Shadow Mated(17)

Her man. God. She couldn’t afford to think like that.

But he’d called her ‘mine’. So maybe he was a little hers too now.

Bailey slid the plate in front of him before meeting his eyes again.

“Looks delicious,” he rumbled, not even glancing at the food.

Instantly her cheeks flooded with heat, and Gash noticed. She could tell by the way his eyes flared and his tongue darted out to wet his lips. How did he do this? How did he hold her captive with only the intensity of his gaze? Like looking away would cause her to miss something important. Like every blink and breath was a new story to reveal.

Theron cleared his throat and it distracted Gash enough to allow Bailey to glance away. Quickly she started a new batch of pancakes while the males set in to eating.

“You said on the phone you were able to meet our terms,” Theron murmured between bites.

“Yes,” Gash confirmed with a nod. “Though it might take some time to get everything finished. Your requests weren’t something I could make happen overnight. Especially since we were a bit preoccupied keeping the wolves at bay.”

“Hm,” Thames grunted. “I suppose it might take us some time to do our jobs here too. I mean, there’s the whole moving in thing. That’ll take some time. And then we might want to relax a bit before we go to work. And then—”

“I saw two duffle bags by the door,” Gash interrupted. “Moving in will take you ten minutes, tops. And you know what, don’t be an asshole. They don’t like assholes around here. Trust me on that.”

“No way. That right, darling?” Theron asked, slurping his OJ.

Bailey nodded. “Pretty much.”

He smirked and shot her a wink.

A soft snarl slipped past Gash’s throat. “Now I said you’d have what you asked for. All I need is for you to give me a little fucking time. Your damn piano is being delivered tomorrow.”

Theron raised an eyebrow, his expression changing to one of excitement. “Tomorrow? And what about the guitar? And the books? I need the books, that part’s very important.”

Gash nodded, chewing his pancake. “Coming from Little Rock. It’ll all arrive tomorrow.”

The bear nodded. “Okay, yeah. I can live with that. Now what about my brother’s payment?”

Gash quietly stirred his eggs as Bailey tried to appear busy. She got the feeling Thames’s request was not so easily answered.

“Building the chapel will take a bit longer,” Gash murmured. “But I’ve already spoken to Renner and Ryan, and they say it can be done. They’ve already put in the lumber order, and marked off a spot next to the barn.”

Thames nodded gravely. “I don’t require a large one. A simple, small structure will do just fine.”

A chapel? Like where you go to pray? Or for a funeral? Or for a wedding? A chapel at Lake Haven. Odd currency to pay for muscle.

Theron must’ve caught Bailey’s confused expression because he let out a little laugh and said, “Don’t worry, darling. No one’s going to need a funeral yet. My brother’s found religion is all. Ain’t that right, Thames?”

The other bear’s brow furrowed and he shoved more food in his mouth instead of answering.

“He don’t like to talk about it much.” Theron gave her another wink, and she wondered if there was something wrong with his eye. Maybe he should have Doc check it out.

“So. Do we have a deal?” Gash asked.

The brothers locked eyes and seemed to say something without actually speaking.

“Yeah.” Thames nodded, reaching for another piece of bacon. “We have a deal.”

“Great,” Gash grumbled. “Welcome to your new home. You’re now a Ouachita cat… er, bear. What-the hell-ever.”





Chapter Five



Bailey drew in a long breath, bringing her palms together in a prayer pose and holding it while she slowly exhaled.

“Namaste,” she murmured in unison with the other five females in the room.

It was Doc’s idea to do their group yoga session tonight. Even though the lodge was jam packed with guests for the weekend, the clan had two new members to work around, and the threat of danger loomed in the air like a toxic cloud of doom.

Center yourself, Bai. Clear your mind. Breathe stress out, breathe life in. Hakuna Matata and all that.

Oh, Doc thought it would calm them. And she was probably right. But it also left Bailey with a lot of time to think. About Gash and his confession. And the way he’d looked at her at breakfast. And about his brother and his life before Ouachita.

Following Doc’s lead, she went into a hip-opening lotus position, and focused on her breathing.