Idle Bear: BBW Paranormal Shape Shifter Romance (Bear Mountain Book 4) by Ruby Shae Read Free Book Online Page A

replied.
    “That is none of your business,” he spat back.
    “You made it my business when you shot me,” she said, “and if I didn’t intervene, he would have killed you.”
    “Not likely. I would have shot him first,” he retorted.
    “You can believe that if you want to, but I saw what happened and you would have been dead. Did you get these teeth and claws off of other bears you’ve killed?”
    “You bet. People pay top dollar for this stuff, especially if it’s from a grizzly. You should hunt with us. You can lure in the bears and I’ll give a cut of the profit.”
    “You’re crazy. I’m not going to help you; I’m going to report you.”
    He leaned across the table and crowded her personal space.
    “Do it and you’ll be sorry,” he seethed.
    “Sara, there you are,” Kate said behind her.
    She knew the stuff on the table would upset her friend, and she didn’t want the slimy man anywhere near the pregnant woman. She turned and blocked the woman’s approach.
    “Sorry, I got sidetracked. Are you guys ready for lunch?” Sara said, steering Kate toward the exit.
    “Yeah, I’m starved,” Kate said, laughing.
    Sara laughed too, but over the course of lunch, and the drive home, she couldn’t shake the feeling she was being watched. The hunters had seen her in the woods before, and it would be easy to figure out she lived nearby. She decided to report what she’d seen the minute they got back into town.
    The girls dropped her off at the sheriff’s office, and she shared her findings with both Gage and Dave, the deputy. They’d both warned her to be careful, and Gage escorted her home.
    Three days later, she was ambushed on her daily walk. She’d been so stupid. She honestly thought the hunter would run, but instead he and two of his friends kidnapped her and tried to use her for bait. Every day the bears didn’t come, the hunters became more agitated.
    She’d been threatened with rape, but so far they’d only abused her with their hands and feet. Her face hurt from several slaps to the face, and her thighs were bruised from their boots. They withheld food and water, and left her out in the cold after dark with nothing more than her sweatshirt for warmth. As their patience waned, she feared the unknown and what would happen next.
    The door to the shed opened and two men entered the tiny dwelling. One of the men she recognized as one of her three captors, but she’d never seen the fourth man before.
    “Oh good, you’re awake. This is Jimmy. He’s the one I told you likes the fatties. Maybe he can convince you to summon the bears.”
    She looked up at the two men, and Jimmy had a smirk on his face.
    “Well aren’t you pretty? Are you ready to have some fun?” he asked. To his friend, he said, “Leave us. You’ll know when I’m done.”
    When the other man left, he cut off her gag and offered her a bottle of water. For a moment she relished the cool drink as it soothed her parched throat. She continued to drink as he looked on and encouraged her to take her fill.
    “Drink as much as you need to,” he said when she almost reached the bottom of the bottle. “I have a reputation to uphold, and those bears need to hear your screams.”
     
    ***
     
    Aaron walked to Sara’s home, but when he got there, he found a sign on the door directing all patrons to the sheriff’s office. He knocked on the door anyway, but he was met with silence.
    A sinking feeling shrouded over him and for a moment he couldn’t move. Had something happened to her? The thought of losing her left him numb. If he’d declared himself sooner, and marked her as his own, she’d have the same protection he did. She’d never die. Instead, he’d left her vulnerable and alone. He’d never forgive himself if something had happened to her.
    He turned on his heel and ran to the sheriff’s office. Inside, Gage, Dave and Seth hovered over a map laid out on Gage’s desk.
    “Cade and Collin went here, just in case they