Bearly Twisted Read online

  Gavin thought about it for a minute before answering. “I’ll see what I can do.”

  “Tell you what, you help me with this and I’ll do what I can to arrange a get-together between you and your mate.”

  “How do you know about her?” Gavin growled at the thought of another man knowing about Bailey.

  “Keep your cool, werebear. I have my own mate and zero interest in yours. I know because I’m the Alpha, and I know everything that goes on in my pack.”

  “I found her less than an hour ago, so I’m not sure how you even found out about her. It’s not like I made some grand announcement in the middle of town!” Gavin was pissed. Yeah, he got the bullshit about Calder being the all-fucking-knowing, but Christ, this was ridiculous. It’s not like he’d told anyone about finding his mate.

  “No one told me, and no, you weren’t being followed. You saw the little trick I can do with my eyes. Well, when that happens—and it does quite often—I can see into the very depths of your soul. No one needed to tell me anything about you, or anyone else for that fact. It’s both my gift and my curse.”

  “Wow! I, uhh, don’t know what to say.”

  “I don’t bring it up to most people, and there are very few within the pack who actually know what I’m capable of. I’d like to keep it that way.”

  “You’ve got my word,” Gavin easily agreed. “You have to admit, it must come in handy. Especially being the new Alpha of the pack. I made my way through this area years ago. It was in pretty bad shape back then.”

  “Yeah, I’ve had my fair share of issues since taking over, but I do believe there are plenty of good wolves here at Twisted Tail. And a bear who’s made the pack his home,” Calder joked. “Stop by the house later tonight, let me know what the bears have to say. We’ll go from there.”

  “Will do.” Gavin showed Calder out before shifting and heading out to see exactly what was up with the bear situation.

  Chapter Five

  “What in the hell is going on here?” Daisy said as she pulled to a stop in the driveway.

  “It looks like Calder has some people over,” Gerri smiled as she took in the scene. Several people mulled around with plates in their hands. Others with drinks. Kids laughed as they chased each other back and forth across the lawn.

  “A few people over! Ha! It looks like the whole freaking pack is here,” Daisy laughed. “Leave it to Calder to pull this together at a moment’s notice.”

  “I love a man filled with spontaneity. They tend to make life so much more interesting,” Gerri said with a mischievous grin.

  “You’re right, they do!” Daisy agreed with her friend. “My life has been far more interesting since meeting Calder, and I owe it all to you.”

  “It was my pleasure, dear. Trust me. I know when two souls are meant to be together. It’s what I do. Guiding two people together is what I’ve always done. It just drives me freaking insane when someone tries to fight their fate.”

  Gerri glanced back at Bailey, who appeared to be lost in thought, just like Gerri had hoped she would be. By the look on Bailey’s face, Gerri surmised her friend was thinking about the hottie she’d bumped into in town. “That’s right, sweetie. You just keep your mind on that hottie!” Gerri thought to herself, knowing damn well where the girl’s mind had wandered off to.

  “Are you still with us back there?” Gerri asked the distracted Bailey.

  “Yeah. Sorry. I’m—I mean, I wish I didn’t look like a total freaking disaster.” Bailey really didn’t want to step out of the SUV caked in mud, looking like a circus sideshow act. She had enough problems with self-esteem as it was. Being around an entire pack of skinny-ass wolf bitches wasn’t going to help one single bit.

  Daisy turned to look at Bailey. “Well, let’s get you in and cleaned up then you can meet everyone.”

  “Great!” Bailey tried and failed miserably at keeping the sarcasm out of her voice. Her bear, on the other hand, was delighted at the prospect of meeting other shifters, even if they weren’t her own species.

  Bailey trudged directly to the house, trying to avoid being seen by the growing crowd. She bee-lined it straight for the shower, knowing nothing would feel quite as good as standing under a steaming stream of hot water. Chilled to the bone, Bailey practically raced to strip out of her mud-caked clothes.

  “You wouldn’t have had to stay in those soaked clothes if you would have let me take control for once. I could have gotten us back here just as easily,” Bailey’s bear complained.

  “I’m sure you could have, but I’m a little leery about shifting in front of all these wolves. Gerri and Daisy seem to be cool with us, but I don’t know how the others will react. You know just as well as I do how some wolves act around bears. Like we’re gonna eat their scrawny asses or something.”

  “Blech! I prefer a nice fat salmon over a mangy mutt any day.”

  Bailey could just picture her bear turning up her nose in disgust at the thought of eating a wolf.

  “I like it here,” her animal whispered.

  “As far as small towns go, it’s not terrible. But don’t get used to it. We’re going home on Sunday! We need to get back to our life.”

  “What life? Working in a cubicle all day? Never seeing the stars at night, or gagging on exhaust fumes from all the city traffic? Oh, I know. All the freaking noise.”

  Bailey chewed on her bottom lip as the hot water continued to splash over her. She knew her bear hated the city, but she liked it… or, at least, she thought she did.

  Her bear left her to her thoughts after their brief conversation, allowing her to concentrate on making sure she was squeaky clean and mud free.

  Bailey’s mind wandered back to her encounter with Gavin. Sensing her thoughts about the hunky stranger roused her bear once again. Maybe it was the sheer size of the man that triggered her beast’s interest. Maybe it was his good looks? Who knew? But either way, for once, Bailey and her bear were finally on the same page when it came to the hotness of the human in question.

  Bailey had no idea where the naughty thoughts flying through her mind had come from, but she decided to go with it. It had been a long… long time since any male had sparked her interest, and this one had her full attention.

  Blissful heat pooled in her belly as she thought about being in Gavin’s arms. Good Goddess, her body wanted that man. She licked her lips, imagining what it would be like to kiss those plump lips of his. Would he taste as good as he looked? Mmmm—she desperately wanted to find out.

  ***

  Gavin sat back on his heels, high on a bluff above the lake, watching the three black bears make complete and total asses of themselves. They were young, and apparently pretty fucking stupid. He could see why Calder wanted them out of the area.

  His blood boiled as he watched the young bears kill needlessly. Slaughtering any wildlife they could catch, leaving countless corpses strewn across the small valley. If they stayed for any length of time, they’d decimate not only the wildlife in the immediate area, but the vegetation as well.

  A low, deep, rumbling growl was the only warning he gave the younger bears before shifting and charging them. Gavin had seen enough to know those bears needed to go and find their own territory far away from any civilized social animals.

  The trio of bears gained points for bravery and lost even more for stupidity. Though he was outnumbered three to one, Gavin knew the young bears would be no match for him, even on his worst day.

  More than double his opponent’s size, Gavin knew he could easily kill each of the idiots with nothing more than a single backhand. Lord knows he wanted to teach them a lesson. A lesson they’d never forget, but killing them wasn’t the answer. Somewhere along the way he had developed a conscience.

  Gavin shifted to his human form and demanded they do the same. Out of their bear form, each of the men looked no older than nineteen or twenty human years. Clearly old enough that they should know better, especially when it came to respecting the environment around t
hem.

  “I don’t know what the hell you think you’re doing here, but it needs to stop.”

  “What the fuck do you care? It’s our land. We’ll do what we want, when we want,” the largest of the three punks in the little group spoke up, acting like a hard ass who had something to prove.

  “Look here, you little shit. You know just as well as I do this is not your land. This land belongs to the Twisted Tail Pack.” It took Gavin every ounce of willpower he possessed not to rip the little fuck’s throat out. Sucking in a deep breath, then another, Gavin willed himself to calm the fuck down. He’d promised Calder that he’d try to use his best diplomatic approach when it came to dealing with the bears. Ending their lives on the spot would break that promise. Something Gavin really didn’t want to do.

  “Why the fuck do you care? Are you fucking one of those hot-ass wolf bitches, or what?”

  “Not that it’s any of your business, but no, I’m not. I’ve sat here and watched the three of you destroy everything you touched for the last hour and I’ve had enough. You need to move along before you find yourselves in a world of trouble with the pack. I came here to warn you off before the pack attacks.”

  “You think we’re afraid of the scrawny flee bags we’ve seen running around in the area?”

  “You’ve not seen a tenth of the pack or their capabilities. Y’all are dumber than you look if you’re not concerned about getting your asses handed to you.” Gavin laughed at their idiocy. “Look, I’ll say it once. Be gone by sunset or there will be hell to pay.”

  Gavin watched as the three men huddled together, discussing their options before quickly breaking apart again. “Fine. Who needs this dump anyway?”

  “Smart decision.”

  Chapter Six

  “There you are!” Gerri announced the second she saw Bailey. “I was wondering if you were purposely avoiding us.”

  “I’d thought about it, but my mom taught me better than that,” Bailey joked.

  “I’m glad she did. I didn’t want to have to drag you out here by your ear.” Gerri winked. “Are you feeling better now that you’ve had a chance to clean up?”

  “Much better. I’m not sure what got into me earlier. Maybe it was the change of scenery and all the fresh air. It felt like my brain had been scrambled or something.”

  “Yay. There you guys are!” Daisy quickly caught up to Gerri and Bailey. “I’ve got a few people I want you to meet.”

  Fear must have flashed across Bailey’s face. That, or Gerri was quick to pick up on her uncertainty.

  “Trust me, dear. They’ll love you.”

  “If you say so.” Who was Bailey to argue with the people expert?

  Gerri and Daisy quickly guided her through the throngs of people, diligently making introductions to everyone in attendance.

  Bailey had to hand it to Daisy’s husband. He’d done a smash up job of throwing together this last minute barbeque.

  The last pack she’d been around had serious issues, leaving her questioning their mental health. A small gathering she’d attended turned into a drunken orgy in five minutes flat. Those not fucking spent their time fighting. It was a complete disaster that Bailey wanted none of.

  The wolves at Twisted Tail, on the other hand, were quite civilized compared to the others she’d met, so it was easy for Bailey to let her guard down and be herself. She didn’t have to hide the fact that she was a shifter, like she did around humans. The wolves would have smelled her a mile away and known exactly what she was the second they’d caught her scent. For once, Bailey found being around other shifters liberating.

  What was even more impressive, everyone seemed to be nice—like regular down to earth people—not only that, they were genuinely happy to meet her. The wolves had no problem accepting her for who and what she was. They made her feel welcomed and at home. Which was something she’d never expected.

  She may have had friends in the city, a mix of both humans and shifters, but everyone was always busy doing their own thing. They’d meet up for an occasional girl’s night, but they never shared the closeness this pack seemed to share. It left her feeling out of sorts.

  None of it should have bothered Bailey, but deep down, it did. None of it should have mattered, it wasn’t like she had a mate knocking down her door or anything.

  “Are you okay with all of this? I know meeting everyone like this can be a bit overwhelming,” Daisy voiced her concern.

  “No, I’m good. I was just thinking about how well everyone seems to get along.”

  “We’ve had a few problems here since Calder took over as Alpha, but most of the wolves are good people. They’ve been through a lot of shit with their old Alpha. I still cringe when I hear some of the horror stories of what it was like before Calder took over. We’re a work in progress here at Twisted Tail.”

  Bailey smiled at Daisy’s description of the pack. “Work in progress or not, you’ve got a good thing going here.”

  “Yeah, I do. I’m one lucky girl.”

  Bailey caught his scent just as he came into view. Her conversation with Daisy coming to an abrupt halt as he made his way through the thinning crowd. Her bear roused once again, having caught a whiff of his delicious aroma.

  “Now that’s what I’m talking about,” the bear whispered in her mind.

  “Oh fuck! No! He can’t be.” Bailey’s heart skipped a beat.

  “Oh, but he is.”

  “Who is that mountain of a man?” Daisy asked.

  “I, uhh—” Her mind reeled with the new information. She glanced at Daisy, unsure how to finish her sentence. Up until she caught his scent, she’d thought he was nothing more than one hot as fuck human. Now—she had no idea what to say or think. Thankfully, she didn’t have to worry about answering.

  “I was hoping to find you here.” Gavin’s eyes never left hers as he spoke.

  “I’m not sure we’ve met before. You are?” Daisy cocked her head to the side, wondering who the beast was and why he’d never shown up for any of their gatherings before.

  “Gavin—what are you doing here?” Holy shit! Bailey was stunned to see him standing in front of her.

  “I, ah—wanted to apologize again for bumping into you earlier today.”

  “Apparently you two already know each other? Did I miss something?” Daisy asked.

  “He’s the one. I mean—uh, the guy I ran into today,” Bailey stuttered as a blush swept across her face.

  Daisy eyed the guy up and down, looking less impressed than she’d been a moment ago. “You mean the guy who knocked you into the mud and left you standing there freezing and soaked to the bone?”

  A low rumble rose from Gavin’s chest. “Back off, wolf. I’ve already apologized. I offered to help her when it happened, but she took off.”

  Bailey placed her hand on Daisy’s arm, knowing she needed to diffuse the situation. “It’s okay, really. He did offer to help me, but I wanted to get back to the coffee shop.”

  Her answer seemed to satisfy Daisy just enough to keep her from attacking Gavin, or kicking him off of her property. She needed to keep him around for a little bit so he could answer a few of her questions. Starting with why the fuck couldn’t she scent that he was a bear when they first met.

  “I’m sorry, I should introduce you. Gavin, this is Daisy. She’s Calder’s mate. Daisy, this is Gavin. I ran into him earlier today and had no idea he’d be here.”

  “Does my husband know you’re here?” Daisy questioned.

  “Yeah, actually I do.” Calder joined the trio, wrapping his arm around his wife and pulling her next to him. “He’s been doing some work for me. I hope you don’t mind that I asked him to join us this evening.”

  “Not at all, babe. Bailey had a run in with him today. She came back looking like an absolute disaster. I was worried that something else had happened.”

  “Don’t worry, they’re good. Isn’t that right, Gavin?”

  Gavin nodded, “Absolutely. I also took care of that iss
ue you asked me to look into.”

  “Perfect. If you don’t mind, I’m going to steal my wife for a few minutes. Make yourselves at home, grab something to eat. You guys should stick around for the run later.”

  Daisy looked at Calder like he’d grown a second head. “I can’t leave Bailey alone with him. She barely knows him.”

  Calder leaned in close and whispered, “I’ll explain later.”

  Chapter Seven

  “Well, that was interesting,” Gavin remarked as he watched Calder toss Daisy over his shoulder and haul her away.

  “Very. So, you care to tell me what’s going on?” Bailey craned her neck up to look directly into his eyes.

  “It’s a long story.”

  Surprised by the sweet smile that crossed his face, Bailey countered, “I’ve got time.”

  “Fine, but let’s grab something to eat. I’m starving and the food smells delicious.”

  “Lead the way.” Bailey motioned to the table with the food.

  Once they had their plates and found a spot to sit, Gavin started.

  “I’ve been hanging around the pack for a while now, but didn’t make my presence known.”

  “What does that mean? Is that how you hid your scent from me earlier today?”

  “Yeah, sorry about that. Not a lot of packs are cool with having a grizzly in their midst. Anyway, I had a spell placed on my great-grandmother’s amulet a while back,” Gavin explained.

  Bailey flinched, not liking the thought of being mixed up with someone who was into witchcraft.

  “It’s not like that. I paid a witch to create a spell to hide my scent. That’s all. I swear.”

  “Well, that’s not so bad. I can see where it would come in handy. How long has Calder known what you are?”

  “Not long,” Gavin tried to dodge the answer, but Bailey would have none of it.

  “How long?” she asked again.

  “He came to me today about a problem he was having with some bears. Apparently, he’d known who and what I was the moment I stepped foot on pack land.”