Bear in Trouble: BBW Paranormal Holiday Shape Shifter Romance (Shadow Bears Book 2) (3 page)

“Thank you, CeCe,” Marianne said solemnly. “I will forever appreciate your sacrifice.”

“Shut up,” her friend said, and they both laughed loud enough to gain the attention of everyone in the tiny shop.

“See what you did,” CeCe whispered.

They both giggled and sipped their coffees, ignoring the stares of those around them.

Nearly an hour later, the two women hugged in front of the coffee shop.

“Thank you,” she said.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to come with you? What if you get too lonely?” CeCe worried.

“No, I need to do this on my own. If I get depressed and can’t shake it, I’ll call you,” she promised.

“And if he calls or comes looking for you?”

“You don’t know where I am,” she said, deliberately.

“Right. Okay, have fun.”

“Thanks.”

Marianne drove the two blocks to the hotel’s underground parking structure, pulled her suitcase out of the trunk, and rode the elevator to the lobby.

When the doors opened, she stepped into the large room and smiled.

I could get used to this.

The beauty and detail of the grand room made her feel like a princess, and she walked to the reservation desk with her head held high. Being alone on Valentine’s Day might not be so bad in such a beautiful place.

She decided to make the most of it.

Chapter Three

“Marianne, I’m back,” Caleb called when he entered the house. “You’re never going to believe what happened in the restaurant.”

He peeked in the living room, and when he found it empty, he checked his room and then Marianne’s. He’d parked on the street, but when he looked inside the garage, he noticed her car was missing.

Disappointment flooded him and he placed the roses on the table. He’d been to three flower shops looking for the red buds, hoping to surprise her. She couldn’t have left for her date already. It was only three o’clock.

He pulled out his cell-phone and called her, but she didn’t answer, and he hung up without leaving a message. Maybe she’d run down to the store to pick up some last minute thing for her date…like condoms.

Fuck no!

He couldn’t stand the thought of her with another man and dialed her cell again.

“Where are you?” he said after the beep. “We need to talk. Please come home soon.”

He stared at his phone for two full minutes before he realized she wouldn’t be calling him back right away. In order to pass some time, he sat down on the couch and turned on the game.

An hour later, Marianne still hadn’t called him back or come home.

Where is she?

He went into the kitchen, grabbed a bottle of water, and leaned against the counter as he drank the cool liquid. Then he saw the note taped to the coffee maker.

Dear Caleb,

I’m sorry, but I can no longer live like this. I’m moving out.

I will call you to schedule a time to pick up my things once I find a place of my own.

You have been a good friend to me, and I thank you for everything.

Marianne

What the hell?

He called her cell again, and left another message.

“It’s me again. I just found your note. What the hell is going on? Call me back.”

He waited ten minutes and when she didn’t answer, he called CeCe. Her phone also went to voicemail.

“CeCe, its Caleb. I need to talk to Marianne, and I know she’s with you. Please call me back.”

He stomped through the house, and cursed when he walked into his room. The nightstand on her side had been completely cleared off, and her shampoo and pretty smelling soap was missing from the bathroom. He went into her room and most of her clothes were gone, along with her laptop and a few framed photos she kept on her desk.

She’d really left him.

How could I have been so stupid?

Now he understood her earlier outburst. She’d been trying to tell him about her plans, but he’d gotten angry when he’d heard about her date, and never let her finish. If he’d sucked it up and told her how he felt, she might be here with him instead of prepping for a date with another man.

The Matchmaker!

Desperate to find her and stop the date, he looked up the number for the Matchmaker and called the woman.

“Happy Valentine’s Day,” the woman said, instead of the customary
hello
.

“Hi…thank you. Um, my name is Caleb and I’m trying to stop a date,” he said.

“Now that doesn’t seem very nice, Caleb. Why would you want to do that?”

“Look, I’m not trying to be mean, it’s just that my roommate—”

“Ah, yes, the lovely Marianne,” the woman said.

“Yes!”

“I don’t give out information over the phone. You’ll have to come out here if you’d like me to help you.”

“But, all I want is—”

“You must come out here, or I won’t help you,” she reiterated.

“How do I get there?”

After giving him specific directions on how to get to her home, including where to park his car and where to shift into his bear form, Caleb hung up the phone and set out in search of the Matchmaker.

He parked in a free lot on the edge of town, and then walked two blocks away from the city until he found a dirt trail that led into a wooded area. There was a garbage can marking the opening, and he laughed at the sign that said,
“Don’t feed the bears!”

He walked a few feet down the path, and once he was hidden from the trees, he shifted into his bear form. Bears shifted with their clothes on, and the shift was instantaneous, making changing forms simple and easy. Still, he didn’t do it often enough. He rolled in the dirt, shook out his coat, and reveled in being in his animal form. He thought about climbing a tree, but it would have to wait, he needed to stick to his original plan.

The hill was longer than he’d anticipated, and he travelled to the top in a combination of running and walking. Shifters were graced with the ability to walk long distances in either form, without growing tired, but when he got to the top of the hill, he realized he may have been a bit overzealous.

He lumbered over to the house, and a petite, elderly woman opened the screen door and stepped onto the porch. She had white hair, and a bounce in her step that made her look much younger than her hair indicated, although he couldn’t discern her age. Bear shifters usually outlived their human friends, but only by a few years. She was an anomaly.

Caleb shifted back into his human form and introduced himself.

“Hi, I’m Caleb Montgomery. Are you the Matchmaker?”

“Of course, boy. Who else would I be?” she laughed.

At twenty-seven, he hardly considered himself a boy, but he wasn’t about to argue with her. Especially not when he needed something.

“Good point,” he laughed with her.

“Your sister was here yesterday, did she tell you?”

“No, she didn’t get a chance. Her ex showed up during our lunch and I left them to talk things out,” he said.

“Good. They make a lovely couple,” she nodded. “But now, we have the problem of you and Marianne. You both have created quite the pickle, haven’t you?”

“I need to stop that date. I was so afraid of losing her friendship, I didn’t tell her how I really feel and now she’s gone. She left me a note that said she’s moving out, and she won’t answer her phone. Please help me. I have to find her.”

“I will help you, but only if you promise to do exactly as I say—”

“I promise,” he said, cutting her off.

She raised an eyebrow and stared at him.

“Sorry. I’m sorry,” he said, holding his hands out as if to placate her.

“Come and sit,” she said.

They sat on her porch in two wooden chairs, with a round, matching wooden table between them. The Matchmaker stared out into the woods, and he realized he would need to be patient if he wanted information. He looked in the same direction, astonished by the view of the land as the sun set.

Several minutes passed before she spoke again.

“Once you claim your mate, don’t forget that shifting forms helps us in all aspects of our lives. Shift together, run together, and you’ll both live long and healthy lives together. Bears need fresh air, wide open spaces, and balance. Shifting forms helps us achieve that in both our forms, especially when the cubs come along,” she laughed.

He laughed with her, but then sobered. He couldn’t wait to see Marianne round with one of their cubs.

“At eight o’clock tonight, knock on door 214 in the
Rosewood Hotel
,” the woman said.

“They got a room?” he asked, anger lacing his words.

“Don’t even think about going there early, Caleb. You promised to do exactly what I say, and you have to show up at eight o’clock. Your future is riding on your ability to show up at the right time. If you do, then you and Marianne might have a chance at forever. Do you understand?”

“Yes.
The Rosewood
, room 214, at eight o’clock, and not a minute before.”

“Perfect. Happy Valentine’s Day. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going for a run.”

She walked down the porch steps, shifted into her bear form, and then ran down a hidden trail that led into the woods. It was only then that he noticed the driveway leading up to her house.

He shook his head and laughed as he shifted into his bear form. The woman led others to believe there was only one way to her home, effectively forcing bears to shift and run. She was crafty, and he liked her style.

He was sure everyone left her home feeling positive, encouraged and enlightened.

He sure did.

He walked down the hill, slower than when he’d arrived, and ignored the time. He had a couple hours before eight, and the fresh air would do him good.

***

Marianne visited the front desk, and then rode the elevator up to her suite. She’d been in the hotel restaurant before, but she’d never stayed in one of the rooms. When she opened the door, she marveled at the décor. The upholstery on the couch and chair was a deep, ruby red accented in gold, and matching throw pillows and curtains completed the ensemble.

The bedroom linen matched the deep reds in the sitting room, and the furniture was cream colored with gold accents. Overhead lighting was conveniently placed so the room didn’t look too dark, and the only thing missing was a bouquet of roses.

She decided to try and pick some up after her run, but first she called the salon. She knew it was probably a long shot, but if possible, a princess needed a glittering red manicure for Valentine’s Day.

Luckily, there’d been a cancellation a few minutes before and they were able to fit her in.

After the manicure, Marianne took a long walk, and then entered the woods and shifted into her bear form. All bears were big, and in her shifted form she was the same size as any other female bear shifter. As a bear, she wasn’t too curvy, or too tall. She was normal.

She ran through the trees, raced a rabbit to a burrow, and followed a squirrel up a tree just for fun. Most black bear shifters didn’t hunt to kill, and these tiny animals seemed to know they were safe. The squirrel chuckled at her and then jumped into a neighboring tree, and scurried down as if following the swirling pattern of a barber’s pole.

She climbed back down the tree, shifted back into her human form, and then walked down the closest trail out of the woods. She bought twelve single red roses from a street vendor, picked up a candle and a pint of ice cream from the drug store, and went back to her room.

She ordered room service and then lit the candle and took a long, relaxing bubble bath. The enormous basin could easily hold four people, but she was glad she didn’t have to share.

She stayed in until her fingers pruned and her stomach rumbled again, and then she dried off, donned one of the hotel robes and sat in front of the TV with her ice cream. She played one of her favorite movies and openly cried at all the sad and mushy parts.

Caleb had crept in and out of her mind all day, but this was the first time she had trouble getting rid of him. He was the only man she’d ever known who hadn’t laughed and made fun of her when she cried during commercials, and he’d encouraged her to cry openly during movies, too.

Would she ever find another man who accepted her overly sensitive side? She had a feeling she would never fully enjoy a movie again unless she was alone. 

Don’t think about him!

A loud knocking sound echoed through the room, and she paused the movie and waited for the intruder to leave. They obviously had the wrong room, and she figured they would move on when she didn’t answer.

Suddenly, the loud knocking turned into pounding and yelling.

“Marianne, it’s me, Caleb. I know you’re in there. Open up!”

Caleb? How did he find her? Had something happened?

She rushed to the door and swung it open.

“Caleb,” she breathed. “What’s wrong?”

He held a dozen red roses, and he’d gotten a haircut since she’d seen him over coffee that morning. His shirt and pants were pressed, and he looked angry as hell.

“Where is he? I’ll fucking kill him,” he pushed the flowers into her hands, and stormed into the room. She closed the door behind him, and noticed his hands were balled into fists.

“Who are you looking for?” she asked.

“Your date,” he said, searching the bedroom. “Where is he hiding?”

“Caleb, there’s no one here but me.”

He came back into the sitting room.

“Then why are you crying,” he roared.

She grabbed the sleeve of the robe, wiped her eyes, and let out a nervous laugh.

“I was watching a movie,” she admitted.

He glanced at the TV screen and some of his anger dissipated.

“Aww, baby doll, you know you’re not supposed to watch those sad movies alone,” he said, and then he crossed the room and enveloped her in a hug.

His firm body felt like a cocoon around her, and she never wanted him to let her go. He smelled like soap, the woods, and something unique to only him. She closed her eyes and enjoyed his embrace, but she knew it had to end.

He kissed the top of her head and let her go.