by Stella Bryce
An Unbreakable Bear: BBW Shifter Romance
Stella Bryce
Published by Ava Catori Books, 2015.
This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.
AN UNBREAKABLE BEAR: BBW SHIFTER ROMANCE
First edition. March 30, 2015.
Copyright © 2015 Stella Bryce.
Written by Stella Bryce.
An Unbreakable Bear: BBW Shifter Romance
Shifter Bear
Stella Bryce
Copyright 2014, Stella Bryce
Ian Knox felt the steel jaw trap crush his leg before he knew what was happening. Pain and agony rushed through his body like wildfire. There was no way out. That’s when he saw her.
Dallas Beckett inched closer to Ian, the sights of her gun pointing at the bear caught in her trap. When the man’s voice pierced the air in horror, Dallas dropped the barrel of her gun, accidently pulling the trigger. What happens next becomes a lesson in trust, anger management, and inner strength. Forced to work together, the couple must find their way to safety before the unthinkable happens. (Complete Story, No Cliffhangers)
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 1
Ian Knox flexed his taut body, giving it a good stretch. His strong, sinewy arms were laced with striations of worked out muscle. It was time to work his legs. As he took off, he launched with long strides, finding his pace. A good, hard run would take his mind off of his troubles. Lost in thought, he pushed through the wooded trail, bounding over tree roots and trying to avoid rocks that might trip him up. The snap was the only noise he heard before the crushing agony washed over him.
Ian howled in pain as his bear came out, his body morphing and shifting into its primal mode, trying to escape the overpowering sensation. Crying out in misery, he turned to find the metal jaws of a steel trap wrapped tightly around his leg. The jagged teeth of the trap tore at his flesh. Trying to pry it off was useless. It wouldn’t budge. He slowly lost his strength as the adrenalin drained out of his body.
**
Dallas Beckett moved silently through the woods. She wasn’t far off when she heard the trap and howl. The yelping was louder than she would have expected. Inching closer, she raised her gun. Those damn wolves kept taking her sheep. She’d had enough. She tried less violent measures, but none of those had worked, and if she wanted to save her farm she’d have to tackle the problem head-on.
Dallas froze on seeing the thrashing bear, his leg caught in the trap. Scared, she held her gun, her hands trembling. He was growling and frothing at the mouth. She lined up her sights.
A man’s voice pierced the air. “Don’t shoot!”
Dallas panicked and dropped the barrel downward, but her finger was still engaged. She pulled the trigger, unable to stop the process. Dallas screamed as the bullet went into her foot. The pain of the bullet tearing at her flesh yanked her down to the ground. Rolling on her side, she pulled her leg toward her. She was losing blood, half of her shoe and foot was mangled.
Did that bear just…she closed her eyes, trying to clear her head, but the gunshot wound clouded her mind. She was hallucinating. She swore the bear was part man, but that was impossible. She heard his voice in the distance as she slowly slipped into unconsciousness, the pain being unfathomable.
Coming to, Dallas looked over at the bear. She was at a safe enough distance that he couldn’t reach her. She hadn’t expected to get a bear. It was the wolves she was after; the ones coming in and stealing her livestock late at night.
The bear looked back at her.
***
Ian was tangled in the trap. Watching the woman on the ground, he watched her fade in and out. She was losing blood. She was taking too long to clot. He knew he should help her, but he didn’t know how. And yet, he was angry. This was probably her damn trap, and now his leg was worthless. Who knows how much permanent damage it would cause?
“Hey,” he called out. He was caught between forms. He tried to shift fully, but he didn’t have the energy. He was part man, part bear still, but at least he could talk. “Hey, lady, are you okay?”
She responded to his voice. She looked at him, dazed and confused. “Are you talking to me? Is this a dream? Bears don’t talk.” She was trying to push herself up from the ground, but her strength was diminished.
“Can you help me?” He didn’t know where to start. If she could free him, maybe he could help her. “My leg is caught.”
“Bears don’t talk,” she said before fading again, trying to convince herself of the fact.
“Shit,” Ian muttered. The pain wasn’t getting any better. He howled again in agony. Reaching for the steel jaws, he attempted to open them…still nothing. If he had the strength, he’d be able to release the springs. Between the two of them, they could probably do it. Somebody had rigged this trap, making it damn near impossible to open.
Dallas came too, this time her head feeling less foggy. She took in the situation again. “What are you?” She finally spit out. He was only partially formed, trapped between a man and a bear’s body.
“Lady, I need your help. My leg is stuck.” He didn’t have time to explain.
“What are you doing in my trap?” She shook her head, trying to clear it more.
“You’re trap?” Anger ripped through him. So, she was the one responsible for this? He figured so much, but now he knew for certain. And he wanted to help her? What a fool he was. He’d rather leave her here to suffer…if he didn’t need her help.
“Wolves,” she said, her breathing ragged.
“How do you undo it? The springs, I can’t…” He grew more frustrated, trying to stay conscious, as his head got woozier.
“No. It doesn’t. I adapted it. It has a lock,” she said. “The wolves turn into…” She knew in that moment exactly what was in front of her, a shifter.
Chapter 2
“Look what you’ve done to me,” he cried out in anger. A deep, vibrating howl came up from inside of him. Ian tried to stuff his frustration down. A clear head was what he needed more than anything.
“I’ll go get help. I’ll help,” she said, barely loud enough for him to hear. Yelping as she tried to stand on her mangled foot, she stumbled forward and collapsed. The pain was too much.
Ian softened for a moment, before realizing that this one person was responsible for both of their injuries. Anger washed over him again.
Dallas attempted to stand a second time. Her face scrunched up, wrapped in agony. Her breathing grew deeper as she forced herself to remain upright and standing. Taking a single step forward, she fell to the ground. Tears were following by rambling. “I’m going to die. I’m going to bleed to death out here. There was so much I wanted to do, and now I’ll never get to. And there’s a bear and a man, and I don’t know if it’s real or I’m hallucinating.”
Ian watched her sob and rattle off a bunch of incoherent words. Nothing she was saying made sense. “Can you come closer?” He was pulling his shirt over his head. “I’ll wrap your foot. We can try to make a tourniquet to stop the bleeding.”
She looked at him, her eyes wide. “You want to help me?” She didn’t trust him. He was scary, an actual bear, and her gun was out of her reach now. He’d mangle her and tear her to shreds. She knew what wild animals did. And he was trapped, which made him more dangerous. She couldn’t trust him. No way. She needed to get out of there. She’d
drag her body out, crawl if she had to…on her knees or belly. Yes! She could crawl. Why hadn’t it dawned on her before?
She took one last look at him, and then shifted, rolling over, and started to drag her body away from him.
“Wait, don’t go; I need help,” he shot out after her. “Don’t leave me here!”
“I have to go. You’re a bear. You’ll eat me.” She kept apologizing. “I’m sorry.”
“I’m a man. Please, come back. I’m part man. I’m a shifter. I won’t hurt you. I don’t hurt humans.” He was desperate. If she left, there would be nobody for far too long.
She turned to look over her shoulder. “You’re just saying that. You’re trying to trick me so you can eat me. You need food. You’re stuck.”
“For crying out loud, help me. Please.” Ian cried out to her one last time, begging for sympathy.
Dallas stopped moving and shifted her body the other direction, wanting to take a better look at who was talking to her. Was he really a man? Bears couldn’t talk, yet she saw his fur, saw his teeth, and saw him with her own two eyes. Nothing made sense anymore.
“We can help each other. We can do this together. We’ll both get help together.” He pleaded. She was his only chance.
She inched a little bit closer, her eyes glued to him, terrified he might launch at her any second even though she knew he was trapped. “And you won’t hurt me?”
“I won’t hurt you. I want to help you. We can stop the bleeding.” He held up his shirt, now that his body was morphed back into more human than bear.
She was getting sleepy. So sleepy. Just a little nap. She put her head on the ground. “Just a little nap…” she said.
“No! Don’t go to sleep. Wake up. We need to get help. Come on, you can do it. Just come over a little closer.” He tried to coax her into moving. Her shoe was soaked in blood. He needed to help her cut off the flow. A tourniquet would help.
“I’m tired.” Her voice was soft.
“Talk to me.” Helping her took his mind off of his own situation. It was excruciating, but changing his focus helped alleviate at least some of the agony.
“You’re a bear.” Bears don’t talk.
“I’m a man. I’m a shifter. I won’t hurt you. My name is Ian. Ian Knox. What’s your name?” If he could keep her talking, they’d stand a chance.
“Dallas,” she whispered back, lacking any energy.
“Dallas. I need you to move closer. I want to help you. You need to trust me. We have to slow down your bleeding,” he cautioned.
Dallas looked at him, tilting her head to the side. “You’re going to help me?”
“Yes. I’m going to help you. You need to move closer.”
She decided to try. She wouldn’t get out of the woods alone. She was too weak to stand or walk on her foot. Even dragging herself out of the wooded trail would take hours at the rate she could move.
“That’s it,” he encouraged as she inched over, dragging her foot behind her, and sliding on her belly.
“I can’t.” She stopped to cry. “It hurts so badly.”
“I know it does. We’re going to get help. I can’t do it without you. Come on, you’re almost close enough.” He urged her to keep going.
Up on her elbows she started again. Finally close enough, she dropped her head to the ground.
Ian’s leg was howling with pain, but he forced himself to stay focused on Dallas. Wrapping his shirt as tightly as he could around her ankle, higher than the wound, he hoped would be enough to help the blood flow.
He looked at the woman with tangled blonde hair, a few strands hanging in her face, as she pressed to the ground. He hadn’t seen her before. He didn’t think she was from Mountain View Crest, but he could be wrong. He knew most people, having lived there most of his life, and somebody as pretty as her, he was sure he’d have noticed.
Her breathing was slow and steady. She took a few deep breaths and then thanked him for the help. “I don’t know if I can open the trap. I’m sorry. I’ll try.”
“I think the springs are broken,” he said, having pried at it.
“It’s homemade. I adjusted it. You need to pull it apart, but only after you wedge a special metal piece in the bottom. It’s a lock I made.” She mumbled, thinking she made sense, but her words were slurred.
“Huh?” He was lost. Some of the words were audible, the others sounded like mish-mash.
She dug in her pocket for a sliver of metal. “Slide this in underneath. There’s a slot I added. It won’t open unless this is in place. I rigged it differently, to outsmart them.”
Together, after what felt like hours, they were able to wedge the metal piece in and pop the springs. It hurt as much coming off as it did going on. At first there was relief, but then blood rushed to the area, making it feel tender and raw. His leg was free, but Ian wasn’t sure he’d be able to stand on it. Could he make a crutch out of a branch? Maybe they could lean on each other.
Yes! That was it. They each had one good leg, and if they worked together…
Chapter 3
“On the count of three,” he started.
“Wait, wait, I’m not ready.” Dallas tried to gather her inner strength.
The idea was to lean against one another, both using the other person like a crutch. Between them they had two good legs. They were hoping to gain some ground and make it out to a more visible area. They’d have to work together. Neither of them would get far without the other.
“It’s not going to get any easier. It’s going to hurt. Accept that the pain will be there, but the longer we hold off, the harder it will be.” He tried to speak calmly and hide his agitation over the entire situation. Anger pulsed through him more than anything else. She was responsible for this. It was her trap that damaged his leg. She was the reason he was in so much pain.
Dallas tried to stand back up. Her lame foot offered no support and reminded her constantly what she’d done. She could use her gun like a crutch or walking stick, while leaned against Ian. Ian. Half man, half bear, his body not sure what state it wanted to be in. He seemed stuck. He’d mostly come back to being a man, but the fur…he had more hair on his body than a man should have. She pushed it out of her mind that he was a shape shifter. She knew they were near, but she rarely came in contact with them. Until some wolves were coming after her sheep. She wasn’t sure if they were shifters or not, but she was paying for their presence with her livestock.
“You’ve got it,” he encouraged, watching her struggle to get upright.
Finally stable and standing, she cringed, and then clenched her teeth. Her mangled foot was impossible to ignore. “I don’t know if I can do this.”
“You can. I’ve got you.” He hobbled against her. Leaning into one another, he towered her. His size and muscled body was strong against Dallas. Ian’s own pain ripped through him, but his only focus was survival. They needed to get help.
Dallas sank against Ian. Pressed to him, his arm wrapped around her back, she put her own arm around him the best she was able. Together, they attempted to move. Stumbling, Dallas fell to the ground.
“I can’t do this,” she cried in frustration, ready to give up.
“You can. It’s going to take us a few tries to get the feel of moving this way. If you don’t try…” He shook his head, and with a harsher tone, refused to give up. “Get up. Let’s go. We need to do this.”
She looked up at him, holding his hand out. They were both here because of her. She took his hand and yelped getting onto her feet. Once again, she leaned into Ian.
Chapter 4
The couple staggered, taking a few awkward steps forward and then fell. Again and again, each fall broke them down emotionally. Ian head grew woozy. He needed to stop. “Let’s take a break and do it again.” He leaned back onto the hard ground and closed his eyes.
Dallas looked at Ian, noticing more of his fur had gone away. He was looking more like a man, and less bear. His chest was broad and muscled. He’d remov
ed his shirt and tied it around her ankle, helping to stop the furious flow of blood. She didn’t deserve his help. She was the reason they were there. It played over and over in her mind.
Ian slid his arms up behind his head and laced his fingers to make a pillow. “Just another minute, and then we have to go.”
His arms were tanned and strong, his biceps full and rounded, showcasing his body. He was beautiful, like a piece of art, chiseled, strong, big, and masculine. In any other circumstance her insides would be all twisted and her hormones would be raging around the man. He was gorgeous. And yet, ironically in the moment, she could care less. She appreciated his strength, but all she cared about was getting out of their predicament. She’d need to rely on him, more than she wanted to, but she knew without him she’d be in a much worse situation.
Ian took a deep breath and forced himself up after a few minutes. “Okay, let’s get going.” He realized they’d have to stop often. Their strength was sapped with each and every movement.
Dallas swallowed hard and lowered her head. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for you to get hurt. The wolves have been taking my livestock. I didn’t know what else to do.”
Ian wasn’t ready to forgive her. “Traps are inhumane.”
“I won’t be able to keep my farm if I lose all of my livestock,” she countered. “I’ve tried other methods, and they aren’t helping.”
It was pointless for him to argue. They needed to work together, not apart. He swallowed his anger. “Where is your farm?”
“Down over the ridge, not far from the east side of the fence.” The fence she spoke of was the fence that separated Mountain View Crest from the other towns in the area.
“We should go.” Ian forced himself closer to the woman responsible for his injury. He wanted nothing to do with her. He’d be just as happy to leave her here to suffer. Okay, that wasn’t true. It was his anger talking. He’d never leave her. He just wanted to believe he could.
