Outlaw Bear (A Paranormal BBW Shape Shifter Romance) Read Free Page A

put the annoying man on the flat of his back with one hit. Not that she was interested in starting a fight after just having moved to this town, but being a bear shifter, she understood how to assert her dominance and claim her own territory.
    Those reasons were exactly why she allowed herself to be frustrated with the barkeep, Jet, she believed his name was after hearing one of the other patrons shout it. By helping her out and keeping him away from her, he had inadvertently claimed her as being under his protection. Now everyone would associate the two of them together, which was not what she wanted.
    Kailee Britten had not moved to a new town in the middle of nowhere just to be claimed by the first man she ran into. That was not the way she planned for things to go.
    Still, the way the waitress kept hissing at him, like a rabid cat, was beginning to get on her nerves as well. Jet had been nothing but polite and respectful to her, even if he had tried to be her knight in shining armor. He didn't deserve to be treated with such respect and disdain. There had to be something she could do about it, but she wasn't sure what.
    You shouldn't even be worrying!
    The internal war played out in her mind for some time, a constant back and forth see-saw battle. She knew that the moment she spoke up or did something that resulted in Jet having to focus on her, she was confirming to him that there was something there. That wasn’t something she was prepared for, but it seemed inevitable.
    As it happened, she ran out of beer before a decision could be made. The sound of her empty glass hitting the bar proved to be enough of a distraction anyways. Kailee was actually quite happy with herself, having found a solution to the problem that didn’t involve long-winded explanations of why something just wasn’t going to happen between them.
    “Need a refill?” he asked, gesturing slightly at her empty mug as if she didn’t know that it was dry.
    “Just one more, if you don’t mind.” She still had to drive home after, and despite the faster metabolism that being a bear shifter entailed, she still didn’t want to do anything stupid. Getting really drunk could wait until she got home.
    Her drink poured, Jet brought it back to her spot, setting it down in front of her even as she reached to take it. At the last moment, her hand brushed against his, the faintest of contact. The electricity was so strong it was a visible, tangible thing as far as Kailee was concerned. The embers of her arousal, still warm but having calmed under her control, flared back to life in an explosion that could have been seen in the next county, she was sure.
    She froze in place, her hand still outstretched around the mug as he slowly withdrew his hand, looking at it strangely. He then turned his gaze upon her, at which point Kailee knew she had to get out of there. Fumbling with her wallet, she pulled out a wad of cash and tossed it on the glossy wood of the bar, pulling her pants up as she made to leave.
    “Wait, don’t go yet,” he started, his voice uncertain, as if he had been betrayed by his voice before the brain had a chance to think, and was now trying furiously to play catch-up.
    “What is it?” she replied, doing her best to instill as much disinterest and pseudo-anger into her voice as she could manage. She turned back to face him, waiting for a reply.
    It must have sounded more intimidating than she thought, for he swayed backwards slightly in surprise. For a long moment, he simply stared at her, and Kailee was afraid that he was going to push into her personal space. That would have been the end of her resistance for the evening and she would have succumbed to his charms in any way he wanted.
    But that was not to be, for he simply held her gaze, his eyes seeming to see right through her. After another pause, he simply shook his head, letting her go. She let out a small sigh of relief until his eyes flicked warily behind her before narrowing with