Bearly Breathing (Werebears of New Hampshire #1)(19)

She whipped her head back around. “That was real?” No. It had to have been a hallucination. Food poisoning. Drinking too much river water. She’d even take schizophrenia.

He nodded. “I’m a werebear,” he said. “And I bonded to you. Isn’t that great?”

She closed her eyes tightly and shook her head. “A werebear?” she asked. “Those things aren’t real.”

“Yes we are,” he said with a smile. “And you’re going to have little, werebear cubs! A lot of them.”

She shook her head in disbelief. “What are you talking about? I’m not having anything. As soon as I can, I am out of here.” She yanked her hands away from him.

“No you’re going to stay here with me,” he said. His face dropped. “Aren’t you?”

“I have Coldplay tickets on Tuesday.” She glanced down at him one more time before standing up. “I don’t know your story. But you’re a freak. Just leave me alone.” She walked away from him and sat by the river.

She turned her back to him and stared at the water. This was all too surreal. Werebears? Hot, naked men? Shitting in the woods?

Her chin started to quiver.

I am going to kill Becca.

The sun was gone and the sky was getting dark. Her clothes were still damp and she was starting to get cold. She wrapped her arms around herself and rocked back and forth.

Edwin was breaking and snapping branches and throwing them into a pile on the ground. She gasped when she saw how fast he worked. There was enough wood to last them through the night.

He bent over the pile of sticks and in no time it was smoking. A warm, inviting flame erupted from it and Grace couldn’t help but head back over.

For the warmth of the fire and not the hot naked guy around it.

She was a lady. Sophisticated and proper.

Definitely not for the hot naked guy around it.





Edwin turned the fish on the stick that he rigged to hang over the fire. Grace stared at it like a dog watching someone eating a burger with the patty about to slide out of the bun.

He didn’t know what he did wrong. They were supposed to be together.

Connor will know. He’ll help me fix everything.

Edwin had spent so long as a bear that he forgot how to be human. It felt forced to be in his human skin, like he was wearing a disguise. Even now he wanted to phase. To become his bear. But that would just freak Grace out even more.

“Are you hungry?” he asked.

“Starving,” she said, never taking her eyes off the cooking fish. “Aren’t you cold?” she asked. He noticed for the first time that she was holding her knees and shaking.

He balanced the fish over the fire and sat down beside her. She flinched.

“Wow,” she said. “You’re like a heater.”

Edwin stared at the fire not knowing what to say.

“I’m sorry if I was a bitch,” she said, inching towards him. “I should have been nicer. Especially since you saved me. Twice.”


Edwin smiled. “Wasn’t it three times?”

She laughed, a laugh that made his heart skip a beat. He never made people laugh. People laughed at him, that was for sure, but he never understood how to get that ‘humor’ thing down.

“Probably,” she said.

A wolf howled in the distance. She jumped over and wrapped her arms around his. His bear purred, delighted to be touching his mate.

“Are they going to come back?” she asked. She darted her head around, searching the dark forest.

“No,” he said. “If they do they’re stupider than they look.”

She still hadn’t taken her arms off of his.

“They were so scary. I don’t like this place.”

“Really?” he asked. “It has everything.”

“I love the city.” She squeezed his arm. “Give me lights, crowds, noise, cars, pollution, restaurants, nightclubs. That has everything.”

The fish was blackening on the stick. “That sounds scary.”

“I can take you sometime,” she said, taking her hands off of him.

Edwin shuddered. All of the people around, walking and talking, bumping into him. What if a stranger spoke to him? He wouldn’t last five minutes without phasing.

He stood up and took the fish off of the stick. He filleted it with a sharp rock that he found by the river as Grace watched.

“So that’s how it’s done,” she laughed. “I always just sit at the table with a big glass of Barolo and wait for someone to bring it to me. I didn’t realize where the meat actually came from.”

He handed her a piece and she gobbled it down. He slid the second fish onto the stick and placed it over the fire.

She had finished her portion in record time. She wiped her greasy hands on her shorts and smiled. “I was so hungry.”

“There’s more coming,” he said.

She shook her head. “I’ve never camped before,” she said. “I’ve never slept in the woods or cooked something over the fire and ate it with my hands.” She was smiling. “My Dad would think this was undignified and improper.” She smiled at Edwin, making his heart rate increase. “It’s kinda fun.”

He smiled back, unsure of what to say.