Bringing Home the Bear (2 page)

She
took a deep breath and sat up, swinging her legs over the side of the bed. If
she lay here any longer, she’d start pacing and listening to all the thoughts
milling around in her head. Silence was a strange companion.

She’d
go for a nice evening stroll before it got too dark to find her way back to the
camper.

****

Trent
finished the last of his burger and took the plate to the sink. He turned on
the taps and glanced out at the last tiny sliver of the sun as it went down on
the horizon. Tonight was a full moon and he’d hazard a guess it was going to be
a beautiful evening. In fact, he’d drag out the telescope and do some star
gazing. Lots of shifters in their group often got together for some mass star
gazing and reminiscing. They’d listen to the elder shifters tell them stories
about where they’d come from and what their old home had been like. They’d take
turns guessing whereabouts in the sky their home planet had once been. Maybe
he’d get the group together and do that again sometime soon. Perhaps have them
over at the house for a barbecue too.

He
wiped his hands, turned, and walked along the hallway. He pulled open the
cupboard door and reached up on the top shelf for the telescope and its stand. Trent
placed both on the ground and assembled it, remembering fondly that he and his
dad had used it almost every night during their first summer in this house. He
carried it into the living room and sat it in front of the window. He dragged a
chair over behind it and sat.

Swiping
away some dust from the lens, he glanced through the eyepiece and focused on
the stream. That was the best thing about this place; complete privacy and no
one around to disturb the peace.

He
moved the lens upward, looking into the sky. Some stars were already twinkling.
He was young enough to remember what their lives had been like on their home
planet. There you didn’t need artificial lights because the stars were so
bright they lit up the night sky and reflected back down onto their homes and
streets.

Trent
moved the lens downward.

He
swallowed.

She
was back. Not fishing this time, but strolling along in a brown jacket and some
very tight jeans.

Maybe
she was a figment of his imagination.
His mind conjuring up a
female mirage because it had been so long since he’d been with a woman shifter
in their group.
He took a deep breath. If he looked at her any more,
he’d be jerking off again and then need another cold shower.

He
had to quit looking.

Wolves
howling in the distance caught his attention. He listened closely. They were
part of his shifter’s group.
Announcing a small get together
tonight once the moon was out.
Maybe he’d go. No, he felt more like
staying in and watching this woman who continued to fascinate him so much.

Was
she living around here someplace? The nearest house was a mile away and he hadn’t
seen a for sale sign outside it. That didn’t mean she wasn’t staying there as
someone’s guest though.

He
glanced through the lens again just as the wolves howled another message.
Bring your own food and beer.

And
then suddenly she was gone.

Chapter Two

Emily
ran so fast up the hill that she fell over not once, but twice. Both times,
she’d fallen over her own feet because she couldn’t move them fast enough.

She
looked down at herself. Shit, she had dirt all over her, but she’d been smart
to run. The wolves had sounded close by. Her heart pounding and almost beating
out of her chest, she put her hand on the camper door and opened it, almost
falling face down on the rug. Putting her hand on her chest, her heartbeat
pounded against its palm. That had been a close call.

Unlike
her dad, she’d never been an outdoorsy sort of person, and now she knew why.
Nature and its inhabitants scared her. What if the wolves decided to pay her a
visit tonight? She reached across to the door making sure it was closed all the
way and bolted shut.

The
windows—could they break the windows? Would they smell her inside the camper
and try any means to get inside?

She’d
never heard of them doing something like that, but there was always a first
time.

This
panic was getting her nowhere.

She’d
go to bed, shut her eyes, and try to forget about the howling she’d heard.
She’d pretend she was safe at home.

Emily
got under the blanket and pulled it up over her head, peeking out over the top.

Shit,
had the wolves howled again? And had they sounded closer this time around?

Pulling
the blanket completely over her head, she willed herself to go to sleep and
hoped that the morning would arrive before she knew it.

****

Trent
hadn’t felt sleepy. He’d thought about joining the wolf pack for drinks, but
instead opted for a stroll along the stream.

He
hadn’t realized how chilly the night air was until he got to the edge of the
water. He rubbed his hands up and down his arms. He hated being cold.

 
Knowing no one was about to witness the
transformation, he gradually shifted into his bear form. The thick fur would keep
him warm and allow him to stay outside longer. He went on down all fours and
pounded along the edge of the water. Why hadn’t he thought about this straight
away? One of the great things about being a bear was running through the water
with the stars shining overhead.

It
sure was a lovely night. Every star looked super bright. He turned the corner
where the stream began meandering to the north, but then he stopped dead in his
tracks.

A trailer.

Someone
had parked a trailer on his property. He put his nose in the air. A human was
in there. He glanced around, his night vision allowing him to see the bra,
panties, and jeans hanging on a tree branch nearby. He recognized all these
pieces of clothing. He sniffed the air again. The clothing smelled good. Trent
looked at the trailer. He’d hazard a guess she was staying inside it.

 
He edged closer. The trailer didn’t have
drapes like many did these days. This one looked like it belonged to a real outdoorsman.
He took another step, putting his nose into the air. Yep, it was a female and
she was definitely inside. Her perfume drifted his way and then he got a whiff
of her female scent.

No
one else was inside there. She was all alone.

Trent
edged even closer to the trailer, hoping she didn’t have a gun. The last time
he’d been out here in his bear form, someone had taken a shot at him and got
him clean in the thigh.

He
circled the trailer, keeping his nose into the air. She excited the man in him
as well as the bear. A human had never thrilled him like this before. Trent got
up on all fours and put his paws on the edge of the trailer close to one of the
windows. He spotted her immediately. She was in bed.

She
was more beautiful up close than she’d been at a distance. Her dark locks hung
over her shoulders and she had the most perfect oval face. And as she lay on
her side, her curvy hip and thigh stuck up in the air almost calling him
inside.

Trent
put his face to the window hoping it would get him an even better view of the sleeping
beauty.

Shit, very bad
idea.

She
must have heard him wandering around outside because she suddenly woke up. She
looked straight at him.

Her
scream almost pierced his eardrums. She jumped out of bed, causing the blanket
to fall to the ground. She wore a t-shirt that barely covered her thighs.

He
licked his lips and despite the urgent need to stay and look some more, he knew
he had to run just in case she did have a gun and was a better shot than the last
idiot who’d fired at him.

Trent
turned on one paw and took off at full speed down the hill. Even if she had a
gun, in this low light she’d never see him well enough to shoot, well, not
unless she got damn lucky.

He
changed back into his human half and rushed back into the house.

Sitting
down in his father’s chair, he got his breath back, thinking about what he’d
just discovered.

She
was staying nearby which meant she intended to stick around for a bit. He’d pay
her another visit tomorrow. His bear half might have scared her, but he was
hoping his human side would be a lot more appealing.

Chapter Three

Emily
yawned. She hadn’t gotten more than an hour’s sleep since she’d woken up and seen
the bear looking through the window. Her scream had obviously scared him off.
She wouldn’t be surprised if people living in the nearest house had heard it
too. Well, if that were the case they hadn’t come to her rescue. Maybe this
sort of thing was perfectly natural out here in the wilderness. Sort of ironic
that when she’d gone to bed her only concern had been that the wolves would
circle the trailer. She’d woken up hearing something outside and had the shock
of her life when she’d seen a bear’s face at the window. It was the first time
she’d seen one, and the eyes almost looked like there was a human somewhere inside
there. In its own way, it had been sort of cute.

However,
her father had always told her they were probably the most unpredictable of all
wild animals. He’d warned her not to leave food outside the trailer. Better to
have leftover foods stinking up the inside of your trailer than have a bear
come calling and breaking in to raid the pantry.

She’d
eaten a sandwich for supper and wrapped the leftover roast beef in two plastic
bags and then twice in foil. She knew bears had a great sense of smell and
maybe that’s what had drawn him close. Today when she went to the stream, she’d
need to be on guard just in case he was still around and thinking of her as a
nice easy meal.

****

Trent
pulled out his fishing rod and tackle box. Sure, he had a better and more
efficient way to catch supper, but doing things the human way could be fun too.
Today he had a motive for doing everything human style. Pretending he was
fishing gave him the perfect excuse to walk down to the stream and accidently
on purpose run into the woman who’d clearly become somewhat of an obsession to
him. Unless, of course, peeking through her window had scared her too much and
she’d left the area.

He
walked out of his house and headed down the hill with the stream coming into
clear view. His heartbeat quickened when he saw her sitting drinking from a
mug, fishing tackle by her side.

“Good
morning,” he called over to her.

“Hi.”
She lifted her hand and waved.

“I
see you’re also planning on doing some fishing today,” he called over to her.

“I
hope I catch something after my disastrous start yesterday.”

I hope you don’t
fall into the water and hurt your ass again because that’s much too nice butt
to get damaged.

“You
fish here too?” she asked.

“Yep,
my house is just up the hill there.” He pointed to the north.

“House?
I thought this
was part of the wilderness area.”

“The
wilderness area starts about a mile that way,” he said pointing south.

She
stood. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know that. I mean I have my camper parked here too,
and it’s obviously your private property. I’ll move it right now.”

He
walked over to her. After finally meeting her in person, the last thing he
wanted was for her to leave. The closer he got, the prettier she became in his
eyes. Yes, he wanted her to stick around for a while.

“There’s
no problem, really. It’s a mistake anyone could have made.”

She
had big blue eyes and luscious pink lips. He licked his own wondering how hers would
taste during a kiss.

“Are
you sure?”

“I’m
positive. And my name’s Trent
Burgress
. I’m pleased
to meet you and have you fish on my property.”

“Thank
you. It’s very kind of you. I’m Emily Smithfield.”

She
put her hand out and he took it. They looked into one another’s eyes. How
ironic that she’d looked into his eyes last night, but today she was smiling
instead of screaming.

“I’m
hoping you know how to fish,” she said.

“Oh,
you could say I’m somewhat of an expert,” said Trent.

“I
don’t suppose you could give me some tips?”

“Well,
fly-fishing isn’t exactly my specialty, but I think I could offer some advice.
In fact, if you want to get the rod and line ready, I can stand behind you and
show you how to cast the line into the water.”

He
almost added without taking out foliage or plunging into the stream, but then
she’d realize he’d seen her feeble attempt at fishing the day before.
Yes, I’ve been spying on you and even
looking at you while you stripped down to your birthday suit.
Best looking
suit he’d ever seen. Now after meeting her up close he did feel a tad guilty
about his sudden urge for voyeurism.