Stupid.Stupid.Stupid.
A quiver ran through Suzie and settled in the pit of her stomach.She’d liked this grumpy man, and discussing business was way better than dealing with amorous shifters.He hadn’t studied her like a juicy plum or made her uncomfortable with predatory glances.She gulped.
But he was eyeing her now, and his expression wasn’t pretty.
“Who the hell are you?”He rounded his desk and padded toward her, his expression thunderous.
“Ah, my name is Suzie Paisley.I…ah…” She bobbed to her feet and backed away from the advancing bear shifter.“I’ll just be on my way.”
“Stop right there.”
Suzie attempted a dart to freedom, but the grumpy bear was fast.His fingers wrapped around her upper arm, dragging her to a premature halt.She stumbled against him, the air smacking from her lungs.“Oomph!”
“Oh,” the woman said from behind them.“Did the agency send someone else?I called to let them know I’d had an accident.They told me this job was urgent, and you were expecting someone immediately.”
The bear ignored the woman’s prattle and didn’t take his attention off Suzie.“Who are you?Who sent you?”
Suzie puffed out a breath.Standing this close to the bear was doing weird things to her libido.He smelled…delicious, like exotic honey with floral and green notes.She shook herself mentally and tried to focus.
Time to spill the truth, even if it sounded farfetched.“My name,” she said in a loud and hopefully confident voice, “is Suzie Paisley.I am staying at Castle Glenkirk to take part in the gathering.”
The bear kept his gaze on her.Suzie tried to maintain a connection with his thundercloud expression, but the shifter was scary.Her gaze slid down to his feet, shod in shiny black shoes.Big feet to go with the rest of him.Her mind turned a furtive corner, wondering about size in other areas, and heat slid across her face and down her neck.Bloody hell.What was wrong with her?
“Angus, is this woman registered as a gathering participant?”the bear asked, thankfully breaking through her hazy mind.
Suzie paid closer attention.
The tall, spare, gray-haired man wearing a red and black tartan kilt cast his disapproval on her, his piercing blue eyes narrowing as he dissected her appearance.“I’ll have to check, but she looks familiar.I recall the Antipodean accent.That group is doing verra well in matches.”
Suzie bit her lip, hurt filtering through as her thoughts flicked to Edwina.Since her friend hadn’t magically reappeared, every instinct told Suzie their joint plans were no longer viable.
Suck it up, buttercup.She wasn’t reliant on her best friend.She could still attend university and study music.Hopefully, Edwina’s mate wasn’t a tyrant and would let Edwina continue to write music and collaborate.
“Please check,” the bear ordered, not taking his gaze off her.
“What about the secretary?”Angus asked.
“Sign her work order so she gets paid and send her home.”
Angus ushered the woman away.
The tension ramped up in the office, and Suzie attempted to swallow the nerves threatening her knee stability.
“If what you say is true and you’re attending the gathering, why were you wandering around my castle?My private sanctuary.”Steel throbbed in the words.Determination to get the truth.
No matter how she answered, her explanation would sound bad.Suzie straightened her black blouse and said, “I don’t want a mate, and I’m tired of the gathering activities.I decided to explore.”
“By trespassing?”
She couldn’t prevent a wince.“I know this looks bad, but I was exploring when you found me.You assumed I was the secretary.Didn’t you think it was strange I hadn’t reported in with Angus?He escorted the other woman here.”
“I assumed Angus had given you directions to my office and you were dawdling.”The bear glowered at her, his jaw set like the granite on a Scottish mountain.His lips peeled back, revealing teeth as sharp as hers, and she retreated half a step, every instinct screaming danger.
“Non-disclosure document, remember?No way will I blab about your honey.Not to anyone.”
“How can I trust you?”
Indignation rose in Suzie.She was many things, but not a liar.“I’m not a tattle, nor do I gossip.”
