Page 21 of Bear With Me

Bjorn managed a small smile. “I can’t wait to hug her. And I owe you a hug too, for doing all this driving. I know this wasn’t how you were planning on spending your vacation.”

Or my life, Dennis thought but didn’t voice. He definitely hadn’t had meeting a cinnamon roll of a bear who thinks it’s fate and immediately going on a road trip with him on his bingo card for this year. “It’s no problem,” he said out loud, instead. “I’m on vacation anyway.”

With a sigh, Bjorn stacked his hands behind his head. Dennis realized abruptly that he was still naked as a jaybird, and then realized even more abruptly that Dennis had gotten so used to it that he hadn’t even noticed until now. “Some vacation,” Bjorn said quietly. “I don’t know how much free time I’ll have once we’re with Gran,” he added, “but maybe we can do some hikes or, I don’t know, something else to keep you entertained. Do you like hiking?”

Dennis was an indoor kind of guy. He did not, in fact, like hiking. He wrinkled his nose. “Not so much. I’m sure I can entertain myself, though. I have my phone and my Kindle. Just don’t make me play dodgeball with the kids.”

“Because you’d kick their butts?’ Bjorn asked, perking up.

Dennis snorted. “Because they’d kick mine. Kids are vicious little motherfuckers, in my experience.”

“Oh, that’s definitely true,” Bjorn agreed readily. “Especially with dodgeball in the den. Don’t worry, I’ll protect you from having to play.” He paused. “Uh, what are we going to tell people at the den, by the way?”

“About why I’m there?”

Bjorn tipped his head from side to side. “Sort of? But also the first time I shift uncontrollably, they’ll know I met my mate, and they’re going to wonder if that’s you. Some of them will probably get pushy about completing the mating if they know.”

Well, shit. Dennis hadn’t thought about that, though in retrospect, it was obvious that the uncontrollable shifting would be a dead giveaway. He considered asking Bjorn to lie and say his mate was someone else and that Dennis was just a road trip friend, but that seemed unlikely to be believed when people saw how Bjorn treated Dennis. He sighed. “I guess tell them the truth? Mostly? You think I’m your mate, I’m still considering things, we’re holding off on making things official.”

Bjorn didn’t look enthused by that, but he nodded. “Okay. But uh, fair warning. My mom is…uh.” He bit his lip. “She probably won’t approve.”

“Of waiting?” Dennis asked, confused.

He shook his head. “No, of you being my mate. My parents are kind of uptight. Ok, really uptight. They’ve never approved of anything I do, basically.”

“You’re the black sheep of the family?” Dennis blurted. “You, aka Mister Sunshine? What could they possibly object to about you?”

Bjorn grimaced. “Well, that, for one thing. I’m too happy, I guess? Playful? They wanted me to be a serious businessman on behalf of the den, not a freelance illustrator for children’s books who picks his jobs based mostly on vibes.”

That was actually the first time Dennis had heard about what Bjorn did for a living, and somehow it fit him perfectly. “You draw?” he asked, aware he was changing the subject and pretty ok with that.

“Oh, yes,” Bjorn said, nodding. “I’ve always loved art. I’m constantly doodling. In college, I offered to illustrate for a friend who was working on a book for the early childhood education market, and then she got published and kind of took me along for the ride.” He grinned. “I love it. I get to hang out with kids at book signings, and I get to draw happy things for kids from day-to-day. And when I get an urge to do something more adult-y, I can always sketch or paint.”

“Wow,” Dennis said dutifully. While he had very little experience with art, himself, he respected the amount of talent it took to do art, especially in a way that was marketable. “I’d love to see some of your work someday.” That was a polite thing to say, right?

Bjorn looked taken aback by that, but slowly nodded and slipped off the bed, dick swinging in the breeze. Dennis concentrated on not staring at either ass or dangling dick as Bjorn bent to root through his belongings before eventually coming up with a bound notepad of some kind. He straightened up, flipped a few pages in the notebook, and handed it to Dennis, cheeks red. “That’s, um, a draft for my next book assignment,” he explained, gesturing to the illustration on the page, which showed an anthropomorphic turtle - or maybe a tortoise? - with a hand sassily perched on its hip. “It’s a story about a turtle and a snake who are best friends and how they naturally make accommodations for each others’ limitations. Like, the turtle is a scaredy-cat, and the snake doesn’t have arms.” He shrugged, looking down. "I know it's probably stupid."

His tone said he fully expected Dennis to agree with him, and Dennis fumbled to find the right thing to say. “It's…really cool, actually,” he ventured tentatively. “Do you write the story, too?”

“Oh, no.” Bjorn shook his head vehemently, closing the sketch pad and hugging it to his chest. “Stories are not my strong suit, to say the least. Usually my editor pairs me up with an author and we collaborate on how my illustrations should match the story they already have written.” Suddenly, he let out a loud yawn, then slapped a hand over his mouth. “Oh my god, I’m so sorry, I swear you’re not boring me,” he babbled quickly.

Dennis reflexively echoed the yawn, realizing all of a sudden that his eyes were heavy. “I think the drive is catching up with us,” he said. “I’m tired too. Maybe time for bed?” He glanced at the bed, realizing anew that there was only one bed for the two of them. And while the couch in their hotel room would probably accommodate Dennis, if not Bjorn, he really didn’t actually want to sleep curled up on a couch all night. Nevertheless, he didn’t want to send the wrong message, either. “Uh…do you want the bed?” he offered uncertainly, secretly hoping the answer would be no.

Bjorn gently laid his sketch pad on top of his suitcase and glanced at the bed. Then he looked at Dennis, then at the couch. Then back to the bed. “I could take the couch?” It came out as more of a question, and it was obvious that Bjorn wasn’t enthusiastic about his offer.

He should just let the other man squeeze onto the couch, Dennis thought. Served him right for all of…well, everything that had happened in the past two days. On the other hand, the guy’s beloved grandmother was ill and he needed to be rested enough to take care of her tomorrow. On the other other hand, Dennis also needed to be rested tomorrow, because he had a twelve-hour drive ahead of him.

Admitting defeat, he sighed. “Let’s share the bed.”

Bjorn perked up. “Really?”

He nodded. “It’s a big bed, and there’s no reason for either of us to spend a sleepless night on a couch when we both fit in the bed. Just…” He sighed. “Try not to shove me out this time, ok?”

Bjorn nodded fervently. “Oh, absolutely. I’m sure even if I shift, there will be enough room.” He bent back to his suitcase, pulling out a toothbrush and toothpaste. “Mind if I use the bathroom first?” Dennis shook his head, and Bjorn disappeared into the bathroom.

Once he was alone in the room, Dennis groaned quietly and sank his head into his hands. Another night sharing a bed with the sweet guy who was growing on him but who he was definitely not tying himself to for life. Nope.

Definitely not.