Bear's heart leaped. "You think she's leaving the Guard?"
Boondock's eyebrows rose. "Of course. You outed her when you lied about her death and the entire Guard arrived here. Everyone knows who she is now. She can't go on being the commissioner."
"Oh." Bear wiped a hand across his eyes. "I didn't know. When I sent out the false information, I thought I was keeping her safe."
"You think that's your job now?" Boondock challenged.
Bear met his gaze levelly. "Damn straight."
Boondock's smile widened. "I knew I liked you."
Oddly enough, the feeling was mutual. Bear growled.
* * *
Nessa stretched awake in the bed and winced from all sorts of little aches and pains. Everywhere. Even with those erotic reminders of her wild night with Bear, her body was more than satisfied. She hadn't been this relaxed in years. Maybe decades.
A fire heated the small cabin, and she turned toward the flames, surprised to see Bear sitting on the sofa, reading something, his back to her.
Tension rolled off him.
She rested her head on the pillow and then noticed her bags packed by the door.
Hurt slid through her, and she breathed deep, trying to focus.
"I spoke to the king, and he'll give you refuge at Realm headquarters until I find whoever's trying to kill you," Bear said, without turning around.
Ouch. She bit back a harsh retort to keep from striking out in pain. How had last night not meant anything to him? At all? He hated witches that much?
His shoulders hunched. Very slightly, but they hunched. "Did I hurt you last night?"
The entire day cleared. Oh. Sweet big bad bear. They'd both lost control, and he'd turned as primitive as a male could. Now he felt afraid . . . and guilty.
She banished her own hurt in an effort to understand him. In doing so, her heart swelled even more. Man, he was a keeper. She tucked a blanket around her and slid from the bed, an easy feat considering the damn thing was on the floor. The wood chilled her bare feet as she padded around the sofa and plopped into his lap. Her internal muscles, well used and sore, protested.
He dropped the papers, his eyebrows raising. "Nessa?"
She snuggled her nose beneath his jaw. "I'm cold."
His arms instantly came around her.
She smiled against his skin. Such a tough-ass bear. "You didn't hurt me."
His chest stiffened. "I took you in the storm on the porch steps." Guilt and anger filled his voice.
"Aye," she yawned, still awakening. She could make light of the evening, say it was fun. But fun wasn't the right word. Not even close. "I liked last night," she whispered, opening herself up completely to banish his guilt. She played with a string on his worn T-shirt. "I, ah, I trust you or that wouldn't have happened." At the realization, she leaned back to look into his eyes, when all she wanted to do was hide her face. "I like you. The deep-down, way-beyond-dominant side that you wouldn't share with anybody else."
His eyes flared.
She'd faced down a mass of terrorists once, and this was harder: Facing one male. Giving him the truth.
"I pushed you on purpose, and I don't regret it." She stretched again and winced. "I'll probably do it again. But not right now." Maybe not for quite a while. Even after a good night's sleep, she was feeling way too vulnerable. Exposed.
He studied her, his eyes softening to honey brown. "Look at you being so honest."
Truthfully, it didn't come easy to her. "That seems to matter to you." Oh, he'd been furious she'd put herself in danger, but not nearly as angry as he'd been when he'd discovered she'd lied to him. "So no more untruths or even half-truths."
His eyes deepened. "Loyalty is everything to me."
Loyalty meant honesty to the bear. She understood that finally. "Agreed."
He sighed. "You know why I packed your bag?"
"You wanted to play with my underwear?"
His grin eased the knot in her stomach. "No. I packed it because I'll definitely take you like last night again if you stay. I like you begging."
Desire bloomed in her abdomen, even as she forced a frown. "Next time you'll be begging."
He tweaked a curl. "I seriously doubt that, but challenge accepted." He sighed. "You couldn't have pictured a life with a shifter. Didn't you see yourself with some brilliant witch having intrigue-driven dinner parties where you fleece your guests?"
She laughed out loud. "No. Any man I've dated before got boring quickly. Either the male was threatened by my ambition or was too cold and focused."