Page 110 of Secret Shifters Next Door

Leaving that portion of my mind to bask in his own masculinity I walked toward April and the cop. The deputy saw me first and nodded to me. “Sir, are you the resident next door?” He pointed at my house.

April saw me and her eyes brightened. “Steff, did you see it?”

“See what?” I asked, playing dumb.

“The lady says she saw a bear in the woods behind your house.” I could hear the very vague irritation starting to cloud his voice.

I frowned. “Like a black bear?”

“No, sir, shesaysit was a grizzly bear. From her description, it was almost a thousand pounds.”

“But we don’t have grizzlies in Colorado,” I said.

The deputy shrugged. “That’s what I told her.”

“Hey, douchebags, I’m standing right here,” April said, jamming her fists into her hips.

The deputy raised his eyebrows. “Excuse me?”

April’s face went crimson, and she dropped her gaze. “Uh, shit, sorry. I mean, I’m telling the truth. I know what I saw.”

“Officer, I just got back from a hike in the woods, and I didn’t see anything. I think, if a bear was here, it’s long gone.”

The deputy was still giving April a hard stare, but he turned his glare on me. “I’ll send a report in to the wildlife authorities and the park rangers. See if any tagged bears have moved out of their usual roaming area.” He glanced back at April. “Any taggedblackbears. You all have a good night.”

The deputy walked back to his car, and I moved April to her house. She was hissing into my ear about what a dick the cop was being, and I hustled her faster before he could hear any of her expletives. I got her inside and the door closed before I let her unload.

“That guy didn’t believe me. Can you fucking believe that?”

I sighed and patted the air in front of her. “April, chill, it’s okay. I believe you about the bear.”

“He looked at me like some stupid bimbo, and… wait, what?”

“I believe you saw a grizzly.”

She blinked rapidly as if her mind had short-circuited. “Well… why the hell did you lie to that cop? Why didn’t you back me up, for God’s sake?”

“It’s a long story, but I know for sure that the bear isn’t dangerous.”

April pointed toward the back of her house. “Dude, that thing was as big as a house. How could you possibly know it’s not some man-eater?”

“Look, it’s complicated. Trust me, okay?”

Her face changed. The manic anger at the cop and the panic from seeing the bear morphed into a cold and closed-off expression. She took a step away and turned toward the back wall, crossing her arms. “Not possible.”

The words hurt, but I understood. I didn’t blame her. “April, whether you believe me or not, I promise I won’t let anything happen to you. Nothing will hurt you while I’m around.”

Without turning around, she said, “Yeah, nothing will hurt me. Nothing except you.”

That was a verbal kick to the balls, and I nodded to myself. I deserved that. That, and more, if I were honest with myself. If my new plan was going to work, I had a shit ton of work to do. Fences to mend and bridges to build.

I opened the front door and stepped out. “Lock up as soon as I’m gone.”

She didn’t respond as I latched the door closed behind me. Once I was back home, all I could do was pace around my house. My original plan to push her away was not working, and I’d come to accept that over the last hour. Now, I needed another strategy. Some way to get her to look my way again. To bringback the way she used to see me. I’d hurt her worse than I’d hurt anyone in my life. Before I could tell her the truth, I had to figure out a way to win her back. It made it worse that I’d spent the last couple weeks pissing her off even more. Had I not been an idiot not jumping at the chance as soon as I saw her again, it probably would have been much easier.

Since Miles had been the most vehemently opposed to my original plan, I called him. Perhaps he’d have some insight or idea how I could go about fixing what I’d broken.

As late as it was, he still answered on the second ring. “Yes.”

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