Kissed by the Cowbear: A Werebear Paranormal Romance (Curvy Bear B&B Book 1) Read online

  Kissed by the Cowbear

  Liv Brywood

  Description

  When Jessica arrives at the Curvy Bear Ranch with her five-year-old son, she never expects to meet sexy bear shifter Clint Wilson. The ruggedly handsome cowboy is everything she ever wanted in a mate. But with a shattered marriage in her past, she’s not sure she’ll ever be ready to commit to someone again.

  Three years ago, Clint lost his wife to breast cancer. Every time he thinks about moving on, he feels like he’s betraying her memory. But when he meets Jessica, his bear won’t let him ignore her curvy hips and stunning smile. If he can find a way to get past his fear of enduring another devastating loss, he’ll be able to give his daughter Hailey the family she deserves. And maybe he’ll even be able to mend his broken heart.

  Excerpt

  Silence stretched between them. He fought the urge to kiss her until he couldn’t do it a second longer. He turned to her and cupped the side of her face. The grin pressing up the corners of her mouth dropped slightly as a new, more sensual expression passed over her eyes. Before he could talk himself out of taking the risk, he leaned in to brush a gentle kiss across her lips.

  The shock of contact with a woman for the first time in years sent shivers down his spine. As he deepened the kiss, her lips parted slightly. He swept his tongue across her bottom lip before claiming her mouth. In a slow, sensual exploration, he didn’t stop until she moaned and tried to climb into his lap.

  He pulled back. Breath whooshed from his chest. What the hell was he doing? He’d just met her and he was already one step away from carrying her off to his bed. As his heart pounded in time with his bear’s rumbling growl, he guided her back into her chair.

  “I’m sorry, I just—”

  “Got caught up in the moment. I get it,” she said.

  “Maybe we should head in for the night,” he said.

  “Right. Okay.”

  She stood and waited while he kicked dirt over the fire. He’d been so caught up in the conversation and her beauty that he’d almost done something he couldn’t take back. Kissing her had been enough of an upheaval. Carrying her off to bed would be ten times worse.

  But as he followed her into the house, he wondered if he was making a mistake by not pursuing her. In the last three years, no other woman had made him feel even a fraction of the way he felt around Jessica. He’d never wanted to even kiss anyone, let alone wonder if they had the kind of connection that could last a lifetime.

  When they reached the top of the stairs, she hurried toward her door.

  “Goodnight,” she whispered.

  “Goodnight.”

  He turned toward his door and placed his hand on the doorknob. Then he paused. He hadn’t heard her door close. He swallowed. He should open up his door, go inside, and take an ice-cold shower. He’d be able to think more clearly in the morning. But he couldn’t do it. He couldn’t ignore the tug of his heart that told him to turn around.

  As he slowly released the handle, his pulse raced. If he turned around, there would be no going back.

  Kissed by the Cowbear

  Liv Brywood

  Kissed by the Cowbear

  Copyright© 2016 Liv Brywood

  Amazon Edition

  All rights reserved

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the author. The only exception is by a reviewer, who may quote short excerpts in a review.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  About the Author

  Chapter 1

  Jessica smiled as she pulled into the driveway of the Curvy Bear Ranch Bed and Breakfast. The two-story tall, log cabin-style façade exuded the warmth of family. Several children played outside in the grass while a cat lounged in a patch of sun on the edge of a wrap-around porch.

  “Are we there yet?” Eddie hollered from the back seat.

  “We’re here,” she said.

  “I want out,” he shrieked.

  Keeping the five-year-old strapped into the booster seat for almost two hours had been no small feat. The older Eddie got, the craftier he was becoming. After studying a child safety website, she’d used every trick they had, but half had failed. Her son was too damn smart for his own good.

  Two years ago, he’d figured out how to sneak past the childproof locks she’d installed in the kitchen. A frantic trip to the emergency room to pump cleaning chemicals out of his stomach had left her unable to sleep for weeks.

  She’d been reluctant to let him go to the week-long summer camp, but having a week of peace and quiet sounded glorious. The adults would be staying at the B & B while the children would be camping with the brothers who ran the ranch. She couldn’t wait to soak in the hot tub or go hiking in the woods. Her soul cried out for tranquility in unison with her bear. Being a shifter wasn’t easy, but being neither was being a single mom. She silently congratulated herself for not losing her mind over the last few years.

  After releasing the child safety locks on the doors, she jumped out and opened the rear door. Eddie’s gaze darted past her to the group of frolicking kids.

  “Do I get to play with them?” he asked.

  The level of hope in his voice broke her heart. After her ex-husband was arrested for embezzlement, the other moms in the neighborhood stopped coming by for play dates. They’d shunned her and were punishing her son for the sins of his father. It wasn’t fair. What would it take for them to get over it? How long did they intend to punish her?

  “Can I?” Eddie asked.

  “Of course. But let’s check in first, okay?”

  “Fine,” he huffed.

  “Can you carry your bag?” she asked.

  “I’ll get it for you.” A woman with sun-kissed golden hair and bright blue eyes bounded down the stairs and jogged over. “I’m Madison. I’m so glad you made it.”

  “Thank you. The trip wasn’t too bad.”

  “Did you come in from Bozeman or Billings?” Madison asked. “I swear, the older I get the more I can’t remember.”

  Jessica laughed. Madison had to be in her late twenties or early thirties, right around the same age as her.

  “If you’re getting old, then I’m heading into ancient territory too,” Jessica joked.

  “I’ll stay twenty-nine for the rest of my life,” Madison said.

  “It’s a good number.”

  “I agree.” Madison turned her attention to Eddie. “Who do we have here?”

  “I’m Eddie. Nice to meet you ma’am,” he said.

  “You’re adorable,” Madison said. “Do you want a snack? I know your mom had you cooped up in the car for a long time.”

  “Animal crackers!”

  “Oh, anything you have is fine,” Jessica said.

  “Animal crackers!”

  “Eddie, what do you say?” Jessica asked as heat flooded her cheeks.

  He cocked his head to one side and scrunched up his forehead. “Animal crackers now please?”

  “I think we have some.” Madison held out her hand. “Let’s go ch
eck.”

  As Jessica trailed behind them, she wanted to melt into the floor. No matter how much she tried to get Eddie to behave, it all went out the window if he was tired or hungry. She should have packed a snack. Just one more thing she’d done wrong in a long line of bad choices. Of course, this was minor compared to her disastrous marriage to Eddie’s father, but still, she needed to start making better decisions. Her son relied on her and she was going to do her best to make sure he didn’t want for anything.

  They climbed the steps on the porch and walked inside through the foyer into the kitchen. Jessica eyed the huge multi-burner stove in horror.

  “That must be a beast to manage,” she said.

  “I’ll say. When I first moved to the ranch, I nearly burned the house down. It took some getting used to,” Madison said as she handed a box of animal crackers to Eddie.

  “Thank you,” he said.

  Jessica breathed a sigh of relief. At least he remembered his manners this time.

  “Can I get you something?” Madison asked. “Water? Wine? Whiskey?”

  “Whiskey?”

  “I’m kidding. We don’t bring that out until the kids are gone.”

  “You scared me for a minute,” Jessica said.

  “Don’t worry. We’re going to take good care of both of you. I have a son, Gregory. We call him Greg. He’s two years old and a little hellion.”

  “Where is he?” Jessica asked. She couldn’t imagine leaving a child alone at that age.

  “He’s with my sister-in-law Rachel. She’s watching the younger kids right now.”

  “It must be nice having someone to help out,” Jessica said wistfully.

  “It’s great. It’s part of how we got the idea for the camp. I was talking to Rachel one day and I said, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if we could have an entire week to ourselves while someone else took care of the kids?’ She agreed and we pitched the idea to Mack.”

  “He’s the oldest brother, right?”

  “Yep, and he’s my husband,” Madison said. “He took over the patriarch position on the ranch when his father passed away. But he has five other brothers to help him, so he’s not overworked by any means. I’m sure you’ll meet the other guys while you’re here. All of their wives live on the ranch too.”

  “It sounds crowded,” Jessica said.

  “Well, technically Kate and Logan live on the ranch next door, but we do need to build another house or two. We’re looking into buying the property on the other side of Kate’s place. I love my family, but it would be nice to spread out a bit.”

  “I can’t imagine having such a large family. My mom and brother live in Billings, but it’s about a two-hour drive. We don’t spend enough time together. They keep asking me to move closer to them, but I have my job and my friends.” At least she’d had friends before Bart ruined everything.

  “I don’t know what I’d do without my sisters,” Madison said. “Well, let me show you the room. You’ll have some time to get settled before dinner. You and Eddie will spend the night here and then tomorrow we’ll take you to see the campsite.”

  “He’s never been away from me before,” Jessica said. “I’m worried that he might be a little too rambunctious for the group.”

  “It’s probably his inner bear struggling to get out. It doesn’t realize that it’s stuck in there until he hits puberty,” Madison said. “Don’t worry. We’ll make sure the kids get plenty of play time in addition to downtime. By the end of the tip, he’ll have a greater appreciation for nature and he’ll be calmer. His bear needs to be out in the wild since Eddie can’t shift yet.”

  “That makes sense,” Jessica said. “I haven’t taken him on any hiking trips yet. I figured he was too little.”

  “We don’t really hike; it’s more of a nature walk. Hank knows a lot about botany, so he leads the group for that portion of the campout.”

  “That sounds so fun, I almost wish I was going too,” Jessica said.

  “I keep telling Mack we should do a nature walk with the adults too, but he wants your time to be completely free since that’s the whole point of the week.”

  “That makes sense.”

  “Come on, I’ll show you to your room,” Madison said.

  Jessica took Eddie’s cookie-covered hand and led him toward the stairs. Madison stopped in the foyer and pointed toward the living room.

  “We have a small library of books in there. Feel free to read them while you’re here. We just ask that you put them back when you’re done.”

  “Of course,” Jessica said.

  She leaned into the room to get a better look. In addition to floor-to-ceiling bookshelves, there were two round reading tables with wingback chairs, and a huge sofa. A fireplace flanked by two huge windows sat in the center of one wall. It wasn’t cold enough in the summer to use it, but it was probably amazing in the winter. Several oil and watercolor landscape paintings decorated the walls. They depicted various types of bears in their natural environment. She smiled. She could see herself spending a lot of time in the room.

  As they walked up the stairs, a peaceful wave of relaxation settled into her muscles. She hadn’t realized how tense she’d been until now. Having a week off from Eddie would be hard—she’d definitely miss him—but she couldn’t wait to enjoy a few days of total relaxation.

  ***

  A wave of nostalgia punched Clint in the gut as he pulled onto the Curvy Bear Ranch property. He’d spent the better part of his early twenties working on a ranch not far from this one. God, had it already been a decade? He shook his head. At least he still worked outside. As a foreman for the largest construction company in Billings, he spent hours underneath the summer sun. He couldn’t imagine life in an office. That would be pure hell.

  “Daddy?”

  He turned to look at the backseat where his daughter Hailey sat.

  “Yes, Pumpkin?”

  “Is this the summer camp?” she asked softly.

  “This is the main ranch. You’ll be camping with the other kids a little bit away from here.”

  Her eyes widened while her bottom lip quivered.

  “Okay,” she mumbled.

  His stomach sank. He’d already explained how the trip would work and that he wouldn’t be far away, but the brave face she’d put on the entire car ride was cracking.

  “I’ll be really close by, and if you don’t like camping, we can go home. How does that sound?” he asked.

  “Can we go home now?” she asked.

  “Not yet. Let’s try camping and see if you like it. I think it’s going to be really fun,” he said with added enthusiasm. “You’ll get to make s’mores and sit by the campfire. Kate and Carol will tell you fun fairytales. Remember talking to Kate on the phone?”

  “She was nice,” Hailey said.

  “Let’s get out and stretch our legs and then we’ll find her. Sound good?” he asked.

  “Okay.” The edges of her lips quirked as if she wanted to smile but couldn’t.

  His heart clenched. In the three years since his wife Nicole had passed away from breast cancer, Hailey had become increasingly withdrawn. He hoped a camping trip with other shifter kids would help her come out of her shell.

  After hopping out of his truck, he circled around to unlock the side door. He unhooked the seatbelt and helped Hailey climb down the side. Her pink princess dress wrinkled as she cleared the running board. When she landed, a puff of dirt burst out from under her cowboy boots.

  A tall man with a neatly trimmed beard and mustache strolled over from the nearby barn. He tipped his Stetson and swiped the back of his hand across his forehead. When he reached them, he squatted down so that he was eye-level with Hailey.

  “I’m Mack,” he said. “You must be Hailey.”

  She grabbed the bottom of Clint’s jeans and slid around to hide behind his legs.

  “She’s a little shy,” he said.

  “It’s okay.” Mack stood and offered his hand to Clint. “Nice to meet you
. I’m glad you could make it.”

  “Thanks for having us.” Clint shook Mack’s hand.

  Just outside the barn, a pair of horses whinnied. A sleek black beast of a horse raised his head to look at them.

  “That’s Killer,” Mack said.

  “It killed someone?” Hailey asked while clinging to Clint’s pants.

  “No,” Mack chuckled. “It’s a nickname. We had a rough time teaching him how to let us ride him. But he’s harmless.”

  Clint glanced down at his daughter. “Do you want to go see the horses?”

  She shook her head from side to side.

  “They’re nice,” Mack said. “They like carrots. Maybe we can give them a couple. Would you like that?”

  She pressed her lips together and furrowed her brow. After a moment she nodded slowly.

  Mack smiled and led the way to the animals. The second horse dipped its chestnut-brown head toward Hailey. She froze.

  “I’ll grab some carrots,” Mack said.

  He trotted into the barn and returned with two carrots. Both horses turned to watch him approach. He leaned down to hand a carrot to Hailey.

  “I think your dad might want to help,” Mack said.

  Clint wrapped his hand around Hailey’s.

  “When I tell you to let go, let go,” he said.

  “Okay, Daddy.”

  He lifted her into his arms and wrapped an arm around her waist to hold her close to the chestnut-colored horse.

  “What’s his name?” Hailey asked.

  “Her name’s Blue.”

  Hailey laughed. “That’s a silly name.”

  “My wife Madison named her,” Mack said.

  Blue snapped off the end of the carrot. She chewed with gusto before leaning in for another bite.

  “Let me have the carrot for a minute,” Clint said.

  He didn’t want to risk having the horse take a bite out of her by accident. He palmed the carrot and held it out. The horse gently nuzzled his hand as she took the treat from him.

  “You can pet her if you want,” Mack said.

  Hailey tentatively reached out to smooth her hand across the horse’s nose.