Boarlander Boss Bear (Boarlander Bears #1)(19)

“Get all that stuff done and dig my crew out of this massive hole, just like that.”

“Just like that. Try this. It’s amazing.” She shoved the last half of her soup toward him, and then stole a scoop of crab fried rice from his plate. He’d ordered his in kill-me spicy though, so all she tasted was fire and pain.

Harrison laughed as she gulped down half her water to extinguish the flames on her tongue. He cocked his head and squeezed her ankles with his under the table. “You’ve been through a lot, but you’re still optimistic.”

“Everyone’s been through a lot, Harrison. Life is hard, and sometimes it sucks, but you were the one who told me it was admirable that I saw a life I wanted and went after it.” She tucked a flyaway lock of hair behind her ear and softened her voice. “Go after the life you want.”





Chapter Seven




Audrey dipped her toe in the hot spring and grinned. The evening shadows stretched across the stone surface surrounding the pool, and the air had cooled considerably. This had been the best day of her life, by a lot. After lunch, she’d spent the entire afternoon window shopping with Harrison. It had been an incredible opportunity to get to know him better, and the more she learned, the harder she was falling for the alpha of the Boarlanders.

He’d changed into a pair of navy blue swim trunks that hung just right on his tapered waist, and as he peeled off his shirt, she was stunned once again that he was hers. Or at least, he felt like hers. And from the purr in her throat, her inner tiger agreed.

Audrey kicked off her flip-flops and pulled her cover-up over her head, only a little self-conscious when Harrison dragged his gaze down her body and back up. His “Damn, woman” had her nerves settled right down, though.

She couldn’t explain it, but she was more confident around Harrison. More open, and it was easier to be outgoing. Outside of the restaurant, a trio of kids had asked to take a picture with him, and he’d told them Audrey was a white tiger shifter. Though she’d been mortified about him outing her, the kids had asked to take a picture with her, too. And afterward, they’d asked her to sign an autograph, right under Harrison’s signature on a piece of paper. How cool was that? No one in Buffalo Gap had ever asked her for her signature unless she was signing for a speeding ticket.

The hobo hot spring looked like a pool with a bath house and everything, but the water was from a natural spring that filtered into it. Steam rose from the surface, and just as she was about to make her way down the steps, Harrison wrapped an arm around her and hooked a finger under her chin. He kissed her until her legs went numb and then smiled against her lips. “I like you.”

“I like you two months more,” she countered.

With a playful growl, Harrison picked her up and carried her over his shoulder into the pool, and she gasped at how shockingly warm it was. It was close to sunset, and they had the hot spring to themselves, so she slid her arms around Harrison’s neck and wrapped her legs around him as he turned them in lazy circles.

“You read my scrapbook,” she said.

“I sure did. And I’ll read it again when you make a page dedicated to Saratoga.”

“Now it’s your turn. Share your scrapbook with me.”

“Booo,” he murmured. “Let’s keep having fun instead.”

With a happy sigh, she laid back into the floating position. “Tell me all your secrets, Boss Bear.”

“Fine,” he grumbled, placing his hands under her back and spinning her slowly. “When I was five, I lost my first tooth at baseball practice, and when I was eight, I stole a pack of tootsie rolls from the grocery store and had to return them and apologize, and when I was nine—”

“Harrison.”

“I didn’t have a mom, either.”

Well, that drew her up short. “What happened to her?” Audrey asked cautiously.

Harrison twitched his head and stared at the sunrise, and for a while, the only sound was the gently lapping water against her body. “She’s buried in a cemetery where I grew up in Montana. I used to go visit her all the time. I couldn’t really remember what she looked like without studying a picture, but I remember how she used to hug me up tight before bed. I slept best when she was squeezing me. Safe,” he murmured. “My dad was an * who liked to beat on us both, but my mom somehow made my room feel like he couldn’t hurt us there.”

“Oh, my God,” she whispered, sitting up in the water. She shouldn’t have done this. She shouldn’t have dragged demons like this to the surface. She was hurting him. That much was apparent in his voice. “I’m sorry, Harrison.”

“It happened a long time ago. Doesn’t matter now.”

She hugged him tightly and rested her chin on his shoulder as the sunset lit up the evening sky with vibrant oranges and pinks.

Harrison swallowed audibly and kissed her neck. “She died when I was seven, and then my room wasn’t safe anymore. My dad was a drinker and easily offended. I couldn’t walk carefully enough on the eggshells that made up the floor of that house. So here I am, a full-grown, mature male, my dad is out of my life, and I still can’t have a good night. I know it sounds crazy, but letting my body go vulnerable is a battle every time I try and go to sleep. I have to patrol the border of Boarlander property to make sure not only that I’m safe, but my crew is safe, too. It’s a compulsive thing. I can’t sleep or settle if I don’t. I almost got a grip on it a couple years ago, but shifter poachers hunted my crew, and I cut them off at the border of my territory.”