The Right Bear's Arms BBW Paranormal Bear Shifter Romance(13)

There was enough in the account to get him wherever he wanted to go. On a hunch, he bought a plane ticket to Denver. Katie had family in Colorado. Flying out there would either get him closer to where she was, or help him triangulate, if she was somewhere in between Denver and Chicago.

As soon as he landed in Denver, he knew his hunch had been right. She wasn’t too far away now, just off to the west and south. It didn’t take him long to reach the foothills, and his rental car started to groan going up some of the winding forest roads. How long had it been since he was surrounded by trees, mountains? How long since he’d let his bear run free?

It was too much temptation. At the next turnoff, he abandoned the car—he’d come back for it later—and started walking into the forest. He hardly had to think to shift into his bear form, grunting with pleasure at the feel of the earth beneath his paws. Katie wasn’t far away now. He could feel her and taste her scent on the wind.

As he ran, he caught other wild scents on the wind: prey, other bears, other predators, but all of his focus was zeroed in on one thing. Her. He was so intent, he missed one other vital scent until he ran up on it. He burst into a small clearing, Katie’s scent overwhelming him, surrounding him now, and came snout to snout with a smaller, enraged black bear. Normally she would be no match for him, but the old girl roared at him and dropped to all fours. She slapped the ground with her forepaws, lowering her head with her ears back. It was a clear message: Go away. Her muzzle was silvered and her haunches a little thin, but Jake took a few steps back anyway. What was she protecting so fiercely?


Then he looked, really looked, at the clearing, and he knew. A cabin stood in the center of it, surrounded by a garden and a propane tank and all the other things a person would need to survive out here. Katie. She had to be inside. Was this bear her family? Carefully, Jake sat back on his haunches and looked away from her, stretching his massive jaws into a yawn. The old girl huffed out her breath, and he stretched out lower until he was lying on his belly in a sign of total submission and respect. For all he knew, this was Katie’s mother, or aunt.

The huffing sound gradually changed to a chuckle. “Katie, you can come out. I think you have a visitor.”

Jake stayed where he was, not wanting to show any sign of a threat. He glanced out of the corner of his eye and saw that the other bear was now an old woman, much older than he’d originally thought. The door opened and Katie came out. His heart started to race, and he fought the urge to run and grab her. In this form, he’d only scare her, maybe even hurt her. He stayed where he was. She was even more beautiful than he remembered—or maybe it was just that she was here, in the woods where they belonged. He eyed the jeans and t-shirt clinging to her full, delicious curves. Even from here he could see she wore no bra, and he had to fight again against instinct, wanting nothing more than to claw the clothes off of her. Mine, mine, mine.

“Gran, what—oh my god!”

“It’s all right. I think he’s yours.”

Jake slowly turned his head until he was looking at both women, and kept close to the ground. Unthreatening.

“...Jake?” Katie took a cautious step forward. Although it went against every bear instinct he had for this form, Jake lifted his head enough to meet her eyes and bob his head, once.

“Oh my god,” Katie repeated, and crossed the small yard toward him. “How did you find me?” Her voice carried a hint of awe as she reached him. She did nothing at first, just stood in front of him and stared. He met her eyes and she started laughing. “It is you. It’s like I can see you in there.” She reached out and touched his muzzle and he leaned into it. His head was almost on a level with hers and she slowly, cautiously, leaned in until her forehead pressed against his.

Her scent overwhelmed him. He huffed out a breath. Mine. He let her pet his fur and move around him in a curious circle until she stood at eye-level with him again.

“Stop hiding behind that bear now,” Katie’s grandma said to him. “I think you two have some things to talk about.” She came up to Katie and gave her a squeeze. “I have to go into town, so you two stay here and talk as long as you need to. I won’t be back until late.”





Chapter Seven





Katie should have been mad at Jake. She wanted to be mad at him. How dare he track her down and follow her here, to her most cherished refuge? But seeing him, the bear side of him... she couldn’t breathe. She looked into the eyes of that enormous bear and she saw him. When Gran left, Katie was hardly aware of it, too busy brushing her hands through Jake’s shaggy brown fur. Something Gran said did register with her though: “She’s right. We should talk.” Reluctantly, she stepped back from the bear. “So unless you can say something like that...”

She didn’t get to finish before there was a flicker in the air, a shimmer that surrounded him, then the bear was gone and Jake stood there smiling at her.

“Katie, I need to—” he said, at the same time she said, “How did you—”

“You first,” he said.

“No, no. You made the grand entrance, you first.” Her initial sense of awe was starting to wear off already. How had he found her? She folded her arms. Should she invite him inside? No, it was hard enough to see him standing there, beautiful as ever. Inviting him into a house where there was a bed was just inviting trouble.