Billionaire Bear Shifters A Paranormal Romance Complete Series Boxset - Brittany White Page 0,13

old-fashioned music for dancing, something her grandparents would’ve liked but it went with the dancing lights that looked like shining stars and when Nathan returned, he took her hands in his.

“Why did you bring me here?” she said. He was leading her into a dance and she hadn’t felt butterflies around a man in so long she had almost forgotten what it felt like. But as he wrapped an arm around her waist and began to sway, she started to remember.

“You said you used to watch the happy couples through the glass,” he whispered. “Thought I’d show you the other side of it. Dance with me?”

Alanna swallowed and prayed that John wouldn’t come looking for her before she went back. She let Nathan take her hand and leaned her head on his shoulder as he led them in a slow, swaying dance around the ballroom.

She let her eyes slip shut and melted into him. As big and broad as Nathan was, he was soft in his sweater and his arms held her gently instead of grabbing for her.

“You really are good at fixing things,” she murmured.

“What did I fix?” he rested his chin atop her head. They fit together like puzzle pieces in her mind.

“Something I didn’t know was broken,” she said. She followed his steps, turning with him, and felt like she was floating as he held her. “I like this music.”

He chuckled and it made her feel warm all over. She bet the sound of his laugh could fix things too. “This music’s for old people,” he said.

“That’s my favorite kind.”

“Alanna,” Nathan whispered. “Let me help you.”

“I have to go.” Alanna was teary as she broke away from him. It all felt too good, his hands and his arm and the scent of him and the way he’d laughed into her neck. “Thank you for...all this. I have to go.”

“Let me take you out sometime,” he said quickly. “Please.”

She shook her head and looked down at the brand new boots she was wearing, that Rawley had bought her. “I can’t. I’m sorry.”

If she was Cinderella, it was midnight. She felt as if her cashmere was about to turn into pumpkin puree.

“Why not?” Nathan said. “Whatever it is—”

“Why would you want to?” she said, shaking her head. The moonlight made Nathan’s eyes glimmer. But he only seemed sad as he looked at her. “Really, why would you want to spend time with me at all? I’ve got nothing, I’m nobody.”

“Because you looked through the glass,” Nathan said. “And I was on the other side, but I never felt like it. That’s why I ran away. I was always in the room with the lights and the happy couples. But I always felt like I was on the outside looking in. Like you.”

“Then why did you come back?”

“Because I realized the glass isn’t real,” he laughed, seemingly at himself. “That probably sounds stupid. Anyway, I like talking to you. That’s all. I don’t remember the last time I liked talking to somebody so much.” He walked up to her and she breathed as he cradled her cheek in his palm. She leaned into it. Just this one touch, she thought. She could take it with her and think about it when Rawley took her away. “I like talking to you,” he said again, his breath hot on her skin, he stood so close. “And you smell good. And you understand the wild. And your mouth…” He rubbed his thumb along her bottom lip and it felt so good, she had to break away.

“I have to go,” she said again and forced herself to head towards the door, leaving him alone in the dancing lights.

“Come find me,” she heard him say before she closed the door between them.

4

Nathan

Every time Nathan thought about the girl from room 27, he found himself smiling. But he found himself worried too. Once she’d left the ballroom, Nathan had turned the music off and the lights out and returned to the lounge to chat with Jerry, the bartender, before finally heading off to bed. He’d jerked off that night, thinking about what it might be like to make her throw her head back and moan, what her body might feel like against his.

In the morning, Nathan tried to forget all about her. She was just another guest, he told himself...a pretty one who said interesting things. There was a depth to her that he wanted to fall right into. But he had work to do because