Come Moonrise Read Free

know you all think the full moon has some
kind of weird effect on the wolves in the Rocking M's refuge—"
    "It does," Ty cut in, his voice brusque, his
blue eyes cold. "You don’t have to believe it for it to be the
truth. You had no business riding out here so close to one."
    She blinked in pained surprise at the
rebuke. Ty might have held back from deepening their friendship to
something more, but he’d always treated her like a person he was
glad to see.
    Right now, she felt about as welcome as a
skunk at a picnic. She lifted the reins, prepared to turn Flash
around. "I’ll just go back then."
    "You’re closer to the homestead," King said,
staying her. "Ty can give you a lift back to your aunt and uncle’s.
One of the hands will ride Flash back."
    "That’s ridiculous. I can ride back
now."
    "You’re on our land. You’ll do as we say."
Duke’s voice lacked even an edge of warmth.
    She opened her mouth, but Ty forestalled
her. "Don’t talk to her like that, Duke."
    "You got a problem with it? Why? I thought
you were interested that little French Canadian bitch."
    Frankie’s jaw dropped. She’d never heard
Duke refer to a woman with anything but unfailing respect. "Don’t
you like her?" she blurted.
    "Ignore him, he’s just feeling his age right
now."
    She would have laughed if she wasn’t
battling pain at their obvious rejection. "You’re only gong to be
thirty. That’s hardly ancient."
    Duke said nothing, but wheeled his horse
around. "Let her do what she wants," he called back over his
shoulder. "But don’t blame me if a wolf decides she looks damn
tasty right now."

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    CHAPTER TWO
     
    Ty wanted to smack his brother upside the
head.
    He knew Duke wasn’t alluding to one of the
pack eating Frankie, but to something that could be equally as
devastating.
    Beyond being a woman alone in the wild, she
was single and she was ovulating. In heat.
    Her scent would drive any unmated werewolf
crazy...or to do something both the wolf and Frankie would end up
regretting.
    Hell, her scent was calling to the beast in
him and it was taking all he had to keep his wolf under control. He
could see that his attitude had hurt her feelings, but why did she
have to show up today? It was the last damn thing he needed when he
was mentally preparing himself to mate with another female.
    On top of that, Duke was right. She was
definitely at risk out here on the range.
    Many members of the pack gathered on the
Rocking M before the change so they were someplace safe to run when
it happened. If another male found her alone out here this close to
the full moon, there was every chance she could wake up tomorrow
morning mated.
    And that would be less than ideal for both
her and the wolf. She’d have the trauma of an unwanted werewolf
mating to overcome and if it turned out to be a sacred bond, some
poor bastard would be rendered effectively neutered when she
refused to stay with him.
    "Ride back to the homestead with us,
Frankie," he said, forcing his voice into a friendlier tone even
though all he wanted to do was growl and rip her clothes off.
"Mom’ll have a fit if she finds out you were close enough to say hi
and didn’t."
    Frankie was still watching Duke’s
disappearing figure, but she turned to face Ty at his words, her
soft brown eyes still filled with the wounding of their initial
reaction to her. "Are you sure? Things are more strained between
our families than I expected."
    "It's not your fault," his dad said shortly.
"Come on to the house."
    For King, who hated the thought of either of
his sons mating a non-wolf, it was practically an engraved
invitation. He turned his horse and followed after Duke, his
assumption Frankie would follow obvious in the set of the pack
leader’s shoulders.
    Frankie looked at Ty, her expression
troubled.
    He smiled, letting the warm feelings he'd
always had for her show in his expression. "You don't want to
disappoint my mom, do you?"
    "No."
    "Then come on." He