ROMANCE: Bear Naked Passion (Billionaire Bear Trio Book 2) (7 page)

Their future.

Heather would have to deal with the disappointment from both families, and Jake’s anger, but she had a feeling her friends would be firmly on her side. She snuggled against Dante, knowing that they really should shower. Like she had the energy for that.

When her cell phone buzzed, nudging her awake, Heather realized she’d fallen asleep. Dante was beside her, a little smile on his face. “Better answer that. I cleaned up for both of us. You may smell like the hotel’s Ivory, but you’re not sweaty any more. Better answer that.”

Heather followed the sound of her phone. It was on the nightstand along with her purse, a bottle of water, and a candy bar—her favorite, how had he known that?

“Hello?” she asked, not even looking at the number.

“Hey, where are you?” Shelly asked, sounding much more awake and much,
much
less satisfied than Heather was. There was a huge amount of noise around her, and Heather could pick out the voices of several of their friends.

“I um…I’m with a friend.”

“Dante? Is that his name? Steve is so pissed at you. Jake too as I understand it. Did you break things off? Did they really ask you to bail Jake out?”

“Steve did,” Heather replied. “I haven’t broken things off with Jake. Not yet,” Heather said with a sigh. “I suppose I should, huh?”

“No need to, in my ever so humble opinion, Heather. Did you hear what happened? He had his fingers in the panties of a stripper.” She paused, consulting with someone else. “Sorry, Roxi tells me he fingered three strippers under their panties, and the girls are furious because they told everyone—especially Steve and Jake—that there was to be absolutely no touching at all. The boy is in for a world of hurt, and there is no way anyone who knows you would believe you’re staying with him. Not even Steve the asshole who called me, asking me to bail Jake out. Told him no can do. It is time Jake actually learned to grow up. Don’t bail him out of this, Heather.”

“I have no plans to.”

“So um…we shouldn’t expect you back tonight?” Shelly sounded hopeful, and Heather realized just how much her friends had disliked Jake.

“I don’t think so. I’ll be by tomorrow.” She turned to Dante. “Tomorrow good?”

“Not too early, tell them to have a great night, on me. I’ll reimburse any expenses they incur.”

“You don’t need to do that.” She stroked her hand over his chest, planting a kiss above his left nipple.

“Yes, I do. They look out for you and I appreciate that.”

“So who is this one in a million guy?” Shelly asked. “He sounds too good to be true, from what I hear. Sounds like a great one night stand.”

“He isn’t.”

“No?” Shelly asked, surprised. “You didn’t go to the chapel and get married, did you?” She hummed that famous song and Dante chuckled.

“No, I didn’t marry anyone. Dante’s just…special. I feel like I’ve known him all my life.” She met his eyes and the expression he gave her back warmed her heart. “He’s the one I think I was always meant to find.”

There was silence on the line, then Shelly breathed out a long sigh. “Wow, that is intense. You’re sure of this?”

“More than sure, Shelly. You’ll see him tomorrow. Promise.” Heather said, and ended the call.

“So…you’re mine?” Dante asked, lifting a single eyebrow.

“Yours for eternity, as long as you’ll have me.”

“Oh, I’ll have you. Again and again, in as many ways as possible.”

“Pervert,” she shot back, unable to stop a giggle.

“Your pervert,” he retorted. “For all eternity, as long as you’ll have me.”

“I do.”

“I do, too.”

THE END

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Swipe Right for Vampire

Chapter 1

Jenna examined herself in front of the mirror. Outside night had just fallen, and the shafts of light from the streets were slashing through her window. It was a calm night, yet she wished that she was feeling something else inside. The red dress she wore clung to her curvaceous figure, its plunging neckline sure to divert the eyes of any man. She was a bigger woman but used it to her advantage where she could, knowing that she had assets and she had to use them, even though some men didn't appreciate them. Her long blonde hair bounced in curls, unfurling down just past her shoulders. She wore dark red lipstick, and her eyeshadow made her look alluring and exotic. Perhaps even a little bit mysterious. 

But as she looked in the mirror she saw her glassy, empty eyes stare back at her, challenging her.

Why are you doing this?

She licked her lips and swallowed hard, for there was a crawling feeling of shame inside her, of self-loathing that just wouldn't seem to quit. She stayed in front of that mirror for a long time, examining her face, wondering how attractive she really was, or if she was at all. Perhaps it was all just an illusion and the image she had in her mind was nowhere near reality. Perhaps it was all just a waste of time and she would have been better served tearing off the dress, slipping into something more comfortable, and sitting in front of the TV with a sad movie and snacks. At least then she wouldn't have to bear the weight of disappointment like she had done so often before.

She pulled out her phone and slid her fingers across the screen, tapping to open Tinder. New pictures were there waiting for her to swipe left or right, although her thumb was tired for all of the time she had spent on the app. Jenna tapped the small orange dot and looked at all the matches she had, but scrolled down to get to the man she had arranged to meet, to look at his profile one more time before the veil was stripped away and they saw each other in the flesh for the first time.

His name was Liam and his profile said he was forty, although he looked much younger than that. Jenna was only twenty-nine herself and forty was a little older than she usually went for but his first message had stood out from the rest, and the men around her age she had been going for hadn't been working out, so it seemed sensible to try something new. His pictures were striking, and there was something about them that unsettled Jenna, but in a good way. His piercing blue eyes seemed to stare right into her soul, even though it was only a picture, and for all the people she had been speaking to on Tinder he was the one that she had been drawn to the most.

Yet it was happening at a time when she was feeling jaded with online dating. She had met a few men off Tinder and spoken to many before Liam. Many of them had been rude and upon matching had showered her with abuse, saying that because she was a bigger woman she didn't deserve love and nobody would want to fuck her, and even though Jenna knew that they were worthless pieces of scum it still chipped away at her resolve and made her wonder what led her to Tinder in the first place.

Even the dates hadn't been amazing. Mostly they had been boring, or they had been assholes in person as well, and each one had felt like a colossal waste of time. Would Liam be the same? Only time would tell, but sadly Jenna had to admit that she didn't have anything better to do with her time. Ever since Lizzie had moved away Jenna had been lonely. She was at a point in her life where it was difficult to meet new people and make new friends, and it seemed like whenever she tried to reconnect with someone over Facebook they would chat for a little while but meeting up for a drink never transpired, and she was left craving company.

It didn't help that wherever she seemed to look people were getting engaged or moving forward with life, and for the past few years she had been stagnant. When she signed up for Tinder it was with the intention that she would find someone and start a relationship or dating or remind herself what sex was like because it had been longer than she cared to admit, and so many people on Tinder seemed obsessed with sex that it was off-putting, and she'd seen enough erections in the past couple of months to last her a lifetime. Some of them the owners should not have been proud of, and it did nothing to Jenna than fill her with shame that she was using a site populated by such obsessed people, like she was just there to be an audience for their showmanship, and it was an ugly reminder that life wasn't as beautiful as it seemed in the movies, or in the pictures that other people put on Facebook.

Chapter 2

But then Liam had come along. When it came up that they had matched she hadn't even remembered that she had swiped right for him, and almost as soon as they matched she received a message. As she prepared for her date she scrolled back through their conversation and smiled at some of the things they had said to each other. Unlike the rest of the people she had encountered on Tinder, Liam was eloquent and had a way with words that captured her attention. Not once was he crude or uncouth, and he never threatened to send her a picture of his erection or start up a conversation that revolved around sex. They talked about a lot of things: culture, the arts, the world around them. He espoused his philosophy on life and she found him to be a great thinker, someone who had a towering intellect and made her feel like she was actually talking to someone with ambition, who wanted to be something in the world, unlike everyone else who just wanted to go around and indulge their baser, primitive instincts when there was so much more to be discovered.

The more she spoke to him, the less she spoke to anyone else, even if she found them attractive. She and Liam had no claim on each other but she felt guilty whenever she saw someone else try and talk to her, as she knew that she would be jealous if he was talking to another woman. Whenever she saw that she had a new message from him a thrill swept through her and her heart leaped. Often she found herself thinking about him even when they were not talking, imagining the possibility of meeting and what could unfold after that. Suddenly, her mind whirled with a future of what could be, and a smile played upon her face, but almost instantly it faded, for she thought of her other date and how she seemed cursed. Eventually it would end, for always things had to end, and although she wanted to be excited and look forward to the date she had a feeling that it would inevitably end up with her alone again, back in the chilly bosom of Tinder, scrolling through hundreds of profiles, each one more desperate than the last.

When they had been talking about the date she had suggested meeting for a coffee in the daytime because they tended to be more relaxing, and she loved the idea of a lingering date. One of the best dates she had ever been on had started in the early morning and ended with a kiss under the moonlight... sadly, it hadn't gone any further after that, and to this day, it puzzled her that nothing more had happened with that man, but Liam had insisted on a drink at night time, so Jenna acquiesced.

She walked over to her bedside table and picked up a bottle of perfume, spraying the scent of lavender over her neck. As she did she cast her eyes into the abyss of the night and hoped that Liam would prove different to all the others, because if this didn't work out then she was done with online dating, and that was a promise she would not break.

Chapter 3

After slipping on some heels to bring her height to 5'6 she inhaled deeply, picked up a purse that matched her dress, and left her apartment. The air outside was crisp and as she breathed she saw the air condense into a spiral of mist, drifting upwards. Her eyes followed it up to the stars. The full, pale moon stared down at her, and she felt an overwhelming sense of peace and tranquility as she closed her eyes and centered herself.

Jenna walked a few steps forward and hailed a passing cab. As the scenery passed by in a blur her phone buzzed. It was a message from Liam. Her heart froze as anxiety rushed through her mind. Had he canceled? Did he have second thoughts? With great trepidation she opened the message. She had been stood up once before and it was the worst feeling in the world. But if he did cancel then maybe it was for the best. It would prove to her that online dating wasn't for her, but her expression of fear transformed into one of great happiness as she read a simple message that just said he was looking forward to finally meeting her.

It was that word finally that caught her attention for although they had only been exchanging messages for a little over a week, it seemed much longer, and she only hoped that when they met up in person they could capture the magic that existed between them over the cyber realm.

Soon enough the cab reached its destination.  Jenna's hands trembled as she handed over the money, and her throat was dry and scratchy as she walked into the bar. It was busy, and alive with the cacophony of chatter and glasses clinking. A row of fairy lights was strung around the ceiling. The corners looked intimate, and there were many couples hunched together, melting away from the world. The long wooden bar stretched around the room, and her heels clacked against the black and white tiles of the floor, resembling a large chessboard. Searching the room for Liam and not finding him, she went to the bar and ordered herself a glass of wine.

The minutes ticked by, and Jenna checked the time frantically, hoping that Liam was just running a little late. She had been a little early. Everything seemed to be going so slowly, and the seconds were like hours. Everyone around her seemed cocooned in love and they barely noticed her but they saw them, and she wondered if she would ever be enveloped in such a glow.

She tried to pace herself with her drink but there was nothing to do but drink in the hope that it would quell her nerves. The glass was three-quarters empty when Liam walked in. She knew it was him instantly.  He was tall and lean, and he commanded attention when he entered the bar. His hair was long and as black as night, falling to his shoulders. His skin was pale, and those deep blue eyes passed over the room, focusing on Jenna, not leaving her for a second as he approached her.

He seemed to glide across the floor, and she automatically rose to greet him. He squeezed her arm and leaned in to plant a soft, lingering kiss on her cheek. His lips were cool but a fire sparked inside, and it wasn't just the wine that was making her mind feel hazy.