For Shift's Sake: Paranormal shapeshifter alpha werebear soldier BBW romance (2 page)

He grinned, but the expression wasn’t pleasant. As he looked up, he caught sight of Reese watching him through the mirror behind the counter. “What the fuck you looking at, buddy?”

He opened his mouth to reply, but didn’t get the chance as the door behind the counter opened and all hell broke loose.

*

On a normal day, Bobbi Bradbury was a laid-back, easy-going sort of girl. The sort that laughed and joked easily with the customers, but had no problem putting anyone back in their place without offending them, which she’d learned after a high turnover of waitstaff. An unusual talent indeed.

But today was not a normal day. Today had started off shitty and rapidly headed into the realms of ‘
you really should have stayed in bed this month’
territory. She’d been woken by the same silent caller who’d been bugging her for weeks, when she’d gotten outside, she’d discovered her car tires had been slashed. That meant she’d had to borrow old man Johnson’s truck to head to the wholesalers to find when she’d got there that the credit limit on her account had been cut.

She knew the problem, of course.

It was, as usual, down to a man.

Conrad Jackson ran Banford. Or rather, his BFF Cade Riley did. The businessman and the crime lord, between them, they had the town sewn up nice and tight. Whatever Conrad didn’t own, Cade terrorized.

For the last couple of months, she’d been dancing a fancy two-step to stay out of Conrad’s clutches. And his bed. For some reason she couldn’t fathom, he’d decided she was Miss Right. She’d turned down date after date, sent back more bunches of flowers than she could count…until a week or so ago. It had gone all quiet on the Conrad front.

Now she knew why. The charm campaign was over; the terrible twosome were just on the offensive. Great, just fucking great.

So, she wasn’t in the best of moods when she emerged from the basement just in time to hear one of Cole’s buddy boys abusing one of
her
customers. She burst through the door like a freight train on PCP and rounded on them.

“How
dare
you!” Her voice was louder than intended and with a growl in it that startled even her. Both of Cole’s bully boys blinked in surprise. Even Andy, and nothing bothered that nasty SOB. Vibrating with anger, she glared at them both. “Fuck off and tell your loser boss that if he has a problem with me, then grow a fucking pair of balls and come and face me himself. Got that?”

Chris, the talker, recovered first and smiled. “You know the answer to all your problems, Ms. Bradbury…just let Mr. Jackson have what he wants.”

His accompanying leer as he slid a glance down her body told her loud and clear exactly what Conrad wanted, even if she hadn’t already figured that out for herself.

“Not even if he was the last man on the planet,” she snarled. “And you can take that to the bank. Now get out.”

Chris opened his mouth to argue but the guy sitting in the booth behind him chose that moment to stand up. And up. And up some more. Bobbi’s eyes widened as he loomed over the other man. He wasn't a man, he was a frigging mountain.

“The lady asked you to leave.”

His voice was low and rough, like he smoked sixty a day and gargled whiskey, mixed with a shot of pure testosterone. She bit back a whimper and pressed her thighs together as her body responded. Shit, no man should be able to make a woman wet just by talking.

He was broad-shouldered and handsome as hell. Blond hair was cropped close to the scalp, which made him look meaner, and pale eyes sparkled with menace as he looked down at Cole’s boys.

“I suggest you back the fuck up and walk away, friend.” Chris turned, his manner cocky and aggressive. He flicked a glance over the stranger’s build. “Playing football in high school ain’t gonna help you here.”

The big man didn’t move, just locked eyes with Chris. Then he smiled. Everything in Bobbi screamed for her to get away. This man wasn’t nice, he was dangerous, and every instinct she had urged her to run and hide.

“Rugby,” he rumbled.

How could a man’s voice be that low? And he had some kind of accent, but she couldn’t figure out what it was at the moment.

“Say what?”

“I’m not your friend,” the big man elaborated. “And I played Rugby, not football.”

With more words, a light went on in her head and she pinpointed his accent. He was English. Her eyes widened even more. Up to now, her only exposure to English people was hot actors in films. This guy was hot, but he was a world away from the suave and sophisticated guys on the silver screen. He was raw, rough, and ready. And totally hot.

“Rugby?” Chris sounded confused and Bobbi felt like face palming. Banford was isolated but it wasn’t the back end of freaking beyond.

Big guy didn’t bat an eyelid. “Yeah, the way we played, it’s a cross between bedlam and murder. Now fuck off, or I’ll give you a firsthand demonstration.”

Just like that, the atmosphere in the room when from tense to downright lethal. Chris spluttered and both he and his companion, Andy, reached for the guns she knew they carried.

A vicious growl ripped through the room and the English guy became a blur of movement. Chris’s hand didn’t get a chance to leave his jacket. The bigger man stepped closer, crowding him against the counter. A large hand closed around Chris’s elbow and within a heartbeat he’d jammed the muzzle of Chris’s own handgun under his chin. Spinning the smaller man around, he used Chris as a shield.

Bobbi blinked. She’d never seen anyone move that fast.

Andy paused, gun wavering in the air, like his single brain cell couldn’t deal with a reality that didn’t include people being scared of them.

“Now,
friend,”
the English accent was more pronounced, “I’ve been on the road all day. I’m tired and you’re pissing on my happy mood. I suggest you and your bum-chum walk away, or this is going from bad to your worst fucking nightmare real fast. You read me?”

Chris’s mouth opened and closed like a guppy on speed. A strangled sound emerged from his throat.

“Well?” The muzzle of the gun disappeared into Chris’s fleshy neck. A low whimper rolled through the room and he nodded. Rapidly. Like his head was going to come off his body.

English’s lip curled back. With hand bunching Chris’s shirt at the throat, he turned and all but threw him at the door. “Get your mate and get the fuck out.”

Andy, presented with a single target, lifted his gun. Lightning fast, the English guy aimed his weapon at the center of Andy’s forehead. His hand was rock-steady and the expression on his face, cold and unemotional.

Bobbi knew without a doubt he’d drop Andy without batting an eyelid. She’d seen a look like that before. On her brother. If this guy wasn’t military
and
something special forces, then she was a monkey’s uncle.

“Ticktock, little man. I’m counting to three then giving your skull some ventilation if you’re still here.”

“Bullshit, you don’t have the balls,” Andy argued but his tone was less than confident.

The stranger stepped forward and pressed the muzzle of his gun against Andy’s forehead. His voice was a lethal whisper, the look in his eyes even worse.

“If there weren’t ladies here, you’d already be dead. Now fuck off before I change my mind about that.”

Something in his eyes must have made Andy reconsider the situation. Backpedaling rapidly, he almost fell over Chris as they both scrambled for the door. It banged shut behind them and seconds later a car started up and roared out of the parking lot.

Bobbi closed her eyes for a second. Then she opened them, plastered a smile on her face and turned to their rescuer.

“Thanks for that. I’m Bobbi Bradbury,” she introduced herself as she held out her hand.

He took it, her smaller one disappearing into a palm near the size of a dinner plate. His deep voice hit her low, in all the right places.

“No problem. I’m Connor…Reese Connor.”

Chapter Two

“Number three’s cleaned, so you’re good to go.”

Bobbi had always liked her men big and growly. And they didn’t come any bigger than the guy currently beside her as she opened the door to one of the motel’s unoccupied rooms.

It was small as motel rooms went, but nicely furnished and clean. She insisted on clean, spotlessly clean. Which was easy to ensure considering she cleaned them herself. Banford was a small town, not a lot of through traffic, so the motel didn’t make enough to hire extra staff.

It was a stretch to justify hiring on Louise for the diner, but Bobbi always had been a sucker for the underdog. The girl had enough issues dealing with her good for nothing brother to worry about her job as well. Plus, she was a good worker. One of the best Bobbi ever had.

“It’s nice.” Reese’s voice still had that sexy grumble as he walked in past her. He tossed a large rucksack on the bed. By the way the mattress dipped, she could tell it probably weighed the same as a small car. He strode across the room to flick the curtains aside, checking out the window before crossing to the bathroom door.

“Shower, half bath, vanity, WC…all the amenities.” She offered a small smile, trying to fill the silence. It wasn’t an uncomfortable silence… not exactly…but she had to remind herself that leaping on the guests wasn’t allowed. No matter how hot they were.

His pale gaze cut to her and he smiled. The expression altered his features completely. Rather than menacing, smiling he was absolutely gorgeous. Model gorgeous. Hunky, diamond in the rough kind of gorgeous, but…hell,
yeah
.

“This is wonderful. I appreciate you putting me up at short notice.”

Oh god, that voice. She managed to restrain her whimper and shrugged. “It’s the least I can do after earlier. Seriously, thank you. You could have been hurt.”

His lips quirked at the corners. “Those two? I doubt it. They were more of a comedy act than a serious threat.”

Uh-huh. Not sure what to say to that, Bobbi just nodded. Especially when he reached for the bottom of his T-shirt, pulling it up a little to reveal a toned stomach as he wiped his face. “Been a long day, it’ll be nice to wash the dirt of the road off.”

Shit. The image of him naked in the shower froze her to the spot for a second. Heat exploded through her, pussy clenching hard at the same time her cheeks burned. “Right. Yes. Shower’s through there,” she pointed out, quite unnecessarily, and backed for the door. “I’ll leave you to it, then.”

She managed to get out of the door and shut it behind her. Leaning back against the wall, she stuffed her fingers in her mouth to stop her moan. How much of an idiot
could
she make of herself?

The shower’s in there…

“For heaven’s sake, Bobbi, you might have well as stripped freaking naked and offered it to him on a freaking plate,” she grumbled to herself as she stomped across the parking lot to the small reception area at the front of her own apartment.

How the hell was she supposed to find a decent man when she lived and breathed work?
That
was why she was reduced to lusting after guests, not because they were hot, but because she was damn well desperate.

She sighed as she opened up. Okay, she was desperate
and
he was hot. What chance did she have? As it was, he’d only smiled at her and she was having trouble with the thought of him in the shower. All those lovely muscles and golden skin soaped up—

Her gaze fell on the stack of towels on the chair by the door and she groaned. Shit. All those lovely muscles in the shower…without any towels when he got out.

“Fuckfuck
fuck,”
she hissed to herself and grabbed the bale, turning to look across at number three. It was the unit on the end, so she could see the light for the bathroom was on, and the extractor pumped steam from the shower into the cooling night air.

Crap. He was already in the shower.
In
the shower. Which meant he wasn’t in the bedroom. Perhaps she could slip in and put the towels on the bed while he was still rinsing off and get out before he was any the wiser…

She was halfway across the lot before being aware of making a decision. Fishing in her pocket, she dug out her master key and as quietly as she could, let herself into the room. Her heart was in her throat, simultaneously trying to choke and pounding so loudly she was sure it did it on purpose to warn him. Oh god, if he caught her, he was so going to think this was a come on. Desperate, fluffy chick jumps the first hottie to come into town.

Shitshitshit
shit.
Racing across the room, she dropped the towels on the bed and turned to head to the door when the lights went out and she screamed as something heavy hit her from behind.

***

Bobbi Bradbury was off the scale fucking hot.

Reese ducked his head and let the shower spray cascade over his scalp and neck to wash the stink of the road off. All he could smell was dust and engine oil. Inside, his bear growled in disgruntlement, woken by the unfulfilled possibility of violence and the interest in Danny’s purple-haired little sister.

That in itself surprised Reese. Normally, the beast didn’t bother much with women, keeping well hidden during sex, but there was something about Bobbi. Something about her that brought the creature close to the surface, to just under the skin. Which was crazy because she was human through and through.

No shift possibility, so she couldn’t be his mate.

That didn’t stop him reacting to her as a man. One look at her voluptuous figure and luscious lips that just begged for a man’s kiss and he’d gone as hard as a fucking rifle barrel.

He looked down his body. And the old man hadn’t gone down since. His cock stood out, proud and rampant, arching up against his toned stomach. Fucking thing had one thing on its mind: getting Bobbi under him or over him. It didn’t care which, as long as he got balls deep inside her at the first opportunity.

He sighed. Not fucking happening. Because at the first opportunity after
that
, her brother would remove his head from his neck. Danny Bradbury in a good mood was an excellent soldier. In a pissed off mood…he was a lethal force of fucking nature. And he knew if he touched Danny’s sister, Reese was a dead bear walking.