Beary Guarded (Polar Bliss Book 2) Read Online Free PDF Page A

hadn’t wanted a man in over three years, and had only been with one before that, and now every time she saw Nate, she ached for something she didn’t understand.
    She’d heard sex could be fun and enjoyable, but the one time with her ex had been forced and painful. The experience wasn’t something she wished to repeat, and though she’d tried to touch herself—to break down her barriers and destroy her demons—she’d never been able to find anything close to an orgasm.
    Eventually, she’d just given up.
    Now, she didn’t know what the hell was going on. Her bear nudged her in Nate’s direction, but her human half stayed rooted to the spot behind the counter.
    It had been a week and a half since she’d run from him—for the second time—and though she hated to admit it, he was growing on her. He’d come into Polar Bliss at least once a day, and sometimes he visited twice.
    The day after her second run, he’d ordered a Polar Bare , and formally introduced himself to her and her brothers. The four of them had chatted lightly about Longmeadow, his job as sheriff, and where he’d come from, and then he’d asked her out to dinner again.
    And she’d declined again.
    That had been nine days ago, and she’d turned him down nine times.
    Surprisingly, both Ryker and Ridge thought she was crazy.
    Her brothers liked Nate a lot, and they both thought she should give him a chance. She respected their opinions, always had, but more so about her mate because they both knew, firsthand, exactly what she’d been through with her ex. They’d rescued her from the monster, and made sure he could never hurt her again.
    She wanted to take their advice, but fear disabled her.
    On his daily visits, sometimes Nate sat at the counter and didn’t leave until he’d sipped his entire coffee, and sometimes he ordered, exchanged a few pleasantries and left. On the days when he sat at the counter, he made small talk and tried to get to know her, and each time he left, she felt another piece of the giant wall around her heart slowly crumble away.
    Today, he held a small wrapped box, and she immediately recognized the paper from the candy shop. He’d successfully pried the name of her favorite confection out of her, and she knew the box held twelve pieces of chocolate covered maple crème candies.
    The gesture warmed her heart, and she didn’t try to hide her smile. She looked up, determined to agree when he asked her out the next time, and frowned. A slim woman with short brown hair had blocked his path to the counter, and dared to touch him. A low growl threatened to escape, but she stifled the sound, and got back to work. Nate could talk to, or flirt with, whomever he wanted, and she couldn’t do anything about it, but she couldn’t look away either.
    “Hiya, sheriff,” the woman said, placing one hand on his forearm, and the other on his chest. “Are those for me?”
    Nate grabbed the wrist of the hand on his chest, pulled it off him, and dropped it like a piece of garbage.
    “Considering I don’t know you,” he said, firmly, “I’m going with no .”
    “How about we get to know each other over dinner?” she said.
    He grabbed her other wrist, and pulled it away with the same amount of irritation.
    “Sorry, but I have plans,” Nate said, stepping around the woman.
    “Well, maybe some other time,” she called after him.
    He turned back toward the woman and sighed.
    “No,” he said, simply. “I’m taken.”
    Riley felt her cheeks redden, and looked down as excitement raced through her. Nate couldn’t know yet, but the woman was a notorious gossip. News about their budding relationship would spread like wildfire and he’d be labeled as a lover of scarred, fat girls forever.
    “Good morning, beautiful,” he said.
    She resisted the urge to cringe, and looked up into his deep blue eyes.
    “Good morning,” she said, glancing at the woman slipping out the door. “You shouldn’t have said that. She’s a big-time