All Chapters of Motley Crewed Shifters: Fierce Shifters and Irresistible Mate Bonds: Chapter 71 - Chapter 80

How had this happened?“Dante,” I managed to say his name, fear tightening my throat and choking off the rest of my words.My hands gripped the wheel, trying to focus on driving his massive truck down the snowy road. Every second felt like an eternity, my mind spinning in a thousand directions at once.“Look at me, Honey.” His voice was steady, calm, even though I could hear the strain beneath it.I glanced at him in the rearview mirror. His black eyes locked onto mine, unwavering, grounding me in the chaos.“I got her. And I got you. This will all be okay.”I nodded, tears streaming down my face, unchecked and relentless. I couldn’t stop them, didn’t even try.My chest felt too tight, like my ribs might crack under the pressure of everything I was feeling.Then, with trembling hands, I pulled the truck over to the side of the road. The ranch was only about eight minutes away, but I couldn’t keep going. I couldn’t think. I couldn’t breathe.The truck barely came to a stop befo

My shoulders sagged as I watched my mate turn and walk away from me, our cub tucked safely in her arms.I knew she had her. Knew she didn’t need anybody to help her with her precious cargo. But fuck, I needed her to look at me. To see me after everything that had happened today.To know I was on her side. That I was sorry I’d kept my suspicions about Rosie from her.Goddammit. I fucked up.I should have told her before that I smelled fur on her baby’s skin. That I was sure Rosie had supernatural blood.No, I hadn’t known she was a Bear exactly. After all, she wasn’t a Grizzly.Yes, I had smelled the scent of other, but she could have just as easily had been a Wolf or some other large predator.God, but she was a beautiful little Black Bear Shifter.Rosie would be just fine now. The Motley Crewd Ranch was the perfect place to raise a cub and the rest of the guys, and their mates would look out for her, and help her learn to control her animal.I only hoped Avery wouldn’t leave

There wasn’t much in this world that should scare a grown ass Grizzly Shifter but put me in a room with one tiny, curvy woman who just might be about to tell me to fuck off, and I was a trembling mess of a man.“Fuck,” I growled, rubbing my hand over my face.It had been a good half hour since all the others left and, in that time, I showered off the dirt and blood that had streaked my skin.Most of the scratches and bites were healed by now, but I figured it would be easier for Avery to take if she didn’t have to see me with all that.It wasn’t Rosie’s fault. She had no knowledge that she was a Shifter, and the precautions others would have taken with their young had not been taught to her.Her first Change happened as a result of heightened emotions and that could be pretty fucking traumatic. Lucky for Rosie, her mother was who she was. Avery wouldn’t reject or subject her daughter to abuse or harm because of her dual nature.And I suppose it was lucky that I was there, too. I

A few days later.Because of the inclement weather, the rodeo was canceled this month, but that was to be expected.January and February were the worst of winter in this part of New Jersey, but today was still special. We were celebrating Rosie Posie’s seventh birthday with an indoor petting zoo party for Rosie and some of her friends from her old school.After a long, heartfelt conversation with Avery. And a pretty intense one with Sybil Harbor-Calloway. We’d decided homeschooling was the best option for now.It wasn’t a permanent solution, but it felt like the right move after everything that had happened.Besides, it worked out perfectly. Avery had quit her job after filing a formal complaint against that absolute asshat, Dryden.Fucker is still breathing by a miracle.My Bear scratched beneath my skin, restless and still pissed we hadn’t taken a more direct approach.Like, say, squashing the bastard into the ground.The thought was tempting, but Dryden was human, and no ma

“I don’t give two fucks what your Alpha told you to do. Dante Bianco is with the Motley Crewd now. I am his Alpha, and you two can get the fuck off my land,” Max snarled at Reginald Lewis, Enforcer for my former Clan.Two massive Grizzly Shifters paced back and forth behind the hulking male in front of me, their movements predatory and deliberate, like wolves circling a wounded deer. The tension in the air was palpable, crackling like a live wire.The hair on the back of my neck stood straight up, and my chest rumbled with the sheer force of the growl building inside me. It vibrated through my entire body, a warning to them and a reminder to myself to stay in control.Barely.The Willow Creek Clan didn’t play fair. They never had, and as far as I knew, they never would.Niall Tiegs ran his Clan like it was his own personal kingdom, a place where his word was law, and his desires came before anything else.Like a fat, greedy toddler screaming for snacks and toys, he used his Enfor