The Bear's Hired Mate: A Paranormal Bear Shifter Romance Read Free Page A

his iPad. “There are tabs up with both the email account as well as the tattooing schedule. I refuse to drop clients and their times are set based on their availability, not mine, so I need to make them fit.”
     
    Jane looked over the iPad and, without looking, responded, “In the future, I think you might want to consider setting some availability hours before taking clients, but those are stipulations I can set once you’ve hired me.” Jane looked up at Vincent with a confidence she didn’t really feel.
     
    His eyes were giving her shivers, he looked like he wanted to run but he couldn’t decide if he wanted to do it with or without Jane. Her reasons for being forceful were two-fold; first, she needed this job and something in her gut told her that Vincent would respect a strong voice. Second, and perhaps the driving factor, was that she needed a break from him for a second. The way he filled the room made it hard for her to breathe. She either needed him to leave or get very, very close.
     
    Jane closed her eyes as she felt her cheeks go pink. Where had that thought come from? Jane wasn’t even overly sexual. She hadn’t had a boyfriend since that new car salesman years ago, and that had been an outright mistake. Never again was she going to date in the office. But perhaps it was time for her to visit a bar or two...maybe join match.com or something. Her hormones were suddenly out of control.
     
    For a split second, Vincent wondered why Jane had gone pink but when her scent surged with sexual hormones Vincent decided to hightail it out of the room before his own body responded. “Well, then I shall leave you to the test.” Nodding to Jane he ushered Xavier out of the room and left Jane to organize.
     
    After the door had shut Xavier turned to ask Vincent what was up, “Vince? Man, what was up in there. She’s perfect and you know it. Jane has more experience than anyone else we’ve interviewed and her look is perfect for the front. I’d prefer it if she had a tat or two, but that never takes long once they’re in the shop. Remember Rick at the Mirage shop? It took him all of two months to invest in one…”
     
    Vincent knew he’d have to hire her, even if she failed the impossible test. He had been struggling with the schedule himself for two hours last night and he couldn’t mesh it all. But he knew he would be in trouble if he could barely make it to the front desk without having Jane in his eyesight. Vincent started to pull up the records for today’s incoming tattoos when he became aware of silence. Looking up, he saw that Xavier was looking at him expectantly.
     
    “Did you hear any of that?” Xavier asked.
     
    Vincent sighed. “Sorry man, it was that committee call. I’ve just got too much on my mind.”
     
    “I know you do Vince, but that doesn’t mean that you need to act like an ass. Please don’t turn into your father yet, give the girl a chance.” Xavier finished this glorious bit of advice with a slap on Vincent’s back and then left to prep his station for his first client of the day. In an attempt to distract himself, Vincent searched the day’s roster to see who the client was and what they wanted. Vincent guessed it was a young woman who wanted the stereotypical tramp stamp of a butterfly above her ass.
     
    Vincent had been tattooing for far too long to still find that sexy. Now, Vincent was well known for his pin-up art. It was a difficult style to get right. Many people had trouble figuring out how to get the impossible curves to look lifelike and not to mess up the face. If you’d ever watched those reality tattoo competitions you saw that they always messed up the face. Vincent continued to scroll through the clients and art for the day. The schedule was jammed and Vincent was a little worried that he was going to be staying late, yet again, to finish his last tattoo of the day. It was a back piece and he’d forgotten how large the dude was.
     
    The buzzing of