Page 7 of Bear

And yet, he’d been the only one to calm my crying little girl this morning, despite my many desperate and failed attempts. My trust had been obliterated, thanks to my ex-boyfriend, but a small tug in my heart told me that Bear was a man who wouldn’t let anything or anyone hurt me or my daughter.

“Okay,” I whispered.

Swallowing around a lump in my throat, I passed Maisie into the cradle of Bear’s thick arms. She stared up at him with a little hiccup. When he tickled her cheek, a small smile spread across her face and she wrapped her tiny fist around his finger.

“Looks like the crisis has been averted, Mama,” Bear said.

My shoulders sagged with relief. I placed a hand to my chest, my heartbeat drumming beneath my palm as a faint flush of heat stole up my neck. If I wasn’t careful, I was going to fall head over heels in love with this man in no time.

Chapter Three

Bear

On Saturday morning, I pounded on Pedro’s bedroom door.

“Let’s go,hermano! You’re late for work!”

Pedro hurtled out of his room, hopping on one foot as he tugged his sneaker on.

“I’m coming, I’m coming.”

I held up the lunch I’d packed for him.

“Slept through your alarm again, didn’t you?”

He scooped the brown paper bag out of my hand with an appreciative glance as he headed for the door.

“Maybe if you and your girlfriend hadn’t stayed up so late chatting, I could have gone to sleep at a decent hour.”

“She’s not my girlfriend,” I countered, taking a playful swipe at his head. “And we both know you would have been awake until three o’clock in the morning playing video games anyway.”

Pedro dodged me easily and snorted.

“The woman let you hold her baby. You. Hector Calderon. A cage fighter. The bruiser of the Alpha Riders MC. I’d say that means she’s your girlfriend. And if it’s not official, you should do something to change that. You know, like ask her out. Bring her flowers and chocolates.”

Pedro’s words made me pause. I really liked Shelby. She was sweet and cute, a little reserved when it came to opening up about herself, but she was a patient mother, despite the way I could see how caring for a baby alone put her limits to the test. I’d be lying if I hadn’t lain awake at night, staring at the ceiling, thinking of her soft skin beneath my hands, her curves pressed against my body…

I shook my head as I climbed into my car and started the engine.

Who was I kidding? Shelby was out of my league anyway. She wouldn’t want anything to do with a beast like me.

“You know, we’re going right by the florist,” Pedro pointed out with a scheming glint in his eyes. “I could help you pick out a bouquet for Shelby. If you wanted to ramp up your flirting game, you could even get Maisie a little bouquet, too. That would really impress Shelby.”

I shot him a sideways look.

“You’re a skinny fifteen-year-old boy who’s never had a girlfriend in his life. Since when did you learn so much about flirting and picking out flowers for a woman?”

Pedro shrugged. “Some guys at school talk about what they do for their girlfriends. I’m just passing along the information in the hopes it might help.”

“I think I can handle it, buddy.”

“But you’ve never shown this much interest in a woman before. I mean, I know there are girls who pop in and out of your club now and then but you never talk about them and you never bring them home. I’ve never even seen lipstick on your collar so it’s pretty obvious you haven’t been entertaining anyone.”

I opened my mouth to protest then snapped it shut. He had a point. Ever since I became the legal guardian for Carlos and Pedro, I’d been too preoccupied and hadn’t bothered to maintain my love life. That was fourteen years ago. Now, here I was at thirty-three, and the only dating experience I had under my belt belonged to my rangy, wild teenage years. I didn’t want that kind of flash-in-the-pan, fumbling, awkward sex anymore.

I wanted something steady. Strong. I wanted something that lasted this time.

“Did I say something wrong?”

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