The Grisly Grizzlies: Caleb (The Grizzly Bear Shifters of Redemption Creek Book 2)
Page 1
The Grisly Grizzlies: Caleb
Kim Fox
Contents
About
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Epilogue
More from Kim Fox
Books by Kimberly Fox
Books by Kimberly Fox
Books by Kimberly Fox
The Grisly Grizzlies: Caleb
The Grizzly Bear Shifters of Redemption Creek
Book Two
By KIM FOX
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This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Contains explicit love scenes and adult language.
18+
www.AuthorKimFox.com
Copyright © 2018 by Kim Fox
About
The new lifeguard in town has a body that is making Caleb want to dive right in, and although he is definitely trying, he’s swimming in circles and getting nowhere. This hot bear shifter has never met a girl he can’t have until now.
Abigail is too preoccupied to focus on dating. She’s new in town and busy hiding her younger brother who has a pesky habit of turning into a wild uncontrollable lion. As interesting as the hot muscular guy who keeps hitting on her may be, she can’t get into a relationship and risk exposing her brother’s secret.
But when Abigail’s brother gets her evicted from their home, they have only one place they can go, and they’ll all have to find out if lions can play nice with grizzly bears.
Book Two in The Grisly Grizzlies Series by Kim Fox!
1
Caleb
“Two hundred and ninety-nine. Three hundred.”
I jump up and shake my arms out after my three hundred push-ups, smiling to myself as I look down at my jacked arms and chest. If this doesn’t get her going, I don’t know what will.
Actually, I have no idea what will get her going.
I’ve tried everything from love notes to my guitar to begging. Nothing has worked with this girl.
But I won’t give up. Not with her.
“You got this, Caleb,” I mutter to myself as I walk out from behind the huge cedar tree and step back onto the path that leads down to the lake. “Let’s go do some serious wooing.”
Two girls are walking toward me in the opposite direction and I smile as I pass them. They both turn red, smiling goofy smiles as I walk by. Last month, I probably would have chatted them up, invited them to my show tonight, but ever since Abigail came into town, I haven’t been interested in any other girls.
I can hear them whispering and giggling behind me as I continue down to the lake. It’s a short walk through the forest and as I follow the path around the bend, the gorgeous lake comes into view.
It’s a big lake with a nice sandy beach, and the tourists love it. The water is fresh and clean, and there’s a tall rocky cliff on the other side that emerges out of the lake like a sea monster. The young shifters of the town sometimes scale the high cliff and then jump down into the water, freaking out the tourists on the beach.
The beach gets packed with families and visitors on sunny summer days, but it’s cloudy and cold today so there’s hardly anyone here. Perfect weather for chatting up the hot lifeguard.
My heart starts beating a little faster when I see her sitting in the tall chair.
Abigail is stunning. Straight black hair with a sexy shine, eyes a mesmerizing shade of green you would only find in a secluded rainforest lagoon, a smile that will leave you so breathless you’ll be begging for CPR, and a body that will make you want to dive right in.
My body starts tingling as I step onto the cold sand and walk over. She’s facing the lake, scanning the water even though there’s no one swimming right now, and I take the opportunity of her looking away to check her out.
I’m so captivated that I almost step on a sandcastle, jumping out of the way just in time.
“Hey!” a little girl says, staring up at me with an indignant look. “Watch where you’re putting those big feet.”
I smile at the cute little girl and notice her mother a few feet away as she quickly fixes her hair and adjusts her bikini top.
“Sorry,” I say to the girl. “I didn’t see it. It’s a really cool castle though.”
“Let’s try to keep it that way,” the girl says, her voice thick with annoyance.
“Lily,” the mother snaps. “That’s not a proper way to talk to a nice man.”
The mother starts blushing when I turn to her. She’s beautiful with a captivating smile and nothing on her ring finger. I check out of habit, but I’m not interested today.
“Cute kid,” I say with a smile as I keep walking.
“Cute ass,” I hear her mumble under her breath when I’m out of a human’s earshot.
I take a deep breath and run my hand through my dirty blonde hair as I arrive at the lifeguard chair that Abigail is perched on like a regal queen.
“Hi, Abigail,” I say, trying to sound casual, but it comes out with a squeak.
“Caleb,” she says, keeping her eyes on the empty lake. “Should have known I couldn’t get through a shift without you showing up.”
“It’s such a beautiful day,” I say, cringing as I look up at the dark clouds looming overhead. “Perfect day to hang out at the beach.”
“You mean, a perfect day to annoy the local lifeguard,” she corrects with a smirk on her sexy lips.
“It’s a perfect day for that too,” I say, grinning at her.
She finally looks at me and then shakes her head as she turns back to the lake. She has a smile on her face. Well, it’s more like a grimace, but still.
My eye falls to her bare thigh and my breath starts to quicken when I see the sexy birthmark just above her knee. God, she’s hot.
“Just please don’t try any more of those lame pickup lines on me,” she says with a laugh. “You’re going to make me be the first lifeguard in history to walk into the water and drown herself on purpose.”
“Well, it’s a good thing you’re a lifeguard,” I say, unable to stop myself. “Because I’m drowning in your eyes.”
She raises her eyebrows as she turns to me. “Where the hell did you get that line?”
“The internet.”
She laughs. “You should have kept it there.”
This isn’t going as planned. With Abigail, it rarely does.
I take a deep breath as I look down the beach. There’s onl
y a handful of people here today. The mother and daughter I met on the way in, an older man sleeping in a chair, a couple reading together, and a girl walking her dog. It’s too cold for swimming and the lake is empty.
“Not a lot of action today,” I say, trying to make conversation as I look at the still lake.
“Kind of like your Friday nights,” she says with a chuckle.
“Actually,” I say, grinning as I turn up to her. “It’s Friday and I have big plans for tonight.”
“Staying home and masturbating to Baywatch does not constitute big plans,” she says with a grin.
“Baywatch?” I ask with an incredulous stare.
She shrugs. “You obviously have a thing for lifeguards.”
Not lifeguards. You.
“I was going to say that my band is playing at The Slurry Rabbit tonight.”
She’s staring at the lake with disinterest. Not the reaction I was hoping for.
I swallow hard. “Want to come and watch the show?”
“No thanks.”
It’s like the air is kicked out of me.
“Why not?” I ask after I take a moment to recover. “I know you’re not working. There are no lifeguards on the beach past seven o’clock.”
“I’m busy.”
“Doing what?”
She turns her head and narrows her eyes on me. “Is that any of your business?”
“I think so,” I say with a nod. “We’re going to be dating one day and our whereabouts will be each other’s business.”
She laughs and the sound of it makes me lightheaded even though she’s laughing at me.
“You think we’re going to be dating?”
I shrug. “Don’t you?”
“No. In fact, I know we won’t be dating.”
“That’s right,” I say, nodding as I rub my chin. “We’ll probably skip that and jump straight into marriage.”
She laughs. “Now, why would I marry someone who’s delusional?”
“Because I’m hot.”
She snorts out a laugh. “Good answer, although unfortunately, you’re not my type.”
“Why not?” I ask, feeling the familiar frustration that comes whenever I talk to this girl.
She just ignores my question as she turns back to the water. The old man who was sleeping is now awake and walking into the lake. “Will you leave me alone?” she asks. “I’m trying to survey the lake.”
We both watch as the man crouches down to his waist and stays like that.
“You can’t watch the lake and talk to me at the same time?” I ask.
She shakes her head. “No. If someone drowns while swimming because you’re bothering me, it will be your fault.”
“There’s no one swimming,” I say with a huff. “That guy is peeing.”
“Ew,” she says, scrunching her nose up as she looks at him. “That guy is peeing.”
“Good. Then you can talk to me. Where are you from, Abigail?”
“None-of-your-business-ville,” she answers curtly.
“Sounds made up.”
“Nothing gets past you.”
I swallow hard as I watch her. She appeared in the town of Redemption Creek about a month ago, and no one seems to know where she came from or anything about her. And believe me, I know. I asked everyone.
“What was it about Redemption Creek that made you want to move here?” I ask.
“Not sure, but I know what’s going to make me want to leave.”
There’s a frustrated tightness in my chest as she looks over my head at the lake. I’ve never been this inept with a girl before. Usually, my smile and my muscles are enough to get their attention. After that, a little flirting and they eat out of the palm of my hand. Every time I try with Abigail, she nearly bites my fingers off instead.
“Come see my band play tonight,” I say with a hint of desperation in my voice. “You’re new in town and I’m betting you haven’t been to any of the pubs yet. I’ll introduce you around so you can make some friends.”
“What part of ‘no thanks’ do you not understand?”
“The first part.”
She shakes her head. “Will you stop bothering me and let me work?”
I turn back to the old man. He’s back in his chair, sleeping once again. The lake is probably a bit warmer thanks to him.
“Fine,” I say with a huff of breath. It’s time to pull out the big guns. “I have to do my yoga anyway.”
I can feel her watching me as I spread out my towel a few feet in front of her.
“Please tell me that’s not happening in front of me.”
“Oh, it’s happening,” I say as I grab my shorts and yank them down my legs, revealing a tight Speedo. “Unless of course, you’re going to come to my show…”
She raises her chin and looks away without saying a word.
“All right,” I say, stepping out of my shorts. “Don’t mind me at all.”
My eyes are locked on her as I start doing squats.
She’s trying not to laugh.
“You know, you’re only supposed to have shrinkage once you go into the water,” she says with a laugh.
I know she’s kidding because I’m not lacking in that department. At all.
“Oh, my God.” She giggles and turns away as I lift my leg up. I don’t know how to do yoga, I just like making her blush.
“You can make it stop,” I say as I lift my leg up even higher. “Just say you’ll come to my show.”
She crosses her arms as her jaw tightens. She’s trying to ignore me, but I’m being very difficult to ignore. It’s one of my many charms.
“You don’t want it to stop, do you?” I ask with a grin. “You love the show.”
I turn around and bend over, giving her a view of my ass.
“I can do this all day.”
She huffs out a laugh. “I can ignore you all day.”
“Can you ignore this?”
She watches as I face her with my feet spread apart and start dipping down. “I call it the T-bag,” I say with a grin as I dip up and down.
“You should call it the d-bag,” she says, shaking her head as she tries not to laugh. “Because you’re a douchebag.”
“I love the way we banter,” I say, smiling at her.
“By banter, you mean how you harass me and I keep telling you I’m not interested?”
I shrug. “Tomato, tomato.”
“I wish I had a tomato to throw at you.”
I’m about to do my patented downward doggystyle yoga move when her phone buzzes. She pulls it out and answers it. “Hello?”
The smile drops from her face and her tanned skin turns pale as she listens. I don’t even know what’s going on but my pulse starts racing as I watch her.
“Okay,” she says. “Please don’t. It… I… It won’t happen again.”
Her eyes are squeezed shut and she’s rubbing her forehead as she listens. I lean forward, trying to hear what is being said on the other line, but even my enhanced shifter hearing can’t pick it up.
“No,” she says, swallowing hard. “Definitely not. Okay. Okay. I’ll be right there.”
She looks all panicked as she quickly turns the phone off and jumps down from the chair.
“Shit,” she whispers under her breath as she grabs her purse. “Shit. Shit. Shit.”
“Everything okay?” I ask as I step forward.
Her bewildered eyes dart to my face like she had forgotten that I was even there.
“You! Yoga boy,” she says, grabbing my arm and yanking me over. “I need your help.”
“Are you okay?” I ask. She definitely doesn’t look okay.
“No,” she says, squeezing her eyes shut. “I have to go.”
“Abigail, what’s wrong?”
She shakes her head. “Can you please sit here and make sure no one drowns until I get back?”
“Yeah, but I can—”
“Thanks!” she says as she yanks off the whistle that’s hanging around
her neck. She shoves it into my chest and sprints away, kicking up sand behind her. “Don’t leave until seven o’clock no matter what!”
“Well then,” I say once she disappears around the bend. “That didn’t go as planned.”
But then again, nothing ever goes as planned with Abigail.
With a groan, I climb up the lifeguard chair and sit on the hard wood. “What the hell am I supposed to do until seven?” I mutter as I look around the boring lake.
After five minutes of sitting there, I’m already bored. Lily and her mother are gone, so is the reading couple and the girl with the dog. Only the sleeping old man is left, and I get sick of looking at him after about five seconds.
All I wanted was to get to know her a little better, and now I’m stuck here for at least a few hours. This couldn’t possibly get any worse.
Boom. Thunder explodes from the sky, echoing over the lake.
I spoke too soon.
The sky opens up and rain comes pouring down like an industrial pipe burst in heaven.
By the time the old man wakes up and shuffles off the beach, I’m drenched.
Great. Only five hours to go.
2
Abigail
“This is going to be bad.” I’m biting my bottom lip so hard that it’s going to start bleeding as I drive my piece of crap car as fast as it will go, which isn’t fast at all.
The dark clouds have opened up and it’s pouring rain, slamming into my windshield so hard that I can barely see.
I think of poor Caleb sitting in the rain on my lifeguard chair and wince. I’ll owe him big time for this.