Chapter 4
Abigail
I swear that man was checking out my ass just now.
I mull over the meeting I just had with the Hinkley brothers while I drive to the site. Dinah and Alona will be very pleased to know that both brothers are, in fact, hot shifters. Especially the younger one. Yowza. And now I’m driving to meet up with him.
Stay professional, Abby.
Hot or not, their presentation impressed me.
I already was walking in wanting to convince them to keep our contract, but now I want this business relationship even more so.
They didn’t strike me as misogynistic pigs who are anti-woman, that’s for sure.
But my independent nature still wants to show those two easy-on-the-eyes brothers I am damn good at what I do.
I pull up to the Edison site, which will be a future dentist's office.
The construction is in the final stages, so I hired some day laborers to get started on the landscaping.
I am impressed with their work so far and hope I can hire a few to be on staff down the line.
Chase is here, supervising everything. He continues to impress me with his work ethic.
“Hi Ms. Bellrose!” he calls to me from the side of the building.
I give him a look.
“Sorry. Hi Abigail!”
Waving back, I turn when I hear another vehicle pulling up. It’s Barrett, in a large dark green pickup truck. I watch him step out of the cab and my pussy quivers. Damnit. I’m pretty annoyed that I find this guy so attractive.
“Sorry, had to stop for gas,” he says with a gruff, but kind, voice.
“No worries. Here, let me introduce you to my employee, Chase. I plan to hire more staff soon, just getting settled in.”
We take our time walking around the site and discussing how the job is going. Barrett seems interested in how I structure my landscaping around water-efficient plants and layouts.
“I guess, coming from Las Vegas, you’re well-versed in drought conditions and water saving science.”
I give him a side-eye.
“You know I moved here from Vegas?”
His handsome face turns a cute shade of pink as he stumbles over his response.
“Bernie and I did our due diligence to learn about you, yes.”
I smile back, which seems to give him some ease.
“Makes sense,” I say, but something tells me there’s more to it. But, whatever, this is business and I am going to show him my company is the one to stick with.
As we wrap up the walkthrough, we end up back in our cars.
“Well, this all looks great so far. Thank you for coming and meeting with us. I think we will hold off on a decision until after this site is ready. I hope that’s OK.”
Giving him a nod, I hope he can read my body language. I plan to maintain this contract and I want him to know that. And to know that Bellrose Landscaping will be perfect to partner with on future builds.
He reaches his hand out to shake mine and when I grab his, an electric heat sizzles up my arm. Our eyes quickly meet and, by his expression, I think he felt something similar.
What the heck.
“Have a good rest of your day,” I say before scurrying off to my car.
* * *
“So, what I am hearing is that you met a hot-ass bear shifter.” Alona says on our video call with Dinah in the evening.
“Yes, that’s what I am hearing as well,” Dinah teases.
“You two are relentless. Yes, yes, he was incredibly sexy. But who cares? I want a business relationship with this man. Not a romantic one.”
“Mmm hmmm,” Alona says before her husband Ford pokes his head over her shoulder.
“Is my wife harassing you, Abby?” he jokes.
“Yes, she sure is. Constantly,” I say with a laugh.
“Well, I’m taking her away,” he says, looking at Alona. “Dinner is ready.”
“A man who cooks dinner? Damn, Alona.” I tease.
“I bet that hot bear shifter knows how to at least grill. Things to think about!” she teases back.
Saying goodnight to the ladies, I hang up. After digging out some Chinese leftovers from the fridge, I plop down on my couch to watch some Scandal reruns.
* * *
The men I hired work through the weekend, and I pay them handsomely to do so. On Monday, I go into the office and find Chase already there.
“We should be all set at the Edison site. Did you want to do a walkthrough before signing off on the work?”
“Yeah, I’ll go do that now, if you’re good here.”
“No problem, boss.”
I drive out to the site, which is quiet compared to when I toured with Barrett.
The landscaping looks absolutely gorgeous.
I can’t imagine the brothers not being happy with the work.
When I walk around to the back, I notice the sliding glass door is ajar.
I call out “Hello?” through the opening. No one answers.
I decide to go inside to make sure no animals got in before I close everything back up.
The building is cool and quiet. Checking each room, I do not see any furry or feathered squatters.
I notice an open window in a room I assume will be an office and step inside to close it.
Once I walk in, a breeze rustles my hair and the door slams shut behind me. Closing the window, I go to leave.
The stupid door won’t budge. Crap. I take out my phone and try to call Chase, but I have zero bars. I need to change my provider from who I used in Vegas, because this keeps happening at random times.
Shit. At least Chase knows where I am and will eventually wonder why I haven’t returned. But I don’t have time to just lounge around. I have a new business to deal with.
Sitting on the floor, I rest my head against the wall. There’s nothing for me to do since my phone has no service. Closing my eyes, I drift off to sleep.
I wake to the sound of someone trying to open the door.
“Hello? I’m stuck inside of here!” I shout.
A man’s voice yells something back, but I can’t make out what he says. I hear him continue to try to open the door, followed by sounds of his body slamming against the wood.
Suddenly, I hear a deafening roar and the door slams open. An enormous brown bear stands before me, baring his sharp teeth.
Everything goes black.