Page 63 of Hunny and the Bear

They’d deal with it tomorrow.

Twenty Five

“I’m nervous about today.” Hunny turned off the clippers, running her hand over Tank’s freshly buzzed hair. His beard was relatively the same length, but trimmed and shining from ‘beard oil’ she’d massaged into his facial hair. He’d never heard of it before, but he’d let her do anything to him as long as it kept her hands on his body. “I know I’m not going, but I don’t like the thought of you meeting with Jason, either.”

“It won’t just be me,” Tank replied tenderly, pulling her into his lap and kissing her. “Murphy and a few others will be there.” Not Jasper, though. His younger brother would be in the cabin with Hunny, andawakefor fucking once or he’d strangle the little shit.

“I’m not mated to them. I’m mated to you,” she countered, cupping his face. She kissed him again before pushing up from his lap. “You said Jason was a dangerous male. What if he does something stupid?”

“You think he’ll act out once he realizes I’ve mated you?”

Hunny rolled her eyes. “I think you’re overestimating my value to Jason.” She furrowed her brow a second later. “Wait, is that why you didn’t shower after we had sex earlier? So that he’d scent me on you?”

Tank raised a brow at her question, his gaze going immediately to her mating mark. “I want him to know you’re mine.” He’d already ensured her scent covered him after hours of fucking this morning, and with the claiming bite prominently displayed on his neck, that wolf prick would be a fool not to put two and two together. “And I hope he does do something stupid, so I can snap his neck and call it a day.”

Would he regret killing the sperm donor to his mate’s kits? Not for a single second. In fact, he looked forward to doing the honors, if he could get the chance. Murphy would probably protest with that course of action though.

Hunny propped her hands onto her hips as she narrowed her eyes on him. “Isn’t this meeting because he thinks we’re hiding Natasha in bear territory?”

“Or he’s using that as a lie to find out where you are. I’m not convinced the wolf that tracked us in the woods a few days ago didn’t belong to him.”

And he intended to find out today.

Hunny threw her hands up in exasperation. “But that doesn’t make sense. Jason rejected me, mated someone else, and clearly,” she added haughtily, pointing toward the bite on her neck, “I’ve more than gotten over all that.”

“I’m well aware, darlin’.” Tank smirked as he stood to his full height, towering over her.

“My point is this: Jason won’t care enough about me, or our kits, to send someone to hunt me down, and I’m more than okay with that, believe me.” Releasing a long breath, Hunny ran her hands through her hair. “I haven’t wanted to ask, mostly because I’m terrified of your answer, but what exactly has Jason donethat makes you hate him so much? You held a grudge with him since before you met me.”

Tank pursed his lips, and as her hand fluttered to her belly, moving in a small circle over her bump, he wasn’t sure he wanted to tell her the truth. He wanted to spare her the gory details of how sick and twisted the father of her kits was. He clenched his teeth to keep from snarling. No, Jasonwasn’tthe father to Hunny’s kits—Tank was. Even if he didn’t share DNA with a single one, they were his, just as Hunny was.

“The Moon Rose pack is known for their illegal dealings,” he began slowly, choosing his words more carefully than he ever had when it came to that fucker. He didn’t want to upset Hunny with the truth, but he didn’t want to keep it from her either. He planned to approach the subject gently, though.

She swallowed thickly. “What kind of ‘illegal dealings’ are you talking about exactly? Just spit it out, Henry, please.”

“His pack kidnaps humans and sells them to other supernaturals for money, favors, whatever he needs. It’s not always humans, either. Sometimes lone shifters and submissives, too.”

Hunny’s hand pressed down on her belly and she paled, looking like she was close to vomiting. “And you know that for sure?”

Tank shook his head. “No. It’s only speculation, but Murphy’s looked into every shifter community near us since he became Alpha. It isn’t unnoticed that human women go missing near Jason’s pack. Everything fits; we just don’t have the proof. And I’ve met Jason and some of his wolves before. There is something off about them.”

“What do you mean?”

Tank shrugged, clearing his irritated throat. The amount of time he could talk without it hurting improved daily, likely because of his little rabbit and the large quantities of tea sheshoved down his throat. Even still, long talks like this wore out his vocal chords. “He feels wrong. Evil. You never felt it?”

“I—” Hunny closed her mouth, looking away from him as she thought. “I don’t think he let me around him enough to see what he was really like, not until that night you found me. And then I just remember thinking how cold, how cruel he really was. How I didn’t know him at all, and I was going to have a stranger’s baby.”

When she rubbed her belly again, Tank slid his hand over hers, his other going to her nape as he kissed the crown of her head. “He might be a sick bastard, but he gave us three precious gifts, darlin’.”

Her fingers intertwined with his, holding on tight. “Just be careful today, alright?”

“I will.”

Afew short hours later, Tank stepped onto Murphy’s porch, knocking on the door. His brother answered quickly, narrowing his eyes as he inhaled in surprise. His gaze flickered to Tank’s neck and then back to his face. “You mated Hunny?”

Crossing his arms in front of his chest, Tank nodded, unable to keep a possessive smirk from dancing on his lips.

“I wished you’d informed me of your intentions to mate her,” Murphy said stiffly, stepping onto the porch and closing the door behind him. He wore black slacks, a turtleneck sweater, and dress shoes, looking more like the damned mayor than a grizzly. But Tank didn’t say anything—he knew the real reason his brother kept so much of his skin hidden.

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