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Bunny shifters are wired a little different than most. We get super horny all the time, even before we find our mate. But we can’t get off until we find them, so I’ve just been in a state of constant need for the past two years, and I’ve learned to ignore it for the most part. It’s a curse, but I’ve been told that once you find your mate, it’s a blessing. Because then all they want to do is mate, too. I worry, though, that if I don’t find another bunny shifter as a mate, they won’t be able to keep up. My kind are used to sex on top of sex until we pass out, but not all shifters are the same, and I haven’t heard of another rabbit living around here.
Pushing away thoughts of sex, I focus on waiting in line for my turn at the gas pump. There are tons of people here, both locals and tourists. I watch as the dark clouds descend quicker than I thought and the roads are blanketed fast. I catch sight of Dominic’s SUV with Ruby and the kids going by. I should have stayed at the bakery and gotten a ride with them, but I didn’t think about it, and I didn’t expect the storm to come so quickly.
Seeing all the trucks in line at the pumps, I worry that my car might not make it if I wait much longer. I don’t have time to wait before it gets worse, and if I leave now I have a better chance. Against better judgement, I pull out onto the road and head home, praying I make it.
Chapter 2
Finn
“This place isn’t the same since Snow left,” Forest says, and I see the sadness in his eyes.
We love our sister, and although we’re happy that she finally found her mate in Koda, we miss her being here with us. Flint isn’t saying much about how he feels, but he usually keeps quiet when he’s upset. The three of us were litter mates, so it’s not as if someone can feel something without us noticing.
Forest is usually the one who’s a guaranteed good time; he’s the laughter of our home. Flint is quiet and sometimes shy, but when he’s angry, everyone in a ten-mile radius knows. I’m definitely the more laid-back, but I’ve always been the leader. I thought that maybe as we got older and found our mates that things between us would change, but it hasn’t happened yet, and I’m beginning to worry.
We’ve been in Gray Ridge for a while now, and though we met most of the female shifters, none of us have found our mate. I think Flint and Forest thought I would go first since I’m the leader of our trio, but that’s not always the way it goes. There was a larger pack of seven of us when we first came here, but one by one they all paired off. Including Snow.
“You mean you don’t like my chicken and dumplings?” Flint says, and I see Forest smile.
“I guess if you consider burnt balls of lava ‘dumplings,’ then sure, they’re great.”
I’m happy when they’re happy, and I’m discontented when they’re sad. I feel the need to make sure that they’re okay, and the responsibility is heavy on my shoulders.
“Hopefully you’ll find a mate that can cook, because otherwise your young might starve,” I say, and the mood turns from happy to sad again. “Sorry, I just meant—”
“We know what you meant,” Flint says, cutting me off. “Let’s not pretend we aren’t the reject wolves in this town. No female’s gotten our attention, and we need to face those facts.”
He goes over to the kitchen sink and throws his bowl into it.
“It’s not up to the female to decide,” Forest says, telling us what we already know. “Maybe we should move on. We might have a better chance in another town. And now that Snow is provided for, it’s not as if we need to worry about her so much.”
“We agreed not to move again,” I say, leaning back in my chair. “When we came to Gray Ridge, we said we would give this a chance. Just because none of us have mated yet doesn’t mean we have to give up and move.”
“What if your mate is here and we move away?” Flint says, looking to Forest. “Would you have us all leave and never find your true half?”
“If it meant you would both find yours, then I would be willing to make that sacrifice.” Forest stands up from the table and for a moment I think he’s going to storm out, but instead he gets an even sadder look on his face. “I would give up my own happiness to see you two raise your young. It would be enough for me.”
I go to open my mouth, but he holds up his hand to stop me.
“Forest…” Flint tries, but Forest just shakes his head.
“I’m going for a run. I’d like to be alone.”
Flint and I nod, knowing that right now he needs his space.
“Don’t be gone too long,” I say, and Forest agrees.
I watch our tender-hearted wolf go out the back door and strip down. It’s only a half second later before he shifts and disappears into the surrounding woods.
Chapter 3
Forest
Soft moss and earth depress between my toes as I push my body to the point of pain. I want to feel the burn of my muscles and the ache in my bones because it’s better than the pain in my heart. I can’t take seeing my brothers like this, knowing there’s nothing I can do to stop it.
When I get to the back of Red’s Goodie Basket, I see Dominic Wolfe playing in the nearby woods with his cubs. He catches my scent sooner than I thought he would, and he nods to me in greeting. He’s the sheriff in town, and the few times that we’ve met I’ve really liked him. His wife Ruby runs the bakery with her friend Gwen, and they are always nice to my brothers and me.
I shift back to human form and grab some spare clothes from the box they keep beside the back door for passing shifters that want to come in and have a snack. There are picnic tables set up out here, so it’s a safe place for us to be ourselves away from any tourists that might wander inside the store.
I pull on a pair of clean sweatpants and a muscle shirt, thinking how only a shifter would know that the clothes can’t smell like someone else. It would irritate us too much to have the scent of another male on our bodies.
“Come to get an evening snack?” Dom says as he walks over and offers his hand to me. His smile is easy.
I take his hand and nod. I thought I’d get some homemade food to take back to the guys, thinking it might cheer them up. Every now and then Snow will bring food over, and it always lifts their spirits.
“Could use some of your wife’s famous magic bars,” I say, rubbing my stomach.
“Be careful. Those things have been the end of my six-pack days,” Dom says, glancing back to his young wolves playing with one another.
“I envy you,” I blurt out without thinking it through. “Sorry, that came out wrong.” I shake my head feeling like an idiot.
“Actually, I understand where you’re coming from.” There’s a gentleness to his voice that I don’t expect. It must come from having a mate and a litter of his own. “But you’ll find yours one day. All shifters do. We don’t always know it, but we are led to where they are. There’s a reason you’ve been in Gray Ridge so long. Your wolf knows it’s in the right place, and you won’t be able to leave until it tells you to.”
I nod, feeling my wolf stir in my chest. It’s something Flint suspected, but we didn’t know for sure.
“There are many females in this town you haven’t met, and more come every new moon. Be patient,” Dom says, patting my shoulder. “I suggest you get a basket of the banana nut muffins to go as well. They’re fresh made and make everything feel better.”
He’s right. Being impatient isn’t going to solve the situation, and I need to focus on being a good mate for when the time comes.
I say goodbye and go into the bakery, grabbing a basket and loading it up. Another perk of being shifter owned is that they provide baskets for us to carry back in our mouths so we can go home in any form we choose. They think of everything.
I greet Ruby politely, being respectful of her mate Dominic and not getting too close. Even a faint trace of another male would make him angry, and she is clearly marked. I stand on the other side of the counter, ten feet from her, and there is no mistaking his claim.
I see a carrot cake
and my stomach grumbles. I ask Ruby to give me the whole thing, along with the individual slices next to it. I don’t know why, because I’ve never really thought much about carrot cake before, but suddenly I’m ravenous for it. My mouth waters as she loads them up, and I can’t think of anything else besides the sweet cinnamon and cream cheese. A growl forms low in my chest, and when Ruby pauses to look at me, I clear my throat, embarrassed.
“Just hungry,” I mumble.
She smiles brightly at me, offering more cookies to take, but my basket is overflowing, and this should last us at least a day.
I slip out the back as Dom and his family are coming inside. I make the mistake of looking back to see him go to his mate and rub his body against hers. Envious pain creeps into my rib cage, and I hurry outside so I don’t have to witness it anyone.
I place the dirty clothes in the second box that’s used for discarded items so they can be cleaned and reused. When I shift back, I grab the basket and head home. Hopefully this can put a smile on someone’s face. Even if it’s not my own.
Chapter 4
