Page 14 of Bear with Me
"I left it at the office." He sighed. "Like I said, bad day."
"Do you mind if I …" I held out my arm, and he side-stepped closer until he huddled against my side. Even through my thick winter coat, I vibrated with his shivers.
"Thank you," he said. "I'm not usually this needy and incapable, I swear."
"You're not," I said. "There's nothing wrong with forgetting a few essentials before a big vacation. It's annoying, sure, but it's not a deal breaker on whether we can be mate—friends."
"I suppose not," he said, either missing or ignoring my accidental slip. "You might change your mind when I pick out groceries."
"I don't mind vegan cuisine." My youngest brother's spouse was vegan. Whenever we ate together, I tried the dishes my mom made for him, and they were delicious.
"Being vegan is only part of it," he said. "I'm allergic to maple syrup and honey." The last word was mumbled into my armpit.
I leaned toward him, with my mouth close to his ear. "This might surprise you, but I don't really like honey."
His cheeks darkened a shade. "Are you saying my favorite children's books lied to me?"
I laughed. "My family loves honey and claims I'm making a huge mistake when I pass on the stuff. It's too sticky for me. I like sweet that doesn't stick to the roof of my mouth."
The swish of an automatic door said we'd arrived at our destination. I followed Blake inside and grabbed a cart. Together, we filled it with healthier food than I normally ate. I reached for a bag of potato chips, but Blake insisted his kale chips would make me forget all about them. He also promised his chocolate chip cookies would taste even better with applesauce than they did with eggs. I could eat a whole half-gallon container of applesauce in one sitting, but I was still skeptical. Only Blake could talk me into trying such strange food.
My bear was already smitten with my human mate. I had a feeling I wouldn't be far behind.
CHAPTER 8
BLAKE
Ever since weleft the general store, I'd been thinking about the Christmas decorations. Lights and pine garland lined the eaves of our little cabin, but we didn't even have a sprig of mistletoe to hang in the bedroom doorway.
Not that I was thinking about kissing Ollie, even when his plump lips dipped close to whisper in my ear as we hopped into the back seat of our rideshare together, our packages taking up most of the hatchback.
"What happens if your cookies ruin Christmas?" he asked.
We'd ruined our lunch appetites with all the free samples. I thought those days were long gone, but not in Pinevale on Christmas Eve.
"I'll have to come up with something else for dessert." If he was willing, I would offer myself on a platter. "Can we stop up here at the general store? I forgot something."
Ollie frowned at me, but he said nothing as our driver signaled and then pulled into the forty-five-degree-angle parking in front of the big window through which he'd watched me earlier.
"Thanks!" I hopped out. I was relieved when he didn't follow me inside.
Jogging to the Christmas aisle, I grabbed a quaint little porcelain cabin that looked a lot like ours. It sat next to a snow globe that also looked like our cabin. I couldn't resist. I scooped it up, too. In the next aisle, I stacked several boxes of colorful lights. Finally, I balanced everything on top of a two-foot tree box and carried it up to the counter.
The same young woman from earlier smirked at me. "I knew you'd be back."
"How?" I grinned. "I didn't even know I'd be back."
"You two are adorable together. It's sweet."
I blinked at her. "Me and …"
She pointed out the window to our waiting car, where Ollie's frown was still partially visible through the foggy windshield.
"Like I said, adorable." She rang up my items. "I'm giving you the after-Christmas discount," she whispered. "We're only open for another hour. I figure that's close enough."
"Thank you."
She packed the breakables into boxes and then placed them in yet another paper bag. Ollie had grumbled about paying five dollars for a roll of paper towels, and here I was getting more unbleached paper for free.
