by Jo Penn
Milson Valley 8
Their Grouchy Bear
Alpha Urian Starters was sure his mate Finn Visióne was entranced. He hunted Tristian La Faye, determined to make the creature break the entrancement and never go near Finn again. But the moment Urian scented Tristian, he was scrambling to deal with the fact the snappy creature was his mate.
Tristian was a sacred grouchy sun bear with a group of followers looking to him to find a place for them in the world. After being rejected by Finn months ago, Tristian knew he didn’t have a place, especially when Finn, only a few weeks after rejecting Tristian, mated the Alpha of a wolf pack in Milson Valley.
Finn hadn’t meant to reject Tristian, he adored the grouchy bear shifter, but he messed everything up. Now he had two brothers loose in the Valley and one planning to kill him, Tristian to hunt down, and his big alpha mate protecting the entire valley from Renegades wanting a sacred creature.
Genre: Alternative (M/M/M, Gay), Ménage a Trois/Quatre, Paranormal, Romantic Suspense, Shape-shifter
Length: 53,943 words
THEIR GROUCHY BEAR
Milson Valley 8
Jo Penn

Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK
THEIR GROUCHY BEAR
Copyright © 2017 by Jo Penn
ISBN: 978-1-64010-477-8
First Publication: July 2017
Cover design by Harris Channing
All art and logo copyright © 2017 by Siren Publishing, Inc.
ALL RIGHTS 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.
All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.
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PUBLISHER
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
DEDICATION
To A, for always keeping life fun, light and full of love. Jo xo
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
I love writing and can be found most days in front of my computer. I live in a wonderful part of the world where sandy beaches are close, the sun shines, and people love to get out and about.
I spent years living in London, UK, working and travelling which provided so much inspiration through history, culture, and life in general. I love to travel and have lots of plans to do so again in the future. In the meantime, I bring my worlds to life.
The world of the paranormal mixed with love and action, how the men react and live, defend and care captures my attention and has me wanting to fill pages with their adventures.
For all titles by Jo Penn, please visit
www.bookstrand.com/jo-penn
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
About the Author
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Epilogue
Landmarks
Cover
THEIR GROUCHY BEAR
Milson Valley 8
JO PENN
Copyright © 2017
Chapter One
Heaven. Definitely heaven, Finn decided, watching as yet another shirtless construction worker walked past lugging timber over a wide, muscular shoulder.
Raising his crystal wine glass in approval, Finbarr Visióne, or as he preferred because it sounded funny, Finn Finlandson, happily ogled the infinite array of shirtless men in front of him. He had obviously been a very, very good boy.
He was thoroughly enjoying lazing in the afternoon sun, watching shirtless men work while getting a tan. His first winter here in Milson Valley was a brutal change for him, as he’d spent the first ninety-nine years of life on a tropical island that never felt a moment’s chill. Dubbed Hell Island by Finn and his many siblings just to tick off their overbearing father, the island was set up like its very own country. Made from a mixture of soil, plants, rock, and a whole lot of magic that was designed to repel and hide the island from the naked eye and anyone searching for it, Hell Island floated around the world from one sunny location to the next. The island never lingered in one spot, and never ventured anywhere cold.
Finn’s kind weren’t particularly fond of the cold.
But Finn was now in Milson Valley, having suffered through his first winter, and was relieved to feel the sun on his far too pale skin once again. Weak sun, sure, but better than nothing. Situated in the Northern part of the States not too far from Cape Code, Martha’s Vineyard, and only a short plane journey to New York, Finn hadn’t chosen to move to Milson Valley; it had chosen him. Or in actuality, the Alpha of the large wolf pack here wanted Finn, claiming him the night they met and dragging Finn kicking, screaming and bitching all the way here.
Possibly that was an over-dramatization of Finn’s journey to Milson Valley, his father always said he was dramatic, but truthfully, he hadn’t exactly come quietly either. His new Alpha mate had to do a lot of fast talking that day to get Finn to agree to leave the troupe he was traveling with, and move to a place he had never heard of with a creature he didn’t even know! But he had to trust the Fates, and what they provided, and when Finn saw Milson City, he was so relieved to find such a cosmopolitan, busy, good sized city he immediately began reading reviews on the best places to eat, the local atmosphere, and where to get his hair done.
Relaxing back, Finn waved his hand at a wolf shifter to adjust the stripped umbrella positioned above a few sun loungers, one of which Finn was spread out across. As much as Finn liked a nice golden tan, he knew the value of sunscreen and shade.
He so hoped the shirtless men didn’t.
Beside him sat Deakin Myers. The mostly human, part sprite, had long ago lost interest in conversing with Finn and simply sat staring at the assortment of men working hard. They were clearing land that belonged to the Starters wolf pack for a new housing development put aside for the pack’s bear shifters.
Deak was glazed over. Finn didn’t blame the man. Though he wouldn’t admit it, Finn admitted very little if he could help it, he too felt a little overloaded from all the succulent men on display for his viewing pleasure.
“Hey, mate, toss me a beer.”
Finn blinked and shut his mouth that may have been open while he watched a particularly fine creature bend over to pick up a plank of wood that had fallen on Trekk Croggen’s foot. This had caused the huge bear to grunt and jump around, holding his injured foot. Refocusing his gaze, Finn smiled up at another hot creature.
“Beer.”
“Huh?” Deakin murmured, eyes never straying from the action in front of them.
With a little growl, hunky wolf Alph
a, Urian Starters, bent and retrieved a beer from the large industrial ice box beside Finn.
“Is that Vicus over there?” Uri asked.
Deakin immediately snapped out of his dazed, lustful staring and jumped up, quickly looking around. Finn laughed, tapping his mate on the leg.
“Good one, babe.”
Deak spun around and jabbed a finger at Uri, face scrunched up. “That’s not funny!”
“Yeah, so was.” A very sexy wolf grabbed a beer out of the icebox, chuckling. “When is Sebastian getting here with the explosives?”
Finn held his glass out for Uri to pour more wine. When nothing happened, he glanced up at his mate to see Uri, his big, manly handsome Alpha wolf, watching a half-dozen SUVs pull up further down the road.
“Looks like now, bro.” Uri finally poured the wine then leaned down and pressed a quick kiss to Finn’s lips. “Don’t get burnt, angel.”
Finn looked up to see the umbrella was now only covering the ice box, Deak and the seat on the other side of the part sprite. Standing, he adjusted the umbrella and gave Deak a look, daring the man to move the umbrella again. Just as he went to sit down, a golden, very muscular and toned body caught his attention.
About three dozen creatures looked over simultaneously. Luka Charmers merely smiled cheekily, gave a wink, and tossed his white shirt onto a bag and slipped his sunglasses on. The wolf shifter was the sexiest creature Finn had ever seen. He also had two mates, one of which now stormed over and picked up the shirt, shoving it toward Luka.
Yum. Despite having such a hunky mate whom Finn couldn’t get enough of, with so much scrumptious flesh on display it was difficult not to stare, and Luka always elicited a reaction. He was a well-protected wolf and caused a lot of fun mischief throughout the valley. Finn was always entertained when Luka and his friends were around. Luka’s mate was not entertained though. The huge fae Prince, Caspar Morgan, was the leader of the guild here in Milson Valley. He waved the shirt Luka had discarded.
“Oh, come on.” Luka grabbed the shirt and tossed it back in the bag before walking off.
Caspar muttered something and stormed after the wolf shifter, glaring at everyone who even peeked at the sexy man.
Finn just loved the drama! Deak did also, watching with avid intensity and completely ignoring his own mate who was sneaking past and swiped Deak’s iPad. Glancing back to see if Cas managed to wrangle Luka into his T-shirt, Finn let out a laugh when the wizard Tudor, Luka and Caspar’s other mate stepped over, and with a quick muttering of words, pointed at Luka and turned the man to wolf.
Funnily enough, Luka didn’t seem bothered. He ran over and licked Tudor’s hand before trotting off to mingle on the worksite causing shit as he went. Most of the crew laughed, all aware of Luka’s antics, and that witches and wizards had a tendency to turn others to animals or books. Yeah, books for some strange reason.
Sitting back down with his wine, Finn went back to watching. The feline shifters were setting up food on long tables. He’d noticed that the bear shifters were good at demolishing and building. The wolves were good at ideas and tossing things around while the witches and wizards got distracted and were often in the way. After a few minutes, Finn saw the felines were good at making food, stirring, lazing and not actually helping build anything.
When Deak finally realized his iPad was gone, he took off after his wolf shifter mate, Ran Markson, Finn laughing.
He never thought he’d end up in Milson Valley, nor with the many different creatures living in this vibrant, busy community. And he never thought he’d wind up mated to the Alpha of a wolf pack. Now dear old Dad was laughing his ass off on Hell Island because Finn found himself pounced on by a wolf shifter, claimed, mated, and living in Milson Valley. All that freedom he’d argued for years to obtain was gone with one bite.
Finn may have been difficult at first over that, but he soon settled into Milson Valley and actually liked the place. What he liked most was his mate. Urian was unlike anyone Finn had ever met. Sure, the man was Alpha with every molecular of his body, but he wasn’t a pushy or overly bossy one. Uri listened, cared and had a fun side. He was also intelligent and looked after those around him, not just his pack, but the entire valley and all the creatures in it. But he wasn’t a pushover and could get down and nasty, which was probably needed with Renegades sniffing around causing trouble.
Finn knew he was dramatic and at times could be difficult, he had a bloodthirsty streak that others were often stunned by, but Uri didn’t seem to mind. The wolf was just…accepting. That was a bit weird for an Alpha wolf to be so accepting, but Finn wasn’t going to complain about his good fortune.
And his father was laughing his royal ass off back on Hell Island. For years, Finn had been pestering, pleading, arguing, negotiating, and yelling to be allowed off Hell Island, but was never granted permission until just three and a half weeks before he met Urian. Finn had been so excited to leave and as he loved to act, joined a traveling, entertainment troupe his father thoroughly researched and agreed to. Of course, Finn had bodyguards and was all right with that. After all, he wasn’t stupid, just dying to get off the island and live a little, have some freedom, get laid.
His freedom lasted a measly three and a half weeks.
What Urian didn’t like were secrets, and Finn had a whole suitcase full of those until recently when he’d finally been able to tell Urian everything…well, almost everything. There was no need to overshare, just the basics were required. Like the fact Finn was one of triplets, the eldest. When he and his brothers Jude and Bastion turned ninety-nine, they became restless. Jude pestered their father more than Finn did and was able to leave the island far more often, but only with the King who disguised Jude. Unfortunately, this sent Bastion a little crazy as the third triplet didn’t like to be separated. The King kept a tight hold on Bastion and Jude and let Finn go and get the wanderlust out of his system - or, as Finn suspected, his father was a seer after all - go and meet his destiny. Urian. The old man was crafty like that.
This triggered a series of unforeseen events for all of them. No one admitted to having a vision of what was to come. Jude yearned to leave Hell Island, had for years. He would stand and look out at sea for hours until Bastion went mental and dragged their brother away and demanded their father do something. Their father did, by working with Bastion to calm the seer down. Jude was determined to get off the island one way or another and was sneaky. He stole a scepter infused with fae magic that made him invisible and undetectable by scent and feel and left the island. That was a few months ago now, and Jude was keeping himself hidden by using witch and wizard potions. Bastion went from mental to outright nutso crazy and declared that as Jude was so withdrawn and wouldn’t let him close, and now had run away, there was only one solution. They all needed to die. Then they’d be together always.
Crazy reasoning, and with help, Bastion would settle down and be fine. Finn used to be able to calm Bassie down and bring Jude back to them, but they both needed more than he could give in the last few years. As their father couldn’t leave the island and their clan for long, and their kinds entire safety rested on keeping quiet about where they were, the King relented on the blood vow that had kept Finn silent regarding anything to do with his family, Hell Island, and their clan. They were going to need Urian’s help locating Finn’s triplets and returning them to where they belonged before Finn’s disturbing visions of death, blood and despair came to fruition.
Finn had never had a problem keeping details to himself. Some things were just private, and others meant keeping clan and family safe, so until he met Uri, he was all right keeping secrets. Urian was everything to Finn. He loved and adored his siblings, and needed his triplets. He loved his father and had some good friends, but when Finn loved, it was completely and with everything inside him. Uri was a very special man, so amazing, and Finn didn’t want to hurt his mate. It was hurting him, too. So he badgered his father who finally had the blood vow removed, and Finn told Urian e
verything…well, everything about Hell Island, his triplets, other siblings, father, and clan. Not intimate details and nothing that wasn’t general.
What Finn didn’t tell Uri was it felt like his very soul was withering away, and his heart hurt so incredibly bad. By having the blood vow removed and opening up to Uri, Finn thought that would be it, he would recover. But it wasn’t, and he slowly began to understand what he was missing so much, and had spent the last few months scrambling to find. A cranky little sun bear shifter. Finn needed to locate the bear shifter, he was so close, and once he had, and his brothers were found, everything would settle down and be good.
Watching the bears that were part of the Starters wolf pack picking up lumber and lugging it around, Finn felt a deep sadness wash over him and still his heart.
Life was very different away from Hell Island. Excellent in so many ways, yet challenging in others. Finn wanted the life he had now, though he missed his old one. He fretted about his brothers, the visions he saw of what could happen if steps weren’t taken to change the future. Uri was his rock, and though he knew his mate didn’t completely trust him yet, not after all the secrets, the wolf never wavered in his support and caring. Urian was always there for Finn no matter what and never gave up on him. Though he would be damn mad if Finn kept another secret, but it wasn’t entirely Finn’s fault! Nope, there was no way Finn was taking the entire blame for this one. He’d settle on a fair fifty-fifty division. Then again, if you really thought about it, none of this was Finn’s fault. It was Tristian’s.