bothered," Dan said quietly. He leaned in very close, letting his bear rise to the surface, so the other man could see it in his eyes. "I'm a bear, a big fucking alpha grizzly. You want to mess with that?" Dan pushed him hard, so that his back slammed into the wall. "Yeah, I didn't think so. I'm a problem you really don't want to have. Get out of here, and If I see you in town again, now or ever, and especially if I see you anywhere near Paula, we'll have this chat again, okay? Except I won't be as nice."
Sunglasses made a low growling sound, and there was a moment when Dan thought the other shifter was going to call his bluff. But then Sunglasses pulled away, and scrambled away down the alley, his dress shoes slipping on the ice and snow.
Dan followed him out to the street, and watched him get into a car and drive away, hightailing it for the highway. Taking a deep breath, he walked back up the street to the diner and went inside.
Paula and the two older kids were plastered to the window. They all spun around to look at the door when he came in.
"Thanks for watching them," Dan said mildly. He went back over to his table. "Sandy, Mina, sit down, don't stand up on the seat. It's rude."
They both plunked obediently down. Sandy was wide-eyed. "Wow, you just walked that guy out of here like on a TV show! Who was he?"
"No one you have to worry about," Dan told him, and turned to Paula. "I told him to leave. Looks like he followed orders, but if he comes back, let me know, okay? I told him I wouldn't be as nice the second time around. And that's a promise I mean to keep."
Paula flushed. "You don't need to get involved with my problems."
I already am. I was the first time I saw you. Now and forever.
Again ... not helpful.
"Nobody should get away with that," he said. "I'll be happy to throw him out again, harder this time."
Paula looked dubious. "You don't even know me."
It was technically true, and yet not. It was as if he had met her in some other life, a long time ago. His soul knew hers.
But that was another thing he couldn't just blurt out.
"I know enough," he said. "I know you're a busy, successful businesswoman who doesn't need to deal with this kind of sh—er, crap. And you shouldn't have to handle that kind of thing on your own."
He had said something wrong. It was like a shutter came down behind her eyes.
"I've been handling things on my own for a long time," Paula said. "I'm just going to check on your order."
"Paula—wait—Sandy, watch your sisters!"
Leaving Sandy making a put-upon sighing noise behind him, he hurried after her. She wasn't running away, as such, and she turned around before she got to the kitchen, holding her waitress pad clasped to her chest.
"I didn't mean to imply you can't deal with it by yourself," Dan said quietly. "Obviously you can. It's just ... sometimes a little help is nice. That's all."
Paula's harder expression melted a little. The corner of her mouth quirked up.
"And I do appreciate it. Really. You get used to doing things on your own, sometimes it's hard to cope with someone telling you they have your back."
"Boy, do I know that feeling," Dan said, heartfelt.
They shared a moment's commiserating smile. The eye contact deepened. Her eyes were amazing, a thousand shades of blue, like all the summer skies he'd ever seen, rolled into one—
"Order up!" the cook yelled. Dan jumped, and Paula took a quick step back. The cook looked around from setting plates in the window and added with a scowl, "This guy bothering you, Miz DeWitt?"
"No, Mitch, I'm fine." Paula scooped up the plates and turned to Dan, smiling. "And sometimes it's easy to forget how many people actually do have your back. Let me just carry these to the table for you."
"I can give you a hand if you want."
She handed off one of the plates. "Now I really am risking my tip," she said, laughing.
For a tip, how about my entire heart? My home, my house, everything I am ...
Which brought him up short. What did he have to offer a mate right now? He was living in a friend's spare bedroom, watching someone else's kids.
Paula stopped, frowning at him. "Are you all right?"