Edward (BBW Western Bear Shifter Romance) (Rodeo Bears Book 1) (51 page)

"You okay?"
 

A voice from behind her took Rosie by surprise. She took another moment to compose herself, and then turned around, plastering a big grin on her face and praying that whoever it was wouldn't bestow her with the awful sympathy she'd been getting from everyone since she arrived. That was the worst part- people talking to her as if she'd been through some life-altering tragedy. That made it worse.

"Yeah, thanks," she nodded, barely taking the time to register who was talking to her before she spoke. When she made eye contact, she found herself squinting in recognition- who the fuck was this guy again? He was slim, with a waist that tapered out into broad shoulders and glittering blue eyes flecked with gold. His shirt was buttoned incorrectly, as if he'd just thrown on whatever he could find and dashed downstairs. Oh, yeah- the groomsmen, he was one of Tom's groomsmen. Dina had pointed him out to her last night with a glint in her eye, but Rosie really hadn't been in the mood for matchmaking.

"I heard what you were saying over there," he gestured back over to Dina. "I wasn't trying to earwig or anything, I just- I get it. I was there pretty recently myself."

"It fucking sucks, right?" Rosie raised her eyebrows. "I don't know how people are meant to get through weddings after crap like that happens."

"Yeah, you got me," he shrugged, then thrust his hand out in her direction. "I'm Win, by the way."

"Win?" She put her hand in his.
 

"Short for Winston." He pulled a face. "My parents were big into British history."

"That's actually kind of neat," she laughed, feeling the lump in her throat finally begin to retreat. "I'm Rosie."

"You're Dina's cousin, aren't you?" He cocked his head at her, and Rosie nodded.
 

"Yeah, that's me."

"I'm glad there's someone else in the wedding party who isn't all delirious on love like everyone else here," he noted cynically, and she couldn't help giggling.
 

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure a couple of the bridesmaids and groomsmen are already hooking up."

"Wouldn't surprise me," he laughed and shook his head. "So, wanna be my partner in single-hood crime this weekend? Or however long we're stuck here."

"Sounds good," she nodded, and he offered her his arm.
 

"I think we've got a meeting to go to in the breakfast room," he pulled a face. "Want to accompany me?"

"As soon as you get that shirt sorted out," jibed Rosie, and he glanced down and rolled his eyes.

"Shit, I knew I got ready too fast this morning," he shook his head, and turned away from her. "I'm going to head upstairs and get changed."

"I'll join you," she blurted out before she had a chance to think about what she was saying. She didn't want to get abandoned down with all the couples by herself, so she would deal with his surprised reaction and raised eyebrow.

"If you insist," he shrugged. "I'm on the top floor."

They strolled up in companionable silence, both of them avoiding the chaos that seemed to be erupting around the hotel as guests figured out that they weekend plans might be taking a dramatic change.
 

"So, who was he?" Win asked quietly as they made their way up the stairs.

"Boyfriend, you know, live-in, the whole deal," She shook her head. "Piece of shit."

"Well, at least you're firmly past the stage of still thinking he didn't do anything wrong," he grinned, and she smiled back, feeling that weight bear down on her chest once again.
 

"What about you?" She quickly replied, trying to distract herself.

"Engaged. We were meant to be getting married last month, actually," he answered, and there was a slight wistfulness to his voice.
 

"Fuck," Rosie murmured, " Sorry."

And she thought her one had been bad. Even if she had thought they had something more serious than just boyfriend-girlfriend, she had never had a ring on her finger- no promises were made.
 

"That was months ago now," he waved his hand in the air as they arrived in front of his hotel room. "You know how it is. Gets easier."

"So I'm told," she mumbled as he unlocked the door and stepped inside.
 

“’’Scuse me," he turned his back to her and began unbuttoning his shirt, chucking it on to his bed. "I didn't want to strip off in front of the whole reception. Figured they're already pissed enough without me waggling my nakedness at them."

Rosie giggled again. She couldn't help but notice that she was alone, in a man's bedroom, and that he had his shirt off. Yeah, she'd just met him, and they'd spent most of their time together talking about their failed relationships, but it felt good not to be immediately suspicious of any guy who showed an interest in her. It made her realize just how badly Jacob had fucked her up. She glanced over slyly at Win, and found herself resisting the urge to run her fingers down his naked, muscular back. Smirking to herself, she quickly looked away, and waited for him to get dressed.

"We should probably head back down," he gestured to the door, a t-shirt now preserving his modesty.
 

"Yeah, for sure," Rosie nodded, feeling a tiny bit dazed as he grabbed his keys and hurried out the door.
 

By the time they got downstairs, it was thronged with guests, all of whom seemed to be determined to get an answer about a leaving date at that very instant. Dina had vanished off to the breakfast room, along with the rest of the wedding party, and Win and Rosie slid in late, hoping no-one would notice. Rosie grabbed a croissant and some jam. She was rarely up early enough to get breakfast, and she wasn't about to miss the opportunity to gorge herself.

The conversation buzzed around the table- the short-haired bridesmaid, Lorne, was desperately trying to calm Dina and Tom down, while everyone else looked frazzled, tired, or hungover. The storm outside rattled the long windows of the hotel, and Rosie exchanged a look with Win. He smiled at her- a simple, sweet, honest smile that took her by surprise. It cut through the chaos in an instant, and Rosie found herself smiling back.

Before she could make any more of the gesture, the entire room flipped on a dime- it was as if someone had waved a wand and made everyone as uncomfortable as possible. One of the bridesmaids stood up, and hurried Dina outside- all the bridesmaids exchanged confused looks, and Rosie furrowed her brow. This was more than just worry over where they were going to put the guests for those extra days, she could tell.
 

Sliding up the communal bench, she leant over to Win to see if he knew anything she didn't.

"Do you know what the hell is going on here?" She gestured around the room, and he shook his head.
 

"I think- I don't know, but-" he turned to confer with one of the groomsmen, and the two of them stood up suddenly. "I have to go. I'll be back soon, I promise."

He turned his back on her and stormed out of the room, leaving Rosie sitting by herself, staring at the spot he had just been in. What the hell was that all about? She leant back in her seat, taking a defiant bite of her croissant, and narrowed her eyes. This whole thing was freaking her out. She didn't like not knowing what was going on. The door clicked open, and Dina walked back in, looking as if she'd been slapped in the face. Rosie hurriedly stood up and scurried up to her.

"Dina?" She asked, taking her hand and squeezing it tight. "Is everything okay?"

"What?" Dina looked up, as if she was waking up from a long sleep. "Oh, Rosie. Sorry. I just-"

She paused and took a long, deep breath, like she was struggling to get her head around what she'd just found out.

"Freddy's here."

"Huh?" Rosie narrowed her eyes. She remembered Freddy- the lying, cheating, possessive piece of shit Dina had been dating before she'd met Tom. They'd only been together a few months, but he'd grown pretty obsessed with her. When they'd split, it had been ugly- the kind of break-up you pull horrified faces over at cocktails afterwards. But surely he wouldn't have come all the way out here, would he? What was there to gain?

"He's on the island, and he brought his pack," Dina replied softly, casting her eyes downward as if she was ashamed of the words coming out of her mouth.

Rosie's heart leapt into her mouth. She'd never connected Freddy's awfulness with the fact that he was a shifter, but she had often wondered if it was the fact that he led his own pack- the alpha, he insisted on calling himself- that led him to expect his own way in every other aspect of his life. And now he was here? With them? While they were stuck on the island with no way of getting off?
 

Rosie's panic obviously read all over her face, because Dina immediately leant over to give her a hug.
 

"Oh, it's going to be okay, I promise," she murmured in her ear, and Rosie felt herself relax at once. Dina had always been the big cousin- the one who looked after everyone else, who made everything all better. Whether it was fixing up Rosie when she came off her bike in grade school, or nursing her through her first big break-up when she was in sophomore year of high school, Dina was one of the only people who Rosie truly believed when she said it would all be okay.
 

"I'm not worried about me," Rosie squeezed her cousin, then leant back. "Are you alright?"

"I'll survive," she nodded, trying to keep her face impassive and failing. "They're…they're all dealing with it, the guys, and some of the girls are going with them. We'll get through this, you know we will."

"Wait, the groomsmen have gone out there to fight them?" Rosie's jaw dropped. "Do they know…do they know they're shifters? What if they get hurt?"

"They know. And they're grown-ups, they know what risks they're getting themselves into," Dina responded soothingly. "Honestly, I really need someone to stay here and help me sort out the rest of the guests."

She looked at Rosie pleadingly, and Rosie took a moment to take everything in. Dina needed her at her best, not going to pieces over all the information that had just been dropped on her. She glanced over her shoulder out the window, and found herself hoping that Win would be okay, that he wouldn't get hurt while he was out there doing whatever he was doing. She took a deep, steadying breath, and turned herself back to Dina.

"Of course," she nodded. "I'll help."

Before she had chance to say anything else, Tom hurried over to them.

"So, I spoke to reception about the…situation," he began, his voice low and urgent. "And they've been able to organize a boat to get some of the guests off the island."

"Seriously? Oh, thank God," Dina gasped in relief. The last thing she would have wanted was for innocent bystanders to get dragged into her potentially dangerous drama with Freddy.

"We need to get them organized now, though," Tom continued, brushing a strand of hair from Dina's face. "I think we should just get rid of the lot of them, as many as we can, without freaking them out with what's actually going on."

All at once, Tom seemed to remember that Rosie was sitting at the table with them.

"And, of course, you can go if you want, too, Rosie," he nodded at her. "We would totally understand if you wanted to."

"You think I'm coming all this way just to miss your wedding?" She jibed. "Good luck getting rid of me."

"Are you sure?" Dina asked, turning to her with a serious expression on her face. "It could get dangerous. You can make your own decisions, but you should at least know-"

"I do, Dina, and I'll stay," she nodded. "You need help getting this all sorted, and I'm good at the practical stuff."

Dina let out a long sigh, and looked at her with a small smile on her face.

"You never were one to give up easily," she shook her head, then leant forward and gave her a tight, spontaneous hug. "Thank you."

"No problem," she squeezed her back. "Okay, let's get everyone on that boat, shall we?"

The next hour and a half seemed to speed by; Rosie barely had time to think as she and Dina hustled guests on to boats, offering smooth apologies and trying to deflect any questions they could about what the hell was actually going on. It was clearly killing Dina to have to send all her guests home early, but she kept on a game face, doling out stories about dangerous weather and promising she would be in touch as soon as she got home. Once the word got around, and everyone had hurriedly packed up their stuff and said their goodbyes, they managed to pile the rest of the guests- maybe a hundred people- on to the large boat floating in the harbor, and waved them off across the stormy sea. Dina kept the robotic smile on her face as she watched them go, obviously trying to fight the urge to burst into tears or beg to come with them.

"Hey," Rosie nudged her, "It's okay. They're gone now."

Dina's muscles all seemed to slump over at once, as if the energy had been drained from her.
 

"I know. This just isn't how I pictured spending the day before my wedding, you know?" She shook her head, and turned to walk back inside. Rosie half-turned her head around, certain she could hear something in the distance, but it was whipped away by the wind before she had a chance to pick it out. She hurried to catch up with Dina, following her back inside the hotel, grateful to be out of the wind and rain at last.