Bearing the Late Thaw (Ice Bear Shifters Book 5) (2 page)

Christine frowned at him. “The door wasn’t locked, and the open sign is still up.”

“Well, I was just in the process of closing down. Besides, you need an appointment,” Neal said. That last bit wasn’t true at all. He had never required appointments. Sometimes, when things got really busy during tourist season, he recommended appointments. But he had never required them. Especially not in the dead of winter, when he was lucky if even one person walked through the door on a weekday.

Undeterred, Christine flashed him a bright smile. “Well, then, can I make an appointment?”

Neal rolled his eyes, making no effort to hide his annoyance. Couldn’t she take a hint? “Fine. When?”

“How about tomorrow at 6 p.m.? Or will you be as overwhelmingly busy then as you are right now?” Christine asked, looking pointedly around the empty shop.

“Fine,” Neal said. “Tomorrow at 6. Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to close down my shop.”

Christine smirked at him and went to grab her parka. Through the front window, he watched her hop onto her snowmobile and drive away.

“Well, she is persistent. Gotta give her that,” he said aloud to the empty room. He walked around the counter and locked the front door, then went to exit through the back. After zipping on his parka and locking the back door, he hopped onto his own snowmobile and started the trek home through the dark Alaskan afternoon.

Christine’s dark eyes danced in his head, and he found himself thinking of the next day with eager anticipation. He felt his bear growling with passion.

“No,” he said forcefully into the wind as he sped by the edge of town and into the group of cabins where all of the Northern Lights clan members lived. He had a clan to care for and protect. He didn’t have time or energy to waste on a pretty little thing in designer jeans. Maybe back at her law firm Christine could waltz into the room and get any guy she wanted. But Neal wasn’t any guy, and this wasn’t a ritzy law firm. Neal was an alpha bear shifter, and this was the Alaskan wilderness. If Christine really wanted a tattoo, he’d oblige her. But he wouldn’t let himself fall for her, no matter how interested his bear seemed to be.

As Neal slowed down and guided his snowmobile through the group of cabins, he saw one of his clan members, Eric, sticking his head out the front door of one of the cabins.

“Neal!” Eric called out. “Can you come here when you get a second? Tyler thinks he has a new idea on where the Blizzards might be hiding.”

“Sure thing, buddy. Let me get my snowmobile parked and I’ll be right over,” Neal replied. He pushed any last traces of Christine from his mind as he killed the engine on his snowmobile. His clan had been trying to track down the Blizzards all winter. If a new idea could lead to their hiding place, Neal was all ears. He was more than ready to find those scoundrels and put a stop to their malicious plans once and for all.

“You’re crazy,” Jill said, shaking her head in Christine’s direction.

“You’re the one who told me I’d be an idiot not to go for him,” Christine said. A giant cloud of dust billowed upwards as she struggled to move a box of ancient documents from the floor to a shoddy folding table. She sneezed for the umpteenth time as particles of dirt and dust filled her nostrils.

“Yeah, well, you don’t have to get a tattoo just to find out if the guy is interested in you. Those things are kind of permanent, you know. Why don’t you just invite him back to the pub for a drink or something?”

Christine sighed. “He’s made it pretty clear he’s not interested in me, so I don’t think asking him to come out for a beer will work. I have to use other tactics. Besides, despite what you seem to think about this situation, I’m not getting a tattoo to try to win him over or impress him. I’ve been thinking about getting one for a long time. It’ll be fun to do it in Alaska. It’s like a permanent memory of my adventure here.”

“I’m not sure I’d exactly call this an adventure,” Jill said, eyeing the grimy boxes stacked haphazardly all over the large warehouse.

“Well, whatever. It’s something different than ordinary life. It’s been an interesting experience, at least.”

“That’s true. I have to admit, driving around a snowmobile instead of a car is kind of fun. But I could do without the complete lack of cell service. And more reliable internet would be nice, too.”

“I guess,” Christine said. “Although sometimes it’s kind of nice to be a little bit disconnected. I like having a break from the constant barrage of emails.”

Christine glanced at her watch. It was already 5:15, and she wanted to swing by her apartment to shower and change before heading to Neal’s shop. As she started closing the box of documents she had been reviewing, Jill raised an eyebrow at her.

“You’re leaving before six again?”

“I’ve been here since 5 a.m. I’ve already put in more than twelve hours today, so I think I deserve a break. Besides, like I said, what are they going to do? Fire me? They need us to get this project done, so they won’t get rid of me at least until it’s over. And once I’m done here, I’m done with firm life anyways. As soon as that check is signed for that last payment on my student loans, I’m out the door.”

“I’m so jealous,” Jill said. “I can’t wait to be done with this crap.”

“Crap is right,” Christine said. “I’m looking forward to doing work that actually matters to someone besides a hoity toity CEO of a multimillion dollar company.”

Christine brushed her dusty hands off on her jeans and turned to head toward the exit, giving Jill a quick goodbye wave. A few minutes later, she was on her snowmobile and speeding toward her small apartment. Once home, she took a quick shower and reapplied her makeup, then put on a lavender colored v-neck sweater and a fresh pair of jeans. She dried her hair and let it hang around her shoulders in long, sleek waves. A quick glance at her watch told her it was fifteen minutes until 6 p.m. Christine grabbed the large, insulated picnic basket she had prepared this morning, and then rushed out the door. After securing the basket in the storage area of her snowmobile, she took off at a breakneck speed toward Neal’s shop.

As she had hoped, no other snowmobiles were parked out front. Christine would be the only client in the parlor this evening. She hopped off the snowmobile and grabbed the basket, then trudged through the snow to the front door. As she opened it, she felt the same nervous uncertainty she had felt when she saw Neal at the pub a few nights ago. His gorgeous, violet eyes unsettled her. She almost turned around and left. Glacier Point might be a small town, but it did have other men. Men who would probably be happy for a chance to spend some time with Christine. Why did she have to torture herself by going after the one single man who had made it clear he wanted nothing to do with her? Especially when she was heading back to Texas in a few months, anyways.

Christine already knew the answer to that question. She wanted to go after Neal
because
he had made it clear he wanted nothing to do with her. She liked to prove to herself how irresistible she could be. Christine took a deep breath and smiled as she set the picnic basket up on the counter in front of Neal.

Time to turn up the charm.

* * *

Neal eyed Christine suspiciously as she smiled up at him. Despite her cool, collected exterior, she was giving off an even stronger scent of arousal than she had yesterday. She smelled like a mixture of pheromones, roses, and cedarwood. He worked to keep his own arousal in check as she casually pushed back a strand of her long dark hair. His bear clawed at him from the inside, and, honestly, he couldn’t blame it. Neal couldn’t deny that Christine was exquisite. If the first thirty seconds of her being in his store were any indication of how things were going to go, he would be spending a good portion of his evening fighting off the little waves of passion that kept washing over him at the sight of her. It was going to be a long night.

“What’s this?” he asked, pointing to the basket she had just set on the counter, even though he already knew the basket contained an assortment of food. His sensitive nose was picking up aromas of grapes, cheese, bread and red wine.

“This, my friend, is dinner,” Christine said proudly, opening the lid of the insulated basket and confirming what Neal’s nose had already told him. “I heard you mentioning the other day at the pub how hungry you were after work. So I thought you might appreciate some food. No breaking open the wine until after you’re finished with my tattoo, though. I don’t want to be permanently marked up by a drunk guy.”

Neal’s stomach growled at the sight and smell of food, and he realized he hadn’t eaten since breakfast. But he didn’t want to admit to Christine that he was touched by her gesture.

“Let’s get down to business,” he said abruptly. “If we have time later I might consider a snack.”

He turned away and started walking toward the tattoo chairs, mostly to avoid the disappointed look on Christine’s face. He knew he was acting harshly, but it was for her own good. She had no idea who she was chasing after. If she did, she’d probably be running in the other direction.

Christine recovered quickly, though, closing the lid of the basket and following Neal to the chairs with a bright smile on her face.

“Sounds good,” she said, then started digging in a small black satchel she was carrying. “I brought a picture of the tattoo I want. Do you think you can replicate this drawing on the inside of my wrist?”

Neal took the paper that she handed to him. On it was a delicately drawn, 3D rendition of the North Star. The drawing was simple, but obviously done by someone with artistic talent. It had an understated beauty to it.

“Who drew this?” Neal asked, admiring the artwork.

“I did,” Christine said. Her cheeks started turning pink.

“You drew this? I thought you said you were an attorney, not an artist.”

Christine shrugged. “It’s just a hobby. Do you think it’s awful? Tell me if you do. I don’t want to get a tattoo of an awful drawing.”

“I think it’s beautiful,” Neal said. When he looked up from the drawing and into Christine’s eyes, he felt a fresh wave of passionate heat wash over him. The usual, brazen confidence in her eyes had softened into a hopeful, vulnerable look. It set off his protective alpha instincts, and he had to resist the urge to pull her into his arms and hold her close.

Christine seemed uncomfortable with the silence that hung between them, and she started talking a mile a minute. “I’ve always wanted to get this tattoo. I’ve been reworking the drawing for a few years, but it’s always been essentially the same. I’ve taken a lot of detours in my life away from what I really wanted to do. I wanted to get a North Star to remind me to never lose myself to the chaos of life. To always find my way back.”

“I think that’s really special,” Neal said sincerely. He could see the pain in her eyes, and he felt badly for being so standoffish to her. He knew Glacier Point could be a lonely place for outsiders. Maybe all Christine really needed was for someone to be her friend while she was here. He could offer that, at least. He just had to be careful to keep his feelings from spilling over into more dangerous territory.

“I’m going to get some supplies together and prep everything. Why don’t you go ahead and open that bottle of wine? Get yourself a glass and relax. Wine is expensive here, so you should definitely put that bottle to good use. Oh, and there’s a stack of waivers on the counter. I’ll need you to sign one for me before I start the tattoo. Since you’re an attorney, I bet you’re going to be the first person to actually read the damn thing.”

Christine smiled. “I actually never read waivers. Waste of time, because none of them are perfect. You can always find something to argue over in court.”

“Great, well, good to know my waiver means nothing to you. Sign it anyways, just to make me feel better, would you?”

Christine grinned and went to open the wine. She sipped at a glass until Neal was ready and called her over.

“Ready?” he asked.

She nodded, and he started working on her wrist. She didn’t say much at first, and only winced now and then. Neal found himself overcome by her closeness and the scent of roses and cedarwood that she was giving off. It must have been her perfume.

Halfway through the job, she suddenly drew in a sharp breath of pain.

“You okay?” he asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine. It just stung really badly for a second.”

“We can take a break if you need to,” Neal said.

“No, no. I’m okay. It just hit a particularly sensitive spot.”

Neal continued working, but decided to talk a little more with her to try to take her mind off of the pain.

“So, how did a fancy attorney like you end up in Glacier Point?” he asked.

Christine sighed. “One of my firm’s clients got sued over some oil drilling that occurred decades ago. As part of preparing for the lawsuit, we have to exchange relevant documents and information with the other side. It’s a legally required process called ‘discovery,’ and it’s a pain in the butt. But we only have to turn over certain documents, and, of course, the client wants to protect as much business information as possible. Which means me and the other two attorneys here have to read through thousands of pages of documents to see if they’re the kind of information that has to be given to the other side or not. Usually we review these documents on a computer screen, inside a comfy office. But the oil drilling for this case happened so long ago that computers weren’t being used yet. The documents are all up here in a warehouse in hard copy, and someone has to review them. My firm offered a bonus to anyone willing to come work on it, and I jumped at the chance to make some extra money.”

Neal glanced up at Christine, his eyes glazing over a bit. “That sounds painfully boring.”

Christine laughed. “Oh, it is. But, like I said, I got a bonus for agreeing to come out here. And I’d never been to Alaska. I thought it would be a nice change of pace from Texas.”

Neal raised an eyebrow. “Texas? That’s pretty far away from here.”

“Yeah. I miss it a lot less than I thought I would, though. I’m actually enjoying being a little less connected out here. It’s a slower, more sane pace of life. And I love riding around on a snowmobile. Those things are freaking awesome.”

“If you like snowmobiles, you should try taking yours for a spin out on the open tundra. There are some great, wide open spots near here where you can really have some fun.”

“That sounds so awesome!” Christine said. “Can you show me where?”

Neal hesitated as he looked up at Christine’s dark brown eyes. He knew agreeing to spend time with her out on the tundra was dangerous. The sight of her made his insides tighten up with desire, and being alone with her out there would tempt him to think of her in ways he knew he shouldn’t think of her. But, as he looked into her sparkling eyes, he found himself unable to bear the thought of disappointing her. He opted for a vague, noncommittal answer.

“I’m pretty busy right now, so I probably can’t anytime soon. But I can give you directions to some good spots.”

Christine narrowed her eyes at him and then looked around the empty shop. “You’re busy?” she said, her tone accusing.

“I have some other stuff I’m working on at home,” Neal said, going back to working on the tattoo and refusing to look up and meet Christine’s eyes again. She sighed loudly, but didn’t say anything else for several minutes. Just when Neal thought she had given up on talking to him altogether, she spoke again, her voice holding no trace of annoyance or sarcasm. She seemed determined to not let his aloof attitude bother her.

“So, have you been in Glacier Point your whole life?” she asked.

“No, actually. I’ve lived in the Arctic my whole life, but I’ve only been here for a little under two years.”

“How’d you end up here, then?”

Neal grimaced. She asked a lot of questions. Questions that, in all fairness, were just normal small talk for most new acquaintances. But for him, they were questions he couldn’t answer directly. He couldn’t exactly tell her that his clan of bear shifters had been forced from their old town by humans who discovered their existence and started an all out bear hunt. Or that after his clan had been almost wiped out entirely in a poisoning attack by a rival clan, he had decided to settle in the first decent town he came across.