Page 1 of Bear Boss’s Mate (Pleasantville Shifter #1)

WANDERING ALONG A NARROW trail through the woods, the crisp night air chilled her skin. Marcy was startled as a twig snapped several feet behind her.

A quick glance over her shoulder revealed a man headed straight for her.

She stopped, paralyzed with fear as he grew closer. She paled at the fury in his eyes. A scream caught in her throat just as their bodies hit the ground with a dull thud.

The guy was on top of her as she flailed and kicked.

Overcome with fear, she tried and failed to summon the courage to fight back.

It was then that she heard a loud noise crashing through the forest. It was coming closer.

She tried turning her head in the sound’s direction. A loud roar echoed through the forest and the ground rumbled under the heavy footfalls as whatever it was approached.

Standing over them was an enormous grizzly bear. With one large paw, the bear swung at the man.

Her assailant flew through the air, striking a tree before crumpling to the ground.

The bear turned toward her, his golden eyes gazing upon her. She finally managed to scream.

The nightmare dissolved as Marcy jolted awake. She sat up, waiting for her racing heart to calm before gazing at the clock. Damn it .

She hurried out of bed, cursing. She was about to be late for her first day at a new job. There was no time to dwell on a horrible nightmare. She’d been awake most of the night, worrying as it was. Now she had only half an hour to get ready.

To save time, she tied her long hair up, leaving just a few strands of bouncy brown curls to fall around her face.

After a quick rummage through her closet, she settled on a blue sheath dress.

She hoped it would look professional enough and hide some of her curvy figure.

Her hand shook as she applied her makeup.

Her mind raced with expectations of what it might be like working at a new company. The position was a lot like what she’d been doing at her last job.

Only this time, Marcy would manage her own department. Finally, it looked like her career was going somewhere.

She would be managing other people for the first time. It was a significant step up on her career track, but it still scared her.

Like so many things did these days.

She was reserved around new people, but hoped she would overcome this in the right atmosphere. Being introverted, it was going to be a big switch running her own department.

She was lucky she’d landed the new job. She’d overheard a couple of women talking about the position being open; otherwise, she wouldn’t have known that the business was hiring.

As a trained and certified accountant, she’d spent her years since university working for a small business in town. She enjoyed being an accountant, but couldn’t stand how she was treated by her employer.

At twenty-nine, she was the youngest woman at Boyd and Harvey Accounting.

But was always treated as though she knew nothing.

Frequently, she’d overheard her boss blaming her for mistakes he had made.

The horrible man didn’t apologize to her, which only infuriated her further.

Any attempts at speaking up for herself were met with sarcasm or humiliation.

When she did quit, her employer acted as if she owed him something. Her employer didn’t care what her reasons were for leaving.

She was glad she never had to go back there and only wished she had left years ago. Especially since the other reason for moving on from Boyd and Harvey had to do with her personal life. But she didn’t want to think about that right now.

Now was about a fresh start, and she was going to show up late!

MARCY DABBED AWAY PERSPIRATION from her brow and entered Bear Bones Construction. She walked to the reception area. “Hello, I’m Marcy Wright. I’m expected to work here today,” she wheezed.

“Good Morning, Miss Wright. I’ll call Bern to come down and get you,” she said as she dialed an extension.

“She’s here,” the receptionist said into her headset. She looked at Marcy. “He’ll be right down. Have a seat.”

Marcy responded with a brief smile and walked over to a wide couch to sit down. She hoped that the man who’d hired her would be forgiving of her being so late.

She’d been interviewed and hired by Bernard Langstaff, one of the company’s two owners.

When she’d met him at the interview, she was surprised to see he looked as though he was just three or four years older than she was. He made her feel more at ease right away with his down-to-earth nature. He was warm and respectful of her throughout the half-hour meeting.

Most individuals who lived in Pleasantville knew about Bear Bones Construction and its two partners, Bernard Langstaff, and Austin Morgan. They were known throughout the community to be bear shifters.

Marcy hadn’t met Mr. Morgan yet and hoped he was as kind as Mr. Langstaff. When she applied for the job, she assumed it would be better than her last one, and after her meeting with Mr. Langstaff, she was sure it was going to be.

Fidgeting, she placed her hands on her lap and took a couple of deep, calming breaths.

Looking around the reception area, she found herself grinning. The whiff of fresh-cut flowers gave the air a sweet floral fragrance. The place was bright and airy.

It beat the stuffy office building she worked in before.

She was startled when she heard a male voice from the other side of the reception area. “Miss Wright?”

Marcy attempted to get up from the comfortable sofa and stumbled forward. She composed herself and smoothed her dress with both hands.

Mr. Langstaff smiled at her. He was handsome in a rugged sort of way, with brown hair and kind eyes. He was dressed in blue jeans and a pale blue button-down shirt.

She cleared her throat, thinking to herself how she’d overdressed. She hoped she looked okay in what she’d elected to wear. He didn’t seem displeased or bothered.

With a slight grin, she stepped toward her new boss. They shook hands. Marcy couldn’t help but be nervous. “Mr. Langstaff. Sorry, I’m late.”

“Call me Bern. No one here calls me Mr. Langstaff. Don’t fret about being late. It happens. Just don’t make a habit of it.” He winked and motioned for Marcy to follow him. “We have a meeting to attend, but I want to introduce you to a few people,” he said as they walked.

“As I discussed in your interview, we have been short-staffed for a bit. The business has been expanding faster than we can keep up. We have contracts all over the State and in town.”

“That’s excellent news. That business is good, I mean,” said Marcy, feeling awkward.

“Yes, it is. However, I’m afraid you’ll have your work cut out for you. Like I suggested on the phone, the reason I’ve brought you on board. And why I think you are perfect for the position is your years of experience.”

“Not to mention your desire to move forward in your career. You’re just the type of individual we had in mind for the position.

I think you’ll be able to whip us into shape in no time.

” He chuckled. “The team working with you is eager to be of help, and I think you’ll discover they are a nice group,” he said.

The pair wandered down a long corridor past a few offices. Some of the doors were closed, but several were open, with no one seated at their desks.

Marcy’s lips curled as she watched Bern peer into several of the empty offices. He had a slight grin on his face as he looked back toward her. “It looks like we’ll save the introductions until after—” Bern was interrupted by someone clearing their throat several feet behind them.

Marcy and Bern spun around.

She inhaled sharply when her eyes fell upon an attractive, well-built specimen of masculinity. He was gorgeous.

He appeared an inch or two taller than Bern, with short, dark brown hair.

The guy looked right at her with pursed lips. His face was unreadable in that he looked stern, maybe even annoyed, but it was hard to tell for sure.

He eyeballed her from head to toe before turning his attention to Bern. She rubbed her moist palms down her dress.

Could this be Austin Morgan?

She swallowed to moisten her throat. If so, he looked a bit, well, intimidating.

“You coming to the meeting?” he demanded, looking at his wristwatch.

Bern acknowledged him and put a hand on Marcy’s back. She was thankful for the gesture. The man in front of them seemed almost surprised, which bewildered her.

Bern looked amused. “Yes. I was showing our newest staff member around.”

The intense, dark-haired man pressed his lips together and eyed her for another moment. He appeared to be studying her, and a look of confusion was still evident on his face. She wondered if he knew Bern had hired her.

The man bowed his head, then turned to storm back down the hallway without a word. She thought he seemed put-out and worried that his initial impression of her was now ruined. Not that she had done anything wrong.

Except show up late for her first day.

Marcy wanted to roll her eyes, but she looked at the floor instead, letting out a sigh.

Bern had told her in the interview that the work environment there was relaxed, and office staff were easy-going.

The handsome stranger she had just encountered did not seem easy-going or relaxed. Even his attire was more businesslike. Unlike Bern, he’d been wearing a pair of nice beige trousers and a button-down shirt with a chic tie.

She gritted her teeth and glanced at Bern, who gave her an apologetic look, but said nothing. He headed down the hallway behind tall, dark, and surly. Marcy followed.

Her belly churned at the thought of sitting in the same room as the man, who looked so impatient and frustrated.

This wasn’t what she had expected at all on her first day at a new job.

MOMENTS LATER, THEY stepped into a meeting room where a broad wooden table ringed by a dozen chairs sat in the middle of the room. Several of the staff members had mugs of coffee in front of them. The rich aroma reminded her she’d not eaten. Her stomach growled and she blushed.