Bear's Heart: BBW Paranormal Shifter Romance (Bear Heat Book 5) by Natalie Kristen Read Free Book Online Page A

before saying slowly, “I do
think you're right, Jade. About the fire.”
    Jade bit down hard on her
lower lip to keep it from trembling. Mr and Mrs Xi had been so good
to her, to all their staff. They had worked tirelessly to build up
their restaurant, and they were good, generous bosses. They didn't
deserve to have their hard work and dreams razed to the ground.
    “His fiancee left him,
so he destroyed Hot Wok, the restaurant of Mr and Mrs Xi, who had
also stood up for her. Setting fire to the restaurant in the middle
of the night—it's an ugly, cowardly thing to do, and it sounds
just like him,” Lindy said.
    Jade pressed her cold, clammy
fists to her stomach. She felt sick, angry and scared.
    “You think...the bomb
was meant for me?” She looked up at Lindy with stricken eyes.
“He killed all those people in the diner, just to get at me?
It's me he wants, yet all those people died!”
    “Jade, it's not your
fault...”
    “Damn right!”
Jade swiped furiously at her tears. “It's not my fault. I
didn't plant the bomb. But the bomb was planted because of me!”
    “Oh Jade,” Lindy
cried and came to take her hands. “You shouldn't think like
that.”
    “What the hell am I
supposed to think then?” Jade's voice rose. “All those
people are dead! They had friends, families, and colleagues—who
love them and will miss them forever...” She choked up and
burst into tears.
    Jade heard the door open.
She knew the moment Dylan stepped into the room. It was like she
could sense his presence, his nearness.
    Dylan took her in his arms
and rocked her, murmuring into her hair and rubbing her back and
arms. Jade hiccuped a final sob and dried her tears on Dylan's
shoulder. She felt calmer, safer, more grounded in his arms.
    As her fear and anger
subsided, she suddenly felt terribly ashamed of the way she'd yelled
at Lindy.
    Jade sniffed and lifted her
tired eyes to Lindy, who had picked up her briefcase and was quietly
making her way to the door.
    “Lindy,” Jade
called out. “I...I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled at you.
I don't know what came over me. I'm sorry...”
    Lindy shook her head and gave
her an assuring smile. “It's good to yell. It's okay to yell,
and it's okay to be scared, Jade. In fact, it is right to be
scared,” Lindy said firmly. “If you're scared, you'll do
something to arm yourself, defend yourself. Don't ignore your fear.
Your instincts are usually accurate. The detectives are right. You
should be on your guard, and you should be guarded...”
    “I'll guard her,”
Dylan said immediately.
    Lindy stared at him for a
moment, then nodded. A small, knowing smile played on her lips as
she opened the door.
    “Looks like you've
gotten yourself a great bodyguard, Jade. Dylan's the best!”
Lindy said, breaking into a sly grin. “He'll take very good
care of you. Won't you, Dylan?”
    Jade gasped when Dylan
glowered and growled at Lindy. She couldn't understand Dylan's
reaction at all. “Dylan!”
    But Lindy's grin only grew
wider and she nodded smugly to herself. “I knew it!”
Lindy said.
    Knew what?
    Jade blinked and stared from
Dylan to Lindy. Lindy was an expert, a professional behavioral
analyst. She could pick up subtle cues and signals, and read body
language pretty accurately. She was also mated to a Black Bear. She
knew how the Black Bears usually behaved.
    So what was so unusual about
Dylan's behavior? And why did Lindy seem so thrilled?
    The door closed softly, but
not before they heard Lindy's delighted, gleeful chuckle. “Oh,
just wait till I tell Bax!”

CHAPTER
SEVENTEEN

    Dylan shot to his feet and
started for the door. He had his hand on the door handle when he
felt Jade's eyes on his back. He could feel her shock and
bewilderment, and he forced himself to calm down as he turned to face
her.
    Jade's eyes and mouth were
rounded, and he saw shock and confusion in her blue eyes. He was
scaring her with his strange, inexplicable behavior.
    “Ah...I...” He
stepped away