Free Edward (BBW Western Bear Shifter Romance) (Rodeo Bears Book 1) by Becca Fanning

cool!”  

    Alec got down on all fours and walked towards Talia with surprising speed. “Want a ride?”  

    Talia giggled. Alec knelt down and she crawled on top of his back, legs astride. Beneath her, Alec felt muscular, powerful, strong . Talia buried her fingers in his fur and held on tightly as he jolted forward. The rush of air on her face felt incredible and Talia laughed out loud, throwing her head back as Alec-Bear romped through a meadow. She blushed at the slight sensation of arousal that was building up in her belly.  

    “This doesn’t feel weird,” Talia said out loud.  

    Alec laughed. “It better not,” he said. “You have no idea how freeing it is to do this!” He knelt down so Talia could climb off his back and sauntered over to a tree, scratching against the rough bark. Judging from the sounds he was emitting, Talia could tell he was thoroughly enjoying himself.  

    “Mom!” Talia woke up to the sound of James crying. Damn, she thought as she crawled blearily out of bed, struggling towards the door in the dark of her room. That was a pretty cool dream .  

    Dashing down the hall to James’s room, she flung the door open. Her son was sitting up in his little toddler bed, crying loudly. Talia turned on the lights.  

    “Honey, what happened?” She knelt down to his height and gazed into his warm, brown eyes. “Are you okay?”  

    James started crying. “I had a dream, Mommy!”  

    “I had a dream, too,” Talia said, wrapping her arm around him. “I had a dream about a bear. You know, bears, those big furry guys we saw at the zoo last year.”  

    James giggled. “Funny!”  

    “It was kind of funny,” Talia admitted. “You wanna sleep with me for the rest of the night?”  

    James nodded gratefully. Talia scooped him up in her arms, wincing slightly at his weight, and carried him into her room. When the two of them were tucked into bed, she reached out and stroked his hair.  

    “How would you feel about moving sometime?”  

    James frowned.  

    Talia tried again. “Would you want to live somewhere else?”  

    James shrugged. “Don’t know,” he said. He snuggled close to Talia and for a moment, she let him: she loved the comfort that her son provided on nights like this. But after a few minutes, she started sweating uncontrollably.  

    “You’re so warm,” Talia said in amazement. “Aren’t you hot?”  

    James shook his head. “Not hot,” he replied. He tried to snuggle closer and Talia flipped the blankets off her bed.  

    “There you go,” she said, wriggling slightly away and keeping her distance. “There you go. Sleep well, honey. I love you.”  

    James closed his eyes and tucked his thumb in his mouth. In a few moments, he was snoring.  

    No matter how she tried, Talia couldn’t fall back asleep. She kept thinking about the dream, with Alec turned into a bear. It seemed like such a natural transition for him that she couldn’t help blushing. I shouldn’t be thinking about this , she thought. It’s rude and presumptive .  

    When she finally did manage to sleep, there were no more dreams that night.  

    --

    The next afternoon, when Talia was home from school, there was a knock on the door. Amelia and James were playing in the living room. Amelia shot her a questioning gaze.  

    “Who is it?”  

    “I don’t know,” Talia replied. “Can you watch him for just a few more minutes? I wasn’t expecting anyone.”  

    As she began walking to the front door, the knocking sounded again: harder and more forceful this time. “Oh, shit,” Talia muttered. “Not now, Danny.”  

    But when she opened the door, she was surprised to see Alec standing there.  

    “Hey there,” Alec said. “I hope this isn’t a bad time?” He frowned slightly.  

    “No, god no,” Talia replied. “Sorry, I just…well, I wasn’t sure who would be knocking at my door.”  

    “Do you usually get creeps wanting to come in?” Alec’s tone