He raised a hand in Alanna’s direction when she saw him and he definitely noticed the way she smiled and then tried to pull it back immediately. Her first instinct was to be happy he’d showed up, but she was trying to quell that instinct. Interesting.
Nathan shoved his hands back in his pockets. “Alanna, hey.” He nodded at Dorine. “Hey there, Dorine.”
“Hellooo,” Dorine cooed. She was always fluttering around, her hands waving a little in the air as if always searching for some business. She grabbed the three black cocktail dresses on hangers back from Alanna. “You know Alanna? We’re trying on some dresses. What do you think of these, dear? Money is no object from what I understand.”
“Yes,” Alanna said, her gaze darted around, avoiding Nathan. “That’s right. Just um...charge it to the room.”
“Lucky girl,” Nathan said. “Shopping spree.”
“Yeah, sure,” Alanna said, rolling her eyes. “Lucky. What have you got there?” She poked his little shopping bag that hung from his wrist. “Silk underwear?”
“Ha!” Nathan blurted and shook his head. “Hardly. Just new gloves. I’m always wearing mine out. It’s my zest for life. It’s hard on my hands.”
“Aw, I want that.”
“What?” He tilted his head, a bit baffled.
“A zest for life,” she said, sighing. “I used to have one. Can’t think of where I put it.”
“Well, they’re easily lost.” Somehow they’d inched a little closer, the only obstacle between them the three dresses on hangers. Dorine had left them alone but Nathan didn’t miss her raised eyebrows as she watched them from behind the register while she spoke to another customer. “One minute you have a zest and then something just happens and poof.”
“Something happens, alright,” Alanna muttered.
Nathan took a deep breath and then he took a plunge. “Are you alright? Seriously.”
She tensed up immediately and nodded. “Yes. Yeah.” She reached out and clutched his arm. It was meant to be a gesture of reassurance but the simple touch heated Nathan’s blood. Her skin was soft, her hand cool. He dropped his gaze and watched her delicate pale fingers that moved to absently stroke his arm. “Don’t worry about me.”
Fat chance.
“Are you going to try on those dresses, dear?” Dorine’s voice rang out and Alanna yanked her hand back, whirling away from him.
“Yes!” she said quickly. She turned back to him and he saw her trying to decide what to do, her neat brown brows knitted together. “Do you want to help me pick out a dress?”
He smiled at that and rubbed his stubbled chin. “Okay, sure. Happy to help.”
Alanna seemed pleased by that and she went off to the dressing rooms down a short hallway and he followed to wait by the full-length mirrors, knowing she’d want to look at herself.
“What did you do today?” She talked to him through the door and he swallowed, seeing her jeans drop to the carpet when he looked down and a glimpse of bare shoulder when he looked up. He turned away and caught himself in the mirror. He looked ruggedly handsome as usual but his expression was dour as he leaned on the wall.
What are you doing? he thought to himself.
“Oh, ya know,” he said. “Handyman stuff. I’m trying to spruce up our gondola. It’s up to code, it’s perfectly fine. Just looking a little worn out. I think…”
She opened the door and walked out in bare feet wearing a spaghetti-strap dress that was sleek and classical. He looked her up and down and his bear roared in his chest. “I think we need new...units. Jesus, you’re gorgeous. Like breathtaking.”
She beamed at that and looked down at the floor. “You gotta hold back a little bit, buddy,” she said softly. “It’s only the first dress.”
“Are you okay?” he asked again. “Really. If something’s up, I could help you. Just gotta let me know.” He chuckled but it sounded off as he tried to pretend it was all very casual. “Look, it’s not a big deal. It’s just a service we provide here at Black Bear Lake. Want to make sure all our guests get what they need. What do you need?”
“I know you like to fix things,” she said. “But you can’t fix this.”
Her smile fell and he mourned it, but she stepped closer and that was something. She had been wearing boots before and now in bare feet, she seemed so much smaller. “No one’s asked me that in a really long time.” She shook her head. “Scratch that. Nobody has ever asked me that.”
“Well, somebody should,” Nathan murmured.
Kiss her.
She was right there. They were inches away.
“Um…” He watched her throat bob as she swallowed. She was nervous, even blushing. It was sweet. “You like the dress?”
“Do you like it?”
“Yes.”
“Then yeah.”
He breathed in her scent and started to lean in before stopping himself. His bear was all riled up. He’d have to go jerk off after this. He’d tried to fix things before in a state like this. Horny bears could be a real pain in the ass around delicate machinery. Nathan always ended up breaking things when he had that kind of energy in him with nowhere to go.
“Will you unzip me?” Alanna whispered.
“Sure thing.”
Alanna turned around. Female bear shifters were a wonder to him. In human form, they had soft, sometimes petite bodies. Alanna’s shoulders were narrow, the opposite of his. She tipped her head to the side and the curve of her neck made him want to taste the skin there. Her waist was so little. But he knew in her bear form she would be potentially ferocious, built to protect young. That contrast always riled him up even more and her scent…
He breathed her in again. It threatened to become his new favorite habit. His mouth watered. But dutifully he just unzipped her dress, watching the reveal of creamy, soft skin that appeared between the widening teeth of the zipper only broken by a narrow black bra strap. He was getting hard and that was annoying.
He didn’t move when Alanna slowly turned around, still infuriatingly close to him and whispered, “Thank you.”
He was about to answer and he was seriously considering taking a step back any day now when Alanna stood on her tip-toes, reaching up to clutch his broad shoulders, and kissed him. Nathan reacted purely on reflex and instinct. He wrapped his arms around her trim little waist and kissed her back, firmly, and felt the way the stubble on his chin scraped her soft skin as he felt her breathe in. He lifted her off the ground a little and she melted against his body. He nudged her mouth open slightly, and she moaned into him as his tongue tasted hers. But that was just before she pushed him away, breathless.
“I’m sorry,” she said, panting a little. He felt his heart break a little as her eyes brimmed with tears. “I’m so sorry. That was…” She looked downright terrified when Dorine appeared in the doorway at the end of the short hall. “Don’t tell anyone, please. Please!”
“I-I won’t,” Nathan said. “But—”
“Please go!” Alanna disappeared into her dressing room again and the door shut in his face. “I’m sorry! Please go!”