Page 4 of Hunny and the Bear (Bearly Yours #1)

Four

A knock on the front door startled Hunny awake. Her head jerked up, and she squinted from the bright sunlight pouring in through the windows. Her nose wrinkled as she caught the scent of a different bear shifter nearby.

She tensed, immediately wary. What time was it?

It had to be early; she never slept for more than a few hours at a time. Another sharp knock had her pushing to her feet, her paws sinking into the soft leather of the couch. She stared at the front door, tension knotting her muscles.

“Fuck’s sake,” the male upstairs grumbled, his voice thick with sleep. At the sound of his gravelly timbre, some of her anxiety eased.

She wasn’t alone. And considering he’d let her sleep peacefully in his home after dressing her wounds, she really didn’t think he’d hurt her. Not anymore.

As her bear friend with the sad eyes moved around upstairs, she jumped down from the couch, tucking herself under the coffee table to escape notice. Just because she was beginning to trust him didn’t mean she’d blindly trust whoever the hell was visiting.

Heavy footfalls sounded on the stairs, and then she spotted bare feet on the wood floor as her bear shifter moved to the front door. Muttering under his breath, he ripped open the door. “The fuck you want?” he snapped in irritation.

Hunny’s eyes widened in surprise. Was he always so disgruntled in the morning? He seemed fine last night.

Someone must have woken up on the wrong side of the bed .

“That’s no way to greet your Alpha and brother,” an unfamiliar male stated, his voice laced with humor. “Plan on letting me in or will you just stand in the doorway like a dickhead, Tank?”

Hunny wrinkled her nose. Her rescuer’s name was Tank ? It suited him, she guessed. He was a big, buff male who looked capable of steamrolling anyone.

Tank grunted, stepping aside and letting the other male enter. Hunny ducked her head out from under the table, intent on sneaking a peek at Tank’s Alpha.

Instead, she caught an eyeful of Tank, and she found herself staring up at the big male in shock. Sweatpants hung low on his hips, and he was shirtless, big, strong muscles on display everywhere she looked. And damn, did she look . In fact, she tried to force her gaze anywhere else, but she was stuck, completely riveted on the way his muscles rippled as he crossed his arms in front of his chest.

A chest that had a healthy dusting of hair. Not only that, but he had a happy trail that dipped into his pants, leading somewhere equally impressive—she was sure of it. Realizing that she was drooling, she swallowed thickly.

I should look away before I do something stupid.

Like jumping out from under the table, climbing up his leg like a squirrel, and smashing her face all over his chest. It must have been the pregnancy hormones, or something, because all she could think about was how his hair looked like the perfect fur to build a nest with. But instead of a nest, she could just lay on that warm chest and—

Snap out of it! Hunny shook her head hard before turning her attention to the other clothed and less rugged-looking male.

They looked alike. He had long legs, huge muscles, and the same shade of brown hair as his brother, though his was combed back and his beard kept trimmed close to his face. He wore working boots, blue jeans, and a flannel, but where Tank looked like a sexy lumberjack, this guy looked like a wealthy entrepreneur on vacation in the mountains.

“What do you want, Murphy?” Tank asked, casting a small glance to the now empty couch. His brow furrowed, and he inhaled, like he was trying to hunt her down. She ducked back under the table before he could spot her. Although she was hiding, Hunny felt briefly tempted to stick a paw out, just to see if he’d notice.

Stop acting weird . Seriously, what was wrong with her? She’d seen her fair share of naked men, and Tank wasn’t even naked, for fuck’s sake!

“What do I want?” Murphy snorted. “You never answered me about the rabbit shifter. You found it injured in the woods. Did you leave it there? Did you bring it here?” He exhaled roughly. “It’s here, isn’t it?”

Tank grunted again.

“Why would you bring an unknown element into our territory? That’s not like you.”

“Technically, she was already in our territory.”

Murphy turned back to his brother. “The rabbit shifter is a female?”

Another grunt from Tank. Hunny rolled her eyes. Was that his primary form of communication or something? She craned her head out from under the table again, wanting a better look at each brother. They were both extremely tall, but from her position, she couldn’t see who was taller. Maybe Murphy?

“Pregnant, too. Feisty as hell.” Tank scratched his beard. She preened at his last comment.

“Feisty how?”

Tank smirked absent-mindedly. “She bit the shit out of my hand.”

“Are you smiling ?” Murphy asked in surprise. Before Tank could answer, his brother looked around the living room and then nodded toward the upstairs room. “Where is this mystery female? In your bed?”

“Left her on the couch,” Tank huffed. “Guess she’s hiding somewhere.” His eyes shot over to the coffee table, snapping right onto her location. Startled, Hunny jumped, smacking her head against the wood with a tiny thunk. Pain exploded along her temple, and she let out a soft hiss as she turned, hopping fully under the table once more.

Shit, that really hurt!

“What the hell was that?” Murphy asked in bewilderment. Tank didn’t answer, and his brother sighed. “Fine. Remain aloof, as always. If the female intends to stay in bear clan territory for any length of time, though, I’ll need to meet her. She needs to be vetted properly, otherwise she’s a risk to our clan.”

“I know.”

“And yet you let her stay the night without following protocol,” Murphy chided. “Do you know anything about her? Where she’s from? What nest she belongs to? For all we know, she could be a lone shifter,” he finished, uttering the last sentence like a curse.

She tried not to take it personally. Typically, lone shifters like herself were exiled from their packs, nests, etc. for committing crimes, or for other nefarious reasons. It wasn’t common for someone to leave on their own; there was safety in numbers and shifters craved physical touch and care, the nurturing of their pack or clan.

As humans didn’t know of their existence, a structured supernatural pack was important to a shifter’s health and wellbeing. They were social creatures with an appreciation for a familial presence.

“Could be,” Tank agreed. There was a beat of silence before he added, “I’ll talk to her.”

“Good.” Murphy opened the front door and stepped out onto the porch. “Mom wants you to stop by the den later for dinner.”

“Not tonight.”

“Alright, Tank.” The door clicked shut behind Murphy, leaving her and Tank alone.

Her ears pivoted toward the front door, straining to hear any movement from her companion as she hid out of sight. After a few seconds, and feeling incredibly nosy, Hunny moved back to her previous spot, peeking her head out once more.

She saw the door. But Tank was gone.

What? When had he moved? She hadn’t heard a thing.

Suddenly, the table lifted, and Hunny was plucked up from the floor, squawking in surprise.

“Gotcha,” Tank announced, lifting her up by the scruff of the neck until she was eye level with him. She tucked her legs in close to her body defensively. Before she even had a chance to hiss at him threateningly, he tucked her against his chest, placing an arm under her body to keep her steady. Warmth enveloped her, along with his woodsy scent, his chest hairs tickling her whiskers.

I can’t believe he’s manhandling me like this , she thought irritably. No one had ever picked her up in her rabbit form and just held her. It was frankly disrespectful. At least, it should have been.

Right?

She should just bite him—it would serve him right for treating her like an actual damned animal. Instead, she leaned in against him, soaking up his body heat.

He was so warm. And cozy.

Maybe this wasn’t so bad, actually.

“You plan on shifting back anytime soon?” Tank asked. “Looks like you already did to heal. Can’t imagine you plan to stay like this forever.” Rather than answer, Hunny smashed her head against his chest, shuddering in delight. Yeah, this wasn’t bad at all. And no, she didn’t plan on shifting in front of him. Then he’d ask questions, and she’d likely end up word vomiting her troubles all over the place. She never could help herself; always preferring to talk things out, sorting it out in her own mind by doing so, if for no other reason.

Besides, as soon as he found out she was a lone shifter, he’d likely send her packing, and she wasn’t ready to face the rest of the world. Not on her own. Not again. Not after she’d believed she’d finally found a pack, a family to call her own, and then had it all ripped away from her.

She’d give it another day to wallow in self-pity with this bear shifter, and then she’d gather her resolve and leave.

Tank walked over to the front door, opened it, and stepped onto the porch with her in tow. “Guess you’ll need to use the bathroom out here, then.”

Oh. Ugh! She hated peeing outside, but he had a point.

As soon as he set her down, she hopped down the porch steps and into a nearby bush to handle her business. She heard him moving around to the side of his house, loud enough so she could tell where he was. Like he wanted her to know where he was, perhaps so she didn’t think he was trying to sneak a peek at her, which was hilarious when she was a foot long and covered head to toe in fur.

Gentlemanly, though, she’d give him that.

Once she finished, Hunny hopped out from under the bush, moving toward where she could still hear Tank. Rounding the corner of the small cabin, her eyes widened as she saw him lifting a giant log before dropping it down onto a flat tree stump. An axe was stuck in the ground beside it, the handle facing toward the sky.

Was he about to chop some wood? Without a shirt on? Her mouth watered once more at the thought, a small bit of drool running down her chin before she quickly wiped it away with the back of a paw.

Get ahold of yourself!

Tank spotted her, stopping his task and moving toward her. Her nose twitched in disappointment until he bent down, plucking her off the ground and back into his arms.

“Time for breakfast.”

Right then, her stomach rumbled in agreement. She hadn’t realized how hungry she was.

Grunting, he walked back into the cabin, shutting the door behind him and moving into the kitchen. Turning on the sink, he grabbed a dish towel and wet it. “Paws up, bunny.”

What?

Confused, Hunny hesitantly lifted a front paw, snorting when he began to wipe the pad clean with the warm towel. This was so bizarre. A giant of a male, a freaking bear shifter, was carrying her around and cleaning her paws? When he finished the first front paw, she held out the other expectantly, feeling like rabbit royalty.

What was he going to do next? Put some clothes on her?

As soon as he finished with that paw, he flipped her quickly. Startled, Hunny squeaked as she fell backward, her spine connecting with his inner forearm as he cradled her like a damned baby. Bewildered, all she could do was stare up at him wide-eyed as he cleaned her back paws, his face lined with absolute concentration.

This is so weird . And embarrassing .

And … kind of sweet?

Tossing the towel into the sink, Tank gently set Hunny onto the kitchen counter, right beside a set of barstools.

“Fruit for breakfast?” he asked, staring down at her. His eyes wandered over her before settling on her face, waiting for her response. She nodded eagerly, licking her snout when he turned away, his muscled, tanned back on full display as he moved to the refrigerator.

Opening it, he fished out several pieces of fruit, a carton of eggs, bacon, and a bowl of batter, covered in plastic wrap. Placing everything on the counter in front of her, he went to work, setting cookware on the stove before cleaning the fruit off in the sink. Grabbing a cutting board, he pulled a knife from a wooden block on the counter and cut up an apple, a watermelon, a mango, and several strawberries. He placed them neatly on a small plate and slid it in front of her before returning to make his own meal.

She nibbled on a piece of strawberry, feeling oddly relaxed as she watched him move around his kitchen. For someone so big, he was really graceful, each move he made purposeful. It was kind of hypnotic to watch, and soon enough, he was sliding his own food onto a large plate. Moving around the kitchen counter, he dropped onto the barstool beside her. It squeaked slightly under his weight. He set his plate next to hers.

Tank dug into his meal, and Hunny did the same with hers, her teeth clicking together as she nibbled. After a few minutes, she made a soft purr of gratitude, barely glancing at him. He paused, a forkful of food halfway up to his lips. “You’re welcome,” he replied gruffly.

They ate the rest of their breakfast in comfortable silence.