CoyoteWhispers Read Free Page A

the trauma of losing her
husband and unborn child, but enough was enough. From now on she wouldn’t keep
him at arm’s length. He’d make sure of it. It was time for her to accept him as
her mate. She could object all she wanted, but Steve wasn’t about to let things
continue the way they had been. Not after tonight.
    He understood her need to protect herself but in doing so
she was denying both of them happiness. The fear of being mated had stopped him
from pursuing her when they were teenagers, that and her being human. It had
terrified him back then and by the time he’d gotten his head around it Anthony
had stolen her out from under his nose. Steve didn’t plan on letting that
happen again and he’d be damned if he would let her fight him any longer.
    It was time to claim what was his.
    * * * * *
    Gordie’s first registered thought was pain. Everything hurt.
From the tips of her toes to the top of her head, every cell screamed in
agony—even her eyelashes as they weighed down her lids. She tried not to move,
tried to keep her breathing shallow to stop the vise from crushing her chest.
The second thing Gordie registered was the warm body she’d curled herself
around. A steady heartbeat drummed beneath the hot flesh pressed to her face.
Confusion filled her. Where was she? And who was in her bed?
    “Easy, Doc. It’s just me.” The muscles beneath her cheek
vibrated as Steve’s voice rumbled through his chest and filled her ears.
    The urge to pull away took hold but the slightest movement
brought pain. Gordie opened her eyes, one barely more than a crack, and stared
at the hard male chest before her. Bits and pieces of the night before started
to flit through her mind and she groaned. The walk she’d taken after dinner,
the need to be near Steve but not near him.
    The attack.
    Steve’s arms loosened, giving her the freedom to move away
if she wanted. But for the first time in three years Gordie wanted to be close
to him. She needed him to hold her, to remind her she was alive—safe.
    “Do you feel up to talking about what happened?”
    Not wanting the ugliness of the night before intruding on
the moment, she shook her head, and pain ricocheted around her skull, making
her groan.
    He didn’t comment, just tightened his arms again and pulled
her a little closer to his side. Warmth and rightness invaded her. The truth of
what she’d been denying since her return to Whispering Springs and the
mountains that had been her home from the age of six, slammed into her like
never before. It terrified her like never before too, but she couldn’t pull
away from him. Not after last night. She felt vulnerable—scared, and Steve’s
steady presence reassured her.
    They lay quietly in the predawn light. For long moments
Gordie just enjoyed the safety and comfort Steve offered. She knew she’d have
to go soon enough, knew she needed to check her wounds and return home. But she
didn’t want to leave his warm embrace. Wanted to stay wrapped in his arms and
let him hold her and make everything disappear. But she couldn’t expect Steve
to take care of her problems for her.
    Before last night Gordie hadn’t been too concerned by the
strange little things that had occurred over the last month. Random things
moved at both her house and the clinic. Doors unlocked when she would swear
she’d locked them. The creepy, itchy-neck feeling of being watched all the
time. None of it had worried her because she’d been so busy she could have
forgotten she’d moved that picture or those supplies—or even neglected to lock
up after herself.
    She couldn’t ignore them anymore.
    But she dare not tell anyone either. She had no real
evidence and nothing but the gut-gnawing instinct that Marcus was behind what
had been happening. The only proof anything was actually going on was last
night’s attack and she hadn’t gotten a clear look at her assailant. Gordie
wasn’t even sure she’d identified his scent correctly. Even after all