A Spark to Bear (Fire Bear Shifters Book 2) by Sloane Meyers

the group in loading up her paper plate. She took some chicken, a burger, and a vegetable skewer. Then she filled in the empty space left on the plate with potato salad. She ate hungrily, moaning with delight as the first bite of her delicious, juicy burger hit her tongue.
    “This sure beats Spam,” Riley said. “I haven’t eaten anything this good in weeks.”
    “Well, maybe that’s because you haven’t tried Spam and Gatorade mixed together,” Luke said.
    “Oh, give the Spam and Gatorade thing a rest,” Charlotte said, rolling her eyes in Luke’s direction. She started to try to explain the Spam and Gatorade to Riley, but Hunter jumped in.
    “Riley tried it,” he said proudly. “Citrus Cooler flavor was her favorite.”
    “Really?” Zach asked, surprise filling his voice. “You tried it? We can never get girls to try that.”
    Charlotte let out a harrumph, but said nothing further.
    “I did try it. It beat the protein bars, that’s for sure. But I can’t say that I’ll be indulging in Spam again anytime soon. I had enough to last me for a good long while.”
    “Lucky you, that you don’t have to go on missions and eat crap,” Trevor said. “I love being a smokejumper, but the gross nonperishable food sure gets old.”
    “Well, if you want something really good to eat, I think Riley made us a couple of pies. She’s a professional baker, so I’m sure they’ll be delicious,” Hunter said.
    “Shut up, really? Is that why the kitchen smelled so good earlier?” Trevor asked.
    “It’s no big deal,” Riley said. “I just made two strawberry pies. I wanted to show my appreciation for how you’ve all welcomed me to your base. I’ll go grab the pies. I think I saw vanilla ice-cream in the freezer, too. Should I bring that out to scoop on top of the pie?”
    “Hell, yes,” Luke said. “Ice-cream and pie? It’s like a freaking holiday or something.”
    Riley blushed and stood to head to the kitchen.
    “I’ll help,” Charlotte said, following Riley in the direction of the bunkhouse. Behind them, Riley could hear Hunter bragging on and on about how talented Riley was, which she found amusing since he hadn’t had an opportunity yet to sample one of her pies. She winced when she heard him mentioning that he thought she should open her own pie shop in Red Valley. She had almost forgotten to worry about that, but she realized she’d have to tell him again later that she didn’t plan to open a shop anytime soon.
    The two strawberry pies were a great success. By the time dinner ended, less than half a pie remained. Full and slightly buzzed, Riley lay on the soft grass between the hangar and the runway. She stared up at the faint stars and listened to her new friends talking and laughing. The awkwardness Riley had felt when she first arrived at the base had disappeared. Even though she had only been here for a day, she already felt like she had known everyone for a long time.
    Eventually the crew members started drifting off to the bunkhouse, until Riley and Hunter were the only ones remaining out by the picnic table. Hunter lay next to Riley in the cool grass and smiled over at her as he laced his fingers with hers.
    “Having a good time?” he asked.
    “Yeah, your friends are pretty amazing,” Riley said.
    “I agree. Although, they’re more like my family than just my friends. A clan of bear shifters is basically a big family of bear shifters.”
    “I almost forgot you were a bear shifter,” Riley said. “You seem so, I don’t know…normal.”
    Hunter sighed, and Riley realized that what she had said could come across the wrong way.
    “Don’t take offense at that,” Riley said. “I don’t mean that you’re weird or not normal or anything like that. It’s just easy to forget that you’re a little different below the surface. That’s all.”
    “I’m not offended. I just worry that you’ll all of a sudden think you can’t handle being with a bear shifter.”
    Riley’s heart