Rock (BBW Secret Baby Bear Shifter Romance) (Secret Baby Bears Book 2) by Becca Fanning Read Free Book Online Page A

comes home! That’s Owen Hutch,” she explained, pointing to the man in the pen. “He’s the best bull rider in these parts. He’s a superstar.”

    A buzzer echoed across the stadium, causing everyone to explode. Used to the drone of the bus, it took all of Dakota’s willpower not to cover her ears. In the pen, sitting on a bull, Owen shook a gloved fist in the air, playing to the crowd, not a fear on him.

    “We’re getting close!” Brianna shouted over the noise. “When they open the gates, his eight seconds will start. He has to stay on for eight seconds to receive a score. We’re just in time.”

    “Is the score based on how long you’re on the bull?” she asked.

    “Only partly. It’s how well you ride.”

    They stood near the arena, inches from the barrier that divided them from the action. Tickets didn’t seem to be a requirement, not for Brianna. Everyone they passed had greeted Brianna warmly, full of admiration. No one had stopped them, not even security. It seemed Owen Hutch wasn’t the only superstar at the rodeo. Brianna Jackson had her own fans.

    “Are you ready?” the announcer bellowed across the stadium. He was met with elaborate applause. “Keep your britches on. It’s gonna be a bumpy ride.”

    Another buzzer sounded, and the gates to the pen swung open. The bull rushed out, carrying Owen on its back. He sat tall and confident, moving with the bull as if he and the animal were the same. Dakota watched him carefully, his ease and his talent. And the way he awkwardly shook his foot against the bull, the only flaw to his ride.

    “Somethings wrong,” she said.

    Brianna saw it too. She clenched the metal barrier in front of them, her face lined with worry. “His foot is stuck in the rope,” she said, indicating the rope tied around the bull that Owen held onto, his grip. “They didn’t put it on proper. He won’t be able to get off. When he falls, he’ll drag against the bull. Why don’t the officials see it?”

    She called to an official, but it was too late. Owen fell, but instead of rolling away like Dakota had seen in the movies, he flopped against the bull like a ragdoll. A bull fighter jumped into the arena to help, but the bull couldn’t be controlled. It bucked relentlessly, jerking Owen around, and there wasn’t anything anyone could do.

    Except for Owen. In a flash, the rider was no more. In his place was a bear, a brown grizzly who easily broke through the rope and rolled away.

    “He’s a shifter,” Dakota stated.

    “Thank goodness he is,” Brianna muttered, relaxing, the danger over. “Otherwise, he would have been killed.”

    Shifters were no secret. Humans had known about them for almost a century, but they were few and far between. To meet a shifter was rare. Many people never did.

    Dakota had. She knew one very well, back home.

    “I’m surprised shifters are allowed to compete,” she said, knowing their abnormal strength and instinct gave them an advantage over other athletes.

    “It’s a sore subject. A lot of folk don’t agree with it.” Brianna spoke tensely, her focus on the pen where Owen had disappeared. Dakota could tell she wanted to go to him to make sure he was okay.

    “Go,” she told Brianna. “I’ll be fine. I’ll wander outside and get some fresh air.”

    “Thanks. I won’t be long. Meet me in front of the photo booth in an hour.”

    “Sure. Sounds good.”

    As soon as Brianna was out of sight, Dakota left the stadium for the brightness of the day where the sun blazed down on numerous craft stalls, food stands, and beer tents. Crowds of people pushed past her, enjoying the festivities. Wearing jeans and a red tank top that complemented her chestnut hair, she almost fit in, if not for her fair skin. She would tan, eventually, but until then, her paleness marked her as an outsider. It was a bad thing. A very bad thing.

    Folding her arms around her, she headed for the bathrooms, but as she passed a beer tent, she