by Bianca D'Arc
John hung up the phone and sighed. He’d just spoken to the Kinkaid Alpha—a billionaire lion shifter who led a rather odd mixture of land and sea shifters. The complicated lineage had led the Kinkaids from Ireland to Africa and then to America, where the mixed up Clan now kept its headquarters. The Kinkaids were best known for their lions, but they also laid claim to a very magical selkie heritage. It was the selkies John needed to consult, but to do that, he had to gain agreement from the Alpha—a badass lion with a reputation for being sharp in his business dealings and fair with his people.
In the end, it had been surprisingly simple to get Samson Kinkaid to agree to ask one of his people to come out and consult on their little leviathan problem. Turns out, the lion Alpha knew more about the leviathan than John had expected. Seems they’d run into the issue themselves a short while back, in the Atlantic. That the leviathan had moved to the Pacific was news to Kinkaid, but he was quick to offer help once he realized the creature had, indeed, jumped oceans.
At least one selkie—a seal shifter out of Irish legends—was already en route, with the possibility of more on the way. John had the dubious task of keeping the Kinkaid representative safe while in his domain. He wanted selkie input on the leviathan problem, but he didn’t want anyone harmed.
He especially didn’t want any of Kinkaid’s people harmed while in John’s territory. The last thing he wanted was to piss off the lions.
It looked like interesting times were ahead for the residents of Grizzly Cove. For one thing, John wasn’t sure how the mer were going to get along with the selkies. He hadn’t really had time to run this idea past Nansee yet. When he’d put the call in to Kinkaid, he’d had to wait for a reply, since the lion Alpha had been off the grid.
John had placed that first call weeks ago and, frankly, had forgotten all about it in light of the arrival of the mer in the cove. Apparently, Kinkaid was back in coms range now and had just called back. The fact that Kinkaid might go off-grid again at any moment had left John no time to consult with the mer leader.
He sighed. He was the Alpha, and it was on his head. He only hoped the introduction of yet another new shifter species into the small town wouldn’t cause more problems than it could potentially solve. Still, he had to admit, they needed all hands on deck to battle the leviathan, and he’d take any assistance that was offered. If that meant the water shifters would have to figure out the dominance chain, then so be it.
With the leviathan stalking their shores, they needed all the help they could get.
*
Thanks for reading The Bear’s Healing Touch (Grizzly Cove #7). If you enjoyed this book, please consider leaving a review.
The next Grizzly Cove story is called The Luck of the Shifters. Coming in March 2017.
A complete list of all of Bianca’s books, separated by series, follows the excerpt. You can also check out Bianca’s website at WWW.BIANCADARC.COM. Or you can sign up for Bianca’s Newsletter to be alerted when new books are released.
Excerpt from The Luck of the Shifters
©2017 Bianca D’Arc. All Rights Reserved.
Moira had been pleased to see the way the two very different shifter populations were blending and working together in the town. She was very used to that sort of thing in her Clan, but it wasn’t common anywhere else.
She was taking her time getting to know these people. It wouldn’t do to ride into town and try to take over. Moira knew better than that. She had to see what she could contribute here first, before she let loose with her selkie viewpoints and knowledge—which were usually quite different from those held by land shifters…even those in her own Clan.
So she was walking the beach, trying to get the lay of the land. She’d never been to this part of the Pacific coastline before and she was enjoying learning the timing of the tides and the personality of the waters here. It was a lovely place.
Except for the drunk passed out on the beach a few yards away.
Moira sighed. It never failed. There was always one drunkard in the group—even though it took enormous amounts of alcohol to affect a shifter. Their metabolisms made it difficult for most drugs or other substances to affect them, so a person really had to be dedicated to get and maintain a stupor.
She knew many of the residents here were veterans, so she felt a little pang of compassion, even though she didn’t know this particular shifter’s story. Yet.
She couldn’t just leave him where he was. The tide was coming in and he was face down on the beach. If he didn’t wake up soon, he’d most likely drown. Even this far away she could catch a faint bit of his scent. What wasn’t soaked in alcohol was furry, not fishy, so leaving him where the water would cover him wasn’t a good idea. With a resigned cadence to her feet, she marched over to the unconscious man.
Moira wasn’t sure how he would react, so she prodded him with her toe first, hoping to wake him. When he didn’t respond, she pushed a little harder, flipping him onto his back.
Her breath caught unconsciously when she saw his face for the first time. Hard, angular features were slack in sleep, but he was a handsome devil. His hair was unruly and naturally curled. It would probably hang down just past the tips of his ears, she thought. It was dark now, with moisture absorbed from the sand, but she saw hints of gold in the tousled curls.
He would clean up handsome, if she didn’t miss her guess, but he wasn’t a giant of a man. Not like the other bear shifters who lived here. No, he was built more like a rather muscular, fit, totally hot human, which suited her just fine because she was rather petite for a selkie.
And why in the world was she thinking about this strange man’s stature in relation to her own? Moira shook herself. She’d come here to do a job, not get mixed up with some sad case shifter who drank too much.
Now that she was closer to him, the scent of alcohol and fur mixed with…eucalyptus? Just faintly, but it was there. Maybe he liked cough drops? Though, as far as she knew, shifters didn’t really get casual colds the way humans did. The handsome guy on the sand at her feet was a puzzle, that was for sure.
She touched him with her toe again, trying to nudge him awake. She didn’t want to get too close in case he woke up disoriented and took a swipe at her. She’d startled a few lion shifters from her Clan awake in the past and had learned to approach cautiously.
A faint moan was her reward. Maybe he was waking up.
“Hey, mister, you’re going to get hit by the tide if you don’t get up soon.”
Another growling moan sounded, a bit louder this time. She nudged him with her toe again.
“Oi! Leave off,” he growled with an accent. She couldn’t be sure, but he didn’t sound like one of her cousins from County Kerry. He didn’t sound American, either.
“Hey, mister, get up or you’re going to get wet in…” she looked at the approaching water. As a water shifter, she was a good judge of the tide, and it was coming in fast now. Yeah, the drunk guy was going to get wet. She almost sighed. Here it came… “Three, two, one,” she counted down, watching the inevitable as the water sloshed over the man’s sneakers and up to mid-thigh.
“Shite, that’s cold!” The man skittered away from the retreating water, suddenly mobile. Moira wanted to laugh, but refrained, merely following his progress with a smile she couldn’t repress.
He ended up a short way up the dune, sitting on his butt with his knees drawn up and his arms resting over them, his head hung low as he dragged his hands through his shaggy hair. His jeans were wet from the middle of his muscular thighs down to his scuffed sneakers and he wore a denim jacket over what looked like a soft, Army green T-shirt.
“Do you need me to call anyone?” she asked tentatively, moving a bit closer. She didn’t want to leave him out here like this if there was something she could do to help. He was in sorry shape for a shifter.
Bloodshot blue eyes met hers as he looked up. Then his eyes narrowed as he took her in.
“You’re not a bear and you’re not a fish,” he said, looking he
r up and down. “And you’re not human or witch. You’re a shifter, but what sort?” He sniffed in her direction—rather rudely, she thought—and then his face went even paler, if that was possible. “It can’t be…”
“You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” she couldn’t help but remark.
“Maybe I have. Or maybe the selkies have sent you to take their revenge on my worthless hide once and for all.” He lowered his gaze, dipped his head and she thought maybe she’d glimpsed tears in his eyes before he’d hidden them. His words were troubling.
“I’m a selkie, but I’ve come here at the invitation of the Alpha to consult on the leviathan problem. Who are you that you recognize my kind? And why do you think we’d seek revenge against you?”
She tried to put a bit of firmness into her voice. Her brothers were so much better at intimidation than she would ever be, but she’d learned a thing or two growing up with them.
“Because of the boy,” he whispered, staring into the approaching waves as if they held the answer.
To read more, get your copy of The Luck of the Shifters by Bianca D’Arc.
About the Author
Bianca D’Arc has run a laboratory, climbed the corporate ladder in the shark-infested streets of lower Manhattan, studied and taught martial arts, and earned the right to put a whole bunch of letters after her name, but she’s always enjoyed writing more than any of her other pursuits. She grew up and still lives on Long Island, where she keeps busy with an extensive garden, several aquariums full of very demanding fish, and writing her favorite genres of paranormal, fantasy and sci-fi romance.
Bianca loves to hear from readers and can be reached through Twitter (@BiancaDArc), Facebook (BiancaDArcAuthor) or through the various links on her website.
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Other Books by Bianca D’Arc
Paranormal Romance
Brotherhood of Blood
One & Only
Rare Vintage
Phantom Desires
Sweeter Than Wine
Forever Valentine
Wolf Hills*
Wolf Quest
Tales of the Were
Lords of the Were
Inferno
Tales of the Were ~ The Others
Rocky
Slade
Tales of the Were ~ Redstone Clan
The Purrfect Stranger
Grif
Red
Magnus
Bobcat
Matt
Tales of the Were ~ String of Fate
Cat’s Cradle
King’s Throne
Jacob’s Ladder
Her Warriors
Tales of the Were ~ Grizzly Cove
All About the Bear
Mating Dance
Night Shift
Alpha Bear
Saving Grace
Bearliest Catch
The Bear’s Healing Touch
The Luck of the Shifters
Guardians of the Dark
Half Past Dead
Once Bitten, Twice Dead
A Darker Shade of Dead
The Beast Within
Dead Alert
Gifts of the Ancients: Warrior’s Heart
Epic Fantasy Erotic Romance
Dragon Knights
Maiden Flight*
The Dragon Healer
Border Lair
Master at Arms
The Ice Dragon**
Prince of Spies***
Wings of Change
FireDrake
Dragon Storm
Keeper of the Flame
Hidden Dragons
The Sea Captain’s Daughter Trilogy
Book 1: Sea Dragon
Book 2: Dragon Fire
Book 3: Dragon Mates
Science Fiction Romance
StarLords
Hidden Talent
Talent For Trouble
Shy Talent
Jit’Suku Chronicles ~ Arcana
End of the Line
King of Swords
King of Cups
King of Clubs
King of Stars
Diva
Jit’Suku Chronicles ~ Sons of Amber
Angel in the Badlands
Master of Her Heart
Futuristic Erotic Romance
Resonance Mates
Hara’s Legacy**
Davin’s Quest
Jaci’s Experiment
Grady’s Awakening
Harry’s Sacrifice
Print Anthologies
Ladies of the Lair
I Dream of Dragons Vol. 1
Brotherhood of Blood
Caught by Cupid
The Beast Within
* RT Book Reviews Awards Nominee
** EPPIE Award Winner
*** CAPA Award Winner