Free Lair of the Alphas (Steamy Werebear Shifter BBW Menage Romance) by Willow Wilde Page B

hands against the orange flickers as they licked along their new fuel, already starting to char the wood.
     
    Finally feeling warm, I was simply grateful for my good fortune.
     
    It didn’t take long for the flame to rise, and I knew a roaring fire was inevitable now. Nestling myself safely away from the heat, but close enough to dry off, the soothing warmth began to warm me to the point of fatigue. Within minutes, I was on my side, drifting off to my slumber and completely ignorant to the night that was ahead of me.
     
    *              *              *              *
     
    I woke with a start. How long had I been asleep here? The fire was still warm, although it had burned through most of the fuel by now. The embers were still a bright orange, and the flame was still rushing, but the blaze as a whole had died down.
     
    Realizing I was still down to my underwear, I reached over for my clothes — still slightly damp, but manageable. But when I finally heard the rustling of the water and glanced towards the opening of the cave, I realized that the storm was still raging above.
     
    Great. Guess that means I’m not going anywhere.
     
    It was at this point that I became aware of my foolishness. What was I THINKING? An abandoned fire in a small cave, with scattered debris everywhere…I had actually found thick chunks of wood — not quite logs, but close — to restart the flames. There was no way that this cave hadn’t been recently occupied. It had to be a small group of hikers — after all, I didn’t think that animals would build a fire or drag a ton of tinder and woodland fuel inside a cave.
     
    But I didn’t have long to wonder, because several forms appeared in the moonlight up front. Large, shaggy animals, I realized to my horror that it was a pack of bears. I estimated three of them, although it was hard to tell, and I thought of trying to crawl backwards out of the way. Before the first movement, I remembered all the debris…there was no way I was going to get away without snapping a twig or pressing my hands down on something sharp and cursing. Stripped of options, I crouched down low to the ground behind the smoldering fire to try and hide.
     
    Instead of lumbering towards me, the bears loitered around the mouth of the cave. Without any warning, they all began to glow, the very light shimmering around them. As I clasped a hand over my mouth to stifle my gasp, the three bears started shrinking, their fur receding over their bodies as their limbs twisted and their forms contorted. It was horrible and beautiful to see, but it was all over in a matter of seconds.
     
    With disbelief clouding my sight, I stared at three handsome, rugged men. They were built with broad shoulders, incredible muscles, and thick cocks that dangled between their legs. Naked and built as the perfect specimens of man, they began to stroll my way, clearly still ignorant of my presence.
     
    “Craven…you left the fire going! I thought I told you to put it out when we left?”
     
    “I did! I smothered it before our hunt.”
     
    “Hogwash!” The first stranger answered, pointing towards it — and inadvertently towards me. “Does this look like a smothered fire? Why, this must have been roaring for hours! That’s the last time I leave a simple…”
     
    His eyes and mine focused at the same time, but it wasn’t on each other. We had both seen my clothes, laid out near the flames. In my hesitance I had completely forgotten about them, and I knew that I only had seconds before I would be discovered.
     
    “Either your incompetence in thwarting fires is bad enough to spawn clothes , or we have a guest…” he murmured aloud. “Come out, human! Show yourself!”
     
    The other two bear-people approached behind him, snarling as they glanced in alternate directions. Fearful of what might happen if I just let them fall upon me, I slowly crawled to a stand.
     
    All three focused on me in a