Page 7 of Bear In A Boutique
Fox nagged him more than their mother did about finding a woman and settling down even though Ryker had told both of them repeatedly that it wasn’t going to happen. Fox had been a self-proclaimed bachelor until he met Lulu and settled down. Now he was on a mission for Ryker to be domesticated, too.
Considering their tumultuous past with their father, Ryker was impressed that his brother had been able to destroy the shadows of abuse and fall in love. But the restlessness inside him wouldn’t allow it. Maybe it was the stain his father left on him, but he needed a change. He needed to get out of Estes Park and start his life somewhere the memories didn’t live.
The fire truck bounced down the country road. He barely noticed the repeating wail of the siren or the low drone of the firefighters talking in the bench seat across from him.
Olive Kent was a very attractive woman.
He’d helped rescue her and Jett’s wife Cara from a pack of rogue shifters, and he’d never forget the fear on Olive’s face when they’d found her that day, or the raging fury inside him when he unleashed his bear to help bring the other shifters down. He’d played a small, insignificant role in the rescue, yet Olive’s vulnerability and sweetness had impacted him, and he’d fought attraction to her ever since.
Ignoring her used to be mostly easy. But something changed about a month ago when she walked into Sticky Sweet Bakery like she did every morning and got in line for her usual dark roast with an espresso shot and extra foam. She’d been wearing a gauzy, light blue dress with a woven belt around the waist that made her hips look incredible. A white crystal hung on a chain around her neck, and soft blonde curls escaped from her long, thick braid to flutter around her face. The morning had been stormy and gray, and she’d stood out like a brilliant ray of light that he couldn’t look away from.
Since that morning, it wasn’t so easy to ignore her anymore, and his grizzly wasn’t happy that he was still trying.
His bear would have to get over it.
Ryker pulled his cell phone from the thigh pocket of his black turnout pants. The email he’d been hoping for appeared in his inbox last night. JOB OFFER jumped out at him from the subject line. His thumb flexed over the email, but he resisted tapping it open. He couldn’t risk anyone overseeing it.
“Smoke,” the captain called from the front passenger seat. “Over there.”
They pulled into the state park through the front entrance. They’d been here two days ago for a fire in a trashcan by the restrooms, and once the week before for a pile of trash on fire in the woods. The park was vast, and rangers only drove through twice a day which left people lots of time to cause trouble.
Ryker jumped out of the side door as the truck stopped. Slipping on his helmet, he strode around the truck to survey the fire, swore under his breath, and took his helmet off. Someone had piled empty candy wrappers and plastic soda bottles on top of glowing embers which caused thick tendrils of gray and black smoke to wave in the air. It was easily put out, the debris scooped out, and the embers doused and buried. Fifteen minutes later, they were back in the truck and headed to town.
Slumping against the seat, he ran a hand through his hair and leaned his head back. Most of their calls were for burned food causing smoking ovens, kids lighting off fireworks and sparking grass fires, smoke detector alarms, and the occasional help with traffic accidents and such.
He needed to keep his mind busy. His job at the forest service was done at five, and if he didn’t get any fire or search and rescue calls in the evening, he had too much time to let his mind wander. Yeah, he needed more action and the email in his inbox would give him exactly that. So why didn’t he feel excited about it?
Dutch and Burt, two of the older firefighters, crossed their hands over their middle as the firetruck bounced down the road.
“Guess I can get back to the movie I was watching.”
“I’m going to finish my nap.”
“What about you, Ryk? Going back to the festival?”
No way. There was no telling what Fox might put him up to if he did. “No.”
The men nudged each other before grinning stupidly. “We heard you have a date.”
How the hell did they know that already? Damn, Fox and his big mouth.
“You heard wrong.”
“That’s too bad. I hear she’s a pretty little thing. Don’t miss your chance, buddy. If you don’t take her out, someone else will.”
A pretty little thing? Who the hell had been talking about Olive’s looks? Ryker’s left hand curled into a fist. Straightening in his seat, his voice turned hard.
“Oh, yeah? Who is talking about taking her out?”
Dutch scoffed good-naturedly. “Ah, come on. With all the young bucks around here, one of ‘em is going to snatch her up. What’s her name? Olive something…”
Burt made an appreciative sound. “I like olives on my pizza.”
“I heard Trevor Miller went into the boutique last week to ask for her number, but he chickened out and bought a gift for his mom instead, so he didn’t look like a dumbass.”
A low, menacing growl rumbled from Ryker’s throat as his bear stirred. His head pressurized with quick-burning fury. All of his muscles tightened as they did when he prepared to shift into his grizzly. The veins on the backs of his hands pulsed as they widened, and the tendons in his neck protruded. Startled by his reaction, Ryker willed himself to calm down but the bear inside him wasn’t listening. It wanted out.
It wanted Trevor Miller.
