9781618854704HolidayGemBeckNC Read Free Page B

looked up from his laptop, aiming his gaze directly at
her and pulling a gasp from somewhere deep inside. His eyes turned from a
glassy sea foam green to blazing yellow. Gemma was all too aware of what that
meant. Her body reacted instantly. He was her mate.
    “You…”
With her throat suddenly too dry to speak, she stood still and took Seamus in. He
was as large as any Valendite Breed she’d ever met, maybe six foot two or so.
His messy light brown hair was cropped short; but there must’ve been a cowlick
or two at his crown that caused his hair to stand up on the top. His handsome
face defined with ridges along his cheekbones and a cleft in his chin struck
Gemma as most intoxicating. Seamus was strong, masculine perfection. With some
softer features, he was also clearly only part Italian, which was rare in their
race.
    It
was when Gemma allowed her eyes to drift south that she saw how well sculpted
his body was. The muscles pulled along his shoulders and back as he leaned
forward and turned towards her. The rippling showed each defined groove of his
strength. Her hands ached to touch him. Suddenly, she wanted nothing more than
to move towards him, to be held by him again so that this time she could
memorize the feel of his body touching her body.
    She
tried to speak again. “You are my-my…” Again, she couldn’t finish her sentence.
    Seamus
moved towards her until he stood toe-to-toe with her. Taking one of her hands
in his and entwining their fingers, he spoke almost reverently, “You are my
mate.” It was the words she couldn’t bring herself to say aloud though they
were screaming inside her head.
    When
Gemma looked up from where their hands were connected to look into Seamus’
eyes, they were glistening with unshed tears. She took the hand he wasn’t
holding and wiped at the corner of his eye until the tip of her finger held a
single teardrop. Seamus ducked his head.
    “Don’t
hide from me. I am in awe of your strength and for you to feel so much that you
would have tears is humbling. I have been blessed by you.”
    “No,”
Seamus shook his head, “I have been blessed by you.” He brought their heads
together-touching foreheads-and took deep breaths.
    “Do
I smell okay? I should smell like the lavender you put in my bath,” Gemma
inquired, curious at his reaction to her closeness. “The lavender, by the way,
was a very smart move.”
    “My
dad is a chemist of sorts. He is always working with medicinal herbs to find
medicines for humans. I called him for help,” Seamus explained.
    “You
called your father to find out how to help me?” Gemma felt an overwhelming
appreciation for this sensitive man.
    “Yes,”
Seamus answered as a slight blush worked across his cheeks.
    “You
must be close?” Gemma was intrigued by a man who would seek his father out for
assistance. Then another thought crossed her mind. “Wait. Have you known since
you first saw me? And why am I just sensing it?”
    “We
must’ve never locked eyes before you collapsed on me. When you opened them as I
held you, I felt it but you weren’t fully aware yet. My father told me the lavender
mixed with a warm bath would help you relax enough to become aware of your
natural reaction to a mate.” Seamus explained and seemed uncomfortable. Gemma
had no idea why. It should be her embarrassed about how they’d met.
    “So
you know what happened? That I had an anxiety attack?” Seamus did something not
many people could do. He caught her off-guard. Now Gemma truly found him intriguing.
Something warm fluttered in her stomach.
    “I
called in to TEU. Caedon found out from Eloise. Your condition wasn’t listed in
the mission report.”
    “The
mission report?’
    “Yes,
since I was picking you up to fly back to the US, I received a packet with information
about you…”
    Gemma
cut him off, disbelieving, “So just to pick me up and take me to my family for
the holidays, you had a full file on me?” She quirked her eyebrow up at