Page 2 of Bear Boss’s Mate (Pleasantville Shifter #1)

Marcy took a spot next to Bern when he held the chair out for her. Pulling the chair closer to the table, she then searched her bag for a pen and notepaper, just in case she needed to take notes.

Because they were already late for the meeting, her anxiety level was through the roof. She released a breath and chewed on her cheek, then caught herself doing it. Calm yourself down, the voice in her mind admonished.

When she dared to make eye contact with the other individuals around the table, she saw several friendly faces. However, a wiry, bleached-blond woman looking older than Marcy gave her a stare that she interpreted as disdain.

“This is Marcy, our new accounting manager,” Bern announced.

“Welcome,” several male and female voices spoke in unison. The blond woman said nothing and turned her gaze elsewhere at last.

Marcy greeted the others; one by one, all those gathered in the room introduced themselves. Her hands trembled. She put them on her lap so no one would notice, glad she didn’t have to shake hands with anyone at the moment.

Marcy tried to pretend there wasn’t a hole burning into her right side as the man at the end of the table fixed his gaze on her. Thankfully, Bern was sitting between the handsome man and Marcy.

When the introductions were finished, she looked to her right, dreading what he might say and hoping he wouldn’t ask her questions.

Perhaps it was because they were sitting closer to one another than they’d been in the hall, but he appeared less intimidating than he did minutes earlier. In fact, she couldn’t help gawking at him. He was, by far, the most handsome man she’d ever seen.

She moistened her lips while eyeing his square jaw and his sensuous, full lips. There was an intensity to him that left her feeling warm all over. His amber colored eyes drifted over her face with a look of pure heat, causing her to tense and let out a gentle sigh.

Was she drooling over a guy?

“I’m Austin,” the impressive man smirked, with a tone as smooth as silk.

In her peripheral vision, she saw the blond woman across from her, squirming in her chair.

Marcy glanced at her and caught the woman glaring back with narrowed eyes.

She turned her attention back to Austin. “Nice to meet you.” She pushed a few curls off her forehead and looked down at the notepaper in front of her. She knew her face was glowing several shades of red.

He began the meeting, updating everyone on new and ongoing projects. A couple of minutes in, he announced meetings were held every Monday at nine a.m. sharp. He didn’t sound angry or accusatory. It came out as more of a statement, but she knew it was directed at her.

If she wasn’t feeling self-conscious before, she was now.

She wished she could hide her emotions better, but her cheeks and neck flushed even deeper.

She forced herself to look down at the notepad in front of her.

Bern cleared his throat, and she glanced over in time to see him give Austin a questioning look.

Marcy pressed her lips afraid she might not still have a job.

She listened throughout the meeting as she took a few notes on things that pertained to her new department.

Every time she tried to steal a glance at Austin, he was looking back at her with a knowing grin and a puzzled look on his face.

She wondered what he thought of her gaping at him. Marcy decided it was safer to avert her eyes to the dark wood grain of the table. She admonished herself for ogling Austin. She also couldn’t help but notice the blond woman sending her daggers with her eyes.

Cringing, Marcy hoped Austin wouldn’t override Bern’s decision and fire her before the end of her first day of work for making such a fool of herself.

The meeting lasted almost an hour, and Marcy learned what tasks needed to be done as soon as possible.

By the end, she told herself she was there to work and needed to remain professional.

No more drooling over the boss.

No matter how much she was drawn to him.

As the meeting wrapped up, Bern stood and turned to face her. “Let’s do those introductions I mentioned earlier, then I’ll show you to your new office.”

“Great.” She smiled as she picked up her paper and pen.

She saw the nasty blond woman stroll over to Austin. Marcy could hear her whispering something to him but couldn’t make out what it was, nor his response. She did notice him narrowing his eyes at the woman before turning away from her.

Marcy hurried out of the room, feeling embarrassed at the very thought of someone like Austin taking any notice of her.

That kind of man only dated beautiful models.

Not plus-sized, five-foot-five inch, twenty-nine-year-old accountants.

AFTER INTRODUCING MARCY to the staff members that weren’t at the meeting, Bern showed her to her new office.

The room had a large window to let in natural light. This was something she had never had at her old job. The air in the office smelled fresh and clean. Another big change from her last job at Boyd and Harvey.

Best of all, she wouldn’t be locked away in some stuffy cubicle all day. Even her chair was top of the line in terms of comfort. Her new office was amazing.

After a short briefing by Bern and her new assistant, Darla, she settled down to get some work done. Happy to distract herself with something she enjoyed.

The morning flew by as Marcy did her best to catch up on the backlog of work that needed to be done. She found herself saying another silent thank you to the fates that aligned to make this opportunity possible.

A fresh start was what she needed, and this job was the perfect thing to give her that. So far, all things considered, the job was looking better than ever. So long as she avoided Austin, she could maintain her cool and keep her job.

There was a knock at her door, bringing her awareness back to the present. “Come in.”

“Hi. Sorry to interrupt,” Darla said from the doorway. She was a sweet, middle-aged woman with a gentle demeanor. Marcy had only just met her, but liked her right away. “It’s fine,” she said, noticing that Darla was carrying a bouquet.

Her stomach soured. Oh No .

Darla’s voice was cheerful as Marcy kept her eyes on the flowers, her lips pressed into a thin line. A foreboding feeling washed over her, extinguishing any joy she’d managed to feel that day.

“These came for you.” Darla stepped inside the office.

Marcy rose from her seat and moved to take the flowers from Darla with trembling hands. She thanked her assistant, who looked bewildered as she left the office.

Marcy searched for a card and found one tucked in with the flowers. It read: Marcy, Congratulations on the new job. Mick.

She put her hand to her mouth, dropping the flowers onto the floor. Shaking her head, she ran out of the office toward the toilets. Several faces turned to watch her run by before returning to their jobs.

She pushed open the nearest stall and leaned over the toilet. Tears filled her eyes, and she began to sob. Marcy waited for the waves of stress-induced nausea to subside.

Once her stomach began to settle down, she stood at the sink washing her hands. Meanwhile, the mirror revealed pale skin and puffy red eyes. She splashed some water on her face. So much for a great first day of work.

She smoothed her hair and wiped her eyes.

She ended her friendship with Mick more than a month ago, but his obsession with her only worsened. He was stalking her. The flowers were his way of telling her he knew where she was working.

He was taunting her.

Letting out a huge sigh, she stepped back from the sink and straightened her dress. Leaving the washroom, she marched down the hall. Marcy kept her head down with her gaze toward the floor, hoping people wouldn’t notice that she’d been crying.

She passed her assistant’s desk and caught Darla glancing at her before averting her eyes. Marcy was in no state to discuss what was wrong.

Without watching where she was going, Marcy kept her head down and rushed into her office. She winced when her body hit something solid. “Oh.” She looked up at Austin, who was standing in front of her desk. His back had been facing the door, and he hadn’t seen her enter.

He turned to look at her, frowning.

“I didn’t see you,” stammered Marcy, taking a step back. “Sorry.” Her cheeks burned.

“Everything okay?” He tilted his head as he studied her.

She was a hot mess right now and didn’t want him to know. Marcy held her breath and moved around Austin to get behind her desk. Her arm grazed his as she squeezed past him, sending pleasurable sparks along it.

“Yes. Fine. Why do you ask?” She forced a smile.

The flowers were now lying on her desk.

“You look upset.”

“No. I’m okay. I just got some bad news,” Marcy lied, looking down at her desk.

“Sorry to hear that. I came to see how you were getting on here,” he offered.

“I’m getting along fine. Thank you for asking.” Please leave before I cry like an idiot in front of you. She pursed her lips.

His brow furrowed. A long, awkward silence filled the space between them. Marcy’s mood worsened. She wondered why he was in her office. Was he thinking of firing her?

That would just make my day. NOT. She bit her lip, shuffling papers on her desk.

Austin shoved his hands into his pockets. “Okay. If you need anything let me or Bern know.” He turned and left the office.

Marcy leaned over, grabbing the flowers and throwing them in the garbage can next to her desk. “Oh yeah. Things are just great,” she mumbled to herself, walking to her office door and closing it.

She’d been doing so well, keeping herself together. Now, this.

I should have expected it. She scowled, holding back tears.