Mail-Order Bear: BBW Bear Shifter Paranormal Romance (BRIDES fur BEARS Book 5) Read Online Free PDF Page A

called through the toilet door. Eddie
was a trooper. The boy must have been way more nervous and
apprehensive than he'd let on. But he had been so calm and so brave
when he met Reid.
    Lauren peered out from behind
the wall and saw Reid opening the front door. A man pushed past Reid
and rushed breathlessly into the house, his green eyes shining with
excitement. The man spotted her and exclaimed, “Oh! You must
be Lauren! I'm Damien, Reid's cousin.”
    Lauren stepped forward and
shook his hand. “Nice to meet you, Damien.”
    Damien looked her up and down
appreciatively and whistled. He nudged Reid and said under his
breath, “She didn't send a photo, but I took a chance. And
wowza! Told you you'd thank me.”
    Lauren frowned, not sure what
they were talking about. The two cousins were an exercise in
contrast. Except for their eyes, the two men were nothing alike.
Damien had light hair and was friendly and talkative, whereas Reid
was dark-haired, brooding and reserved.
    “How are you settling
in, Lauren? When is the wedding? Oh, don't look so surprised. Reid
told me. You're his mail-order bride! Reid tells me everything.
There are no secrets between us. Right, Reid?” Damien winked
at his cousin who was giving him the death stare.
    “I'm settling in fine.
Thank you. Reid's been very hospitable,” Lauren answered.
    Damien arched a brow.
“Really? Reid's been warm and welcoming?” When Lauren
nodded, Damien barked out a laugh and clapped. “I'll be
darned! This is going way better than I'd hoped!”
    Before Lauren could ask what
he meant by that, Damien peered around and asked, “Where's
Eddie?”
    “He's in the toilet,”
Lauren said and smiled. “Wow. Reid does tell you everything.
You even know my son's name.”
    “There's nothing I
don't know about Reid. In fact, I know him better than he knows
himself,” Damien boasted.
    The toilet door opened with a
bang and Eddie came running out, drying his hands on his pants. He
froze when he saw Damien. “Who's that?”
    “Hello, Eddie!”
Damien grinned and wiggled his fingers.
    “This is my cousin,
Damien. You can call him Uncle Damien or Uncle Busybody,” Reid
told Eddie with a straight face. “Come along. You want to
explore the town don't you?”
    “Oh yes! Bye, Uncle
Busybody!” Eddie giggled as he scrambled out the front door.
    “Eddie!” Lauren
scolded.
    “Bye? Did he just say
bye to me? We only just said hello! Hey! Where is everyone going?
I just got here! Are you all leaving without me?” Damien
whirled round, looking flabbergasted but not in the least insulted.
    Reid didn't even turn around.
He simply ushered Lauren smoothly out the door and let the door slam
shut behind him.
    Calmly, Reid helped them into
his car and started the engine. Lauren stared at him as he backed
the car down the driveway.
    Lauren's eyes bugged as she
stared at the front door. She expected Damien to come rushing out
after them, but the door didn't even open a crack.
    Reid's mood seemed to improve
as he drove away from the house and his cousin. He was even humming
a little tune.
    “You're going to just
leave him in the house?” she sputtered at last.
    Reid shrugged. “He
knows where everything is.”
    “But...”
    “Don't worry,”
Reid assured her. “He'll be gone by the time we get back.”

CHAPTER
TWELVE

    When they reached the town
center, Eddie stared admiringly at the rows of shops and restaurants.
“Can we eat here?” he asked. “Please?”
    “Eddie...” Lauren
sighed. “It's expensive to eat out. We can eat at home. It's
cheaper and more nutritious.” Reid saw Eddie's shoulders slump
as he nodded obediently. The boy had heard this argument before and
knew that it was pointless to object.
    “We'll eat out
tonight,” Reid said. “We'll shop and we'll have
ice-cream. We can have a late dinner.”
    “We can?”
Eddie's face glowed.
    “You don't have to,”
Lauren told Reid softly.
    “I think we all deserve
a nice dinner. You've had a long