Montana Wild Bears: Books 1-4 Bundle (BBW Paranormal Werebear Shape Shifter Romance Boxed Set) Read Online Free
must-see locations. Montana was absolutely the best place to be in her line of work, so it was unfortunate that she was just about as far from the US grizzly mecca as she could get. There weren’t that many grizzlies left in the wild, and of those, more than half lived in Montana and around that particular area of the Rockies. As much as the view took her breath away, she hoped it wouldn’t be the only thing she could remember from this trip.
“Yellowhead is a one-day hike, though,” Jackson said, handling the car as if it were a speedboat and the narrow trails the wide-open ocean. “And Three Oaks is two, maybe three days. Are you up for the hikes?” he asked, a hint of curiosity seeping into his tone. Tess grinned and nodded vigorously, childishly excited at the thought of immersing herself in the habitats of her most favorite creatures.
“More than up for it! I’d love the chance to go. If you have time, that is.” The man huffed, shifting gears and tumbling ahead at speeds that made Tess’s nails dig into the upholstery.
“My schedule got cleared just for you, Miss Laurelton. So, apparently I have all the time in the world to bend to your wills and whims,” he said, keeping his eyes on the road. She glanced at him, marveling at his profile. The sliver of hope that she wouldn’t feel like a flustered teenager around him by morning had faded away, and the memories of the looks he had given her the night before still made her squirm a little. She had amused herself quite thoroughly with the thought of breaking through his icy barrier before she had fallen asleep and it only served to make her cheeks light up with a blush yet again.
You really need to stop that, she chided herself. Act professional, damn it! But it was so hard.
“Call me Tess. Only my undergrads call me Miss Laurelton,” she said, inclining her head at him. “I’m sorry I’m such a nuisance, though.” The noncommittal grunt she got in reply made her brows furrow. Clearly, the night had not changed anything. Jackson Arder seemed determined to be difficult, and Tess couldn’t shake her interest in the growly guy. The rest of the drive went by in silence, the roads all bleeding into each other as Jackson led the loud pick-up from one hill and forest to the next. When he stopped at a cluster of trees overlooking a small valley and jumped out of the car, the first thing that Tess did was take a long drink from the coffee.
“Oh thank god,” she murmured, the coffee as if spreading through her veins and bringing life where formerly there was nothing but annoyance and irritation at herself and her chosen guide. She clambered out of the car and grabbed her bag, hoisting it on her shoulders with marked difficulty. By the time she caught up with the man, who was treading through the thick underbrush with the speed of a raging bull, she was winded and heaving for breath. She fell in step with him, hooking her thumbs on the straps of her heavy bag. Of course, matching his speed meant that she had to take nearly two steps for every one he took.
“Where are we going?” she asked, noticing the man cast long looks around himself and his body tensing. She would have expected him to relax and loosen up, but it appeared that the further he got from the car and his home, the less at ease he was.
“Checking traps,” he said, his tone as uninformative as she expected it to be. Resigning herself to the trip, she tried to keep up with him as much as she could while looking around and taking in the majesty of the Montana Cabinet Mountains. At least nature wasn’t being grumpy.
CHAPTER THREE
They walked for the better part of an hour, until they were well into the valley and so far from the road that she doubted she could have found it if she tried. It looked promising, though. Just as Jackson had predicted, they happened across wide bear tracks leading deeper into the valley and towards the trickle of a river hidden deep
“Yellowhead is a one-day hike, though,” Jackson said, handling the car as if it were a speedboat and the narrow trails the wide-open ocean. “And Three Oaks is two, maybe three days. Are you up for the hikes?” he asked, a hint of curiosity seeping into his tone. Tess grinned and nodded vigorously, childishly excited at the thought of immersing herself in the habitats of her most favorite creatures.
“More than up for it! I’d love the chance to go. If you have time, that is.” The man huffed, shifting gears and tumbling ahead at speeds that made Tess’s nails dig into the upholstery.
“My schedule got cleared just for you, Miss Laurelton. So, apparently I have all the time in the world to bend to your wills and whims,” he said, keeping his eyes on the road. She glanced at him, marveling at his profile. The sliver of hope that she wouldn’t feel like a flustered teenager around him by morning had faded away, and the memories of the looks he had given her the night before still made her squirm a little. She had amused herself quite thoroughly with the thought of breaking through his icy barrier before she had fallen asleep and it only served to make her cheeks light up with a blush yet again.
You really need to stop that, she chided herself. Act professional, damn it! But it was so hard.
“Call me Tess. Only my undergrads call me Miss Laurelton,” she said, inclining her head at him. “I’m sorry I’m such a nuisance, though.” The noncommittal grunt she got in reply made her brows furrow. Clearly, the night had not changed anything. Jackson Arder seemed determined to be difficult, and Tess couldn’t shake her interest in the growly guy. The rest of the drive went by in silence, the roads all bleeding into each other as Jackson led the loud pick-up from one hill and forest to the next. When he stopped at a cluster of trees overlooking a small valley and jumped out of the car, the first thing that Tess did was take a long drink from the coffee.
“Oh thank god,” she murmured, the coffee as if spreading through her veins and bringing life where formerly there was nothing but annoyance and irritation at herself and her chosen guide. She clambered out of the car and grabbed her bag, hoisting it on her shoulders with marked difficulty. By the time she caught up with the man, who was treading through the thick underbrush with the speed of a raging bull, she was winded and heaving for breath. She fell in step with him, hooking her thumbs on the straps of her heavy bag. Of course, matching his speed meant that she had to take nearly two steps for every one he took.
“Where are we going?” she asked, noticing the man cast long looks around himself and his body tensing. She would have expected him to relax and loosen up, but it appeared that the further he got from the car and his home, the less at ease he was.
“Checking traps,” he said, his tone as uninformative as she expected it to be. Resigning herself to the trip, she tried to keep up with him as much as she could while looking around and taking in the majesty of the Montana Cabinet Mountains. At least nature wasn’t being grumpy.
CHAPTER THREE
They walked for the better part of an hour, until they were well into the valley and so far from the road that she doubted she could have found it if she tried. It looked promising, though. Just as Jackson had predicted, they happened across wide bear tracks leading deeper into the valley and towards the trickle of a river hidden deep
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