Chapter Nine #2
“Bear?” She caught him at the door.
He looked back at her. “Yeah?”
“The bathroom? Where can I find it?”
“Down the hall to the right. Watch for piss on the seat. Although they can shoot a tin can four hundred yards away, they can’t find the toilet bowl.”
She waited until he had time to get outside and she jumped up, shaking her head. She’d slept in Bear’s bed and he’d done the gentlemanly thing and slept on the sofa. There was something immensely absurd about this situation.
Aasia picked up the borrowed shirt and held it against her frame, then brought it to her nose to inhale the scent.
It smelled like him. A blend of rain, spice and honey.
The material was soft and worn, like it was his favorite.
Sliding her arms in, she slid the buttons through the holes, feeling the hug of the flannel against her skin.
The fringed hem nearly reached her knees.
Grabbing her skirt off the floor, she dragged the belt from the loops and swung it around her waist, clasping it. She turned the shirt into a dress. Now no one would know she was wearing Ben’s shirt, except for her. That made her smile. There was something cozy about wearing something of his.
She swiped up her things and her phone and gasped at what she saw. The message she wrote to Bentley had been ‘sent’. Oh no! She snapped her chin up, looking at the cat who played with a loose thread on the blanket.
“Young man, did you do this?”
He paused in his shenanigans and stared back at her innocently.
She rubbed the tension from her forehead.
Taking a deep meditative breath, she tucked her clothes tucked under one arm and the kitten under the other, dangling her boots from one finger.
“You and I are going to have to discuss manners, my friend,” she whispered to the kitten as if he could understand. He lifted a paw and tapped the end of her nose. He was the cutest thing she’d ever seen.
Pausing in the open doorway, she glanced up and down the long hall to make sure the coast was clear.
Although she’d slept alone in Bear’s bed, she doubted any of the cowboys would believe that story.
Tiptoeing to the bathroom she locked the door, dropped her armful onto the floor and placed the kitten down on the sink. “Behave yourself. Got it, mister?”
She looked into the mirror and nearly scared herself.
If there was ever a visual for a drunken mess, she would fit that description perfectly.
Her hair looked like a straw broom. Her make up was smeared. And did she have a speck of vomit on her cheek?
“Gross.”
Scrubbing her face with the bar of soap that smelled like the forest after a downpour, she then dried off with a towel that had a trace of woodsmoke in the material. She did her best calming her wild hair by combing her fingers through the mess. She decided it was a lost cause.
Scooping her belongings up again, she opened the door.
She ran her face—literally—into a bare, hard chest. She looked up—way up—into Echo’s wide-eyed expression. His shock quickly turned into an easy grin that lit his eyes.
Thankfully he had his pants on.
“Morning, Aasia.” His teasing tone made her cheeks warm. “Fancy meeting you here.”
“Morning. I was just…well…” How could she explain what she was doing there? “Using the bathroom.”
“That shirt looks familiar.” He touched the sleeve.
Where was that hole in the floor when she really needed it to swallow her?
“Really? I wouldn’t have a clue why? It’s new. The rustic, worn look is all the rave in women’s fashion these days.”
“Must just be a coincidence.” His expression told her he didn’t buy her story. “You done in there?”
“Yep. All done. It’s yours” She stepped aside so he could pass.
“Looks like you forgot something.” Echo bent, picked up the kitten and scrubbed him behind his furry ears, then handed him over. “Probably wouldn’t want to leave the critter. He’d get stepped on ‘round here. And these.” He swiped up her boots.
Taking her cat and boots, and hiding her embarrassment, she headed toward the front door. She hoped she didn’t run into any more cowboys. She guessed that most of them were already on the land doing their chores. Her presence would be hard to explain.
Outside, she found Bear leaning casually against his truck, his arms folded over his wide chest and looking like a delicious snack.
His Stetson was set lower on his forehead shading his eyes, yet she knew he was watching her walk toward him.
His faded jeans fit him like a second skin, revealing the bulge behind his zipper and the length of his muscular legs to the dirty, worn boots that signified a hard worker.
There was an invisible string pulling her closer to him.
Outside of his rough and powerful good looks he had an energy that drew her.
She’d never felt anything remotely close to how he made her feel.
Remembering her dream that morning made her blush from roots to her toes. Making love with Bear had seemed so real. Her skin remained sensitive.
Too bad her temples ached or she might just drag him back inside and show him a detailed version of her dream.
“Feeling better?” he asked.
“Define better because right now every time I try to use my brain cells I feel a stabbing pain in my skull.”
“That good, huh?” His wide grin made her toes curl.
“I need a long hot shower.” Probably a cold one would be better to rid herself of the heat spiraling in her body.
Once they were seated inside the truck, she said, “I have this vague memory that I vomited while we were kissing. How about never speaking of that?”
“I second that.” He chuckled.
The kitten settled on her lap and she rubbed his head, trying to hide her humiliation. “I was a bit…beside myself last night.”
“We’ve all been there.”
He backed out and drove down the gravel lane, hitting every bump and pothole on the way. She winced in pain. “You’re killing me.”
“It’ll pass,” he said. At least he did slow down some.
Once they were on the narrow country road, some of the pain did ease.
“So, we did make out last night, right? That wasn’t my imagination?”
He laughed. “Are you sure you want to talk about it?”
She wanted to reenact it…when she had a tooth brush and toothpaste to use. “I mean, sure. You must think I was wanting to use you…you know, to lick my wounds.”
“You weren’t?”
“No, of course not. I…well…I wanted to experience that with you. I find you appealing.”
He looked across at her. “Appealing?”
“Attractive.” She was botching the attempt at flirting.
“I find you attractive too.” He swiped off his hat and dropped it between them on the console.
Bear didn’t have what she’d call traditional good looks.
He was ruggedly handsome with prominent square features and broad jaw that reminded her of a warrior ready for battle.
He had thick coal black hair threaded with silver, making her wonder just how old he was.
Although they’d been friends for almost six months, she realized she knew very little about him personally.
They’d always kept their conversations light-hearted, or she was always complaining about Bentley.
Now that she thought about it, Bear seemed to be intentionally keeping his personal life private.
Now was not the time to pry. Or maybe it was. After all, if they made out it would happen again if she had anything to say about it, and she wanted to know more about the person she would be sliding her tongue inside his mouth.
“So, Bear…if I didn’t want to call you Bear, what would I call you?”
“You did a pretty good job calling me sexy last night.” His eyes twinkled.
Her cheeks warmed. “Are you intentionally being elusive?”
“Elusive or cautious?” he said.
“Why don’t you tell me?”
“Fine. You’re a bit all over the place where Bentley’s concerned. It beats me why you’d waste your time on an asshole, but I think I might have cracked the code.” He eased his wide shoulders into the seat.
“The code? Pray tell what that is, Bear.” She looked at him through her eyelashes.
“You knew he wasn’t the one for you from the very beginning.”
“Really?” She sighed. “That makes me feel like even a bigger fool.”
“Darlin’, you’re not a fool.” His eyes softened as he found hers across the seat. “He fulfilled something in you. You stayed as long as you did because you’re a woman who doesn’t quit on folks, even when they deserve their walking papers.” He adjusted his rearview mirror.
Bear could be onto something. “Go on, Dr. Phil.” Her words were less about being a smartass and more about truly feeling as if he knew her.
“Men like Fletcher…they feel powerful when they see a heart like yours coming. They talk pretty, making you feel a way you never felt before, from someone you thought would never look your direction.” A slow breath left him.
“Relationships aren’t supposed to feel like you’re patching holes every time you turn around. ”
She looked through the window, watching horses racing along the fence. Their speed matched the heavy beating of her heart, thumping hard against her chest. She wanted to respond to Bear, but she couldn’t form the words.
“You see the good in people, Aasia. Ain’t a damn thing wrong with that. You see the good in me too. Whether you realize it or not, I never saw myself having a chance with a woman like you.”
She narrowed her gaze at him. “You’re an amazing man.” She laid her fingers on his wrist.
“See what I mean.” His jaw tightened. “You’re a strong one. Not every man is worthy of you.”
“Bear…” Why couldn’t she say what she felt?
“Next time, remember, you don’t have to bleed to prove you’re worthy.”
Tears filled her eyes and it took all her control not to allow them to fall.