Betray The Bear by T.S. Joyce Page B

talked to him about this stuff, Anya?”
    “I’ve tried, but he seemed so uncomfortable. And he’s so good to me, so affectionate and patient, I feel bad pushing him when he’s obviously not ready.” With a huge puff of breath, she said, “I want more with him.” She wanted everything the man had to offer, but Jo didn’t need to hear that.
    “He’s talked to Brody about you,” Jo said low.
    Anya bit her bottom lip and imagined all the terrible things that would’ve prompted him to go to a trusted friend. Perhaps she was bad at the intimacy he was obviously trying to teach her, or maybe he didn’t like her as much as he seemed to, and was looking for advice on how to get rid of her. Maybe this was much worse than she thought.
    With a brave face, she asked, “What about?”
    “Can’t tell you.”
    “Jo,” she admonished, exasperated. “Then why did you bring it up?”
    “I can’t tell you because I’m sworn to secrecy, but I’ll hint at what you should talk to him about.”
    More puzzles. Great.
    “He knows you’ve been through a lot. Does he keep asking about your time with the Long Claws?”
    “Yes. He wants to talk about it a lot.” Too much. It brought up a lot of memories she wanted to forget.
    “That’s not for h is benefit, Anya. It hurts him to hear about how you were treated, and for dominant males, that kind of stuff is really hard not to react to. It makes them want to punish the people who hurt the ones they care about. You have to consider the possibility that he is giving you time to heal. He’s a good man, Anya, much different from Nathan. Sex means more here than it does with the Long Claws. And you just came from a really messed up, long-term situation. If he’d have jumped right into bed with you, then you should be worried. It sounds like he’s taking it slow, and you have to stop seeing that as a bad thing.” She shook her head and sighed. “I’ve said too much already. He was asking Brody about my experience with the Long Claws and any problems I had adjusting to life in Bear Valley. If you want more, you’ll have to prove to him that you’re ready.”
    “How do I do that?”
    Joanna shrugged and stood, dusting the seat of her pants. “That I can’t advise you on. Chase and Brody are very different men. What works for me and Brody won’t necessarily work for you guys. That’s the hard part about falling in love, Anya. You have to learn each other. It takes time and isn’t always easy, but trust me when I say, it’ll be worth it to become bonded like that.”
    “Jo,” she said, rising, “y ou seem really happy here.”
    Joanna lowered her gaze and stared at the corner of the table for a long time. When she finally looked back up, her eyes were rimmed with moisture. She swallowed hard. “I am, Anya. This is a life I never thought I would have. I’ve found my place with a mate I don’t have to share. And despite all my faults, he loves me. I’m really glad you came here. Your life was really hard and you probably don’t even realize the scars Nathan has left on you. But here, you’ll have a chance to lead a good life. A meaningful one filled with happiness. And if you ever need anything, please come to me. You were kind to me when we lived under Nathan, and I always wished we were in a different situation so we could be friends. I can’t even describe how happy I was when you showed up in Bear Valley. Chase will be good for you but you’ll have to be patient with him. He has his reasons for behaving the way he does, Anya. Just give him time.”
    “Of course.” She’d give him until the end of time, if he needed it. Whatever was going through his mind, she wouldn’t push him anymore , and would let him find his own way to her.
    She waved as Joanna left, and began to make her way toward the trail that would lead to the training arena. After her trip to Daria’s house and her talk with Joanna, she would only make it for the conditioning part of class, but