The Bear Essentials (Siren Publishing: The Stormy Glenn ManLove Collection) Read online

  “Mom, Dad, this is Casey Newton.” Rob swallowed his fear and plastered a smile on his face. “My true mate.”

  The silence that hung in the room as his parents stared at him was deafening. No one said a thing. No one moved, not until Casey started to shake.

  Rob growled as he turned, dismissing his parents from his mind as he wrapped Casey up in his arm. Reassuring his cub and making sure he wasn’t scared was more important than anything or anyone.

  “Sshhh, cub. It’s okay.” Rob rubbed his good hand up and down Casey’s slender back. “You’re safe here. No one will hurt you.”

  “No, of course not. You’re safe in this house,” Maggie said as she stepped over to the stove. She waved hand to the small dinette where her husband sat. “Have a seat, Casey. I’ll make us some tea. I’m sure I have some honey cookies around here somewhere.”

  Big surprise there. Maggie Colton always had honey cookies. They were kind of a staple in a house full of bears.

  Rob led Casey over to the opposite side of the table from his father. He pulled a chair out for Casey and then sat down next to him. Casey’s hand was cold and clammy when he took it, but the death grip Casey had on him once their fingers were entwined let him know his mate needed the contact.

  “What happened to your hand, son?” Robert Colton asked.

  Rob grimaced as he glanced down at his injured hand. The healing had already begun and it no longer pained him as it had when it happened. There was still a slight twinge as bones and muscles knitted back together but nothing he couldn’t live with.

  “I broke it.”

  “I can see that,” Robert replied in a voice only a parent would use.

  Rob knew he wasn’t going to get away with not telling his father what had happened. He just didn’t want to admit he had lost his temper, even if it had been for a good reason.

  “He was protecting me,” Casey said in a quiet voice that cut across the room like a bullet.

  Robert stared at Casey for the longest moment before lifting his eyes and looking at Rob. “Is that true, son?”

  “Raymond stole Casey’s bicycle and beat him up. I went and got it back for him.”

  Robert sighed. “Am I going to be getting a call from Alpha Barker?”

  “I don’t think so.” He hoped not anyway. Those types of phone calls never ended well. “Sheriff Garret showed up and broke the fight up. I’m sure he’ll take the evidence to the alpha but it was a clear case of self-defense.”

  Robert’s eyebrow arched in a way that said the man disagreed with him. “You fought with the alpha’s son over a bike and you think that equates self-defense?”

  “After I showed Raymond the errors of his ways, I started to leave. Raymond came after me with a steel pipe and broke my hand. He attacked me while my back was turned.”

  Rob felt Casey jump when a glass shattered on the floor. He saw his mom grimace as she bent down to pick up the pieces. He scooted his chair back from the table and then scooped the man up with one arm, planting Casey on his lap. He wrapped his good arm around him and rubbed his cheek against the top of Casey’s head.

  “It’s okay, cub. Just breathe me in.” Rob smiled when he heard Casey’s deep inhale. “Lesson number two, Casey. The scent of your mate is calming and comforting. Whenever you’re feeling uncertain, just sniff me.”

  The most wonderful sound Rob had ever heard filled his ears.

  Casey giggled.

  Rob wanted to hear more of that sweet sound. Unable to help himself, he lifted Casey’s chin and then leaned down and pressed a light kiss to his lips. He kept his voice low when he spoke. “That’s a beautiful sound, cub. I’d like to hear more of it.”

  Casey’s caramel-colored eyes turned liquid as they filled with tears. Rob tucked the man’s head against his neck to save him the embarrassment of crying in front of people he didn’t know, and to regain some control of his own riotous emotions. He was angered that something as simple as a few words had brought his mate to tears.

  “I made these fresh today,” Rob’s mom said as she set a plate of honey cookies on the table. They were a lot like sugar cookies, only made with honey, which was so much better.

  “You’ll like these, cub.” He reached over and snagged one, holding it up for Casey. He grinned when Casey took a bite and then moaned as he chewed, his eyes sliding closed in what could only be described as taste bud ecstasy. “Good, huh?”

  “These are heavenly.” Casey’s caramel eyes danced as he opened them and glanced at Maggie. “Can I get the recipe? I’d like to learn how to make them for Rob.”

  When he heard his mother’s tinkling laughter, Rob knew Casey had just won the woman over. Nothing pleased Maggie Colton more than someone that wanted to care for her family.

  “How about I teach you how to make them?” Maggie asked instead.

  Rob felt Casey still in his arms.

  “You’d do that?” Casey whispered with an expectant breath.

  “You are my son’s true mate,” Maggie said with a wink. “That makes you family.”

  Casey turned and buried his face in Rob’s neck. Rob felt him inhale several times as tears dripped down onto his skin. He sent his mother a grateful smile as he rubbed his hand up and down Casey’s back again.

  The relief he felt that his parents accepted his mate was just barely overshadowed by Casey’s acceptance of him. Casey had said he wanted to learn to make honey cookies for him. That had to mean he had plans for them to be together.

  Rob’s bear was one very happy furry.

  “I’m going to go shift,” Rob said as he lifted Casey and set him on his feet with his good arm. “The guys are waiting for us down at the river. I want to take Casey down there and introduce him.”

  “Don’t you think we should discuss this first?” his father asked as he gave a little nod in Casey’s direction.

  Rob clenched his jaw as he shot his father a look. “There is nothing to discuss. Casey is mine.”

  “Son—”

  “Let them go, Robert,” Maggie said from the kitchen. “Real life and responsibility will catch up to them soon enough. Let them be boys for one more day.”

  Robert set his coffee cup down and glanced at his wife over his shoulder. “Maggie—”

  “Let it go, Robert.” Maggie’s voice was stern.

  “Please don’t,” Casey whispered as his entire body started to shake. “Don’t argue.”

  Robert’s eyes were wide with surprise when he turned back around. “Son, we’re not arguing.”

  “But—” Casey’s panicked eyes darted between Robert and Maggie. “You were starting to yell.”

  Maggie wiped her hands on her towel and then tossed it over her shoulder once again before walking into the dining area and stopping behind her mate. Her hand came to rest on Robert’s shoulder.

  “Casey, we’ve been mates for a lot of years and I can honestly say that in all that time, we have never raised our voices to each other. It’s not allowed in this household. That doesn’t mean we don’t have disagreements because we do, but we talk them out. We don’t yell them out. That never solves anything.”

  “She’s right, cub,” Rob said. “I’ve never heard my parents raise their voices to each other.” Casey’s words made him wonder about the man’s home life. He knew living in foster care couldn’t be easy, but was it that horrible? “Casey, is there a lot of yelling at home?”

  Casey’s face flushed as if he was suddenly embarrassed. “Sometimes.” He stared at his lithe fingers as he twisted them together. “My foster dad works a lot and he likes things a certain way when he comes home. He gets growly when they’re not.”

  Rob’s eyebrows shot up. “Growly?”

  Casey nodded as he looked up. “He’s a bear.”

  “Your foster parents are bear shifters?”

  Casey nodded again.

  “Well, I guess that explains how you know about shifters.”

  “I’ve always been placed in shifter foster homes.”<
br />
  “Are you a shifter, son?” Robert asked.

  “No.” Casey frowned as he looked off into space for a moment, almost as if he needed to think about it. “At least, I don’t think I am. I’ve never been able to shift and everyone says I smell like a human.”

  “Lies, all lies.” Rob chuckled. “You smell like apples and cinnamon.”

  Color flooded Casey’s face again as he peeked up at Rob. “Really?”

  “Yep.” Rob’s grin grew when Casey ducked his head, but not before he saw the small smile spreading across the man’s face. He leaned down close to Casey’s ear. “And later I’m going to lick you all over and see if you taste as good as you smell.”

  Casey’s wide eyes dominated his flushed face. He swallowed hard enough for Rob to hear it. “Really?”

  “Promise.”

  Rob’s eyes went as wide as Casey’s when the man shuddered.

  Casey’s eyes darted across the room for a moment before rising up to look at Rob. “I’d really like that,” he whispered almost silently.

  This time, Rob was the one to shudder as want and need swamped him, and made his skin tight. He had been so concerned with keeping Casey safe, he had barely taken time to acknowledge the powerful arousal he had felt since the second he laid eyes on the gorgeous little man. His aching cock had seemed unimportant when faced with protecting his true mate.

  Now, though…

  Rob drew in a shallow breath as he tried to regain some of his control. It would not be a good thing to drag his mate up to his room and ravish him before they had a chance to get to know each other just a bit more. He needed to make sure Casey knew exactly what he was getting into before he claimed him.

  He also didn’t want his parents listening in as he did his level best to rock Casey’s world. He hadn’t been a virgin for quite a while now but he was pretty damn sure Casey was. The man just seemed too innocent to be anything else.

  And that made his bear very happy.

  “Can I watch you shift?” Casey asked. He looked up at Rob with dreamy eyes that almost stole his breath. “My foster parents refused to let me watch. I’ve never seen it before. They wouldn’t even discuss it with me.”

  Rob chuckled as he pulled Casey into his embrace again. “Casey, I’ll do anything for you.”

  Chapter Four

  Casey stared up at Rob in wonder. He didn’t know what he had done in a previous life to deserve a man like Rob, but he’d do it again if it meant being looked at with such tenderness. Rob was smiling down at him, his gray eyes twinkling as if he truly meant the things he was saying.

  “Come on, cub.”

  Casey almost tripped over his own two feet as he hurried to follow Rob. Not only did he want to see the man shift but he didn’t like being away from him. Besides the fact that the man was unusually warm, Casey just felt safer with him.

  It had been that way almost from the beginning.

  Almost.

  Casey still felt some trepidation whenever he stood next to Rob. The large man could take him out with one good smack. Rob was built like a linebacker, solid. The wide outline of his shoulders strained against the fabric of his shirt. He towered over Casey by almost an entire foot.

  Still, his powerful, muscular body moved with an easy grace, and he carried himself with an air of self-confidence, as if he knew exactly who he was and where he was going.

  In a word, he exuded rough masculinity.

  Nervousness started climbing slowly up Casey’s spine when they reached the living room and Rob turned to face him. Was the man really going to shift into a bear?

  “I want you to remember something, Casey.”

  Casey nodded.

  “I don’t want you to be afraid when I shift. No matter what form I’m in, I will never hurt you. I will always know who you are. Can you remember that?”

  Casey nodded but as he watched Rob stand back and start to strip off his clothes, he wondered if he could keep his word. He wasn’t sure he was going to be able to remember anything.

  “What…what are you doing?” Casey asked when Rob’s hand went to the buttons on his jeans.

  Rob chuckled. “These are my favorite jeans, cub. I have to take them off so they don’t shred when I shift.”

  “You’re getting naked?”

  Had someone moved Christmas to June and not told him?

  Casey breathed in shallow, quick gasps as he watched Rob peel his clothes off. He wanted to ask if the man needed help but he was afraid he’d groan out loud if he opened his mouth. Rob was very hairy, and Casey wanted nothing more than to run his fingers through all that fur.

  He kept his eyes on Rob’s face and chest because he knew if he looked lower, he’d start to drool. There was also a very real possibility that he’d drop to his knees and beg to be able to suck the guy off. Just the thought had his mouth watering.

  “Are you watching, cub?”

  Casey nodded rapidly. Like he could look away.

  In seconds, Rob’s large human form changed. The dark hair on Rob’s body started to thicken until not an inch of skin remained visible. His face began to change, his mouth and nose pushing out into a muzzle. His ears grew longer, pointier. As Rob dropped down onto all fours, fingers and toes morphed into razor sharp claws as his hands and feet changed into paws.

  When the change was done, a massive brown bear stood in front of Casey. His nostrils flared as he started to instinctively sniff the air, his gray eyes instantly landing on Casey. A low rumble filled the air.

  Casey swallowed so hard his throat hurt. “Nice bear.”

  The bear’s claws clicked on the floor as he walked forward. God, he was massive. Standing directly in front of Casey, Rob was face-to-face with him. The bear wasn’t the size of a large dog. He was the size of a Buick. Even standing on all fours, he might have even been a bit taller than Casey.

  Casey tried not to whimper when a snout was pushed into his neck and the bear took a deep breath. Another rumble filled the air right before the bear started rubbing against him. Casey reached out hesitantly, petting the bear’s fur.

  Oh, it was soft.

  Casey forgot to be afraid as he sank his fingers into the soft brown fur. It was like downy fur of a baby kitten. Casey leaned closer and buried his face in the fur at the bear’s neck. There was an…earthy scent to the fur, almost like dirt and leaves and the crisp, clean morning air at dawn. It was as enticing as it was calming.

  Casey had the strangest urge to roll around on Rob’s fur…naked.

  His face flaming, Casey jerked back. “Sorry.” He licked his lips as his eyes darted away. “That was very rude of me.”

  Casey giggled when Rob butted his head into him. Apparently, rubbing against Rob’s fur was acceptable. Keeping a close watch on the bear, Casey sank his hands into Rob’s fur again. He shivered as he felt Rob’s nose press into the crease of his neck, licking at his flushed skin.

  Casey pressed his lips together when another giggle threatened to break free. Whether Rob found it adorable or not, Casey found it embarrassing as hell. He didn’t laugh or chuckle like other men. He freaking giggled.

  Rob made a huffing sound that Casey interpreted as a bear laugh. He leaned back to look up into the bear’s eyes. He expected to see the predator in Rob. What he saw was the same thing he saw when Rob was in human form.

  Adoration.

  “Why is this happening?” Casey whispered.

  He wanted what the heat in Rob’s eyes promised but he was afraid to reach out and grab it. So many things in his life had gone bad that he had begun to think if he didn’t have bad luck, he wouldn’t have any luck at all.

  Every time he thought he had found something—or someone—good in his life, it got yanked away, and usually painfully. He was afraid to hope because it felt like this time mattered so much more. It also felt as if he lost Rob, he wouldn’t survive it.

  “Rob.”

  The large bear towering over him shuddered. Casey’s jaw dropped as he felt bones reshap
e themselves. Muscles stretched and popped. The soft fur pressed against him receded, leaving behind tanned skin smattered with dark hair.

  In mere moments, a man stood where a bear had been…a very naked man. Casey swallowed hard as he tried desperately not to let his gaze drop. “Rob,” he said again, a little more breathlessly. “You’re naked.”

  Rob chuckled as he reached for his jeans and pulled them up his legs. “You’d better get used to seeing me naked, cub. Once we’re mated, you’ll be seeing it a lot.”

  “A–and wh–when will that be?” Casey was equal parts needy and scared. He wanted to feel Rob’s body against his but he was afraid to voice what he wanted, afraid to ask for it and be rejected, or even worse, laughed at.

  Rob grinned as he buttoned up his jeans and then stepped into Casey’s personal bubble space. A needy little whimper left Casey’s throat as his gaze slid over the ruggedly handsome man. He couldn’t remember any other bear looking this good.

  Rob’s fingers tangled in Casey’s hair, giving a gentle tug until Casey tilted his head back. He lips pressed against Casey’s, and then gently covered his mouth. His tongue traced the soft fullness of Casey’s lips as he explored. The caress of Rob’s lips on Casey’s mouth and the longing in his body set Casey aflame.

  Rob’s tongue pushed between Casey’s lips, demanding entrance into his mouth. His kiss was slow, thoughtful. His moist, firm mouth demanded a response, leaving Casey’s mouth burning with fire.

  It was a kiss for his tired soul to melt into.

  Rob’s lips left Casey’s mouth and seared a path down his face to his neck. He kissed the pulsing hollow at the base of Casey’s throat. He sucked hard at the light skin there, pulling fresh blood to the surface, marking Casey as his for the entire world to see.

  Their lips met again, but this time it wasn’t the slow, tender, and gentle thing it had been before. This time it was out of control, maddeningly frantic, needy. By the time Rob lifted away, Casey’s knees felt too weak to hold him.

  Rob’s lips brushed against Casey as he spoke, “I want nothing more than to claim you right now, cub.” Rob grabbed Casey’s hand and pressed against the hard bulge in his pants. “See how much I want you?”