Ignite: A Werebear + BBW Paranormal Romance (Bearpaw Ridge Firefighters Book 3) Page 12

  "Will someone please tell me what the hell is going on here?" she demanded, suddenly angry.

  They knew! They all knew about Olivia and didn't tell me anything!

  No one except Evan met her gaze as she glared at them.

  Instead, they all looked at each other, then at Margaret. Annabeth stared down at her plate, looking stricken, while Caitlyn was giving Olivia a searching look, as if studying her for clues to a mystery.

  The silence stretched uncomfortably.

  "Patrick didn't tell you anything about our family?" Evan asked at last. "Your sister didn't say anything before they left Olivia with you?"

  Steffi shook her head. "You mean this is normal for you guys? Turning into bears?"

  It sounded totally crazy when she said out loud. Even with the inconvertible proof of Olivia the bear cub wriggling in Margaret's hold, her claws catching and snagging the fabric of her grandmother's dress.

  Everyone looked at Margaret. She sighed. "Yes. This is normal for a Swanson. I'm sure you understand why we don't tell many people about this."

  "But why didn't Jessica say anything?" Steffi said, hurt and anger welling up in her. "Why didn't she tell me?"

  "Probably because Olivia hadn't begun shifting yet, and because she promised her mate—Patrick—that she would keep his secret," Elle said.

  "So she didn't know that Olivia could do…this?" Steffi asked incredulously.

  And if Jessica didn't know, then why are those people after Olivia? They have to know Olivia is a shapeshifter…because if they don't, then why else do they want her so badly?

  "Probably not," answered Margaret.

  "It's hard to predict when one of us will begin shapeshifting," Evan chimed in. "We all started doing it at different ages. Some of us shift as babies, but a lot of us don't experience our first shifts until we're older. Much older, in some cases."

  He looked pointedly at Ash, who scowled back. "I'll do it someday," he muttered, slouching in his chair.

  Ash can't shift? But before she could ask about that, Dane spoke up.

  "Matt hasn't shifted yet," he said. "We've been watching him and hoping that he'll do it before too long. It'll make things easier for all of us if he can control his shifts by the time he starts preschool."

  Evan made an inviting gesture. "Come sit down, Steffi. I'm sure you have a lot of questions. Now that you know our secret, we'll do our best to answer them. And I'll refill your wine."

  "I'm going to need it," Steffi said. Her knees felt wobbly with shock as she walked back to her seat.

  When Evan had refilled her glass and topped up everyone else's, he slid into the seat next to her.

  "Can you turn into a bear?" she asked, studying his handsome profile. "And how did that happen?"

  "Yep," he answered. "And I was born this way—we all were."

  "But you all lead normal lives? For real? You have jobs and…stuff?"

  She didn't want Olivia to grow up feeling like a freak. She wanted her niece to be able to do everything that other kids did and to be able to dream the same dreams they did.

  "We do. For instance, I really do work for Fish and Game. My bear half is both a help and a hindrance when I'm out in the field. On the one hand, I can go out in the wilderness and work at any time of the year and under any conditions. On the other hand…well, you'd be surprised how many of the animals I'm trying to tag or sample go nuts when they smell bear on me."

  Steffi looked around the table again. "So all of you can turn into bears?"

  She tried to picture the dignified and impeccably made-up Elle as a bear and just couldn't. Likewise with Margaret.

  Kayla and Hannah both raised their hands tentatively, and everyone else nodded, with the exception of Annabeth and Caitlyn, who both shook their heads.

  "The two of us are Ordinaries, just like you," Caitlyn said.

  "And we've both been where you are right now," added Annabeth. "Neither of us knew about bear-shifters when we started dating Dane and Mark. It was a bit of a shock when we found out."

  She smiled wryly and reached out to catch the sippy cup that her son tried to fling onto the floor.

  "And now you see why Elle and I wanted you and Olivia to come stay on the ranch," Margaret announced. "There are a lot of shifters in town, but there are a lot of Ordinaries too. It'll be hard to keep Olivia's secret while you're staying at that apartment."

  "I'll think about it," Steffi said neutrally.

  The offer made sense now that she knew what was going on with her niece, but something about Margaret's insistence made Steffi want to dig in her heels.

  Shifter secret or not, her gut instinct urged her to stay in Annabeth's apartment rather than moving out to the ranch. And she wasn't sure why. Patrick's mother had been nothing but kind so far…actually, all of the Swansons had been incredibly generous.

  Olivia had stopped struggling in Margaret's hold, and her grandmother was stroking the soft dark fur on her head and neck. Steffi could see the cub practically melting under the soothing caress.

  "How long will she stay like that?" Steffi asked. "How long can any of you do the bear thing?"

  Olivia had only remained in her bear form for a couple of minutes during her previous shifts, but it had been nearly ten minutes now, and she still showed no signs of shifting back. Was she stuck in that shape? If so, how was Steffi going to explain having both a dog and a bear cub in the apartment…or her condo?

  And speaking of dogs…Royce was going to freak out if he had to live with an Olivia-cub 24/7.

  "Probably just another minute or two," Margaret answered, to Steffi's relief. "The shifts are short and frequent when they're this young. Later on, she'll be able to hold her bear shape for hours, then eventually, she'll be able to do it indefinitely."

  "So she's going to keep shifting back and forth?" Steffi studied her niece with dismay.

  Margaret nodded. "For a while, at least. Evan and Dane told us that Olivia shifted on the night of the fire. Had she ever done that before?"

  "Once, just after the first kidnapping attempt in Cupertino," Steffi said. "She was exhausted by the time we finally got home, and she threw a fit. And turned into a baby bear, but only for a couple of minutes." She chuckled. "I thought I was hallucinating."

  "I can imagine," Evan said sympathetically. "If Olivia lived here, she'd have plenty of relatives to teach her how to be comfortable with her bear half—and in control of it."

  "So what do I do when she's like this? How do I teach her?" Steffi asked, feeling completely lost.

  "You can't," Margaret said immediately. "I know you mean well, dear, but you're an Ordinary."

  "But there has to be something I can do for her!" Steffi protested.

  She didn't like where this conversation was going. What if Patrick's family insisted that they needed to keep Olivia here?

  Margaret shook her head. So did Elle. Steffi's heart sank.

  Then Evan said, "I have an idea."

  Steffi turned to him eagerly.

  He gave her a slow smile that made it hard for her to breathe. "You know what I'd do, if I were you?"

  She shook her head. "No, what?"

  "I'd consider a longer stay in Bearpaw Ridge. We can help you with Olivia, and we can protect both of you from whoever's trying to take her."

  Chapter 12

  "Thank you so much for dinner…and for all the advice about Olivia," Steffi said to Elle a couple of hours later. "I should probably head back to town now."

  The dessert dishes had been cleared from the dining table, and everyone had pitched in to help load the dishwasher and clean up the kitchen.

  Both Olivia—once again in human shape—and Matthew had fallen asleep a while ago in the Pack 'n Play that Annabeth and Dane kept at the house.

  Steffi had been so fascinated by all of the information being thrown her way about bear shifters that she had barely remembered to finish her excellent dinner.

  All of the Swansons had been forthright about answering
her questions, and Annabeth and Caitlyn had both chimed in with their observations from a nonshifter point of view.

  Caitlyn had cornered her in the break between dinner and dessert and gotten her requested interview.

  Steffi was unsettled when Caitlyn reiterated that someone probably knew that Olivia was a shifter, and that's why they had tried to abduct her.

  But who? And for what for reason…? Steffi could think of several possibilities, and all of them chilled her.

  "I'm so glad you came," Elle said now, giving Steffi a brief but heartfelt hug.

  "And please don't hesitate to call me if you have any questions about Olivia or, well, anything," Margaret added, when it was her turn to hug Steffi. "And you'll bring Olivia by the house tomorrow?"

  "Of course. How about after breakfast? I'll give you a call when I'm ready to leave the apartment."

  It took another fifteen minutes to finish saying goodbye to all of the assembled Swansons. Everyone hugged Steffi, and she realized that she had really enjoyed herself this evening, once she'd gotten over the embarrassment of Royce stealing the bread and the shock of Olivia shifting in front of everyone.

  And she liked the Swansons, a lot. They all seemed to like each other, and to get along, and they were fun to hang out with.

  And it was so nice having people she could trust with Olivia. Tonight had been the first time in ten days that she hadn't been on baby duty, and it felt good.

  Thanks to Dane, she hadn't even had to change a diaper, and that was really nice. He had taken charge of both Olivia and Matthew when the time came and dealt with both babies with the ease of long practice.

  "I'll walk you out to your car," Evan said, following Steffi as she gathered Olivia up and then headed down the hall in search of the diaper bag.

  She tried to suppress her excitement at spending a few minutes alone with him outside. "If you want to," she said, trying hard for nonchalance.

  "I do," he said, making her feel breathless again.

  Royce trailed in her wake, still looking guilty.

  Not that he wouldn't counter-surf again in a hot minute if the opportunity presented itself, but he sensed her lingering displeasure with him and had learned how to look properly contrite.

  All of her odds and ends gathered up, and the diaper bag successfully located, Evan opened the front door for her, giving her a courtly half-bow as he motioned her through.

  "I'm glad you're okay with the revelation that we're bear shifters," he began as he fell into step next to her. "A lot of Ordinaries don't take it well, you know. It's part of the reason we hate telling people—you never know how they're going to react."

  "Lucky for you, I was able to complete my freak-out in the privacy of my own home the first time Olivia shifted," she said dryly.

  Evan laughed. "You know, that's one of the things I really like about you. You've been thrown a bunch of curve balls in the past week, and you've just dealt with them while keeping your sense of humor intact."

  "That's not really true. I've been scared out of my wits for most of those curve balls, as you call them, plus I've gotten a lot of help from you and the rest of your family."

  "I don't think you're giving yourself enough credit. I mean, I'm pretty sure you had no idea that you'd be taking care of a shifter baby, but you've rolled with it."

  "I'm just trying to do my best," Steffi told him as they reached the Subaru.

  Evan opened the rear door for her so that she could buckle Olivia into her car seat. The baby looked around sleepily, yawned, then dropped right back into sleep. Royce hopped in next to her and curled up on the seat.

  When Steffi had shut the car door again, she felt Evan's hand on her shoulder. He turned her gently to face him.

  Now her heart was pounding again. She looked up at him and couldn’t help remembering what it had felt like to kiss him. And she itched to loosen his thick, glossy dark hair from its ponytail and run her fingers through it.

  "Now that you know my big secret, won't you give me a second chance?" Evan asked. "Have dinner with me."

  Yes! Oh, God, yes!

  It took every ounce of will that Steffi possessed to say, "I'm sorry, but the answer is still no."

  She saw him blink and look momentarily bewildered. I guess Margaret was right. He really isn't used to women turning him down.

  "Why not?" he demanded. "I know you're attracted to me. Why not just go for it?"

  "And how, exactly, do you know that?" she retorted, feeling slightly panicked. "Are you psychic?"

  What if he can read my mind? What if he knows about all the dirty fantasies I've had about him?

  He grinned and tapped his nose.

  "So, that's another thing about bear shifters," he said. "My nose is better than your dog's. I know you liked it, really liked it when you kissed me on Friday." He leaned forward, and his voice dropped to a sexy whisper. "And when I kissed you back, you were just as turned on as I was. We have some serious chemistry, Steffi. I want to explore that…don't you?"

  Steffi felt heat rising up her neck and wash over her face and scalp. Danger, Will Robinson!

  She took a step back, wanting to put some distance between them.

  "Yeah, we’ve got chemistry," she admitted. "But I know you're dating Mary the police officer. Don't you have chemistry with her, too?"

  "Mary and I are just friends!" Evan protested. "We've known each other since high school."

  "That's funny," retorted Steffi. Did he think she was stupid…or blind? "I have friends I've known since high school, and I don't kiss them like the way she kissed you on Friday morning!"

  Evan huffed in frustration. "Is that why you won't go out with me? She's just a friend, I swear to you. A friend with benefits, sure, but just a friend."

  Steffi crossed her arms and gave him her best "Are you kidding me?" look.

  "Besides, Mary just decided she wants to be friends without the benefits," Evan added. "I've been sleeping in her guest bedroom since Friday night."

  Well, how convenient is that? Steffi thought skeptically. She wasn't angry, though, just disappointed that this incredible guy had turned out to be such a player.

  "Really?" She flavored her question with every ounce of disbelief she had.

  "Yeah, it's true, swear to God." Evan said fervently. "You can call her tomorrow morning and ask her—she gave you her card, right?"

  And Steffi realized he wasn't lying, after all. It seemed too good to be true, but he and Mary weren't dating, not any more.

  "Now that we've got that cleared up…How about dinner tomorrow night? Maybe a movie? Or if you're an outdoorsy kind of woman, we could go for a picnic lunch up at this beautiful lake that's only a couple of miles out of town," Evan suggested.

  She could picture it…just the two of them, a picnic blanket, and complete privacy. Yes!

  "Thanks for the offer, that's really nice of you," Steffi said, firming her resolution against his dangerously tempting offer. "But I still don't think it's a good idea."

  Evan stared at her as if she'd suddenly switched to speaking Russian or something.

  "Wait…so you're attracted to me, I'm attracted to you, we're both available…and you're still turning me down?" he asked slowly. "Why?"

  Steffi swallowed hard. Because I'm terrified that I'll fall for you, and you'll break my heart. Because feeling a spark when we're kissing doesn't mean that you'll want to actually be my boyfriend. I don't want to hook up with you, then watch you go date someone else. Someone as thin and pretty as Mary.

  Bradley hadn't been the first man who had found Steffi attractive enough to sleep with but not good enough to have an actual relationship with. And so far, everything she'd heard about Evan from the people who knew him well was that he dated a lot but avoided any kind of commitment.

  After Bradley, Steffi had promised herself that she'd never again settle for less than someone who wanted her and only her and who was open to making a commitment.

  And the first step to finding a man
like that was to avoid players, not matter how charming and sexy they might be.

  "Because I'm not your type," she said as calmly as she could. She felt like her chest was being squeezed by a boa constrictor. Before he could protest, she continued, "And you're not mine."

  "Now, that's a lie, Steffi, and I ought to know," Evan said in his most seductive voice. He took a step closer to her, and she found herself backed against the car. "And I can prove it to you."

  * * *

  She looked just like a deer in the headlights now. "I don't think—" she began.

  Her scent was a confused mix of arousal, anger, and upset. Evan didn't know what was going on, but he wasn't going to let her wriggle out of giving him a fair chance by lying to him about how she felt.

  You're not my type? Hot damn, woman, if you were any more my type, I'd have to throw you over my shoulder and carry you off to my cave!

  He saw her preparing to argue with him, so Evan cut off any further argument by doing what he'd wanted to do since he first met her.

  He bent and kissed those irresistible lips.

  Just like it had during their first kiss, a bolt of sensation like a lightning strike moved through them both. Evan felt her clutch at his shoulders, and he deepened his kiss.

  He used everything he had ever learned about kissing to craft a deliberate seduction with his mouth, teasing, nibbling, and stroking her with his lips until the scent of her arousal rose like perfume between them.

  He drew back a little, just to see what she'd do, and felt her fingers dig into the muscle of his shoulders, trying to pull him closer. He could feel her pulse thundering through her veins and heard her panting.

  Good. She wanted it as badly as he did, and she'd finally stopped pretending that she didn't.

  Evan forced himself to slow the kiss and end it.

  After a few more lingering nibbles of those plump, soft lips, he pulled back and looked at Steffi.

  Her lipstick was smeared, her cheeks were flushed, and she looked utterly delectable.

  He slid his hands up from her shoulders and cradled her face between his palms, feeling her heated skin against his fingers.