Simply Bears: A Ten Book Paranormal Bear Shifter Romance Collection

by Simply Shifters

  Ursula opened the door with a weary smile. The man scowled in return, and Ursula suddenly wondered if calling for animal control that late at night was suddenly such a good idea.

  “I oughtta fine ya for not controlling your animals, lady.”

  “My ani-?” Ursula felt taken aback. “Sir, they are not my dogs. I called because I-”

  “Lady, does it look like I care? The animals are on your property, so they’re your dogs. I really oughtta fine you, but I’ll let you off the hook this time. Next time I won’t be so kind.”

  The man turned his back. He seemed to scan her property, and then clicked on a flashlight . She felt her face heat up, wanting to argue, but she knew it wouldn’t do any good. She’d look into reporting him in the morning.

  The man stepped into the yard and whistled, calling for the dogs. She watched him for a moment before sighing and retreating back inside the house, leaving the front door open.

  Ursula flipped on a few lights and walked into the kitchen. She glanced at the back door nervously, but knew if any trouble would arise, the animal control officer would do something about it.

  She turned on the stove, filled a kettle with water and let it sit. Ursula knew she should get to sleep—she opened the bakery early in the morning — but her nerves and mind wouldn’t let her.

  A tapping came from the back door, and Ursula swung around, prepared to see a snarling dog but was met with the unpleasant face of the officer.

  Ursula sighed and opened the door. The man awkwardly let himself in and she locked the door, peering out nervously before snapping her attention back to the man in front of her.

  “I don’t see no dogs, but if I get called over here again, I won’t be afraid to fine ya, is that clear?”

  Ursula clenched her jaw. Arguing wouldn’t get her anywhere; she just nodded and jerked her hand in the direction of the front door. “Well, sorry to have bothered you. Have a nice night, sir.” She put as much poison into her words as she could.

  The man stared at her, nodded, and walked down the hallway to the front door. She followed, but the man slammed the front door before she could close it herself. Ursula stopped herself from hitting the door in frustration. She just turned the lock and sighed.

  Where did the dogs go? She knew she had heard them, it wasn’t her imagination. Dogs didn’t just disappear, but she couldn’t even begin to wonder where they could have gone.

  Ursula was glad that the man finally left. She realized she didn’t catch his name, and groaned, frustrated. Things were going so well, she didn’t want anything to ruin the new start she created for herself.

  She knew she would find another solution if the dogs came back again. She would do her best to continue being positive and go down the path she has always wanted to go down. No dogs or shady animal control officer was going to stop that. She wouldn’t let anything else get in her way.

  From the kitchen, the kettle whistled. It was going to be a long night.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Ursula yawned and grabbed some chocolate chips from the store’s shelves. She yawned again and rolled her cart forward, numbly going from aisle to aisle, picking up the supplies she needed in a mechanical manner.

  The routine was etched into her mind perfectly, her mind barely having to think of where to turn and what to grab. It didn’t help that she barely had any rest the night before.

  Even after having some tea and watching some T.V, Ursula found she couldn’t relax. Every noise made her jump, she had checked the locks on her doors and windows at least five times but still she hadn’t felt satisfied that she was fully safe.

  The idea of the dogs just disappearing disturbed her. Perhaps the scratching was purely innocent, but who knows how many other strays were out there? Besides the two typical hounds she found, the idea of the dogs becoming more aggressive scared her, especially if there were more than just the two.

  Ursula turned down another aisle and the front of her cart hit something that let

  out an audible “ooph!”. She blinked, snapping out of her thoughts realized that she had ran into someone.

  “I am so sorry! I wasn’t paying attention, are you-” The man’s face before her sunk in to her memory and she realized she had bumped into the handsome stranger she had met the other day. “Walter?”

  Walter gave her a sly grin, though his eyes widened in surprise that reflected her own. “Fancy bumping into you here.”

  “Are you okay?”

  Walter let out a laugh and stepped around the cart to be closer to her. “Trust me, a shopping cart isn’t going to do much harm. I’m just glad it was a cart and not a car.”

  Now it was Ursula’s turn to let out a laugh. “How is it that I’ve never seen you before around town up until yesterday, and now I’m running into you all over the place?”

  “Plot twist; I’m stalking you. I’m a huge fan of your cooking and I just have to know the secret to your culinary skills.” He grinned. “I’m kidding, though now I’m happy to say I can finally admit to you face to face that I think your croissant was pretty damn good. I admit defeat, Miss Chef.”

  “You’re sweet. I’m glad I made another customer happy.”

  Walter smiled and quickly glanced her up and down, silently contemplating. “Got any plans for today? You working?”

  “No, today’s my day off. Usually I shut the bakery down on Sundays to let the kids spend time with family and friends and-”

  “Good. I’ll pick you up at your place in an hour. How does that sound?”

  She let out a laugh and said “well, I mean...I...”

  Walter gave her a sly smile, pulled a pen out of his back pocket, took her hand and scribbled his number on her wrist in sharp and precise penmanship. “Just text me your address and I’ll be there.” He gave her a wink.

  Before she could protest or agree, Walter was around the corner and out of her sight, just as he had been the first time she had met him. Although the heat of the moment left her standing there in shock and wonder, a smile crept onto her face. A very odd man, indeed.

  ***

  Ursula caught herself humming as she grabbed the last of her bags and headed for the parking lot, leaving the cold market behind, and out into the hot afternoon.

  She hadn’t stopped smiling, and she knew she’d be a grinning idiot in no time if they kept this playful attitude up. Ursula took her key out of her pocket, but stopped when she saw two familiar figures creeping around the parking lot, the dogs that kept lingering outside her house.

  Ursula felt her heart beat violently in her chest and slinked to the side, hiding behind a car, and hoping the dogs hadn’t heard or seen her.

  Peeking through the glass, she realized that the dogs hadn’t seen her, nor did they have any friends in the area. Or so she hoped.

  Her sleek vehicle glistened in the sunlight out of the corner of her eye, and she nearly dropped her keys. Before she could hesitate, Ursula ran, darting through the cars and in one swift move, she opened the door, slid in and slammed it shut. Ursula held her breath, expecting the dogs to bolt out and attack the car, but she was left alone with her terrifying thoughts.

  Was she going crazy? Or was there something seriously wrong? Ursula didn’t have an explanation, but she wanted nothing more than to be left alone now. She was glad she hadn’t adopted them. What would have happened if she had?

  Ursula started up the car and pulled out of the parking lot, taking the road that

  led home. Before the market was out of sight, she gained the courage to look back at the shop. The dogs were nowhere to be seen.

  *

  By the time Ursula got home, she realized she only had twenty minutes left before Walter would be knocking on her door. She had sent the text when she pulled into the safety of her garage, but now she hurriedly changed from her sweat pants and tank top to a green summer dress her mother had told her brought out the beautiful shine in dark brown hair.

  Curiosity plagued her mind as she got ready, no
t sure what Walter exactly had in mind nor could she fathom how an idea struck him so quickly. She glanced at the clock again, and just as she did, the doorbell rang.

  Ursula jumped and nearly tripped on her feet as she got up and tried her hardest not to race for the door. When she opened it, Walter stood there in a dark blue button up shirt, a nice pair of jeans, a simple belt and casual shoes. It was a bit odd seeing him dressed a bit more...neatly from his usual torn jeans and t-shirts the past few days, but it was something she knew she could get used to.

  Walter looked her up and down and back up at her eyes and smiled. “You clean up nicely.”

  “Strange, I was about to say the same thing to you.”

  Walter let out a laugh and gently took her hand, guiding her out. “You ready?”

  “Yes, just let me lock up the house, first...”

  Ursula took out the key from her handbag and made sure the door wouldn’t budge before nervously looking around. No signs of the dogs. Good.

  Walter seemed to sense her uneasiness. “Everything okay?”

  “Yeah, it’s nothing. Ready to go?”

  Walter gave her a look before nodding and guided her to his car. He held the door open for her and she slid in. The car was a tad old, but in good shape. When Ursula breathed in, she was struck with the strong smell of the woods: lilacs, oaks, and rue.

  Walter slid in to the driver’s side and Ursula almost gasped, being shaken from her intense vision of the forest that surrounds her home. He looked over at her and gave her a wolfish smile. “Ready to go?”

  Ursula mimicked the smile. “Ready when you are.”

  ***

  The pier jetted out in the Pacific Ocean, a long boardwalk that stretched out into the calm, cold water that could turn rough in a matter of minutes. On each side of the pier were games, rides, and restaurants that buzzed with activity on weekends and during the summers when the heat was unforgiving and the local teenagers came out to play with their significant others.

  Ursula couldn’t remember the last time she had been there, it was probably when both of her parents had been alive. She had spent countless of summers and weekends with friends and romances she lost contact with, just watching the days go by as they tried to win large teddy bears, stuff their faces with cotton candy, and dared each other to dip themselves into the water during the harsh winters.

  “I hope you like games.”

  “I haven’t been here in years.”

  “I haven’t been here, period.”

  “Really? But I thought everyone in town came here at least once.”

  Walter seemed uneasy. “Well, I’m not quite from town. Where I’m from, we weren’t really allowed to go and see this place. Now that I moved a while back ago, I realized it’d be a great time to check it out. If you’d rather do something else, I-”

  Ursula slipped her hand into Walter’s and smiled. “Walter, it’s okay. I love the pier, let’s just have fun, okay?”

  Walter held her hand back and grinned. “Then let’s get started.”

  The day became a blur; filled with games, treats, daring each other to go on scary ride after terrifying ride that Ursula would never have gone on on her own, and eating Twinkies that turned into a ‘who could eat theirs faster’ competition. Ursula had laughed with crumbs and sugar on her face and Walter laughed along as he dabbed her face with a napkin. Ursula couldn’t remember the last time she laughed like that.

  With all that had gone on in a matter of hours, Ursula snapped out of her daze when the sound of a ball knocking down pins shook her conscious and a large, stuffed bear was placed in her arms.

  “You won?” Ursula looked over the large stuffed bear in wonder. She remembebrown she had tried many times to win as a teenager, but no one really did.

  “Is it really that surprising?”

  “Well... it’s dubbed as one of the hardest games on the boardwalk. With how far and how heavy the pins were from the player, you have to really have good strength and aim. I know a lot of kids, and people get frustrated with not being able to win.”

  Walter beamed proudly and flexed his arms. “Well, I guess that just means that I’m a champ.”

  Ursula snorted and rolled her eyes, hiding a smile. “Okay, champ. Well, this little lady is hungry. Mind if we grab some dinner?”

  “I don’t mind at all. I think my own stomach is is talking to me.”

  Ursula let out a laugh as Walter took her hand in his and walked her to the area with the sit down restaurants were on the pier. On the horizon, the sun was beginning to cast in the sky bathing the once blue horizon in shades of oranges, reds, and yellows.

  Feeling the bear in her arm and Walter’s hand in another, Ursula tried to recall the last time she was this happy with a man. She couldn’t. Maybe her luck really was changing.

  The churning growls of hunger pains in her stomach nearly stopped Ursula in her tracks when she remembered the human being that rested in the depths of her womb.

  She tripped on her feet but was able to catch up with Walter as he tugged her along. Suddenly, the warm, happy feeling she had all day turned to ice cold fear. Would he still want to be with her despite the baby?

  Perhaps it had been wrong of her to accept so quickly. She really found Walter attractive. He was sweet, wild, playful...he had his rough moments but he seemed genuinely interested in her.

  Walter led her to a small 50s styled diner with black and white checkered floors, bright red booths, and waitresses dressed in modest pin up styled uniforms.

  They grabbed a window table where she could see the sun’s brilliant colors as it descended towards the sea. Walter brought her hand up to his lips and gave her knuckles a kiss.

  “I’ve been meaning to ask, what kind of perfume or lotion are you wearing? It smells really good.”

  “That’s funny, I’m actually not wearing any lotion or perfume.”

  “Hm...” Walter knitted his eyebrows but nodded. Perhaps it was the sunset, but at that moment his dark eyes seemed almost...reddish. It reminded her of a wild animal, and in a brief moment, she felt a little frightened.

  “Thank you for taking me out again, Walter. I’ve had a lot of fun, this is probably the best date I’ve been on in years. If not, ever.”

  “That’s a bit sad, but I’m glad you gave me the opportunity to take you out. I’ve had a lot of fun as well.”

  Ursula smiled and remembered the baby in her lower stomach. “Walter, I have something I should have told you before I agreed to this.”

  Walter gave her a worried look, all hints of relaxation and fun erasing from his

  face, making him look older. “What is it?”

  “It’s nothing about you, so don’t worry. It’s just...” Ursula looked down and messed with her utensils and the napkin placed on the table. She looked up at him, dropping her hands to her lap. “Walter, I’m pregnant.”

  Walter stared at her, and Ursula couldn’t read the expression on his face. Shocked? Probably. Angry? Sad? Disappointed? She couldn’t tell, and that scared her.

  “So...does that mean there’s another guy?”

  “No, no...there isn’t. The father isn’t in the picture.”

  Walter slightly tilted his head like a confused animal. Ursula continued. “I’ve been a bit down on my luck, my mother recently died and I thought that I was running out of time. I really wanted a child, so...I decided to have one on my own. I wanted to tell you in case you aren’t interested in a pregnant woman. At first I thought I was against dating at the moment, just because of the baby...but after meeting you, I realized that I shouldn’t turn my back on an opportunity with a wonderful guy just because I’ve decided to take the next step in my own life as a mother.”

  Walter stared at her before putting his arm on the table and motioned for her hand. Ursula placed her hand in his palm and he held it, caressing her knuckles with his thumb.

  “I’m willing to give us a try if you are.” Walter gave her a small smile and Ursula smiled back,
giving his hand a squeeze.

  “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner. I was so wrapped up in meeting you and the sudden date that I just...forgot.”

  “Ursula, it’s okay. I’m just glad you told me now and not when you’re about to pop out the kid.” He gave her a weary smile and Ursula snorted, rolling her eyes.

  “I’m not that horrible.” She grinned and he grinned back. For a moment, all they could do was just stare at each other while they waited for the waitress and as the sun began to set, casting shadows on their faces and reflecting a fire in their eyes.

  ***

  Ursula jerked awake when Walter’s car stopped in front of her home. It had been a long day, and now the world was drenched in darkness where only the streetlights and the stars gave off any kind of light.

  Ursula rubbed at her eyes and jumped when Walter was at her side, opening the car door for her. He offered her his hand and she took it, gratefully. “Thank you.”

  Walter held her hand in his, a smile on his face. When he looked up at Ursula’s home, he stopped in his tracks ,and to Ursula’s shock, an inhuman growl escaped the back of his throat, and his features seemed to sharpen.

  Ursula snapped her head to see what caused such a reaction and she, herself, let out a loud gasp. The dogs were back.

  “Are those dogs yours?”

  “Hardly. They’ve been bothering me for a while now. I’ll call the pound again and-”

  “Get! Get out of here!” Walter’s voice boomed. He dropped Ursula’s hand and approached the dogs, stretching to his full height and made his presence dominating. “Leave!”

  The dogs looked up at him and didn’t think twice before they scampered away, both whining into the shadows of the trees. Ursula felt taken aback, both thankful and scared of what he had done.

  Walter looked back at her, fear on his face. “Sorry...I-”

  “It’s okay, whatever that was... it’s okay. You don’t have to freak out, they haven’t hurt me. Though, I hope that scared them away for good. So... thank you.”

  Walter smiled, took her hand in his again when she stood by his side and kissed her knuckles. He walked her the rest of the way to her door and before she could unlock the door and say goodbye, Walter swept her into a kiss.