Page 46 of Caught Bear Handed

He was always making these magical meals for me, and I wanted to return the favor.I could cook—basics, but I was usually pleased with the results of my efforts.I took a peek into the fridge.I’d left Beau in charge of all this, besides letting him know what my favorite things were.

The bear likes spoiling you, my wolf said.

And someone needed to spoil the bear.Even though he was kind, caring, and fierce, he needed someone to show him how to receive those things.That chip on his shoulder?It was still there, maybe even more so since the cookout.Beau had something to prove.

I pulled out the carton of eggs, some ham, feta, and a bag of spinach.There was a basket of tomatoes on the counter.Perfect.I could make omelets.

Sometimes, Beau took Gigi on an extended adventure, so I didn’t want to have things ready too early.Cold eggs weren’t sexy.I poured food into Gigi’s bowl and freshened her wateries, because she deserved to participate in this party too.

I got to work, feeling satisfied as I got everything chopped and portioned.

The door slammed open.I came far too close to hitting my finger with this sharp knife.

“Beau?”I called out.I didn’t want a repeat of the gun incident.“I’m in the kitchen,” I added, really hoping it was Beau.

At least I had a knife.And the ability to shift into a wolf on a dime if needed.

Beau stalked into the living room, the tensest I’d ever seen him.Gigi trotted behind him, on edge too.

“I’m surprised there isn’t a full-on grizzly bear in front of me,” I said, trying to lighten the moment to no avail.“What happened?You’re borderline feral.”

He slapped a piece of paper down on the island, using the same force he would to eliminate a bug.

I slid it toward me and gasped.It was a photocopied picture of Amelia and me.My face was circled, and there was a threatening message addressed to Gina.“Shit.”

“Yeah,” Beau spat out.“Shit is right.”

“Where did you find this?”Not that there was an acceptable location.

“On our property.”Those words were pure growl.“Which means we need to leave.Now.”

“Wait.”I put my hands in the air, knife still in hand.

He was probably right.We needed to get the fuck out of here, effective five minutes ago.But what really surprised me was how much I didn’t want this to be over.Sure, the job was far from over, but everything was about to change.

Would the magic die with it?

“Does Barrett know about this?”I asked instead.

Beau shook his head.“Not yet.I was too angry to call him.”

“But shouldn’t he already know?”I asked as I put the knife down.Good thing I’d procrastinated, because this food was probably all going back in the fridge.I hoped someone got to eat it.It would be a shame for it to go to waste.

It would be a shame forusto go to waste.

“He and Bellamy made it sound like they have cameras on every inch of this place, and we’re being watched around the clock,” I added when Beau didn’t answer.

He opened his mouth, then pursed his lips together.“It was in a pretty remote spot,” he finally said.“I know.It sounds like I’m making excuses.Gigi is actually the one who picked up on it?—”

“That means someone got too close for comfort,” I said.“Listen, I’m not questioning how your colleagues do their jobs.We’re dealing with a professional crime ring.They’ve slipped past a lot of safeguards.But the thing that bothers me is that this says Gina.Which makes me wonder if we trusted someone that we shouldn’t?—”

“The Sawtooth Pack would never,” he growled.

“You keep telling me how welcoming and friendly they are.”

“I said they were friendly, not stupid.”

Ugh.This was an impossible situation.And I was so pissed that whoever was responsible for this had destroyed our peace, and they could destroy us.