Bearly Ever: An Alpha Werebear Shifter Paranormal Romance (Arcadia Knights Book 1) (2 page)

Staring down a raging bull shifter was a lot more interesting in human form, especially when he decided to charge like you were waving a red cape.

Aidan figured telling old man Landry that delightful and slightly species-ist statement right then would be a bad idea, so he kept his mouth shut and darted sideways at the last minute. Even with the preternatural speed Aidan had as a shifter himself, the giant bull still barely missed him with its horns, crashing head first into the outhouse and smashing it to bits. The dense smell from inside immediately permeated the area but didn’t seem to calm the huge beast down.

“Roy, listen to me,” he started again, but the bull wouldn’t have any of it. He bellowed, swinging around, and charged again straight at the sheriff. There were few things in the world more stubborn than an angry were-bull, which was especially interesting given the human Roy Landry was as mild-mannered as they came. Aidan would get to the bottom of what had set off the other man, but first he had to get him back in speaking form.

Faced with either running out of the way again or standing his ground, Aidan gritted his teeth. Tired of being the weak one in this equation, and knowing no human could stop this creature, he grit his teeth and Shifted.

The bull balked at the huge bear suddenly before him, and Aidan took advantage of the brief pause. He lifted himself up on his back legs and grabbed onto the giant horns, pushing down. The lack of opposable thumbs was immediately apparent but he still had the desired effect. The bull’s head lowered, one wide horn digging into the ground and throwing the great beast off balance.

Unfortunately, Aidan hadn’t thought this through: Roy gave a bellow and, dipping low with his front legs, catapulted himself and his head high and to the right, and Aidan went flying.

Well, shit.

He slammed into the side of the barn, his giant frame cracking through the decades-old wood like paper. He landed on his feet inside, skidding unsteadily across the cement foundation and into the giant tractor. Outside there was another bellow, and through the hole Aidan could see the bull charging again.

The bear, just as stubborn, finally grew angry, and Aidan channeled that straight ahead. “
Enough!
”

No words came out, just the fierce roar of a bear. Power however radiated outwards, slamming into the bull mid-stride.

It had a visible effect on the bull however. Skin and muscle rippled over its body, and it crashed to the ground almost instantly. Its momentum made it skid several feet before stopping, but when the dust cleared, more man than beast lay on the ground.

From nearby, a woman moved in close but stopped just a few feet from the naked man. Aidan recognized her as Roy's eldest daughter Samantha. Her face was etched with grief, and she turned teary eyes to Aidan's bear. "We just found out the bank is taking the farm after this year's harvest."

On the ground, the older man lay quietly, but a sniffling sound drifted to Aidan. The rage that had permeated the air since Aidan arrived was gone, replaced by grief; the danger was past.

Aidan's change back to human was painful, a side effect of his much quicker earlier shift. If he'd had his way, he would have taken longer, but things needed to be settled now.

Samantha had two blankets ready before he was done, and laid one across her father's shoulders before handing the other to Aidan. The Shift had shredded his police uniform, leaving it in tan-colored rags around the hole in the barn. Thankfully he kept a couple spares in his car for just such an occasion, but he appreciated the hospitality.

Roy was in no condition to talk yet, so Aidan looked at Samantha. "Tell me what happened."

The blonde woman pushed the hair out of her eyes, looking miserable. Samantha was just a couple of years older and had grown up with Aidan. They hadn't run in the same circles—she was FFA and an ag kid while he was an athlete and the Brahm's son—but he remembered her all the same.

Perks of living in a small town.

“I was just putting up the tractor when he came staggering out of the house. I knew something was wrong, but all I could get out of him was that the bank called, and they’re foreclosing on our loan.”

She stared out at the land beyond the barn. “You know what the farm means to him. We haven’t had a bumper crop in nearly a decade, and with the drought lately…” She turned sad eyes on Aidan. “I was still trying to process what he said when he fell to his knees and started changing.” She looked at her father miserably. “You know how he gets when he’s angry.”

Aidan did indeed. They were just lucky that he’d arrived first, and had enough strength to subdue the old bull. He surveyed the damage their fight had caused, and then sighed. “Take him inside and let me call my father. We’ll deal with this, okay?”

Samantha gave him a teary smile, and Aidan was struck by how beautiful the female shifter was. If he’d been human, he would have asked her out many years ago; hell, they’d probably be married with a kid. He’d always admired the woman, but the blonde wererabbit wasn’t his mate and that was that.

Didn’t mean he wasn’t disappointed by the notion.

While Samantha tended to her father, Aidan picked up the rags of his old uniform and pulled a phone out of his pocket, dialing the familiar number to his father, Marshall. It barely rang through the first tone when he got an answer. “What happened?”

“Julian’s playing his games again.”

His father sighed. “What’s he done this time?”

“Started foreclosure on Roy and Samantha’s farm.”

Julian Murphy was in charge of the town’s finances, a career he’d inherited from his father. Like Samantha and Aidan, he’d grown up in Arcadia and knew how things worked, but liked to test the boundaries of his power. It wasn’t the first time they’d had trouble with the werepanther, and it wouldn’t be the last. He hadn’t yet done anything worthy of expulsion, but loved to incite drama like this.

“I’ll deal with him. Finish with the farm and get back into town, I have another job for you.”

Something in his father’s voice made him stand straighter. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing hopefully, but I got a few calls this morning about a newcomer to town looking for apartments. Everyone turned her down as far as I can tell, but she’s human and seemed determined to stay.”

“You want her gone?”

“No, I want to know why she’s here. Then we can deal with her.”

Aidan nodded then, realizing his father couldn’t see, said, “I’ll handle it.”

“Good.” His father was quiet for a moment, and Aidan thought he might have hung up. Then he heard the hard sigh. “Let the Landry’s know their farm is safe, and that they should have come to me before it got this bad.”

“They’ve got their pride,” Aidan remarked, glancing behind him to make sure they were out of hearing distance. “They probably won’t accept help from you either.”

“Damn their pride, and I won’t give them the option of saying no.”

There was a click and the line went dead. Man of few words, his father.

Ten minutes later he had on a fresh uniform and was heading into town. His father had texted him the information they knew and he pulled off the road to read it.

Ever Jackson, 25, claimed to previously hail from South Georgia. Interviewed with four shifters yesterday who all turned her away, whereabouts unknown. Hotels don’t have her. Car is a green VW Bug with Alabama plates beginning with 47, but nobody remembered it precisely.

Green Bug and the license plate he had should help narrow down the search. Picking up his radio, he clicked the button. “Mac, I need a favor.”

So. This was the address her sister had given her.

The demolition was new, or at least it seemed that way. She couldn’t imagine anyone would leave it like this for long given what an eyesore it was. It had once probably been a house, given its location, although that aesthetic was lost to time now. All that remained even moderately intact was the front door, a red square amidst the rubble, the stained glass inlay broken.

Ever climbed over the pile of broken timber and sheetrock carefully, keeping her eyes open to any details. There were bits of furniture still standing in areas—a TV stand here, a dining table there—making her think it had still been occupied when torn down.

What the hell happened to you, sis?

Something crunched beneath her feet. Ever looked down to see a broken frame beneath her heel, and lifting up her foot she peered down. An old familiar image of she and her sister in happier times grinned up at her, and Ever’s heart clenched.

So Sonya
had
been here. Then, what happened?

A siren blipped out toward the street, and Ever looked back to see a police car pull up beside her Bug. She ducked down behind a short remnant of remaining drywall, peeking around to watch what unfolded.

The cop car opened and a tall man with dark hair and a wide-brimmed hat stepped out. He eyed Ever’s little car for a moment, then lifted a radio to his lips. Ever pulled herself back behind the wall, keeping hunkered down.

“You can come out, Miss Jackson, I know you’re there.”

He knew who she was. How could he know it so quickly?

Duh. Cop. But that didn’t stop the uneasy feeling itching between her shoulder blades.

In front of the house, she heard the cop heave a sigh. “Miss Jackson….”

Ever had heard that same exasperated tone from teachers and social workers before. It meant that play time was over and it was time to act like an adult. Even when she’d been a kid. Rolling her eyes, she stood and raised her hand up by her side. “Stop, don’t shoot,” she said drily, sarcasm heavy in her tone.

Even from this distance, her weak-sauce eyes could see one corner of the cop’s mouth turn up in a half-smile. “Could you please tell me,” he called, “why you’re trespassing on private property?”

When in doubt, stick with the truth. “Hey, it’s my sister’s house. She invited me.”

Obviously that wasn’t what the cop was expecting. He frowned. “Your sister?”

Okay, so cop-guy was kind of cute. Maybe even really cute, although she’d need her glasses to be sure from this distance. “Yeah, Sonya Jackson. She lived here until recently.” Ever cocked her head to the side. “Can I see a badge, please?”

Her question seemed to confuse the cop, as if he’d been thinking about something else. “Why don’t you get off the rubble and we can talk.”

Ever crossed her arms. “How do I know you’re a real cop?”

“The silly hat and blue lights don’t give me away?”

His words made her lips twitch, although she wasn’t in the mood for smiles. “Just your badge, and we can talk.”

She could imagine him grumbling under his breath, but he pulled something off his belt and held it aloft. Without her glasses, Ever couldn’t make out the specifics, but it looked vaguely badge-shaped and glinted in the sunlight. Good enough. “Okay, gimme a minute.”

“You know, construction zones are dangerous to walk through,” he commented as she moved over the pile. “Nails and broken boards can be hidden anywhere.”

“Thanks for the tip, Ranger Rick.” Stepping down off the rubble, Ever dusted off her hands and looked across the car at the cop.

And blinked.

Whoa.

Thoughts of her sister fled her mind as she stared at the most gorgeous man she’d ever laid eyes on. Damn her near-sighted eyes, it would have been nice to know beforehand that the pretty was this, well, pretty. She stared, slack jawed, mind flitting to all things dirty and
awesome
. Oh yeah, he could totally break her two year drought.

Maybe he could even keep the uniform on.

“Miss Jackson?”

Ever blinked. Mr. Talk-Dark-and-Yummy was staring at her, a frown creasing his gorgeous brow. Was anything this man did not sexy? The wind shifted slightly, blowing her hair forward over one shoulder, and his nostrils flared.

Frown, hell. Now he was glowering at her.

What did I even do?
Still didn’t stop him from being dead sexy.

“You’re human.”

The matter of fact way he said it, and the fact that such a declaration even needed to be made, confused Ever. “Uh, yeah,” she said, “and you aren’t?”

His jaw snapped shut, loud enough that from this close Ever could hear the click. He looked confused about something, glaring at the house then back at Ever. “Did you file a missing persons report?”

Missing…oh, her sister. “No, I didn’t know she was even missing until I got here and saw the house.” Or, what was left of it.

“Get in the car.”

His imperious order cut through some of the haze clouding her mind. “Excuse me?”

His glower deepened, but he didn’t repeat himself. Damn, he looked good in that uniform. Even the silly hat.

“I don’t even know your name yet,” she said, her voice a purr, and gave him an uncharacteristic wink.

Then she paused. Blinked.

Wait a minute. What the hell was wrong with her? Since when did she, Ever Jackson, get all googly-eyed over a
guy
?

“My name is Sheriff Aidan Tucker, and I need you to come with me.”

He didn’t seem to have any problems with googly-anything, just with her. His words pulled at her strangely, as if she wanted to obey, but Ever had a lifetime of practice with disobedience. She crossed her arms. No matter how gorgeous he might be, she wasn’t getting into an unknown man’s car.

Well, unless maybe he meant to…

No.

“No,” she echoed her thought, lifting her chin.

Obviously he wasn’t used to someone not following orders. “Do you want to find your sister or not?” he snapped.

Well.
Mr. Handsome seemed to have changed from one moment to the next, and Ever wasn’t appreciating the attitude. Of course, that just made it easier to turn him down. “No thank you, I’m fine on my own.”

“Fine. You’re under arrest for trespassing.”

“
What?
”

So stunned was she at that turn of events that she didn’t even move as he grabbed her wrists and cuffed them behind her back. She just stared at him, dumbfounded, until he tried to push her into the back of the car.

Oh,
hell
nah.
Filling her lungs, she let out a shriek at the same time that she kicked backwards, striking him in the shin.

He cursed above her and clapped a hand over her mouth, so she just bit his finger. He didn’t let her go, just threw her head first into the back of his cop car and slammed the door hard enough to rattle the windows.

Okay. Happy feelings gone. Ever was
pissed.