inside. “I’d like you all to meet my good friend, Jasmine. She’s a little nervous right now, so if you could please stop messing around…”
And that’s when I was just about convinced I was going nuts. The snouts on the bears flattened and shrunk. Their thick fur coats retracted into their bodies. Their arms and legs became slender and defined, their torsos corrugated with muscle. They were…men.
Naked men.
There I was, staring down five men who moments before had been bears, and were now some form of human, though with the cocks of horses. I couldn’t say anything for the shock.
The one in the middle stepped forward, smiling softly as a man of his size, demeanor, and preceding speciation possibly could. “Hi, I’m Zac. Lieutenant Zac. I’m aiming to make you mine before the day is done.” He meant it. That was clear.
I barely coughed out a, “Hi.”
“Not if I do,” said one of the other men, stepping forward. “Name’s Kell.”
Suddenly, they were all clamoring for my attention.
“Fiona, what is this? What going on?”
Fiona came up behind me and wrapped her around my shoulders. “Now, don’t get freaked out.”
“It’s a little late for that!”
“Dax, grab her a beer,” she snapped.
“And it’s a little early for that.”
“Ehhhh, let’s make an exception, just this once,” she said as she stepped away and grabbed me a chair.
I sat down and closed my hand around the icy bottle. I looked up at the man she called Dax. He grinned at me. “Thanks,” I said quietly. He winked and stepped back with the other men, dick swaying hypnotically.
Fiona sat across from me. “You know about, like, werewolves, right?”
I sighed. “I think I’ve got it figured out. ‘Cept I’ve never heard of werebears before. I guess the old stories got it wrong.”
She shook her head. “No, there’s werewolves too.”
“Oh.” I guess at that point I was ready to accept anything. Well, almost anything. “So your solution to my lacking love life is to spruce it up with some… bears?”
“Biker bears. These guys form a motorcycle organization, and I can tell you, I’ve had more fun in the last several months than I’ve had in most of my life. And they take great care of me.”
I looked around at the men. They were impressive specimens. Perhaps supernatural genes will do that for you. Ruggedly handsome with dark brown hair and strong jaw lines covered in short, manicured beards. They all had the same golden eyes set into their tanned faces.
They each stood at least six and a half feet tall—or more. Their bodies were cabled with natural, tight muscles, covered with detailed tattoos that seemed to breathe with life as they flexed and shifted in their place.
All in all, I could do a lot worse.
“So, what… do I just get to chose, like out of a line up? Or is there one particular…” My inclination was to hope I didn’t have to choose. I wasn’t sure I could.
Fiona chewed her lip nervously. “Not exactly…”
“That’s a relief,” I said.
“It is? Is it?” said Fiona.
“I mean, they get to choose. That’s sure takes the pressure off of me.” I laughed. It was a short burst of mirth, dying away quickly when I realized I was the only one amused. I snapped my head around and back, scanning the room. “Is there an ugly one I missed? Who picked me?”
Fiona sighed. “It’s just the guys here. And they haven’t picked you yet. It’s not quite that simple.”
“So what is it then?”
“There’s a…” She hummed nervously.
Marcus put his hand on her shoulder and took a commanding step forward. “Ritual. It’s like a ritual,” he said. “It allows us to determine which of us is most suited to be your mate.”
“Oh? And how does the ritual work?”
Fiona groaned. “They each have sex with you, Jas.”
“What??”
“Whichever one feels the greatest connection with you, and vice versa—that’s the one you are mated to.”
“Mated to? You mean