Billionaire Bear Shifters A Paranormal Romance Complete Series Boxset - Brittany White Page 0,157

Her wolf pack needed to be careful. There was a lot of open land up in the mountains, plenty of space to run and hunt that was not bear territory, but that didn’t mean she might not face some discrimination.

The potion that hid her shifter’s scent had taken a while to perfect. She’d bought the recipe and a year’s worth of ingredients from a witch she’d found through the pack. She figured everyone didn’t need to use it, just those who would frequently be in close contact with the bears. Some of them had found work among humans who wouldn’t know a shifter’s scent even if they could smell it.

So that morning, as usual, she’d dabbed the potion on her neck like perfume. That was all that was needed, which was a relief. Nothing was worse than having to choke down a potion in the morning. And, as usual, she’d opened the store with a feeling of anticipation. It was an anticipation that she hated to admit to.

Connor Strauss…

Would he come in, pretending to shop while instead taking his sweet time starting some silly argument or judging the way she’d set up a window display? He was always trying his best to get under her skin. Usually he came by in the morning, while obviously right in the middle of going about his business in the lodge. He always seemed to find a few minutes to give her a hard time. Occasionally, Brooke ran across Connor elsewhere in the lodge - in the foyer or the dining hall or the lounge. He seemed to be everywhere.

On this particular day, Brooke didn’t see Connor until well after lunch. It threw her off a little. She spent half her morning with her ears perked up, sometimes sniffing the air for his distinct scent; sandalwood and something extra, something she didn’t want to admit was nice. Instead, it was only customer after customer who came to the store looking for whatever the hot new trend was in winter wear.

It was around two when Connor finally came by. Brooke sniffed him out before she saw him, and then he was striding into the store. She hated herself for glancing at her reflection in the small mirror her co-workers kept next to the cash register, and hated herself even more for making sure her red hair was arranged nicely.

He was wearing one of his dark suits today and for some reason that irked her. He looked fantastic in dark colors; they emphasised the way his jet black hair curled over his ears. She didn’t know why he wasted so much product trying to hide that fact that he had curls. He often had a thin beard growing in, but today he was clean shaven. His stark jawline made his blue eyes pop.

Connor was crazy attractive and that was vexing.

“Brooke!” Connor leered as he approached. He looked way too happy to see her, and she couldn’t decide if that was because he was excited to tease her and flirt in his annoying way or because he actually enjoyed her presence. Probably the latter.

He’s a bear shifter, she reminded herself. Of course he gets off on being a dick. An attractive dick, but still a dick.

“How are you doing this fine morning?” Connor leaned against her shop counter, his hand smudging the glass she’d wiped clean not an hour ago. He took a mint from the bowl by the register and popped into his mouth. She watched his thick fingers and the way his tongue flicked out to curl round the mint. Her breath was a little short, and that was vexing too.

“I was doing fine until you showed up,” Brooke snarked back, smirking up at him. He had to be a foot taller than her. It was like he was built to infuriate her. “Don’t you have something better to do than come in here and bother me? Or is it your brothers who do all the real work?”

The insult was meant to bring him up short, but Connor seemed to like it. He popped a second mint into his mouth and smiled as though genuinely pleased. “They probably do,” he said, shrugging as if the thought didn’t bother him at all. “Anyway, I’m here on business.”

“Sure you are,” Brooke said, raising her eyebrow.

She could hardly remember how they’d fallen into this ongoing banter. Since the first time they’d met, they seemed to have this unspoken understanding between them that they would keep this little rivalry