Read Online The Right to a Bear's Arms (A BBW Shifter Romance) (Wolf Rock Shifters) by Carina Wilder - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Carina Wilder
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was beginning to get the impression that each and every shifter she met had a story to tell, and not all of them happy. In fact, she had yet to meet anyone whose life had been simple or easy and she was beginning to wonder if she’d wasted some years of her life feeling isolated and lonely. She was grateful, in spite of the circumstances that had led her here, to discover such a warm and welcoming environment. She felt at home, finally. That is, aside from the fact that she didn’t have a home other than a branch high up in a tree.
When she’d said good-bye she made her way back towards her temporary abode, hoping again to spend some time at the fair that night. Maddox and Kyla had arranged to have her come meet the students the following Monday, and to watch some of their work and decide if she was ready to take on the job. She already knew that she was, though. The idea of working with children, of helping people, was already filling her with a sort of calm resolve. The unrest that she’d always felt seemed to be leaving her in this place. Either the mountain air, the community or some combination of all the aspects of Wolf Rock seemed to be dictating what Zoe should do.
“If I can make one child’s life better than mine was, I’ll do whatever it takes,” she’d told herself. And she meant it.
She wandered the woods for a while, getting to know the area, and, hoping for a brief cat nap before heading back to the fair, she returned to her tree at dusk. When she reached its roots, she peered around to ensure that no one was watching her begin the ascent in cat-form. But as she approached the thick trunk, she shifted and caught a now-familiar scent.
Colson . He’d been there. But of course he had; she’d seen him just that morning, sniffing around exactly where she stood.
She climbed up, using the branches as resting points and to help propel her forwards. But as she moved, the scent seemed to grow stronger. Was he …? Could he be in her tree? Surely not. She was a panther and as such, a good climber. A bear, unless he was a small and agile one, would not have ended up at the top of her new home. And Colson’s bear was not a small one.
And yet as she went higher, she heard the thud of what sounded like a hammer.
Oh, God. Had he found her money? Maybe that was what he was up to. She began to hurry now, dashing upwards. At one point her anxiousness to ascend tripped her up and she slipped, sliding backwards a few feet until she caught on a branch beneath her.
Finally she saw it above her: a sort of platform spanning the distance between two solid branches. A large hole was cut in it, presumably in order to be able to climb through to the surface. The platform sat several feet below where the knot was where Zoe had stashed her money. That, at least, was safe.
She eased up the tree slowly now, tentatively, eventually jutting her face over the edge of the platform and swinging herself up and onto its flat floor. It seemed stable, particularly as a large man was standing on top of it, a hammer in one hand and nails in another. A power drill, wood screws, a saw and other tools sat at his feet.
Colson was shirtless his tanned chest coated in slick perspiration. He wore loose-fitting jeans that seemed to be slightly falling off, revealing not only a very fit torso, complete with mouth-watering six-pack, but the tease of a pelvis which looked far more alluring than it should have.
Her satchel around her neck, Zoe dropped it on the platform and extracted the garment she’d need to throw on. Colson turned his back to give her privacy, allowing her to shift without revealing her naked body to him, much as he would have loved to see it.
“What the hell are you doing here?” she asked , breathless, as she tied the belt at her waist.
“Giv ing you a better place to sleep.”
“I don’t need you to make me anything. And now everyone’s going to know where I’m sleeping. Don’t you see that?” Her voice was
When she’d said good-bye she made her way back towards her temporary abode, hoping again to spend some time at the fair that night. Maddox and Kyla had arranged to have her come meet the students the following Monday, and to watch some of their work and decide if she was ready to take on the job. She already knew that she was, though. The idea of working with children, of helping people, was already filling her with a sort of calm resolve. The unrest that she’d always felt seemed to be leaving her in this place. Either the mountain air, the community or some combination of all the aspects of Wolf Rock seemed to be dictating what Zoe should do.
“If I can make one child’s life better than mine was, I’ll do whatever it takes,” she’d told herself. And she meant it.
She wandered the woods for a while, getting to know the area, and, hoping for a brief cat nap before heading back to the fair, she returned to her tree at dusk. When she reached its roots, she peered around to ensure that no one was watching her begin the ascent in cat-form. But as she approached the thick trunk, she shifted and caught a now-familiar scent.
Colson . He’d been there. But of course he had; she’d seen him just that morning, sniffing around exactly where she stood.
She climbed up, using the branches as resting points and to help propel her forwards. But as she moved, the scent seemed to grow stronger. Was he …? Could he be in her tree? Surely not. She was a panther and as such, a good climber. A bear, unless he was a small and agile one, would not have ended up at the top of her new home. And Colson’s bear was not a small one.
And yet as she went higher, she heard the thud of what sounded like a hammer.
Oh, God. Had he found her money? Maybe that was what he was up to. She began to hurry now, dashing upwards. At one point her anxiousness to ascend tripped her up and she slipped, sliding backwards a few feet until she caught on a branch beneath her.
Finally she saw it above her: a sort of platform spanning the distance between two solid branches. A large hole was cut in it, presumably in order to be able to climb through to the surface. The platform sat several feet below where the knot was where Zoe had stashed her money. That, at least, was safe.
She eased up the tree slowly now, tentatively, eventually jutting her face over the edge of the platform and swinging herself up and onto its flat floor. It seemed stable, particularly as a large man was standing on top of it, a hammer in one hand and nails in another. A power drill, wood screws, a saw and other tools sat at his feet.
Colson was shirtless his tanned chest coated in slick perspiration. He wore loose-fitting jeans that seemed to be slightly falling off, revealing not only a very fit torso, complete with mouth-watering six-pack, but the tease of a pelvis which looked far more alluring than it should have.
Her satchel around her neck, Zoe dropped it on the platform and extracted the garment she’d need to throw on. Colson turned his back to give her privacy, allowing her to shift without revealing her naked body to him, much as he would have loved to see it.
“What the hell are you doing here?” she asked , breathless, as she tied the belt at her waist.
“Giv ing you a better place to sleep.”
“I don’t need you to make me anything. And now everyone’s going to know where I’m sleeping. Don’t you see that?” Her voice was
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