Read Daxton (BBW Bear Shifter Moonshiner Romance) (120 Proof Honey) for Free Online Page A

growled back, then wrapped herself around him and refused to let go.

Dietrich
    Bear Dating Agency I
    by
    Becca Fanning

The night of June 4 th was horrific, embarrassing and terrifying. On June 5 th , Elise Davenport thought that her life couldn’t possibly get any worse. She was wrong.

    For starters, she was lost in the woods. Elise had entered the wilds of Fairhaven Park about an hour ago, chatting away to her agent about the disaster of the night before, only to find that when she hung up the call, she had veered off the path. The sun had long-since settled into the blackness of night, turning leafy green trees into heaps of shadow. Elise’s spine tingled with cold, despite the balmy air of a summer night in the California countryside. Something was very, very wrong.

    And that something was a bear.

    Elise wasn’t sure what she was looking at, at first, but she froze on the spot, staring into the forest ahead. The huge lumbering shape made a move, just a few steps forward, and suddenly it was fully defined. Elise saw the impossibly wide, shaggy head of brown fur, and the huge paws with long, curling claws. The bear had small, dark eyes, which caught the moonlight and reflected it in silver discs. It took a few more steps, out of the foliage and straight into Elise’s path.

    Frozen with fear, Elise could only imagine the horror of being mauled to death by a bear. It was a grizzly too, which was totally impossible for California, yet there it was in all its hefty glory. People wouldn’t believe that this was how she’d died. They’d imagine that she had faked her own death, rather than face the backlash of the biggest mistake of her modelling career. When the bear took a sudden lunge, a deep growl caught in its throat, Elise lost her thoughts completely.

    And then, as if fate didn’t hate her enough, another bear entered the small clearing.

    It was even larger than the first, and slightly darker in color. The fur seemed to glisten as if it was wet, picking up silver strands of reflected moonlight. Elise’s body shivered, her breathing escaping in stunted puffs of air. The new bear glanced her way, and its eyes were golden. Even in the depth of night, those two shining orbs burned like sunlight. It was both the most beautiful and terrifying thing she had ever seen. The two grizzlies faced off, each eyeing the other for a long, silent moment.

    Elise took one step, daring to try and back away. At her movement, the golden-eyed bear leapt in front of her, teeth bared to its smaller adversary. Elise heard the clash of gigantic muscles as the creatures started to tussle, and her breathing gave way to a cry. Every blow was powerfully violent, and Elise willed her shaking legs to work again. The golden-eyed bear was beating the other one back, but that surely meant that he wanted this tall, blonde woman for his very own midnight snack. Elise couldn’t afford to be around when that moment came.

    She ran for all she was worth, racing desperately towards any sign of life.

“You poor thing,” Anina soothed. “Here, have another sip of cocoa.”

    The morning sun was peeking over the horizon by the time that Elise found the Rangers’ Lodge. Shaking and terrified, she’d been welcomed into the three-story cabin by an elderly lady with small, hunched shoulders. Her face was streaked with silver wrinkles, and behind her glasses there was a kind gaze that shone through milky-amber eyes. The woman had introduced herself as Anina Best, and at first glance, Elise felt safe with her.

    “I guess I can afford the calories, after all that running,” Elise said in a hoarse tone.

    “Who thinks about calories after a bear attack?” Anina asked in reply.

    Elise gave a shrug, her disheveled blonde hair flicking out at strange angles.

    “That’s the model mentality,” she supposed.

    Elise had only been modelling in LA for the last year, after leaving college with a degree she probably wouldn’t use and a huge pile of