Once Upon a Shifter by Anne Conley, Lily Marie, Kim Fox, Zoe Chant, Ariana Hawkes, Terra Wolf, K.S. Haigwood, Shelley Shifter, Nora Eli, Alyse Zaftig, Mackenzie Black, Roxie Noir Read Free Book Online Page A

raised a gigantic paw to swat at Owen’s head, claws out.
    Raina screamed again, this time in horror. No matter how big and strong Owen was, one blow from that bear’s paw would rip his head off.
    “Run!” Raina screamed.
    But Owen didn’t run. Instead, he seemed to stand even taller… and broader. Before Raina’s shocked eyes, his shirt and jeans became a coat of shaggy brown fur. In the blink of an eye, Owen had become a gigantic grizzly bear.
    Raina stood staring, unable to believe her eyes. Owen— her sweet billionaire Owen— had just transformed into a bear. The man she’d started to fall in love with wasn’t a man at all. He was a were-bear!
    She watched, paralyzed with shock, as the bear that had been Owen stood up on his hind legs, looming over the black bear. The Owen-bear was far bigger than the black bear, a giant hairy animal with gleaming white fangs.
    The Owen-bear let out a terrifying roar of fury.
    Raina’s paralysis broke. She had no idea what was going on, but she wasn’t going to stick around and see which bear would be the first to eat her. She turned and fled into the forest.
    Raina’s heart banged like it would smash through her ribs. Her lungs burned. Twigs whipped into her face, but she didn’t dare stop. She’d never been so terrified in her life.
    But beyond her shock and terror, she felt grief and betrayal, anger and shame. She’d been such a fool to think that a man who was sweet and sexy, handsome and brilliant, would ever look at her twice. Owen wasn’t Prince Charming— he was the Big Bad Wolf.
    The Big Bad Bear , Raina thought with a hysterical laugh.
    Then bitterness overcame her. Women like her didn’t get fairytales, let alone fairytale endings. They didn’t get true love. They got betrayal and disillusionment. They dreamed of princes, and fell for monsters.
    Tears ran down Raina’s cheeks as she bolted through the woods.
     
     
     
    ***
     
     
     
    Owen roared his protective fury at the attacking bear. He had his back to Raina, but heard her run away.
    Good , he thought. She’s getting to safety .
    Then Owen’s paw lashed out to block the other bear’s blow. Furious that the other bear had frightened his mate, Owen struck out. His paw hit the black bear on the side of his head, knocking him to the ground.
    The bear turned and bit at Owen’s leg. Owen jerked aside, and the black bear’s heavy jaws snapped shut on air.
    The black bear rolled away and stood again, snarling at Owen. Then it dropped down and lumbered off into the forest.
    By then Owen’s bear was in full control of him. Owen could think of nothing but his fury at the enemy bear for threatening his mate. His animal rage cast a scarlet haze over his vision. He had to protect his mate. He had to avenge his mate’s fear. No mate of a bear should ever be afraid of anything!
    Red rage in Owen’s heart, he pursued the black bear through the forest. His protective instincts were fully roused. His great paws sank into the earth, and he crashed through branches. Nothing would stand between him and the bear who had attacked his mate!
    The black bear fled before him, darting into a thick grove of trees, growing very close together. Owen’s size hampered him. Unable to squeeze through the trunks, Owen was forced to go around. By the time he reached the other side of the grove, the black bear was gone.
    Still seething with protective fury, Owen tracked the bear to a stream. There his scent vanished. He’d gone into the water, and who knows where he’d come out.
    Owen roared in frustration. His roar echoed through the woods.
    But then, as he stood at the stream, his rage slowly faded, allowing human thoughts to return.
    The black bear was gone. Owen had left Raina behind. He had to go back to her.
    He started to retrace his steps, then remembered that he was still a bear. He’d scare her if he showed up as a grizzly.
    Owen became a man again. The moment he did, a very human thought hit him like a ton of