A Spark to Bear (Fire Bear Shifters Book 2) by Sloane Meyers Page A

to try to take advantage of the cool morning hours as much as I can. I’m estimating we’ll be at the visitor center a little before noon tomorrow.”
    “Roger that. How are your supplies?”
    “Food is low, but we have enough to last us through breakfast tomorrow. So, barring any emergencies, that should be fine. And I found the river, so we have plenty of water. I’d say we’re in good shape.”
    “Good. Did you mate with her yet?” Ian asked, his voice sounding bitter.
    “Ian!”
    “I’m just asking. I sure hope rescuing her has been worth it for you, since you risked your life to do it. You’ve also put me in an awkward situation. Boise wants to give you an award for bravery. They want to use your story to publicize all of the wildfire firefighters, and get the word out about how awesome we all are, or whatever. I should have just thrown your ass under the bus and told them the truth—that you jumped off that helicopter on purpose, against orders. Now we’re going to have a bunch of media spotlights on the clan.”
    “I’m sorry, boss,” Hunter said meekly. “You know I’m not defiant by nature. But I couldn’t stop myself. My bear felt like it was going to tear right out of me if I didn’t do go after her. I’m sure she’s my lifemate. It would have torn me up inside if I had let her die out here.”
    “If she’s your lifemate, then why haven’t you mated with her yet? Is she not as into you as you are into her?”
    “It’s not that. She seems very willing. It’s just…I don’t want to lose her trust.”
    Ian immediately knew what Hunter meant. “I understand that, Hunter, and I’m not going to tell you to try to hide who you really are from her. But be careful if you tell her. Make sure you can trust her. We don’t want to risk the clan being outed. Especially when Boise already has the media circus lined up and waiting to talk to you.”
    “I know. I’ll be careful. And I’m sorry about the media. I’ll find a way to make this better, I promise.”
    “Just worry about getting yourself home for now. I’m pissed as hell at you, but we’ll talk about that later. Take care of yourself and the girl, okay?”
    “Alright, Ian. I’ll check in later tonight with our progress.”
    Hunter signed off and turned off the radio, then went back to where he had left Riley sleeping. He was surprised to see that she had woken up already.
    “Was I too loud? Did I wake you up?” he asked. He hoped that she hadn’t heard his discussion with Ian, but she gave no indication that anything was out of the ordinary.
    “Nah, I think I just got cold when the warm body next to me left the bed,” Riley said, winking at him. Hunter smiled, and then tossed her the protein bar he had pulled out for her.
    “Here. Breakfast. I know it’s not very delicious, but it will at least give you some energy.
    Riley munched on the protein bar while Hunter put on all of his gear, and then they took off hiking down the river. Riley seemed to be in a very talkative mood, and Hunter let her talk. He interjected just enough comments to keep her from suspecting that he was in a bad mood. Her mood seemed better than ever, which he suspected had something to do with the fact that he had kissed her yesterday. He worried that she might not feel so chipper once he told her why he hadn’t mated with her yesterday.
    He decided that he would tell her when they set up camp for the night. This gave him all day to think about what to say—and all day to dread what her reaction would be. The hours seemed to drag by, but when the shadows had started to grow long again, Hunter picked a spot to set up camp. As soon as Hunter had taken off his gear and jumpsuit, Riley stripped down to her bra and underwear again with lighting speed.
    “Last one in is the rotten egg!” she taunted, evidently pleased with herself for beating him at his own game. She splashed out into the water, laughing and shrieking as the cool stream hit her body.