Bear Shifters: Hunt Collection #2

Bear Shifters

Hunt Collection #1

by

Ava Hunt

Copyright © 2016 by Ava Hunt

Cover by Pixel Perfect Publishing

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the author. The only exception is by a reviewer, who may quote short excerpts in a review.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Connect via email: [email protected]

Subscribe to the Newsletter - 
http://eepurl.com/bYg_bz

Chat on Facebook - 
https://www.facebook.com/Ava-Hunt-503881393130323/

See her catalog at :
http://www.amazon.com/author/avahunt

Four bear shifter paranormal romances from the author Ava Hunt. Watch sexy growly shifter men find their one and only fated mate, through struggles and heartaches. In this collection: Bear Consumed, Bear My Scars, Bearly Wet, and Bound to Bear.

Table of Contents

Bear Consumed

Bear My Scars

Bearly Wet

Bound to Bear

Bear Consumed

One freakish storm...

The weather had been playing havoc and now a solar storm was on the horizon. While many  wouldn't have even realized this had it not been in the news, for a few people it was creating chaos in their lives.

Two friends and colleagues...

Justin Woods is a bear shifter caught up in the solar storm in a way he never wanted. With a new ability to read minds, he's finding out friends aren't really friends and his girlfriend doesn't really love him.

Kimber Haze is a childhood friend that now works for Justin, and according to his new mind-reading ability, the only one that really loves him.

When the storm dies down and Justin no longer has his powers, will he be able to use what he came to learn to better his life or is the bear shifter destined to be alone?

*This is a standalone novella with a happily ever after ending. It is intended for mature readers and features explicit scenes and language*

PROLOGUE

Most people fear the woods when the sun descends. Shadows lengthen until they shroud every tree and plant in mystery. Creatures, both real and imagined, lurk in the darkness. A damp night chill saturates the air. The slightest sound can signal sudden death.

But I don’t fear the forest at night. I draw power from it.

I move through the dark woods, slowly, deliberately, as if I own each plant down to its roots, I inhale deeply. Here, I can breathe more freely than I have in days. Here, all the pressure to succeed melts away. All that exists is instinct and the strength of my own body.

The rustle of a nearby bush makes my ears perk up. I stop in my tracks, cautious, yet unafraid, and a mountain lion emerges. It too stands motionless, assessing the threat I pose. When it growls, I move forward aggressively without a second thought, sending it running a short distance in the other direction. Suspecting that I’ve encroached on its hunting territory, I begin to move away, retracing my steps without turning my back on the animal. The mountain lion keeps its distance, although it snarls and feigns attack a few times until it is satisfied with the distance between us. Finally, it loses interest in me and disappears in the bushes again.

Realizing that dawn is approaching, I decide to head home rather than continuing to wander the woods. I take off at a run, enjoying the speed and agility granted me by my muscular legs. Too soon, I approach the clearing that surrounds my estate. A growl rumbles from deep inside me, loath to return to real life.

Reluctantly, I stand on my rear legs and close my eyes. With a deep breath, I channel all my energy into the transformation. I feel the strength draining from my muscles, and I hear the familiar cracks and pops as my bone structure changes. When I open my eyes, I see my skin glowing white in the moonlight instead of the black bear fur that allowed the night to swallow me whole.

I am human again.

CHAPTER 1

“So, I take it the meeting did not go well.”

“No, Kimber,” Justin said, pinching the bridge of his nose as he leaned on her desk. “No, it did not.”

“What happened?”

“They asked me for money. They said, ‘How about you give us money for no reason and we’ll go spend it so we can play scientists and we won’t pay you back ever.’”

“I’m fairly certain that they are actual scientists.”

“Semantics. If being a scientist was a real job, they’d be making their own money and they wouldn’t have to ask me for mine.”

“You make it sound like they’re beggars out in the street. They need money for research. What are they studying anyway?”

Justin gave her a long, discriminating look before saying, “Don’t ask questions you already know the answer to. You did this on purpose. You know I hate charity cases. Why did you schedule that meeting in the first place?”

“It’s not charity,” Kimber replied, exasperation tinging her tone. “It’s an investment – “

“Really? When do I get my return?”

“Let me finish. It’s an investment in our future. Solar storms can damage expensive electronic equipment, and these scientists believe that if strong enough, they can have an effect on living creatures.”

“Solar storms happen all the time and it has never been a problem. It’s a waste of time and money.”

“Well, I’m sorry for trying to help you do something worthwhile with your money instead of taking your girlfriend to parties halfway across the world every weekend.”

Justin’s eyes narrowed. “And when did my money become your business?”

“Oh, don’t tell me you didn’t expect this to happen when you hired me. We’ve been friends long enough for you to know that I fight for what I think is right. This is important, Justin.”

“No. It’s not. And I thought we agreed that you wouldn’t call me by my first name at work. Here, you’re my assistant. Not my friend.”

“No one else is here!”

“Elle will be here any minute for our lunch date.”

“So you can go blow a few hundred bucks on wine and caviar when you could be funding important research? I’m glad you have your priorities straight,
sir.
”

Kimber angled her body toward her computer, away from Justin, but not before he noticed the tears forming in her eyes. He sighed, wondering how their playful banter had turned into a heated argument. Although he wanted their relationship at work to be strictly professional, there was no denying that he cared about her. They had been friends since high school, and she was right. He’d known that a certain degree of meddling would accompany the hire. But that didn’t mean he had to go along with her antics. Still, he hated to see her so upset.

“Listen, Kimber. Maybe I could call them back and look into it a little more.” He wouldn’t. But the way her face lit up made the lie feel justified.

“Really? You would do that?”

“Sure. If it means that much to you. But don’t let it spread through the office. I don’t need everyone to know – “

“To know what?” Elle had glided into the room, filling the space with the sweet smell of her perfume and a sudden influx of tension.

“That I’m secretly a good guy,” Justin smiled, letting Elle walk into his arms and kiss his cheek. Kimber looked away, unable to watch. In spite of all her best intentions, she resented Elle’s tiny waist and luxuriously expensive clothes, among other things.

Elle chuckled mirthlessly. “I wouldn’t say that. I know better.” Although she seemed to brush it aside, she couldn’t help wondering why Justin might be acting like a nice guy around his naïve assistant. “Are you ready to go?”

“Sure. Kimber, do you want us to bring anything back for you? Some caviar maybe?”

Kimber laughed, but Elle interjected, “Caviar? I think a salad might be more appropriate.”

With a glare that should have borne a hole right between Elle’s eyes, Kimber asked, “Excuse me. What is that supposed to mean?”

“I’m sure she didn’t mean anything,” Justin said, attempting to smooth things over. “I’ll be back by 2. Shoot me a text if you decide you want something.”

As they turned to leave, Kimber heard Elle mutter, “I hope you don’t expect her to pay you back. She can’t afford anything we would get at Sofia’s. Although I suppose we could stop at McDonald’s on our way back. They’d probably get a kick out of seeing a limo in the drive-through.” And to Kimber’s dismay, Justin’s laugh floated back to her just before the elevator closed behind them.

Seated at their usual table, Elle sipped her wine and recounted, “Joss was asking me this morning if we can still make it to her premiere this Saturday, even with your birthday party planned for Sunday. I told her that most of the planning will be done by tomorrow, but I do have to be at your estate early Sunday morning to meet with the event coordinator. You know, this is just the type of thing that would be infinitely easier if I lived with you.”

“There are a few other things that would be easier if we lived together,” Justin said, giving Elle a suggestive look. He waited for her to laugh, but she didn’t, so he continued, “Trust me, you don’t know what you’d be getting yourself into.”

She watched him suspiciously for a moment, then asked, “Does this have anything to with last night? If you’re wondering whether I noticed that you disappeared, I did.”

“As always, your deductive reasoning is on point.”

“Don’t patronize me,” Elle said, rolling her eyes in irritation. “It was pretty obvious when I woke up and you weren’t there. Where did you go?”

“Home. You know I don’t sleep well anywhere but my own bed.” The lie came as easily as ever.

Elle remained unconvinced, but after considering her options, she decided to let it go. If there was one thing she had learned from dating Justin over the past year, it was that there were easier ways of getting information than asking him. “Anyway, I told her we could fly back late. We might have to miss the after party, but I said we wouldn’t miss her premiere for the world.”

His brow furrowing, Justin asked, “Wait, is that this upcoming weekend?”

She laughed at him. “You don’t know when your own birthday is?”

“Of course I do,” he snapped. “I meant Joss’s premiere. I can’t leave town this weekend. We have a huge deal closing on Monday.”

Elle’s eyes widened in horror. She stared at him, speechless, but he only stared back, incapable of feeling intimidated by her. Finally, she asked, “How dare you? How could you do this to me?”

“My company is more important than your social life. I’m not going to apologize for that.”

“You lied to me,” she snarled. “You said we would go. You did this on purpose, didn’t you?”

Justin leaned back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest. “Yes, Elle. The only thing I want in life is to sabotage your social life and make you miserable.”

“I don’t need your sarcasm. I need you to fix this, or else I’ll make
you
miserable.”

“Just take the jet, Elle. Go to the premiere.”

Without skipping a beat, Elle asked, “Can I give Carly your ticket?”

“I really don’t care.” He didn’t even look to see whether her furious expression had dissipated. His gaze was fixed on the glass of the window that overlooked the forest, wishing he was physically there instead of merely reflected on its image.