Page 25 of Bearnapped at the Altar

“They must know now.”

“Probably. Wouldn’t surprise me if they got gag orders too.”

“I’ve got Bellamy working on hacking into their system, but Gideon will be prepared for that. If we need physical proof, we’ll have to get into the offices.”

I realized something. “There’s no way production, or Gideon’s goons, wouldn’t have gone through my stuff that I’d left behind on set. They’ll find your business card. They’ll know you were the one who has me.”

“There’s a nationwide network of shifter security that will make sure that doesn’t happen.” He growled. “My whole family’s in the business. Silverclaw and his goons might know I was the one who took you, but you can trust that the trail disappeared once we were out of their sight.”

“So, what do we do now? All my evidence is gone, Gideon will do whatever it takes to track me down, and we’re in this tiny cabin together until further notice.”

“We’ll worry about the big stuff tomorrow,” he said.

I raised a brow. “Bellamy will be pissed if we don’t have a rock solid plan when he arrives.”

“Probably.”

“Bet he’s gonna be the life of the part at the Stepchild tonight.” I scoffed. If anyone needed a one-way ticket to Red Heaven, it was him. The bear definitely needed to loosen up.

“He’s a good guy. Hard worker. He’s cracked cases that I thought were impossible.” Barrett ran his fingers along my jaw. They were rough, but his touch was so light. “But I don’t want to talk about him anymore.”

“Then what do you want to talk about?”

“I was hoping you’d want to show me what you would do if I took you to Red Heaven.”

Hot. Freaking. Damn. My lady parts pulsed in agreement.

“I don’t know.” After I inched away from him, I sat up. I could barely breathe when I looked at him, with his chin in that big hand. “I think it would be more effective if we went there. We might have to stop at the drugstore and get some hair dye?—”

“No.” Barrett growled. “Your hair is fucking gorgeous and you’re not ruining it for some cheap disguise.”

“Bossy bear,” I teased, but I appreciated that more than he’d ever know.

“Damn straight.” He crawled toward me in a way that made my mouth water. “And I believe you were about to give me a show.”

My heart pounded. “Once I saw Red Heaven on The Real Werewives, I had some really dirty fantasies about it.” I pulled the sweatshirt over my head. The sports bra had been functional, but now, I wished it was a lacy little number that gave me killer cleavage. But I was used to working with what I had, and I’d make the most of it. I ran my fingers lightly over the fabric, my touch enough to send me through the roof. “I dreamed of meeting a shifter there—maybe a chance encounter, maybe someone who already knew he couldn’t live without me, who wanted me so badly he couldn’t resist taking me right then and there.”

“Oh, yeah?” Barrett’s voice was deep and growly. “I bet the two of you had been dancing all night. Killer band. Place was packed, pushing you closer, until you’re grinding against each other.”

So the bear was down for a little roleplay. That was a twist I didn’t see coming. “At first, I was a little shy about having his hands all over me, but it felt so good I gave in.”

He shook his head and inched closer. “No, you didn’t. If you let the bear touch you, it was because you wanted him to. Not because you gave up.”

“Of course. But I felt a little self-conscious at first. All those people. Watching us.”

“Every shifter in the room wished he could have you.” Barrett pushed himself away from the mattress, his muscles bulging as he rose. “But not one of them dared make a play for you, because you belonged to him.”

I fought the tinge of disappointment he didn’t say me instead of him. But I had to go easy on him. Not even an hour ago, he was beating himself up for these feelings because he was still mourning his mate. I wanted this to be his fantasy as much as mine. He deserved to have his world rocked. I might not be able to pay him for the job, but I could give him that.

No, I wasn’t using sex in exchange for payment. This went way deeper than that. I wanted to see if I could help this bear put his broken heart back together. Didn’t mean we couldn’t have a little fun while doing it.

Maybe I needed a few things put back together too.

His mouth dropped as I got up off the bed.

“It took everything I had not to rip my clothes off right on the dance floor.” I turned around, so he got a full view of my ass, and slipped my leggings off my hips in my best burlesque worthy move. We’d had some lessons on Moonlight Mates, and they were finally coming in handy. It felt awkward, but from the fire in Barrett’s eyes, I’d pulled it off. “I wanted to see if he’d follow me to Red Heaven.”

Barrett rose from the bed in a move that could only be described as pure bear. His body was rumbling, and I almost expected him to shift. Sweet moon, did I want that?

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