Page 19 of Bearnapped at the Altar

“If it makes you feel any better, I’ve been thinking about how good your butt looks in those cargo pants all morning.”

Told you, my bear said.

“Have you?” I rumbled.

“I could lie and tell you I’ve been completely consumed by stopping Silverclaw, but you’ll realize soon enough, I don’t have that kind of focus. And I’m way too honest. So maybe I’ve been enjoying the distraction.”

Our gazes caught, and I had no idea what to do next.

My bear had many ideas. Most of them involved stripping her out of the clothes I just bought for her and backing her up against the bed…

“Everything okay in here?” Bellamy’s voice was an unwelcome but much needed interruption.

“Fantastic.” Tegan pulled away from me and sat at the little table outside of the kitchenette. “Were you able to access my phone and email?”

“I did. I wanted to check with you first before I made any moves.” He took the seat beside her like he hadn’t walked in on his boss about to kiss a client. There was no fucking way he didn’t know what was going on, and I was sure to hear all about it later. I deserved that. I knew better, but something about this woman was making me want to abandon all the rules.

He powered up the device, and after a few taps, he slid it over to Tegan for her to log in.

“Whoa.” She jumped back in her chair when the screen popped up. Once she turned it around, we could see it was the homepage for Moonlight Mates. “Wasn’t expecting current browser settings to open as I’d left them. You’re good.”

“He is,” I said.

Tonight you’ll show her that you’re better. My bear was pretty proud of himself for that one.

It took everything I had not to groan. My traitorous cock twitched inside those cargo pants Tegan liked so much.

But I needed to focus, because having access to her computer would tell us a lot of what we needed to know about the current situation. Not everything, of course. But Tegan would be able to read through the subtext and subtleties, and Bellamy would be able to blast through the rest.

If things went smoothly, which was hardly a guarantee.

CHOSEN BEASTLERETTE STILL MISSING was the headline on the site. The story went through the details of what we already knew. The shifters who’d chased us had lost our path when we got into the helicopter, and if they had any idea of where he landed, they didn’t own up to it here. There was a video of the show host wiping tears away from her eyes.

“My foremost concern is for Tegan’s safety, and we’re working with local and national authorities, both shifter and human, to identify her kidnapper.” The woman looked directly into the camera. “Tegan, if you can see this, know that we’re looking for you, and we’ll do whatever it takes to guarantee a safe return to the Moonlight Mates. Gideon is still waiting for you at the altar.”

“Way to make a threat look like concern. She’s good like that.” Tegan turned the laptop toward her again and tapped on the keys. “There’s no way Gideon’s standing idly by, mourning my disappearance. He’s either putting his beastly wolves on the case to track me down, or he’s using this opportunity to his advantage.”

“What types of things would he consider an advantage?” I had a pretty good idea, but I wanted to hear Tegan’s perspective.

“The only things he really loves are money and control. He’ll be furious that he’s lost control over me, but of course, he’ll be looking at ways he can turn this into an opportunity. Yup, right here—he’s doing a press conference.”

She turned the screen so we could all see it. Gideon stood at the altar where he planned to claim Tegan, still in his tux, looking forlorn. If I were human, if I hadn’t had dealings with him before, I might have felt bad for him.

“I hope that you’ll never feel the heartache of seeing your beautiful mate coming toward you and having her stolen from your grasp,” he said. “I’ll do whatever it takes to find Tegan Reynolds.”

“Do you have any idea what would’ve motivated someone to kidnap her?” a reporter asked. “Do you have any enemies?”

He shrugged. “Envious business associates, perhaps, but I wouldn’t waste time associating with anyone who would resort to such barbaric measures of revenge. This seems like a rogue attack. All the Moonlight Mates Beastlerettes have been moved to a safe location, and everyone is safe and accounted for.”

“Lies.” Tegan groaned. “Half of them bailed the moment they weren’t picked.”

“Is it true that Tegan Reynolds is your former employee?” another reporter asked.

“It is,” he said without missing a beat, but my bear didn’t miss the way his Adam’s apple nervously bobbed. “Tegan was one of our best tour leaders. She had a bright future with the company.”

“Then why was she fired?”

His expression darkened, only for a moment. A human might not see it, but my bear wouldn’t miss it. “She wasn’t.”

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