really should quit that. It’s not new news that it’s bad for you.” “Eh, someday I might.”

I leaned against the wall outside the bar, watching the town ahead.

"We should go for a run," he said. His voice was deep, dangerous with want. I felt it too, standing this close to him was almost unbearable, but I kept the half-foot distance. "It's nice out, the summer air is always the best, might find some small game to chase," he offered.

It did sound tempting, but there were so many reasons to say no. “I don’t shift anymore,” I admitted.

“What? Why not?”

“I, uh, had some bad experiences with shifters losing themselves in their shifted forms,” I admitted. “My little brother was an angel, a perfect guy, usually. He shifted, went overboard with the wolf inside him, and ended up taking down a shifter from a biker gang a couple of towns over. They retaliated, killing him, which made sense.” I used to not be able to tell this story without crying. It had been ten years, though.

“Shit, I’m sorry,” he shook his head.

“He was such a good kid when he was human, but when a pack of wolves, or any predator, get together it’s easy to just lose yourself in it. I don’t want to let go of control,” I explained.

“Is that why you quit smoking?”

I huffed out a laugh, actually surprised at him.

“No, dumbass, I quit smoking because I didn’t want to get cancer,” I shrugged.

“Fair,” he laughed too.

I relaxed a little and sighed.

“How do you let off steam then?” “Hm?”

"You don't smoke, I haven't seen you take a sip of liquor, and you don't shift," he turned to me and I realized how close we were. "How do you relax?" Reaching just past my hip, he had to lean closer to me to put the cigarette out in an ashtray.

He was so close to me, our faces just inches from each other.

Those green eyes. They reminded me of the bright grass you could find deep in the woods, vivid and bright. He paused there, the air between us was suffocating.

I closed the gap.

His lips were warm, firm, and hungry as he pulled me against him. I could feel his arousal, how badly he wanted me, and God, I wanted him too. I didn’t admit it to myself until that moment. The kiss wasn’t like anything else I’d experienced, it was electric and overwhelming. My hands held his face, not letting him go, cigarette smoke and soda on his tongue.

He turned us, pressing me against the wall, and our bodies collided roughly.

I could feel that he was just as turned on as I was.

His cock was hard as a rock, pressed against my thigh as we made out. One of his large hands, hot against my skin, slid up my hip under my shirt. I felt like I’d die if we didn’t take this further if I didn’t make my way to his hotel bed, and that’s when I knew I needed to stop.

He was sex on two legs, everything I never knew I wanted. Nothing I needed.

He made it clear his first night here that it was temporary, that he was just chasing tail. I didn’t know what was going on between us, but I knew that if we started anything and he left town I’d be broken. It wasn’t just that he was sexy as hell, it wasn’t just that it’d been a while since I had anybody, there was something magnetic between us that had to be broken so I wouldn’t be.

I had to be smart.

Stealing one last good kiss, I pushed him away, and he backed off. “What is it?” he sounded disappointed as I turned to go back into the

bar. I shrugged, not knowing how to answer without hurting his pride. I had to be honest.

“I can’t do this.”