Page 9 of Hunny and the Bear

As her bear friend with the sad eyes moved around upstairs, she jumped down from the couch, tucking herself under the coffee table to escape notice. Just because she was beginning totrust him didn’t mean she’d blindly trust whoever the hell was visiting.

Heavy footfalls sounded on the stairs, and then she spotted bare feet on the wood floor as her bear shifter moved to the front door. Muttering under his breath, he ripped open the door. “The fuck you want?” he snapped in irritation.

Hunny’s eyes widened in surprise. Was he always so disgruntled in the morning? He seemed fine last night.

Someone must have woken up on the wrong side of the bed.

“That’s no way to greet your Alpha and brother,” an unfamiliar male stated, his voice laced with humor. “Plan on letting me in or will you just stand in the doorway like a dickhead, Tank?”

Hunny wrinkled her nose. Her rescuer’s name wasTank? It suited him, she guessed. He was a big, buff male who looked capable of steamrolling anyone.

Tank grunted, stepping aside and letting the other male enter. Hunny ducked her head out from under the table, intent on sneaking a peek at Tank’s Alpha.

Instead, she caught an eyeful of Tank, and she found herself staring up at the big male in shock. Sweatpants hung low on his hips, and he was shirtless, big, strong muscles on display everywhere she looked. And damn, did shelook. In fact, she tried to force her gaze anywhere else, but she was stuck, completely riveted on the way his muscles rippled as he crossed his arms in front of his chest.

A chest that had a healthy dusting of hair. Not only that, but he had a happy trail that dipped into his pants, leading somewhere equally impressive—she was sure of it. Realizing that she was drooling, she swallowed thickly.

I should look away before I do something stupid.

Like jumping out from under the table, climbing up his leg like a squirrel, and smashing her face all over his chest. It must have been the pregnancy hormones, or something, because all shecould think about was how his hair looked like the perfect fur to build a nest with. But instead of a nest, she could just lay on that warm chest and—

Snap out of it!Hunny shook her head hard before turning her attention to the other clothed and less rugged-looking male.

They looked alike. He had long legs, huge muscles, and the same shade of brown hair as his brother, though his was combed back and his beard kept trimmed close to his face. He wore working boots, blue jeans, and a flannel, but where Tank looked like a sexy lumberjack, this guy looked like a wealthy entrepreneur on vacation in the mountains.

“What do you want, Murphy?” Tank asked, casting a small glance to the now empty couch. His brow furrowed, and he inhaled, like he was trying to hunt her down. She ducked back under the table before he could spot her. Although she was hiding, Hunny felt briefly tempted to stick a paw out, just to see if he’d notice.

Stop acting weird. Seriously, what was wrong with her? She’d seen her fair share of naked men, and Tank wasn’t even naked, for fuck’s sake!

“What doIwant?” Murphy snorted. “You never answered me about the rabbit shifter. You found it injured in the woods. Did you leave it there? Did you bring it here?” He exhaled roughly. “It’s here, isn’t it?”

Tank grunted again.

“Why would you bring an unknown element into our territory? That’s not like you.”

“Technically, she was already in our territory.”

Murphy turned back to his brother. “The rabbit shifter is a female?”

Another grunt from Tank. Hunny rolled her eyes. Was that his primary form of communication or something? She craned her head out from under the table again, wanting a better lookat each brother. They were both extremely tall, but from her position, she couldn’t see who was taller. Maybe Murphy?

“Pregnant, too. Feisty as hell.” Tank scratched his beard. She preened at his last comment.

“Feisty how?”

Tank smirked absent-mindedly. “She bit the shit out of my hand.”

“Are yousmiling?” Murphy asked in surprise. Before Tank could answer, his brother looked around the living room and then nodded toward the upstairs room. “Where is this mystery female? In your bed?”

“Left her on the couch,” Tank huffed. “Guess she’s hiding somewhere.” His eyes shot over to the coffee table, snapping right onto her location. Startled, Hunny jumped, smacking her head against the wood with a tiny thunk. Pain exploded along her temple, and she let out a soft hiss as she turned, hopping fully under the table once more.

Shit, that really hurt!

“What the hell was that?” Murphy asked in bewilderment. Tank didn’t answer, and his brother sighed. “Fine. Remain aloof, as always. If the female intends to stay in bear clan territory for any length of time, though, I’ll need to meet her. She needs to be vetted properly, otherwise she’s a risk to our clan.”

“I know.”

“And yet you let her stay the night without following protocol,” Murphy chided. “Do you know anything about her? Where she’s from? What nest she belongs to? For all we know, she could be a lone shifter,” he finished, uttering the last sentence like a curse.

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