Page 6 of Luke: The Bears

Luke glanced at his hand and the stark white knuckles and forced himself to relax enough to let go. “Right.”

“Easy,” Trick said, lowering his voice. “She’s human. She probably has no clue what’s going on.”

Luke nodded. He could do this. He could be cool, calm, and collected.

Inhaling, he rolled his shoulders and walked down the line of people, stopping in front of the copper-haired beauty.

“Hi,” he said. “I’m Luke.”

Her brows lifted, her deep brown eyes glittering with curiosity.

“Hi. I’m Valley. Are you… another bouncer?”

“No. I’m actually part of the construction crew that worked on the deck.”

She stared at him for a long, painful moment.

“I’m Eisley,” her friend quipped.

Valley’s cheeks flamed bright red and Luke was entirely enchanted. “Nice to meet you both. Are you waiting for a table on the deck?” he asked.

“Yes,” Valley said. “He mentioned it would be a while.”

While she spoke, her gaze traveled over him, and he felt every inch of it. His bear pressed against his skin with an interested rumble. He was so freaking close to her, but still so far away.

“Would you,” he cleared his throat when his voice went gravelly for a moment, “like to join me and my friends on the deck? We’ve got a reserved table.”

Valley glanced at the female next to her. “Not without my friend.”

“Of course,” he said.

He liked that she was loyal to her friend.

“Then let’s go,” Eisley said. “I’m starving. I didn’t eat lunch so I would be extra hungry for one of the burgers.”

“You sound like my friend Riggs,” Luke said. “Come on. Let’s get settled before the band starts.”

Valley smiled at him and his bear did a somersault in his head.

He walked them to the front and Trick smiled as they entered the main room. Out on the deck, he found the reserved table by the rail with a great view of the band and also the river.

He introduced them to Colt and Riggs, and pulled chairs over, sitting next to Valley, his bear practically swooning at how good she smelled.

“Oh wow, this is so cool,” Valley said. “It’s our first time here.”

“Then you’re in the right place for a first timer,” Riggs said.

The waitress came out with their drinks, and took Valley and Eisley’s orders for food and drink. The deck started to fill up as Trick let people in from the waiting list, and a little after seven, the band welcomed everyone to the kickoff for the summer concerts. Their food arrived a few songs later, the waitress saying that Sigh had put a rush on the girls’ food. Luke waited until Valley and Eisley’s food arrived, and then they were all digging into the burgers of the week and listening to music.

In between bites of a thick burger and crispy steak fries, Luke and Valley traded questions, and he learned that she was a baker and had grown up on the outskirts of Mill Creek. It was wild to him that he’d been in King Lake for five years and had never even felt like he should go across the bridge because his mate was there.

Timing was everything when it came to truemates.

Long after the plates were cleared and another round of drinks ordered, Luke asked Valley to dance when a slow song started, and she agreed. For the first time, as he held her against him and swayed to the music with her, everything felt right in his world.

No more restless bear.

Now he’d found his other half.