Finding His Mate (Bare Bites #3) - Mila Crawford Page 0,13
please. Sit down, have a bagel.” Shayla pushed a napkin to me.
I grunted. “I’m going for a run.” I bent and kissed her on the lips, forcing our tongues to tangle swiftly before pulling away. “I trust Officer FuckFace will be gone by the time I get back.”
Shayla’s frown turned downright mean, her hand clutching at her coffee cup as I slipped out the door, a satisfying thud falling on my ears before wild, raw silence surrounded me. I huffed, realizing I hadn’t wanted to go for a run in the first place, only I’d stuck my big fucking foot in my mouth, and now I’d left her alone with another shifter. I just needed to get out of there before I tore her friend's skin off his body. I knew I was being irrational but she was mine.
“That’s Sheriff FuckFace to you.” The officer stepped out, Shayla peering over his shoulder. “And the people in this community have been watching out for Shayla a lot longer than you have. I understand the situation more than you think, and I’m glad she’s found you, but that doesn’t mean she’s not loved by a lot of other people around here. I hope that’s something you can come to live with, for her sake.”
Embarrassment clawed at my throat. I huffed, finally looking him in the eye, man to man. “Thank you for checking on her, I appreciate that, and I will do my best to…” I searched for the right words, not wanting to budge a damn inch on this issue. Shayla’s eyes turned tender as they clung to mine from the porch. “I promise to do my best to respect the people in her life.”
“And stop trying to control everything?” She finally chimed in.
“And stop trying to control everything.” I lowered my voice. “I promise to stop trying to control you.”
She came round Aydin and wrapped her arms round me in a hug. “Aydin is like a brother to me. There is nothing, and I mean absolutely nothing to be jealous about. You know how this mating bond works. It’s for life, it’s for real. Please just calm down.”
Aydin smiled warmly, tipping his hat at both of us. “Enjoy the bagels and coffee on me, Sheriff FuckFace.”
“Hey, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that--I didn't mean it.”
“Sure you did.” He clapped me on the shoulder and I had to stop myself from bristling at the unfamiliar touch. “I would have done the same if I thought she was in danger. I’m glad she found someone to take care of her.” His eyes sliced to Shayla’s. “Not that she needs it.”
Shayla pretended to shoot a gun with her hand, making a silly little gunshot noise as she did that made both of us chuckle. “Watch out boys, I’m a straight shooter.”
“Ain’t that the truth,” Aydin affirmed, before crawling behind the wheel of his cruiser and turning the engine. He waved and was backing out a moment later, leaving me all alone with my woman, just the way I liked it.
“Call me a crazy asshole all you want, but I hate sharing you, even for a minute.”
“You’re as selfish as they come, Brett.” Her words were serious, but her hand was still wrapped in mine, so I knew she wasn’t too upset with me.
“I’ll do better. I’m working on it, I promise.”
“Why do you get so upset? You know he’s a Bear shifter, right? He’s one of us, why do you go from 1 to 1000 in the span of a moment?”
“That's what happens when I sense a threat to my mate. It’s biology, it’s my instinct to take care of the pack and protect the next generation.” I held her close, nuzzling into her neck once we were inside the door. “I’ll try to be a perfect gentleman.”
Her laugh rang through the cabin then, rattling my ears. “I don’t want a perfect gentleman, not at all--you’ve read me all wrong if you think I want that. I like all the rough and uncut edges of you. Your flaws are priceless because they fit my own, Brett. When I said I want all of you, it’s true, I do, but I want to be able to keep my friends too.”
I hummed in agreement, hands cupping her ass cheeks as my mouth found hers in a wild, possessive kiss. “Remind me whose ass this is again?”
I didn’t let her reply, only spinning her in my arms and then turning her neck to reach her