Page 39 of OctoBEARfest

"Me either," he promised her. "Me either."

CHAPTER 24

On second thought, Bill realized, they should have just turned right around and gone back to his house, or Gwen's hotel. It was only about one in the afternoon when the other hikers interrupted them, but for some damn reason, he thoughtfinishing the hikewas a better idea than cutting it short and taking the afternoon to themselves.

The funny thing was, Gwen apparently thought so too, because when they got up to the trail's summit, she suddenly blurted, "We're idiots. We could have gone back to the hotel," which made Bill laugh out loud, the sound bouncing around the rocks and trees.

"I was just thinking that. I guess I just got it in my head that we were going on a hike and the only way to finish that was to actually finish it. It was way shorter to go back than finish by going around."

She slid her hand, small and warm, into Bill's. "At least we're the same kind of idiot. And this has been nice. Not that going back to the hotel wouldn't have been, but…" She sighed. "For a woman who lives in Denver, a notoriously get-outside-and-do-stuff city, I don't really get outside all that much. I'm either at work or rehearsing. So this has probably been really good for me,even if," she lifted a knee up and down, making a face, "even if my butt and legs are wondering what the hell I'm doing. I haven't walked up this many hills in ages. And now we have to walk down them again!"

"Your job must be pretty flexible?" They started down the trail as it bent back toward the distant parking lot.

"More flexible than my butt, man. Ow. I'm not going to be able to bounce around on stage tonight." Gwen didn't sound like she meant a word of the complaints as she moved ahead of Bill on the trail. Her butt looked just fine from his vantage. Better than fine, in fact. She had a great round little ass that had fit into his hands wonderfully, and it was probably just as well hehadn'tthought to depants her before picking her up, because those hikers showing up would have really gotten an eyeful in that case. She called, "It's a part-time job except if there's a crunch. They're a fulfillment business and mostly only need somebody to answer phones in the mornings, although it gets crazy around the holidays, obviously. So they're usually cool with me taking a long weekend most of the year, and sometimes I just have the office phone forwarded to mine for a few hours every day so I can work remotely anyway."

"An ideal job for a rock star," Bill called back as she skipped a little ahead. She was a dark streak in the golden leaves and soft autumn light, bouncing from one step to another like someone who spent a lot more time outdoors than she claimed she did. He felt unbelievably content just watching her, as if he could spend the rest of his life doing exactly that and think it was a life well lived.

That reminded him, suddenly and wonderfully, of his parents, and he found himself grinning like an idiot the whole rest of the way back to the truck. "Is the pub okay? You'll want your car."

"And a shower," Gwen agreed. "I didn't take one last night because I knew we were going hiking this morning. I'm surprised you can't smell me from halfway across the state." Her eyes widened. "Canyou?"

"Only from a couple miles."

Gwen snapped her gaze around to him and he spread his hands. "Bears have great senses of smell. Humans aren't nearly as good, but shifters do mostly scent and hear better than true humans."

"Holy crap! Oh my God! I'll remember to stay showered!"

"You smell good," he assured her. "You smell great, in fact."

"Nope. Showering. Now, forever, always. Well, not now. But once we're back in town. And I would invite you to join me, but," she sighed, "exercise early in the day before a concert is good for me. Exercise late in the day is less good, but better than nothing. Both, however, would wipe me out."

"Oh, you think I'd exercise you?"

Gwen looked him up and down as they climbed into his truck and dropped her voice into a purr. "Big man, I'm counting on it."

Shelikesus,his bear informed him with enthusiasm.

Bill groaned aloud, both agreeing with the bear and acknowledging Gwen's flirting. "Are you sure we can't go back to your hotel? Or my house?"

"I'm sure I'm trying to make good decisions for the show tonight," Gwen said, not very convincingly, though she followed it with a snort. "Penny would actually murder me if I showed up low-energy tonight."

"Okay, that seems pretty likely," Bill admitted. "She's fierce."

"She really is. We met at an audition for somebody else's band and she was like 'screw these guys, let's make an all-girl band of our own.' I didn't know she'd recognized me for two years. The woman can keep a secret."

"That's impressive. But, er, Myles?"

"Came with Gemma. Package deal. He's the only guy we've ever had in the lineup. I'd say he has big feminine energy, but it's not true. Heisa tech genius, though, and the band is lucky to have him. Oh, my God." That was as they approached the pub, which actually had a crowd gathered, sitting on benches that had magically appeared in the parking lot, as far as Bill could tell. "That can't be for the show tonight. There must be a hundred of them already."

"I'm pretty sure it can be. Um, do you want to go in there? You might never get out again."

"I think I'd better not," Gwen said, wide-eyed. "Can you drive me to the hotel? I'll get a lift back over with Penny before the show, but holy crap, Bill, what have we done?"

"I think you might have broken out," Bill said honestly. "The Sixty Pix have escaped containment. That's amazing, Gwen."

"I was not planning for this."

"Life is what happens when we're making plans, right?" Bill drove past the pub and stole a kiss when he dropped Gwen off outside the hotel. "I'll text you directions to the back parking lot where the staff park. I think you guys should come in that way tonight. I'm going to go back and start setting up security and…" He trailed off, thinking of the number of people already hanging out at the pub. "And see if I can call anybody else to help cover tonight. You know, I think you might have changed my life, Gwen."

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