Undercover Bear: Portland: Shane Read online

  “Okay,” I gulped. “Don’t you think Shane and I should talk, then? I mean we need to somehow create this whole cover story.”

  Marco sadly nodded. “I’ll go grab Shane.”

  Marco left me alone in the questioning room. I sat back down in the chair and tried to slowly calm my nerves. He’s just a guy, Lydia. And this is just another job. You need to prove to your brother that you’re strong enough to handle this.

  The truth was, I was scared as hell, but I would never admit that to Marco. I was not a cop, so I wasn’t even sure I could pull this whole undercover thing off. But I needed to. I needed to finally prove to Marco and my family that I could be strong. That I wasn’t something that needed protection.

  I took in a shaky breath as the door to the questioning room opened. The moment that Shane walked in, I felt all my fears slowly start to melt away. His presence seemed to calm me for some reason, which I couldn’t explain, but I was thankful for it. I hoped the sense of calm I felt around him would continue.

  He reached a strong hand out toward me. “It’s good to see you again, Lydia.”

  I reached out and gripped his hand and felt a slight spark course through our fingertips. I quickly removed my hand from his, slightly embarrassed, and hoped that he didn’t notice that I shocked him somehow.

  “You too.” I smiled awkwardly and sat back down. Get it together, Lydia, I scolded myself. He’s just another guy.

  Shane sat down in front of me, and an awkward silence settled between us. We barely knew each other, so there wasn’t much for us to talk about. I wrung my hands in my lap to try and hide my nerves. After a short moment, he cleared his throat.

  “I know this whole situation is awkward, but it’s the only way to find out what’s truly going on.”

  I nodded. “I agree. Natasha mentioned to me a few times how she didn’t feel right about that hospital. If they’re hurting our kind, then I want to be a part of stopping them.”

  Shane smiled brightly. I stared up into his bright blue eyes and was captivated by them for a moment. I quickly looked away before he thought I was staring at him. Shane pulled out a small notebook from his suit jacket.

  “All right, let’s go over the details on how this will all work..”

  6

  Shane

  God, I had forgotten how beautiful she was. Her honey colored hair fell perfectly against her tan skin. Her brown eyes exuded warmth and happiness. I knew from Marco’s stories how much of a spitfire she could be, but sitting across from me now, she looked nothing but sweet.

  Lydia looked down at her hands again, and I could tell that she felt uncomfortable. I hated that I had to put her in this uncomfortable situation, but I knew it was the only way for us to get some answers about the hospital and hopefully about Purest, Inc.

  I looked back down at my notepad and slowly tapped my pen to it. “So we have some of our backstory laid out. Want to go over it again to help you remember?”

  She nodded slightly and smiled. I couldn’t help but smile back at her. I quickly cleared my throat to distract myself and looked back down at the notepad.

  “So we met in college, at the University of Washington in Seattle. We lived on the same floor freshman year and have been inseparable ever since.”

  She nodded and continued for me. “We graduated in 2009, and were engaged in August of 2010. Do we need to figure out the details of how you proposed?”

  I tilted my head to the side and thought about it. The more of a backstory that we created, the more believable our lives together would be.

  “I think we should come up with some more details like that, so that if we do get asked that for some reason, we can answer.”

  She looked back down at her hands. “So how did you propose?”

  I stifled a laugh. I never thought I would propose to anyone, so honestly I never thought about it. I was married to the job, and never really thought about finding someone to spend my life with. I closed my eyes, and tried to think about how I would propose to someone I truly cared about.

  “Well, let’s see. I took you back to where we met on the first day of freshman year in the dorms. It was over summer break, so all of the rooms were empty. I placed sticky notes on your old door, that sent you on a scavenger hunt of all the places we had memories at on campus. When you arrived back at the dorms, all of our friends surprised you by being in the room along with both of our families. Then, I got down on one knee in front of them all and asked you to be my wife.”

  Lydia looked up at me with her warm eyes and smiled brightly. “That sounds perfect.”

  I smiled back at her. “I figured something simple and sweet that tied to how we met would be the best option. Now since you’re the woman, you figure out where we were married.”

  Lydia let out a loud laugh. “Oh, because I’ve been dreaming about where to get married since I was a little girl?”

  I laughed lightly with her. “Of course, don’t all girls?”

  She playfully hit my arm across the table, and I felt the soft spark that I had felt earlier when our hands touched. She quickly moved her hand away again and forced it in her lap.

  “Believe it or not, I haven’t planned out my wedding day,” she said quietly.

  “And why is that?” I asked, surprising myself by truly wanting to know the answer.

  She slowly looked back up from her hands. “Honestly? I never was that girly. Growing up with Marco as an older brother forced me to be like one of the guys. I hated how my father and Marco would always see me as someone that needed to be protected, so I think I hid my inner girly self so that they would see me as someone that was strong.”

  A slow smile spread across my lips. Lydia was not at all what I expected. At first glance, with her hair perfectly styled and the clothes that fit her smooth curves, she seemed very feminine. “I think I really like that about you, Lydia.”

  She looked back up at me and smiled. She placed her hands on the table and leaned forward.

  “So I guess this wedding, if I were really to think about it, would be at Lake Union in Seattle. All of our family and friends were there and the ceremony was right in front of the lake, with the party happening at Gas Works in a large tented area.”

  I smiled at her. “Sounds like a perfect wedding day.”

  She let out a laugh. “So how did we end up in Portland, from Seattle?”

  I tilted my head to the side in thought. “Let’s make it for your job. You snagged an amazing one at Nike which is head quarter out her.”

  “Perfect, so what now?” She asked. “Where do we go from here? I’ve never had to do anything like this before, so you may have to walk me through a lot of things.”

  “That’s no problem,” I said honestly. I looked down at my notebook. “We have our backstory which we can continue to flesh out. The guys are out there now working on the legitimacy of our cover by creating us new IDs and a marriage license, and finding us a place to live.”

  I looked up and watched the smile falter on her face. Shit, I hadn’t gone over all the aspects of going undercover with her yet.

  “Sorry Lydia, I stupidly forgot to tell you all the next steps. In order to make our cover real, we have to live together. The more legitimate we look, the more solid we will be.”

  She moved her hands back down to her lap. “I guess I just didn’t really think we would actually have to live together.” She quickly looked up at me like she had offended me. “Not that I think you would be terrible to live with.”

  “Lydia, it’s fine. I know you didn’t mean that in a mean way. I know we barely know each other, but this way is the only way we can both be safe. Plus, the guys will be checking in with us daily.”

  “I’ll still be able to speak with Marco?” she asked. I nodded and smiled. “Of course. It will have to be through a secure encryption app on your phone, but you will still be able to talk to him.”

  She let out a sigh of relief.

  “Lydia, I am going to try and make
this all as easy on you as I can. I know you’re strong, you just need to work with me, okay?”

  Lydia smiled and nodded. “All right. What else do we need to come up with?”

  7

  Lydia

  I grabbed the last box out of my Subaru and slammed the trunk behind me. I looked up at the small townhome that was now my new place and let out a long sigh. Living with Shane was going to be difficult. The last time that I had a roommate was in college. I had gotten so used to being by myself that the thought of someone else living with me made me feel sick to my stomach.

  I walked the box up to the door, and Shane quickly opened it up for me.

  “Here, let me take that for you,” he said as he swiftly grabbed the box from my arms.

  I smiled and followed him inside our new home. It was a quaint townhouse with two bedrooms and one bathroom. It had an open floor plan for the living room, and a surprisingly large kitchen with granite counter tops.

  “I have to admit, I was expecting something a lot smaller, since the police department was covering the living expenses.”

  Shane set down my box in the living room and looked up at me and smiled. “I spoke with the woman who handles all of those details. Once I told her that you were Marco’s sister and that we barely knew each other, she was happy to find us a place where we didn’t have to sleep in the same bedroom.”

  I felt the blood rush to my face. Thank God we weren’t forced to sleep in the same room. My attraction to Shane was already too much to handle. In order to complete this job, and to prove to my brother that I was able to do this, I needed to keep my feelings in check. Though, the sight of Shane getting out of the shower would have been a nice thing to see. I quickly bit my lip to distract my thoughts.

  I walked over to the living room couch and plopped down. “So what do we do now? Just wait for further instructions?”

  Shane walked toward the couch and sat next to me. His scent wafted into my nostrils and I closed my eyes for a moment, and allowed myself to take in his smell. I wanted nothing more than to move my body closer to where he was, but I knew that I couldn’t do that. I clenched my jaw to fight the urge.

  “Basically yes, “ Shane said. “Marco,Logan and Garrett are working on gathering as much information on the hospital as they can before we head in. They’re interviewing some of their past patients today so we can further the case against the hospital.”

  “What are we supposed to do? Sit here and twiddle our thumbs?” I asked impatiently.

  Shane let out a laugh. “I can tell that patience is not one of your qualities.” I gave him a less than pleased look and he threw up his hands in surrender. “I was only making a joke out of the situation. But you pretty much hit the nail on the head. We’re supposed to act normal, build on our cover, and plan as much as we can before we head in.”

  I leaned my head back in frustration. Shane was correct. Patience was not one of my best qualities. It sounded like a whole lot of waiting around and doing nothing. I absolutely hated doing nothing.

  Natasha used to always tease me about how I liked to keep myself busy. She claimed that it was because I could never actually sit still and relax. Now, finding myself in this situation, I had to agree with her. I enjoyed being busy and working. Relaxing really wasn’t my thing. Even when I went on vacations, I always managed to pack my schedule with different activities. I let out a long sigh, and Shane looked over at me. He reached his hand over and placed it on top of mine. I felt a tingle between us.

  “Hey, I know this isn’t easy for you. But we have to play our parts well. If something seems off between us, then everything will go up in smoke.”

  I rolled my head toward his and stared into his eyes. Deep down, I knew he was right, but my impatience was starting to get the best of me. “I know. I just hate this waiting game. I’m not very good at doing nothing.”

  Shane chuckled. Then he stood up from the couch, pulling me up with him.

  “Let’s be productive then.” Shane tugged me toward the kitchen, and put me to work chopping vegetables.

  “I wouldn’t trust me with a knife, you know,” I said.

  Shane laughed. “Duly noted. Just don’t slice your finger. We don’t need to go to the hospital yet.”

  I smiled and picked up the knife and started to cut the peppers that Shane had placed in front of me.

  “So what are we making?”

  Shane was standing over the stove, but I couldn’t see what he was working on. Whatever it was, it smelled delicious.

  “You’re making our salad. Next to the peppers are some tomatoes and the lettuce I need you to cut.”

  “Are we only eating salad for dinner?” I asked teasingly.

  Shane let out another laugh. God, I loved the sound of it. I shook my head and tried to focus on the peppers in front of me. “No, we’re having some steak and potatoes as well.”

  It figured that Shane would be a meat and potatoes type of guy. It kind of came with the bear territory. Marco and my father always loved to have steak or fish. My mom and I liked to try and eat different types of food, but I had to admit that a well-cooked steak was always high on my list.

  While Shane’s back was turned to the stove, I stole a glance at him. He was just so damn good looking. I felt my bear slowly stir underneath the surface. Apparently she liked him too, because as I stared at his strong back, all I could think about was how I wanted to make him mine.

  8

  Shane

  I could feel Lydia’s eyes on my back the whole time that I was cooking. It took all my strength to not turn toward her and pull her voluptuous body toward my own. I felt my bear stir under the surface of my skin. Get it together, Shane, I thought to myself. I barely knew her. She was Marco’s sister, for fuck’s sake. I rolled back my shoulders and tried to collect my thoughts. Focus on the job at hand, Shane. My bear fought against me but I held strong.

  Sure, Lydia was hot as hell. She had curves in all the right places, like a woman really should. But I refused to succumb to her. I could not get involved with her while we were undercover. I could not let myself get attached to her in that way. I had to keep my mind clear, so that I would be able to protect us both.

  I felt my bear shift again underneath my skin, and I could tell he was pissed. I knew that he wanted Lydia. What I couldn’t understand was why he wanted her so badly. I had been around hot chicks before, and I’d been lucky to sleep with most of them. For some reason though, Lydia was different. Yes, I wanted to grab her by the waist and push her up on our granite countertops, but I could tell it was more than just that.

  A loud beep on the stove shook me out of my own thoughts. I reached down and pulled the potatoes out of the oven. Maybe after all of this was over, I could explore why I saw something different in Lydia. But for now, while we were preparing to go behind enemy lines, I couldn’t let my feelings for her get in the way. There was a job to do, and our whole shifter community was on the line if we weren’t able to figure out what was going on.

  I grabbed the potatoes from the stove and placed them on the plate next to the steak. The food smelled amazing, and I was excited to have Lydia eat dinner alongside me. I looked up at her, and realized she was smiling at me.

  “It smells fantastic.” I smiled brightly back at her.

  “Grab the salad, and let’s dig in.”

  We sat down across from one another at our new home’s kitchen table. It was small and wooden and rested right next to the kitchen window. As Lydia sat down across from me, I couldn’t help but think about how I wanted to push away these dishes and throw her across the table. I clenched my jaw and quickly grabbed my knife and fork and tried to distract myself with food.

  “Mmm, this steak is amazing, Shane.” I looked up at her and slowly smiled. Fuck, she needed to stop making those noises when she ate.

  “Just an easy recipe I’ve been making for years. Sorry it’s nothing fancy. The police department doesn’t have much of a budget for our food.”
/>   “I am completely all right with eating steak like this over anything fancy. The last few weeks since the company closed, I’ve been surviving off ramen noodles.”

  I smirked. “Ramen noodles? Aren’t those completely filled with sodium?”

  “Yeah, they probably are, but they’re cheap as hell and you can spice them up a bit by adding stuff to it.”

  “In no world could I imagine ramen noodles out of a package tasting good.”

  “Oh, you’d be surprised. I make a mean ramen noodle with pork and veggies.”

  I coughed as I stifled a laugh. “Well, I’m going to hold you to that, then. I want to taste this mean ramen noodle.”

  Lydia smiled and continued to eat her steak. “So, I guess we should work on either finding out more information about ourselves, or creating our supposed happy life together.”

  I tilted my head to the side in thought. We had already created most of our backstory on how we met, how we got engaged, how our wedding was and why we ended up in Portland. We now needed to know some stuff about each other.

  “Why don’t we start with the basic stuff that couples tend to know about one another?”

  Lydia’s demeanor suddenly shifted. “Real stuff or stuff we make up? I mean, how in the hell am I supposed to remember all of this?” She was frustrated, and I got it. She had never had to be anyone but herself, and asking her to create a whole new person in her head had to be confusing.

  “Lydia, I know that this is difficult, but we have to do these things to make our relationship believable. The last thing we want is to be caught off guard by a dumb question that neither of us knows the answer to.”

  Lydia let out a long, frustrated sigh. “I know that all this is important. It’s just a bit overwhelming.”

  “I know it is, but it’s the only way that we can make our cover look real.”