Page 63 of Cowboy Bear's Hope

My job was just to haul it out, load it into my truck, and take it home.

But that could wait.

Stuff was just stuff, and compared to my family, it didn’t matter. Not even a little.

I reread the text twice, my heart thundering in my chest, and allowed myself exactly one moment to panic.

One beat of blind, unbridled fear.

Then I moved.

My Grizzly stirred in the metaphysical realm, pawing at the ground like a caged beast, ready to charge.

Anger and vengeance rolled through me in waves, hot and demanding, as the thought of anyone daring to hurt what was mine filled my mind.

Because that’s what this was. Someone was trying to hurt my family.

My mate. My cub.

And they were going to pay.

Oh, fuck yes, they would.

But this was the human world, and there were rules here. Expectations. I couldn’t let my Bear loose, no matter how much he growled and snarled inside me, begging to be unleashed.

It wasn’t easy reining him in.

Hell, it was one of the hardest things I’d ever had to do. But I would do it. For them. For my girls.

This wasn’t about me.

It wasn’t about my fury, my need to protect, or even my Grizzly’s primal instincts.

It was about them.

Avery and Rosie.

They were my world, my everything. And they were in trouble.

That was all I needed to know.

There wasn’t a thing in this world—or any other—that I wouldn’t do to help them.

To save them. To keep them safe.

Not even the Fates could help anyone who stood in my way.

Hold on, Honey. I’m coming.

Chapter Nineteen-Avery

Present time.

The weight of everything didn’t disappear, not entirely, but it felt lighter.

More manageable.

Because Dante wasn’t just standing next to me. He was with me in every way that mattered.

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