Diamond Dust

to stop him from leaving a mark on her pale skin.

His bear gloated, then retreated like a coward leaving him to face her alone.

They stared at each other, still breathing heavily, still smashed together in the open doorway of her apartment.

She tried to settle her gasps. “I should be pissed.”

“Don’t kid yourself. We both needed this.”

“That’s what makes me upset.” She loosened her death grip, lowering her leg toward the ground. “I know better than to act without thinking.”

He slipped her down the front of his body, the tight run against his cock driving him wild while strangely filling him with peace. Somewhere, not too far down the road, they would answer the physical craving between them. Even knowing that made it easier to wait.

“Instincts are rarely wrong.” He stepped back and dipped his head politely. “I look forward to exploring that concept with you.”

He waited until she’d closed the door and the deadbolt had turned before making his way back to the limo.

Justin held the door for him. “You smell like the human. I take it she agreed to be your date for the galas?”

Tyler settled into the seat and wondered at it. “I have no idea what she’ll do next, and somehow that amuses me far more than it should.”

Not even Justin’s expression of dismay could bring him down from his high. The next round of voting would begin the following afternoon. He should be obsessing over numbers and finding new ways to gain allies.

Yet all his gut instincts were wrapped up in one fiery-tempered blonde with a penchant for speaking her mind. Who kissed like she could suck his soul from his body.

He was one out-of-control bear, and he liked it.

Chapter Seven

Evan paced his office three times, pausing at the window to examine the parking lot for her car before repeating the motion. Every time the computer announced there was another email, he slipped over to read what was fast becoming a joke of cosmic proportions.

A yawn escaped him, and he scratched his jaw, wondering if he needed a second shower to knock the cobwebs from his brain today.

Sleep had eluded him for most of the night. While he’d been honest with Caroline about his need to start a new direction between them, he’d missed her, damn it. Missed having her complain about the pack. Missed seeing her walk naked from the tub into his bed. Missed how she hogged the covers and then cursed when he tugged them free.

If his mate had already been on the scene, he would have been distracted, but all Caroline’s absence did was showcase even more what was missing in his life.

He wanted his mate, for fuck’s sake. Wanted her to be the one wandering his apartment naked, jumping into bed with him, leaving him breathless and satisfied. What he and Caroline shared had been incredible, but only a shadow of what his life would be.

Lost in limbo between what he’d had and what he had to find was a fucking unhappy place.

He peeked out the window again. Where the hell was she? Caroline was never late for work. Maybe he should phone her. He glanced at his watch and growled in frustration. Only seven thirty. He couldn’t expect her for at least thirty minutes.

Another email pinged, and he swore. He had to do something to pass the time.

Cueing up the security tapes simply aggravated him further. Not only did it take him four tries—he fucking hated computers—but when he did luck out and open the right program it remained a dead end. Lots of little details like his mate wore her nails neatly trimmed, and she had a freckle on the back of one hand. And she was short. That much they could get from the tapes, but nothing else.

The office door swung open at eight and he snapped to his feet. Caroline walked in and this familiar aroma wafted in with her. Familiar, but unexpected.

She clicked her tongue sadly. “Still looking for clues? I wonder if we contacted a few of our neighbors and asked to see—”

Evan moved in closer. “What the hell have you been up to?”

She paused in the middle of putting her purse away. “Hello?”

There was that scent again. “Bears.”

She did exasperated well. “Oh, God, you would not believe the trouble those creatures are.”

“I bet I would.”

She dropped into her computer chair, misery written all over her, and his gut did a triple backflip.

“Caro?”

She paused, gaze fixed on the empty screen. Then she lowered her hands into her lap and twisted to face him. Confusion painted her features. “Never mind me, I had a rough evening.”

“Me too.” Plus, he missed kissing her good morning. “Fuck it all, come here.”

He held his arms open and willed the part of himself to the surface that was pack, and nothing else. The care-for-everyone-and-make-them-happy part.

She curled against him, and he held her tight, her warmth settling on his chest like a cuddly kitten, without the sneeze-inducing allergies. Having her there only increased his confusion, though, as he fought the urge to blurt out the questions flooding his brain.

Instead, he soaked in the companionship she offered, the deep comfort of holding someone who cared for him, who was part of his family. Turning it into a pack issue saved his butt and put things into perspective. He could ache for her without the feelings turning sexual.

Which made it easier to cradle her until she finally sighed, far more relaxed than when she’d basically thrown herself into his arms.

“Better?” he asked.

“Yes.” She leaned back and smiled. “Oh, what a tangled mess I’ve gotten myself into.”

“Really.” Evan considered the dozen emails sitting on the computer and wondered if she already knew, or if they were in addition to her troubles. One thing he had to ask. “Does the tangle involve bears? I mean, at least one male bear?”

She laughed, backing out of his arms. “I had a shower last night, and this morning. I used shampoo, conditioner and body wash, and you can still smell him?”

“That’s not an answer. An answer would involve name and clan affiliation. And a detailed list of why you smell like him after the scrub down. Or don’t I want to know?” He leered.

Damn if she didn’t flush. “Nothing happened.”

“Oh, really?” He brushed a fingertip over what he would have sworn was a hickey on her neck.

“Nothing much, at least.” Caroline collapsed back into her computer chair and stared at the ceiling. “I swear you guys are so damn complicated. I’m doing a Google search for a part of the world where there are no shifters and holidaying there, first chance I get.”

“New York City is shifter free.”

She snapped halfway upright. “You’re shitting me.”

He grinned. “Yeah, I am. Sorry, Caro, you’re stuck as one of the most shifter-educated humans in the world. You get to enjoy our glory no matter where you go.”

“Bastard.”

He pulled a chair up beside her. “Want to talk about it?”

“Not really.”