The satisfying after-glow of having sex with Dax didn’t wear off as she racked her brain to figure out who the hell would be at the bakery this time of morning.
Dax held her hand on the short drive to Sticky Sweet. It was a sweet gesture but seemed so natural and easy, as if they’d held hands a million times before. She couldn’t stop sneaking peeks at him in the budding daylight. Everything between them seemed easy. From the first moment he’d walked into the bakery, she’d felt a comfort and familiarity she’d never experienced with a guy before. It was as if they’d simply fallen into place beside each other.
She squeezed her legs together, welcoming the soreness that would serve as an all-day reminder of the biggest pleasure she’d ever known. It was going to be damn difficult to think of anything else today.
Dax pulled into the front of the bakery. The street out front was empty of vehicles. Becks must have walked this morning since her bicycle wasn’t parked in the rack. And the mystery visitor must have parked in the back. She didn’t like it. The only good reason to park in the back lot this time of day was to avoid being seen from the main road. A quick look at Dax made it clear he was thinking the same thing.
An uneasy feeling went through her. Dax flexed his fingers and quivered a little as if he was suddenly uncomfortable in his own skin. Maybe the bear inside him was uneasy, too. Could it pick up on her feelings and emotions?
He went to Allie’s door and opened it. Putting a hand on her wrist, he stopped her when she would have walked ahead.
“I’m going with you.”
She felt a moment of protest but grabbed his hand in acceptance instead. “Okay.”
Dax gave her a comforting sense of protection. The situation was odd, and she wasn’t going to turn away a six-foot four shifter’s offer to tag along in case something went south. She took out the key to the front door but found it already open.
Dax walked in first. “Becks?”
Allie pulled back with a start. A shadowy figure unfurled from the corner by the coffee bar. It took her brain a second to realize it was a man. Dax was already in motion, cutting in front of Allie with his big body taking up as much space as possible. In that nanosecond, recognition hit her, and she ducked around Dax to get a second look.
She did a double take. “Blake?”
A big smile cut across his narrow face as if this was a perfectly expected reunion at five something in the morning. An uncontrollable quiver took over her body. She hadn’t seen him in months since he’d left the law firm in town for his home pack in Bentleyville. Though his text messages had bothered her, she’d felt safe in that he was long gone from Estes Park.
Not anymore.
“Hello, Allie.”
Blake gave Dax a cursory glance, then ignored him to focus his attention on her. Dax stood partially in front of her, a protective move that she welcomed. His body was a shield, and she couldn’t shake the sensation that she needed the protection.
Becks called out from behind the bakery case. “He told me I couldn’t tell you he was here or he’d...”
Blake gave a half turn to glare at Becks. “Thank you, Becks. I’m sure you have things to do in the back.”
“Don’t speak to her like that. It’s fine, Becks.”
Having Dax so close gave Allie a sense of confidence. He was taller than Blake, and though they were both bear shifters, there was no denying Dax was bigger, stronger. She’d never seen either man shift into their bear, but she suspected there’d be no real competition between them there, either. Allie was still frustrated that she hadn’t seen through her ex sooner. He was a terrible person.
He was the reason she’d started the Loser Allie List.
He was the reason she had to get cozy with a vibrator again.
He was the reason she’d been afraid of men for the first time in her life.
A low rumble came from behind her. Dax... did he just growl? He stood with his arms crossed and his feet spread wide. The two men mirrored each other, and with each second, Blake seemed to get more irritated.
“What are you doing here, Blake?”
In the arrogant way he had, Blake broke away from his stare down with Dax and started to wander around the store. He made a half circle around the room, looking everywhere but her as if he’d dismissed her question. Dax shifted his weight and gave Allie a questioning look. She shook her head. Now wasn’t the time to get into it.
“I wanted to talk, just the two of us.” He finally replied. “Can we do that, Allie? Just us?”
The way he said, “us” made a bitter taste rise in her mouth. They hadn’t been an “us” in far too long, and even when they were, they weren’t. Blake had simply wanted a girlfriend to look after him, fuss over him and be sexually available. He’d never been into her as wife material. It had been far too easy to use her, lead her along, rough her up a little and then make her think it was her fault.
“It’s been six months. There’s nothing left to say.”
Blake tugged his bottom lip between his teeth. His business suit was impeccably pressed, his brown hair stylish and combed to perfection. The lines of his tall, lithe form she’d once found sexy now held no appeal. How had she ever thought he’d be her husband?
