Page 23 of Diners, Damsels & Wolves

That was an excruciating thought. Despite the short time he’d known her, he was lost in her being before he knew it, making excuses to go back the next day; maybe that was the day the bears would return. As pack leader, it was his duty to ensure their safety and that of the townspeople, that’s all it was. It was just a coincidence she would be there.

The truth was, he’d been hopelessly lying to himself. Every heartbeat, every breath, had been consumed with thoughts of her. He wanted nothing more than to see her, make her laugh, be the reason her face lit up. To make her his.

But this was getting complicated. Based on her scent, she was human. She would have no knowledge of the supernatural underground. She was already guarded and cautious; telling her he turned into a giant wolfman was not going to help that.

Were the bears really after him and not Clarissa? The bears had a history of hunting humans for sport, and they weren’t likely to let a prey go once they’d set a target on her. But they hadn’t attacked her again. Bears were not patient shifters. If they wanted her, they would have attacked the day after the first failed attempt.

Yes. They had to be after him, not her. As such, was he putting her in danger by going to the diner?

Emotions warred inside him. His desire to be near her, to woo her, was all consuming. So was the instinct to protect her. After pacing a hole into the forest floor, he’d made his decision: he would keep going to the diner until he was able to gain her trust. If she conceded to accepting his phone number, or to see him outside the diner, then he would dish out protection duty.

If he was going to get her to trust him that much, he needed to step up his game … without begging like the besotted puppy he was.

Six

Clarissa

Eyes drooping, Clarissa arranged pecans atop the last of the pies laying on the steel table. Despite being used to early hours, the hours today had been brutal, but thankfully, compared to running tables, assembling the diner’s pie was a piece of cake. She snorted at her own joke.

“So, after this morning, you want to keep showing up at four to make pie twice a week?” Marissa asked.

“Sure do,” Clarissa said without missing a beat.

“Well, you seem to know what you’re doing, so the transition should be easy. I’ll come in this Wednesday and after that I’ll be doing just Sundays. With both of us here, it should go faster.”

“Whatever you need.” She smiled. Marissa was kindly and soft-spoken. Other than the instructions, there had been minimal small talk, this morning, Clarissa appreciated the mental break.

“All done!” Placing the last pecan, she beamed up at Marissa.

“Fabulous! Just set those in the freezer and I’ll start the cleanup,” Marissa said. “Don’t forget the date tags.”

Clarissa put lids on each pie, writing the date on a roll of stickers and placing one atop each. She rolled the cart to the walk-in freezer. Icy air danced over then settled onto her slick skin. After placing the pecan pies on the shelves next to the chocolate, she took a moment to fan out her shirt from where it was clinging to her back.

Back in the kitchen, she started grabbing dirty dishes and rags. Her shoulders hurt from all the mixing, but she had fun using the oversized kitchen utensils.

“Hey, Clarissa?” Jordan, one of the waiters, came back. “There’s a guy out front asking for you. Red hair, drinks decaf.”

Her stomach flipped and she dropped the mixing bowl. Various fillings and dish soap splattered into her hair.

“I can’t go out right now,” she said, steadying the bowl. “We’re busy.”

“I don’t mind,” Marissa said.

“No, I can’t leave you with all the cleanup,” Clarissa protested.

“We’ll be done here in about twenty,” Marissa said.

“I’ll let him know.” Jordan disappeared to the front before Clarissa could stop him. With any luck, Thomas would leave before her. Why was he here again? Why did she care?

“Wait!” Marissa grabbed her arm.

In her daze, Clarissa had been trying to put the dirty dishes on the ingredients shelf.

Why did him showing up bother her so much? He was just another customer, a regular now, like Jeff and Eugene. A beautiful, charming, superhero …

Nope, she wasn’t letting herself go there. She had no reason to think of him any differently. No reason for her to get excited he was there.

Just. A. Customer.