Ready to Bear by Ivy Sinclair

growled. Then he stormed out the door.
    Billy glared at the man before realizing that both Thea and Alex were watching him. He softened his expression. “That went better than I expected,” he said, trying to smooth the moment. Regardless of what he thought of Eric, he was their sibling.
    “I’m sorry if this sounds abrupt, but I’d like to go home now,” Thea said. Her voice carried with it a strain that Billy immediately picked up on. “You don’t have to worry about staying with us. We’re fine.”
    “It’s my job,” he said, repeating what he had said to her earlier. He held out his hand to the teenager. “We haven’t met yet. I’m Billy.”
    The boy looked at his hand with suspicion. “You and my brother don’t seem to like each other much.”
    He had read the room and picked up on the nuances within just the span of a few minutes. Billy liked him already. “I just met your brother, so I don’t know him that well. What I do know now is that he and his friends said they might be able to help me with a problem I have, and for that I will be grateful to them.”
    The boy took his hand then. “Alexander. Alexander Carmichael.”
    The name carried with it the ring of old money and connections, which, of course, was an apt description of the Carmichael family. It had a long lineage and had produced more than its fair share of politicians and financiers who dabbled in oil, gas, and other commodities. They had more money than they probably knew what to do with. Billy had been raised in a middle-class family consisting almost entirely of men who served their city or country in various forms. He had no idea how to comprehend the kind of lifestyle that young Alexander had grown up with and was accustomed to.
    “Nice to meet you, Alexander.” Since the kid had insisted on the formality of his full name, Billy would respect that until he was given permission to address him differently. With shifters of that age, they could be wildly volatile. Billy was going to have to keep an eye on him, especially if he spent time with Thea. Then he mentally shook himself. It wasn’t his job to watch over anyone in Copper City. He had to remind himself of that. “Let’s get your sister home, okay? She’s had a rough night.”
    Alex turned to his sister, who gave Billy a dirty look. He could read her mind from where he stood. She didn’t want anyone fussing over her, even though she needed it.
    “Here, let me give you a hand, Thea,” Billy said. “Can you get the door for us, Alexander?”
    He could see that Alex was torn between stepping between him and Thea or obeying his request. Luckily for both of them, he decided on the latter course of action. That was good. Billy wasn’t sure that he’d be able to stop the bear from knocking the boy off his feet if he dared try to block him from his woman.
    His woman? Where the fuck did that come from? Billy still couldn’t believe it. He had always scoffed at the idea that when he met his true mate, he would know almost instantly. Lukas told him that he had known that Maren was his mate for years. But he didn’t recognize the signs consciously until after his first phase. Even then, Lukas had blatantly tried to ignore it. If he felt the way that Billy did now, Billy had no idea how he had been able to do it.
    As it was, Billy wanted to sweep Thea up in his arms and hold her close to him. He wanted to make sure that every part of her smelled like him so that other shifters would know that she was spoken for. They would know that there would be hell to pay for touching a hair on her head.
    He took several deep breaths as he crossed the room. She put up an arm as if to stop him, but then he saw the slight wobble as her knees threatened to buckle underneath her. He scooped up her elbow and put his arm around her.
    “You need to stop trying to push me away,” he said. He quickly added, “You need a hand. It’s okay. I have two.”
    “Aren’t you just the comedian?” she