Old man? The kid didn't have a clue. Bear might be over a hundred, but he looked thirty, tops. "Meaning what?" Bear rumbled, the alpha inside him stretching awake.
"Things have changed." The kid shoved him.
Ah, hell. So much for a relaxed evening. Bear smiled. Then he set his beer down on the bar. "I don't believe they have." He grabbed the front of Leroy's jacket, lifted, and easily threw him across a wide span, to fly right out the double doors and into the falling rain. Lucky for the kid they'd opened the doors to let out some of the heat.
Leroy fell hard on the wet pavement and bounced twice. With Bear's animalistic hearing, he could make out at least two bones breaking. Sounded like a wrist and maybe a rib. That was odd-a rib at that angle. Bear shrugged.
Three human prospects moved in toward him, no doubt to defend their buddy. Damn it. Oh, he could take three humans, but he truly wasn't at full strength. Not even close. His lower back ached just from throwing Leroy. "You can't be serious," he muttered.
The three kids straightened as Lucas appeared at Bear's side. "Problem?" Lucas asked, his voice hard.
"He threw Leroy," the first kid, still with acne, said.
"Leroy is lucky he still has legs," Lucas shot back. "The last man who challenged Bear is still walking around muttering about butterflies and kumquats, after his beating. Are you mellowing, Bear?"
Bear bit back a smile. "No. Just trying to figure out why we have new prospects." Who weren't bear shifters.
Lucas's jaw hardened. "Yeah. We should talk business tomorrow. For now, you assholes back off before Bear stops goofing around."
The kids looked toward their buddy outside.
The acne-riddled kid nodded, his gaze not meeting Lucas's. "Yeah. Fine." He slapped his friend's arm. "Let's see if he's okay."
They moved past, the last kid gingerly contorting his body on the way by so he didn't brush against Bear. Smart kid.
"Humans?" Bear muttered, turning to see Nessa toss back a shot with a human named Angie.
"Long story." Lucas clapped him on the back. "We should have a business meeting tomorrow."
Yeah, they should. Apparently, Bear needed to step up as alpha of the pack and president of the club . . . sooner rather than later. "The kid was on something." So long as his members and guests didn't hurt anybody, he didn't care if they poisoned their own bodies.
The women finished the shots, and Angie stumbled through the crowd to fall against Lucas. "Hey, sexy. My new BFF Nessa just agreed to a threesome with you."
Lucas coughed out, interest definitely crossing his face, then disbelief. "Really?"
The hair on the back of Bear's neck rose fast.
Nessa came into view, and he reached out to snag an arm around her waist. She laughed as he pulled her in. "You having fun?" he asked mildly.
She nodded, her wild hair tumbling. "I truly am. It's a lovely party."
Lovely. God, she was cute. "Letting your hair down a little?" Bear asked, trying to ignore his best friend checking out her breasts.
"Yes." Her face was flushed and her eyes sparkling with fun. "I've been working too hard, Bear. Way too hard."
The word hard made him exactly that. Quickly. "So Angie just mentioned that you'd be up for a threesome with Lucas."
Nessa paused. Her head tilted to the side. "A threesome?"
"Yeah," Angie said, pressing in. "It's fun. You're in for fun, right?"
Nessa arched one very fine eyebrow. "Well, I do appreciate fun."
Bear stiffened. She was not saying what he thought she was saying. He couldn't have been that wrong about her.
Nessa's foot tapped to the music. "But a threesome with me would be a bad idea, and I certainly did not agree to participate in one."
Bear tilted his head down to see amusement dancing in her deep eyes. "Why a bad idea?" He'd bite.
She sighed. "I'm too much woman for one man. Add in another woman? We'd kill the guy." She gave a delicate snort.
Bear laughed, his tension dissipating.
Lucas hung his head. "So no threesome?"
"No," Nessa said, partially turning in Bear's arms to look at him. "You haven't asked me to dance all night."
"I've been watching you dance," he said, liking the feel of her entirely too much.
Her lips twitched. "Have you enjoyed yourself ?"
"More than I have in a long time," he said honestly. Who the hell was this woman? More important, why did she look guilty every time she seemed to let her guard down? "Unlike Lucas and his threesome hopes here, I've figured out a way to your heart." More important, to her body.