Page 24 of Bear
THIRTEEN
LENNON
Bearand I walk quietly through the house, then outside and around the pool patio, both of us a little lost in our own head. It’s a strange turn of events to have Bear and Duke being the ones in need of some help tonight, but I’m confident I can get Bear’s mind off things, though my worry over Mason with Duke hasn’t dissipated at all. I squeeze Bear’s hand and glance up toward the upper floor of the house. “You think they’ll be okay?”
His lips quirk as he gives my question some real consideration. After a moment, he shrugs. “If all else fails, it’ll be a fuckin’ slugfest, and we’ll have to patch them up again.” He shakes his head, a bit of a laugh that rumbles up from his chest escaping. “We know the two of us can take them on.”
“True.” My eyes land on the outdoor shower next to the in-ground spa, and I let go of Bear’s hand to turn it on for him.
With that accomplished, I perch on the cool stones along the spa’s edge and play with the settings, trying to keep my eyes to myself, but really… I’m only human. And Bear is post-fightdirty.It’s making me clench way down low and has my panties dampening at an alarming rate.
He notices me watching and tilts his head to the side, a teasing smirk playing at his lips. And even then, I can’t freaking look away. My eyes are pinned to him as he hooks his thumbs into the top layer of shorts and pushes them over his hips. He takes a moment to untie the protective cup, his gaze locked on me. Those golden eyes of his gleam with a hunger that makes lust catapult through my veins. With no warning at all, he peels off the second pair of shorts, leaving him as naked as the day he was born.
He rasps, “You about killed me before I went into the ring, by the way. I was semi-hard going into that fight.”
A smile sneaks its way onto my lips, and I shrug as if what he’s saying doesn’t affect me in the slightest, even though it does. Oh fuck, it does. My eyes drop to his dick, fixating on his long, thick length. I don’t know if I’ll ever get over just how well-endowed this man is. Tapping the pads of a few fingers to my lips, I watch as he steps under the spray and slowly begins to move his hands over his body, removing the sweat, blood, and grime of the fight from his skin. “Take your time.” I pull my hoodie over my head and toe off my sandals, feeling my face flush. “I wish I had a swimsuit. I didn’t bring one. Had no idea I’d need it.”
Bear gives me a wolfish look, water pummeling his skin, and sliding down over his body. “You don’t need one. Don’t worry about it. I doubt anyone is awake. Underwear isn’t so different from a suit.” He leans his head back, getting his hair wet, and the action makes my nipples into hard little points of desperate need. He brings his head forward again, catching my gaze. Gruffly, he demands, “Tell me what Mason is talking about with you and Duke. He was being fucking cryptic, but it seemed you knew what he meant.”
I draw in a breath, my mind racing. It’s hard to think with him so very wet and naked in front of me. Biting my lip hard enough to make me focus on that instead ofBear, I ponder what to even say. It’s so fucking complicated. “Um, so I told Mason the other day—when he found me at Juliette’s grave—that I used to work with her.”
Bear’s brows rise on his forehead, but he doesn’t say anything, just gestures that I should continue. Apparently, he was in the dark on that, too. Good boyfriend points for Duke, I suppose, keeping Juliette’s secret from getting out.
“So, that’s where I first encountered Duke—Stella’s Diner. We never talked. I only knew him as her boyfriend who’d wait outside for her. And he knew me as the girl who worked with his girlfriend. I’ve tried so many times to figure out where his head’s been at. Maybe because her dad didn’t want her working there, it made him nervous. I know Juliette’s dad didn’t want her saving for college, but that’s exactly what she was attempting to do. And maybe Duke was a little envious that she befriended me, and I got to spend that time with her when he didn’t think she should have to work at all?” I shrug. “Duke associates me with Juliette and the diner. Mason is implying that might be the real issue.”
Bear eyes me as I peel my tank top over my head, then quickly pop the button on my jean shorts and unzip, lowering them over my hips and letting them drop to the ground. “It sounds like the reminder of the friendship you had with her is too much for him sometimes. Or…” He clamps his lips together.
“No, what? Tell me what you’re thinking.”
“Maybe it has more to do with his obvious attraction to you. Like he feels bad… like he’s betraying Juliette? I think that makes a lot of sense.” His head tilts considering. “That nickname, though. Stella.”
“Yeah, weird, right? Juliette worked there, too… so… does Duke not mean it in the way I’ve always assumed he has?”
“Could be. Sounds like Mason has the same thought.”
I nod, absorbing everything. Mason had hinted at some of it, but Bear’s more straightforward. Duke. All this time. Feels like he’s betraying Juliette? Because of me? It’s a big, weird thought to digest. Quietly, I murmur, “I’m getting in.” Slipping into the water in my panties and bra, I sink down, careful not to wet the bandages on my upper back.
A few moments later, I feel Bear’s stare, and figure it’s probably for the best that we get the other elephant in the backyard out of the way. I throw the question over my shoulder as I swivel to look at him. “What happened after the fight?” I shift myself onto the far seat where I have a view of the shower. Bear seems to be enjoying standing under the spray of water, and I don’t mind watching as he slides his hands over his pecs, then up over his neck again. Despite all the crap we’ve been discussing, my damn mouth is watering, and I can’t tear my eyes away from all that sleekly toned muscle. It takes me a second to realize he hasn’t answered. Finally, I flick my eyes up to meet his.
His jaw has gone hard. “I fucking punched my dad.”
My mouth drops open for a moment, my earlier thoughts confirmed. “Oh, shit. Are you okay?”
“Yeah. He ran his mouth. You already know what he said to you, so we won’t go into it. I’m just a little concerned about what shit will be flung my way now. I don’t have a good idea of how many people saw it happen. I was kinda in a daze. So, depending on who was there when I humiliated him…” He blinks rapidly, water clinging to his lashes as he turns around, briefly showing me his back as he sticks his face under the water, groaning.
Fuck.The only thing that makes sense to me—because it’s what I’d want, too, if it were me in distress—is to get his mind the hell off it. I unhook my bra clasp and slip the garment down my arms.
When he comes back around to face me, I purposefully wait until he looks this way to hold my bra up, dangling it from my finger. “I think you should forget about your dad right now.” I drop the undergarment, and his eyes follow. I catch the corner of my lip between my teeth as his gaze zeroes in on the bubbles surging around my bare breasts. When his focus finally shifts from there to my eyes, I slip my hands under the water, and begin wriggling free of my panties.
“Lennon.” My name leaves his lips on a harsh rasp. “What are you doing?”
I give him a tiny shrug, holding the wet underwear over the side of the spa, too. Releasing them from my pinched fingers, they hit the ground with a wet slap. I give Bear the most innocent look I can conjure.
He cuts off the water in the shower, running a hand through his hair. His chest heaves as he stalks over to me. And I do meanstalks.He’s like a predator going in for the kill. I hardly blink, and he’s in the water with me. He gathers me to him, one arm around my torso, and the other threading into the hair at the side of my head.
“You’ve decided on being a naughty girl tonight, huh?” And before I can answer, he devours my mouth, savagely plunging his tongue inside. I moan aloud. We frantically nip and lick and taste, all while our hands slide over each other’s bodies. He makes my heart beat so damn fast, it’s going to explode from my chest.
Breathing heavily, Bear pulls away from me, and before I know what he’s doing, he lifts me up out of the water and sets me on the edge. “Hold onto something,” he growls.
