Bear West: BBW Bear Shifter Mail Order Bride Romance by Zoe Chant Read Free Book Online

in and smile back, to pretend that nothing was wrong, but that wouldn’t be fair to either of them. She had the sense that he was hiding something from her, and she didn't like it. It was important to be honest and upfront, especially given the unusual circumstances of their relationship.
    “We need to talk,” she told him.
    Immediately the smile dropped off of Diego’s face. “What’s wrong?”
    “Where have you been all day?”
    “Working.” He gestured vaguely. “There’s a lot to do on the ranch, and I figured you’d want time to get settled in.”
    Carla fought to keep her voice steady. She didn’t want to sound too emotional. “You couldn’t even leave a note? Something, anything, to tell me what was happening? It’s not very pleasant, to wake up all alone in a strange place.”
    Especially when the man you’ve just slept with left without a word , she thought, but didn’t say that part out loud. Diego didn’t need to know how much last night had meant to her.
    “I didn’t think of it.” Diego’s voice was quiet. “I’m not used to living with someone else, you know.”
    Carla nodded. “I know. Me neither. Maybe we’re moving too fast with this whole marriage thing. I mean, what do we really know about each other? The only things we have in common are a few emails. That’s not enough to build a life on.”
    “Are you having second thoughts?”
    Carla looked up at Diego’s wide eyes. She started to think again about how handsome he was, with his high cheekbones and firm jaw, his full lips and perpetually messy black hair. His eyes were like tiger’s eye stones, and they were more open and honest than the eyes of anyone else she knew. She could read in them how much that question hurt him.
    For a moment, all she wanted was to comfort him, to make him forget his pain. It would be so easy to go back to bed with him, and she wanted it so much. But though he looked open, she knew he had secrets. Would she wake up alone again tomorrow, in this exact same place? Handsome men weren’t necessarily trustworthy. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “I... I like you a lot.”
    Diego reached out and set his hand over hers. “I like you too.” His thumb rubbed across the back of her hand, warm and strong, offering reassurance – but also pushing her for more, and she wasn’t sure if she was ready for that yet.
    Carla forced herself to pull away. “I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my life. I don’t know what I’m getting into here. My mom always told me to look before I leap, and I guess I should have remembered that advice before signing up to marry a stranger. She would never have let me do this.”
    “What can I do?” Diego asked. “I don’t want to push you into anything that you don’t want, but I don’t want to give up on us either. I want you, Carla Jenkins. Not just because we signed a contract. I want you just because of who you are.”
    “You don’t even know me. And I don't know you.”
    “But I want to.” His gaze bored into her, like he could see past all of the unimportant things – her worries, the fact that she probably looked a mess and hadn’t taken a shower that morning – and straight to her heart. “I’ll do whatever you want to make this work. You just have to tell me what that is.”
    Carla thought carefully about her options. She knew she shouldn’t give in to him this easily, but she didn’t want to run all the way back to New York City either. She’d been rash in signing up to be a mail-order bride and coming to Nevada on the spur of the moment. It was time to be sensible instead.
    “I need some time. And space.” He looked so stricken that Carla had to hold up her hands in surrender. “I don’t want to break up! But I don’t think we should jump straight into marriage.”
    Diego nodded. “That’s reasonable. So, what you want is... to date?”
    “Yeah.” Carla stared down at her feet. “I know that probably sounds dumb when we’ve already