Page 13 of Bearnapped at the Altar

That wasn’t true, I thought to myself stubbornly. After all, I was the one who’d spent the last three years with Gideon Silverclaw in some capacity. But from the hard expression on Barrett’s face, the slight rumble that kept slipping out of him, and the downright protective vibe… “You know something I don’t.”

“We wouldn’t have taken this job if there weren’t big implications,” he added.

My ruined wedding dress offered no defense against the chill that went down my spine.

“Are there clothes here?” I asked, motioning to my wedding dress. “I keep expecting this thing to wind up around my waist. Be thankful you don’t have to ever wear a strapless bra. They’re the absolute worst.”

Barrett unbuttoned his shirt, revealing his muscular chest. There was a healthy dusting of hair on his pecs and his abs, but not enough to hide the impressive definition. He slipped the shirt down his shoulders, and I turned toward the window to keep from staring.

But the bear had a way of drawing me back in. I turned to find him with the shirt hanging from his finger. An offering. From a half-naked security guy I wasn’t sure I could trust.

But moon knew I wanted to.

“You can sleep in this tonight, and I’ll get you clothes tomorrow.” The rumble was in full force now, like it increased in proportion to how much clothing he wasn’t wearing.

Wouldn’t you like to find out?

“I can come shopping with you.”

His expression said hell no.

“I can be hard to fit.” I lobbied for my freedom. Surely he didn’t mean that I’d have to stay in this cabin indefinitely. “Women’s sizes don’t make any sense.”

“I’ll figure it out.” Oh, the bear had an answer for everything. “It’s best that no one knows you’re here.”

“They know I’m with you,” I reminded him. “What about you? Are you willing to stay here indefinitely? Don’t you have a family to go home to?”

His expression went dark at the word family. He bristled, and he’d never been more bear.

“Want to talk about it?” The answer was most definitely no, and most likely not with me, but I had to at least try to make it better.

He let out a long sigh. “I do have someone to go home to. But she’s away right now.”

Why did my stupid heart just sink? It wasn’t like Barrett was a contestant on Moonlight Mates. I’d paid him to rescue me. This was his job.

But there had been something about the way he’d held me in the helicopter when I was absolutely terrified that made me feel safe.

Okay, it made me feel more things than safe, but I needed to push that deep down into a place I’d soon forget about.

Of course Barrett was happily married. The bear was gorgeous and successful, and he seemed like a pretty nice guy. I needed to remind myself not every man I met was an eligible bachelor. Life wasn’t a reality show.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” I said. I didn’t specify what part I was sorry about.

A dreamy smile spread across his face. “Natalie, she’s my daughter, wants to be the first bear shifter to go to the moon. And beyond that, because why limit yourself to one planet, right? So she begged me to go to a semester of space school. How could I say no?”

“There’s no way you could.”

He shook his head, and he looked like he was about to burst with pride. “Absolutely not. But sometimes, I start talking to her, forgetting she’s not here. It’s gonna take me a while to get used to it.”

“I bet. How is your wife dealing with it?”

Any good feelings that had been evoked by talking about his daughter descended into darkness. “She passed away. Three years ago. Cancer.”

I could feel the pain in every word. “I’m so sorry. I lost my mom to cancer too. Nothing’s ever the same.”

He shook his head, like he was lost without her. “That’s the truth. You just gotta keep going, and the hard part is, so many people don’t see the gaping hole in your life that will never be filled.”

“I get it. It’s not the same as losing a mate, but my life has been…pretty much a disaster since I lost my mom. She was my rock. She would’ve been the one that kept me out of this mess.” A yawn overtook my entire being. We’d gotten to the cabin right before sunset. “I’m so sorry. My body is about to shut down. Can’t party like I used to now that I’ve turned forty.”

---