Theirs to Bear: Icy Cap Den #3 (Alaskan Den Men) Read Online Free PDF Page A

tomorrow. WTF? The noise of an approaching four-wheeler drowned out my muttering.
    After Tristan got my ride back to town arranged, he stripped. Tossing me his clothes, he winked before sprinting away. Before my eyes, the man morphed into a galloping ice bear.
    I blinked in disbelief when a weaselly lesser demon pulled up on the four-wheeler. “I’m your transport back to town. Hop on.” He winked and revved the engine, jerking his thumb at the empty seat space behind his. What a gentleman.
    This demon compensated for his skinny neck, small head, and below-average height with an impressive tat collection. Seeing as how he wore a muscle shirt and I was sitting behind him, I got an eyeful. I sat as far back as I could on the shared seat and held onto him with the lightest pressure that would keep me on the vehicle. As we headed back toward town, he sneezed. Flames shot out his nose, scorching the tundra as we rode. When I checked behind us, I saw charred pits smoking. Even the hair on my legs was singed.
    “’Cuse me!” he hollered over the engine. “I’m getting over a flu. Still got some congestion. Good thing I didn’t have beans for lunch, though.”
    I inched back even farther on our seat.
    “Hey, want to stop by my place and see my collection of shrunken heads?”
    Tristan was a dead man when I saw him.
    Back in Icy Cap, I took my time in a tepid shower and painful blackberry-thorn removal session. I’d only just finished when a disheveled Gary showed up to return Leo.
    “You OK?” I asked him after I’d briefly explained most of what transpired in the wilderness.
    “Did you get any more snowdrops?” His eyes darted around the kitchen table.
    Double damn! I’d left my pre-accident stash back on the cliffside.
    “They were lost in the fall.”
    His already downcast face drooped lower.
    “But I can get more soon. From Barrow. Don’t worry. I promised to keep you stashed with soap, and I will.”
    His eyes slid away from mine. He didn’t believe me.
    “I promise you, Gary, that I won’t run out of soap for you.”
    “Shhh,” he hushed me. “I don’t want any other guys to know I use it. I just like it because it masks my smell, not because I like flowers.”
    Leo, in cub form, trotted into the house with his head down and circled the living room once. The intermittent squeaking from his mouth alerted me to what was probably a vole he’d caught. I had no problem with Leo learning to hunt. I didn’t expect an ice bear shifter, even such a young one, to be a vegetarian. However, I did not expect to share my living quarters with his victims.
    “Leo, whatever you have in your mouth, you return outside and release it away from the house. Then come right back in. This time as a boy, not a cub. You’re due for a bath.”
    Leo padded slowly to the door.
    Where had I packed the broom? I could see that the way things were going, I’d be better off to keep that by the door.
    “Gary.” I turned back to my sitter. “Sure you’re OK? Do you feel sick?”
    “I need some rest. I’ll take a nap after I clean up.”
    “Take care of yourself. See you tomorrow?”
    He nodded and sloped out my back door.
    By midafternoon, Leo had bathed and eaten his lunch and we’d played hide-and-seek around our property. It was now quiet time for both of us. I unpacked a few more boxes, then worked on taking inventory. Having this much daylight was exhilarating. I wasn’t sleeping much. Gary had suggested I cover the windows in the bedrooms. I had for Leo, but for me, I like all the light. It made me feel a bit like Superman. I may not be a paranorm myself, but having this much energy was probably as close as I was going to get.
    My musings ended when a light knock on my back door had me springing across the floor. I wanted to answer it before Leo heard it. He was not a fan of nap time. Thank the Godess for Gary tiring him out.
    “Good afternoon.” A shrunken woman swathed in furs stood on my back doorstep. “I’m a