Read Online Shiftr: Swipe Left for Love (Jessica) BBW Bear Shifter Menage Romance (Hope Valley BBW Dating App Romance Book 8) by Ariana Hawkes - Free Book Online
Authors: Ariana Hawkes
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rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling. He still felt guilty at keeping a secret from his best friends, but he’d been so confused by his attraction for Jessica that it had seemed like the right thing to do at the time. It’s all in the past now, he reminded himself. And we’re all back together. It was funny. They’d been apart for so long, but last night it felt like no time had passed at all. They were having fun and teasing each other exactly like they used to.
Even as a teenager, he’d known that what they’d had together was special, and as an adult, having had many more friendships in the meantime, it was even more so. And that was why he needed to put all inappropriate thoughts of Jessica aside and find his mate as fast as possible.
The app opened, displaying the thumbnails again. His bear purred encouragement, and before he knew it, he was tapping and scrolling again.
Then he stopped. He needed to be systematic about this; he needed to start by answering all the questions, as Jessica had directed him to. Right on cue, an alert popped up saying, ‘Are you ready to reveal all?’ His chest clenched. He was never a fan of revealing all his secrets. He had to make sure that the people he confided in were people who could understand him. He took a deep breath. Okay, here goes . And then he laughed.
Early bird or night owl? was the first question. As he worked through each question, a grin kept pulling at his lips. He’d expected to be asked a lot of dry questions, but they were mostly fun, quirky and teasing. He felt Jessica’s presence in quite a few of them. She’d said that she’d invented some of the questions, explaining that people’s answers were less important than the way that they tallied with the answers of their potential matches.
“Describe your ideal match in five words,” one of the questions said. He smirked. He only needed one: Jessica. She would be the best mate ever. If only she wasn’t a human, and basically his sister.
He took his time getting to the end. Like everything else in life, he thought there was no point doing something unless you gave it your all.
When he was finished half an hour later, and the app was busy calculating his matches, he rested his phone on his chest and gazed up at the ceiling feeling relaxed. He felt more like he’d been having a chat with Jessica, like they used to have in their teens, when their talk was all about their hopes and dreams for the future, than being clinically analyzed. The phone vibrated and he picked it up.
Welcome to your matches!
It announced perkily. An unexpected burst of excitement fluttered in his chest. He was looking forward to this. He scrolled to the thumbnails on his home screen. When he saw that the top one was accompanied by a little green badge that said ‘100% compatibility rating’, his heart sped up. The girl in the photo was turned away from the camera, her face three-quarters hidden by a sweep of long dark hair. He clicked on the thumbnail, impatient to see the other photos of his 100% match.
Chapter Five
A few hours earlier
Jessica arrived in the Shiftr office the following morning, her head throbbing with the first hangover she’d had since moving to Hope Valley. It had totally been worth it though, she thought as she made herself a strong coffee in the kitchen. She grinned as memories from the night before burst into her mind like sunbeams. The boys were every bit as much fun as she remembered, and even more so. They’d grown into such kind, strong, funny guys.
“Good morning, dear,” Tamika trilled as she came into the kitchen.
“Morning,” Jessica replied, alarmed at how scratchy her voice sounded.
“Did you have fun with those boys last night?”
“Uh, yes,” Jessica replied, reluctantly turning to face her.
“I think somebody’s in need of my Virgin Mary special,” Tamika said with a chuckle.
“I feel fine, honestly. We had a couple of drinks, but it won’t affect my
Even as a teenager, he’d known that what they’d had together was special, and as an adult, having had many more friendships in the meantime, it was even more so. And that was why he needed to put all inappropriate thoughts of Jessica aside and find his mate as fast as possible.
The app opened, displaying the thumbnails again. His bear purred encouragement, and before he knew it, he was tapping and scrolling again.
Then he stopped. He needed to be systematic about this; he needed to start by answering all the questions, as Jessica had directed him to. Right on cue, an alert popped up saying, ‘Are you ready to reveal all?’ His chest clenched. He was never a fan of revealing all his secrets. He had to make sure that the people he confided in were people who could understand him. He took a deep breath. Okay, here goes . And then he laughed.
Early bird or night owl? was the first question. As he worked through each question, a grin kept pulling at his lips. He’d expected to be asked a lot of dry questions, but they were mostly fun, quirky and teasing. He felt Jessica’s presence in quite a few of them. She’d said that she’d invented some of the questions, explaining that people’s answers were less important than the way that they tallied with the answers of their potential matches.
“Describe your ideal match in five words,” one of the questions said. He smirked. He only needed one: Jessica. She would be the best mate ever. If only she wasn’t a human, and basically his sister.
He took his time getting to the end. Like everything else in life, he thought there was no point doing something unless you gave it your all.
When he was finished half an hour later, and the app was busy calculating his matches, he rested his phone on his chest and gazed up at the ceiling feeling relaxed. He felt more like he’d been having a chat with Jessica, like they used to have in their teens, when their talk was all about their hopes and dreams for the future, than being clinically analyzed. The phone vibrated and he picked it up.
Welcome to your matches!
It announced perkily. An unexpected burst of excitement fluttered in his chest. He was looking forward to this. He scrolled to the thumbnails on his home screen. When he saw that the top one was accompanied by a little green badge that said ‘100% compatibility rating’, his heart sped up. The girl in the photo was turned away from the camera, her face three-quarters hidden by a sweep of long dark hair. He clicked on the thumbnail, impatient to see the other photos of his 100% match.
Chapter Five
A few hours earlier
Jessica arrived in the Shiftr office the following morning, her head throbbing with the first hangover she’d had since moving to Hope Valley. It had totally been worth it though, she thought as she made herself a strong coffee in the kitchen. She grinned as memories from the night before burst into her mind like sunbeams. The boys were every bit as much fun as she remembered, and even more so. They’d grown into such kind, strong, funny guys.
“Good morning, dear,” Tamika trilled as she came into the kitchen.
“Morning,” Jessica replied, alarmed at how scratchy her voice sounded.
“Did you have fun with those boys last night?”
“Uh, yes,” Jessica replied, reluctantly turning to face her.
“I think somebody’s in need of my Virgin Mary special,” Tamika said with a chuckle.
“I feel fine, honestly. We had a couple of drinks, but it won’t affect my
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