Bear's Match (Bear Heat Book 6) (5 page)

“T-tonight?”

“Yeah, dinner tonight.
With Dylan and Jade. Is that okay with you? If you're working
late...”

“No, no, it's okay.
It's great! Gosh, I can't wait to see Jade again!”

Luke grinned and turned to
face her as he stopped at a traffic light. “I'll pick you up
at seven-thirty.”

“Oh, okay. Pick me up
at my office. It's at...”

“Morgann Hill's offices
are on the top floors of Eco Building, right?”

“Right.”

Cocking her head at him,
Nicole studied his profile and commented, “You haven't shaved.
Your hair is all mussed up and tousled. You're wearing an old
t-shirt with a frayed collar. Yet, you look drop dead sexy. I can't
believe anyone can look so good and be so bright and cheerful before
they've had their morning coffee,” she huffed.

Luke gave her a dazzling
smile and looked straight at her. “Well, I could say it's
because I just had the most amazing sex of my life last night.
But—that's not entirely true. It wasn't just the sex. It's
you, Nicole.”

Nicole forced herself to
breathe. She was definitely falling head over heels in love with
Luke. Feeling dizzy and a little disorientated, she murmured,
“You're a good man, Luke Keller.”

“I...I'm not what you
think I am,” he began. “I'm not the same Luke you knew
as a kid.”

“Of course you're the
same Luke.” She swatted his arm. “Stop talking
nonsense.”

The car pulled up in front of
Kit's Kitchen and Nicole hopped out with a quick wave.

“Thanks for the ride,”
she called out. “I'll see you tonight. Bye!” With
that, she blew Luke a kiss and turned towards the diner.

CHAPTER
TEN

Nicole tried to hide the
goofy smile on her face as she hurried into the diner. Even though
she was meeting a client, and she was always professional and
attentive at a client meeting, she was feeling just a little
light-headed this morning.

She knew that mind-blowing
sex sometimes did just that. It could blow a woman's brain to mush,
but this wasn't just about the sex. It was about Luke and her. They
were good together, and she felt really good around him.

They had known each other as
kids, and the rational, planning, cautious part of her brain told her
to take things slow with Luke. But she didn't want to take things
slow. She wanted to jump right in and experience everything with
him. He was her friend, and more. He was...hers.

Nicole rolled her eyes at
herself. “Next thing I know I'm going to put a ring on it and
ask him to marry me,” she chastised herself. She stifled a
giggle. “I wonder what he'd say if I really got down on one
knee with a diamond ring? I might try it, just to see the look on
his face!” she muttered delightedly.

Still smiling, she scanned
the booths in the diner and spotted her client.

Anna Ward was sitting in a
corner booth, clutching her infant son tightly to her chest. She
looked deathly pale and her eyes kept darting around. She jumped
when Nicole approached.

“Hey, Anna,”
Nicole said gently as she sat down. “Brendon's grown quite a
bit,” she smiled, glancing at the sleeping baby.

“Yes. He's such a good
boy.” Anna managed a shaky smile. “Thanks for coming.
I wasn't sure you'd come.”

“Of course I'll come.
I said I would. You know you can trust me.”

“I do. That's why...”
Anna gulped.

“What's the problem,
Anna?” Nicole said, leaning forward.

Anna glanced around, her
movements sharp and jerky. “I don't know why this is
happening...” she whispered.

“I'll order some coffee
and pancakes. You should eat. You'll feel better,” Nicole
said briskly and waved to the waitress. Once the waitress poured
them their coffee, Nicole took a sip and said, “Talk to me,
Anna. Just tell me what you know, or don't know. What's the
problem? I'll help you. You know I will.”

“Yes. I know. That's
why I called you. You will protect Brendon. You handled his
adoption...” Anna smiled but there were tears in her eyes. “I
love him so much. I can't bear...”

“And you're going to
stay with him and take good care of him,” Nicole said firmly.
“You're his family.” Nicole's eyes narrowed.
You're
not thinking of abandoning the baby you adopted, are you?

Anna glanced out the window.
“They're not here. But they're coming.”

“Who? Who's coming?”

Anna turned wide, blazing
eyes on Nicole. “You'll keep him safe, won't you? Promise me
you'll keep my son safe.”

“Your son is safe.
With you.”

“No he's not!”
Anna took a shuddering breath and closed her eyes. “They want
him, and I can't protect him...” she whispered. “Promise
me, Nicole. Please, promise me!”

“What are you talking
about?” Nicole wanted to reach across the table and shake her.
The woman wasn't making any sense and she was getting hysterical.

“Promise me you'll
protect him!” Anna screeched.

“Shhh! Yes, yes I
promise. Goodness gracious, just what...”

Anna nodded and leaned back.
“Thank you, Nicole.” She was calmer now, but Nicole saw
the deep pain and resignation in her eyes.

Anna held her baby and kissed
him tenderly. She whispered something to the child and dashed away
her tears.

Looking up, Anna said in a
frantic whisper, “Take him and hide him. Hide him where they
can't find him.” Anna thrust her baby at Nicole. “Please,
take him and run!”

“No! Are you crazy?”
Nicole barked. She tried to push the baby back, but Anna released
the infant and Nicole was forced to catch the baby in her arms.

“What the hell are you
doing, Anna?” Nicole was growing alarmed. This wasn't the
Anna she knew. Anna Ward was a level-headed, even-tempered,
responsible woman. She held a respectable job, and never even had a
speeding ticket. She wasn't irrational and unhinged. Was she
suffering from some sort of psychosis?

“Anna, get a hold of
yourself,” Nicole said sternly. “You're scaring the
baby.”

Brendon had woken up and was
squirming and crying in her arms. Nicole looked down at the
red-faced infant and tried to shush him.

“I have to go,”
Anna said, scrambling out of the booth.

“Anna, sit down,”
Nicole ordered. “Your son wants you. Hold him, Anna. Come
on.”

Anna shook her head and
backed away, covering her mouth with one hand. “I have to go,”
she sobbed. “Mommy loves you, Brendon. I love you so much.”
She looked up at Nicole. “Please, protect him. Keep him
safe. Let him live.” Her eyes lingered on the boy. “I
love you, son.”

Nicole tried to stop her but
Anna bolted out of the diner and fled across the street, heedless to
the traffic. Nicole watched in horror as Anna narrowly avoided being
run down by a car and made it to the other side of the road. She
kept running like a madwoman, not stopping and not looking back.

Nicole stared down at the
baby and huffed. “What's up with your mom?” The baby
fussed and made a sound of distress. “There, there. Don't
worry, buddy. I'll call her back in a few minutes after she's calmed
down. I don't know what's gotten into her, but I'll give her a good
talking-to.”

Nicole rocked the baby until
he quietened down. Her frown deepened as she recalled Anna's strange
words and behavior. Anna had seemed more frightened than depressed.
Was she going to do something foolish?

Nicole pulled out her phone
and dialed Anna's number. “Come on, Anna. Pick up the phone.
Your son needs you,” she hissed.

But Anna wasn't picking up.

Nicole weighed her options
and decided to wait at the diner for a while more. If Anna came back
and found her gone, she might start panicking again. Anna Ward
wasn't an irresponsible mother. She had just left her son with
Nicole and fled in a moment of insanity. Everyone was entitled to a
moment of madness once in a while.

“She'll come back,”
Nicole muttered to the baby. “She will come back for you. She
loves you.”

CHAPTER
ELEVEN

Luke went back to his
apartment to grab breakfast and shower. Nicole's scent lingered in
his bedroom and bathroom and he liked it. He liked it a lot.

Whistling, he shaved,
showered and got ready for work. He gobbled down a bowl of oatmeal
and drove to the Black Bears headquarters in a very good mood.

He was seeing Nicole again
tonight. Jade had answered his message almost immediately, adding
lots of smiley faces and hearts and kisses to her message. She was
excited to meet up with Nicole and she said she would call Prisha to
make a reservation at Curry Corner.

Luke arrived at the office at
the same time as Dylan. His brother-in-law grinned at him and said,
“Big date tonight, eh?”

Luke laughed. “It's
not a date. You and Jade are coming too, remember?”

“Yeah. Jade is so
excited! She told me this morning that she used to babysit you and
Nicole when you guys were kids. It's always nice to meet up with an
old friend, but...Nicole is not just an old friend, is she?”
Dylan said shrewdly.

“Nicole is...special,”
Luke answered carefully.

“I bet she is.”

Luke could feel Dylan's eyes
on him, and he knew that there was no hiding anything from Dylan.
Dylan Hart had been his mentor when he first joined the Black Bears
Group. Dylan was like a big brother to him, and he was family. The
guy knew him like the back of his hand, knew his weaknesses and saw
his strengths. He could act cool and nonchalant, but he bet Dylan
could tell how important Nicole was to him.

Plus, Dylan was a bear
shifter and it was clear that Dylan had caught Nicole's scent on him.
After Baxter, Dylan was the next best tracker in the Black Bears
Group.

It was no use trying to deny
anything, and he did want to talk to Dylan about Nicole. Something
was troubling him. His bear, to be precise.

Luke cleared his throat.
“Um, Dylan,” he began.

Dylan jerked his head towards
one of the smaller meeting rooms in the office. “Let's talk in
there.”

They navigated their way past
desks and cubicles, greeting their colleagues on duty and exchanging
jibes and wisecracks. The office of the Black Bears Group was open
round the clock, and the office was a hive of activity at all hours
of the day and night. Some teams were just coming in after an
all-night operation, and they looked exhausted but satisfied.

Luke slapped Baxter on the
back as he passed Baxter's team. Baxter was sitting on a desk,
debriefing his team members. Baxter's nostrils flared as he took a
whiff of the feminine scent that clung to Luke's skin. He smirked
and winked at Luke.

Dylan and Luke saw Thor
McKenzie coming out of their Alpha, Ethan Flint's office. Thor
strolled to them and put his hand on Luke's shoulder. “You
okay, buddy?”

“Yeah.” Luke
looked up into Thor's intense, mismatched eyes. Thor's right eye was
blue while his left eye was dark green. The big guy looked
forbidding and intimidating on the outside, but inside that hard,
scarred exterior, Thor had a big, caring heart. It was Thor who
climbed out onto that window ledge and stopped Luke from throwing
himself to his death.

Without Thor, Dylan and the
rest of the Black Bears, Luke wouldn't be here today. Thor knew him
as well as Dylan, and Luke knew he could count on them for anything.

“Do you have a minute,
Thor?” Luke asked.

Thor nodded wordlessly and
followed Dylan and Luke into the empty meeting room. Dylan closed
the door and pulled out a chair. Dylan and Thor sat down while Luke
began to pace in small circles. They waited patiently for him to
speak.

“My bear's behaving
badly,” Luke said at last and grimaced at his lame attempt at a
joke.

Dylan and Thor didn't laugh.
They only nodded and waited for him to carry on. They knew how hard
Luke had worked to control his beast. Luke wasn't a born shifter.
He was Changed, violently, painfully and against his will.

“How bad?” Dylan
asked flatly.

Luke scrubbed his hand down
his face. “I almost lost control. I almost let the beast
out...when...when...” He took a deep breath. “I don't
ever want to let her see me like this. As a...” He swallowed
the word.
Monster
.

“What do you mean you
almost lost control?” Thor asked slowly.

“I...my bear...it, we,
I—I wanted to claim her, you know, really stake my claim and
mark her as mine. And I think I did...mark her. I bit Nicole, when
we were...” Luke closed his eyes.

Dylan and Thor blinked at him
and he saw their eyes widen a fraction.

They looked at each other and
back at him.

He expected to see revulsion,
horror and outrage on their faces. Instead, they were laughing and
grinning at him.