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ChapterOne
Marissa
“The Hudaknocker made me do it.”
If anyone else had uttered those words, I would’ve turned that statement into a hashtag faster thanThe Mating Game’s forums could get their hands on it. I’d built my career on exactly this flavor of unexpected, shocking, juicy gossip.
I would go as far as to say it was my specialty.
But now that I’d just thrust myself into the spotlight, I needed to come up with a better scapegoat than an ancient shifter artifact that humans were never supposed to know about when I explained to my boss why sleeping with Bjorn Bernard was the biggest mistake I could’ve possibly made.
Bibi le Bonnet curled those pink lips up into a smile. Still in her pale pink suit she wore to officiate Wendy and Gabe’s mating ceremony, she looked a little like a ringleader for the world’s most fashionable circus. That’s what reality TV was, right?
“What did the Hudaknocker make you do?”
I’d already confessed my sins on camera, no less, but having to say it again made it real. “It’s been making me want Bjorn. Bjorn! I hate him. He’s the whole reason…anyway since Wendy found that blasted thing, all I’ve been able to think about is kissing the big, gorgeous lug.”
Bibi raised a brow. “All you did was kiss him?”
“I wish.” But the problem was, I didn’t regret goingallllllthe way. The only reason I regretted what I’d just done was because it was Bjorn.Ugh!Of all people.
On paper, it looked like a good decision. Bjorn was tall, with long blond hair, which sometimes he liked to braid to make him look like a Viking, gorgeous, and built like a tank in all the places. I’d been a little concerned about how certain things would work, and could confirm I’d be feeling it for a while.
Simply put, Bjorn was all bear.
In reality, every time I looked at him, all I saw was white-hot rage for what he did to my family.
Okay, I had to amend that.
Since the Hudaknocker came into our lives, I only saw that beautiful, muscular body when I closed my eyes. Those green eyes that sparkled when he thought something was amusing. Not to mention that smile.
Truth be told, I didn’t really miss working onThe Scoop. But I wouldn’t send the bear a thank you card for putting my family’s franchise out of business any time soon.
“Am I fired?” I asked when Bibi didn’t say anything. Bjorn couldn’t have cost me a second job on the reality show circuit, could he?
“No, you’re not. Your timing could have been better, but I can’t say that I’m surprised.” Bibi shook her head. Surprised, no. Disappointed? Definitely. “The tension between the two of you has been thicker than one of Bjorn’s biceps.”
I groaned.
“That probably wasn’t the most professional thing to say, but there’s no denying the bear’s muscles have muscles.” Damnit, Bibi. Now I was thinking about his muscles again. And how good they looked without a shirt. Or anything else, for that matter.
“Tell me why you hate him so much,” she asked.
If I hadn’t been fired already, I would probably be able to check that off my list after I answered her question.
“So you know I worked with my mom and stepdad onThe Scoop with Suzanne.” The show was known for the kind of celebrity gossip that made followers sip tea and pop popcorn. We broke the news first. Everyone else could only hope to keep up.
“Of course. I was so shocked when the show was canceled. But that meant that we could scoop you up. Pardon the pun. But your expertise in making stories go viral has been integral toThe Mating Game’s success.”
Okay, maybe I could hang onto the job by a thread. “Bjorn is the reason we got canceled.”
Bibi gasped. “He’s the one who broke the story about your mother planting false information?”
I nodded. “He was the one. I begged him not to go public when he found the info. We had a good gig. We got to travel the world, meet A-listers, and attend all the hot parties. But no, the bear had to be lawful good and blow the whole thing open.”
“He wasn’t exactly lawful good tonight.” Bibi pursed her lips. “I was aware that you had worked together before and very surprised to learn you were like a match and gasoline. But there’s no denying there was a spark between you.”
I sat on the bench behind the food truck and covered my face with my hands. Darkness had fallen over Wolf Rock, and the crowd enjoyed one of Wendy’s favorite campy horror movies. There were opportunities to eat my feelings all around me, but all I could think about was a certain drop-dead gorgeous, downright infuriating bear.
