Bear Naked Truth (Southern Shifters Book 7) Read Free Page A

him. Such an unusual but strong name. Not that she hadn’t already repeated his name a hundred times in her head on the way home, while she ate, when she crawled under the cabinet and even when she cursed the pipe that wouldn’t tighten.
    He reminded her of a—
    “Oh my God. That’s it. You’re a bear.”
    With the way his body stiffened and his eyes narrowed in her direction, she wished again she had some sort of impulse control that helped her keep her mouth shut. Blurting out she knew he was a shifter could cause all kinds of trouble.
    “Excuse me?” he questioned.
    “Uhm—No—nothing. I’m sorry—I mean— I didn’t mean to…” To make matters worse, she couldn’t put words together now in a sentence. What exactly was her problem around him?
    “Why are your clothes all wet?”
    Jess looked down, following his gaze and wanted to die on the spot. She wasn’t just wet. She was soaked, and her pale pink t-shirt was now plastered to her boobs and the thin lace covering them. She’d been hot while working, but now she looked cold. What with her nipples standing at attention and waving hello to the gorgeous man still standing in her doorway.
    Grreeeaaat.
    After a few awkward moments, his gaze left her body and wandered to the room behind her. “You spring a leak?”
    Jessa nodded. “Kitchen leak. I think I finally got it.”
    “I’ll look at it for you.” The bear walked in, his big body taking up so much of the doorway, forcing her to back up so he could pass.
    She started to object and then wisely shut her mouth. As much as she wanted to stand on her own and take care of everything, there came a point when she either accepted help or outsourced. He was here and offering, which could save her the time and cost of hunting down a plumber. Although with his back already disappearing into her kitchen he was beyond an offer.
    Clearly he did whatever he wanted. But it wasn't done in some asshole cavemen fashion. It was a quiet alpha move, and it made something inside her stir to life.
    Okay fine, it was lust. He was hot as hell, a fact not lost on her. She imagined it would affect anyone who spent more than thirty seconds in his presence.
    On a sigh she closed the door and followed him only to stop short at the sight of the burly man now lying on her floor with his head inside her cabinet.
    He'd removed his flannel shirt and draped it across the back of her kitchen chair. She had to resist the urge to pick it up and bury her face in it. Heat crawled up her neck. What exactly was wrong with her? This sudden and overwhelming attraction wasn't like her.
    Even after months with the Blackwood pack amidst more good-looking men than any one woman could handle, she didn't once feel this loss of control over her libido. This crazy, insane need to jump on the man getting wet on her floor.
    She desperately needed a cold shower. Something to clear her head.
    “Calder, right?”
    He lifted his head and looked at her.
    “That’s your name, right? It’s what the woman at the bakery said.”
    “Yes,” the word came out a little growly if you asked her. But the look in his eyes was not of anger. She’d swear he looked at her…
    Her nipples tightened more. The ache between her legs increased. Whatever was happening here between them couldn’t be normal. Men like him didn’t go after women like her. Although her boobs were quite large, which most men seemed to enjoy, so was the rest of her.
    She shook her head to clear it before daring to speak again. “Should I call a plumber? I don’t expect you to fix it.”
    “I don’t mind. I enjoy fixing things and besides Sienna sent me up here to check on you. She thinks I scared you back at the bakery.”
    Sienna. That was her name. She filed the woman’s name in her memory for the next time they met.
    “Did I?” he asked.
    “Nah.” Jessa tried to shake it off and act cool but failed miserably. Her need to blurt things out without a filter didn’t lend itself to any