Double Bear: BBW Paranormal Menage Shape Shifter Romance (Bear Mountain Book 3) (2 page)

The feeling of peace they both felt when they entered the tiny town would be one Collin would remember for many years to come. They hadn’t known they’d been lost until they arrived in Bear Mountain and realized they’d found home again. The clan hierarchy had already been established, but if they wanted to stay, the building of their home would start once Seth’s was finished. Though all bears were alphas, Cade and Collin knew they could follow Gage and his rules for the clan.

Until the homes were complete, they needed a place to stay. They’d rented a cottage at the unique bed and breakfast on the opposite end of town. The side Sam lived on. The woman who owned the business, Sara Henley, had utilized the land bordering the National Park to build cottages for her guests instead of renting out rooms in the main house. She offered a continental breakfast every morning in the large kitchen of her home, but the doors closed at ten in the morning and all other meals were the guest’s responsibility. The comfortable setting offered the illusion of a private home, with the convenience of a hotel.

Their second morning in town had been spent exploring and getting supplies for their room. When the tiny fridge had been stocked, and their toothpaste and shampoo replaced, they’d been treated to dinner by Gage and Kate. The evening continued with a trip to the sheriff’s office. They saw where Gage worked, and met the deputy, Dave. Besides the shifters and their mates, Dave was the only other person in town who knew about the bears. Gage considered Dave one of his closest friends, and Collin liked that the man was on their side. Dave might seem quiet and reserved, but Collin had a feeling that when he needed to express himself, he would do so in the most spectacular way imaginable.

Though they could walk, they followed Gage and Kate back to their car and accepted a ride back to the bed and breakfast. After they both promised not to stalk her, Gage drove by Sam’s house before he dropped them off. The brick home had a huge porch. It looked like the perfect place for two bears and their mate to spend the afternoon lounging in the sun and drinking iced tea in the summertime, or snuggling under a down comforter in the winter.

Their new home needed a huge porch like her father’s home, and Collin made a mental note to tell Seth about it when he started sketching the floor plans.

Many of the details of their new life had been ironed out in a few short days. Now all they had to do was convince the woman of their dreams to say yes.

Chapter Two

“She’s running again,” Cade said and got up from the table in the café to rush outside.

“Cade, wait,” Collin yelled after him, but he didn’t listen.

He heard Collin yell something to Kate and soon his brother’s footsteps sounded behind him. He reached Sam first and blocked her path on the sidewalk.

She jumped as if she hadn’t heard his footsteps on the pavement, but Cade knew she’d seen them sitting in the café and purposely turned to walk in the opposite direction.

“Why are you avoiding us?” he demanded. He should have been more subtle, but after a week of watching her blatantly ignore them, subtlety had gone out the window.

“Excuse me?” she questioned, and then jumped again when Collin joined them on her right.

“Hi Sam,” Collin said.

Cade glared at Collin, but the other man never took his attention off of their woman.

She took a step back, distancing herself again, and it pissed him off.

“Hi,” she replied, her voice shy.

“Cade and I were in the middle of breakfast when we saw you almost walk by. Will you join us?”

Fuck!

Collin always approached things with a level head, while he wanted to rush into battle. He appreciated their differences, but sometimes he wished he could be more laid back like his brother. No woman wanted to be barked at, and it seemed Sam wasn’t any different.

He took a deep breath and waited for her response. If she said no, he’d be the one to blame.

She glanced around, noting the people on the street and then looked back at them.

“Is this is some kind of joke?” she whispered.

“What do you mean?” Collin asked.

“I mean, why do you want to have breakfast with me? Did Jack put you up to this?”

“Who the hell is Jack?” Cade barked.

Collin sent him a look of warning, but he didn’t care. Why was she being so difficult? Gage would have mentioned if she were married, but did she have a boyfriend he didn’t know about?

Although she had stepped back when they first approached, she didn’t cower in fear like most women did when he spoke. Usually Collin handled things outside of the bedroom, while he handled the inside. In public, women were drawn to the smooth, gentle lilt of Collin’s voice, but in the bedroom, they begged for Cade’s aggressive side. He often wondered if they would find someone who could handle both of them in and out of the bedroom.

“Jack is my asshole ex-boyfriend,” she clarified. “Are you friends with him?”

“No, we’re not,” Cade said. “The only people we know in town are Gage, his family, Dave the deputy, and you.”

“You don’t know me.”

“We’d like to,” Collin added. “Come join us for breakfast.”

Collin held out his hand and waited for her to lead the way back to the café. The three of them stood in silence while she bit her lip and mulled over their offer. He watched as she weighed her options carefully, and knew the moment she made up her mind.

She sighed.

“Okay, I’ll join you.”

“Lead the way,” Collin said.

She turned toward the café and he and Collin both let out the breath they’d been holding.

They let her lead, but flanked her on each side, only a half-step behind.

He held open the door and she walked inside, followed by Collin and himself. Collin led her to their table and Kate rushed over with a menu.

“Hi Sam. There you are. I haven’t seen you all week. How have you been?” Kate asked.

“I’m doing good, just busy. How about you?”

“I can’t complain. You guys want me to take these plates or are you still working?”

“Take them, we’ll start over,” Cade said.

“Oh, have you already eaten?” Sam asked, her worry evident.

“We’d barely started. I’m still starving,” Collin said.

His words seemed to sooth her. She smiled and opened the menu. Once Kate took their order and left, she questioned them.

“So who’s who?”

“I’m Cade,” he spoke up, “and this is Collin.”

“Do you always dress alike?”

He glanced down at his clothing and then looked at his twin. They both laughed. Without realizing it, they were both dressed in jeans and a white logo t-shirt. The logos above the pocket were different, but the outfits were nearly identical.

“No, not usually,” Collin replied. “We obviously need to do some shopping though.”

She smiled and nodded, her brown eyes sparkling. Her wavy auburn hair bounced on her shoulders and he had a feeling she was suppressing a laugh.

“How do you guys know Gage?”

“Our parents were friends when we were kids. We haven’t seen him in a long time, though. When we heard about Kate’s pregnancy, we decided it was past time for a visit,” Cade answered.

“Where are you from?”

“We’ve been in Florida for almost ten years,” Collin said.

“But that’s not where you’re from.”

“Not originally, no.”

If she caught on to Collin’s evasive answer, she kept the knowledge to herself.

Their food came, and they ate and made small talk throughout the entire meal. They now knew her age, work and living arrangements, relationship status and many other trivial details. The more they talked, the more he was convinced she was made for the both of them. Many times during their meal he’d looked over at Collin and knew his twin felt the same.

Most of the patrons had emptied the restaurant and Kate cleared their plates, refilled their coffee cups, and left the bill on the table. She gave them the space they needed to have the next part of their conversation.

“Cade and I really like you, Sam. Would you be open to forming a relationship with us?”

“A relationship? You mean like sex?” she whispered.

“Well, hopefully—when you’re ready—” Collin laughed, “but I meant like a boyfriend, girlfriend relationship.”

“With both of you?” she squeaked in a high whisper.

“Yes. We know this kind of union isn’t for everyone, but it’s something we need. If you’d like to date and get to know us separately at first, it might be easier to think about being with both of us at the same time.”

“Do you guys always share women?”

“Usually,” Collin said. “We’re very close, probably closer than most twins you hear about, and we complement each other. Together we’re the perfect boyfriend, which works out because we prefer being together, rather than apart. Sharing comes natural for us, and we have the same taste in women so it works out.”

She glanced over at him several times while Collin spoke, but he didn’t say anything or add to the conversation. He focused on remaining calm and neutral. He didn’t want to scare her away.

Suddenly she turned her full attention toward him and scrutinized his face.

“You want this, too?” she finally asked.

Her question surprised him, but he didn’t hesitate with his answer.

“Yes,” Cade said.

The women they usually dated only cared about the package deal. They never cared whether or not he wanted them, too. If Collin asked, they wordlessly surrendered to the both of them.

“Why me?” she asked him.

“You’re beautiful, sexy, smart and something about you calls to us. The moment we met you, we knew you were the one,” he answered with the truth. Collin nodded in agreement. 

She didn’t know the magnitude of his words, but one day she would understand.

“I’m not sure I can do the threesome thing,” she stated honestly, “but, if you both are sure, I’m willing to give it a try.”

***

Collin buckled his belt and walked into the small living room of the cottage.

“How do I look?”

“Good. I’m glad we went shopping,” Cade said and continued flipping through the channels on the TV.

“Are you sure you’re okay with this?” he asked.

Cade had insisted Collin go out with Sam first, but he hated leaving his brother home alone. Collin knew Cade thought himself too rough around the edges to win her over, but if she were their mate, it wouldn’t matter who she went out with first. She would love them both for their differences as well as their similarities.

“For the millionth time, yes, I’m okay with it. I’ll get my chance soon enough. In the meantime, be charming. Show her how awesome you are.”

“I’m no more awesome than you, brother,” Collin said.

“I know. Now go. You don’t want to be late.”

Cade dismissed him with a wave of his hand and continued flipping through the channels. His date with Sam was two days away, but Collin wished she could have seen them both on the same day. He hated to see his brother hurting, even if he wouldn’t admit it, but if their mate needed one-on-one time with each of them, then they’d give it to her.

“Okay, I’ll see you later,” he said and stepped out into the cool evening air. With one last look at Cade, he closed the door and walked to Sam’s house.

He ran up the short flight of stairs leading to her front door, but before he could knock she slipped out onto the porch and closed the door behind her.

“Ready?”

“Yes. Are we going to the café?”

He wanted to take her to a fancy restaurant, but that would have to wait until he agreed to see them both at the same time. It would kill him if Cade took her out of the city while he sat home and waited, and he wouldn’t put his brother through the pain of wondering what they were doing so far away.

“No, the restaurant in the hotel.”

“Nice. I haven’t eaten there in years.”

They had one historical hotel in town, and the restaurant catered to the few tourists that didn’t like camping and normally dined in five star hotels. While he would never call it upscale, it was the closest thing Bear Mountain had to offer.

The evening passed with a familiarity he hadn’t expected, and though he enjoyed being with her, he regretted leaving Cade home alone. He hoped she gave his brother a chance to get to know her in the same way.

“You miss him, don’t you?”

“What?”

She’d caught him off guard. He didn’t know how she’d figured it out, but her observation awed him. He’d never dated a woman keen enough to notice his deep attachment to his twin.

“Yeah, I do.”

“I can’t explain it, but I do, too. I’m having a great time with you, but…,” she trailed off when the waitress brought their dessert menus.

“But, what?” he asked.

“But, it seems…wrong, somehow, being here without him.”

“It does. I hope you feel the same about me when the two of you are alone.”

“I don’t want to do that to you,” she said, and his heart sank. She’d already given up. “I hate this feeling, and I have a feeling you hate it, too.”

He nodded. As much as he wanted to beg her to give them more time, he couldn’t form the words.

“If you’re up for it, I have an idea.”

Her eyes sparkled for the first time that evening when she shared her plan. He should have known the woman they chose would be strong enough for the both of them.

Fifteen minutes later, they each carried a bag filled with to-go boxes. They held hands and when they reached the door of the cottage, he turned to face her.

“Thank you for doing this. It means the world to me.” She squeezed his hand and he opened the door.

Cade sat in the same spot he’d left him.

“Hey bro. You’re back ear—” He stood and flipped off the TV when he saw Sam trail in behind him. “Oh, hey, I’ll get out of your way.”

He started walking toward them, calculating a viable escape route. Strangers might not notice the hitch in his breath, his rapid pulse, or his masked pain, but Collin knew Cade better than anyone. Hurt and betrayal guided his movements.

Collin didn’t say a word because Sam had to do it. Her acceptance had to be in her own words and Cade needed to hear it without any intervention.

“Cade,” she stepped in front of him and stopped his escape. “Please don’t go. I liked being with Collin, but something was missing.”

He watched her with a face of stone.

“I can’t do another night like that. If you still want to give me a chance, I want to try being with you both at the same time. I want to try the threesome.”

“You came back for me?” Cade asked.

“Yes. We both did,” she said.

Cade glanced back and forth between them silently and Collin knew it was time to step in and save the man. Out of the bedroom, no one had ever come back for his serious, more aggressive twin.

“And we brought dessert, too,” Collin said and placed his bag on the small table near the window. He grabbed three bottles of water and gathered up plates, forks and napkins.

Sam slid her hand into Cade’s and pulled him toward the tiny table.

“Lots of dessert. They offered six choices and Collin ordered one of each. We have to taste everything.” She sat down in a chair and pulled him down next to her.