BearTrapped by Jaide Fox Read Free Book Online Page A

lifted the skin over the entrance and glanced back at her one more time.
    “ You sho uld take care of yourself while I’m gone, Red. You need it. ”
    Kimber g rowled in outrage, bent, and threw a stick at him. He ducked out, laughing as the stick missed and clattered on the stone floor.
    ***
    Kimber had a good mind to rip up everything Braeden had brought with him despite the fact that it was completely unlike her to act like an emotional, spoiled brat. She dropped to the floor and grabbed an article of clothing he’d carelessly tossed on the stone. One whiff of his faint, pleasing scent clinging to the garment sent an agonizing spasm whirling through her middle as if he’d just brushed himself against her. She clutched her belly with one hand, flinging the article away and squeezing her eyes shut as if that would somehow dull the hollow ache gripping her innards. She took a deep , shaky breath , and curled up on the hard surface, not daring to move closer to the bedding or anywhere else until her insides recovered . Maybe he was right. Maybe she was in heat and didn’t realize it. Was this the person she wanted to be and wanted him to know, even if their situation was only a temporary convenience?
    She didn’t like feeling angry and frustrated. She liked feeling desperate even less. Her hot cheek on cold stone seemed to help w ith the fever stoking her skin. Being in heat was horrible! No wonder her poor mama had so many mouths to feed if this was what she’d gone through. Or did it lessen once mated? The pain gave her a new appreciation for her mother. Unfortunately, the only cure to her ailment would be rut ting, which left her in need of Braeden, whether he liked it or not. She wasn’t sure how long the feelings would go on , but she knew she wouldn’t last the winter in this state. He was going to have to man up and do something to help them both . She would not be taking no for an answer the next time.
    Kimber sat up, feeling marginally better—enough that she could feel amusement and some pity towards Braeden. They barely knew one another and she was placing so much on his big shoulders. She wasn’t one to question her natural instincts, however.
    Her sensitive nose could still detect his scent in the cave, and it was driving her mad, making her skin crawl and tingle. The bedding was the worst spot, and his bags the second worst. She emptied the bags, looking through his p ossessions with a nosiness borne of boredom. He didn’t have much, mostly clothing, a few hand tools, and dry goods. She thumbed through a thick book and set it down to shake out the second bag. Small wooden figurines scattered on the floor along with half-carved wood pieces.
    Kimber gathered the pieces and lined them up. A standing bear with a crown and another with a flowered wreath were the two most prominent, and as she examined them, she realized he was carving chess pieces in his spare time . The opposing side were wolves. Now the hand tools she’d found made sense. She was impressed with the level of detail he’d carved into such tiny pieces of wood. Perhaps he wasn’t the barbarian she’d first assumed. Reading and chess were marks of higher learning, and the game was one of the few things she’d enjoyed doing inside when she’d lived at home.
    Carefully returning his belongings back to his bags, s he resolved to go for a run and find her own food . Sh e didn’t want him to think she needed to be taken care of. She wasn’t some useless female arm decoration. A run through the mountains as a wolf would give her enough time to think of a suitable recourse to his denial. She knew good and well he’d enjoyed her touch and that he should have had the courtesy to reciprocate.
    With her resolve strengthened, Kimber removed her clothing and allowed her b east to take control and transform her body into that of the wolf with fluid ease . Her human mind hovered in a disembodied space within the wolf—a puppet master to the wild