Christmas Moon Read Free

if it could wrap her in its arms. Comfort her.
    Bree jerked her head in a slight nod just as
the phone rang and she jumped, hating the spike of fear that shot
through her. Damn prank callers. Just a kid, she reminded
herself.
    She forced a smile to her face and turned to
face him, cradling her mug in her hands as she brought it to her
lips. “I’m fine.”
    The phone rang again, like nails over a
chalkboard. The shrill tone lifted every hair along her neck.
Something about the static that always greeted her on the other end
of the line, the slow, steady breathing, unnerved her. Another
ring.
    Hunter arched an eyebrow. “You need to get
that?”
    “No. Prank call.” She forced her voice to be
light, but the scowl that crawled over his face told her that her
attempt at humor had failed.
    “Like the writing on your garage?” A dark
undercurrent filled the question and he seemed to still, the wolf
in him simmering just under the surface. She could see the animal
in his eyes, the quick flash of irritation. He tilted his head
toward the phone. “Do you mind?”
    She opened her mouth to tell him not to
bother, but as the phone rang again a growl slipped out of him. His
pack, he could deal with it. And it was better than going to
Shifter Town Enforcement. “Have at it.”
    He made a gruff sound as he reached for the
phone. “I will.”
     
    ***
     
    Hunter held back the wolf snarling inside him
as he picked up the phone. Not only were these brats vandalizing
her house, but they were harassing her too? Oh, he was going to
have a word with them. Hell, it might not even just be words.
They’d be shoveling his driveway and hers for the rest of
the winter.
    He pressed the phone to his ear and waited.
Silence greeted him, and then slow, steady breaths. In. Out. He
waited, listening for anything that would give the runt away.
Nothing. He opened his mouth to let the growl snake out when the
phone clicked off. He glanced at the phone. Blocked number. Hunter
ground his teeth as he tried to dial it back. Nothing.
    Now that was odd. He couldn’t think of anyone
in his pack with a blocked number. Didn’t mean he wouldn’t find out
though. He’d go through everyone’s phone records tonight. Hunter
jerked his gaze up to hers.
    Breanne watched him, calm. Assessing. Nothing
like the woman who’d jumped at the sound of the phone, or the woman
who had looked so vulnerable when he’d walked into her kitchen.
Standing with her hip braced against her counter was the woman he
could easily see being a Hound. Someone he’d have dreaded knocking
at his door.
    There was an intensity that flitted through
her gaze, snaring his every move, and Hunter took a step toward her
before he realized what he was doing. Just like that, the strength
faded and uncertainty stole across her face.
    “I’ll figure this out,” he told her.
    “I’m not worried.” She tried for bravado, but
he’d thrown her off with that step toward her. He wondered what
she’d do if he took another. Then another.
    “You jumped when you heard it ring.”
    A laugh sprang from her lips, but it wasn’t a
happy sound. Fake, tinny. It felt wrong and his inner wolf winced
at the sound. “It’s not like the phone rings all that often.”
    He heard her heartbeat pick up as she spoke
the words. A lie. “Breanne,” he said softly, taking another step in
her direction and she stiffened. “How often do you get these
calls?”
    “That’s none of your business.” She turned
and set her mug on the counter, and he could see the inner war she
waged with herself. The intensity was back in her eyes when she
turned to face him, and this time her spine was straight with
confidence rather than fear. “I don’t mean to be rude, but I’d like
you to leave.”
    Hunter cursed under his breath as he set the
phone down on the table. His hands gripped the back of the chair
where his coat hung. “You should report that. It’s harassment.”
    “And if it’s just a kid?” Breanne folded