Tiger Bite: BBW Shapeshifter Paranormal Romance (Shifters Everafter Book 1) Read Online Free Page B

blamed her for what had happened? She’d gone off into the forest without her guards. Had she been more careful, it wouldn’t have happened.
    Even if her father forgave her, she wouldn’t be in the clear. Everyone in town would ostracize her at best. She would have to talk with the authorities and she would be watched for a year. That was the one shifter law her father had been able to get passed while he was a state representative: anyone bitten by any animal was supposed to report to the authorities. She could see how it might be a useful database. If there was a rabbit shifter going around turning people left and right, it would be nice to know.
    But she didn’t want to be on the list. People watching her wouldn’t make her transition any easier and who knew what they would do with that information in the future.
    The thought of turning made her light-headed. What she needed was to find a shifter. She needed information about what the transformation was like. She had no idea how any of this worked. It was a very good thing she was going to Baghera. Daria’s brother Ben had gone through all of this. He’d be able to give her some advice.
    Unless the legends in her mother’s books were true. If there was a genie in a lamp, it was more important than ever for her to find it. She could ask him to make her human again.
    As if she needed more incentive to get to Rose Valley and search for it.
    She slept fitfully for a few hours before her alarm went off. She cleaned the wound again and put a bandage over it. It looked like it was almost healed and it didn’t hurt at all. That worried Jessica even more. If it had been a regular bite, it would have been worse.
    She tried not to worry as she went downstairs and had breakfast with her father. She needed to get out of the house and get her mind off her bite. She didn’t want to try to leave again before nightfall. That meant she had to occupy herself for a whole day.
    It was a perfect day to go to the market. She’d just gone yesterday, but there was new stuff every day. Vendors came from all over to sell their wares in the open-air market. She could lose herself searching for clothes or the perfect painting to hang over her bed. The only problem was, her dad wasn’t going to be happy to let her go back to the market when she’d just given her security the slip there yesterday.
    Toward the end of the meal, she finally asked him, “Dad, can I go to the market today? I wanted to look at some fabric for new summer pillows.”
    Roger shook his head. “Tomorrow would be better. Jasper Collins is getting into town in an hour. I thought you could come with me to greet him.”
    Jess managed a weak smile. “Of course. I’ll go change my clothes.”
    She excused herself from the table and went back to her room. Along the way, she noticed Kevin was shadowing her today. That was strange. Alek didn’t take many days off, especially not when there would be visitors. After what had happened in the woods, she would have been glad to see his hulking figure behind her all day. He could be annoying, but she knew she was safe whenever he was around. She truly believed Alek would put his life on the line and take a bullet for her if he had to.
    Before she went into her room, she asked Kevin about it. “Where’s Alek?”
    “He’s off today, Ms. Sheridan,” Kevin said.
    She nodded and closed her bedroom door, then changed into a long-sleeved dress and tights to meet Jasper. She was shaking as she checked to make sure nothing was visible beneath the dress. The bandage was bulky, but it wasn’t very noticeable. As long as Jasper didn’t try to hug her, she’d be fine.
    Jess opened her computer and saw that Daria was online. She quickly set up a Skype call and crawled into her closet. She didn’t want to risk Kevin hearing her through the door.
    Daria’s face filled the screen. Her blonde hair formed a halo of frizz around her pretty, heart-shaped face. “Morning. Happy to see