Page 68 of Hunny and the Bear

“Let’s hope that’s it.” Tank leaned back in his seat, staring at the clock on the dashboard. It would be another hour before he arrived home. He hated being away from Hunny for any length of time, and after hearing Jason speak about her in any capacity, he was eager to reassert his claim on her, if only to appease his bear. “Regardless, we’ll need to remain alert for any danger. If Jason and Ben are positive we’ve got Natasha, they might attack us in the hopes of finding her.”

“Part of me hopes they do,” Murphy admitted quietly.

Tank couldn’t help but agree.

“How much longer do you think they’ll be gone?” Hunny asked, earning an exaggerated sigh from Jasper. The male was relaxing on the other side of the couch from her, his feet kicked up on the coffee table as he watched football on Tank’s TV. For someone whoshouldbe guarding her, he looked like he didn’t have a care in the world.

Must be nice, she thought with a little snarl. Meanwhile, Tank had been gone for just over two hours and she felt like she was going stir-crazy. She knew he’d be fine, but that didn’t make her feel any better. It also didn’t help that she’d been nauseous forthe last few hours. Was it from her kits or nerves? Knowing her luck, probably a combination of the two.

When Jasper didn’t answer right away, she grabbed a throw pillow, tossing it at the side of his head. It connected with a small thud before dropping uselessly to the floor. He shot her a disgruntled look. “Why are you being so mean to me?”

“Because you’re not answering the question,” Hunny replied, mockingly whining back at him. He scowled, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

“I already answered you twice. They’ll get here when they get here.”

“That’s a terrible answer.” And considering how anxious she felt as each minute ticked by, she really didn’t think she could handle not at least knowing how close they were to being done. “Can’t you just do your little mind meld with Murphy and find out how long they’ll be?”

Jasper rolled his eyes. “Clearly, you don’t know how Murphy operates. He isn’t going to respond unless it’s important. He needs to keep his wits about him while he’s near any potential threats. Didn’t Tank give you a cellphone? Why don’t you just text your mate and find out?”

Hunny couldn’t help the small smile that tugged on her lips at the mention of Tank being her mate. “The phone Henry gave meishis. He said he never used it, so I could have it to talk with Nessa.”

Well,technically, he’d told Hunny she could have it because he didn’t want to talk to any ‘damned humans anyway,’ or something like that.

Jasper snorted. “I wish I’d thought of pawning my phone off on someone else. Murphy insists we keep them around in case there’s a national weather emergency or some human catastrophe happening, so we’re in the loop.”

“Oh, that’s smart. I’ve lived among humans so long I think it kind of slipped my mind how secluded shifter communities generally prefer to be from the rest of the world.” Though, she had to admit, she really enjoyed the freedom of being able to shift whenever she wanted without fear of being spotted. This far up in the mountains, the bears had their own little slice of shifter heaven.

“Well, this is your life now, little sister. Tank’s going to keep you locked in his cabin so you don’t wise up and run away from him.” When she rolled her eyes, he continued, “He even mentioned something about picking a few chains and locks up while he was in town. Didn’t say what he needed them for, though.”

Hunny grinned. “You’re so full of shit.”

“I know.” Jasper winked playfully before his eyes slid to the fresh mating mark on her neck. His expression softened. “Still can’t believe you mated with my brother.”

Her hand slid up to her neck, cupping the mark tenderly. “I know. I feel like it happened so fast and took forever at the same time. I don’t know if that makes sense,” Hunny finished with a small laugh.

“It doesn’t, but I’ve always known it would take a delusional female to mate with any of my brothers,” Jasper joked. “If you were smart, you’d have known I was the best choice all along. I’m handsome, funny, and my mom loves me the best.”

Hunny wrinkled her nose. “A momma’s boy? Gross. I prefer my males broody and independent.”

Jasper clutched his hand to his chest as he gasped loudly. “Hey! There’s nothing wrong with loving my m—” His words died in his throat as his eyes shifted from piercing green to gold. His head snapped toward the front door, tension lining his body. Immediately, the anxiety Hunny had been feeling returned tothe forefront, and she placed a hand on her stomach as it roiled. He stood quickly to his feet, standing between her and the door.

“Jasper, what’s—”

“You need to go upstairs, Hunny,” he instructed from over his shoulder, his voice holding a furious, deadly note she’d never heard before. “Now.”

She pushed up to her feet, doing exactly as he’d asked. She’d just made it to the base of the stairs when something slammed hard against the front door. Hunny flinched, whipping back around to watch as Jasper ripped open the front door. He roared in warning; the sound vibrating through the house and out into the woods.

A few seconds passed and he looked at the ground right as Hunny smelled it.

Blood.

“Oh, what the fuck?” Jasper bent down, snatching something off the front porch. He turned back around, stomping into the house and slamming the door closed. “I’m telling Murphy our territory has been breached right now,” he assured her as he held up his arm, something dangling from his hand.

Hunny didn’t understand what he was holding at first, her brain taking forever to process it. A second passed, and then another, before she realized he was holding hair. Human hair. No, notjusthair; a severed head.

Natasha’s vacant, dull eyes were half-lidded, her jaw hanging at an awkward angle.

Hunny leaned over the railing and vomited.

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