by Sky Winters
Table of Contents
CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 2
CHAPTER 3
CHAPTER 4
CHAPTER 5
CHAPTER 6
CHAPTER 7
CHAPTER 8
CHAPTER 9
CHAPTER 10
CHAPTER 11
CHAPTER 12
CHAPTER 13
CHAPTER 14
CHAPTER 15
CHAPTER 16
CHAPTER 17
CHAPTER 18
CHAPTER 19
CHAPTER 20
CHAPTER 21
CHAPTER 22
Copyright 2017 by Sky Winters- All rights reserved.
In no way is it legal to reproduce, duplicate, or transmit any part of this document in either electronic means or in printed format. Recording of this publication is strictly prohibited and any storage of this document is not allowed unless with written permission from the publisher. All rights reserved.
Respective authors own all copyrights not held by the publisher.
Bear Mountain Daddy
Shifter Romance
By: Sky Winters
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Table of Contents
Bear Mountain Daddy
CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 2
CHAPTER 3
CHAPTER 4
CHAPTER 5
CHAPTER 6
CHAPTER 7
CHAPTER 8
CHAPTER 9
CHAPTER 10
CHAPTER 11
CHAPTER 12
CHAPTER 13
CHAPTER 14
CHAPTER 15
CHAPTER 16
CHAPTER 17
CHAPTER 18
CHAPTER 19
CHAPTER 20
CHAPTER 21
CHAPTER 22
Bonus Stories
LA Shifters
Comeshift Series Box Set
Tiger Tail
MPREG: Howl of the Omega
Preview of Bear Mountain Bride
Preview of Bear Mountain Baby
About The Author
Bear Mountain Daddy
CHAPTER 1
The night wind howled low over Bear Mountain. A thin fog shrouded the tree line as Adeline Parker stalked through the tall grass leading to the thickets of trees that began the slope. The moon was full and high in the sky, thin wisps of clouds curling in front of its round, silver form. Stepping slowly on the grass, she walked with careful paws towards the trees.
Her body was strange to her; she hadn't yet grown accustomed to the low, small shape of her fox form, nor the way it felt for the wind to blow softly through her fur. Her senses were strange, too - some, like her vision, were less useful than they were when she was in her human form. Others, like her sense of smell, and an occasional, animal awareness of lurking danger, were keen. Lifting her head into the still air, she sniffed with her small wet nose, hoping for the scent.
There was nothing in the air other than the fresh, wet smell of a recent forest rain. The air was clean, with faint, gamey scents of prey animals detectable. She considered abandoning her quest for a moment, perhaps to find a bush full of ripe, delicious berries, or to sniff around until she came across a particularly tasty-looking rabbit in its warren - a sleeping, easy conquest.
A trace of the scent she sought, however, brought her mind back into sharp focus. She lifted her nose into the air once to confirm the presence of the smell. Sure enough, it was there- that rich, earthy musk that had called her from Philadelphia to Bear Mountain. The scent wasn't simply pleasant on the nose. No, it was more than that. It was a scent that beckoned her. That seemed to call to mind a man's voice as she smelled it and it was only in this form, this strange, fox shape, that she could track it down.
She couldn't say for certain what the scent was. As strange as it sounded, it was almost like the familiar scent of a lover, though she knew that was impossible. There was no one who she knew in this part of the country. Here, she was as alone as she'd ever been.
Aiming her nose towards the scent on the air, she took off with light, silent steps, her black paws deft upon the grass. Soon, she was over the clearing and among the trees, the moonlight dappling upon the ground through the canopy of branches above.
The forest was still, silent.
Her nose in the air once more, the scent detected yet again, she took off at full speed, darting her body around the thick tree trunks. The scent picked up ever so slightly with each passing second. The air had a slight chill to it as she ran, but her thick, full coat of sable hair braced her against it. She noted that it was unseasonably cool, the winter creeping into what should've been the last reaches of fall.
As the scent grew stronger, it broke her thoughts away from those of the weather and focused her on the hunt. It grew richer by the moment, and the closer she drew, the more she could identify it as the intoxicating scent of a man, the smell of a lover whose body was sheened and slick with post-coital sweat. But that wasn't all. There was something more to it, something more feral.
She had to know. She had to learn the source of the scent. She had to learn the secret of this fox form that she could now, for the first time in her twenty-two years, adapt at will, the sleek body feeling as familiar as one she'd grown up in.
Adeline ran, faster and faster, knowing the direction she needed to travel but not knowing how she knew. Though her focus was on the scent that grew stronger and stronger by the moment, she couldn't help but notice the absence of other animals around her. Not a beast was among the grass, not a bird was in the trees. She was alone. Somehow, here in the woods, she was alone.
And though the scent grew and grew, the feral part of her mind slowly taking hold more and more as she drew nearer, another feeling began to creep into her thoughts... It was one of fearful dread. It was as though the closer she came to the source of the scent, the closer she came to a source of danger that the instinctual, animal part of her implored her to avoid.
Turn back, it seemed to say. Turn back before it's too late.
Adeline knew that turning back wasn't an option. Putting the nagging, insistent voice out of her mind as best she could, she went on, running faster and faster, the trim muscles of her thin legs straining, carrying her light body as quickly as they were able. After a time, she could spot another clearing up ahead. She knew that was her destination.
Though the clearing was empty of trees, it wasn't completely void. Standing like a silent monument was a massive compound, the property ringed by a tall, black fence. Adeline looked up at the complex, the building bigger than the largest mansion she'd ever seen. There were no signs of life here. However, the windows were dark; the air was silent, and the grass of the property was overgrown.
She crept closer, approaching the black fence and sneaking through a small hole near the bottom. Soon, she was on the property, the scent stronger in her nose than it had ever been. Darting her gaze here and there, she looked around for any sign of life - anyone, human or animal. None was to be found. She made her way to the left of the building, the compounding looming to her right. To her left was a collection of small cabins, maybe over a dozen, all abandoned.
Then, as she stalked through the ruins of this strange place in the middle of the woods, the sense of dread that she'd been ignoring returned. This time, however, it wasn't simply a gentle nagging that she could ignore. This time, it was a screaming, desperate voice inside of her, one that demanded she leave, that she turn and run as far away from this place as possible. It overwhelmed the scent that she had
followed, it overwhelmed every human thought she had. Adrenaline began to rush through her body, giving her exhausted, weary legs a burst of energy to flee the danger that her instincts were certain was near.
A low growl sounded behind her. Turning, she saw, with horror, the reason for her fear.
Among the overgrown grass of the property was a pack of wolves, all growling, teeth bared, eyes glowing red in the dark, stepping towards her with stalking steps, their bodies preparing to pounce. One emerged from the pack, a wolf with black fur, a curved scar running from his eye to his jaw. He sized Adeline up with hungry eyes as he approached.
She didn't have even a moment to react as he pounced.
CHAPTER 2
Adeline Parker awoke in a cold sweat. Looking down at her body with frantic glances, she saw that she was human once again. She lifted her hands in front of her, confirming that they weren't paws. The realization gave her a deep sense of relief. Pulling off her bed sheets, she braced against the cool air of her bedroom as it rushed to cover her sweat-sheened body. She shivered against the cold, grabbing her robe from the nearby chair where it lay draped and wrapping it around her slim body.
Why, oh why, did I move here again? she wondered as she placed her bare feet on the cool wood floor of her rented cabin, walking with hurried steps towards the pair of cream-white slippers that lay crossed over one another on the floor near the foot of her bed.
As soon as she was warm again, however, the memory of the dream came rushing back. It wasn't new to her, not entirely. The dream of her in the form of a fox, running through the woods on a moonlit night, not an animal or human to be found. The sense of dread, the scent, the strange clearing of abandoned buildings, these were all familiar details.
The details were all much clearer than they'd ever been. The scent was stronger, the buildings were more detailed, and the sense of dread, which had been previously nothing more than a feeling and a brief glimpse of stalking forms in the woods just out of the corner of her eye, had now revealed itself in the form of a pack of fearsome wolves.
Nothing about the dream made sense. Why was she in the form of a fox? Why did she feel the need to find this abandoned place in the woods?
Despite the bizarre nature of the dreams, she hadn't been able to fight the urge to investigate them. Leaving her apartment, her job, and the wreck of her last relationship behind her in Philadelphia, Adeline had moved a month ago to this small cabin in the wilderness near Bear Mountain. She was determined to get to the bottom of this strange compulsion, these strange dreams.
The scent, too, was something she couldn't get out of her mind.
She stretched her willowy body, letting the morning sun streaming in through the cabin's bedroom window warm her. Taking a shower, she planned the day ahead, the image of the buildings in the clearing fresh in her mind.
Someone in town must know about them, she thought, referring to Branlen, the small, picturesque town at the base of the mountain.
Since arriving, Adeline had mostly kept to herself, only venturing into town when she needed to buy groceries or other supplies. She chose this cabin over a house closer to town for a reason... She hoped the solitude of the woods would free her from distractions and allow her to focus on getting to the bottom of these strange dreams and compulsions.
Stepping out of the shower and drying off, she wiped the fog off the bathroom mirror, before taking a long look at her reflection. Her almond-shaped green eyes, usually lively and bright, seemed tired. Her slim, thin nose was over full, Cupid's-Bow red lips. Her comely features were set upon a heart-shaped face and under a long nest of thick hair the color of rich leather. She cast a glance down at her body, noting that, while she'd always been slim and lithe, the stress of the last month had taken a toll, making her shape now even more slender than it had ever been.
I gotta figure this out, she thought, drying herself off and slipping into her underwear and bra, followed by a pair of dark blue jeans, and a tight-fitting dark blue t-shirt. This stress is gonna make me waste away to nothing if I don't.
She made herself a quick breakfast of cereal. Looking around the small, cozy interior of the cabin while she ate, she remembered the conversation she had with the property agent the day she rented it.
"Some couple lived here," said the property agent, a short, stout woman in ill-fitting professional clothes and faded blonde hair tied above her in a loose bun. "Artists, I think. I guess they thought the quiet would help their art. Who knows. Then, one day, the woman –no man with her, I remember- stopped by the office, paid up the rest of the lease, and moved out. No idea where she is now."
This struck Adeline as odd, but not noteworthy, at the time. After all, artists weren't known for their predictable, logical behavior. But now, considering the intensity of her dreams and the insistence of the urge to travel into the woods, she couldn't help but wonder if there was something more to the story that the agent told her.
One way to find out, she thought, pouring a pot of coffee into a thermos and snatching her keys off the small table by the door.
She stepped out into the fresh, late fall air, buttoning her gray pea coat against the wind that galloped down from the mountain above. Casting a glance around the thick trees that surrounded her property, she wondered, as she'd done every morning when she stepped outside for the first time, just what the hell she was doing her. Adeline then climbed into her early-decade white Honda Civic and began the twenty-minute drive down to town, determined to get some answers.
Reaching the town center of Branlen, which was a smattering of municipal buildings and a few small shopping areas, she noticed a small building she'd never noticed before. It was an older-looking building, with a strange, place-out-of-time look to it, like it had just fallen into the city from the colonial period. Slowing down her car as she passed it, she read the hand-painted sign out front, which read "Jenny's Coffee and Tea." Though the coffee in her thermos had been barely touched, she felt strangely compelled to go into this odd little store.
Inside, Adeline noticed the strange interior of low lights, beaded curtains, exotic, Middle-Eastern-sounding music. The floors were covered in deep red tapestries, the walls in odd paintings of surreal scenes of animals and nature, and a few round tables of dark oak were placed here and there. The aesthetic of the place struck Adeline as a strange combination of Romanian Gypsy and San Francisco hippie. The clientele, the two that there were, consisted of a scraggly old man with long, silver hair and a young girl no older than six who sat with him. They looked up at her with faraway expressions that melted immediately into broad smiles, the expressions of those who had just seen a long-forgotten friend that they just happened to bump into.
Adeline walked further into the shop, a feeling of unease coming over her.
Then, as if appearing from the air itself, a thin, wizened-faced woman with short, dyed-black hair, a robe of red cloth with blue trim, and a wide-eyed expression on her face, stepped out in front of Adeline. The woman looked her over as if inspecting merchandise. Once she finished her scan of Adeline, she lifted her eyes to hers, staring deep into her eyes with two small orbs of cloudy white and startlingly bright blue.
"Welcome!" she said, her voice a low creak. "Welcome, my little fox!"
CHAPTER 3
"What did you call me?" asked Adeline, her eyes wide as she stepped backward from the woman.
"Little fox," the woman said, a flash of annoyed confusion crossing her wrinkled face. "You got bad ears or something?"
Adeline shot a glance at the man and girl that sat nearby. They both looked up at her with expectant expressions, sitting in silence.
"But, but, why would you call me that?" Adeline asked.
"Because you're a fox! Why else?" the woman said, as though it were the most natural declaration in the world.
"How did you…" said Adeline, attempting to get answers but too shocked to speak clearly.
"So, what'll you have?" asked the woman, waving her hand dismissively a
t Adeline's query as she stepped back behind the low, oak counter, the colorful glass containers of various sorts of teas behind her.
"Huh?" asked Adeline, still shocked.
"What'll you have, my little fox? Tea? Coffee? One of my famous Danishes?"
The woman gestured to a small stack of Danishes set under a glass bell jar, the pastries a creamy beige color with a dab of blood-red cherry filling in the middle.
"Good Danishes," said the man, finally speaking. "Very good."
"Um, small coffee, I guess," said Adeline, her eyes still darting around to the strange décor of the place.
"One coffee!" said the woman, turning around and setting to work.
Seconds later, she turned back around, a gray mug placed in front of her on the counter, the dark coffee within steaming and black.
"Th…thanks," said Adeline.
"First one's free!" said the woman.
"First one's free!" said the man, raising his mug, as if in victory.
Adeline shook her head, ridding herself of the strange feeling that had overcome her since the moment she walked in, only to grow more intense as when the woman referred to her as a "fox."
How the hell could she know that? thought Adeline. This has to be a trick.
"You're a cold reader or something, right?" asked Adeline, searching her brain for some explanation.
"A cold what?" asked the woman. "No, I'm Jenny, just like the sign says."
"Why did you call me a fox?"
"No reason," said Jenny, busying herself with cleaning the counter, despite it not seeming dirty in the slightest. "Just an impression from some people, that's all."
"An ‘impression'?" asked Adeline, incredulously.
"Yeah, some people just seem like certain animals to me. Abraham there's a lion, Eunice is a cat. Just how I see them."
"And…I'm a fox?" asked Adeline.
"I'm as sure you're a fox as I'm sure that my name's Jenny and that this is my shop. Which is to say, as sure as it gets."
