Black Magic Bear

Jack is on a mission, but runs into a lot more than he bargains for, including witchcraft, black magic, a spooky fey garden, and a woman who just might be his mate.

And then, there was one…

Jack is happy to see his two older brothers mated and settled in Grizzly Cove, but he’s definitely the odd man out—the lone bachelor of their tight-knit family. He takes a job and a mission to track down the problems at a paper plant in Pennsylvania. There’s magic afoot there, and Jack’s special sensitivity to the dark arts will help him crack the case where others have failed.

She’s a practical girl…

Kiki is trying to adjust to her new job, but when she stumbles on something that sets her senses tingling in warning, she doesn’t know where to turn…or, who to trust. Her down-home upbringing in the traditions of the farm folk of the area, she knows simple ways to protect herself from evil, but will it be enough?

Together, can they shine a light against the darkness?

The new guy from corporate is altogether too handsome for Kiki’s peace of mind, and he actually seems interested in her. Dare she trust him? Jack isn’t sure about anyone at the plant, but something about Kiki makes him want to believe in her innocence. When her life is put in mortal peril, they will have to work together to end the evil threat and save not only their own lives, but that of nearly every person who works in the plant. Can they do it? Or, will the darkness win and douse their light forevermore?

Kiki saw the man first. A giant bear of a man wearing faded jeans and black leather boots that gave the impression he’d just come off the huge motorcycle she could just see out the glass doors behind him. He had a black leather jacket covering a slightly western-looking button-down shirt. She would have expected a T-shirt under that leather, but this man was more than a bit out of the ordinary.
To her very minute magical senses, he fairly glowed with strength of purpose. He had innate magic of his own, of that she was sure, but whether he used it for good or evil was still an open question.
“Can I help?” Kiki asked, moving closer to the front desk. The man looked up, and his gaze caught hers.
Light brown with golden flecks danced in his gaze, proclaiming him something special to her inner vision. He had brown hair, also with strands of gold mixed in. It was on the longish side but still managed to look businesslike and somewhat conservative, even after being squashed inside a motorcycle helmet.
“As I was just telling Cindy, here,” the man smiled, oozing charm, “I’ve been sent by the home office of SeaLife Enterprises to have a look around the operation. My name is Jack Bishop.”
He stretched out his hand for a shake, and she found herself moving closer to take it. When their hands touched, sparks flew. It was hard to keep her reaction to herself, but she had to do so with Cindy watching. Kiki was ninety-nine percent sure Cindy had been one of those wearing the creepy Halloween costumes the previous week in the warehouse. Kiki didn’t trust anybody in the office anymore. Not a single one of them.
But this man was a stranger. A newcomer. He’d been sent by the parent company. It remained to be seen whether or not he could be trusted.
Still, if his handshake was anything to go by, he was intensely magical. And the gleam in his eye said he recognized a bit of the magic in her, as well.
“I’m Kiki Richards,” she introduced herself, trying to keep things businesslike and professional. “I’m somewhat new to the company. I came on board to work on government compliance. Maybe I can check with my boss for you?”
“Who would that be?” Jack asked, seemingly reluctant to release her hand, but he did, finally.
“Bob Boehm, head of operations. Is he who you wanted to see?” she asked, trying to be helpful and discreet.
The man tilted his head to the side. “Sure. I wanted to start with whoever’s in charge, then work my way down the chain of command.”
Jack smiled, putting her at ease. At that point, Cindy seemed to come to her senses and started doing her job.
“I’ll call Mr. Boehm,” Cindy announced.

Jack was floored by the woman who’d come out from one of the offices behind the reception area. She was gorgeous. And her eyes sparked with intelligence. Her hair was golden, as if sunlight danced among the strands, and her eyes were clear blue. Innocent, yet knowing.
When he touched her hand, his magical senses exploded with awareness, and when he caught her scent, his bear stood up and took notice. Damn. He’d had to scramble to hide his powerful reaction to the woman. He’d never before felt this kind of punch to the gut on first meeting a lady. What could it mean?
For one thing, he got the distinct impression that she would be important to his mission here. He hoped, for both their sakes, that she was on the right side of things. Even after such a brief meeting, he knew it would hurt him deeply if she turned out to be a traitor to the Light.
While he was contemplating the luscious Miss Richards, a pale man with thinning red hair came out from the office area. He bustled over to them and started talking right away.
“I’m Bob Boehm. What’s this all about?”
Jack noticed the other man didn’t hold out his hand for a handshake. In fact, he seemed more belligerent than friendly. Well, if that’s the way he wanted to play it, Jack would give it back to him, in spades.
“Jack Bishop, troubleshooter for SeaLife Enterprises. The home office sent me here to check the books and review your operations. You are the operations manager, are you not?”
Old Bob started sweating. Jack hid his smile.
“I wasn’t given any notice of anyone coming down from corporate,” Bob protested. “I’ll need some proof of who you are. Bishop, did you say?”
Jack reached into his top pocket and flicked out a business card they’d had printed up especially for this trip. He handed it to Boehm.
“Call Ezra Tate. He’ll confirm that he sent me. I’ll wait.” Jack looked around as if he had all the time in the world and took one of the cushy chairs over by the window.
Boehm bustled off without another word, leaving the delectable Miss Richards staring after him. The receptionist, Cindy, sounded angry, which seemed odd. Jack took a mental note to keep an eye on her.
Kiki just looked confused and concerned as she watched her boss but seemed to shake it off and moved closer to Jack.
“Can I offer you a cup of coffee?” she asked, a pleasant smile on her face.
“That’s kind, but I’m all set,” he replied. “Perhaps you can tell me more about what you do here while I’m waiting.” He wanted to keep her around. He wanted to know all about her. Not for the mission, just to get to know her.