Bearly Passing: Saylor and Ryan by Roxxy Muldoon Page B

but nothing much. It was just a regular class. I don't think there is that much discrimination anymore."
    Saylor bit her lip, "I don't know, there aren't that many proud shifters on campus. I think there would be more if discrimination was really dead."
    "Don't go all bleeding heart on me right now," Jasmine said, "I want to tell you the best part. Guess what kind of were he is!"
    "I don't know, wolf?"
    "Bear!" Jasmine squealed, rolling around and then ending on her side, looking up at Saylor. "Isn't that so dreamy?"
    "Who says dreamy anymore?"
    "I do!" Jasmine said, mock pouting before pulling her face into a smile again. "I'm even more into Theo now that I know he is a TA in the streets and a bear in the sheets. Does that make me a bad person?"
    "I don't think so," said Saylor, "a lot of people have a thing for weres. Remember that movie we watched last summer?"
    "'Bearback Mountain?' I thought it was going to be about something else," said Jasmine.
    "That was about a human and a were-bear," Saylor finished. "And it was kind of... hot."
    She blushed again and Jasmine laughed, poking her knee.
    "You totally are into weres!" She said, laughing at the blush that worked its way up Saylor's face. "I'll find you one after Theo and I hook up! I bet he has friends for you. Or are you still hung up on the sexy professor."
    "Shut up!" said Saylor.
    "You didn't deny it! You have a thing for older men in sweater vests."
    Saylor said, "He is barely older than me! He's like thirty! And I have never seen him wear a sweater vest."
    "Whatever," said Jasmine, "you're thirsty for some P.H.D."
    "God," said Saylor, covering her face with her hand, "why did I even tell you that?"
    "Who knows," said Jasmine. She rolled back over, and picked up her laptop. "Unfortunately, as much as I love teasing you about your lack of sex life and penchant for professors, I have to get back to these notes. My professor split up our midterm into three parts and I have one on Monday."
    "Sucks," Saylor said, standing up and pulling down her peplum top, "good luck with that. I probably won't see you tonight. I have to go take pictures of the sky in the woods for astronomy."
    "Sucks," Jasmine echoed, shooting Saylor a mischievous smile, "unless you're really going to get lucky at Professor Sexy's."
    "Goodbye Jasmine," Saylor said, shutting the door.

Chapter Three
    S aylor was not built for the woods. She loved the outdoors. In the daytime. With other people. This walking around in the forest at night, alone, with limited cell phone reception was not one of her better ideas. Saylor was, however, built to be a model student, so suffer for homework she must.
    Saylor pulled down the hem of her sweatshirt. The weather warmed up faster than she expected and a sweatshirt was not the ideal choice. She wanted to take it off, but she didn't want to be forced to carry something else. She already tripped, twice, and needed her hands as free as possible.
    The sky was clear and moonless. The stars reflected on Lake Superior giving the illusion of an eternal sky beyond the crest of the trees. Saylor smiled. She had grown up in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, a forested oasis in the overdeveloped United States. While many of her friends longed to escape the wilderness and small town life, Saylor couldn't.
    She loved the smell of fresh leaves and clear air, the way she could actually see stars at night, how she saw more trees than buildings on her drive home from school. Luckily, she had been accepted to Northern Michigan University which bought her time. She shuddered, worrying for the millionth time about the future. The chances of finding a job and, let's face it, a boyfriend in the UP? Unlikely. Still, how could she live anywhere but here?
    Shaking the worries out of her head, Saylor lifted her head to the sky. Damn, too many trees. Walking further into the woods, Saylor searched for a clearing. There! A few hundred feet ahead she found an opening in the trees and a perfect view of