Billionaire Bear Shifters A Paranormal Romance Complete Series Boxset - Brittany White Page 0,160

the last thing Connor wanted at the start of his lodge’s busiest season was a turf war with the new wolf pack in town. He felt a surge of anger. His bear wanted to fight, and took a lot of concentration for Connor to calm down and assuage that fighting part of him. It would show strength, sure. But it would also cause trouble Connor didn’t need.

Instead, he let the wolves approach. Cody, mercifully, followed his lead. Before Jess he might have gotten in the intruders’ faces, overly aggressive, but fatherhood and matehood had mellowed him a bit. Still, Connor knew if a fight came, Cody would be there backing him up.

The three wolves were all pretty young but not children. They were gray and were undeniably beautiful walking through the snowy woods. They didn’t get into the bears’ space, instead stopping short and playing casual, sniffing at each other and at the trees.

Connor stood up on his hind legs and gave a warning bellow before dropping down again. That was a clear sign that any of them would know. It meant this was his turf, bear turf, and they had better turn back. But it also meant that he didn’t want to fight.

The wolves should have immediately turned back toward the road to get out of bear territory as quickly as possible. There were woods at the foot of the mountain and that whole area was considered neutral. They could run and hunt there, but wolves hanging out on the mountain were likely to cause all kinds of trouble that Connor couldn’t stand the thought of.

But they didn’t leave. They paced around in little circles, panting and making a show of ignoring Connor. Cody shook himself, pawing at the snow. He was wanting a fight and was holding himself back.

Connor shook his head, his fur shaking off snow. He roared a little louder. One of the wolves charged at him and snapped. It wasn’t a serious challenge, but it was meant to convey that the wolves didn’t particularly want to leave.

The ensuing fight was short. Nobody was killed. The five of them went at each other with snaps and swipes, just feeling each other out. Cody got in a vicious swipe at the largest of the wolves, tearing up the interloper’s shoulder and making the trio fall back. The wolf that had charged at Connor earlier paused to growl before disappearing into the trees after the other two.

Once they were gone, Connor nodded to the road and Cody followed him back to their cars. They shifted back just before the trail ended, catching their breath as it steamed in the chill air.

“The fuck was that about?” Cody asked. His cheeks were red, his expression dark. He looked pissed, like when he was younger and loved nothing more than jumping into a fight.

“They’re just douchebag kids,” Connor said. “Testing their boundaries. Let it go-”

“Let it go?” Cody said, throwing his hands up. “Wolves on our turf, and you’re going to let it go? What kinda goddamn alpha-”

A growl ripped from Connor’s throat, a snarl twisted his face as he spun on his heel in the snow, looming over his brother. He got in Cody’s face, glowering. “I’m the kind of alpha who knows better than to start serious shit over a couple kids being assholes. That’s a smart alpha. You gotta problem with that, Cody?”

Cody was silent for what seemed like a long time, mouth a straight line, before finally muttering, “No.” He looked away from Connor, whose bear was satisfied with the show of submission. Cody gulped audibly but continued speaking, “We just gotta watch out for them. If they mistake that for weakness, we’re gonna have a problem.”

“Don’t think I don’t know that,” Connor sighed, grimacing at the thought of a new wrinkle in what was supposed to be the best Black Bear Lake Lodge season ever.

The next day, Connor couldn’t stop thinking about the wolves. If they became a real problem the whole thing could easily turn into a war, depending on how big the pack was and how aggressive they were. It was hard to tell from just the three young wolves he’d come across. He went about his business that day and kept having the familiar urge to go bother Brooke at Cole Couture.

Except he didn’t want to pester her like usual. Normally, he got a kind of thrill out of watching the way her cheeks flushed and she fluttered her eyelashes every time she