Sex on a stick. That’s all she could come up with about the man across from her. Her gaze slowly trailed up his suited body. She couldn’t see muscles, but she could tell he was damn big and had this whole powerful personality thing going. When she got to his face, she gasped in recognition and shock. Her knight in shining armor was her date. Who would have thought the handsome man from the alley, who had so helpfully jumped in to save her from a shifter, was the same man she had come here to meet.
Wait, that didn’t make sense. Why would he need a fake mate if he had that beautiful woman he was with in the mouth of the alley?
She frowned. “Xander, I’m confused. Why would you need a mate for hire, when you had that beautiful woman with you earlier?”
He gave a slow grin that made her panties shrivel into nothing. “That wasn’t my date.” He continued to hold her gaze hostage. “Or my girlfriend, if you thought she was. She’s an old friend who’s moving to town and she wanted to catch up. Her older brother’s a very close friend. She’s practically my sister. Besides that, the reason I need you is to get my grandmother off my back. She knows Ally, so it wouldn’t have worked.”
Josie was strangely pleased to hear that woman wasn’t his mate. She berated herself for the tingles of excitement at knowing he was single. Not going there. Nope. Not even if her hormones debated with her. She had so little luck in love. Besides, it didn’t make sense considering she just met the man and was only here as his hired mate.
Besides, he was a shifter. Dangerous. Alpha. She glanced up, saw his intense, hungry stare, and had to squeeze her legs together. Great time for her lack of sex to make itself known. She was in trouble if a single look made her wet and ready to beg.
“What made you hire a mate, exactly? I’m afraid I don’t know any details other than you needed someone as soon as possible.”
Xander cocked his head to the side, his brows rising and confusion clear on his face. “You weren’t told the details? I made everything clear when I applied.”
“No, they didn’t tell me much. Just the duration, the fee, and when I was to meet you.” Josilyn couldn’t help the blush that flamed when she thought about what else her friend had told her. No sex. Unless you want to.
Now the words kept running circles in her head. She would love nothing more than to ride this man until they both passed out from exhaustion.
“My grandmother is coming to town. I need to show her that I’ve found my mate and I’m ready to settle down.”
It was Josie’s turn to be confused. “I don’t know much about shifters, but won’t she wonder later why I’m suddenly gone from your life? I was under the impression shifters mated for life.”
Xander nodded and smiled. “You’re really smart. That’s correct. My grandmother isn’t a shifter, though. She’s human. She believes it’s more of just finding the right person and that I’m being too picky.”
They were interrupted by the server standing beside their table, “Hello, my name is Julian and I’ll be your server today. Can I get you something to drink?”
“Wine okay with you, Josie?” Xander asked politely. She nodded her agreement. She had walked to the restaurant so didn’t need to worry about driving under the influence. He turned to the waiting server. “Hi, Julian, can we get a bottle of your house red, please.”
“Of course, Mr. Ursi. Do you need a few minutes to look over the menu, or would you like to order now?”
Xander winked at Josie. “A few minutes, please. My lovely date has not looked at a menu yet.”
“Oh, that’s okay. I haven’t been here in a while, but I still remember my favorites.” Too bad he wasn’t on the menu.
There she went again. This was dangerous. What if after one glass of wine she flung herself at him? She really needed to get laid and stop mentally stripping this poor man.
They ordered their meals and Julian left them to finish their conversation.
“What’s next, then? I mean, did my showing up here help you decide if I’m filling that role for you? What if your grandmother takes one look at me and says, ‘Nope, not good enough,’ or something, and you did this all for nothing?” She folded her fingers on her lap and tried to stop wringing her hands together. Stupid nerves.
“Honestly, yes, you’re it for me. My grandmother will be here in a few days. I just need you to spend time with me so we can get to know each other. When she gets here, it will look like a real relationship because we know each other’s quirks.” He smiled as he spoke, and the way he said the word “quirks” made her shudder. She was reading something dirty into everything.
“How much time are we talking here?” Because he was really close to being in need of saving from her if it was a long time. “I don’t see how a few ‘dates’ are going to accomplish all that.” Plus, what she really wanted was to ask if they could reconsider the no-sex clause. She really wanted him to reconsider.
“Of course not. You have to move in with me for the next week,” Xander said with a sinful grin that sent tingles through her already aroused body.
Close quarters with this man. Well, she might as well go buy a new set of batteries. She was going to need new toys too. Shit! Him and her together and no sex? That had to be considered cruel and unusual punishment in some states. How was she supposed to be around him all the time and not beg him to fuck her senseless?
She was turning into a sex maniac. This had to be what happened when you hadn’t gotten any in over a year. It was either that or something else was going on. Why did this guy affect her to the point she would drag him to the bathroom, have a quickie right now, and not think twice about it? Ah, fuck! A quickie sounded good.
Josie did another quick glance over his body, what she could see of it, and choked back a whimper. Fuck quickie. She wanted to climb him like a maypole. The things she would do to him would get her arrested. Well, probably not in private, but she’d definitely end up in a messed-up version of a Cops public sex video.
Xander cleared his throat, and Josie blushed at the train of thought she’d been following. Shit, hadn’t she heard shifters could smell when someone was aroused. She met his gaze and had her answer. Oh, hell to the yeah. The way he inhaled like someone just baked a pie made her squeeze her legs tight.
Words weren’t necessary. They stared into each other’s eyes and she knew she wasn’t imagining the promise in his gaze of really dirty things to come. Well, maybe she imagined it, but she was okay with that. They were jolted back to the present when the server Julian returned and placed their wine and food on the table and left without a word.
Josie blushed, picked up her wine, and tugged at the neckline to her top. She was feeling all kinds of hot. Food was the last thing on her mind. “You said move in with you for the next week. Doesn’t that seem a bit extreme?”
“Normally, yes, but I don’t have time to for us to do this any other way. Is there any issue about staying with me?” The way he raised his brows told her he was expecting her to have a man issue. “I guess we could stay at your place for part of the week too, unless there’s a reason you can’t…”
She grinned at his obvious insinuation. She should let him believe she had a man, but she wanted the job, and him too, for that matter. “Um.”
She was struggling to get past the living-with-him part, to formulate a logical plan to stick to not jumping him in the middle of the night. Nick was with his grandmother. That was one less complication, at least. Wait, what was she saying? She’d just met this guy. Yeah, he saved her life, but that didn’t entitle him to anything. Josie needed some answers, and she knew just the person to call. “Excuse me for a moment. I need to use the ladies’ room.”
As soon as she was out of sight, she went back to the hostess who had been nice to her.
“Hi, could I possibly use a phone for a second?”
The hostess smiled and nodded. “We have one in the manager’s office right around the corner. Just follow me.”
Once she was alone in the office, she pulled her planner out of her bag. People always told her nobody carried written phone numbers anymore because everything was saved on cell phones. Well, she had a broken phone and still had all the important contact information she needed. She called her best friend. Shawna was the person who had gotten her into this in the first place. She paced, as she waited for the call to go through.
“Shawna, I swear I’m going to shave you bald and throw you in front of your yoga class naked.”
Shawna laughed that cute giggle that usually made Josie burst into laughter too. “Well, hello to you too, darling. What crawled up your sphincter and rotted?”
She huffed out a breath. “You didn’t tell me I’d have to stay with him night and day for a week! That is something kind of important to know ahead of time, don’t you think?”
Shawna gasped. “I didn’t know that part. The arrangements are between you. All I did was input your data and the computer matched you to him.”
Great. Where did that leave her? Back to square one.
“I don’t know the first thing about him and neither do you, it sounds like.” Not that her body cared. Her girl bits had decided he could show her how much bears liked to lick on honey. Her honey. Lord, she needed to stop the insane sexual thoughts.
“That’s not entirely true. I know of him. He is a loyal client to my company, and on top of that, everyone has to go through a rigid background screening. He is safe, gorgeous, and relatively harmless. You’re in great hands.” The cheerful note in Shawna’s words almost did her in.
“Oh, so that means it’s safe to send your best friend off with him for the week? This doesn’t cause you any sort of concern in the least bit? What if he turns out to be a cannibal? And wants to eat me for dinner!”
Shawna laughed. “If he wants to eat you for dinner, I suggest you enjoy every second of it.”
“Shawna!” she grumbled. “This is serious.”
“Orgasms usually are. If he’s as good as most other bear shifters, he’s gonna have your knees buckling and your legs shaking for hours.”
Just great. She so did not need that visual … or expectation.
“You’re not a very good friend.”
Shawna giggled again. “The way I see it, you can sit home and be depressed that Nick is with his grandmother while you stress over money, or you can spend a fabulous week with a walking wet dream. Maybe finally get all the sex you haven’t gotten for years.”
Josie laughed at that; leave it to Shawna to put things into perspective. “I still don’t know about this. Are you sure it’s safe?”
Shawna sighed. “Woman, I swear to you on the threat of no more Pizza Fridays that you’re safe with him. Well, as safe as you want to be, that is.”
“Sometimes I really wonder why I’m friends with your crazy ass.”
“That’s simple. Because you love me, and I spice up your life. Now stop hiding and get back to eye fucking that hunk of a man and remember to live a little.” She ended the sentence with a loud meow.
Josie smiled and said good-bye before slowly making her way to her table and the enticing man sitting there. She might be a fool, but she trusted Shawna.
“Where were we?”
Xander winked and lifted his glass of wine. Lord, those eyes were doing some crazy things to her heart. “You were getting ready to say yes to my proposal.”
He’d already eaten most of his food, so she had to sit down and pick at hers quickly while trying to think of what to say. Every few seconds, she’d take a tiny bite and try to decide how to answer him. After she’d made an attempt at eating some of the meal, she sighed and met his gaze.
“You sure are confident, aren’t you?” She couldn’t help but laugh at his self-assured demeanor. The man knew he was hot and was using it to get his way.
“Not at all, but I know what I want and I don’t give up easily. The only question now is, are we staying at your place, my place, or back and forth?”
Josie put her hand up in a slowdown gesture. “You don’t even know me. How can you trust me to be in your house, around your stuff, and not be even the slightest worried?”
“I know the hoops I had to jump through to be included in the mate program. That leaves me fairly confident you did the same. Besides, I know the owner of the company and I trust him.” Xander waited with raised brows, almost daring her to come up with another reason he could shoot down.
Well, hell. She might regret this later, but at least she’d regret it with her bills paid. “Fine. I agree … for now. Don’t make me change my mind.”
Xander beamed in satisfaction as he waved the waiter over. “Can we get the check, please?”
“We’re leaving now?” Josie squeaked in evident surprise and alarm. Damn, she’d barely had enough wine to blame for throwing herself at him if she happened to go that route.
“Yes, it’ll be easier to get to know each other in a more relaxed environment. This restaurant is wonderful, but it’s hard to talk freely when you’re constantly aware of eyes and ears of those around you listening in on every word.” He stood, his massive body making her feel small and dainty.
“Where are we going? I walked here from my apartment. Are we staying at my place or yours?” Why was she suddenly thinking about the fact she hadn’t shaved her legs. Or wasn’t wearing matching underwear.
“Do you have a preference? I want you to be comfortable and at ease. I understand this was sprung on you last minute and I apologize for that,” Xander said. He handed Julian his card. Julian was back within thirty seconds. Xander smiled and signed the check. Then he offered her his hand. “My place, or yours?”
Josie opened and closed her mouth a few times trying to figure out a response. She hadn’t shaved her legs! “I … um … Do…”
Xander laughed. She knew why. She probably had that fish-out-of-water look. “Calm down, sweetheart. How about this, you run home and get what you need for tonight and tomorrow. I will give you my address and phone number and you can meet me at my house as soon as you’re done. This way you have your car and can leave if at any point you don’t feel safe or if you’re overwhelmed or whatever.”
Josie nodded in agreement and stood to follow Xander from the restaurant. Things were happening so quickly and she couldn’t process any of them. It was one thing to do a job for some guy. Quite another to be this attracted to the man hiring her. She was having trouble processing the fact he was going to pay her to be his fake girlfriend and all her mind was focused on was getting him naked. She needed some alone time.
“Let me call you a cab or drop you off. I don’t like the idea of you walking after what happened earlier.”
In all the excitement, she had completely forgotten about her near miss earlier in the night. “A cab would be appreciated,” she said with a shiver as she searched the shadows around her.
Xander placed his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. “Don’t worry. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
Josie couldn’t concentrate on a word he said, her head was filled with the musky man scent that was all Xander. A mixture of woods, man, and something she couldn’t quite identify, but it left her hungering for a taste of him.