Page 17 of Destined Bear

I looked down at it, unable to determine what kind of pie it was. Dolly was a great person, but not all of her baking experiments worked.

“Tastes great.” Finn took a huge bite, his face indecipherable. “It’s like apple, but not.”

I gave it a taste. He was right, it was good, but also, I wasn’t sure what it was I was eating exactly.

“It’s faux apple pie made with crackers and no apples. If you come out back, I’ll teach you two how to make it.”

I wasn’t sure this was what the pack needed or wanted, but Finn and I had fun, and it was like the old days, but better because I had Finn by my side.

Chapter 11

Finn

We left the diner absolutely stuffed. After we learned how to make the pies, Dolly insisted that Patrick show the new guy how to grill burgers to perfection, which resulted in us eating a second meal. And as cool as it was to work alongside him in the kitchen, the part I loved best was seeing this snapshot of his old life. This hadn’t been just a job for him. This place had been home.

Not only did the employees want Patrick time, even the new guy, but there was an older man wanting to tell him aboutthe weather, a family who had grown since he left and wanted to introduce him to their little one, a college kid back for the weekend who had to tell him all about being on dean’s list. Nearly everyone who walked through the door felt a connection to him.

This diner wasn’t a den, but it sure felt like one. I could see why the diner became such a central part of our den—Patrick made it that way. It was modeled after the home Dolly had made for him. And as personal as this all was, he shared it with me.

Somehow our time at the diner turned into a car full of food. So much food. The back seat was overflowing with all kinds of dishes, including three different apple pies and not all of them were from the diner. Some came from regulars who said hello and then showed back up an hour later with a covered dish. Humans were weird, but also amazing.

This place had been so special to him, and it showed me a different side of my mate. The more I thought about it, the more I suspected his grumpiness when I arrived had been about his beast not understanding what was happening. Because this life, the one he had before, felt so very different. It was heartwarming to see this found family of his, but it also made me curious.

“How come you didn’t stay with them instead of going off to your own den?” I asked.

He glanced over at me. “I met Aydan. I liked him. My bear liked him. He was a good Alpha, and he was doing a good thing. I liked the idea of being a part of a newly established den. I wanted to help. Plus, I was ready to run my own diner.” He sucked in a longbreath. “And humans are great and all, but most of the people here couldn’t see the real me. And that was rough.”

I placed my hand on his knee. “I never realized just how much you enjoy your work. It’s hard to tell with that permanent scowl.”

He exaggerated that scowl and shot it my way, making me giggle. Then he smiled. “I like your laugh—a lot.”

“I like laughing with you,” I said softly.

Once we got home, we carried our stash of food and settled it all inside the house, still feeling the warmth of the day lingering around us. Our freezer was going to be full, which was good. Because when Patrick had time off, I didn’t want him to feel like he needed to work more, only from home. And my cooking was… not as bad as the new guy at the diner, but nowhere near Patrick’s caliber.

I wrapped Patrick in a hug, and he kissed the top of my head.

“What’s this for?” he asked.

“Thank you for today. It was a lot of fun. We should go back there regularly.” He came so alive around them.

“I try to. It’s hard to get away.”

I smirked. “We passed the diner on our way into town. It didn’t burn down while you were away.” The food might not have beenperfect, but people didn’t mind that. It was still good. After all, they’d been trained by Patrick.

“Not the outside. We don’t know the state of the kitchen yet.”

I laughed. “Come on, let’s take our bears for a run.”

We headed outside, stripped off our clothes, and I quickly shifted to my bear so I wouldn’t get too distracted by my mate’s good looks. Of course, once I was in my fur, I watched my mate, welcoming the distraction.

Then we were bounding off into the forest. His bear was so much larger than mine, probably twice the size. I could completely hide behind him if I wanted to.

Patrick was just as serious in his bear form as he was normally, while I tended to be more playful. As we walked through the forest, I batted at his nub tail and dug my claws into his rump—not enough to draw blood, but enough to poke him. He turned around with a growl, slight confusion on his face. That’s when the chase began. Realizing this was a game, he joined in.

I loved a good chase.

He might have been bigger, but my smaller frame allowed me to move more quickly through the forest. I could fit under things he had to climb over. It was exhilarating, running around and playing like that. We needed to do it more often.