Page 7 of Bear Creek Christmas
Chapter 3
Early Monday, firstday of school
Levi left the teacher’s lounge with a cup of coffee, a sore hand, and a frazzled brain. Eden made sure to introduce him to his fellow teachers, though he got the names and faces all mixed up. As a group, they’d made him feel welcome and were clearly relieved by Blanche Kramer’s retirement. With no first-period class today, Levi slipped into his office and closed the door.
Still reeling from his weekend encounter with Knox McCoy, Levi struggled to get his head in the game. The meet-and-greet with staff only heightened his confusion, as several of them were also shifters. Each leaned into his personal space to scent him, just as Knox had done, only without the erotic overtones. All were similar in appearance and exuded an almost cocky self-confidence. The difference was that none of them appeared interested in boning him at their first meeting!
By the time he reached puberty, Levi knew that muscular, hairy men were his type. Bear shifters certainly fit the description, and with the addition of sonorous voices, he found them difficult to resist. Given the troubled state of his love life, Levi hadn’t expected to respond so viscerally to Knox, and it frightened him. After fleeing Delicious, he went straight home, too shaken to shop for groceries or anything else until he calmed down. What caught the attention of the handsome Mr. McCoy? Could he truly be interested in Levi, or was it only physical attraction? Were all bears this way?
Presumably, Levi could relax here at school without fear of running into the man. The thought helped him set aside his anxiety and focus on the job. The students deserved his very best effort and the first day was always hectic. Naturally, he wondered how many of the kids were shifters. Would he be able to identify them on his own? Did they have special needs? Levi wished he’d thought to ask such questions earlier in the week and sent a quick text to Eden, asking her to meet him for lunch.
When the bell rang, he tucked away his personal issues and got up to greet the first group of students. Time to face the music.
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Knox wondered how Leviwas doing on his first day of class. He had, in fact, been thinking about the intriguing human non-stop since their awkward meeting on Friday. His bear insisted on claiming the man, despite Knox’s attempts to put on the brakes. It took all of his self-control not to strip the blond beauty right there in the shop and lick him from head to toe. Instead, he saved the mental images of ravishing Levi until he got home, stroking out numerous loads last night and again this morning.
Up at dawn, Knox appreciated the distraction of work to keep him from doing something foolish—such as showing up at the school unannounced. The rest of the blueberry harvest awaited him, and he didn’t want to disappoint Aiden or miss out on earning much-needed cash. Being in nature calmed his bear and gave him somewhere quiet to think and plan. His ursine half may be ready to claim Levi, but it wasn’t that simple with a human mate. He’d left the poor man confused and leery, and it was all his fault.
What Knox needed was a few casual, friendly encounters with Levi to prove he could behave himself. Once the stunning man trusted him, maybe they’d go out on a real date. Running into Levi should seem natural, or Knox might come off as a stalker, and that wouldn’t do. Gathering the berries required very little attention, leaving Knox’s mind free to think of ways to “accidentally” meet up. His bear hated the idea, and the plan might backfire spectacularly, but he had to try.
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Since both of thembrought food from home, Eden invited Levi to her office for lunch. She sensed he needed a bit of privacy and no interruptions—something they couldn’t get in the cafeteria or teachers lounge. As they’d agreed to eat while they talked, Levi jumped right in.
“I met someone over the weekend and need your advice about how shifters think.”
Eden stopped chewing for a moment, deciding how to narrow down the request.
“Are we talking about a generic someone, or possibly a romantic someone?”
Levi’s blush rivaled a spectacular sunburn, answering her question without a word.
“All right, why don’t you tell me what happened, and we’ll go from there. Don’t worry—I won’t share this with anyone without your permission.”
Levi thanked her and launched into the story.
“I stopped byDeliciouson Friday. A shifter came in and scented me. He... he got aroused and looked at me as if I were his next meal. I’d never met the guy before, and he was all up in my space. I left the shop as soon as I could.”
Expecting shock and sympathy, Levi scowled at Eden as she tried not to laugh.
“It’s not funny, Eden! Is that normal behavior for a bear shifter, or did I do something?”
Eden carefully adjusted her expression to something less amused before responding.
“First, you didn’t do anything wrong. Second, what happened is fairly typical behavior for an unmated shifter male, but I can see why it bothered you. My husband, Calvin, did exactly the same thing when he first laid eyes on me.”
Levi’s brows shot up.
“Really? What did you do?”
“Yes, really! We laugh about it now, but at the time, I wasn’t impressed. So I slapped him, hard, and walked away.”
Confused, Levi pushed for more information.
“But what was he trying to do? What does it mean?”
“Single bear shifters don’t mess around when they find a potential mate. They go straight for the jugular and won’t give up easily. I surrendered after a couple weeks, and we were married six months later.”
