Page 20 of Alpha Bear Accountant

I hated that he was worried I might reject him because of who he was. But it was starting to really bother me that he hadn’t marked me yet. My insecurities were growing by the day. I knew enough about myself to know that if I didn’t say something soon, I was gonna explode at the most inappropriate time and place.

Why were words so hard?

Todd reached across the blanket and took both my hands in his. “You can tell me anything. You can ask me anything. Nothing you say or do will change how I feel about you.”

“See, that’s just it.” I closed my eyes, willing myself to find the strength to ask. “I don’t really know what that is.”

“Explain, please.” His tone was hushed, like he was almost afraid to ask.

“Why?” My voice cracked, and my eyes filled with tears. The kind that were gonna flow quickly if I didn’t pull myself together. “Why haven’t you marked me? I know that’s how you do this, this, mate thing, but you haven’t done it to me. I could really use some answers here because the ones I’m coming up with in my head are…well, they’re not good.”

Not even close.

15

TODD

My heart hurt.

Hearing Niam put words to his insecurities crushed me. I’d been so busy trying not to push him that it didn’t occur to me that he might perceive my inaction as not wanting him. It was my fault. If I had taken the time to communicate with him instead of making assumptions, he wouldn’t be in so much pain.

I pulled him into my lap and held him close. “Oh, my sweet, sweet omega. The reason I didn’t mark you isn’t because I didn’t want to. That first night we were together, it was all I could do to hold back and not claim you—mark you as mine.” It had been one of the hardest battles I’d ever fought with my beast. “But you’re human…”

He sobbed between breaths. “It’s fine. I get it. I’m not like you and?—”

It was very much not fine.

I shook my head and held him tighter. “No, my love. That’s not where I was heading at all.” I kissed the top of his head. “I didn’t mean that you’re human and therefore not worthy of being mymate or whatever it is that’s filling your head right now. I meant that because you’re human, this is all new to you. I wanted you to decide and make the decision without pressure. I wasn’t going to take that from you. I wasn’t going to rush you, push you to be mine. You deserve better than that.”

Niam sucked in a breath and looked up at me, his eyes still wet with tears and his cheeks red and blotchy. “Really?” His chuckle was forced but also filled with relief. “I thought—I thought you wanted?—”

I hated that he even entertained the notion that he was somehow less-than. “Never. The only thing I ever wanted was you…all of you.”

He wrapped his arms around me. “I love you, Todd. And looking back, that was true long before I realized it. Probably that first day when you came in and promised to help, if I’m being honest.”

My beast purred in contentment. My big badass bear purred.

“That’s why I agreed to trade for your services initially. Sure, money was tight, but it wasn’t like I didn’t have a decent job back in the city that was still paying me. I saw it as a way to get to know you while I figured out if this attraction was more than physical.”

Niam might not have been a shifter, but he sensed me as his mate from the beginning, before I even allowed myself to listen to my bear.

“I knew you were mine. And it didn’t make sense, but it was always there.”

While my beast was thrilled at all he was saying, and I was too, he brought up something we needed to discuss sooner rather than later.

“Wait, your job in the city… You still have that?” We hadn’t talked about his life there, not really. Probably because I was scared of the answers. But if he needed to go back there, I could find a job anywhere. Sure, I’d have to take some state-specific classes, but that was easy enough, and my bear would adjust. He’d do anything to stay with Niam.

My mate shrugged. “Yeah, technically, I haven’t quit. I just… I’ve been taking leave.” He turned so that he was facing me and our faces were only inches from each other. “When I came here, I was hoping—more than hoping—that I could come in, press a few buttons, show my dad how to do the paperwork, and go back home.” He closed his eyes. “My entire life, I’d wanted to live in the city, have a gorgeous view from my apartment, surround myself with friends, with a great job that afforded me a lifestyle of not worrying about things like whether I could go out to dinner or not.”

A rock was forming in my throat as I nodded. “It sounds like you had a good life there.”

“See, that’s the thing—I thought I did. If you looked at my list of accomplishments, every single item on it was ticked off. But now that I’m here, I realize that this is home. And before you go getting a big head—” He placed his hand on my cheek. “It’s not just because of you.”

I frowned, pretending to be wounded by that. “But it’s a little bit because of me, right?”

“Well, of course, it’s a little bit because of you.” He stuck out his tongue playfully. “Fine. It’s a lot because of you.”

“A whole lot, I hope.” I winked and went to nip his bottom lip.

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