Bear Mated: A BBW Bear Shifter Paranomal Romance (Pine Ridge BBW Bear Shifter Paranormal Romance Series Book 2) by Belinda Meyers

of eagles is
called. I thought everyone knew that.”
    “Apparently not. Maybe I haven’t
lived in the mountains long enough.” Hastily she began throwing on her clothes
while Rick doused the fire and tossed the supplies his crew had left here back
in their hole.
    “The eagles may have seen the
smoke,” he said, staring at the errant puffs still curling up to the sky.
    “Then they’ll be on the way here,”
she said. “They won’t be sure it’s us, though. If we can get far enough away …”
    “No time. They’ll be on us in
moments.”
    Icy fingers traced her spine. “Then
how—?”
    He grabbed her hand. “Do you trust
me?”
    She nodded, unable to manage words.
    He tugged her toward the lagoon.
Realizing what he intended, she unclipped her holster and stashed it in the
hole with the other gear so that her gun wouldn’t get wet. That done, Barbara
and Rick splashed down the beach into the deeper water, and she couldn’t help a
shudder when the cold water reached her waist.
    “We’ll go under,” he said. “On
three. Three. Two. One!”
    Barb just saw the dark wedge of the
first wing cresting the treeline when he reached One , and they both ducked under the
surface of the water. Being fully immersed in the cold shocked her, but it also
steadied her, sobered her. It was so clear she could see every inch of Rick,
every bump of gooseflesh on his arms and chest …
    Shit. It was too clear. The eagles would be able to see them right through the
water!
    Swearing internally, she grabbed his hand this time and kicked toward the
falls. Instantly she wished she hadn’t dressed before doing this. The clothes
dragged at her, and her shoes were ridiculously cumbersome in the water.
Nevertheless, adrenaline gave her strength and she was able to put some
distance between herself and the beach. Soon she and Rick made it to the falls,
then passed under them. Gasping, they popped up on the far side, hidden by a
curtain of water on one side and a shelf of rock above. Barbara heard the
eagles calling to each other over the pounding of the water, but she was pretty
sure the birds couldn’t hear her and Rick, no matter how hard she breathed or
how fast her heart beat. And it was beating fast. Once again, she was surprised it didn’t bust out of her chest and
do the Charleston.
    Rick drew her close and wrapped an
arm around her. He really did like touching her—not that she had any complaints.
Oh no. It had just been a long time since she’d been around a handsy man, and that man hadn’t been one she’d wanted get handsy with.
    Hers and Rick’s faces were very
close. His was flushed, with beads of water glistening like dew in his stubble.
More water tangled in his wavy brown hair and made his lustrous eyebrows gleam.
Staring into those brown eyes, feeling his strong arm around her, Barbara felt
safe, no matter how many murderous eagle shifters were after them. For this one
moment, it was as if she and Rick occupied a separate world, a newly formed
bubble of reality just for them, far from any danger. Time stood still, and
there was only her and him, his hard body pressed against her, and the raging
falls beside them.
    He was feeling more than just safe, that was clear. The excitement plus their
proximity had done something to his libido, and his huge cock had stiffed and
was rubbing between her legs. She bit her lip and moved her hips against
him—but only for a moment. Another eagle cry made her remember what was at
stake. Smiling despite herself, she placed her hands against Rick’s chest and
pushed away, then treaded water a few feet away from him. He gave her a sad
puppy-dog look, and she felt her core grow hot, but she thought of taxes and
her mother’s butterfly collection and soon the mood passed.
    The eagles didn’t pass, not for a
while. They circled the lagoon, screeching, for what seemed like hours but was
really probably only a few minutes, then moved on. Barbara heard their cries
grow faint, then vanish