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“Luther.” Her voice cracked as she said it, but everyone present had the decency to ignore it. “Cool name.”
She hastily slid her hand into his, ignoring the heat that flared between their palms. If Maria hadn’t been holding her up, she might have given in and just collapsed into his big, burly chest.
Her inner grizzly fought hard to shift right then and there, the contact almost overwhelming for her, but Espie kept herself in check. They each gripped one another firmly, neither seeming to want to be the one to pull away first, until the sharp pinch at her side finally forced Espie to retract her hand.
“It was good to see you again, Luther,” Maria said, but she was already pulling Espie away. As she gently prodded Espie along, her inner grizzly groaned long and low, needy for more physical contact, but Espie took the distance as an opportunity to catch her breath.
“You looked a hot mess back there, girl,” Maria whispered as she swept her halfway down the street. “I hope you don’t mind me pulling you out of that embrace, but I saw that look the other night at the park, too. It seems like this guy has really gotten to you.”
Espie nodded as they stopped by one of the food trucks, taking in the delectable aromas of fresh pastries wafting out into the night breeze. She searched the nearby tables for Luther again, finding him stopped at Alani’s pottery display, almost directly across from her. Espie blinked hard, fighting the little voice that told her he was half-turned in her direction because he was still watching her.
“Espie?”
“I scented him that night,” she explained somewhat breathlessly, both loving and absolutely hating this feeling of being woefully out of control around him.
Maria squealed and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “I knew I was right about you two!”
“And now my body it totally freaking out.”
Maria laughed, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “From what I hear, that’s totally normal. Especially since he’s new to town, you haven’t had the opportunity to get used to his scent or how it feels to be around him. Don’t worry. Everyone says that part goes away after a while.”
“There’s that, and then…” She gulped, stealing another look across Main Street at him. Alani seemed to be chatting about the piece in her hand, and while Luther nodded, he appeared somewhat distracted, his body still turned toward Espie. “I worry about giving my heart to someone. With Miguel as our alpha, I have to be careful who I let in, even if he is my fated mate. I mean, he's a miner, for God’s sake.”
“Give it time,” Maria insisted with a kind smile. She then started pulling again, and Espie moved along, despite her inner bear’s growling protests. “You’ll figure out if he is worthy of you and all that you are, and if he’ll honor the family and the clan. You don’t have to know all the answers right now.”
“I guess.”
“But let’s give your body some peace,” the black bear shifter said, giggling. “I really want a tortilla.”
As they headed for the food truck Maria had selected, Espie spared one last look over her shoulder. This time, Luther was watching her unabashedly, hands in his pockets and body fully facing her.
She smiled without meaning to, and a jolt of muddled emotions shot through her when he smiled back. Lips pressed together, Espie took a deep breath and turned away, determined to get control over herself—mind, body, and inner bear self—before she investigated her fated mate any further.
