Romance: My Bear Boss: BBW Paranormal Shapeshifter Romance (BBW Shifter Romance, Paranormal Shifter Romance) by Ashley Hunter Page A

to sit back and relax, but she doubted—judging by his easy stance and lack of exhaustion in his expression—this was probably all for show.
    What was more irritating was how his hair just fell over his head in charming waves. The sunlight pronounced strands of his hair to gold, and curved within his irises like molten honey.
    He didn’t seem to be hiding anything in his pockets, no weapon or tool he could use for torture. Still, she had handled many cases where abuse wasn’t always physical, and she had had to prepare herself for years to keep on her toes among supposed charming snakes like him. She would not fall prey to his looks, this she would make sure.
    “What is it, cat got your tongue?” He asked, tone somewhat teasing even while his eyes watched her incessantly.
    It was becoming more and more unnerving.
    “No,” she replied stiffly. “I hardly slept.”
    “That’s hardly my fault,” he replied with a shrug.
    “It has everything to do with your fault!” Ingrid snapped despite herself and she quickly ducked her chin and reined her anger back. This earned her a raised brow and an amused stare.
    “What do you want with me?”
    “Nothing really.”
    “Then why am I here?”
    He shifted then, pushing his hands to rest over his hips. She knew that stance. He was convinced he was in control. All men did this when they knew they had a one up on someone else.
    Had she been able to get on her feet without the cuffs, she would be making sure to meet his gaze closely. Instead, she was forced to just glower at him from her contorted position on the bed.
    “You saw too much, Ingrid. I can’t let you leave.”
    “So what, you’re going to keep me here?” She scoffed, “Forever?”
    He pursed his lips, eyes rolling in a mock pensive expression. “Yeah, pretty much.”
    “You’re vile!” She hissed, unable to hold back now.
    “What kind of sick person would react like that when dealing with a hostage? You’re clearly insane.”
    “Call me whatever you want,” Leo said, his voice falling flat.
    “But there’s no use trying to escape from here. I’m here to offer you a few options.”
    Ingrid pushed herself up and settled against the back of the bed in a crouch, not wanting him anywhere near her.
    “Unless these options lead me out of this place and safe in my home, I’m not interested.”
    “Are you sure?” He asked, tilting his chin. Display of arrogance. What a bastard.
    “Because, I’m sure you’ll want to consider them.”
    Ingrid nearly spat back another response, wanting nothing more than for him to leave and allow her to take her time to escape. But another part of her stopped her then.
    If she snarled at him to leave, he would probably be expecting her to make an escape. In fact, it wouldn’t surprise her if he had someone watching the window.
    He clearly owned this place, or at least acted like he did, and so there was no doubt he probably had the means to make sure she didn’t get a chance to escape as easily as she wanted.
    No… getting angry now wasn’t going to get her where she wanted. Her safest bet was to play along and probably get a carrot out of him.
    With a slow sigh, she nudged her chin at him, wordlessly allowing him to continue. Leo took a few steps closer, nearing her side of the large bed.
    Ingrid moved back further against the wall, eager to keep her distance.
    “Alright then, first things first. I own this place, Ingrid. I’ve owned all of this for quite some time, and so I’ve got more than the means to make sure I can keep you here, but you’ve probably already figured that much. So, here’s what I can offer you.”
    “Option one; you can stay here—preferably as my guest rather than prisoner—and live here without worry of anything else for the rest of your life. Granted, I would much rather you not be here, but I can’t expect you to be as trusting as you insist to be. So any options of you leaving are out of the question. That’s