Page 7 of A Bunny for the Bear
“This is my mate, Champ. I told you about him in the market. Honey, this is Ross. The sweet… new shifter in town.”
I could tell she wanted to remind him I was the bunny she’d met. The look he threw her way confirmed it. Silently, they communicated in some way, then Champ stuck his hand out to me like Nolan had.
“Good to have another newbie in town. We love to meet folks from all around.”
At his kindness, I blushed beet red. The group didn’t laugh at me, thank goodness. Instead, Arisha took pity on me and set everyone to work.
Apparently, the boxes Champ had brought were full of the food we were going to have. One had warm meats and veggie plates. Another had fruits. And yet another was a load of various breads and cheeses.
“Wow. Did you leave anyone else in town any food?” I asked Arisha teasingly.
She chuckled. “There’s still loads left. But we’ve got three pregnant Omegas with us today. They need proper nourishment. Plus, I wasn’t sure about your appetite. When I met you, there was a glint in your eye that told me you might be able to put down a good quantity of food.”
“You’d be right. When I’m in the mood, I can outeat some people twice my size.”
Barrett reached out his hand to offer me a high five. “Love that! I could never outeat a shifter, but with this baby inside of me, I’m definitely putting back more than ever. I always forget it too. At least until the next baby comes.”
There was so much to unpack in his words. Barrett wasn’t a shifter, yet his mate and baby were. He also apparently had other children that weren’t here. While I worked with humans in the pharmacy, it was still hard to wrap my mind around one mating with a shifter.
At the confusion on my face, Nolan explained it all to me. He told me about how Barrett’s GPS went haywire and led him to town. Then the two quickly mated and started having babies.
Their story led to the other couples sharing as well. I got the tale of Judy and Kris’s instant connection when Fate brought them together. And then later when Judy’s cousin Clynt was heartbroken over an ex, he arrived in town only to find the bookshop owner was his mate.
“They closed the store down for nearly a week,” Kris shouted. “A whole week without books.”
Mack threw a piece of bread at him. “You don’t even read! Besides, everyone understood. They all came to visit and meet Clynt after we reopened so it was fine.”
The more they opened up to me, the more connected I felt. I didn’t share much about myself. They didn’t ask either. I’m pretty sure Arisha warned them not to.
I would have to thank her for the kindness of this meeting. While the town felt like home, knowing a few more people outside of the work setting would do me good.
Maybe Collier Cover was really where I was meant to be.
Chapter Four
Hutton
“You have reached Collier Cover.”
The automated voice of my custom-made GPS echoed through the rental car. I let out a bitter laugh at having to use something I’d made to get me back to the place I once called home. It had been so long that I couldn’t remember the way.
With the way this town was warded, a normal human GPS wouldn’t register it. I didn’t want to deal with the hassle, so in the hours after talking to my aunt, I rigged an old device I had for tracking shifters to be more location based in general.
There was a bunch of other tech related stuff to it. I’d rather not go on and on about it. I’m on vacation after all.
Or rather, as close to a vacation as I’d get this year. With meddling family involved, it likely wouldn’t be all that relaxing.
The town looked the same as it always had. It was idyllic with all the old brick buildings and welcome signs lining damn nearevery inch of the road. It was a wonder anyone got anything done. I just knew the gossip mill here was stronger than ever.
At the head of the pack of nosy folks was my mom and my aunt. Those two were thick as thieves, and they never let me forget they knew everyone’s business.
As I drove through town, I took it all in with an assessing eye. Last time I'd been here, I was much younger. The illusion of the town and all its wonders had stuck with me then.
But I was older now, and much wiser. I wouldn't fall into the same trap I had before. Everyone here had that same spirit. I could sense it. They believed in Fate and destiny. They thought the universe had it all planned out.
I was much more pessimistic. My life had not been perfect, even when I lived here. After I left to find my own way, I discovered that Collier Cover was the exception.
The real world would spit on you in a minute. It would beat you up and throw you out. You had to fight for every scrap, every morsel.
