Bear Naked and Bite Marks by Jenika Snow Read Free Book Online Page B

with you I don’t spend time with females aside from....”
He snapped his mouth shut, and although he almost went there, Melissa also knew
he hadn’t meant to. He crossed his arms over his chest, and she knew she had pissed
him off, but then again she also knew what he was insinuating and the wolf inside of her bristled. It was a ludicrous reaction,
given the fact she was no budding virgin herself.
    “Listen.” She pushed some hair off her
shoulder and wished she would have put the long, thick heavy mass up in a
chignon. “Can we start over? Maybe you leave out the ‘You Jane, I’m Tarzan’
mentality, and I’ll lighten up on my bitchiness, at least until we get to know
each other a little more?” He smirked, and she felt herself relaxing.
    “Yeah, I can probably back off,
somewhat. At least until we know each other better.” When he winked she would
have swooned right there, because shit, did it look good on him. Okay, this was
a good start. They were making progress, actually talking instead of having
this Alpha vs. Bitch match, and she was feeling pretty good about that. “So,
Melissa, would you like to go to dinner with me? I’m new at this whole mate
thing, but you and I both know I won’t just walk away.” He didn’t say it cockily,
but there was an undertone of assertiveness and determination in his voice.
Melissa couldn’t get pissed at that, though. He was trying, obviously, and she
would just have to bite her tongue when the whole alphaness came off a little
strong. Besides, she wanted to see how this went, and where it ended. Taking
the day to think about everything, and what the girls had told her, put a lot
of perspective into Melissa. She could fight this every step of the way, or she
could submit on her own terms, because heaven help her there was a part of
Melissa that wanted to see how far this grizzly would go if she let him
dominate her.

Chapter Five
     
    Melissa looked in her rearview mirror
for the twentieth time in the last five minutes. The dual headlights of
Declan’s SUV shown right behind her, and her heart pounded hard in her chest.
She pulled into the parking lot of a small Italian diner owned by a badger
shifter married couple. It was a newer establishment, only being opened less
than six month ago, but their pizza was homemade and the best Melissa had ever
eaten. Declan pulled up beside her, and for a moment all she did was sit there.
His name kept rolling around in her head, and even thinking it made her feel
sensitive in all of her erogenous zones. Melissa looked out the window and saw
him tightening and loosening his hands on the steering wheel. His jaw looked
clenched, like he might be grinding his teeth. He didn’t turn to look at her,
and she didn’t move until she saw his chest rise and fall once more, as if he
were exhaling forcefully. He tightened his hands on the steering wheel once
before he let go. Only when he exited the SUV did Melissa get out of her car and
meet him at the back of his vehicle. He kept his head lowered, but he seemed
tense now, almost angry.
    “Are you okay?” He looked at her, and
she expected to see his chocolate eyes, but they were light blue. He offered
her a smile, and although she still sensed something was off about him she
didn’t press him ..
    “I’m good.” His voice was so low, God,
it was so low, and masculine. He was the epitome of what a strong male was, but
it wasn’t only the fact he was built like a tank, but the presence and aura
that came from him.
    “Okay.” She didn’t prod, because
whatever was bothering him wasn’t her business if he didn’t want to divulge it.
She just hoped this didn’t end up being a bad idea given the fact he was
suddenly in a funk.
    ****
    Declan stayed one step behind Melissa,
and although he was barely hanging on as it was, he didn’t stop himself from
watching the way her ass moved under the tight material of her skirt. The skirt
itself wasn’t overly snug, but damn did she have a