Big Bad Bear (Forbidden Shifters Book 3)

by Vanessa Devereaux

  “Can I just sit and rest for a bit?” she asked me.

  “Nope, but how about I shift and you can ride on my back along with the backpack and tent?”

  She looked up at me and I could see fear in her eyes.

  “You’ve never been around a werebear when he shifts have you?”

  She shook her head and I saw her lower lip trembling.

  If we had any future together, if she was indeed my mate, she had to witness it and be with me in bear form.

  “I’m scared Liam because it’s part of who I am, and I’ve never had to face it like this before.”

  I knelt in front of her and held her hand. “It’s going to be okay. It’s a beautiful thing and once I’m a bear just get on my back and let’s keep going.”

  I stripped off and put my clothes and shoes in the bag.

  “You don’t have to watch me shift if you’re not ready,” I told her.

  “I think I need to do this.”

  I relaxed my muscles and kept my eye on her as my bones grew stronger and longer, hands and feet transformed into paws and claws and fur grew on my body.

  Her mouth was open, her eyes wide and I thought maybe she was in shock, but then I got down on all fours and she piled the bag and tent on my back and soon she was sitting on top of me and into the woods we headed.

  Chapter Fourteen

  I was truly scared when Liam first shifted but as I rode on his back and felt the scratchy fur and the strong muscles between my legs, I felt safe and knew he’d never let anyone or anything hurt me. He was just as beautiful in bear form as he was as Liam the man.

  I unpacked our food and supplies as he shifted back and began to erect the tent.

  “You ever slept in a tent before?” he asked.

  “No, and I never made dinner out in the middle of nowhere either.”

  “You spoiled city girl,” he said, winking at me.

  He had the tent up in no time and soon we were sitting huddled eating the soup and sandwiches we’d brought with us.”

  “We should turn in for the night because I want to get an early start tomorrow,” said Liam.

  We cleared up the food items and then got into the tent which Liam zipped up and then got out the sleeping bags. I shivered as I took my clothes off because up at the higher elevations it was almost like winter compared to down in the hot city.

  “You want to sleep with me in my bag?” asked Liam. “I’d hate for you to freeze to death.”

  “I’d sure like that.”

  He got in and then I slide in beside him, we both hadn’t brought any sleepwear and his body heat melted into my skin, taking away the discomfort of the cold.

  “What was that?” I asked, hearing something rustling outside.

  “It’s leaves falling on top of the tent.”

  I felt silly that I hadn’t realized that. I tried to relax but then I heard howling in the distance.

  “It’s a wolf pack if you’re wondering,” said Liam. “And no they won’t hurt us.”

  He turned toward me and I turned toward him as we wrapped our arms around one another and then rubbed noses.

  “Your nose is ice cold,” said Liam.

  “This is sort of fun really,” I said.

  “Um, and well I should say just close your eyes and get some sleep, I have a feeling we’re going to have sex.”

  His cock grew hard and brushed against my belly.

  “Did you bring condoms?” I asked him.

  “I wouldn’t think of being around you now without a good supply of them.”

  He unzipped the bag, reached into his jean pocket and within seconds had sheathed himself and with us facing one another, legs over one other’s thighs we were somehow making love in the sleeping bag.

  I groaned and moaned, knowing no one, but the nearby pack of wolves, could hear and know what we were doing.

  I ground my body into his willing his cock to rub against every inch of my pussy until my toes tingled and my thighs grew tender.

  I cried out his name when I came and we held onto one another when he found his release and then we kissed. He pulled out of me and we fell asleep wrapped in one another’s arms.

  Chapter Fifteen

  I knew the Sanctuary wasn’t far now. A couple of more miles and tucked away in the canyon. Josie was doing great and was even carrying the tent today. I think the thought of seeing her father was driving her on.

  I hoped this was a story that would have a happy ending for both of them. One of the hardest things to accept was how the humans went out of their way to part shifters and the half-human children they’d fathered. It was cruel and downright wicked. I hoped one day every child and parent could be reunited without having to do it in such a covert way.

  “It’s just over there,” I told Josie thirty minutes later.

  We stopped and each got a drink from the stream.

  “Do you think he’ll even want to see me?” she asked.

  “He’s a werebear and children are a priority to us so yes, he’ll want to see you.”

  I took her hand and together we headed for what I knew was the hidden entrance to Sanctuary.

  They knew I was coming and bringing Josie with me. I’d asked them not to say anything to her father because I wanted it to be a surprise for him.

  I removed the branches away from the door and tapped with my hand, once, three times, five, and then one. Each Transporter has his or her own code. Five minutes later, the door slid open and a man in his thirties stood looking at us.

  “Liam Quinn, welcome to Sanctuary. I’m Miles Thomson.”

  We shook hands and then I turned to Josie. “And this is Josie Moss.”

  He shook her hand and then stepped aside to let us in.

  This place being older was more run down, many of the houses looked they were in need of repair. Maybe I’d suggest some of the next werebears we rescued could be brought here to help with rebuilding the place.

  “I think Josie would like to see her father as soon as possible.”

  “He’s supervising the young bears’ soccer club right now so how about you go and watch him and then we’ll reveal his surprise to him,” said Miles.

  I put my hand on the small of Josie’s back as we followed Miles over to a cleared section of the woods.

  I felt her body shake when a werebear in his late forties came into view.

  “Is that my father?” she asked.

  “Yes, that’s Tim Nolan. And don’t be alarmed but he doesn’t see very well out of one eye and limps due to the injuries he sustained during his detainment at the Enforcement facilities.”

  She burst into tears and I couldn’t do anything else but hold her.

  Chapter Sixteen

  I wanted to go back and kill every person who’d hurt my father so badly that they’d left him with permanent injuries and an everyday reminder of their bigoted views on what was right and wrong between werebears and humans.

  I watched as he kicked the soccer ball to some young boys. He was about Liam’s height and just as handsome as the outlaw bear I’d fallen for. When the game was over, each of the boys ran to him and threw their arms around him, clearly showing their love and adoration for my father. It was the way it could have been between the two of us. They’d not only robbed my mother of the man she loved but a young girl of her dad.

  He seemed to sense we were standing there watching him because he glanced over before Miles beckoned for him to come join us. His limp was bad, causing him to drag his left leg behind him.

  “New Sanctuary members?” he asked, looking first at Liam and then at me, but it was almost as if he recognized something in me that told him I was part of him.

  “Julie,” he said under his breath.

  Julie is my mother’s name.

  “No, my name’s Josie, Josie Moss and I’m your daughter,” I told him.

  He didn’t say anything at first but then threw his arms around me and squeezed so hard that I thought he’d break a bone or
two.

  “Oh, my girl, you look so much like your mother,” he said, sandwiching my face between his two hands. I’ve thought about her every single day and now I know why they came down so hard on me. She was pregnant. Right now I think I might have died and this is bear heaven.”

  “I would have come to you sooner if I’d known about you. Mom believed you died in the prison.”

  “Your mother, she’s alive and well?”

  “Yes, she teaches yoga and art.”

  He looked at Liam. “And is this your mate?”

  “No he’s a Transporter who helped me come here to see you.”

  He threw his arms around Liam and slapped him on the back.

  “We must all have dinner together. The recent vegetable harvest was great this year and we caught fish yesterday. You’ll both be staying at my place right?” asked my dad.

  “Yes, yes, of course,” I said.

  “Miles, tell everyone that they can come by my place around 8 p.m. and meet my daughter.”

  “I’ll do that,” said Miles.

  My father grabbed my hand and began to lead us down to a row of houses to the left of the soccer field.

  “Do you have a mate?” he asked.

  “No, not yet.”

  “So your mother and I aren’t grandparents yet?”

  “No but one day you will be.”

  “And your mother did she ever marry?”

  “No, and I don’t think she ever dated anyone after you.”

  He opened the door to a run-down brick building and encouraged Liam and me to go inside.

  “You see that painting there?” he said, pointing to one hanging on the wall by the fireplace. It looked like the lake close to where we still lived. “Your mother painted it and gave it to me when we first met. I had someone go back and get it for me when they brought me here. Every morning I look at it and it brings me hope for the future and now you’re here.”

  A tear ran down his cheek and when I looked at Liam he was crying too.

  “Okay, let me get started on our meal,” said my dad.

  “Is there anything we can help you with?” I asked him.

  “Sure, I have potatoes and carrots for peeling. Hope you both like those.”

  “I love them and show us where they are and we’ll get started,” said Liam.

  Soon Liam and I were standing side by side in the tiny kitchen both looking out of the window as my dad cooked salmon on the grill outside.

  “So what do you think?” Liam asked me.

  “I think he’s handsome and wonderful and I know why my mom fell for him.”

  He seemed to know we were talking about because he looked up and smiled.

  When everything was nearly cooked, we set the table and then sat and enjoyed the best meal of my life, well apart from Gran’s meatloaf.

  “To this being the first of many meals together,” said my dad, raising his bottle of beer.

  My happiness suddenly turned to sadness when I thought that we could never be together. This was his world and he had to stay hidden and my world was out there.

  A knock on the door shook me out of the gloom and my dad got up and limped toward it.

  “The first of our guests to meet my beautiful daughter,” he said, stepping aside and letting in a young couple with a toddler in tow.

  I stood ready to greet them and I was so proud this man had fathered me.

  Chapter Seventeen

  I could only watch as everyone greeted Josie and her father stood there looking on with pride. I knew she had a tough choice ahead of her. Would she want to stay here with him or return to her job and the only family she’d ever known? She couldn’t have both and it broke my heart. When the last person left, Josie and her dad sat on the couch with him holding her hand.

  “This has almost made up for all the years I’ve been without you and the only thing to make it perfect would be to see your mother again.”

  I looked at Josie.

  “She does know you’ve come here to see me right?” he asked her.

  “Yes, of course, she was one hundred percent supportive of me doing it.”

  “But she wouldn’t come along?”

  “I think she did such a great job of putting you out of her mind when she thought you were dead that she doesn’t want to open up old wounds.”

  His smile went to a frown. “So there’s never a hope of being laying eyes on her again?”

  “I have some photos. In fact, with all that’s been happening, I forgot to show them to you.”

  I knew Josie didn’t know what to say or do and the photos were her last hope. She pulled them out of her backpack.

  “The first one is me as a baby. That’s me with Gran.”

  He took it and smiled. “I can see the werebear in you and your grandmother was a nice lady. Your grandfather wasn’t however. I suppose it’s because he’d been a soldier in the uprising and had sustained injuries that his hatred of us festered.”

  “I know he’s the one who turned you in and I’m so sorry.”

  “Nothing to do with you so you shouldn’t ever feel guilty about it. You know I think if it had been up to your grandmother, things would have worked out differently for your mother and me.”

  “And this photo is me and mom when I was around ten.”

  He ran his finger over the image of the two of them.

  “Would you try and convince her that I want to see her. Maybe I can sneak out of this place. I’d risk it if she’d see me.”

  Josie put her hand on top of his. “I promise you when I go home I’m going to talk to her about it, and rest assured I’ll be back as often as you’ll put up with me.”

  He threw his arm around her and kissed her on the side of the face. “Now, you two are probably tired as I am so let’s get you settled for the night.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  My father seemed to know that Liam and I had a thing going on between us. I guess werebears are more intuitive than humans. He didn’t even think twice about showing us both to the same spare room.

  “I guess I should tell you that it’s not etiquette to have sex with a female when her father’s in the room next door,” Liam told me as we snuggled together. “I don’t want you thinking you’re no longer appealing to me.”

  “Glad you told me,” I whispered back.

  Liam fell asleep but I couldn’t so in the middle of the night I got out of bed and went into the kitchen and looked out of the window.

  Although my dad had the run of a huge area and he was surrounded by fellow werebears, for most of his life he’d been in sort of a prison, never being able to venture back into Bay Harbor County where in my opinion werebears had always had a right to be just as humans did.

  It wasn’t fair, it wasn’t right and for the rest of my life I was going to try and bring this stupidity to an end. Yes, some of the rules and laws were being relaxed but I wanted all the werebears’ sentences forgiven so they could come and go as they pleased. Liam would no longer be a wanted man because of being a Transporter and life would be so simple.

  ******

  “I knew it was going to be tough for Josie when the time come to say goodbye. But she had to go because if she went missing we knew Enforcement might start to think something was wrong.

  “I’ll come back again really soon,” she’d told her father.

  “I want to see your mother.” Were words that rang out in my head all the way back to Bar Harbor.

  Maggie was there waiting at our arranged rendezvous and Josie finally gave in and broke down and cried when we got into the car.

  “He’s blind in one eye, he has a limp, and he’s had to live like a criminal and he’s not. He’s just done what I’ve done and that’s fall in love.”

  I looked at Josie. Had I just heard what I thought I had? I wanted to tell her I loved her on the way back but I thought maybe she wouldn’t return those words to me.

  “He wants Mom to go see him and I know she won’t.”

>   “Yep, your mom’s a stubborn one and she gets that from your father not me,” said Maggie.

  “I think I know what might change her mind,” I said.

  “What?” asked Josie.

  I wiped a tear from her eye. “She’d want to see you married right? I mean what woman doesn’t love being mother of the bride?”

  “Sure she will but how does that convince her to see my dad?” asked Josie.

  “If you got married at Sanctuary and had your father give you away,” I said.

  I guess I’d always dreaded proposing to my mate and this seemed to be the easiest way to do it and the least risky should I get turned down.

  “So you’re saying I should wait until I get married and then tell her it’s being held at Sanctuary?” asked Josie.

  “Yeah, that’s what I’m saying but you won’t have to wait that long because I was thinking we might do it next week before I have to do two Transport runs.”

  Josie looked at me, didn’t say anything but then her grandmother nudged her. “Answer the man,” she said.

  “You want to marry me and not just so I can tell my mom she has to go the Sanctuary to see me wed?”

  “I want to marry you because you’re my mate surely you know that by now. You smell like my mate, you act like me mate, and if you don’t say yes, then I’m doomed to bachelorhood for the rest of my days.”

  “Yes, Liam Quinn, I’ll be your mate forever and forever.”

  Maggie fisted the air “Perfect excuse for me to buy a new dress.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  “Mom, there’s something I have to tell you,” I told her when I went to visit her that afternoon.

  “It’s about your father isn’t it? I mean he was angry and didn’t want to see you and I’m sorry.”

  “Nope just the opposite. He’s handsome and wonderful and he wants you to go with me next time I visit Sanctuary.”

  She shook her head. “No Josie, I can’t do that. I hope you didn’t give him false hope that it would happen. Being with him broke my heart once, it’s healed, well sort of, and I can’t go through all that again.”

  “Then you won’t be attending my wedding next week. I mean it’s being held at Sanctuary.”