Chapter One
Fiona Montgomery turned right onto Main Street and smiled when she saw the familiar scene. Shadow Ridge always thrived during the lunch hours of eleven to three, and she enjoyed people watching on her daily walk to Waverly Chocolates .
Ninety-nine percent of the city’s residents were bear shifters, and though they stayed in the shadows, their bear forms hidden from the general population, crowds from the surrounding cities swarmed to the charming town for any possibility of a sighting. The many trendy boutiques and eateries added to the town’s appeal, and not even the low February temperatures could keep the tourists away. A giggle escaped when noticed a family of six dressed in matching snow boots and jackets. Snow had been predicted, but so far none had fallen in over a week.
Bear’s bodies naturally ran warm and easily adapted to winter conditions. They felt the cold, but it didn’t affect them like their human friends and they didn’t need to wear as many layers.
Fiona considered it one of the many perks of being a shifter. While everyone on the street was bundled up, she kept her bright pink, puffy jacket open, and proudly displayed her new pink sweater. The shimmering, fuzzy fabric reminded her of fresh fallen snow and pink, her favorite color, looked great on her.
She’d found the sweater while visiting her brother over the weekend in Shadow Creek, her home town, and she couldn’t wait for Owen to see her in it. It had been three days since she’d seen him, and she wanted to make an impression.
Luckily, walking long distances came easily to shifters, and though many onlookers noticed her curves, and perceived her to be out of shape, she could handle the distance from work to the candy shop with ease.
Jake’s Auto Repair, where she worked as an office manager, sat on the property line at the south end of the town, nearly two miles from the chocolate store. Jake’s was only open Tuesday through Saturday, and in order to stay open late and use less manpower, every employee had a mandatory two hour lunch. Fiona brought her lunch from home, took her walk, and enjoyed her chocolate treat later in the day, either while working or on her break. She loved the schedule, especially because she got to visit Waverly Chocolates nearly every day.
Of course, even though she could walk the distance with ease, it didn’t mean she should go wild with the extra calories. She had more curves than most women, either wolf or human, and she had a sedentary job, but she didn’t worry about it too much. She was twenty-five years old, and she’d made peace with her appearance years ago.
For the most part.
On rare occasions she still cursed that movie about the green ogre and his love, Princess Fiona, and hoped she didn’t look like the princess in her ogre form. It wouldn’t be terrible if she was badass like the movie Fiona, but she knew she wasn’t. She was regular Fiona, and regular Fiona was tall, curvy and average looking. She might not be beautiful, but deep down she knew she wasn’t ugly. Plenty of bears had asked her out, and Owen didn’t seem to mind her looks.
Owen Waverly.
Owen Waverly was the real reason she went to the chocolate store every day.
Opposite her physical appearance in every way, Owen was tall, blond and muscular. His broad shoulders nearly doubled hers, and he had strong, deep, rigid lines outlining his perfect form. At six feet, four inches tall, he towered over her five feet, nine inch frame, making her feel almost average standing next to him.
Unlike their grizzly or polar bear cousins, most black bear shifters were proportionate to the regular North American population in their human forms. It was one of the reasons the tourists were never really sure if they were talking to a shifter or not.
His blond hair was cut short, close to his head, and dark brown eyes reminded her of the dark chocolate perfection he created daily in his shop. He looked more like a Gladiator,
Fiona Montgomery turned right onto Main Street and smiled when she saw the familiar scene. Shadow Ridge always thrived during the lunch hours of eleven to three, and she enjoyed people watching on her daily walk to Waverly Chocolates .
Ninety-nine percent of the city’s residents were bear shifters, and though they stayed in the shadows, their bear forms hidden from the general population, crowds from the surrounding cities swarmed to the charming town for any possibility of a sighting. The many trendy boutiques and eateries added to the town’s appeal, and not even the low February temperatures could keep the tourists away. A giggle escaped when noticed a family of six dressed in matching snow boots and jackets. Snow had been predicted, but so far none had fallen in over a week.
Bear’s bodies naturally ran warm and easily adapted to winter conditions. They felt the cold, but it didn’t affect them like their human friends and they didn’t need to wear as many layers.
Fiona considered it one of the many perks of being a shifter. While everyone on the street was bundled up, she kept her bright pink, puffy jacket open, and proudly displayed her new pink sweater. The shimmering, fuzzy fabric reminded her of fresh fallen snow and pink, her favorite color, looked great on her.
She’d found the sweater while visiting her brother over the weekend in Shadow Creek, her home town, and she couldn’t wait for Owen to see her in it. It had been three days since she’d seen him, and she wanted to make an impression.
Luckily, walking long distances came easily to shifters, and though many onlookers noticed her curves, and perceived her to be out of shape, she could handle the distance from work to the candy shop with ease.
Jake’s Auto Repair, where she worked as an office manager, sat on the property line at the south end of the town, nearly two miles from the chocolate store. Jake’s was only open Tuesday through Saturday, and in order to stay open late and use less manpower, every employee had a mandatory two hour lunch. Fiona brought her lunch from home, took her walk, and enjoyed her chocolate treat later in the day, either while working or on her break. She loved the schedule, especially because she got to visit Waverly Chocolates nearly every day.
Of course, even though she could walk the distance with ease, it didn’t mean she should go wild with the extra calories. She had more curves than most women, either wolf or human, and she had a sedentary job, but she didn’t worry about it too much. She was twenty-five years old, and she’d made peace with her appearance years ago.
For the most part.
On rare occasions she still cursed that movie about the green ogre and his love, Princess Fiona, and hoped she didn’t look like the princess in her ogre form. It wouldn’t be terrible if she was badass like the movie Fiona, but she knew she wasn’t. She was regular Fiona, and regular Fiona was tall, curvy and average looking. She might not be beautiful, but deep down she knew she wasn’t ugly. Plenty of bears had asked her out, and Owen didn’t seem to mind her looks.
Owen Waverly.
Owen Waverly was the real reason she went to the chocolate store every day.
Opposite her physical appearance in every way, Owen was tall, blond and muscular. His broad shoulders nearly doubled hers, and he had strong, deep, rigid lines outlining his perfect form. At six feet, four inches tall, he towered over her five feet, nine inch frame, making her feel almost average standing next to him.
Unlike their grizzly or polar bear cousins, most black bear shifters were proportionate to the regular North American population in their human forms. It was one of the reasons the tourists were never really sure if they were talking to a shifter or not.
His blond hair was cut short, close to his head, and dark brown eyes reminded her of the dark chocolate perfection he created daily in his shop. He looked more like a Gladiator,
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