Bearly a Chance: A Second Chances Romance Read Online Free PDF

sharp jab of a claw to thigh that pulled them back from the brink of shifting.
    Fuck.
    Aria was here.
    With a baby.
    A light breeze carried the scent from the window low enough for bear to get a whiff. Double fuck . Aria’s child was a shifter. And not a fox. How the hell was that possible if Aria was pure human?
    Bear took another deep breath, looking for the answers, then huffed grumpily. The scent had passed by too fast; bear couldn’t catch all the nuances the wind carried. Ben’s control slipped when he realized just what his bear had scented. Aria was human. Human and other. The other was almost completely overwhelmed by human, just barely there. If bear hadn’t been actively searching for an answer to Ben’s silent inquiry he’d never have known that Aria was descended from shifters. He’d met her parents for Christ’s sake, and they were human as could be. Still, she might have inherited enough shifter from somewhere to pass the gift on to her children. She was Victoria’s granddaughter after all. But what was the babe if she wasn’t a fox?
    Then again he’d met Aria’s parents before bear had so rudely made his presence known. Ben could feel his bear’s lack of faith in his human observational skills. Based on the current state of affairs, Ben couldn’t fault him.
    The scorn that rolled off bear was enough to give Ben a moment to regain full control. His beast was ungodly strong, and even though it had been three years he still struggled. Dad would say that they were still working out a compromise.
    Too bad dad didn’t compromise. He was all bear. Ben couldn’t suppress his bear’s curiosity or his own. He desperately wanted to know more. So when he heard footsteps treading down the stairs, he stalked ever closer to the house. He had to know.
    If Aria still loved him.
    If the baby was his.
    By the time he’d finished his cautious approach to the house, it was too late to hear anything more. And the scents that had drifted out the window were gone with the wind. Which struck him as odd, because he’d been able to hear and smell just damn fine from under the willow. Now, with his back pressed tight against the log walls, he couldn’t hear or smell a damn thing. Bear’s hackles rose as they tested the air again. Even with both him and his bear seeking the tiniest noise or scent they were coming up empty.
    As far as he and bear were concerned, the house was empty.
    Temptation lured Ben back across the yard and over the fence to his Dodge dually. He jumped inside, and briefly considered driving around the block and knocking on the front door. Bear growled a low and grumpy veto, so he took a minute to really listen. The last thing they’d scented before Aria went down stairs was exhaustion. Exhaustion and relief. Bear didn’t think interrupting the trio and upsetting the babe again would be good for anyone.
    Protect mate. Protect cub. Guard what’s mine.
    Bear’s thoughts were fierce and determined. Ben couldn’t argue, even if bear was protecting his family from the two of them. But he couldn’t ignore his beasts’ command either. With a heavy sigh he stumbled out of the truck and resigned himself to patrolling the block until both he and bear were convinced Aria could handle seeing him again.
    Part of him worried that again might be never.
    Bear was certain that again would be within a day or so.
    Ben didn’t want to walk for a day or more straight, but he couldn’t tear himself away from the shadow of Aria’s presence. Not for a minute. He just hoped bear was right as he put his head down and started his first circuit.
    He hoped his bear was wiser when it came to women than his human half was. He didn’t want to fuck up a second chance with Aria before it’d barely begun.

 
     
     
     
     
     
    CHAPTER FIVE
     
     
    Ben had been trudging around the block for what felt like ages before the trio secreted in the cabin finally emerged. The sun was low on the horizon, gilding the world with