Page 33 of His Determined Bear

I groaned at the judgmental voice in my head because honestly, technically, I was doing my due diligence to correct that little mishap. No one could blame me for that.

Graham has been on my mind ever since I’d watched him pull out of Aaron’s driveway. Okay, it was probably more accurate to say he hadn’t left my mind since I’d first met him. I’d been dying to text him the moment I woke up after the best night of my life, but it was probably a good thing that I hadn’t. Since I wasn’t ready to tell my mom about it, I called my best friend instead.

Looking back on it now, maybe calling Linc in LA was a bad idea. My friend was good at convincing me that doing crazy, borderline stalker-ish things was a good idea. But I was a grown adult and couldn’t blame my actions on anyone but me. You only called to spur you on to do something you were already planning to do.

And now, thanks to my internet search, I knew more about Graham than I had before our date. And for some reason, I was a little miffed he hadn’t told me about himself in more detail. We had talked about his brothers and parents over dinner, but not the financial stuff and social standing in the community.

You didn’t give him a chance to tell you anything more. You’ve only had one date. And after my internet search.. not really stalking… I knew he was from one of the most prominent families in Asheville. His family owned the two largest factories in Asheville. He wasn’t just a small-town cafe owner, with an amazing body and a kind heart, that I had the best sex of my life with. He was kind of a big deal in Asheville.

I had to admit that I liked that he let us get to know one another without feeling like he had to share his bank account balance with me or hint at how many vacation homes he had around the world. That wasn't the Graham I had come to know.

He was actually one of the good ones.He seemed to like me for who I was.

I should probably stop staring at his beautiful face from my laptop screen and go see him in person.

The sound of footsteps approaching prompted me to close my laptop just in time to turn and smile up at my mom. It was a good thing she walked in an easily identifiable way so she could never sneak up on me. It had been a good indication she was approaching when I was a teenager. Apparently, it still came in handy now.

“This is your vacation, Coop. Don’t think I didn’t see you on that thing yesterday at the hotel,” she sighed. You would think the idea of me working was a capital offense. “I’m sure your business can survive without you for a little bit. You know that Instagram and Tiktok won’t collapse overnight because you spent a few weeks enjoying yourself. What were you posting last night?.”

“Well, Montana is beautiful, and it’s somewhere I’ve never been. I thought I would let people know about the quaint little gem while it was fresh on my mind. I will only stay relevant if I keep myself out there for my viewers,” I reminded her.

She waved me off, “I’m sure they’ll be fine without seeing what you’re up to in Montana. But you’re right. It’s beautiful here, isn’t it?”

“It really is. I bet I could spend a whole day shooting video just on Aaron’s land.”

She looked my way, and I put my hand up, “But don’t worry, I won’t work without your permission.”

“I bet Aaron wouldn’t mind, but I think some things are sacred.”

I nodded because she wasn’t wrong. I carefully chose the parts of my life that I wanted to share with the world. Social media tended to make some people think they were entitled to know everything about one's life. I rolled my eyes just thinking about it because parts of my life were just for me.

Graham was one of those parts.

Even though Graham was part of my life that I wanted to keep private, I was conflicted about keeping him to myself. He was such a wonderfully talented person, and I would want to show him off to the world at some point. And it wasn’t just because of how hot he was. He seemed like a genuinely good guy.

But he’s not your guy. One date only remember.

Snapping myself out of my thoughts, I finally replied to my mother. “I guess I should take some time off.” I hated not sharing all of this with her, but she was the last person I wanted to talk to about Graham. Especially when I didn’t know what we were or even a possibility of a ‘we.’

It was better that mom thought I was fixating on work rather than stalking the small-town baker.

As if I had willed him into existence, my phone alerted me of a text notification. I picked up my phone and was delighted to see it was from Graham.

Trying to rein in my natural reaction to the delightful man, I glanced over at mom, who happened to be looking serenely at the view.

Graham: By any chance, are you back yet? If you are, how about dinner? And maybe a movie or something?

Dinner and a movie with him sounded amazing. When we’d driven past the theatre today, I’d noticed all the movies were a bit older than the new releases out in LA. But I didn’t care.This was about spending time with Graham and nothing more.

Cooper: Yes. Pick me up in an hour and a half.

It was a small miracle that I had controlled myself and that I hadn’t texted back, “hell yes!” Hell yes. Hell yes. I found myself hoping that the “or something” from the text meant I would end up either under or on top of Graham. That would be the perfect way to end the evening.

“Fuck!” I sat up, horrified, when I realized I’d forgotten to take the pills after our first night together. Now, it was past the forty-eight-hour window for protection from pregnancy.

"Cooper, what’s wrong?” she asked, a look of concern on her face.

“Mom, I have to send an important time-sensitive email, and I completely forgot about it.”

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