Christmas Catastrophe: BBW Holiday Bear Shifter Romance (Christmas Bear Brothers Book 2) by Harmony Raines Read Free Book Online

want me?”
    “Then he is a fool. But Zara, that isn’t how these things work. He is your fated mate, which means you are perfectly matched. Just embrace it. Embrace him.” Cindy lifted Zara’s chin and nodded. “Let him in.”
    Zara wiped her eyes. “I should go. I need to shower and change. He’s coming back as soon as he has checked everything is all right at work.” She headed to the door. “If you need anything, let me know. I won’t be far away.”
    “But you will be busy,” Cindy said, laughing when she saw the look of horror cross Zara’s face. “You will do just fine. Let yourself enjoy him, Zara. There is no pressure; this is not you trying to keep your dad happy. This is you allowing yourself to be happy and make your mate happy.”
    With Cindy’s words still circling around her head, she had gone home, walking through the snow, deep in thought about her future with Damon. If she were honest, she knew she was lucky to have such a man: not only was he very handsome, but he was a firefighter. It wasn’t just the steady income that appealed to her about his job, it was knowing that he had to be brave to have such a career. And committed to helping people.
    Gradually, a longing to be with him built inside her. She showered and then dressed, but couldn’t face eating a thing. Her stomach was doing back flips of anticipation while she sat and waited for him. Her nervous energy grew until she could only sit on the sofa for a few minutes before she became consumed with an urge to look out of the window to see if he was approaching. Looking out on the empty street, she experienced disappointment and went to sit down again. Only to get up a few minutes later and repeat the search for him, with her eyes straining to listen for either a truck or a big bear coming towards her.
    Nothing.
    What if he had changed his mind? No, he wanted this as much as she did, and he certainly wasn’t going to play hard to get; they were fated mates, this was no ordinary first date. OK. So what if he had been called out with his crew to some fire or an emergency? Cars were likely to go off the road in this icy weather.
    Her thoughts returned to the road accident that had happened in the autumn, the one that had changed her brother’s life. Oh no. What if he was involved in an accident while trying to reach Cougar Ridge? She could never live with the guilt if something had happened to him because of her.
    Why hadn’t she gone with him to Bear Bluff? She should have stayed with him.
    Her head shot up and her cougar stretched in anticipation as the sound of an engine reached her. Standing up, she slid her hands down over the skirt she had put on, and made sure the top three buttons of her shirt were open, revealing the top of her cleavage. Then she did one back up again, not wanting to look like a wanton woman.
    Who was she kidding? She was wanton; she wanted him! Laughing at herself, feeling lighter than she had for a long time, she rushed to the door and pulled it open. Peering down the street, she saw the lights of his truck, and felt the biting cold on her inflamed skin. Maybe it would act like a cold shower, because if something didn’t temper her arousal she was probably going to jump in him as soon as his feet touched the ground and drag him to bed.
    The truck stopped. His door opened and he got out, coming around the front and then standing, staring at her. Zara looked down at herself, wondering if she had a stain on her shirt or something. “Is something wrong?” she asked.
    “No. Nothing at all. It’s only the longer I was away from you, the more I began to worry that I had dreamed you. And now I’m here, and you’re there, and I know it’s real.”
    “Why don’t you come in?” she said, her voice husky with desire.
    “I would. But I don’t think it’s such a good idea,” he said, coming towards her, but stopping just out of reach.
    “Why?” she asked, puzzled.
    “Because I went back to work. And when I