Shifters in the Snow: Bundle of Joy: Seventeen Paranormal Romances of Winter Wolves, Merry Bears, and Holiday Spirits

by J. K Harper

  My legs were tired from their day’s travel, but I could and would still run. Send him on a merry chase around the store… lose him in the aisles and sneak back to Ava, for surely he would have to put her down to chase me. I nodded to myself, knowing what I had to do, but he seemed to take that as me giving up. He came closer again, stepping away from the restroom door. “Good, you made the right choice, come on. Let’s get this over with shall we? What’s your name?”

  “Fat chance of that!” I said and bolted down the snack aisle back the way I’d came.

  “Goddamit!” I heard him yell from behind, and unable to know for sure if he was following—I wasn’t going to take the chance to find out—I kept running, abandoning my food and lantern along the way. My worn-out sneakers squeaked as I turned into the next aisle, never keeping to the same one for very long. Once I thought I’d gone far enough, I stopped dead still. My lungs burned, but I forced myself to breathe slowly, trying not to give my position away. I closed my eyes and let the sounds of the store prickle into focus.

  Everything was quiet.

  Ava had stopped crying, I thought with a start, my eyes springing open. The most horrible things crashed through my mind like a storming rhino. What had he done to her?!

  I quickly but quietly hurried back to the front, edging along until the restroom door came into view. I was about thirty meters away, but even with the gloom of the store I could see no one.

  Ten, nine, eight… I counted down, preparing myself to launch to where I’d last seen him with Ava, grab her, and run for it. The guy looked big, and he’d obviously not chased me before, so perhaps he would be too slow to stop and catch me now. I rocked back on my heels at the count of two just as he emerged from the right. He stood silhouetted in front of the glass doors.

  “Come on, I know you’re there. Out you come. This is silly. You’ve got nowhere to run to; you won’t leave your baby behind. And I’m not going to hurt you.”

  My throat thickened, the lump almost constricting my airway it felt so big. Could I trust him? My instincts were telling me yes, but with everything on the line I didn’t feel like I could chance it.

  “What will…” I started, my voice croaky and small. “What will you do to me if I do what you say?” I stepped around the end of the aisle and faced him, willing myself to be brave. Then I saw her in his arms, waving her chubby arms about like she didn’t have a care in the world. Like she belonged there.

  “We’ll just get this sorted out. I’ll have to call the sheriff, of course—”

  “No! No police.”

  He came to stand by the checkouts. “Look, I don’t want to, but you did break in. I have to report this.”

  “But why? Just give me my baby and I’ll go right now, I promise. I didn’t take anything, not really.”

  He sighed and bounced Ava, and she gurgled appreciatively. “You can’t go out there, it’s freezing. Where would you go?”

  I shrugged. “It doesn’t matter… anywhere. Just please don’t let me get arrested.”

  “It does matter. What were you planning to do, sleep in here?”

  “Yes! And only for one night, I was desperate. I had no money left for anywhere else, and I was hoping to…” I stopped. Behind him, out in the dark night, flickering lights appeared, approaching from the right. Red and blue ones. The lights bounced off the metal surfaces of the checkouts, which reflected them all over the store.

  “Come on, I’m not going to hurt you or your little one. Here, she wants her mom,” he said, oblivious to the light show going on around him. “Maybe we can figure something out instead.”

  “You called them?! You lying piece of—”

  “Wait. No! Dammit,” he said, puzzled, and looked around. He advanced again, no doubt wanting to try and catch me before I fled so he could hand me off to the sheriff. But I was onto him, trying to lure me into thinking he was going to let me go.

  “You think you’re so good, don’t you? Arresting a homeless mother near Christmas! And here I was starting to believe that you were actually a nice guy.”

  “I didn’t call them!”

  “Yeah, sure.”

  “Look, you might as well just come with me. The sheriff will just let you off with a warning or something. I’ll stick up for you.”

  “A likely story. I don’t believe a word you’re saying. All men are fucking liars!”

  A hooting from what I presumed was the sheriff’s vehicle sounded, startling Ava, who let out a short cry. The security guy tried to take this opportunity to lunge for me, his long-legged strides carrying him around the checkouts before I even realized what was happening.

  His hand clamped down around my wrist, and I instinctively tried to pull away. But there was something about him, those glowing eyes that made something stir deep inside me, something that hadn’t been disturbed for years.

  “Give me my baby and let me go!”

  “Not a chance.”

  I tried to grab hold of Ava, but he had her tucked safety against his chest while he pulled me inch by inch by my wrist towards the doors and the awaiting cuffs that doubtless would shackle me.

  “Let me go, you evil scrooge!”

  “Scrooge, is it?”

  “Please, don’t do this!” I yelled then kicked out as wildly and as hard as I could. My foot connected with his shin, but he didn’t even flinch. It felt like I’d been the one who had been kicked; my toes throbbed. I tried again but this time aiming for every guy’s weak spot, right for the gonads. He would have to release me then, surely. But he was strong. And if this had been any other occasion, I probably would’ve found him attractive, what with his bulging forearms, thick but sculpted neck… and god knows what condition he had, but those eyes were damn right magical.

  “Oomph!” he called out as my foot struck gold. He moaned and whimpered in pain and let go of my wrist in order to comfort his family jewels while still holding on tightly to Ava. I couldn’t release her from his grasp. “You little minx!” He reached for me again, and I had no choice but to scramble away, half in a crouch to keep my balance. Oh god, what was I doing?

  My legs kept moving, while my heart pulled me the other way to my baby. “Hey, wait! Come back. I’m sorry!” But I had to run, or be caught. It would do neither of us any good if I stayed and got put in jail… ducking into the shadows of a nearby aisle, I stopped as I heard a loud tapping noise on a glass pane. It was the sheriff; it had to be. The guard would let him in, and that would be it… over. Ava would be gone, and I would be arrested.

  As I paced silently one aisle back, the security guard once again chose not to pursue me and instead went to answer the knocking. I took a moment to get my breath back. Was I really going to do this? Run while he had my baby? But something in his eyes—kind, warm eyes—told me I didn’t have to worry. And yet trust was on short supply lately.

  Chapter 4

  Joseph

  The last thing I ever expected to hear when I entered the store was the sound of a crying baby. Thoughts of the intruder disappeared as I followed the sound. The small cry was muffled, but to my ears it was as loud as a persistent alarm that startles you out of bed at the crack of dawn. I had to go to it; I had to stop the crying. My over-sensitive hearing was sometimes more of a curse than a blessing in this day and age. Another reason why the call to the mountains had been so alluring.

  With a gentle push I cracked open the ladies’ restroom door. The sound became increasingly loud, and I went to it. A tiny creature no longer than my forearm was bundled up in the hollow of a duffel bag. Legs and arms kicking the air as if the baby was offended by it. I didn’t think twice before scooping the kid up into my arms, the reaction surprising even me. For a moment of blissful silence, the baby stopped crying, its eyes wide at the sudden contact.

  “Shh,” I soothed. That’s what you said to babies when they cried, wasn’t it? I had no clue. What did I know about babies? Absolutely sweet F-all. I don't think I’d even held one before. Not even my sister’s l
ittle one, which I’d never had the chance to meet. “What are you doing in here, huh? Where’s your mom?” I asked, thinking myself a tad foolish. As if the kid was going to start talking back and engage in a full-on conversation with me. Stranger things had happened in my life, but he or she must’ve been only a few months old. Her head was still a little bit flopsy, so that would’ve really been the cherry on top of this night if she had started to chat away.

  I cradled her. I had decided that she was a girl—she had to be, what with those gorgeous, curious eyes and rosy cheeks, which were perhaps brought on by her little crying session. I was totally smitten. I could stare at her for hours, I thought, as I held her helpless little body in my arms. It was enough to make a grown man broody.

  I supposed the feeling had to come sooner or later, the need to find a mate and start a family and have a few little cubs of my own, much like Jake, my clan leader. He’d warned me about it over a few drinks in the bar, but I shrugged off his predictions, putting them down to him being so loved up with a kid of his own. Not everyone could find their true mate, though even I had to admit it was starting to happen more and more, the pairing up of shifters and humans as the valley filled up with new arrivals. Scarfell Mountain and Valley were becoming a love-mecca of sorts.

  I’d been one of the first to follow through and be accepted to the valley after finding a vague post about a new community that had popped up seemingly overnight on a secret shifter message board. There had been extensive hoops to go through, and at one point I wasn’t too sure the hassle of moving my ass halfway across the county would be worth it, but once I arrived, I knew—regardless of whether I’d find a mate or not (especially since that was not one of the reasons I decided to accept Jake’s invite)—I would stay. I’d found my true home.

  Eventually, after the interviews, I was given the all-clear by a small committee and was welcomed cautiously at first to the remote town. They even offered me a job at the lumber mill if I wanted it, but I’d never been that great with my hands or machinery and instead managed to land a night shift as a security guard a few towns over. It was a bit of a drive, but the job was worth it and was much more suitable for my temperament. The solitude and quiet were also good for the almost lazy bear inside me. Plus I got to sleep all day as an added bonus.

  What I didn’t expect to find was a tiny baby, abandoned in the ladies’ bathroom of the store. I mean we had a fair few incidents during the day, if the reports from the other security guards were anything go by, chancers trying to get away with shop-lifting a couple of choice items, but the night shift had always been quiet since I’d come aboard… I never had to deal with anything as serious as an abandoned baby. I didn’t know what to do. There wasn’t exactly a security guide-book that told you step-by-step what to do in these types of circumstances.

  I guessed I would have to call the sheriff, maybe even take her to the hospital… and then, god, she would be passed on to social services, swallowed whole by the system. That didn’t seem to sit well with me… especially not so close to Christmas.

  She continued crying—hungry, perhaps—and I bounced her as I made my way out of the bathroom into the store. All of a sudden a clear-as-day, mouthwatering smell drifted across my path. How had I not noticed that before? Too preoccupied with the cries of the child, I considered. But now there was no mistaking it… and when I thought about it, even the baby was enveloped in that alluring smell. It seemed like all my senses were being overloaded, so much so that in those last few moments I’d completely forgotten about the intruder I’d seen on the monitors.

  My neck prickled, and with the baby in my arms, I waited. I could hear the small squeaks of footsteps against the polished store floor. They were coming closer, slow and cautious. And that scent was getting stronger. There was no doubt in my mind it was the mother of the child… and I had to see her. I needed to.

  The thickness in my throat increased, making it hard to swallow as I sensed her approach from the left. Coming down the snack aisle as I predicted, the one nearly opposite the bathrooms.

  Forcing myself to speak, I broke then tension-laced silence, calling for her to reveal herself.

  And god, when she did… When she turned that corner at the end of the aisle and stepped into view, lit only by the timid glow of the security lights and the beam of my torch, I was almost knocked back on my heels.

  Something akin to pain twisted inside my chest, and I blinked, watching the fear and desperation on her round face. Everything inside me knew my arms belonged wrapped around her. But I had to remember she was a stranger, a human… not everyone would have understood my reaction in that moment. And yet my legs—my instincts—overrode all semblance of sense, and I went towards her.

  I cursed when she bolted after our little back-and-forth. What a foolish thing to do—she was obviously scared. Scared of getting caught and scared that I had her child. But she had to know I wouldn’t harm her? Surely she had to. The paired-up shifters and their human counterparts always told me that they knew right away that there was something special about the other person. But I supposed from anyone else’s perspective I did look large and menacing to those who didn’t know me. Most bear shifters experienced the same sorts of reactions that I got, so I guess I was used to it. Except her reaction to me—someone I’d never met—pained me. She’d run when all I wanted to do was comfort her and tell her everything would work out for the best.

  I’d have to wait, I thought, I’d have to give her time to come back… chasing her around the store would only make things worse. I backed a few steps into the shadows; the baby was calmer now, and the crying had stopped, and she was reaching up as if she wanted to inspect my face and play with my beard.

  It took only a few minutes of perhaps anxious indecision before the woman returned, realizing that I hadn’t gone after her as she’d thought I might. My heart lurched again when I saw her and then did triple somersaults as she spoke.

  She was undoubtedly frightened, but that hardly came across in her voice. She had the look of a fierce mama lion, determined to get back what was hers… and god help the person who got in her way. The thought made me smile. Though I already knew I wouldn’t ever want to harm her in any way, she would perhaps meet her match in me.

  I wanted to find out her name—the baby’s name, too—but things were getting off on the wrong foot. Perhaps I didn’t need to phone the sheriff. What would be the harm in letting her go? Except that maybe I wouldn’t ever see her again? She’d bolt as soon as I handed over the child, but that wasn’t something that was my right to stop. I couldn’t keep a mother and child separated, knowing how much it had affected me growing up.

  Just as I was about to hand the baby over, even though she felt right in my arms, like she belonged, the woman’s face twisted. All the trust that I’d slowly accumulated and built up evaporated into thin air.

  “You called them?! You lying piece of—”

  The alternating flashes of a vibrant blue and translucent cherry red bathed and reflected off the walls, floors and surfaces at the store’s entryway. Oh shit. It must’ve been after midnight already.

  Patrick, the local sheriff, whenever he got off shift would stop by the store on his way home to check in, to make sure everything was okay, and to shoot the breeze. He was a good guy, and if I didn’t know better, a shifter, too… though he hadn’t revealed himself yet. I could just smell it on him. But it wasn’t like shifters went around telling anyone and everyone what they were, even if there had been talk and whispering amongst the townspeople. They had instincts of their own, and while they weren’t readily discussed, they knew things were not all as they seemed, what with the strange goings-on on the outskirts of the mountain and valley.

  The woman looked like she was going to spring away at any moment; one wrong move would put her over the edge. But I still couldn’t let her leave—my bear wouldn’t allow that. A car horn cried out in the parking lot like a bellowing beast, which did nothing for her nerves, I cou
ld tell.

  So I did the only thing I could do and pounced, acting before I could talk myself out of it. I would apologize later, of that I was certain.

  I rushed around the checkout using my speed before she figured out what was happening. She yelled at me as my only free hand—the other still holding onto the baby—clamped around her wrist, preventing her from turning and running away again. But if I thought it would’ve been easy to keep her there, that she would just give up and do what I asked her, then I had another thing coming. She twisted, pulled, and I could even believe that she would’ve bitten me if given half a chance.

  And yet I didn’t see the low blow come out of nowhere. God, she hit me hard! I bowed over, mostly from the shock and the lightning-like strike that burned its way through my body, rendering me momentarily dazed.

  Thankfully I still had the presence of mind to keep hold of the baby, much to the woman’s displeasure, and when Patrick knocked on the doors—no doubt wondering where I was—I tried to grab her again, but she backed away, this time out of reach, and fled into the stacks.

  * * *

  The darkness took her, and I lost sight of her as she ran farther back into the store. Another knock from Patrick, more urgent this time, and I knew I had to let him in before he came in to investigate for himself. Not finding me in the security office around back would’ve already made him worry.

  I half jogged back to the front, wincing slightly as my tender balls clanged against my thighs. The baby though, didn’t seem to mind the jostling while I held her like a football in the crook of my arm. I was already trying to figure out what I was going to say about the obvious. ’Cause, though small-town sheriffs were not really known for their observation skills, Patrick on the other hand could pick up on practically anything… another tick in the box as to why I thought there was more to him that meets the eye.