The Bear's Forbidden Wolf: A Hot Paranormal Fantasy Saga with Witches, Werewolves and Werebears (Weres and Witches of Silver Lake Book 4) by Vella Day Page B

remain distant toward him might be the only way to maintain his sanity.
    Get going .
    With his shoulders pulled back, Jackson stepped up to the intercom that Mr. Berta had installed on the back door of the brick building. Elana told him that the rear door was left open during shop hours, but now that the store was closed, this entrance was locked.
    He pressed the worn button. A few seconds later, Ainsley answered then buzzed him in. Their discussion needed to be factual, appealing to her sense of justice—assuming she hadn’t been faking her grief this morning. If Elana was right, Ainsley wanted to be rid of her evil Changeling ways and was all in favor of having Naliana help.
    As he trudged up the dimly lit, steep steps, his heart pounded, and the rapid beating wasn’t from exertion. That damn mating pull was doing a number on him. Grabbing onto the handrail, he pictured Shamus’s prone body and his libido calmed.
    I can do this.
    Jackson interviewed people for a living, drawing out secrets they had no desire to share. Speaking with Ainsley shouldn’t be any different—just more strenuous.
    He knocked. When she pulled open the door, Ainsley didn’t make eye contact as she motioned him inside, and he was grateful for small favors. She’d changed out of her work uniform and thankfully had on a baggy rose-colored top that went well with the streaks in her hair. She hadn’t applied any makeup since the last time he saw her, but she still looked pretty. It was the low slung jeans that hugged her body too well, outlining every lickable inch, along with her bare feet, that was making his animal claw at his gut for release.
    Touch her , his bear urged.
    Jackson clenched his fists to force a barrier between him and his inner demon. “Thanks for letting me come over.”
    “Sure. You want some tea?”
    He needed something stronger than that to get through this conversation without doing something stupid. “Got a beer?”
    She shook her head. “Whiskey okay?”
    A woman after his own heart. “If you’ll share one with me.”
    He swallowed a groan. Now why the hell had he said that? He was here on business. If she hadn’t rushed into the small kitchen right away, he would have told her not to bother. Keeping her back to him, she fished out two short glasses then retrieved a bottle from one of the top cabinets.
    “Shit,” she said as she poured the drinks.
    “Need help?”
    “No I just spilled some.” Her level of frustration seemed higher than was warranted.
    A minute later, she brought out two drinks and set them on the small table wedged between the kitchen and the living room. She then sat down. Jackson pulled out the hard seat across from her, and when he sat, his knees practically touched hers.
    He was close. Too close. His gaze locked onto hers, and then his teeth sharpened. A few bones cracked. Damn. Her flowery scent was undoing his resolve one cell at a time.
    “How are you holding up?” he asked with so much sympathy, it even surprised him that he cared whether or not she was okay.
    “I’m still upset, but I’ll make it through. I have a job to do. And your mom?”
    She must not believe that he was upset about his cousin’s death, but he was. Shamus was family, and family meant everything to him, but he’d leave that discussion until later. He didn’t need to defend his honor. “Distraught. Losing Shamus has brought back all the memories of when my aunt died. Shamus was my mom’s last bit of connection to her. Not only is she grieving that loss, she’s trying to come to terms with Shamus’s violent death—as we all are.”
    Ainsley nodded. “Your mom is a nice lady. She and her sister shared a lot of the same kind-hearted traits.”
    His heart pinched. Ainsley had to be good inside if she could see that his mom and aunt were amazing women. “Thank you.”
    Her grip on her glass was so tight that her nail beds had turned white. Ainsley drew the glass to her lips and chugged half the contents.