by Olivia Gayle
When Ever Jackson came to Arcadia to track down her missing sister, she was immediately met with suspicion by the strange residents. Nobody's willing to help her search, but she's determined to get to the bottom of things. Even when a pesky town sheriff decides to stick his nose where it doesn't belong, lawman or not, Ever isn't leaving Arcadia without her sister.
Aidan Tucker preferred humans stay out of his Shifter town. They're a danger to his world, especially nosy ones like Ever. His job was to get the girl off Shifter land...until he got a whiff of her, and realized with a shock that the little spitfire who won’t back down from a fight is both human, and his mate.
Well, hell.
The human might get herself killed, so Aidan tags along even though she doesn't want his help. But there are secrets in his town that go beyond mere shapeshifting, some that even the Sheriff doesn't know, and Ever Jackson may be right in the middle of trouble…
BEARLY EVER
An Arcadia Knights
Alpha Werebear Shifter Paranormal Romance
(Helloooo, keywords!)
OLIVIA GAYLE
Copyright © 2015 by Olivia Gayle
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
ISBN: 1507806868
ISBN-13: 978-1507806869
DEDICATION
To my folks, who always let me keep one nose in a book even when the timing was inconvenient, and never complained when my earlier attempts at world domination occasionally blew things up. ;) Love you guys!
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
A huge shoutout to my EWS group for giving me the courage to try something new and helping me break out of my shell. To Lauren Hawkeye and Lili Booth for being editors of awesome and sounding boards for ideas. To the readers of the original serial who convinced me to keep going, that I wasn’t insane for writing about shapeshifting romance. YOU FREAKING RAWK!
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
EPILOGUE
CHAPTER ONE
Who knew it would be so hard to find one little apartment in this town?
The last four places Ever had looked at all ended the same way: the landlord had taken one look at her and told her the place was rented. They’d all wrinkled their noses at her, frowned slightly, and delivered the message that, though couched in much more pleasant terms, she wasn’t welcome in their town.
Four times.
In a freaking row.
Good thing she left her options open and had scheduled seven viewings for the day, but this was ridiculous.
Shoving back her dark hair and biting back a groan, Ever checked her GPS for the next location and got it going before pulling out into traffic. Her mood had soured over the fruitless afternoon. She had good credit, could pay cash for six months rent up front, and came with glowing recommendations if anybody had asked to see.
Nope. This town didn’t want her.
Too bad, because she wasn’t leaving.
The fifth location on her list was a small house, not an apartment. The lady had sounded nice on the phone, but Ever wasn’t taking any chances. Still driving, she put on fresh deodorant and checked her makeup quickly in the mirror. It was frankly more than she was used to wearing, but she’d hoped to make a good impression.
May as well have worn a burlap sack and frizzed your hair.
Ah well, might as well give it one more try before doing anything drastic.
There was an SUV parked outside the house already when Ever pulled up. An older lady stepped out and gave a small wave as Ever stopped her car. The woman seemed friendly, but so had all the others. This time will be different, Ever thought, taking a deep breath before opening the door.
“Pleased to meet you, young lady,” the other woman said, holding her hand out. “I’m Adeline Rhodes, we spoke on the phone yesterday?”
“Hi, Mrs. Rhodes.” They shook hands, and Ever felt some of the tension leave her. So far, so good.
The older woman beamed at her. “It’s always wonderful to see young people moving into town. My oldest went off to college and never came back, more’s the pity. I’d love to have my grandson closer, but some folks just don’t do well in this town unless, well, you know. I can’t blame her, it certainly has its ups and downs. So, I assume you want to see the property?”
“Yes ma’am,” Ever replied, unconsciously falling back onto her Southern upbringing.
“And so polite! It’s always such a pleasure to see young people today with manners. So many these days just have no respect. I like you already, young lady.”
Ever wasn’t sure how to reply. “Um, thank you ma’am.”
“Well, come on in, I’ll show you around.”
Wow, a big difference from the last four showings. Ever had been expecting a battle, not to be bowled over by a lonely old lady.
“Now I know it’s smaller than the pictures online make it look, but it’s homey, and everything works. It’s got all new carpet and padding, the appliances were updated five years ago, and a fresh coat of paint.”
A reluctant smile tugged at Ever’s lips. “It’s perfect,” she murmured, looking around.
“The rental company pays for water and sewage, but you’re in charge of electricity and gas. And I’m sure you’ve already checked in with Sheriff Tucker about moving in. He likes getting all the permissions and approvals before letting anyone stay long-term in Arcadia.”
The other woman’s back was to Ever when she said it, so she missed the confused look on the younger woman’s face. Ever recovered quickly however, nodding vigorously. “We spoke a couple weeks ago,” she said, the lie rolling easily off her tongue.
Permissions? Approvals?
“Good. Come on, I’ll show you the bedrooms.”
An hour later, she’d signed the forms and written a check to cover the deposit and first/last month’s rent. The house was hers.
That had been easy. Well, easy-ish.
The house was tiny, cramped, and smelled heavily of fresh paint. It was completely different than anyplace she’d been before, and she loved it.
No. Adored it.
Filling a space like this wouldn’t be a big problem, but she didn’t intend to stay long enough to need furniture. Everything she owned was in the back of that tiny hatchback, including a blow-up mattress and sleeping bags. She had work to do, and no time to go shopping for furniture. Something told her that she wouldn’t have much time in this town, so she needed to hurry with her search.
Leaning against the wall, she pulled off her glasses and rubbed her weary eyes. Fishing her phone out of her back pocket, she clicked it o
n and checked her saved voicemails. She slid down to sit on her butt as the last message from her sister, sent almost two weeks ago, rang through the small house.
“Sis, it’s me. Listen, I need your help. I’m in Arcadia and…I don’t know, something’s up. I feel like I’m being stalked, or hunted. I know things have been weird between us lately, but there’s a reason and I’ve been trying to keep you out of it. But…I need you here, I need you to help me stay focused. I…I…Just please come. I’m at sixty-two twenty-three Strawberry Court, please just call me as soon as you get this.”
The message ended. Ever stared up at the ceiling. It didn’t matter how many times she’d listened to that message, it never failed to make her tear up. There was a desperate quality to her words, as if she knew something bad was about to happen. And maybe it had, because when Ever had called her back, Sonya’s phone had been off. Ever had left a handful of messages before packing up her stuff and driving nearly two thousand miles, only to find the address her sister had given the center of a demolished heap, and neighbors not having a clue where she’d gone.
What the hell had happened?
CHAPTER TWO
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 he
lp 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.”
CHAPTER THREE
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?
