I shook my head, baffled. Alanna was weaving some kind of magic on my bears. My strongest, grumpiest bears seemed to be getting smitten with her.
We all made our way to the front lawn and shifted. As alpha, I covered the back of the group, where I could see all my bears and be on the alert for danger.
We had a good crowd today. Of the twenty-eight bears in the Clan, fifteen had made it. Black bears, sun bears, brown bears—we filled the lawn, then the forest as we made our way toward the streams and rivers on our property. The weather was cool enough to be comfortable and slightly breezy. I lumbered on all fours, stopping to tilt my face up to the sunshine as I closed my eyes.
Moonhaven in spring was beautiful this time of year. There was so much natural beauty in the area, with the coastline, the forest, and the streams. It all made for a rugged but beautiful coastal town, and the place I’d called home for nearly ten years now.
I was the only polar bear shifter in the Clan, so my white fur was easy to spot among the browns, blacks, and reds the rest of them had, but I didn’t mind. My Second, Mathan, was at my side, and Alistair was careful to stay near me in the back. Hewas quicker on two legs than we were on four, but our rambles weren’t meant to be fast. They were meant to draw us closer as a Clan and to let our shifted forms out.
My bear was usually very present no matter what form I was in, becoming even more so when I shifted, but he seemed subdued today.
You okay?
Miss Piper.
The surge of pain from the thought nearly took my breath away. It was both of our pain, and I had to pause for a moment to breathe until it passed. When it lessened, I started forward again.
Yeah, me too, big guy.
At least Matteo was with her now. But after his report about what had happened on the bridge, and then at the airport, my bear and I were both more worried for her than ever.
We have to trust her. And Matteo’s there with her now. He’ll help her.
My bear sighed.Trust, he echoed, subdued.
That night,Taco was trying to give Alanna a bath in the sink while Mathan, Alistair, and I chuckled as we watched from the large kitchen table. Taco was using a bathing seat for Alanna, but between the two of them, Taco was the more soaked. Alanna kept splashing water everywhere.
“I get her after,” Mathan said. “I’ll put her pajamas on.”
“I’ll put her to bed,” Alistair said, glaring at us as if daring us to contradict his plans.
I merely sat back and smiled. Who would have thought a cub would draw us all closer as a Clan.
Taco managed to get Alanna cleaned despite the water dripping into his eyes, then handed her off to Mathan, who was waiting with a towel. Mathan dried her off as he carried her into the living room to get her ready for bed.
After a minute or two, Mathan came back in. She was in fuzzy purple footed pajamas and had a bright smile on her face. When she was handed to Alistair to put to bed, everyone slumped around the kitchen table and sighed in relief.
“Now maybe we can get some sleep,” Mathan said.
Taco nodded, drooping, water still dripping off him. I handed him a towel, and he started mopping himself up. “How is it possible for one tiny cub to be so exhausting?”
I shook my head. “Moms do this every day, guys, sometimes alone. It’s taking an entire team of us to do what a single mom or dad does on a normal basis.”
Taco looked pained. “I’m gonna call my mamma tonight and thank her for not dropping me off at the circus when I was a cub.”
Mathan raised an eyebrow. “We’re clearly lazy bears. We need more workouts, or stamina builds or something.”
“Tell that to our enforcers,” I said, amused.
He nodded seriously. “I will. If one cub can decimate us, we need better training.”
Mathan was over the enforcers in our Clan until Matteo returned. All of us had jobs that brought in income—Clan income and personal income—and also positions within our Clan. But the last few days, it suddenly felt like I was juggling too much. Trying to handle my businesses in town, all the work needed as Clan alpha, and taking care of and protecting a baby was wearing me out. I wasn’t a bear shifter who needed much sleep, but whatever that magic number was, I hadn’t been getting it. I knew it was probably because she missed Piper, but Alanna had developed some kind of insomnia.
My bear growled at the brief thought of our mate, and I tried to soothe him.
I know.
Sighing, I stood and went to help Alistair. He was probably reading Alanna a story and doing the voices all wrong.
