Pleasant Valley Bears: BBW Paranormal Shape Shifter Romance (Pleasant Valley Shifters)

by Marlie Monroe

  He didn’t have to go far to find the source of the problem. The cubs scuffled back and forth, wrestling and swatting at each other with their claws. To an outsider, it probably looked like they were trying to kill each other. In reality, they were doing little more than roughhousing.

  Stuart’s sense of panic faded. He threw up his head and roared again, demanding the cubs’ attention. The response was instantaneous. The smaller bears dropped down low to the ground.

  Lila came running into the room and skidded to a stop just inside the doorway. Her eyes widened and her face paled. “Oh God. Stuart? Is that you?”

  Stuart nodded his huge head and growled at her to stay back. Without the complete mating bond between them, he could only hope she would understand what he was trying to communicate to her. The last thing he wanted was for her to try to get in the middle of things and accidentally get hurt by the boys who were still learning to control their new forms.

  He returned his attention to the cubs, who’d used his momentary distraction to edge closer to each other and start gnawing on whatever body parts they could reach. Despite both the cubs being black bears of similar size and age, Stuart had no trouble differentiating between the two while in his fur. Lila’s scent clung to her son like a perfume, identifying Quinn better than an ID bracelet.

  He focused on both the cubs, conveying confidence and authority, and began the transition back into his human skin. Now that the cubs were calm, the best way to teach them how to shift was to show them how it was done. He concentrated on the transformation, trying to go as slow as possible to demonstrate each stage for them. Even when trying to take his time, the process was a short one for Stuart. In less time than it took to say the pledge of allegiance, he stood naked in his human skin in front of them.

  He glanced over at Lila, looked her over from head to toe to make sure she wasn’t hurt, and reassured himself that she was fine.

  “Hey honey. Could you bring me a couple of blankets and then run out to the car and get my spare set of clothes from the trunk? The keys are still in the ignition.”

  She looked at the cubs. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

  “Don’t worry. I’ve got this.” He glanced back at the cubs and noticed their fur beginning to recede and their flesh rippling beneath the layer of hair. Their transitions were moving slow, but they were progressing. Only with age and practice would they get faster and more efficient.

  “All right.” Lila darted back down the hall and returned with two folded blue blankets. She handled them over and kissed his cheek. “Thank you for coming so quickly. I’ll be right back with your clothes.” She shot a concerned glance at the bear cubs and then headed toward the front door.

  Stuart watched her go and then looked back at the cubs. “Boys, I need you to close your eyes and visualize your human forms. Picture your hands and feet, then your arms and legs. Think about what every inch of your bodies should look like, and it’ll happen.

  He stood back and watched as Quinn and Justin slowly morphed back into teenage boys. They kneeled on the floor, naked, sweating, and trembling under the stress they’d just put themselves through.

  “Good job, guys.” Stuart stepped forward and draped a blanket around each of the boys. “How’d you like your first shift?”

  “Weird,” Justin growled in a much deep timbre than his usual voice. He cleared his throat and tried again. “It was way weird.”

  Quinn shivered and looked around the room with wide, frightened eyes. “My mom is going to kill me.”

  Stuart laughed. “Your mom isn’t going to kill you. Although I’m sure she would appreciate it if you didn’t shift in the house the next time the urge hits you.”

  “How do I control it? The urge was so strong. I couldn’t stop.” Quinn’s lower lip trembled. He ran his hands over his face and gasped. “Oh my God. What happened to my nose ring?”

  Justin started touching his face, feeling around for his piercings. His eyes flashed in anger and frustration for every scrap of missing metal.

  Stuart stifled a snicker. “Sorry boys. Now that you’re shifting, those piercings don’t stand a chance. The holes will close every time you make the transition.”

  “That frickin’ sucks.” Quinn pulled the blanket tighter around him.

  “You said it,” Justin agreed. “What about tattoos, man? Will those disappear, too?”

  “No. Tattoos will stay, but you’re a little young to go marking your body up with those just yet.”

  Justin rolled his eyes. “Whatever, man. My old man don’t care what I do. Oh hell. I gotta get home and tell my dad I shifted. He’s going to shit a brick.” He jumped up, excitement pouring off him, and then looked down at himself and froze. “Can I borrow some clothes, Q? Riding my bike home naked would suck.”

  “Sure. Go help yourself.” Quinn struggled to his feet as Justin ran up the stairs to get dressed. He paused on his way out of the room. “Thanks for um...you, know...helping us shift back and stuff. I guess you’re an all-right guy. My mom’s still too good for you though. Just so you know.”

  It wasn’t a ringing endorsement, but it was a start. Stuart would take it and work on changing the begrudging acceptance to something more friendly. They had time. He nodded at the teenager. “I hear you. I know I’m lucky to have your mom.”

  Quinn looked away and headed after Justin.

  Stuart turned around and faced Lila, who’d come in during Quinn’s speech. “You heard all of that?”

  With a smile, Lila walked toward him and held out his clothes. “I heard him.”

  “It’s progress, right?”

  “Yes, I think it is.” She cupped his face and lifted up to kiss him softly. “Thank you for helping them and me. I love you.”

  Stuart kissed the tip of her pert little nose. “I’ll come running anytime you need me because I love you, too.”

  He stepped away and started getting dressed in the spare set of clothes he kept on hand for occasions when unexpected shifting happened.

  Lila stood back and watched him. “How would you feel about staying over tonight?”

  “What about Quinn?”

  “Quinn will be fine.”

  “All right. I’m all yours if you want me.”

  Lila smiled. “Always.”

  * * * *

  After helping Lila and Quinn clean up the wreckage of the living room and sort through what could be fixed and what would have to be replaced, they decided to call it a night. Quinn went to his room upstairs, while Stuart and Lila retired to her small room at the back of the first floor.

  The minute Lila locked the door, Stuart was on her. He pulled her close and claimed her mouth, kissing her slow and deep. Spending the last few hours within touching distance of her without being able to take her in his arms had been beyond frustrating. Thank goodness his wait was over. After the scare she’d given him, all he wanted to do was strip her down and explore every inch of her beautiful body to reassure himself she was okay, and then spend the rest of the night worshipping her until she had no doubt how important she was to him. But first...

  He slowly eased back and gazed down at her. “Lila, tell me you’re ready. Please, tell me I can make you mine tonight.”

  She searched his face and gave a shaky nod. “I don’t want to wait anymore either. I’m already yours. You just need to claim me.”

  “Thank God,” he muttered, already lowering his head to take her lips again. While they kissed, he gradually guided her backward toward the bed until the back of his knees hit the soft edge of the mattress. There he paused and reached for the hem of her shirt. He grabbed the soft cotton and lifted it up to her chest. Lila anticipated his needs and raised her arms over her head. Their lips parted just long enough to drag her shirt over her head and allow him to yank his off as well, and then they were kissing again with renewed vigor.

  Lila ran her hands down his bare chest and scratched her short nails down the thin line of hair beneath his navel until she rea
ched his jeans. From there, she went to work on his button and zipper and slid her hand inside his pants. She wrapped her fingers around him and squeezed.

  He groaned into her mouth and kissed her harder. While she held him in the palm of her hand and drove him crazy, he unsnapped her bra and fumbled to open her pants. He needed her naked and beneath him now. Right now.

  With that goal in mind, he lifted Lila up, spun around with her in his arms, and laid her down on the bed. Once she was spread out in front of him, he quickly focused on getting her naked. He pulled off her shoes and socks and dropped them to the floor. Her pants and underwear came next, sliding off her long, shapely legs like butter. He caressed her supple calves and the soft, rounded curve of her knees. Unable to resist, he slid his palms between her legs, parting her knees, and stroked the soft skin of her inner thighs.

  Lila slid her bra straps down her arms and flung the scrap of lace and cotton over her head. The move arched her back and thrust her ample breasts up toward the ceiling. Stuart’s mouth watered and his fingers itched to trace every curve.

  As if sensing his gaze on her, Lila glanced his way and lifted up on her elbows. “Those jeans look mighty uncomfortable. You should take them off and come down here with me.”

  Sure enough, Stuart glanced down and realized he was still wearing his pants and shoes. He could fix that. Between one blink and the next, he kicked off his shoes and shucked his pants. Naked and aroused, he crawled up onto the bed between Lila’s thighs and covered her body with his own. Holding some of his weight on his forearms, he leaned down and kissed her, pouring his heart and soul into the melding of lips and tongues.

  Lila wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his hips, and held onto him. She arched up and rubbed against him, sinuous and oh-so-tempting. “Stuart. Don’t tease me. Give me what we both want.”

  It would have been so easy to line up and sink into her sweet heat right then and there. Lila would be willing. He had no doubt about that. However, he wanted more. Sex wasn’t enough. He yearned to make love to her as she deserved. The other times they’d been together had been rushed, frantic. Tonight, he wanted to go slow and give her a mating night to remember.

  “Not yet,” he said, using every ounce of willpower he could muster not to give in to her request. “Let me take care of you first.” He kissed her, soft and sweet. “I want to taste you everywhere,” Stuart breathed against her lips.

  “I’m all yours.” Lila released her hold on his neck and let her head fall back against the mattress.

  “Damn straight,” Stu thought as he set to work, sliding down her body and mapping out the new planes and angles with his mouth and tongue. His palms charted all the territory he’d been marking with his eyes all month. Her hands landed on the back of his head, silently encouraging him without being forceful or guiding. Her fingers flexed and scraped her nails over his scalp every time he hit a particularly pleasurable spot. He had made it his mission in life to become intimately familiar with every single one of the areas that made her hot.

  By the time he reached her thighs, Lila was squirming and chanting his name. “Stuart...Stu...” Her back arched off the bed and she tightened her grip on his hair.

  Stuart didn’t need much encouragement. This was his chance to explore her beautiful body and make her feel so good she never wanted to let him go. With that thought in mind, he scooted down a bit more and Lila spread her legs wider to accommodate him.

  He stretched out between her legs, slid his hands beneath her bottom, and angled her hips up to meet his mouth. The sight of her small, pink slit, open and waiting for him, had his mouth watering. He wanted to taste her more than he’d wanted to taste anything in his entire life. He extended his tongue and gave a slow swipe through the plump, wet folds of her sex. He groaned, the bittersweet flavor of her bursting over his taste buds, and dove back in for more, flicking the tip of his tongue over the hard kernel of her clit. She cried out, her hips shifting restlessly, and he traveled farther down, jabbing at the tight gate of her vagina and lapping up the cream he found there before moving past it to lave over the wrinkled pucker of her anus. Lila mewled and bucked her hips. He shifted his attention up and stabbed his tongue in and out of her pussy, tasting her, swallowing the sweet honey she released for him.

  Her every moan and whimper drove him higher, made him ache, and propelled his need to satisfy her. He slid his mouth upward and focused on licking her clit, while he eased two fingers inside her hot, gripping depths. He moved them in and out, caressing every inch of her channel that he could reach, and tried to time his thrusts to match the strokes of his tongue over her clit.

  Lila moaned his name and rocked her hips, pushing her pussy back against his hand for more. He pushed his fingers deep, searching for the right spot to make her scream in pleasure, and was rewarded by her quiet shudder and moan.

  She cried out, her fingers digging into his scalp and tugging at his hair. “Oh! Oh God. Please, Stuart, don’t stop.”

  Stuart growled against the folds of her sex and devoured her with renewed purpose. He whirled his tongue against her clit, and alternated fast and short jabs with long, slow licks. Her hips rotated, her pelvis thrusting at his face faster and faster, while the thighs at each side of his face began to tremble. Beneath his tongue, her clit throbbed and pulsed. He sucked, applying pressure to the tiny bud, and she went off like a rocket. A rush of moisture coated his chin and mouth as she shivered and shook, moaning out her release.

  One last long lick, from anus to clit, and Stuart retreated, rising up above her. On his knees, he pulled her thighs wide and brought her knees up and over his elbows, opening her for his thrust home. In one desperate lunge he buried himself to the hilt, his balls slapping against her bottom.

  Desperation compelled him to start thrusting right away, surging in and out her with a hard and steady rhythm. He watched Lila’s face, saw her lashes lower and flutter against her cheeks, her mouth open in a soft “oh,” and a bright flush spread across her skin. Her beauty stole his breath and made him want to rip his still-beating heart from his chest to offer up on a silver platter. There was nothing he wouldn’t do for her—his treasured mate.

  He drove into her again and again, trying to bury himself as deep within her loving embrace as he could manage. He couldn’t get enough of her; he didn’t think he ever would. Everything about her appealed to him.

  He kissed across her jaw and down her throat. The salty-sweet taste of her skin inflamed him. He buried his face in the curve of her throat and breathed in her scent.

  Lila tilted her head to the side, baring her neck.

  He bit down on the soft flesh between her neck and shoulder. The first taste of her blood sent him over the edge. His gut clenched and his vision went fuzzy. His orgasm slammed through him just as their bond snapped into place. He poured his release deep inside Lila, marking her as his from the inside out.

  The force of his release stole his breath and stripped him of his strength. Before his arms could give out, he slid his hands beneath her and rolled onto his back, bringing her along for the ride. When they stopped moving, he was flat on his back and she was lying sprawled out on top of him. He caressed her back and breathed, trying to regain his wits.

  “Oh my God,” Lila whispered. “I can feel what you’re feeling.”

  Concern filled him as the bond between them resonated with a mixture of wonder and alarm. He opened his eyes and gazed up at her. “Are you okay? You’re not freaking out on me, are you?”

  “Maybe a little.” She nipped him on the chin. “It’s just strange to feel someone else’s emotions all jumbled up with mine.”

  “You’ll get used to it.” He brushed the hair from her face and lifted his head up to kiss her.

  “I guess.” She closed her eyes and breathed deeply. When she opened them again, she smiled. “You feel smug and satisfied. Happy, I think. Is that right?”

  “That’s pretty spot-on. I’ve never been happier.”

>   Chapter Ten

  On election night, Stuart’s house was packed with friends. In addition to Lila and Quinn, who’d come over early to help him get things ready, Aaron and Andrew Hale from work had come by to hang out. Rick and Sophie had even brought the twins for a visit. Calls had been coming in all day to wish him luck. All in all, he was feeling pretty fortunate.

  Despite the drop in temperature, they barbequed steak and chicken breasts on the back porch and carried their bounty back inside to eat. Lila had outdone herself on the variety of side dishes and desserts spread out across the table. Her habit of cooking and cleaning when she was nervous about something really came in handy sometimes.

  The polls closed at seven. After that, it was just a matter of waiting while the results poured in. Stuart was confident he would be reelected sheriff. No one in their right mind would vote for a bigot like Frank McGovern.

  Shortly after the polls closed, there was a knock at the door. Stuart walked over to find out who the late arrival was and found his uncle standing on the front porch. George looked more contrite than Stuart had ever seen him. It didn’t take a genius to figure out why. The two of them hadn’t spoken since the night George had attended dinner with him at the Fosters’ house.

  Stuart stepped outside and closed the door behind him. “What are you doing here, Uncle George?”

  “Can’t a man stop by to wish his nephew good luck on his big day?”

  “Thank you. I appreciate you taking time out of your busy schedule to stop by.”

  “Aren’t you going to invite me in?” George leaned heavily on his cane.

  “Should I? My mate’s inside. The last I heard, you didn’t think very much of being in her company.”