RANCHER BEAR’S BABY(84)

“Or maybe drown yourself, you idiot.” I muttered as I stripped down and climbed under the cold spray.

If I’d acted like I had any decency and hadn’t slept with him, maybe things would be easier. They definitely would be a lot less awkward. I didn’t know where I stood. He kept saying things about me being his mate, but he wasn’t even talking to me anymore, so… Besides, he’d cheated on Mandy and she was perfect. I’d looked her up in my spare time. How could he cheat on a woman who looked like perfection? I sure as hell wouldn’t be able to hold his attention if a stunningly gorgeous woman like Mandy couldn’t. I couldn’t even hold my ex’s attention.

I got out of my shower and towel dried my hair. I left it down to curl naturally and the pulled my dress back on.

My stomach growled so I slunk downstairs to try to find something to eat, hopefully without running into John. It was a useless attempt, though. He was sitting at the table with a laptop in front of him, typing away, until I entered the room. Then, he snapped it closed and pulled out his phone.

I decided that two could play that game. If he was ignoring me, I could ignore him right back. I grabbed a bag of cherries out of the fridge, just to mess with him, and leaned against the counter to eat them. I ate around the pit slowly and noisily, then dropped them into the trashcan, while staring at him.

He just kept typing on his phone, ignoring me.

I lost my patience and tossed the cherries back into the fridge before going out to the porch and sitting in one of the deck chairs. “Stupid man.”

It seemed he was over me. That whole mate thing didn’t last very long. I angrily punched Star’s number on my phone and waited while it rang.

“Hello?”

“Star! I miss your couch.”

She laughed. “You’ve been gone for no time at all. Also, thanks for missing my couch and not me.”

“Anytime. How are things?”

She snorted. “How are things? What are we? Desperate Housewives? Tell me everything. I can hear in your voice that you have plenty to tell me.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. “I messed up big time.”

She paused. “Well? Get on with it.”

“Well, apparently Mandy Scott is moving in with her boyfriend whom she neglected to tell me about. I got here, broke into his house pretty much and had sex with him.” I said the last part super-fast, hoping she wouldn’t understand me.

“You what?” She screeched. “You had sex with a stranger? Your boss’s boyfriend?!”

“It was an accident. It just… happened. He says I’m his mate, but I don’t believe it.” I laughed. “Oh yeah, he’s a damn bear shifter!”

Star screamed, a scream that was ten times worse than her usual screech. “Oh, my god! That’s amazing! I’m so happy for you!”

“No! No, no, no! It’s not amazing. I told him I didn’t want him and now he’s over me. Mandy is still coming tomorrow to be with him.”

“It doesn’t work that way, Bunny. You can’t just ignore your mate and he can’t just be over you.”

“Well, it sure as hell seems that way.”

“Well, it’s not. Didn’t you learn anything about mates while living here?”

I groaned. “I guess not. I was too busy being cheated on by an asshole who swore every time he cheated that he simply thought she’d been his true mate. It was a big guessing game for him, so he said.”

“That’s not how it works. There’s no guessing involved, mates just know. Don’t you just feel crazy about him when you see him? Mates are just… well, there’s instant physical lust, sure, but you’re smitten… forever. It’s amazing that you’ve found your mate, Bunny.”

I sighed. “There’s no getting out of it?”

“Not at all. He’s your mate, babe. No matter what.”

“Well, shit.”





CHAPTER 10: John




Sleep that night was damn near impossible. I was still giving Bunny a cold shoulder, hoping she’d crack and talk to me, but she had disappeared. After her cherry eating seduction attempt in the kitchen, I thought she was warming up to me, but then she’d run off.

I tossed and turned, feeling like an asshole for not telling her goodnight. I should’ve at least said goodnight. She was my mate. I shouldn’t be treating her like this.

Then there was the fact that Mandy was going to be arriving relatively soon. I couldn’t wish her farther away if I tried. And I had tried. I’d also tried calling her time and time again, but she was the same old Mandy. She only got in touch with people when she wanted to.