Bear Mechanic: BBW Paranormal Bear Shifter Romance (2 page)

It might not be generally livable, but Grandpa's cabin housed a lot of fond childhood memories for Elise and Cecil. If she needed to escape, that was where she'd go first. Even though technically it belonged to her, not him—Cecil's inheritance was a small fund intended for college—maybe Cecil had had the same thought.

There was a red light ahead. Elise grimaced. She was pretty sure no one was following her, but she didn't want to stop for anything.

As she bore down on the brake, the dashboard lights flickered ominously.

Then, without warning, the engine sputtered… and died.

Her car slid to a stop almost immediately, and all the lights went out. With the sun hidden behind rainclouds, the car became ominously dark. Panic threatened her sense of calm. She took her keys out, and then tried to restart the car. Nothing, not even a click.

This cannot be happening
, Elise thought frantically, and popped the hood.

In her haste, she hadn't brought an umbrella, either. She would just have to face the pouring rain defenseless. She sighed and dug her phone out of the passenger floorboard. It was the closest thing to a flashlight she had.

Propping the hood up, she peered into the car's inner workings and tried to ignore the rain. It was really coming down. Her shirt was already soaked through, leaving her shivering.

The problem was, she didn't know a single thing about cars or car problems beyond the obvious. There was gas in the tank, she wasn't overdue for an oil change, and she could change a tire. Other than that, if it wasn't smoking, she had no idea what was wrong. It was like she'd been sent to a hospital to perform surgery. The inner workings of the car remained mysterious.

By now the rain had soaked through all her clothes. She wiped water out of her eyes impatiently and stared at the engine. Lightning flashed, illuminating the engine briefly.

Someone's headlights cut through the dim, and Elise jumped in surprise.

Immediately, panic rose and threatened to swallow her frustration. There were two headlights, not one. But bikers could drive cars as well as anyone else. Had the Wild Dogs found her?

Thunder cracked like the sound of a whip. Without warning, a dark, male figure appeared next to her from out of the flood.

“Can I help you?” the guy asked, apparently oblivious to her fear.

“Who are you?” she demanded, crossing her arms.

He looked baffled by her response. “I'm Noah. I'm a mechanic. Is there something wrong with your car? That's why you're parked out here in the rain, isn't it?”

Elise took a closer look. To his credit, he wasn't wearing a leather vest, or any leather at all. And Wild Dogs members didn't exactly seem like they wanted to hide their affiliation.

And he's hot
, her hindbrain supplied, apparently unaffected by the possibility of being in deadly danger.

He was tall, well over six feet if she had to guess. He had almost a foot on her, and that was just the way she liked it.

Even though his broad frame towered over her, she didn't feel intimidated. The smile on his face was friendly and warm, if a bit confused by her response. Ah. That was her fault.

“I'm sorry, what was that?” she said dazedly.

Apparently, when star-struck by a total stranger's overwhelming attractiveness, she lost all short-term memory and ability to make a conversation.
Great job, Elise
.

“Your car,” he repeated, gesturing to the open hood. A rivulet of water slipped down the side of his neck. Abruptly she realized it had stopped raining. No, it had just stopped raining on
her
.

Noah-the-mechanic was holding his umbrella over her head.

“Yes,” she said, latching on to the conversation so that she wouldn't get caught ogling. “The car. The car has a problem. But I don't know what it is.”

“You're in luck. That's kind of my specialty. The diagnosis is on the house.” He grinned, and Elise's stomach flipped over once, slowly.

“Really?” Hot
and
nice?

“Really. Here, you've got umbrella duty.” Noah handed her the umbrella and leaned over her car.

She scooted closer to him. Just to make sure he didn't get rained on, of course. Not that she would mind if he did. It was too bad he was wearing that jacket. Underneath, he had on a white T-shirt that would look very nice transparently stretched over his well-muscled frame.

The hem of his jacket pulled up over his back, exposing a sliver of tanned skin and two dimples just over the waist of his blue jeans. Elise's free hand reached out unthinkingly.

He stood up, and she jumped back with the force of her embarrassment. She snatched the offending hand behind her back.

Oh God, did he notice how weird I'm being?
She hoped not.

If he did notice, he didn't show it. “Well, I've got good news and bad news for you.”

Elise's stomach twisted. Good news probably meant it could be repaired, but bad news probably meant it would be expensive. The last time she had checked her bank account balance, it had read
$93.66
. Not exactly enough to replace a transmission or even a tire.

“Lay it on me,” she said, then flushed at her choice of words. There was at least one reason to be grateful for the nasty weather. He probably couldn't see her blush.

“Your alternator went out.”

“…Alternator?” She couldn't remember ever hearing about a part like that.

“Don't worry, it's not serious,” Noah assured her. “And not expensive, either. The part usually runs between thirty and eighty dollars.”

“Oh.” That was within even her minuscule budget. “So… What's the bad news?”

He looked apologetic. “It's not something I carry on me. It might have to be special-ordered, even.”

Elise smiled. “Since I got a free diagnosis out of the deal, I guess I can forgive you.”

“Come back with me to the shop, you could get more than that.”

“Oh! Would you do that? I don't want to impose.”

“It's no imposition.” He lowered the hood of her car back into place and reached for the umbrella.

His calloused fingers brushed against the back of her hand. Elise felt a tingle like she'd never felt before. Something electric passed between them.

The sensation warmed her instantly from the top of her head to the tips of her toes. Suddenly it was like she couldn't feel the cold or the rain anymore; there was just the heat of their bodies and how it made her feel, dizzy and delighted.

Without thinking, she leaned in closer to him. Under the umbrella, all alone with the rain pounding down around them, it felt like they were in their own private world, just the two of them.

Noah was looking at her with an intensity she'd never received before. A flash of lightning illuminated him. She caught a glimpse of the dark hazel tint of his eyes, nut-brown flecked with bits of emerald green and gold. His eyes were mesmerizing, and all of his attention was focused on her.

His lips were parted. He leaned toward her.

Was he going to kiss her? A man so handsome and kind, wanting to kiss her? She couldn't quite believe it, but all the evidence pointed to
yes
. Elise's heart pounded like it was trying to escape her body.

CLAP!

Thunder sounded, breaking the spell.

Elise jumped back again before coming back to her senses. What was wrong with her today? The Wild Dogs had put her on edge.

But it was too late to recover the moment. For a moment, Noah looked disappointed. She
thought
. It was hard to tell when she couldn't look him square in the eye.

“Here.” She held the umbrella out. “You wanted this back?”

He shook his head, as if to clear it. “Right. Right.”

This time, when he took the umbrella, he did so carefully, making sure their fingers didn't touch again
.
Elise tried to squash the disappointment that flared up at the gesture.

See, he wasn't into you,
she chided herself.
You didn't ruin anything. He wants to make sure you don't get the wrong idea again
.

Well, she wasn't going to let herself do it again. She smiled brightly. “Take me to your mothership!”

Chapter Two

Noah

Noah Hawley snuck a glance at the woman in the passenger seat. She hadn't said much since getting in, besides a quick “thanks” when he opened the door for her.

Elise was looking out her window. Her fingers drummed on the armrest. Her mind was clearly elsewhere.

Noah's bear wasn't too pleased with that. It wanted Elise to be paying attention to
him
.

His bear had rumbled with interest on seeing her, waking up from a long hibernation. Noah almost always stopped for cars parked on the side of the road if someone was there. If nothing else, it was a way to get his business card in more people's hands.

Rarely did his bear perk up at these proceedings. But as soon as he'd seen her, standing out in the rain with a puzzled frown, staring down at her engine like it was an alien life form, his bear had come out of hibernation.

Even with water streaming down her and soaking her clothes, she was a sight to behold. She had blonde hair he knew would be curly when it dried. And her curvy figure was to die for, with wide hips and a generous bosom, all covered in soft, pale skin his hands itched to run over.

And blue, blue eyes. He'd never seen eyes like hers, so crystal clear and penetrating, like somehow she already
knew
him. It had been incredibly difficult to tear himself away from her.

She hadn't found it so hard to do the same. He frowned. The moment he'd touched her hand, he’d known.

She was his mate.

He hadn't been around other bears for years. Sometimes it was almost easy to forget he
was
a shifter. But the moment they touched, his bear's natural instincts had taken over. He had wanted—he had
needed
—to pull her close and crush her lips against his, to claim her as his own.

He'd fought the instinct as best as he could. But being so immersed in his bear's desires for the first time in years had been overwhelming. He had leaned in, aching to touch her…

And she'd pulled away.

Of course she had. She was a regular human. If she'd been a shifter, she’d have known, too. They'd probably be having sex in the backseat right now. But to her, he was just a stranger who'd tried to help her out of a jam.

“I'll have your car towed to our place,” he said, breaking the silence.

She jumped, as if she had forgotten he was there, her blue eyes wide and startled. “Oh! Yeah. That would be good. Triple A! I knew I forgot something.” She rolled her eyes at herself. “I thought I was going to be hitchhiking my way out of that situation.”

“There's no one who could have picked you up?” He hazarded a glance at her left hand.
No husband, no boyfriend…?

The corners of her mouth turned down. “No.” There was a defensive note in her voice. “Not today, I mean…”

He cursed himself. Of course she’d take that the wrong way. It sounded like he was insulting her.

A few more minutes passed in awkward silence. Finally she said, her hands twisting in her lap, “So what's the name of your auto shop?”

“Sweetwater Automotive,” he said with some pride. “I founded it. We're the best full-service garage in the area.”

“I've never heard of it.”

“Ouch.” He grinned. “Well, we do a lot of commercial work. We even work on race cars sometimes.”

“Really? That's so neat!”

“Do you like racing?”

“I used to watch Formula One with my grandpa when I was a kid,” she said wistfully.

Well, he definitely wasn't going to introduce her to Tyler anytime soon. The charming, F1-driving, playboy tiger shifter who worked in his shop made a habit of stealing his thunder. Fated mates or not, Noah didn't feel like exposing Elise to him just yet.

“Grandpa was a big fan,” she continued. Her voice turned more serious. “I was going to his house when my car broke down. He passed away a few years ago… but there might be something at his house I need to find.”

Her tone made it sound like it was something more important than a book or a lost accessory. If she had a problem, he wanted to help her solve it. “What are you looking for?”

She sighed. “Well, it's not so much a some
thing
. It's a some
one
. My little brother, Cecil.”

Noah pictured a kid, maybe sixteen. “Did he run away?”

Her smile was wry, though troubled. “Maybe. I'm not sure where he is. He just… disappeared. Without telling me he was going anywhere.”

He seized his chance to spend more time with her and get to know her a little better. “I can take you. We can do it now, if you want,” he offered.

Her glance was startled. “Right now? Are you sure?”

“It's no problem. You're worried about your missing brother, that's the most important thing to take care of. The car can come later.”

Elise laid her hand on his arm, her gaze grateful. Again that tingle passed through him—the knowledge that his mate was touching him. He barely managed to suppress his bear's pleased growl.

“Are you sure?” she asked. “It's not too out-of-the-way?”

It occurred to him them that he didn't know where her grandfather's house was. He hoped he hadn't just volunteered to drive them to El Paso. Then again, that was more time he could spend in her presence.

“How far away is it?” he asked.

“Not too far,” she assured him, pulling out her phone. “I was about fifteen minutes away. Here, I'll set up the GPS. Are you
really
sure this is okay? You don't have better things to do?”

Better things than help his mate find her missing brother? He couldn't think of anything. “It's one hundred percent fine.”

Relief was evident on her face, and her shoulders sagged a little, as if a burden had been taken from her. “Thank you. So much. I really appreciate this, Noah.”

She shouldn't be thanking him; he was just doing what any shifter would for his mate. Not that she knew it yet. He’d have to find some way to tell her about his other side. He just didn't know how. Noah took the hand that was still resting on his arm, enfolded it within his much larger one, and squeezed.

She flushed bright pink, but didn't pull her hand out of his. With a tentative smile, she squeezed back. For the next fifteen minutes, as the voice assistant gave him driving instructions, neither of them let go.

* * *

“This is it,” Elise confirmed, chewing her lip anxiously. “I don't see his car, but it could be in the garage.”

She slipped her hand out of his to dip into her purse and retrieve her keys. He regretted the loss of her skin next to his immediately.

The house was small and looked cozy, though it was edging past “dilapidated” into “shambling” territory. Shutters on one of the windows had come half-off and were hanging, occasionally clapping against the house in the wind. The front yard was a tiny swamp, dotted with growing puddles due to the rain.

Elise's rain-wet fingers slipped over the keys, fumbling, and she wrestled with the lock for a few minutes before letting Noah take over. He had to lift the door slightly to get it to unlock, and then shoved it open.

“Cecil?” she called, ducking under his arm into the house. “Cecil, are you here?”

There was silence for a few moments, then something sounded in the next room. A rustling, then the sound of something moving.

Elise froze. She was clearly afraid.

“What is it?” whispered Noah.

“What if it's somebody else? What if it's not Cecil? What if               we're in danger?” She took a step backward, her hand over her heart.

The doorknob to the next room twisted, and the door creaked. Noah positioned himself in front of Elise just in case, sending her a reassuring glance over his shoulder.

“Who's there?” he demanded. There was an authoritative ring to his voice, one that came straight from his bear.

A tow-haired head popped out. “Who am
I
?” he asked incredulously. “Who are
you
?”

He was older than Noah had imagined: college student rather than high school-age.

“Cecil!” Elise exclaimed in relief, coming forward. Her shoulders loosened. “You
are
here!”

The freckled face didn't lose its fear.

“How did you find me?” Cecil asked, glancing as if someone else might be lurking around. His eyes landed on Noah, sizing him up.

She didn't answer his question. Instead, she stepped toward him with her arms crossed. “Have you been here the whole time? Why did you just run away?”

Her brother’s eyes lowered. Still, his tone was belligerent as he said, “Why did you come looking for me?”

Her arms fell, and her hands clenched at her sides. Noah couldn't blame her.

“Why did I come looking for you?” she repeated. “Maybe because you disappeared on me! I've been trying to call you! I haven't heard from you for days!”

“Sorry,” he muttered grudgingly.

That wasn't enough for Elise. “Have you gotten mixed up in something?” she demanded. “What did you do? Some guys came by my apartment this morning, Cecil! They wanted to know where you are!”

That startled him; he looked up guiltily. “That wasn't supposed to happen! They said they wouldn't—!”

“Well, it did!” Her voice broke like she was about to cry.

Instinctually Noah moved toward her, wanting to put his arms around her, hold her, and comfort her. He settled for rubbing her back.

Elise seemed to calm at his touch. She took a deep breath, then let it out. “They said you owed them money.”

“Just a little!” he defended himself.

“They're a biker gang! Cecil, how could you do something so dangerous?”

“You needed it!”

Elise pressed her lips together and shook her head. “Not that much.”

“I was just trying to help,” Cecil said.

She sighed deeply. All the anger seemed to drain out of her. “I know.”

Cecil's gaze darted toward Noah again, especially the hand that was touching his sister. “Who's this guy?”

Elise shifted from foot to foot. “He drove me here. His name is Noah. Now will you please come out?”

Cecil was silent for a minute, then muttered, “Give me a few minutes. Let me get dressed.”

The door closed. Elise rubbed her eyes. She was close to crying; her eyes were bright. She turned to him. He took the invitation to stroke her shoulders.

She leaned into him, and Noah was struck with the
rightness
of it, of how she felt in his arms. Her cheek pressed to his chest; he could feel her breathe in and out, and how the pounding of her heart was easing.

He lifted one hand to stroke a damp curl away from her face and push it behind her ear. His thumb stroked along her cheekbone, and his hand curled around the back of her neck.

She raised her chin, meeting his eyes. Her expression was guarded, but hope sparked behind her blue eyes.

“Everything's going to be okay,” he said quietly.

“How do you know that?” She sniffed. She clearly wanted to believe him.

“Because I'm going to take care of it.” It was spoken like a promise, and he meant to keep it. He tipped her head back, and her eyes fluttered closed in anticipation.

He lowered his lips to hers. At first, it was a soft kiss: tentative and exploratory. A get-to-know-you kiss. Noah had no intention of coming on too strong and driving off his mate.

But with one touch of her soft lips, the passion between them flared.

One hand dipped into the small of her back and pulled her body flush against his, until he could feel her heavy breasts pressed against his chest. His bear rumbled, pleased, in his chest. The sensation sent a shock of arousal straight to his cock until he was rock-hard.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and her lips parted to brush her tongue against him. His grip on her tightened. It was impossible to bring her too close to him. Everywhere, he wanted to feel her
more
.

Their tongues slipped against each other, cautious at first, but evolving into something deeper and dirtier. Noah had never felt this kind of magnetic attraction before in his life. She was a stranger to him, but it was as if he knew her already. Something drew him to her, something that made it impossible to look away.

A noise interrupted them. It was Cecil clearing his throat. Loudly.

It was like coming out of a daze. He blinked slowly and looked down at Elise, who was doing the same thing.

Blushing bright red, she quickly detached herself from him—he let her go with reluctance—and put a few feet of space between their bodies. Right away he missed her warmth.

Cecil turned a glare on Noah. The kid was protective of his big sister. He cleared his throat.

“Are you ready to go?” asked Elise, a little too loudly.