Jennifer sighed as she wiped the beer glass dry, trying to ignore the way the creep at the end of the bar was staring at her while she worked. She’d been hard-pressed to find a job in the only bustling town of bear-shifters that existed in the country and in truth, she could hardly believe where she had found herself.
It wasn’t that bear-shifters were bad people. She loved them as if they were her own and had been accepted as a part of the community without question. It was just that bear-shifters were very dogmatic and traditional when it came to the way things were run, and she had come to Oak Mountain in an effort to flee from the trials and tribulations from city life in a human environment. She was so tired of living among people who were close-minded and convinced that only their ways were right. It could be very disconcerting at times to have her judgment questioned by people who made worse choices in life than she ever had.
When she had come to a special retreat on Oak Mountain to learn about the bear-shifter way of life, she had fallen in love with the culture and the wilderness there; it was almost as if she had finally found somewhere she belonged.
Except she didn’t belong there… not fully. She was a human through and through and the only way she had managed to find a place for herself was because her uncle had been good friends with the bear-shifter who owned the bar. It was a good place to live, but something about it still didn’t feel quite like home to her. Maybe in time that would change.
“How long’s it been since you had a real man?” a slurred, drunken voice asked. It had come from the man she had been hoping to avoid and Jen cringed. Actually, she couldn’t even fathom just how long it had been since she had been able to have her needs met. In fact, the pervy old shifter was probably sensing just how sexually frustrated she was. She had gotten out of a bad relationship with a total loser, and even though he was awful to her, he had been amazing in bed. She supposed she’d been addicted to that aspect of the relationship and was craving it almost the way she might crave her next meal, but who knew when that would be coming? Certainly not from the creep at the end of the bar.
“Not long enough,” she answered briskly without giving the man the pleasure of her full attention. She would just work on cleaning up and hope he started getting bored enough to leave her alone.
He laughed heartily, then quieted down as Jen continued finishing her task. She was startled by the ringing of the bell above the door and the deep hearty chatter of a group of bear-shifter men as they filed inside and gathered around the longest table in the back. She eyed them, her heart thudding hard in her chest when her gaze rested on the first to sit down. He was broad, muscular, and gorgeous with dazzling blue eyes she could see even from behind the bar. His hair was black, wavy, and wild, reaching about to his shoulders. He was growing a beard, but kept it neatly trimmed that made his already chiseled face somehow look even more masculine. Her already persistent arousal spiked and she sighed, turning away from the man.
She should have stayed away from her last boyfriend and known better than to believe she’d found a good person. She had been blinded by the sex, something her therapist after the fact told her was completely natural. She wanted nothing more to do with men and relationships after her string of bad breakups with people she wanted nothing to do with anymore; she couldn’t even believe she’d given them the time of day in the first place.
Now, her body was awakened in a way it hadn’t been since she’d been with Robert and she cursed herself for it. It was also partly the fault of the drunken old man at the end of the bar who’d reminded her of the last time she had felt the world beneath her quake. She’d never had it as good as she did with Roger, but that meant that she also let him get away with things she never would have tolerated from anybody else. She wasn’t going to make that mistake again no matter how desperately her body was craving release.
“Bartender, a round of beer on me!”
Jen eyed the man who ordered the drinks and he fixed a sly, cocky smile on her. She knew what he was thinking without him even having to say so and she found herself feeling embarrassed. The men in this place were all animals. They could sense a woman in heat the same way a tomcat might, and it let her in a very vulnerable position. She would have to ignore it and hope that as long as she managed to stay professional everybody else would follow suit.
“Here you go,” she said once the pitcher was poured. “I’ll come by the table to bring you glasses.”
It was the last thing she wanted to do. Even before the alcohol was in them, the men were starting to get rowdy. She had seen a few of them around before and had gathered that they worked together in some big deal business or other on Oak Mountain. But there was a man she didn’t recognize, the man who stood out to her more than any other man in the bar ever had… the silent, brooding slice of heaven frowning down at the napkin dispenser on the table, refusing to look at the cocky son of a bitch as he placed the pitcher triumphantly on the table and started speaking, drawing all eyes to himself except the man who found napkins far more interesting.
Jen couldn’t help but smile and gathered up the glasses, walking them over to the table and sitting them down beside the brooding man.
“I don’t drink this beer,” he said, his voice a deep growl that was meant for Jen and Jen alone. “Get me a glass of whisky, please.”
The conversation lulled as everyone turned their gaze to Jen and the seated man, who refused to move his eyes from the single point he had chosen in front of him.
“Sure,” she said. “Coming right up.”
The men were awkwardly silent for a few moments as Jen made her way back to the bar, then the cocky man continued with his gloat.
“They think I have a great shot of getting the promotion,” he was saying, followed by a chorus of, “Way to go, Vince!” Everybody seemed pleased for him but the man in the corner sitting a little ways away from the rest of the group, his pensive eyes no longer on the napkins but fixed intently on Jennifer.
Her body was set ablaze by the fire in his eyes and she nearly dropped the glass she was holding to fill with the man’s whisky. He was unbelievable. She had never seen anyone so raw in all her life and it woke her body up as if he was radiating a signal from within himself that was meant specifically for her being.
She had to ignore the dizzying hum of her arousal as she finished pouring the man’s drink, then did her best to steady her nerves before returning to the table.
Thankfully, everybody was too caught up in enjoying themselves and drinking Vince’s beer to notice her slip the whisky to the man. He caught her gaze and held her there, entrapped, before finally nodding his thanks.
When she got back to the bar she felt like she had just undertaken a tremendously long journey and the only sense of normalcy she had was the small stool, which she usually avoided. Now she slumped on it, her legs weak, and took a deep breath granting herself the chance to take a shot of the same whisky she had poured for the gorgeous man in the corner. It was going to be a long night.