Free Bear Seeking Bride: Thorn (Bear Canyon Brides Book 6) (BBW Paranormal Bear-Shifter Menage Romance) by Ruby Shae Page B

approached them. It had been amusing for about five minutes, and then he’d started drinking. The only reason they didn’t turn around and leave was because they were already out, and they didn’t want to try another place they knew was the same or worse. The only reason they tried clubs at all was because they knew they wouldn’t meet anyone in Bear Canyon.
    He and Hawk had moved into Bear Canyon five years ago after the government had recognized the need for pure shifter communities and sanctioned the land for grizzly bear shifters. While relocating to a shifter town has always been voluntary, many shifter advocates had opposed the lands claiming rights violations and segregation, but most shifters had openly welcomed the change. Shifters have always desired peace, and raising cubs in a huge city, especially with nervous or uneducated humans, is stressful on both the parents and children.
    Unfortunately, in every species of shifter, the men outnumbered the women nearly three-to-one. They’d already met all the available she-bears in town and none of them were meant to be theirs. They were meant to share, they’d always known that, but they needed a woman who could handle both of them. Although they were identical on the outside, they were very different on the inside. Usually, a woman could handle one but not the other.
    His thoughts made him wary and he sighed heavily.
    “We will find someone,” Hawk reassured him.
    “Yeah, I know,” he agreed. “I just thought we’d have met her by now.”
    He’d always thought they’d have a few cubs running around by the time they turned thirty-five, but they only had seven more months until that magical birthday and they hadn’t even met their mate yet. Never having cubs would suck, but he could deal. Never having a mate would slowly drive him insane.
    He and Hawk needed a woman to complete their triad.
    “I have an idea,” Hawk hesitated. “It’s risky, though.”
    “What is it?”
    “What if we placed an ad?”
    “Are you insane?” Gavin yelled. He slammed his mug down on the table and some of the liquid sloshed out and landed on his hand. He ignored the burn, and continued to yell. “We’d get every crazy in the world able to board a plane bothering us. They’d show up to fuck, steal our money and leave before morning. What the fuck is wrong with you?”
    “Calm down. God damn, that’s not what I meant,” Hawk said, exasperated. His brother handed him a napkin, and smiled. “Before I explain, though, please tell me how they are going to steal our money in the middle of the night?”
    “You know what I mean,” Gavin snapped. “Their car will break down. Or they won’t be able to afford the plane ticket home. Or, I don’t know, there really isn’t a home and we’re stuck with them until they can earn enough to get their own place, but they’ll never get their own place and then we’ll be stuck with some insane threesome junky for the rest of our lives. No fucking way.”
    “Don’t you think that’s a little extreme?” Hawk asked calmly.
    God he hated his brother sometimes.
    Hawk had always been the quieter of the two, but it wasn’t because he was shy, or brooding, as most people expected. It was because he was watching, thinking and planning. The man rarely made decisions without plans, or at least some sort of knowledge, and Gavin was the complete opposite. He was talkative, friendly, outgoing and spontaneous. Instead of thinking everything through, he often jumped first and thought about the consequences later. Not about the important things, of course, but with the small things.
    They complemented each other perfectly, but it was extremely difficult to find a woman who appreciated both personalities. Hawk wouldn’t have brought up the ad if he didn’t already have a plan.
    “Maybe,” he conceded. “What’s your plan?”
    “I’m thinking we should place an ad looking for a Bride like the Mallorys did, and list both of our best