The Grizzly Bear's Barista: A Howls Romance (The Shifters of Sanctuary Book 3)

by Kasey Belle

  The Grizzly Bear’s Barista

  The Shifters of Sanctuary, Book3

  Kasey Belle

  Copyright ©2018

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  The Grizzly Bear’s Barista (A Howls Romance): The Shifters of Sanctuary, Book 3

  Text Copyright © 2018 Kasey Belle

  First E-book Publication: August 2018

  Cover and art copyright © 2018 Anna Josey/Sin City Book Art

  Digital Formatting by Kasey Belle

  ALL RIGHT RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.

  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, incidents are products of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales, or organizations is entirely coincidental.

  Table of Contents

  Prologue

  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

  Acknowledgement

  About The Author

  Please Stalk Me

  Other Works

  If the question is glitter, the answer is yes.

  Don’t let anyone dull your sparkle.

  Prologue

  The gods really did have a cruel sense of humor. Storm had that same thought every fucking time, because it was the only explanation he could ever come up with. It wasn’t that he was shocked to find himself in this situation, he’d just rather be anywhere but where he was.

  All teams had assigned geographic Areas of Responsibility. They didn’t stick with those territories 24/7, of course. The relatively small size of the elite SEAL forces and high demand for them to conduct strategic missions, required that all teams shift focus any time the U.S. was engaged in a major conflict or war. In other words, they went wherever the Navy ordered them to go, because their asses belonged to Uncle Sam.

  Storm’s team was assigned to Central and South America which unfortunately included the Amazon Jungle. Excuse him, Rainforest. What the fuck ever. They could pretty it up all they wanted. No matter what you called it, the Amazon sucked. Suffocating humidity. Dense trees. Spiders the size of your head… and snakes. Storm hated snakes with a fucking passion. What you found in the Amazon wasn’t your average variety garden snake you could kill with a hoe either. Nope. The slithering bastards around these parts were BFSes. Big, fucking snakes. Storm’s body shuddered. The universe certainly loved fucking with him.

  “I hate the fucking jungle,” Storm muttered to himself as he swatted at a mosquito the size of a small bird.

  Couldn’t the husband and wife American doctor duo set up shop in a sweet little village in the middle of a pristine valley somewhere? Sure, they could. But, did they? The answer: A big fat NO! They had to go and set up shop in the middle of the jungle to help the people of Colombia, which pissed off a drug lord or two and got them kidnapped. Thanks to the Drs. Brennan’s charitable natures―and the local government who didn’t give a shit about a couple of Americans, because they only cared about their drug money kickbacks, thank you very fucking much―Storm and the rest of the team found themselves dropped into Snakelandia in the middle of the fucking night.

  Storm growled. With his luck he would get eaten by an anaconda. Every time they dropped into this godforsaken place and he walked out in one piece when the mission as over the odds stacked a little more against him in the getting eaten department. Seriously. Storm had seen that movie and knew how it ended. One word: bad. With a BFS slowly squeezing the life out of him before it swallowed him whole. Was it too much to ask that this time be like all the others? Was it wrong to want to make it back to Little Creek in one piece instead of becoming some big fucking snake’s dinner? Storm certainly didn’t think he was out of line or being greedy.

  “Yo. X.” Cobra’s amused tone pulled Storm from his thoughts. He glanced over at Cobra. “You doing okay over there, Princess?”

  Even after all these years Storm still bared his teeth at the nickname. He’d all but pleaded for the team to use Storm. It was a kick ass name, but would they do it? No. The boys found it funny that Storm held the same name as one of the X-Men with an added hilarious bonus that the mutant was female. So instead of using Storm as his handle, which was cool as hell and would have been awesome, they called him X or Princess or Princess X. Fuckers.

  “You’re looking a little peaked. You’re not going to pass out on us, are you?” Cobra’s snicker, as well as the rest of the team’s, earned them a viscous glare and a middle finger salute from Storm.

  Storm’s team was aware of his utter hatred of snakes and never failed to rib him about it.

  “Girls, if we could focus here,” LT admonished. “We have a job to do and it doesn’t involve X’s phobia of all things Slytherin.” LT flashed a wide toothy grin. Obviously proud of himself.

  “My hatred of snakes isn’t abnormal, you know? The majority of the population thinks they’re creepy as fuck.” Storm rolled his eyes. Nothing like explaining yourself again for the fifty-millionth time. “Those fuckers can hide anywhere.”

  “They have beady eyes,” Cowboy interjected.

  “And weird tongues,” Steel supplied with a nod.

  “Even if they are non-poisonous, their mouths are cesspools of bacteria,” Loverboy added.

  “They’re like little legless ninjas from hell.” Swede fist bumped Cobra.

  “There’s a reason they use a snake to depict Satan in the bible,” Hulk said then paused for dramatic effect. “Coincidence?”

  “I think not,” his team responded as one.

  Like Storm said fifty-millionth time. Storm refused to acknowledge his amused teammates. Petty and ch
ildish? Maybe, but they deserved it.

  “We’ve got more than a few clicks to hump so let’s move,” LT ordered. He clapped Storm on the shoulder as he passed. “Keep an eye out for snakes, X. I’ve heard those beady eyed, weird tongued, legless little fuckers can hide anywhere like ninjas.” Storm didn’t miss the man’s low, raspy snicker as he walked away.

  They got down to business and quietly made their way through the dense jungle verbally communicating only when absolutely necessary. The team fanned out and took up their assigned positions as they surrounded the compound. Storm knelt behind a row of thick shrubs. The Drs. Brennan were in there somewhere. The team’s mission was clear. Rescue the doctors and if possible, blow the compound. Knowing Swede’s love for all things that go boom, he would make sure it happened.

  Storm could only hope the doctors would be able to leave under their own steam once rescued. Not that he and the rest of his team couldn’t carry them out. It just made humping your ass through the jungle to the extraction point a shit load easier.

  “The hills have eyes,” Loverboy’s voice came through their comms. He’d taken the sniper position in a tree about twenty yards from Storm’s right. Storm snickered at his creepy sense of humor.

  The rest of the team confirmed their positions and waited for the signal to move out. They’d been together a few years and had worked countless successful missions together. Storm didn’t doubt they’d be adding this one to the list when it was over.

  A perimeter guard came into view. Storm unsheathed his MK3 and waited until he passed. Then, like a ghost, Storm moved in behind the guard as he continued his patrol. Storm struck covering the guard’s mouth with one hand and using the other to shove the blade between his ribs. He dragged the man’s dead body and hid it in the dense growth.

  “Guard down, ready to move,” he whispered into his comms.

  LT gave the signal. Storm ran across the open area. Hugging the rear exterior wall of a metal building, he circled to the front. The building was full of supplies, but nothing else. That explained the lack of personnel. “Building southeast point clear.”

  He met up with Cobra and they eventually found the doctors in a small metal shed. The husband was lying on the dirty floor. He appeared pretty bad off. His face was bloody and swollen. Storm assumed he was unconscious since he hadn’t moved. The wife stood in front of her husband like an avenging angel. Fists clenched at her sides. Her face pinched in anger. Ready to fight them if necessary. Storm couldn’t help but be impressed at her bravado. Especially since he knew they looked scary as hell. Two larger than average men dressed in black, wearing body armor and night-vision goggles, geared up with a .45 holstered at their waists and another strapped to one thigh, an MK3 strapped to the other, along with the fully automatic assault rifles they had pointed in her direction. Yeah that would freak anyone out. Storm also had also had machete sheathed on his back.

  Storm slung his rifle over his shoulder and held out his hands. “We’re here to help you,” he whispered, trying to sound reassuring. “Do you understand?”

  “Americans?” She asked.

  “Yes, ma’am. SEAL Team Four at your service.”

  Dr. Olivia Brennan sagged in relief. Storm rushed over to check out her husband while Cobra stood watch. “One of them put their hands on me and he tried to protect me.” She glanced down at her husband. “Idiot.” The harsh word was said with the same affection that was in her eyes.

  Storm ground his teeth then spoke into his comms, “Steel, we need you. Small shed. Southwest corner.” He took a moment to check Olivia Brennan for visible injuries. She had a bruise on her right cheek and her shirt was torn, but other than that he didn’t see anything. “Are you hurt anywhere I can’t see?”

  She shook her head. “One of the men in charge stopped the other two. He wasn’t happy with them. Said they needed us unharmed and able to work. I’m not sure what that meant. We haven’t seen a patient since we’ve been here. The one in charge killed the man who beat Scott.”

  Good. One less person they had to kill. Storm glanced over his shoulder as Steel came through the door. The team’s doc knelt beside Dr. Brennan and began assessing him. The doctor moaned but didn’t open his eyes.

  Storm shoved the goggles to his forehead and leaned down, inches from Dr. Olivia Brennan’s face so he could see the truth in her eyes. “We’ve got five clicks to the extraction point. Can you make it?”

  Storm suppressed a grin as indignation filled her expression. “Of course.”

  Steel looked up at them. “He’s got bruising along his ribs. They may be broken. He’s definitely got a concussion. We’ll have to risk further injury ‘cause we gotta get the fuck out of Dodge. I’ll dope him up, so we can move him.”

  Storm nodded. “Let’s load and go.” He shoved his goggles into place. “Stay in between me and Steel, Dr. Brennan. He’ll have your husband. If you get tired, I’ll carry you.”

  She jerked a nod.

  “Get your asses moving,” LT ordered over the comms. “Swede’s ready to blow this fucker.”

  “On our way with the packages,” Storm replied.

  They made it to the tree line where the rest of the team waited. Swede turned in the direction of the compound just as a series of explosions jarred the ground under their feet. The sound roared through Storm’s ears. The earth trembled, and flames shot skyward. The night lit up with dancing orange and blue plumes as the entire compound disappeared from the face of the earth. The sight was spectacular. Swede was smiling as if he’d just watched a Fourth of July fireworks show.

  “Okay. We can go now,” Swede said with satisfaction.

  Loverboy and Hulk took up the rear to take care of any stragglers running away from the destruction. There were a few and were easily dispatched. The team made it to the extraction point with minutes to spare. Olivia Brennan was right, she’d kept up with them. The woman might have been small in stature, but she had the stamina of a soldier.

  They loaded into the Black Hawk. Twenty minutes later, they were still riding high on the success of the mission when what had to be a surface-to-air missile slammed into the tail of the helicopter. The pilot and copilot tried to control the bird with no success. The pilot radioed in a mayday and they all did the only thing they could, they held on and prayed they would survive the inevitable crash.

  Chapter 1

  Storm punched the code Koda had given him into the keypad then drove through The Sanctuary’s gate when it opened. He snickered. The Sanctuary of Sanctuary. Who does that?

  As instructed, he followed the long drive until it ended and parked in front of the cabin on the right. Just as he turned off the ignition the front door opened and the dark-haired man he’d had several Skype conversations with stepped onto the porch.

  He tossed Koda a wave before opening his door. His new boss trotted down the steps. You’d never know the guy wore a prosthetic he was so adept.

  Koda held out his hand as he approached. “It’s nice to finally meet you in person, Storm.”

  “You too, Koda.” Storm shook his hand.

  “Why don’t you come inside for something to eat and drink. Ella has a couple of friends over so there’s a veritable smorgasbord of food inside. We can take all of your stuff over to the foreman’s cabin later.”

  “Sounds like a plan. I could definitely eat.”

  Storm followed Koda through the door and they were met by a pretty redhead. “Hello,” she greeted him. There was a slight lilt to her voice. “You must be Storm. I recognize you from the photo in your employment packet. I’m Ella.”

  “Koda’s mate.” He took her hand and gently shook it. “Koda has spoken of you often.”

  “All good things I hope for his sake.”

  Storm chuckled. “I should lie, because I have a feeling the outcome would amuse me. But, I don’t think that would endear me to my new boss.”

  “Damn right it wouldn’t,” Koda muttered.

  “Hi, I’m Nikki Halsey.” A tiny
woman with caramel skin and long, dark curly hair came over. Storm sniffed. Ah, that explained her size. The woman was a fox shifter. “I’m the sanctuary’s nurse and married to Jim. You’ll probably meet him later along with Hal. They pretty much run the place because Koda slacks off a lot.”

  “Hey,” Koda said with indignation. “I do not and I’m standing right here.”

  “I know,” Nikki quipped with an impish smirk.

  Storm couldn’t help but laugh. It seemed as though his new boss had surrounded himself with sassy women. Poor bastard.

  “Jim’s off-site right now,” Nikki explained. “He took Casey―that’s my daughter, and Rainbow’s son Stevie to Missoula to pick up a part for one of the ATVs. He was planning to treat them to pizza afterward for volunteering to help.” She used air quotes. “He asked me to apologize for him not being here when you arrived.”

  Storm waved of her apology. “No big deal. I didn’t expect everyone to drop everything for me. I’ll catch up with him sooner or later.”

  A flash of color in Storm’s peripheral vision caught his attention. A woman entered the den through a pair of French doors he assumed led to the backyard. Her hair was a vibrant mix of teal, blue, and purple. The colors reminded Storm of mermaid scales. He shook his head at the fanciful thought. She looked up and saw him watching her and froze. Damn she was pretty. Flawless peaches and cream skin, wide cornflower blue eyes, a pert nose, and full rose-colored lips. She wore some sort of flowy top the color of orange sherbet over a pair of black leggings that ended mid-calf. There was a blue beaded anklet around her right ankle and her feet were bare. Pink polish adorned her cute little toes. Cute little toes? Where the hell had that come from? Since when did he think toes were cute? Did he have a foot fetish he wasn't aware of?

  “Rainbow come over and meet Storm.” Ella waved her over.

  Suddenly, the scents of vanilla and buttercream icing smacked him in the face bringing to mind Storm’s favorite dessert. His mouth watered, and dick became instantly hard and uncomfortable. What the hell? That was certainly an abnormal reaction to cupcakes. Storm glanced at the food on the kitchen counters. There were trays of sandwiches, brownies, cookies and scones, and a few bowls of chips. He didn’t see any frosted, bite-sized clouds of heaven.