Chapter 3

three

. . .

Michael

I s this lady seriously giving me the finger?

She almost hit me and now her hand is out the window with her middle finger in the air. Unbelievable.

I lay on the horn as I back my truck up before she slams into it with her giant blue bus. Is she even looking where she's going?

I shake my head as I back away, giving her lots of room.

I love my small mountain town of Caldwell, Montana, but I can do without these types. This lady converted a bus into a house and is now driving it around my small roads, expecting me to move out of her way.

That thing has a freaking chimney sticking out of the roof.

She puts it into forward and starts driving away. When she finally stops giving me the finger, I take my hand off the horn and park.

My heart is pounding as I get out of my truck and slam the door. I give the bus one last dirty look as it disappears around the corner. The wind is to my back, so at least I can't smell the hippy scent wafting off it.

"What's with you, Mikey?" Earl, the owner of the general store asks. "There's moose in Adrinbrook that can hear you making all that racket."

"That lady almost hit me with her bus!"

"Oh, she didn't mean it," Earl says as he looks down the road. "She was really nice. Bought half of my food."

"Yeah, I bet. Where's she from?"

"New York City," he says with a look that says ‘how about that?'

"Figures," I grumble.

His eyes narrow as he looks at me more carefully. "Are you okay, Mikey?"

"I'm fine," I grunt.

He doesn't look so sure. "I heard your brothers both found their mates."

"Yeah, what about it?"

He puts his hands up and takes a step back. "Is your grizzly taking it okay?"

I take a deep breath. Earl is an old black bear shifter. He has his mate, but he knows how hard it can be to live without one. I think he was about twenty-seven when he finally found Martha.

I'm thirty and still nothing.

My two younger brothers recently found theirs. I'm happy for them, but it's been hard. Really hard. Every time I see Tara hugging Leo or Oliver with his arm around Layla, I want to snap.

All this mate activity has been making my bear act up too. He's constantly restless inside, pacing and growling and keeping me up all damn night. No matter what I do, or how often I let him out, I can't seem to take the edge off him.

It's been rough.

I just wish she was here. I wish I could finally see her face and smell her scent.

Everything would be okay if she was here.

All of this intense yearning and burning desire would dissipate like that .

"It was rough for me when I was waiting for Martha to come along," Earl says as he lights a smoke. "My younger cousin found his mate and it sent me spiraling. I almost bit the head off some poor fuck who cut me off."

I lean on my car and take a few deep breaths. My temper has been short lately. My fuse is an inch long. It seems like any small thing makes me want to blow.

That's not me. It's not the man I want to be, but it's fucking hard when my inner grizzly bear is determined to torture me every second of the day.

Even now, he's pacing around and snorting angrily. I try to ignore him, but he always manages to make his presence known.

"She'll come soon," I say, not quite believing it. "It's destiny, right?"

Earl nods as he puffs on his cigarette. "Destiny always delivers."

Yeah, well destiny is taking her sweet fucking time on this one.

"I heard that Leo's mate is some fancy romance author?" Earl asks.

We chat about Layla and her new book a bit, but pretty soon, I'm done talking about mates. I just want to put it all out of my mind.

Earl crushes his cigarette and opens the door. "Do you need something?"

"A birthday present," I say. "For my nephew, Anthony. He's turning one today. Got anything good?"

"Not unless he drinks craft beer or likes to play with fishing lures."

I laugh. "I don't think so."

"Then you better head into town to that toy shop. Want a cold drink for the road?"

I push off my truck and head to the door. "Why not?"

I step into the store and am immediately struck with an intense sensation. The air… I've never felt anything like it. It burns down my throat and fills my lungs with fire.

My eyes water and I cough, looking around for the cause of it. Earl doesn't seem to notice at all while he casually walks behind the counter. "Try that blue sports drink. The kids are all obsessed with it."

He grabs his newspaper and opens it as my legs nearly buckle. I grab onto the counter to steady myself as I gulp down more air, relishing the sweet burn of it.

It awakens my bear. He's on full alert now.

"What's that smell?" I ask in a deep raspy voice that I hardly recognize.

"Huh?" Earl asks as he barely glances up. "I don't smell nothing."

I suck down another lung-full and goosebumps rise all over my body. It's the most heavenly scent I've ever experienced.

Earl looks at me and it dawns on him. "Does it feel like a sweet fire burning down your throat and smoldering in your lungs?"

My eyes are watering. " Yes ."

Earl laughs in delight. "I think you found her."

"Who?"

"Your mate."

"My… mate?"

Of course. Once he says it, it becomes abundantly clear. I'm smelling my mate's sweet scent.

I think my grizzly bear already knows it. He's ready to burst out and claim her.

"Where is she?" I growl in a possessive tone. "Is she in the back?"

"Nobody is here," Earl says as he keeps his eyes on me. "It must be that nice girl who left."

" Her? " I say with my heart racing. "The psycho in the bus?"

"She was a very nice young lady. She bought me a beef jerky."

I rush over to the window and look outside, hoping to catch a glimpse of that big blue bus rolling down the street. The road is empty.

"Where did she go?" I snap.

My bear is already trying to claw his way out. I grit my teeth, flex my body, and push him back down.

"I don't know where exactly," Earl says absentmindedly.

I lunge at the counter and grab him by the shirt. " Think harder ," I hiss through gritted teeth as I yank him forward.

His eyes widen in surprise and I instantly release him, feeling like a fucking asshole.

"Sorry," I grunt as I grip a fistful of my hair while pacing around the shop. "I'm a little on edge. I need to find her."

Earl straightens back up and smooths out his shirt with a grin on his face. "She made her way all the way here from New York City. You'll find her."

But what if that was my one shot and I blew it?

What if we were supposed to have an epic, love-at-first-sight moment and instead, I honked my horn at her like a fucking prick?

No. It can't be like that.

I won't let it be like that.

"Where was she going?" I ask in a desperate tone.

"She said she was going to hole up in the mountains and hang out for a while."

"Where? What mountains?"

Earl backs away and shrugs. "She didn't say."

"She didn't say," I growl as I head for the door and yank it open. " Fuck! "

My stomach drops as I step outside and look at the enormous mountain range all around me. She could be anywhere. I might never find her.

Unless…

Maybe I can catch up to her on the road. That bus can't be that hard to find.

"Thanks, Earl!" I shout as I race to my truck. "Sorry about the grabbing!"

"No worries," he says as I start the engine and back up before I even have the door closed. "Good luck!"

He waves as I floor it down the road, desperately trying to catch up to her. I get to the interstate and look both ways. I don't see any giant blue buses.

I don't see anything. The highway is empty.

"Fuck it," I grunt as I turn left and floor it. Every second spent debating which direction is a second she gets further from me.

I drive for an hour, but I don't see her.

All the while, my grizzly gets more and more impatient. He's growling and snarling in my ear. He keeps charging to the surface, raging at me to be released.

"Fuck off," I snarl back at him.

He rushes forward, furious at being held back. This time, he almost breaks through. My truck swerves onto the shoulder as long black claws pierce my fingertips.

My chest swells up. My gums sear with heat as his canines rip through. Brown fur flashes on my forearms.

I squeeze my eyes shut and slam on the brakes as I force him back down. My truck skids to a stop, kicking up a cloud of dust.

The guy driving behind me lays on the horn as he flies by.

I turn the engine off and try to focus on my breathing, desperate to calm him down.

It just enrages him further. He charges forward again with the force of a thousand bulls.

I won't be able to stop him. I can tell…

Never has he been this strong or this enraged, but he's never caught the scent of our mate either.

I push open the door and stumble out onto the dirt.

"Let me… handle … this …" I hiss through gritted teeth as I feel him about to try again.

No .

My grizzly speaks no words, but I can feel his intentions. He gave me an hour to try, but I didn't find her. If anything, I got us further away from our girl.

He's done doing it my way.

He wants to take over.

" Fuck … off…" I grunt as my skin pulls tight.

He snarls at me and explodes forward.

This time, there's no stopping him.

He rips out of me, sending me plunging into the darkness within his body.

All I can do is watch helplessly from inside as he abandons my truck and sprints into the mountains to find our girl.

I hope you know what you're doing , I tell him.

I'm rooting for him.

There's no pride when it comes to finding her. No need to be right.

I just want to be beside her.

It's all I've ever wanted.