Bear in the Rough: Bear Shifter Romance (Broken Hill Bears Book 1) by Ariana Hawkes Page B

was too busy eating.”
    “Eating is important. We need to keep strong, and I, for one, was starving,” Freya replied. “Besides, she’s a shifter. I’m sure that shifter solidarity is more important than human female solidarity any day.”
    “How do you know?” Eloise said, wide-eyed.
    “Have you ever seen a human that athletic and powerful-looking before?” Freya replied.
    “So she’s a bear as well?”
    “I don’t think so. I was getting big cat vibes from her. But I could be wrong.”
    “I feel sleepy,” Elise said. “I had no idea it was possible to be scared shitless and sleepy at the same time.” Freya looked around the room.
    “Let’s sleep,” she said. “Whatever they’re planning, I don’t get the sense it’s going to happen anytime soon. We should get as much rest as we can.”
    Eloise and Marin took the couches, while she volunteered to curl up on a chair. She watched as the other two fell asleep quickly, but she stayed wide awake, her mind whirling.
    She could see a kitchen at the back of the cabin. She got up and went to investigate it. It was large and surprisingly tidy for a guy’s place. The morning’s plates were piled up in the sink, but otherwise it was clean. There were a few knick knacks here and there. She picked them up, examining them, wondering if someone who kept things like those could also be a cold-blooded killer. He might be a wrestler , she reminded herself. If he knows Xander, there’s a good chance he’s also a fighter. He’s used to ruthless violence . She opened the cupboards and found a glass, sniffed to check it was clean, before filling it from the sink and drinking it straight down. Then she tried the latch on the kitchen window. It opened easily. On impulse, she clambered onto the kitchen sink and stepped through it, jumping down onto soft earth. She froze, but there was no roar, no sign that she’d been discovered. She took a step and paused again, and then another. There was only the sound of birdsong. Taking a deep breath, and having no idea where she was going, she started running blindly into the forest right ahead of her.

Chapter Ten
     
     
    Xander had called the twelve most prominent members of the clan to his cabin. Normally he would’ve used the meeting hall, but he wanted to be discreet. He laid out the details of what had happened, while Deacon, Gunner and Mikal hung their heads. The other clan members clenched their fists and snarled at the news, but Xander held up his hand.
    “How could you have let them get close enough to see you?” Maximus bellowed, echoing everyone’s thoughts.
    “They said they don’t know. They weren’t used to seeing humans there, although there’s some kind of trail not far away, so they thought the scents came from there,” Xander said, before any of them had a chance to reply. He was keen to maintain as much distance between them and his hot-headed brother as possible.
    “Are you retarded? Do you need me to rewire your noses for you?” Maximus spat, glaring at them in turn.
    “Let’s deal with them later. Our first task is to decide what to do with the girls,” Xander cut in.
    “I vote we put them down,” Zanko said immediately.
    “I agree. This is a very serious breach of our privacy and our livelihoods,” Maximus agreed.
    “But what happens when they get reported missing? There’s a chance their families are going to know whereabouts they were when they were taken. If humans start searching around that radius, how long is it going to take before they find Broken Hill?” Xander said.
    “Then what do you suggest instead, Brains?” Maximus said in a sneering tone. Xander chose to ignore his brother’s disrespect. He’d have it out with him later.
    “We could return them to the wilderness. Not where we found them, but say 100 miles away,” Deacon said quietly.
    “You think that’ll confuse them? They know where they were when they saw us, you moron. They had maps and everything,” Gunner