Free Her Bear and a Baby: BBW Bear Shifter Baby Paranormal Romance (Who's the Daddy? Book 2) by Harmony Raines Page A

, he ground out in his mind as his bear scraped his claws across the nerve endings, making it hard for him to concentrate.
    This was his way of saving Elise. He had seen the look in her eyes, which so mirrored his own. She wanted to deal with O’Dowd, and he was scared she would end up hurt, if not physically then emotionally. What would happen if O’Dowd found out about Connor and decided to take him away from Elise? It would break her heart into a million pieces all over again, and he couldn’t bear the thought of that happening.
    So what would be the alternative? She would come here and live with O’Dowd, be the mother to Connor she had promised to be, and mourn her own mate. Or would O’Dowd give her this Niq It, and wipe Beau out of her memories, and put himself in his place as her mate?
    No. This way was the only way. Elise would forgive him. She would understand, because she would do exactly the same thing for him. That, too, he had seen in her eyes.
    The address turned out to be a warehouse by the docks. Whereas the name Harborside had conjured up images of cool renovated apartments overlooking the sea, the reality was a sprawling complex of warehouses that had once been used for manufacturing, but had fallen out of use. Perfect for hiding your illicit business.
    He swung his truck around and rode past the entrance a couple of times. On the second pass he kept going, aiming to park his truck, and then enter on foot. Or on paws. He couldn’t decide which would be best. He kind of didn’t want them to know he was a shifter. But then it might work in his favor.
    A plan had been forming in his mind, but he wasn’t sure if he could pull it off. His rusty talents of playing a role, impersonating a character who was expected to be in a certain place at a certain time, were his best course of action. But could he pull it off?
    Parking his truck, he walked back towards the Harborside complex, and skirted the perimeter fence until he found what he was looking for, a hole in the fence. It had been repaired, but was no match for his bear claws. Shifting quickly, his bear tore at the wire, a sense of satisfaction at destroying property sweeping over him.
    What? This is where the bad guys hang out , his bear said defensively.
    Beau let it go. They had to work together to get this job done.
    Squeezing through the small gap was much easier in his human form. He ducked low and kept running until he reached the side of a large building. Flattening himself against it, he consulted the map of the area on his phone. Knowing where he was headed, he straightened up and walked towards it, as if he belonged there.
    According to his ID, he did belong there. Before he left his truck he had rifled through the fake IDs he kept in a hidden compartment in the floor. If Brad knew, he would most likely arrest him, or at least confiscate them, but the lawman wasn’t there right now.
    John Abraham Rollings, all-round bad guy and drug dealer if anyone asked, or bothered to look him up on the Internet. These days a fake ID didn’t do much unless you had the necessary online presence to go with it. Social media profiles were only the start of it. Beau had learned to be incredibly convincing.
    But you’re rusty , his bear said.
    Like riding a horse , Beau countered.
    His bear huffed in disgust and went back to sulking.
    Here we go , he said to his bear, as two men appeared around the corner of a warehouse, and approached him.
    “Hey there, fellas.” Beau found in these circumstances it was always best to make the first move; it seemed less likely you were skulking if you went up and introduced yourself with a how-do and a handshake.
    “Hi there.” The tone was meant to be friendly, it wasn’t. “What can I do for you?” A flashlight hit him in the eyes, temporarily blinding him before it the beam was aimed at the floor.
    “I was looking for Gerald O’Dowd. I came to talk business with him.” Beau grinned broadly, and looked from one to