Fairy Tales with a Shift: Complete Collection (5 Bear Shifter Novellas) Read online

  FAIRY TALES WITH A SHIFT

  THE COMPLETE COLLECTION

  5 BEAR SHIFTER NOVELLAS

  Copyright © 2016 by Cara Wylde

  All rights reserved.

  This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

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  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  BEARLY SLEEPING

  A retelling of Sleeping Beauty

  SCARLETT AND THE BEAR

  A retelling of Little Red Riding Hood

  BEARLY HUNTED

  A retelling of Snow White

  BEARLY CURSED

  A retelling of East of the Sun and West of the Moon

  AIMÉE AND THE BEAR

  A retelling of Beauty and the Beast

  More Books by Cara Wylde

  About the Author

  BEARLY SLEEPING

  A retelling of Sleeping Beauty

  Curvy Princess Rose doesn’t believe in the curse that was cast on her when she was born. While seven good fairies offered her gifts of beauty, grace, and wit, an evil fairy cursed her to prick her finger on a spindle and sleep for 100 years. Her best friends don’t believe in it either, and they convince Rose to prove everyone they were wrong by trying the only spinning wheel left in the kingdom.

  Tavian has always been in love with the Princess. Unfortunately, she was promised to someone else. When he can’t stop her from playing with fire and challenging the curse, he leaves the kingdom and vows to return for her when the time is right. But to be there to wake her after the 100 years are up means to find a way to become immortal, or at least prolong his life. The evil fairy is the one who comes with the solution: she turns him into a bear-shifter.

  CHAPTER ONE

  Rose clenched her teeth and groaned when the servant pulled her corset tighter. Tears were welling up in the corners of her eyes, but she refused to let them fall.

  “Princess, if I may…” the young servant girl whispered. “I don’t think I can make it tighter than this.” What she really meant was that it was tight enough, and if she continued, the Princess would not be able to breathe anymore.

  Rose threw an angry glance in the mirror. Her long, blonde hair was gathered in a loose braid that hung down over her right shoulder. Her bright blue eyes were the only good feature about her face, and no one could convince her otherwise. She hated her wide forehead, her plump cheeks, and round jaw. Big, heavy breasts, thick waist, generous hips – she hated everything about her body. It was no wonder her friends didn’t want to spend time with her unless they got to tease her about her weight.

  “Tighter,” said Rose.

  The servant sighed, but complied. She pulled at the strings hard and tied them in a pretty bow.

  Rose took a labored breath and straightened her back. She studied herself in the mirror again, this time nodding in approval. It was hard to breathe, and her ribcage felt like it was being crushed little by little, but her waist did look better. Thinner. She was almost pretty. It was time to go downstairs. Her three friends were waiting for her so they could go for a walk in the lush gardens of her father’s palace.

  “Thank you, that would be all,” she told the girl and headed to the door, careful not to let on she was in pain. It would eventually go away. She just had to think of something else.

  Juliet, Angel, and Talia welcomed her with huge smiles and warm hugs. After all, some of the courtiers were present, and they didn’t want to let anyone know their idea of having fun was to tease the Princess about her extra pounds. They giggled and complimented Rose, making sure she caught the subtle sarcasm in their voice, then they ran straight to the gardens. Rose followed them, lifting the heavy skirt of her dress just an inch above her ankles. From the corner of her eye, she noticed Tavian staring at her, and she couldn’t help but smile. Her day was already better.

  Tavian was the son of one of the courtiers, and he was three years older than her. Tall, well-built, with wide shoulders and strong arms, he was the epitome of what Rose found attractive in a man. She dreamed about his long, brown hair caressing her breasts as he leaned over her and kissed his way down her neck, about his green eyes boring into hers as he whispered how beautiful she was. Dreams. Sweet, impossible dreams. Why? Because, even though he came from a fairly noble family, Tavian wasn’t what the King and Queen wanted for their daughter. Rose had already been promised to a Prince from a neighboring kingdom, so it was better for her to stay away from handsome Tavian. She allowed herself to fantasize about him, but she did her best to avoid him on the halls and in the gardens.

  “Come on, Rose! Keep up,” yelled Angel.

  Rose picked up the pace, forcing herself to ignore the terrible pain in her chest. Angel… the girl was anything but an Angel. Long, dark hair, dark eyes, and a thin, perfect waist. Even though she was the Princess and she would inherit her father’s kingdom, Rose would have given everything up just to be like her friends: beautiful, sexy, confident. But she wasn’t. Rose, the Princess, the apple of her parents’ eye, the girl who had been blessed by seven fairies at birth was insecure, scared, and desperate to please. Sometimes, she wondered whether it could be because of the curse.

  Juliet, Angel, and Talia sat down on the fresh, green grass. Rose completed their small circle by carefully sitting down between Juliet and Angel. If she kept her back straight and her chin high, she could almost breathe normally.

  Talia studied her posture. “You look nice today,” she said. “I love your dress.”

  Rose smiled. Her efforts were paying off.

  Angel huffed. “That servant of yours tightened your corset too much. How can you even breathe?”

  “I’m fine. It’s a little loose, actually.”

  Angel rolled her eyes and Juliet chuckled. Rose ignored them and pulled out her fan. It was a lovely summer day. They sat in silence for a while, simply enjoying the colorful beds of flowers, the clear sky, and the warm sun on their white skin.

  “So,” said Juliet. “Tomorrow is your birthday, Princess.”

  Rose brightened up. Finally, she was turning 18. She couldn’t say exactly why, but it made her happy. Her friends were at least one year older than her. She felt like she was one step closer to becoming a woman. The downside was that her parents would start planning her wedding, but there was nothing she could do about that. All she wanted was for her friends to see her as their equal, and turning 18 would help. She knew it.

  “It’s not such a big deal.” Rose tried to be humble.

  “Of course it is!” Talia almost jumped in excitement. “Soon, you’ll marry Prince Philip and have a wonderful wedding.”

  “And there’s also the curse,” Angel interrupted her friend. “If you ask me, that’s the most interesting part. We’ll finally know if it’s real.”

  Rose’s smile faltered. “It’s not real.”

  Angel bit the inside of her lip in thought. “Yeah… it’s probably not. Given that the fairies’ gifts weren’t real either.”

  Rose swallowed heavily. Angel’s comment hurt a lot. She didn’t know if she should be angry that her friend wanted the curse to be real and for Rose to fall in a deep sleep, or that she thought she didn’t possess any of the amazing gifts the fairies had offered her when she was born.

  “I can sing,” whispered Rose. “And dance.”

  Juliet smirked. “Okay, we all have to admit you have a decent singi
ng voice, but… dancing? That’s a whole different story. You don’t have the natural grace, Rose. I’m sorry, but you just don’t.” She leaned in and covered Rose’s hand with hers. “And I’m not saying this to hurt you, I’m just being honest.” She turned to Angel and Talia. “We’re always honest to you. That’s what friends are for.”

  Rose looked at Juliet’s hand and fought the urge to slap it away. That was what they said every time they blatantly offended her: they were only being honest. Rose smiled and nodded. She couldn’t let them see how much their words affected her. She was the Princess. She was supposed to be strong and brave. Of course, if she were, she would have never accepted to be treated the way they had been treating her for years.

  “Anyway, I have a great idea about what we should do for your birthday,” said Angel.

  Rose perked up a bit. Maybe they weren’t such bad friends if they had thought of a surprise for her, or a fun activity to do together.

  “How about we find out if the curse is real?” Angel’s dark eyes glowed as she spoke. “Once and for all.”

  Rose dropped the fan and didn’t bother to pick it back up. Her blue eyes were wide, and her lips parted to say something, but nothing came out.

  “I mean, none of us believes in it, right?” continued Angel. “We always joke about your parents’ paranoia.”

  The Princess smiled bitterly. That was another thing she had failed to address: how much it hurt every time her friends made fun of the King and Queen, and their order to ban the use of spinning wheels all over the kingdom.

  “Yes,” said Juliet. “You will prick your finger on the spindle and fall into a deep sleep,” she laughed. “What kind of curse is that? You know what? I don’t even believe those women were fairies and they could do actual magic.”

  “Magic doesn’t exist,” said Talia.

  “All this is stupid, and we’ll prove it tomorrow. What do you say?” Angel fixed Rose with her intense eyes, and the Princess couldn’t look away.

  “I don’t… I don’t know…”

  “Come on! You don’t believe in the curse,” insisted Angel. “You’ve always said you don’t believe in it. Let’s show everyone how wrong and silly they were.”

  Rose struggled to stand up. It was difficult, but she managed. She smoothed down her dress and avoided her friends’ eyes.

  “I don’t think it’s such a good idea…”

  “Why not?” Juliet pouted.

  “Well, for one: there are no spinning wheels left in the kingdom. They were all burned.”

  Angel smiled mysteriously, but didn’t say anything just yet.

  “And I would be betraying my parents. Their trust, everything they sacrificed to protect me…”

  “From a fairy tale!” Angel jumped to her feet. “From something that isn’t real! You would be doing them a favor by showing them it was all a joke. We’re not the only ones who don’t believe in the curse, you know. My parents told me there are a lot of courtiers who think the King and Queen exaggerated when they banned spinning and caused so many people to lose their jobs. Oh, and my servant girl told me people are talking about it at the market, especially now that your birthday is so close. They all think the curse doesn’t exist.”

  Rose sighed. She had heard the rumors too. And, yes, it was true she didn’t believe in the curse either. On the other hand, she couldn’t be so sure of herself that she would be willing to risk everything to prove a point. She was never sure of herself. Not about this, not about anything.

  “No,” she whispered.

  Angel crossed her arms over her chest and stared at Rose for a short while before speaking again.

  “The seven fairies offered you gifts of beauty, grace, wit… Did they also tell your parents you would grow up to be a brave, confident ruler? Because I don’t see it…”

  There it was again… Angel’s unique talent of hurting her. Badly. Rose started walking back to the palace. She didn’t want to hear the rest of it, but her friend wouldn’t have that.

  “You know, Rose, you’re a Princess now, but you will become Queen one day. We will be your courtiers, so I apologize for wanting to serve a beautiful, brave Queen who knows the difference between reality and fairy tale.”

  Rose stopped in her tracks, took a deep breath, and turned around. It was beyond her how Angel could push her so hard, convince her to do things she didn’t want to do. But, maybe, she was right. Maybe she did have to prove she was worthy of becoming Queen. She had to gain her friends’ respect, didn’t she?

  “Okay, I’ll do it.”

  Angel gave Rose the brightest smile she had ever seen. “Wonderful! I’m so happy! You’ve made the right choice.”

  “Where will we find a spinning wheel?”

  Her friend reached out and took Rose’s hands into hers. “Leave that to me. No one knows, but my servant’s grandmother has one tucked away in her attic. Her house is not far from the palace. If we wake up early, we can make it there and back before your birthday party. It will be perfect, you’ll see.”

  Rose nodded, then said she was tired. The sun burned too brightly, and it was giving her a headache. As she crossed the gardens and entered the palace, she saw Tavian following her close behind. As usual, he was looking for the right moment to approach her. She had been avoiding him with such a passion that he had become rather shy around her. He caught up with her just as she was turning the corner to her room.

  “Princess…”

  She turned to him, but didn’t look into his green, mesmerizing eyes, lest she’d lose her resolve.

  “Tavian, I’m sorry. This isn’t a good moment. I’m… indisposed.”

  Tavian took a moment to admire her beautiful, shiny hair, her rosy cheeks, the milky skin of her neck and chest, and the way the embroidered corset pushed her breasts up in a sexy, inviting way.

  “Rose, don’t do it.”

  ***

  Tavian couldn’t remember when he had first realized he was in love with the Princess. They were childhood friends, and they had always been around each other, although they had drifted apart in the past two years, both aware of the mutual attraction blossoming between them. Tavian loved her with all his heart. Rose, on the other hand, kept her feelings in check. Denied them, if it was necessary. And Tavian understood why she did it: she had been promised to someone else. He came from a noble family, but he wasn’t wealthy and influential enough to even dare dream of asking for her hand in marriage. They had to do their best to stay only friends, because a different sort of relationship would doom them.

  Rose didn’t move. Tavian expected her to throw a tantrum and walk away. After all, who was he to tell her what to do? To his surprise, however, she stood before him, back straight, but shoulders slightly slouched in a position of defeat. He took the opportunity to speak his mind.

  “What Angel, Juliet, and Talia suggested is madness. Even more than that! If you ask me, it’s treason. The King and Queen did everything in their power to make sure you were safe despite the curse hanging above your head, and going against their will can’t end well, my Princess.”

  “I know…”

  Tavian was taken aback by her answer. Her voice was soft and low. It sounded so sweet to his ears. She wasn’t angry that he had eavesdropped on her and her friends in the garden, which told him she was too preoccupied by the real problem to care about the details.

  “I have to do it, though,” she continued. This time, she looked into his eyes. “I said I’d do it, so I must. Otherwise, what kind of Princess would I be? A Princess who lies, who can’t keep her word?”

  The sadness in her eyes broke his heart.

  “You would be a loyal, wise Princess who knows better than to put herself and the whole kingdom in danger. If Angel, Juliet, and Talia can’t see that, then they’re not your friends.”

  Rose smiled and shook her head.

  “They won’t see things the way you do. If I refuse to go with them tomorrow, they will never respect me. They will remind me
what a coward I am for the rest of my life. They would be so… sad and disappointed that they won’t want to be my friends anymore.”

  Tavian couldn’t believe how innocent she was. After all these years, she couldn’t see that her three friends were the most evil, manipulative human beings on the face of the Earth. She still wanted to impress them, gain their respect, make them accept her. He wanted to tell her the truth, but then he realized he would only be hurting her feelings if he talked badly about her friends. What he could do, however, was to tell her how wonderful and special she was.

  “They don’t appreciate you for who you really are, Princess. All they want is to make you feel like you’re less than you actually are because they envy you. They know you’re better than them, and they know you’re going to be a great Queen one day.”

  Rose blushed and averted her gaze. She wasn’t used to receiving compliments, especially not from men she was attracted to, so she had no idea how to react.

  Tavian stepped closer to her. The flowery scent of her hair and skin invaded his nostrils, and he breathed it in deeply.

  “You, Rose, are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.” He reached out and took her hands into his. He smiled to himself when she didn’t pull back, and lifted them to his lips. He kissed her knuckles, then looked into her eyes. “I’ve wanted to tell you this for a long, long time, but I was afraid it might ruin our friendship.”

  Rose felt her neck and cheeks burning with embarrassment. Or, was it something else? Butterflies were dancing in her stomach, and Tavian’s every word sent a shiver right through her bones. Her knees were weak and her heart was beating wildly. She was almost scared of what he was about to say.

  “I love you,” he whispered and pulled her closer to his chest.

  “Tavian…”

  She had never been this close to a man. He was still holding her hands, which was a good thing, because her fingers were itching to touch his strong chest. Before she knew it, he leaned in and captured her lips in a soft kiss. She sighed and closed her eyes. She couldn’t believe she was kissing her friend, the man she had fantasized about in the past few years, the man whom she couldn’t have. When she felt the tip of his tongue push against her lips, she opened her mouth and let him explore every crevice. Heat pooled in her stomach, only to spread down to her core. They kissed for a long minute, their tongues twirling against each other, their teeth biting playfully. When they broke the kiss, Rose was panting.