9781618854704HolidayGemBeckNC Read Free Page A

mission. Missions he was good
at. He was glad to have a task to focus on. Damn, he felt so out of his element
with Gemma. He knew after the claiming that he would be able to read her emotions.
Thankfully, she couldn’t do that yet because he would seem like a real ass. Seamus
and Donovan had laughed as they watched Madden and Caedon go through the
Acclimation, but this was so not funny now.
    Once
Seamus found some lavender in their cellar-thankful he knew from his mother
that all women of the Magdalena Circle stored dried herbs-he brought a glass of water to Gemma. She said nothing when
she took the glass from him. He watched as Gemma drank in deep gulps while
seemingly paying him no attention. He should look away but he couldn’t seem to
make himself move. Watching her head tilted slightly, her deep red hair spread
along her back and her throat working to swallow the water caused wicked images
to form in his mind. He shouldn’t have these thoughts while trying to remain
calm.
    Clearing
his suddenly dry throat, Seamus said, “I’m going to run you a bath. I found
lavender and it should soothe you.” Without giving Gemma a chance to respond, Seamus
dashed out of the room again. He needed to minimize their contact until she
came out of her haze and recognized him as her mate.
    Using
his senses, he quickly found her room. It was stacked with large books that
could’ve been older than his father. The seating area looked more like a
library though without a single fictional book in sight. The books were all
nonfiction, historical collections. Clearly, she enjoyed history; something
they did not have in common. Seamus needed to be active and in constant motion.
He liked video games, sports and anything athletic. What would they have in
common?
    He
took a few minutes to walk around her room. His own impatience with not being
able to search for Donovan pushed aside at the knowledge he would soon claim
his mate. He could do nothing until the others got here for back up. He sat on
the large bed adorned in deep purple silks and just a single pillow. He’d have
to do something about that. The room smelled just as Gemma did, with a sweet
flowery fragrance. As Seamus inhaled, his cock stirred. Fuck. He needed to stop
this and get her bath ready. His father was confident the lavender would help
her come back to herself after the attack. No one knew medicinal herbs like
Anthony Bonmarito.
    Seamus
hated that Gemma suffered from these panic attacks. Eloise had sounded laid
back about the episodes but Seamus couldn’t keep letting it happen. He’d talk
to his father again to see what he could do to prevent them. The fact that
anything outside the ordinary-any change to her schedule-could upset her so
much to cause this was unacceptable. Seamus would need to learn to be more
predictable for her. He’d have to change how impetuous he could be to become a
pillar of strength for his new mate. First, she had to know he was her mate.
That was step one; and one-step at a time was how he’d get through this.
    Seamus
gave a disbelieving laugh when he saw the bathroom was also accented in shades
of purple. Clearly, he now knew her favorite color. At least it wasn’t pink.
Purple he could live with but he’d rather dress up in a pair of Eloise’s heels
than sleep in a pink room. The thought made him shiver and he sighed before
leaning in to turn the tap on for the oversized tub.
     
    * * * *
     
    Gemma
entered the dining room where the man named Seamus had obviously set up as the
mission room. He’d strewn schematics, maps and reports all over the large
family dining table. Her entire body tensed. Neatness was definitely not his
forte and it was likely to drive her insane. Having just worked through one of
the most powerful panic attacks of her life, she pushed herself to remain calm.
His choice of a lavender bath had been perfection. He might be a mess but his
sensitivity scored him points in her eyes.  
    Seamus
must’ve sensed her. He