Page 4 of Bear

The one bright spot in all this mess was Bear.

He’d been so kind last night, taking care of my stroller. Someone had clearly beaten him halfway to hell though and that worried me. I didn’t need any more trouble than what I already had.

After Bear had walked me to my apartment, he’d waited until I was safely inside before he softly said good-night, and headed down the hall. Despite his threatening presence - broad as a bull, thick with muscle, and peppered with bruises - he never pressured me, never crowded my personal space. He was polite, a true gentleman, even if his appearance might suggest otherwise.

Maisie let out another cry with the full-force of her lungs.

“Oh, sweetie, I wish you would just go to sleep,” I pleaded, kissing her forehead.

She’d been so fussy for weeks. At first, I just thought she was teething. But now I was beginning to wonder if she was picking up on my stress levels. Ever since Justin had walked out on us, I felt like I was flirting with a nose dive into a full-blown panic attack, every minute of every day. I had an eight-month-old baby to take care of and my boyfriend had left me. There was barely a thousand dollars to my name. Maybe if I could get to Arizona, I had a friend there who might be willing to let me stay with her for a while. I had no family to turn to - my mother would crow about my relationship blowing up in my face like she always said it would, and my father had never been in the picture.

Maisie squirmed in my arms. She was crying so loud that her cheeks were turning red. I’d managed to get two or three hours of sleep yesterday but as night faded into morning, Maisie still hadn’t calmed down. Throwing a jacket over my pajamas, I bundled her into the stroller and made my way outside for a walk.

Merry Field, California wasn’t exactly a cozy small town. Perched at the edge of the desert, it was a scrappy, dusty place. Towards the north, there were higher-end homes, clean and crisp suburbs with in-ground pools and gleaming sports cars. But for the most part, Merry Field belonged to the people like me who were barely holding on by sheer stubbornness.

Maisie’s little pink fists waved in the air with indignation as she continued to cry. Even though it was only eight o’clock in the morning, the sun already blazed hot and unforgiving. I squinted against the brightness, shielding my eyes with one hand, realizing belatedly that I’d left my sunglasses on the kitchen counter.

A sharp whistle pierced the air behind me. Bracing myself, I turned. If someone was catcalling me, I was certain that would be the last straw to make me snap and go absolutely batshit crazy.

Bear stood on the sidewalk and raised his arm in a wave. His face looked even worse than last night - swollen and purple-blue. But I welcomed the sight of him and waited as he caught up, falling into step beside me.

“Glad to see you two ladies this morning,” Bear said.

I managed a tired smile. “It’s more like we haven’t actually gone to bed yet.”

He grimaced in sympathy.

“Fussy baby?”

I closed my eyes and nodded. Before I could say anything else, Bear bent over the stroller and touched Maisie’s cheek. Then he placed his big hand on her chest and rubbed in small, soothing circles.

Her crying dissipated until she stopped completely. Her lower lip trembled and her big blue eyes were still watery but she stared up at Bear with wonder. She heaved a sigh and her eyes drifted closed.

“No way,” I said, my voice rough with exhaustion. “I’ve been begging her to sleep all night and you just…made her doze off in thirty seconds. How did you do that?”

“Practice.” Bear removed his hand from Maisie’s chest and tucked her blanket tighter around her.

I raised my eyebrows. “You have a kid of your own?”

He shook his head.

“I took my brothers in when they were little. At the time, Carlos was three years old and Pedro was ten months. I had to learn fast.”

I stared at Bear, trying to imagine him raising two young boys. He seemed to have a gentle touch with children, considering how easily Maisie had slipped off to sleep.

“What about your parents?” I asked softly.

Bear shook his head and glanced away.

“They weren’t really the type you could rely on, you know?”

My heart ached for him. It didn’t sound like life had been kind to him.

“I’m so sorry,” I whispered.

Bear shook his head, waving me off.

“It’s in the past. The boys are teenagers now and at this age, I’m learning a whole new set of skills. Changing diapers and burping babies is a lot easier than navigating the teen years, by the way.”

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