“Why would you even hire me, of all people?” she asked suspiciously. “There are other social media marketers out there.”
“I saw your online website, with your blog posts on social media marketing. Your website is very attractive and professional, your blog was funny and engaging and it explains social media in a way that even a numbskull like me could understand. You know your stuff. You went to one of the top schools in the country. I assume you left early to take care of your family?”
She shrugged. Might as well tell him what had happened; that would put the kibosh on the job offer for sure. Yes, she needed a job, but she didn’t think she could work on the same property as this infuriating bear.
“My parents let my uncle move in with them a few months ago. He’d been in prison, all kinds of drug arrests in the past, I told them it was a terrible idea. They swore he was turning over a new leaf. The next thing we know, cops are kicking down the door to their house looking for my uncle, claiming that he was growing and distributing Somniatus, and my uncle has disappeared. My parents were afraid that they would be considered guilty by association. They decided to lay low and try to raise money for a lawyer before they resurface So I had to go get the kids and take a leave of absence from college.”
She saw the look on his face. Somniatus was a major problem for bears.
Somniatus was a relatively new drug that had only been introduced a couple of years ago. It was highly addictive and caused powerful hallucinations. It was created by taking a plant that grew naturally in the wild and caused a mild high, and altering it in a laboratory, creating the powerful, addictive version.
It only affected bear shifters. One of the worst things about it was that sometimes it caused bears to become violent – and there had already been a couple of human deaths as a result.
The Enforcers, the national law enforcement body that dealt with shifter affairs, was determined to eradicate its producers and distributors before it caused a major rift in human-shifter relations.
“And you feel confident that your parents weren’t involved?” Sam raised an eyebrow, studying her face intently.
She struggled to keep her temper in check. He had just saved her butt. She was probably obligated to be nice to him for at least the next five minutes – or at least refrain from chewing his face off.
“My parents have had minor skirmishes with the law, I can’t deny that,” she said heatedly. “Let me emphasize the wordminor. They mostly make a living selling jewelry at fairs, but from time to time they have been accused of some pool hustling, some card sharking, and okay, maybe some shoplifting. But drug dealing, and something like Somniatus? That’s huge. They’re not on drugs, I would be able to tell and I wouldn’t stand for it. They wouldn’t bring that kind of lifestyle into our home with my brother and sisters.”
He didn’t look entirely convinced, but he nodded. “Well, I hope things work out in that area. And I’ll see you tomorrow at 8:30.”
“I don’t know how long we’ll be here,” she protested. “I only came to town to deal with this thing with my sister. Once my sister and your brother get married, I expect we may pack up and leave.”
He didn’t bother to comment on that. “Will you agree to stay long enough to get us up and running with social media?”
“I mean…yes, if I took the job I wouldn’t leave until everything was in place.” She paused. “I’ll take it on one condition. You tell me why you are attempting to prevent the marriage.”
It occurred to her that if she took this job, which would be located on the McCoy property, it would make it much easier for her to track down Jeffrey and tell him how much he’d devastated Sapphire and how hard she cried every night. He’d have to come around then, wouldn’t he?
“In one month, if you still need to know, I’ll tell you. “ He stood up abruptly. “I’ll be seeing you. Your office is right next to mine.”
“Next to yours?” she squawked in dismay. “Absolutely not! As far as I’m concerned, you and I are at war.”
He replied with a slow, lazy grin that made her knees quiver. “I’m fine with that. Think how lucky you are to be stationed right next to enemy headquarters. You can gather all kinds of valuable intel.” He turned to go, then paused and gave her another one of those slow, appraising looks that heated her from head to toe. “Just know that when I really want something, I fight very, very dirty.”
Arousal pulsed through her body, throbbing between her legs. She barely choked down a whimper of desire as he left the room.
