Hagen, Lynn - Tater's Bear [Brac Pack 22] (Siren Publishing Everlasting Classic ManLove) (3 page)

When he turned back to Tater, his mate was standing there with his mouth hanging open. “He really
can
shift.”

“Yes, he’s a wolf shifter,” Olsen said as he glanced over his shoulder at the stranger. Thank goodness he was dressed. Olsen would have hated to kill the fucker just for being naked in front of his mate.

Tater’s eyes snapped to him. “What are you?”

“I already to you that I was a bear.”

Tater looked like he was mulling the information over in his head. Olsen could see the wheels turning slowly. “The bear I saw in the woods when we were looking for Alex, who was it?”

“Riley.”

“Your brother?”

“Yep.”

“Look,” Tater said as he pointed a finger at Olsen. “Stop with the monosyllable answers. I’m trying my best not to freak out, so help me along here. You guys trying to convince me of people who can change into animals is one thing. Me actually seeing it happen sheds a whole new light on the subject.”

Olsen exhaled loudly as he rubbed the back of his neck. This was a conversation he had planned on having with his mate, but not this soon and definitely not in front of witnesses, strangers no less.

He had thought Tater had believed his family and Maverick when they told him about the paranormal world. Apparently his mate had changed his mind. This only complicated matters.

“Come over here so we can talk privately.” Olsen jerked his head to the side as he walked over by the woods. He could see the vampire eyeing them curiously, but Olsen ignored him. The vampire was the wolf’s problem, if he was reading the blond man correctly. He waited patiently as Tater took his sweet old time crossing the road.

“I’m listening,” Tater said as he kept a few feet away.

“You don’t have to be afraid of me. I won’t shift and maul you.” Olsen was irritated at the frightened way Tater was reacting to this. His mate looked ready to bolt, which made Olsen ready to chase. He was getting geared up for the chase, ready to run Tater into the ground and show him who the alpha was between them. “Don’t run,” he warned in a low voice.

“Why? You gonna hurt me?” Tater took a step back, his body coiling.

“Don’t run.” Olsen shook his head as he warned his mate once more.

Fuck!

Tater ran.

Olsen shifted and gave chase. It was instinctual. Something he couldn’t have prevented even if he had tried. Tater glanced over his shoulder, giving a shout as he picked up the pace. Olsen put on a burst of speed, gaining momentum and overtaking Tater.

“Don’t eat me!” Tater shouted as he hit the ground. Olsen mentally rolled his eyes as he circled around his mate. He had warned him.

Twice.

“What the hell are you doing?” the vampire shouted as he ran after them. Olsen roared as he stepped over his mate and got up on his hind legs. Anyone in close proximity was a threat. He landed back on his front paws, scratching at the ground as he warned the vampire away.

“Get over here,” the wolf shouted at the vampire.

Olsen gave a quick-burst charge and then backed up, defending what was his. Tater crab-crawled backward, which made Olsen’s job of protecting his mate a lot harder. Now there was too much ground to cover, and Olsen was getting irritated. There were too many people around his mate.

Olsen jerked around when his brother, Bryce, pulled up in his truck. He gave a loud, warning roar toward his brother.

“What in the hell is going on here?” Bryce asked as he climbed out of his truck and walked slowly over to Olsen.

“The bear is trying to eat the human.” The vampire pointed at Olsen. “Tater is my friend. I don’t want him eaten.”

Bryce looked from the vampire to the wolf, and then over to Olsen, a wide smile spanning across his face. “You sure know how to get yourself in a fix, don’t you?”

Olsen roared again, but Bryce ignored him. “Yeah, I already know Tater is your mate. I’m not going to go near him.”

“I’m his what?” Tater stared at Olsen as if he had two heads. Olsen was getting even more pissed by the moment. He had wanted to explain all of this to Tater, but it seemed everyone else was doing
his
job.

“Uh, I take it you weren’t aware of this fact?” Bryce asked as he started walking backward, holding his hands up in front of him. “Forget I said anything.”

“His mate?” The vampire’s head snapped around to look at Tater. “How cool is that?”

Olsen tried once more to roar, hoping everyone shut the hell up. It was useless as the vampire kept right on talking, only this time he was talking to Tater. “He’s your mate. That means fate has brought you two together. Paired you for life.”

“Oh, hell no,” Tater squeaked as he got to his feet. “He’s a damn bear, if no one here has noticed. I don’t do animals.” Tater spun on his heel, walking away from everyone.

Olsen shifted, uncaring that he was naked. Obviously the wolf did when he growled and spun the vampire around. Olsen ignored all of them as he chased after Tater.

“Tater, wait.”

“Fuck off, Olsen. I’ve had enough surprises for one night.” Tater sped up as he tried to get further away from him. Olsen had had enough. He grabbed Tater’s arm, spinning his mate around to face him.

“Look, I’m sorry you’ve had such a rough night, and I’m sorry I only added to it. That wasn’t my intention.” Olsen reached out and cupped Tater’s face, feeling rejected when Tater pulled away. He saw the fear in his mate’s eyes right before Tater looked away. That look told Olsen that he had a fighting chance. If his mate had looked indifferent, then Olsen would have known that trying to mate Tater would have been a lost cause.

“Look,” Tater sighed. “I know you mean well. I just don’t do commitments.”

Olsen’s heart sank at Tater’s words. How was he going to claim the gorgeous human and take him home if his mate didn’t do commitments?

This was getting more complicated by the moment. Olsen knew fate had chosen Tater for him, but he wasn’t sure he was up for the struggle it would take to win Tater over. The man obviously didn’t want to be bothered and was pretty much spelling it out for him.

Normally Olsen wouldn’t give up, but his mate’s happiness was the only thing Olsen was concerned about. It tore his heart in two to think of it, but if Tater really didn’t want anything to do with him, then Olsen wouldn’t bother him anymore.

Olsen felt like he was leaving a large part of himself behind when he backed away. “Don’t worry, I won’t bother you again.” He spun around and headed back toward his truck, forcing himself not to look back. He was kicking his own ass as he grabbed the truck door for giving up so easily, but he wasn’t going to force himself on anyone, least of all his mate.

Tater knew where he lived if he wanted Olsen.

“Hey,” the vampire shouted as he ran after Tater. Olsen stalled getting into his truck to see what the wolf would do. The blond man looked at the vampire’s retreating back and then over at Olsen.

“Looks like neither of our mates wants us.”

Olsen could hear the touch of sadness in the man’s voice. He knew how the shifter felt. It was a fucked-up situation when a mate rejected his other half. “My name’s Olsen. Can I give you a ride somewhere?”

“I’m Sloane.” The wolf nodded toward the pair walking away as he headed toward Olsen’s truck. “Will they be safe together?”

“They seem to need each other right now. My mate wouldn’t go with anyone who he felt was a threat to him.” Olsen had learned that much already.

Tater was a big man, not as big as Olsen was, but big enough. And Olsen had a feeling that his interference, no matter how justified, wouldn’t be welcomed.

He watched Bryce shake his head and get into his truck, driving away. He knew his brother wouldn’t understand why Olsen wasn’t chasing Tater down, but in a way, neither did Olsen. His feelings were a mess right now, all over the place and making Olsen’s brain scattered.

“I was headed to Maverick Brac’s home to ask if I can join his pack. Do you know where he lives?” Sloane asked as he climbed into the passenger seat.

Olsen nodded. “Everyone knows Maverick.”

He glanced in the direction his mate was walking and had an urge to chase him down again and make Tater submit. Olsen sighed and grabbed a pair of jeans from behind his seat, sliding them on.

A shifter always kept spare clothing in his vehicle. One never knew when he would need them, and it seemed Olsen needed more than usual tonight.

He pulled a T-shirt over his head and grabbed an extra pair of shoes from the box bolted on the back of his truck. He looked across the field at his mate and the vampire as they slowly disappeared, sadness engulfing him.

“Give him time,” Sloane said as he shut the truck door.

Time.

That was something he had been giving Tater, and it didn’t seem to be working. Olsen needed to talk to his pa about all of this. He was confused as hell and he wasn’t sure what he should do. It seemed the more time he gave Tater, the harder the man pushed him away.

Olsen took one last look at his retreating mate before climbing behind the wheel. Tater was back on the road, heading toward his house with the vampire. At least his mate was headed home. He started the truck and turned it around, heading toward Maverick’s.

It didn’t take them long to get there. Olsen pulled into the gravel drive of Maverick Brac’s home. “It’s kinda late. Are you sure he’s expecting you?”

Sloane shook his head. “I didn’t know how to get in touch with him.”

Olsen gaped at Sloane. “So you just decided to show up in the middle of the night. Are you nuts?”

No sooner did the words leave his lips than four very large wolves surrounded his truck. Olsen wasn’t sure what he should do. Even in his bear form there was no way he could take on
four
timber wolves. He didn’t know the Brac pack that well for them to recognize him.

“I take it that was a bad judgment call?” Sloane asked as the wolves began to growl menacingly.

“Ya think?” Olsen scowled as he let his window down slightly. One of the large wolves jumped up, his massive paws resting against the driver’s door. His night seemed to be going to shit quickly.

“I’m Olsen Lakeland. This here is Sloane. He came to ask permission to join your pack,” Olsen stated and then held his breath. One of the wolves shifted, glaring at both of them.

“And it seemed appropriate to come calling in the middle of the fucking night with our mates sleeping behind those walls?” The wolf pointed toward the house. “If I didn’t know the name Lakeland, I’d kill you both just for your stupidity.”

Yeah, Olsen was thinking the same exact thing and was grateful the wolf was showing restraint. What could he say to that? The wolf had a valid point. He reached over and cuffed Sloane in the back of his head. “Thanks for getting me in the middle of this shit.” He didn’t care if he just met the guy. Sloane had that one coming to him.

Sloane growled but made no move to defend himself. Instead he let his window down a fraction and called over to another wolf. “My name is Sloane, Sloane Brac.”

Olsen snapped his head around to look at the wolf sitting next to him. “Brac? Are you any relation to Maverick?”

“Cousin.” The guy smirked.

Olsen had to fist his hands because he wanted to knock the smirk right off of the man’s face. He wasn’t sure what game Sloane was playing at, but he didn’t like being used—and the guy had used him like a cheap whore on a Saturday night.

“Wait right here,” the wolf that had shifted said between clenched teeth. Olsen wasn’t stupid enough, or crazy enough, to disobey.