Chapter 5
ZACK
Why did you send him away? My bear was frantic, though he couldn’t explain why.
I opened the front door and windows, trying to get rid of the gasoline stink. Gods, I hated that smell, and it didn’t belong in my home. I swished a dishcloth in the air hoping that would help, but it just made me more nauseous.
Why do you care about a random guy?
He couldn’t give me an answer and blamed the gasoline stench, saying it was making him dizzy.
I picked up my coffee and tipped it in the sink.
Was that the second or third one that’d gone cold?
I’d lost count. I made another and was determined to drink it.
Sitting on the porch, I studied the tire tracks left by Ford’s car.
I wouldn’t have been surprised to discover he broke down halfway to town.
“Why doesn’t this taste as good as usual?” I swirled the now lukewarm warm coffee around in the mug. It tasted of nothing but with the added bonus of a swig of guilt.
Damn, no one invited a stranger to stay the night because they’d been ripped off by a bunch of larcenists. Who did that? Not me. So why did I feel so bad?
But I’d see Ford tomorrow when I returned his clean clothes and that reminded me they needed washing.
Picking up his jeans and shirt, that stomach-turning stench of gasoline wafted over me, and I gagged.
But another piece of fabric fell out as I picked them up.
Briefs. Yikes, I didn’t give him underwear, so he was going commando when he left.
I froze, picturing Ford wearing no underwear under those tight jeans he’d put on. Goosebumps marched over my skin, and I shivered. Closing my eyes, I dumped all the clothes in the machine, chose a long hot cycle and left it to run.
What now? I wasn’t working today because it was the weekend, but I had plenty of things to do around the house and garden. That shed should be cleaned out, but I decided the mice could stay and the clean-up was postponed.
I gave up on the coffee and sat with my thoughts on the porch a little longer until a vehicle rumbled along the road, one that was gasping and on its last legs. But the sound was familiar because it had been here earlier.
I shot out of the chair and leaned against the railings, wondering what excuse Ford would have this time. He couldn’t pretend he’d lost his way.
He didn’t bother closing the driver’s door when he got out. But his expression was uncertain as he glanced around and refused to meet my gaze. There was more than a hint of gasoline about him, and I patted my chest, trying not to gag.
“The B&B is closed.”
Huh? “Just because the owner isn’t at the desk doesn’t mean he’s not in the building or somewhere close.”
I was gripping my empty mug because Ford smelled less gassy than before and his underlying scent intrigued me.
What? No way.
Gasoline, I clarified to my beast.
“No. He’s gone gone. The place is closed up and there’s a sign on the door saying he’s on vacation.”
Bobby had never taken a holiday since I’d known him. Why now when I needed him? I considered smashing the lock on the B&B to let Ford in, but that would be breaking and entering, and I didn’t want the local police chief on my ass.
“Please, let me stay. I’ll take that tent you offered or the shed. I don’t mind mice, though my beast might treat them as a snack.”
Had I offered him the tent? I’d thought about it.
I sighed because Ford was starting work on Monday. Maybe his new boss would offer him a bed.
“Fine.”
His broad smile reappeared, and I almost shaded my eyes it was so bright.
“So is the tent in the shed?”
I could have made him drag it out and set it up, assuming no critters had nibbled the fabric. But I had a spare bedroom, and I wasn’t using it.
Do it, do it. Give him a proper bed.
Stop nagging me.
“You don’t have to do that.” I walked to the doorway. “You can sleep in my second bedroom. But we’ll have to share the bathroom.”
His eyes darted from me to the shed and upward as if he was examining the roof. Was he thinking the shed was in better shape than my cabin?
“Thank you so much. I’ll repay you, just not today.”
“There’s no thanks needed, but your clothes are in the wash. You can hang them out when they’re done.”
It was then I remembered he wasn’t wearing underwear, and it was my turn to look anywhere but at his crotch.
“As soon as I get paid, I’ll be out of here.”
That probably wouldn’t happen for a month. Four weeks was a long time to share my cabin with a guy I didn’t know.
“You must be hungry.” I’d taken a look in his car before he left. Candy wrappers and chip bags littered the floor. The guy likely hadn’t eaten anything that wasn’t brown in a while. “I’ll make you something to eat.”
“That’s so kind of you, but I can cook.”
“Sit.”
He dumped the suitcase and pack in the spare bedroom while I rummaged in the fridge.
“I have leftover chicken and rice, and I’ll make a salad.”
He didn’t protest or say he was vegetarian, so I heated up the food and washed the vegetables. Ford insisted on chopping the vegetables, so I left him to it.
“You’re not eating with me?” Ford was shoveling food into his mouth as he sat at the kitchen table.
“Nah. I don’t usually eat until later.” I could have nibbled on something—food, not Ford—but I was curious about his beast.
“How long since you’ve shifted? Your beast might enjoy a hunt.” I extended an arm. “This is the perfect place. We have forests, lakes, a glacier, and mountains.”
I was giving him an opening to tell me about his beast.
“Mine needs a lot of space.”
He wasn’t any kind of bear, but polar bears couldn’t ramble around an urban area either, so that wasn’t unusual.
“Mine too.” I leaned forward. “You’ve probably scented I’m a bear, a polar bear to be precise.”
If Ford didn’t take the hint and tell me who he was, I’d wonder if he had a problem with shifting.
“Mine is a tad bigger than yours.”
Elephant? How many animals were larger than a polar bear?
Ford cocked his head. “Most shifters are not aware that some so-called mythical animals are part of the community.”
My mind flipped through lists of imaginary beasts. Griffins? Oh, a phoenix. Nah, he said he was bigger than a polar bear. So I ruled that out. Unicorn? That would be so cool.
“I can fly, I have scales, and I breathe fire.”
He was giving me a riddle, but my head was practically rotating. Unless there were other scaly beasts who produced fire, Ford was a dragon. Oh my gods.
“Oh wow. That’s definitely a first for me.” I was eager to see him but didn’t want to appear like a child, begging for a treat.
“Would you like to see him?”
“Would I?” Despite not wanting to appear overeager, I leaped up. I probably looked like a puppy.
Ford grinned and moved to the porch. He pointed about a hundred yards away. “I’ll shift over there.” He strode off, still wearing his clothes.
I shucked off my clothing, and my bear took his fur before I got my underwear off. I wasn’t the only enthusiastic one. But instead of lumbering into the woods, my beast stood on his hind legs, towering above my guest’s car.
Ford got undressed and scales rippled over his body. His neck elongated and a tail appeared, before horns sprouted from his head.
Oh my gods. A part of me had thought he might have been yanking my chain about being a dragon. His beast was yellowish with swaths of purple. Oh, those were royal colors in some cultures. Had his ancestors been kings or emperors?
Though my polar bear was land-based, neither of us wanted to move, we were stunned into silence as the dragon spread his wings and the sun glinted on his scales.
There’s no more gasoline smell.
Yeah, that was weird how that vanished when he took his scales.
But I didn’t give a damn about his smell.
My bear shuffled closer and a breeze sprang up.
It ruffled the leaves on the trees that surrounded the cabin, but it also brought with it a new scent.
And it was delicious and enticing, and I wanted to grab it and wrap it around me. Perhaps I could keep it prisoner.
The dragon fixed its glittering green eyes on me.
My bear was still walking upright, and his body swayed as the wind increased and the dragon’s real scent, not the one cloaked in gasoline, reached us.
The dragon extended his wings, and they created huge shadows that blanketed the earth in dark gray.
Ford wasn’t just a random guy. His scent announced that he was my mate.