I watch Dan, the bartender, fill my martini glass to the brim with a chilled lemon drop. So full that if I try to pick it up, the liquid will pour over the sugared rim and make the glass sticky. I hate sticky. So I flick my finger at it to spell the contents to remain in the glass until I get it to my mouth. And while I’m at it, I add a little sparkle to my drink that makes it look like a tiny fireworks performance.

“Impressive,” says a guy at the other end of the bar.

I glance up to see who spoke. Cade. I let out a sigh as I gaze at his trademark Robichaux teal-blue eyes and his body, worthy of his warrior status. It makes me want to drag my tongue over every inch, and his dark-blond hair would feel good between my fingers as he returned the favor. I shake my head because I’m so done with shallow relationships based on sex.

“Bella, right?” he says as he gets up and comes toward me.

I roll my eyes because I’m the Robichaux clan witch, and as a werebear, he’d have to be an idiot not to know my name. Besides which, while it’s true we’ve never been properly introduced, the occasional drunken, can’t-keep-my-hands-to-myself make-out sessions we’ve had over the years mean he knows damn well who I am. I glare at him as I say, “Me glancing at you was not an invitation to come sit here.”

Cade lowers his voice to a sexy rumble that reverberates through my whole body. “You’d prefer I wait until you’re coming out of the bathroom to slam you up against the wall and kiss you senseless?” My entire body hums with the memory, and I squirm a little on my barstool.

It figures I’d have to be tempted by the one guy who makes my heart race and my skin tingle. But ever since I turned thirty three months ago, I can’t stop wanting what my friend Tally has; a husband who worships me, and kids. I used to be perfectly content with hollow relationships that were all about Mr. Right Now, like Cade, but that no longer makes me happy. I need to stop my destructive behavior and wait until I find a guy who has something on the inside I want too. Only that’s not going so well for me either because I’ve discovered I hate being alone. But hooking up with a werebear I can’t have is not the answer. I blink back the tears that prick my eyes. “Stop. Okay?”

“Hey,” says Cade in what I think is his attempt at a compassionate voice. When I don’t look up, he touches my arm gently. The warmth I feel rush through me from the contact of our skin makes his next words sound sincere. “Bella, what’s wrong?”

I gulp down the lump in my throat and dab at the corners of my eyes with my fingers to keep from smudging my mascara. I take a deep breath and say, “Nothing. I’m just feeling emotional.”

“You can talk about it with me if you want.”

I let out a strangled chuckle. “Cade, we don’t know how to talk.”

“Maybe you don’t. But I have a twin sister and a very big shoulder she used often when we were growing up.”

I tilt my head at Cade and try to see him as a brother. It’s a little hard to do since I usually imagine what he’d look like naked. I frown as I consider the fact that I’ve never actually seem him that way, and I flash back to the most recent stolen kiss we shared. It was about a year ago, and it scared the hell out of me. Actually, every time I get close to Cade, the emotions I feel terrify me. I’ve never let myself be with him because it’s as if he’s the ultimate sin and once I cross over, there will be no coming back.

As the Robichaux clan’s witch, I’ve got a strict rule about not dating the werebear I serve. Not only can the relationship never be long term, but it’s not a good idea to get involved with another werebear’s future true mate. They take jealousy to dangerous levels, and I’d have to live with that sticky situation for the rest of my life. I hate sticky.

So my attraction to Cade is something I struggle with every time I see him. And I don’t always win, which is why him sitting here next to me in my vulnerable moment makes me sure I need him to go. I say, “Damn it, Cade. I’m a mess, and you should probably hightail it out of here before you find out how much.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” he says. “How long have you been here?”

“Not long enough,” I mumble as I lift my drink to take a hefty swig.

He calls out to the bartender. “Dan!” Once the older man comes to us, Cade says, “Two cheeseburgers, please, medium rare for the lady and rare for me.”

I frown as I wonder how he knows what I usually order, or that I’m even hungry. “What are you doing? I told you to leave.”

“You don’t really want me to go, Bella.”

Irritation makes me tense up because it occurs to me he’s probably trying a new approach to get me in his bed. I say, “I’m not going home with you.”

“That’s not what this is about.”

I let out a snort. “Really. You just want to talk.”

“I do. Why’s that so hard to believe?”

“Look at you.” I give him the once-over with my gaze to prove my point. Guys like Cade think women are good for one thing, and it’s not conversation. And women who are like me—correction, women who are like the old me— usually don’t mind.

“Haven’t you ever been friends with a guy?” he asks.

“Of course I have.”

He squints at me in disbelief. “Give me the name of one male friend.”

“I--” I close my mouth because the only guys I can think of are ones I’ve kissed. Finally, a name comes to me. “Lucian!”

“Lucian?”

“Yes,” I say with false conviction. Lucian is a warlock I know, but he’s a colleague, not a friend.

“And you’re so close you had to think to remember his name.” Cade’s lips twitch with amusement.

I scowl at him. “Something like that. He lives in Connecticut.”

He laughs. “Fine. But I think you need someone closer than some guy three states away.”

“Let me guess. You came over here to become my friend.”

“Why not?” He twirls his half-empty beer glass in his hands before he gazes intently at me. “Besides, I could use a female friend too. I don’t know if you’re aware of this, but most of the women I’m with are not just friends.”

Jealousy twinges in my heart for a moment before I tamp it down, and my words drip with sarcasm. “I was not aware of that fact.”

He ignores it. “So you’d actually be doing me a favor. You know, for when my true mate comes along. She’s not going to like me only having former girlfriends. And since a lifelong commitment has to be about more than sex, you could help me learn how to be my mate’s best friend too.”

He does have a point that lifelong relationships have to be about more than physical attraction. That’s exactly what I need to find if I want to fall in love with someone forever too. But I don’t believe Cade is interested in just friendship. I shake my head. “I’m not buying it.” I stand up and grab onto the edge of the bar when I sway a little. I call out, “Dan!”

Cade grabs my arm with a firm grip. “Bella. At least have dinner with me. You’re into your third drink, and I bet you haven’t eaten today. I think food is a good idea. Don’t you?”

My stomach churns as I try to remember my last meal. I had a full day of clients and skipped lunch because of it. “For your information, I had breakfast, but that’s none of your concern. And how do you know this is my third drink?”

“Because I already picked up your tab. Now sit,” says Cade. “Please. I promise there will be no flirting.”

Even though the idea that Cade bought my drinks annoys me, the thought of a burger and fries has made me hungry. My stomach growls and gives me away. Cade smiles at the sound, and I let out a sigh. “Fine. I’ll eat.”

Dan has come over to us and asks, “What can I get you?”

“I forgot to ask for extra napkins with my meal.” I give him a big smile, and because I’m a regular, I say, “You know how I hate it when things get sticky.”

Dan glances at Cade and then back to me and chuckles. “Is there any other way?”

As he walks off, I steal a look at the impossibly sexy werebear next to me. The one who says he just wants to be friends even though we’ve just exchanged more words with each other than we have in the past decade. Sticky situation? Most definitely.