Beastly Bear (Shifter Brides Everafter Book 2) Page 9

  "Mrs. Potter!"

  A woman who looked like a model ran toward them, waving. She was followed by two men, one younger and one older. They were an attractive trio.

  "Stephanie!" Potter embraced the woman and kissed her on both cheeks. "I was wondering if you three had beat me here."

  "I'm just glad Connor could get himself ready in time," Stephanie looked back at the younger man and touched his cheek. "He's as vain as his granddaddy."

  "I am not vain," the young man pulled on the lapels of his blazer. "I have to spend a lot of time making sure I don't outdo the groom when it comes to events like this. This is your fault really. You made me too beautiful."

  "Hey, she didn't make you herself." The older man straightened his tie. "I know the lion's share of beauty comes from your gorgeous mother, but something must be said for my masculine handsomeness. It had to add something."

  "Look at us going on about our good looks," Stephanie laughed. "We must be scaring this poor girl. What's your name, honey? Are you one of Potter's great-nieces?"

  "I'm Lenora Belle, Beckett Hansen's assistant." She held out her hand and Stephanie shook it with wide eyes.

  "You are Beckett's assistant? You are?"

  Lenni tried to keep smiling, but the silence was making her skin crawl. Had she done something wrong already? Was she not supposed to say who she worked for? Was it bad form? She really should have asked Potter for some advice before agreeing to come to a thing like this.

  "I'm Stephanie Hansen, Beckett's stepmom, and this is his dad Greg and his younger brother Connor."

  She should have guessed. Looking at the older man, he had Beckett's eyes and face shape. The younger boy did look like a combination of his parents. He was fair where Beckett was dark. Both were still very handsome of course.

  "Stephanie, over here."

  The older woman quickly put her hand around Lenni's waist and pulled her close. "Smile big and try not to make any funny faces."

  Lenni smiled big and there was a flurry of flashes.

  "Who's your pretty friend?" one of the cameramen shouted.

  "This is my stepson's friend," Stephanie called back.

  "Beckett's got a new friend, huh? You the girl from the island getaway or are you new?" another cameraman asked.

  "No time for more questions." Stephanie led her into the restaurant at a fast clip. "Don't worry, Potter and the boys will keep up."

  "Why did you let them take your picture?"

  "They would have taken it anyway. At least this way, they have something that looks good to sell. I know Beckett hates the flashing lights, but I try to stay on good terms with these guys."

  "Why don't they ever yell my name?" Connor asked when he'd caught up with them.

  "Why would they when they have your mother and Lenore?" Greg kissed his wife on the cheek. "You and Potter will be sitting with us."

  "Of course they will," Stephanie said.

  Great. Beckett was going to love this. She had just gotten her picture taken and she'd be sitting with his evil stepmother. The night was getting better and better.

  "Please call me Lenni," she told Greg.

  "Lenni it is. How long have you worked for my son?" He pulled out her chair and pushed her into the table once she sat down.

  "A few weeks."

  "He must really like you," Connor said. "He took you on vacation and he let you come here."

  "He didn't let her come anywhere," Potter corrected. "I invited her to come with me tonight and to the wedding tomorrow."

  "Speaking of Beckett, have I showed you what I've been working on?" Stephanie asked.

  "The pictures?" Potter asked.

  "I've been digitizing all the pictures of Connor and Beckett I can get my hands on," Stephanie explained to Lenni. "I don't want them to get lost in a fire or something else terrible."

  She showed Lenni a bunch of pictures of the boys as children until Connor made her stop. "Mom, we're at someone else's wedding party. Please don't make this about us."

  She put the phone away reluctantly. "Did you know we let Beckett name his little brother?"

  "No I didn't know that," Lenni told her. "An odd choice for a kid. No offense Connor, but it's kind of an old-guy name."

  Stephanie laughed and slapped the table. "You got it, girl. It was the name of Beckett's imaginary friend. He was a seventy-year-old man and when he died Becks was crushed for weeks. He didn't cheer up until I told him that he could call his little brother after his friend."

  Connor groaned. "I hate this story."

  "It's adorable," Lenni said. "I don't know how imaginary friends die, but that is the cutest thing I've heard all day."

  "Mom is telling the naming story again," Connor said to someone behind Lenni.

  She swiveled around and there was Beckett. He looked great in the outfit she picked out. She was going to keep that to herself. She could only imagine how Stephanie would react to that bit of information.

  "Becks! You look so handsome." Stephanie hugged Beckett while he kept his arms stiff at his sides. "I just came to remind Lenni to be careful of the cameras. There's a horde of them outside."

  "She can see the cameras just fine, son," his father said. "She has working eyes after all."

  Beckett nodded curtly and walked away.

  "Rude as always," Connor said with a grin. "There's nothing better than how embarrassed my older brother gets at these things."

  Rude indeed. And now it was going to be even more awkward when he saw the pictures of her and his stepmother. Lenni was going to have to figure out a way to soften the blow with that one.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Beckett's cock strained painfully against his dress pants. That damn dress was getting the best of him. Slipping into the guest house she and Potter were in was easy. Finding Lenni's room was the real test. He didn't want to end up knocking on some stranger's door and having to explain himself. It would probably end up being the talk of the wedding.

  He made a guess and went with it. His gut was telling him she was in the smallest of all the rooms. He knocked softly at the door. "Lenni?"

  In the space between knock and the answer, he imagined all things he wanted to do to her. He wanted to lick every inch of her body and kiss her from head to toe. He wanted her to wrap her long legs around his waist as he pushed into her roughly. Before she'd open the door, he had ravished her a thousand different ways in his mind. When she answered, his animal went wild. She was only wearing a thin pink robe, and her bra peeked out from underneath. He was ready to kick the door closed behind him and take her, but the bewildered look on her face gave him pause.

  "What are you doing here?" She pulled the sash keeping her robe together tighter.

  He fingered the material at her waist. "Coming to see you, of course."

  "Did you lose an outfit?" He could see the possibilities running through her head. "Did I forget to pack something?"

  "I wanted to see you. I'm not lying." He put his hand on the knot and started to undo it, but she quickly put her hand over his.

  "I don't think that's a good idea." She looked into the hallway. "We really shouldn't do that tonight."

  He was disappointed, but he still wanted to be close to her. He held up three fingers. "Well then, I'll be good, Scout's honor."

  She raised one eyebrow. "I don't think you were ever a Scout, so that honor doesn't mean much."

  He smirked. "I wasn't, but that doesn't mean I'm lying. If you don't want to do anything, we don't have to. I'd just like to lie close to you and talk if that's all right."

  She stepped away from the door and let him into her room. It was sparser than his but still nice. He noticed her underwear strewn around the room and the dress he found so sexy hanging in the closet. He took off his shoes and draped his coat on top of her dress on the hanger. He wished their naked bodies could be as close, but he'd make do with what he could get tonight.

  He sat on the bed and patted the space next to him. "Come on, lie down with m
e."

  "You said you didn't want to do anything." She eyed the space next to him. "I'm not going to take off my robe."

  "You don't have to if you don't want to." He told her earnestly. "I just want to talk. Did you have a good time tonight?"

  She had her knee on the bed but now she stopped. She took it and took one step back. "There's something I need to tell you."

  He swallowed roughly. "What?"

  "I got my picture taken."

  "Okay." That was nothing. It happened. He knew the paparazzi had been waiting outside and knew that they wanted to get a picture of his new girlfriend. Of course she got her picture taken; she didn't even know how to avoid them yet. Plus, she was telling him and that was a good sign.

  "I got my picture taken with your stepmother." She looked down and shook her head. "I don't know if that changes how you feel about it all."

  Beckett shot up. "That witch."

  "I tried not to, but it all happened so fast."

  "Of course you didn't want to do it." He paced in front of her bed. "That woman can't ever say no to a camera. I swear she could spot one a mile away. She was just using you to get more face time for herself."

  Lenni frowned. "I don't think so. She's pretty nice, actually."

  He snorted. "Of course you think she's nice. She's only that way because you're new to the social circle and you are fresh blood for the paparazzi. As long as she sticks to you like a barnacle, she's sure to have her picture on the front page for this wedding."

  "She seems to really love you. You should have seen how many picture she had of you." Lenni sat cross-legged and patted the space next to her until he lay down next to her. "You were such a cute kid."

  "She only had so many pictures to show off for my dad." Beckett put his hands behind his head and leaned back against the headboard. "She never carried around that many pictures of me when I was a kid. I'm sure my dad said something to her and that's why she keeps them with her."

  "She must be pulling the long con. And she's really sticking to her whole lie too."

  "Exactly."

  Lenni laughed and slapped his thigh. "You're too paranoid. You have a really great family. Anyone would be happy and proud to be part of it. She loves you like you're her own. Most people would be happy to have a stepmom like her."

  "They would be happy because they don't know her," Beckett sat up and took Lenni's hands in his. "Don't get pulled in by her charm. She's done it to everyone. You should be smarter than that. She's using you."

  "Why do you hate her so much? She can't help who she fell in love with. Seriously, you have a great family. She's proud to show you off because she loves you."

  That was the second time she'd mentioned how great his family was and how anyone is going to be a part of it. Was she hinting? He was right to come to her room. They really did need to talk.

  "Jasper is really brave to get married. You're right; you can't help who you fall in love with. But you can choose to get married or not," Beckett said. He pulled his hand from hers and leaned back against the headboard again. Carefully he arranged himself to look nonchalant. "Like how Jasper chose to get married, Steph and my dad could have chosen not to get married. That's an option too."

  "Why do you keep saying that? What do you mean you can choose? If you love someone, you get married. That's not a controversial choice or an earth-shattering one. It's very common. I think choosing not to be married would make someone the odd one out."

  "Really? Odd. I don't want to be married. Guess that means I'm the odd one out."

  "Are you kidding me?" She gave a short laugh and looked at him, ready for him to take it back. But he wasn't going to.

  "I think it's an archaic ceremony. I don't see any point in doing it."

  "Why are you one of the best men in this wedding then?"

  "I love my best friend," Beckett told her. "I would do anything to make him happy. That doesn't mean that I believe in what he's doing. I believe it's the best thing for Jasper though. I don't begrudge anyone of their own choice. I just hope that people can respect my decision too."

  "Way to make this all about you," she sneered. "Well, I think your stepmom was nice, and I'm happy that Jasper and Leah are getting married. I think it's a lovely thing to do."

  She looked like she wanted to say more, but she didn't. He could see his words had their desired effect. He didn't want her to get all riled up and think that they were going to live some kind of fairytale. Better for her to know where he stood now. That might change her opinion of him, but it had to be done.

  "I'm feeling tired and think I'd like to go to bed now," Lenni yawned. "Thanks for coming to talk with me."

  Beckett kissed her on the forehead. "Good night."

  He might have ruined whatever they were going to have, but he had to be true to himself. They could talk about their relationship after this wedding, but he just knew it wasn't going to end in marriage and didn't want to get her hopes up. He wasn't the marrying kind.

  Chapter Twenty

  For the second time in as many days, Lenni was unsettled. This was all Beckett's fault. He was such a jerk. Why had he even come to her room if all he wanted to do was tell her that he didn't believe in marriage?

  He wanted to get laid, that's why he came. She should've known better than to start anything with her boss in the first place. This was ridiculous. She was too old to be making such silly decisions. He had seemed so sweet, but he was saying whatever it took to get in her pants.

  "You're looking a little down." Potter patted her knee. "Did you even hear the last thing I said?"

  Lenni shook her head and sighed. "I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention."

  "I think we're going to miss the whole thing at this pace," Potter said. "The car hasn't moved in the last twenty minutes and the ceremony is supposed to start only five minutes from now."

  Lenni craned her neck to try and see out the window, but it was useless. The windows of the town car were tinted a deep black. Even with the tints, she could see that there were people outside trying to take her picture. Not her specifically, but whoever was in the limo. They wanted any pictures they could get. Since the thing was taking place under a tent, it was going to be impossible to get any pictures once they were inside.

  "It was obvious something was going to happen today," she told Potter. "No one's going to even be able to get a picture of us or anyone else. But these guys are slowing everyone down. I don't know how anyone is going to make it."

  "Good point," Potter said. "That doesn't mean I'm happy about this. I'm going to text Stephanie and see where they are."

  "I'm sure they're behind us," Lenni assured her. "Which won't make Beckett very happy that everyone in his party is going to be late, but oh well."

  She swung her foot in the small space. She wished she could just get out and walk.

  "Don't tell me Beckett said something about his stepmother?" Potter's fingers flew across her phone.

  "Of course he did. He isn't a very happy that we got our pictures taken yesterday."

  She didn't want to spill all her secrets just yet. But she was too angry to say nothing.

  "Of course he isn't," Potter shook her head. "Beckett has always been angry about Stephanie and his father's marriage."

  "And marriage in general."

  Potter chuckled. "Not really. He says he's against marriage, but that's the little boy in him talking. For a grown man he really is embarrassingly immature at times."

  Lenni cracked a smile. "That's a fair assessment."

  "You know he always thought of Stephanie as his own," Potter mused. "Even though he's an adult, he's never really seen her or his father as their own separate adults. He only sees them as his beloved nanny and his father. He's really just a scared boy at heart. That's why he's always saying loudly how he isn't going to get married and that's it so stupid. He doesn't really mean it."

  "But does he have to be so mean?"

  "He's hurt, dear. Seeing them together makes him r
emember not only his mother's death but the betrayal he felt when he learned they were dating. It really cut him to the core."

  "Has he ever talked to anyone about it?" Lenni could laugh picturing the great bear talking to a therapist or someone of that sort. She knew the answer was likely no. He would never tell anyone how he really felt.

  "Do you think Beckett would ever talk to anyone?"

  "No, but I was hoping maybe he had. It really could help him."

  "I'm not so sure. He knows all of his feelings and what they mean, but that doesn't mean he that accepts the situation for what it is."

  "What situation?"

  "That his mother is dead and she's never coming back." Potter wiped her eye. "Enough of the sad conversation on such a happy day."

  "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you sad."

  "Not your fault, dear. I just hope that one day I get to be at Beckett's big day. I hope he can get past all his demons and end up happy too." Her phone buzzed at that moment. "Oh gosh."

  "Well what do they say?"

  "They're already there," Potter said, astonished. "How could they have beaten us?"

  Now Lenni was worried. "What if we really do miss the ceremony? That would be such a disaster."

  "We should walk." Potter looked outside. "It isn't much farther to the tent. We could be there in a flash.:

  Lenni looked at the flashes hitting her side of the car. "Is that really a good idea?"

  "Don't let Beckett scare you. There's no harm in getting your picture taken."

  "But Jasper and Leah have gone out of their way to be sure this day is as private as can be."

  "Two of their guests getting their pictures taken won't be the end of the world. Don't say anything and just keep your head high."

  Lenni looked at her feet. "I'm going to have to take off my shoes."

  Potter nodded. "It's not a far walk. It'll take us less than three minutes if we don't get stopped."

  "I don't think you two should walk," the driver interrupted them. "There's no security."

  Lenni didn't even know he had been listening.