Wolf at the Door: Salvation Pack, Book 1 Read Free

chocolate and her book.
    A hard, heavy pounding shook the front door, jolting her out of her chair. She didn’t waste any time running for the shotgun. Had Hector followed her home? Maybe he was crazy? She knew better than to break her rule about meeting in public. Why had she made an exception tonight? Too late to be asking that question now.
    She thumbed the safety off. Her palms were damp and shaky, but she swallowed back her fear. How hard could it be to point and shoot? It was like a camera. This close she couldn’t miss.
    The knock came again, this time not quite as loud. “Ms. Jones?” The voice was low and deep, definitely male.
    Relief hit her hard and fast. Maybe it was one of the local deputies. They often stopped by to check on her, mostly because she was new to the area, but also because she was a single woman. On her first trip into town, Margie at the grocery store had assured her she’d have all the male attention she wanted. Single women were rare in these parts. Most women were either married, too old or too young. The rest of them left for the bigger cities as soon as they were able. A single young woman was cause for talk in town.
    Still, she wasn’t about to be stupid. She’d seen too many horror movies where the dumb blonde gets herself killed by not being careful. She might be blonde but she wasn’t stupid.
    “Who is it?”
    “Ma’am, I’d like to talk to you if I can. It’s about Hector Canton.”
    As tempting as it was, she wasn’t about to open her door to a total stranger. “Come back in the morning.” She glanced at the old cuckoo clock hanging on the wall. It was just past eight but, as dark as it was outside, it might as well have been the dead of night.
    “It will only take a minute. I’ll stay out here on the porch.”
    She snorted, like she was stupid enough to fall for that. Gwen backed away from the front door and headed toward the phone in the kitchen. Out here, cell-phone service was spotty, but her great aunt had a land line that Gwen had kept when she moved in. No way did she want to be caught without phone service. She’d call the sheriff’s office and have them come talk to the man.
    There was no noise behind her, simply a stirring of the air, but Gwen knew she was no longer alone. She whirled around, her finger tightening on the trigger. The shotgun fired just as a male hand pushed the barrel up and out of the way. The bullet harmlessly buried itself in the wooden ceiling.
    Gwen screamed as the weapon was torn from her hands and tossed aside. The front door was kicked in behind her, bouncing off the wall. She didn’t know where to look. There was a stranger behind her and another one in front of her.
    She lunged for the kitchen counter and the knife block. She needed something to defend herself with. Anything. One of them swore and leapt toward her. Large fingers tightened around hers, the pressure making it impossible for her to draw the large butcher knife from the block.
    “Relax, chère . Shhh.” His breath was hot on her neck and his hand practically swallowed hers whole.
    She started to shake. Would they hurt her? Rape her? She couldn’t think about the possibilities. She had to fight back. Her muscles, immobilized by fright only seconds before, came back under her control. She threw her head back hard and fast and connected with his face.
    Her captor howled in pain, sending an icy-cold shiver racing down her spine. It sounded too much like the dogs she’d heard earlier.
    Massive arms wrapped around her torso and pulled her away from her only source of weapons. “ Dieu . There was no need for you to do that, chère .”
    She still couldn’t see the man holding her but the one in front of her was hard to miss. He was huge, probably around six-four, his brown shaggy hair hanging around his massive shoulders. His golden-brown eyes stared at her and his full lips were drawn into a thin line of displeasure.
    Shit. She was in deep trouble. She recognized him