 by Olivia T. Turner.jpg)
Total pages in book: 29
Estimated words: 28245 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 141(@200wpm)___ 113(@250wpm)___ 94(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 28245 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 141(@200wpm)___ 113(@250wpm)___ 94(@300wpm)
And it couldn’t have come at a worse time.
The director of the AFA—the Anti-Feral Agency—is retiring and I’m the top candidate to replace him.
It’s all I’ve ever wanted, but my damn grizzly bear keeps getting in the way.
Snarling, growling, charging for the surface.
He wants our mate badly, but I’m too busy trying to secure the coveted position to do anything about it.
I didn’t realize he was so close to turning.
I didn’t realize he was so close to the edge.
But now, he’s on the brink of turning feral and there’s nothing I can do to stop it.
I’m losing all control over him.
Instead of calling me boss, the entire agency will be hunting me down.
I need a mate quickly.
But where the hell is she?
Mindy is about to have her hands full when a rabid bear shifter decides that she belongs to him. Can she tame the wild grizzly bear or will she be the feral beast’s next victim?
*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************
Chapter One
Cain
“There he is!” my boss, Peter, says with a big smile as I walk into the hall. He shoves his hand into mine and shakes it vigorously. “You’re the talk of the party.”
I grin as I look around at all of the women in cocktail dresses and men in suits. Eyes flit over to me and then the whispers start.
“I hear he’s a shoo-in for the position…”
“…the youngest director in the agency’s history…”
“Thirty years with the agency and I didn’t even get to interview…”
With my shifter hearing, I can hear it all.
“Thanks, Peter,” I say as I nod to my boss. He’s my boss for now, but if the rumors are true, he won’t be my boss for long.
The director of the AFA—Anti-Feral Agency—is retiring at the end of the month and it’s looking like I’m going to be offered the position. At thirty-two, I’m on the young side, but I’m still the top candidate.
I killed all three of the interviews and the current (and soon-to-be retired) director, Martin Shields, gave me a wink and a little nod at the end of the last one.
I’m going to be the next director and everyone in here knows it. I just need the confirmation.
There’s a rumor going around that Mr. Shields is going to announce it at the end of his retirement speech tonight. I wore my lucky suit and planned out an acceptance speech just in case.
I walk around, working the room. Men eagerly step forward to shake my hand and wish me luck. Women give me smiles that reach their eyes as they lean in to kiss my cheeks, their hands lingering a little too long on my biceps.
It’s a good showing. Several hundred people are crowding the hall for Mr. Shields’ retirement party. Everyone who’s anyone in the agency is here tonight.
There’s a band playing oldies on the stage and a crowded bar lining the wall. I grin when I spot Mr. Shields with his beautiful mate, Linda, on his arm. She’s wearing a sparkling red dress with her blonde hair up.
A deep heavy longing hits my soul when I see her smiling up at him.
My inner grizzly growls low.
Oh, please no. Not now.
I look around the room nervously, wondering if anyone heard that. The room is full of shifters—mostly bears, but a few lions and tigers wandering around too—so you always have to assume that people are listening. That they can hear everything.
My bear starts pacing angrily inside. I close my eyes and take a deep breath. He snarls.
Please…
The sight of the two happy mates has awoken the beast. I can feel the hostility emanating from him. The fury. The hate.
He paces faster, harder. I can feel the enraged, livid energy surging through my veins. It makes my heart pound. It makes my muscles tight.
I take a few deep breaths as I force out a smile that probably looks deranged.
You’re going to ruin everything for me. Stop.
He doesn’t stop. He rushes forward, snarling and gnashing his teeth as he claws his way up.
I drop to the ground and pretend to tie my shoe as I flex my body, grit my teeth, and force him back down.
He’s getting stronger. He almost slipped through.
I gasp in relief when he slinks back down and lets out a low grumble.
I wipe the sweat off my forehead and stand back up with a smile plastered on my face.
“Bradford!” one of my colleagues says as he walks over and shakes my hand. “When you get the job, can I have your old office?”
I’m still shaky all over as my grizzly continues to pace.
“I was thinking of moving you down to the basement instead since you beat me at golf last month.”
We both laugh, but this is anything but funny.
My bear is getting worse.
He’s slipping out of my control. I ignored it at first, thinking it was because I was working so much and neglecting him, but this is different. He doesn’t feel like my bear anymore. It feels like I have a rabid beast trapped inside of me.
Sometimes I even think… No.
That’s not what this is. It can’t be.
I move on, continuing to work the room, but my easy confidence is gone. My bear has shaken me to my core once again.
He’s pissed at so many things. That our mate is not here. That I’m always working and not out constantly looking for her.
He seems to hate everything and everyone lately. A kid playing with a remote control car on my street set him off this morning. I had to sit in my car and wrestle him down for twenty minutes after. He still nearly fought his way through.
“Bradford!” Mr. Shields says when he sees me. He waves me over and the crowd around him parts as I approach.
We’re both grizzly bear shifters, which I was quick to point out multiple times during the interview process. It shouldn’t make a difference, but I know that it kind of does.