Darren hadn’t been expecting it when he got the letter in the mail saying the woman was on her way. In fact, he suddenly found himself feeling nervous. And being nervous made him angry. He was the kind of man who wanted to stay in control at all times. He couldn’t let himself lose control over his feelings. Especially, not when he was about to be hosting the woman that the bear within him had been so eager to claim.
The second he finished reading the letter, he went out to his car and drove rapidly up the mountain. He needed to buy things. Things for her. Food and clothes and bedding. Things women like. Pretty spelling things.
He frowned and shook the thought away, hating how insecure he felt all of a sudden. But he wanted to be prepared. He didn’t want to be caught off guard by a request he wouldn’t be able to satisfy from the girl.
He could feel the eyes of the clerk, the bear shifter named Tony, as he filled his car with these feminine things. Tony knew better than to ask and just rang him up. Still, he could sense the curiosity in the man’s gaze and something about that pissed him off.
But he didn’t say anything and finished with his purchases before returning back to his home. Would it be suitable for her? He had never done anything like this before. None of his relationships had been long-lasting enough to think about having a woman in his home long-term. He had always been far too independent to make any changes for another person. And now, here he was, setting up weird things in his bathroom like bath salts.
When he was finished, he looked at the calendar. She would be there in three days. He had plenty of time. He would have to use it to prepare himself for what was about to happen.
Whatever it was, it was going to be scary. For the first time in his life, he felt out of his element, and grabbed a bottle of whiskey from his cabinet and drank deeply. Is this going to be okay? He had no idea. All he knew was that he had done the unthinkable and invited this woman to stay. And now, she was going to.
He hadn’t even told Jared yet. He hadn’t told anybody. But the rumors were sure to begin now that Tony had seen him buying all kinds of strange things. If any of them knew what was good for them, they wouldn’t confront Darren about it, at least, not until he was ready. Right now, he had to get used to the idea for himself, and having other people prying their noses into his business was definitely going to make things harder.
But the bears on Oak Mountain were relatively open-minded. They let a man have his way of life without too much question. As long as it didn’t affect themselves too much. That was where Darren had gone wrong. He had affected all of them, but most especially, himself, with his reckless choice that had killed the young man. It had changed him a lot; at first, making him cold and angry and surly, driving away anyone who might be interested in being with him, and then, once he had finally processed his feelings about it, he was extremely eager to try his hand at a normal life. He was done with running things at work. Now, he wanted to run things in his home. And he needed somebody to do that with.
“Hey, you seem different,” Jared said, during work that night.
There was something about Jared that made it nearly impossible for Darren to hide anything from him. The man was kind of a dolt at times, but he always managed to redeem himself in some unbelievable way. He was wise, even if he was a little bit on the reckless side.
“I’m not different at all,” Darren said.
“No, you are definitely different. You did it, didn’t you? The ad. I knew you would!”
Darren looked around the bar, his eyes wide, searching for anybody who might have overheard the conversation. There were only a few people in, two of them in booths and one on the other side of the bar. None of them seemed particularly interested in what Darren and Jared were talking about. Darren found himself glad. If they were, he would have had to kick his friend’s ass.
“Yeah, so, maybe I did. But that doesn’t mean anything. I haven’t changed at all.”
“No, not yet. But I bet you will. This is going to be really good for you, man. I know it! I’m really happy for you! Let me get you a drink.”
Darren sighed as Jared started to fuss over him, shaking his head in quiet exasperation. But it was nice to have a drink in his hand once it was there, and he drank it down quickly.
“Thanks, Jared. But really, I don’t feel like it’s that big a deal. It might be a big change, but everything will still sort of be the same. I’ll just have a roommate, that’s all.”
“Maybe, but the ad agency that does these things, they make sure things go well. I could tell from the way you were looking at the girl that there was something fated about this. And I was right. See, she’s coming to live with you!”
Darren shifted uncomfortably. Jared was making this sound far more serious than he was comfortable with. Even though he knew, to a point, that the man was right, that didn’t make it any easier for him to talk about it. Jared seemed to sense this, and let out a small laugh.
“I can’t wait to meet her. You’re going to have to bring her in all the time. Everybody will want to know who she is. The girl was a human right? Are you sure she will feel comfortable on Oak Mountain?”
Darren nodded automatically. He wasn’t entirely sure about most things with this process, like what to buy her to eat and what she might need as far as her woman-ness was concerned, but he did know that this woman, whoever she was, was going to feel just fine about coming to Oak Mountain.
“So, when does she come?” Jared said, busying himself by cleaning the top.
Darren sighed. “In a few days. Everything is all set up and in the process of becoming a reality. I had no idea it would happen this fast.”
“It isn’t that fast. You have had about a week to process. I think that’s pretty good.”
“I guess so. I just hope everything works out well.” Darren didn’t want to say out loud, but for the first time in his life, he really was scared. He didn’t want to do anything to jeopardize his relationship with this human, even though it seemed counterintuitive for him to worry about it. He was a bear shifter, he was going to keep everything under control, and there was nothing he should really be worrying about. Why should entertaining the human female cause him any kind of anxiety whatsoever? That was just silly.
He had taken on some of the most terrifying dragon shifters on Earth, single-handedly. He was a great warrior, and a major alpha on the mountain. He shouldn’t be letting something as silly and simple as a human female coming into his home get him so worked up. And yet, considering Kelly’s face, that was all he managed to do.
Jared seemed to sense Darren’s concern and smiled reassuringly at his friend. “Don’t worry, man. Women aren’t as scary as they seem. You will get used to having her around. She’s going to love it here. You have a great house. And a lot of good land. She’d be crazy not to enjoy it. And if you’re worried about her, just ask what she needs, you know?”
Darren gazed at his friend, quiet relief surging through him. It was nice to know that, if nothing else, he had somebody he could talk to about these things. Jared was a good guy. And he had a mate. He knew these things. If he needed any help, he could come to Jared and his friend would help them through.
“Thanks. And don’t worry, I will bring her over to meet you as soon as she’s settled in. I don’t want to rush anything, though. I hope you understand.”
Jared put his hands in the air and nodded understandingly. “That is perfectly acceptable. Don’t make her uncomfortable. That would just make everything worse for both of you. Try to make sure she feels safe and secure, and then you will probably have a really good time getting to know her.”
Darren considered this, and soon, the conversation turned to other topics. They spent the rest of the night bartending, as usual, with a quiet, unspoken change lingering between them. Darren was soon going to be a man with a mate. As far as he was concerned, his entire life was about to change. Jared helped him to ease into the transition, providing him with a sense of normalcy he otherwise probably wouldn’t have been able to find.
When he finished his shift, he gave his friend a wave and a smile. “You’ll be the first person to meet her, Jared,” he said decidedly. “Thanks for everything.”
Jared gave him a friendly nod, and went back to work. Darren returned home, his nerves finally at ease. Things were going to be okay. In fact, they were probably going to be better than okay. He was going to have the person he was going to spend his life with. And that was something incredible. Even if it was scary.