Woodsman Werebear Read Free Page A

niggled at him. He should feed her or…something. No. He wanted to donkey kick his instincts. She wasn’t his to protect or coddle. She was a stranger, and as soon as he dropped her off to wherever she was going, he’d never see her again.
    A soft growl rattled his throat at the thought of his limited time with Riley, but it was just his bear shifting his mind to anywhere other than Mom. Drew almost laughed. It was so fucking obvious. Tagan had banned him from fighting, and now his bear was desperate for something else to put his thoughts on. And he’d chosen a homeless ruffian with a questionable taste in haircuts and a fondness for baggy clothing.
    That’s all this was. Nothing more.
    That matter solved, Drew jerked the spare tire out of its cradle and carried it to the front right where his other one was shredded.
    “You’re super strong,” Riley observed.
    Oh right, shit. “The tire is really light is all.”
    “I actually know a lot about cars. My dad was a mechanic, and he used to drag me to his shop when I was out for the summers. He put me to work on the payroll as soon as it was legal. No tires are weightless like you just made it look.” There was a frown in her voice, as if she was trying to work something out in her mind. “Must be those big muscles. Are you a gym rat?”
    Drew snorted. They did have a makeshift gym under an awning at the trailer park, but he didn’t get his physique from there. And why was he blushing? “I’m a lumberjack, not a gym rat.”
    “You’re a lumberjack?”
    When he stopped twisting the wrench on a particularly stubborn lug nut long enough to look over his shoulder, she had her head canted and her eyes narrowed. “I’ve never met a lumberjack before. I always imagined they wore more flannel and walked around with an ax slung over their shoulder. And maybe followed around by a blue bull.”
    “Oh, she’s got Paul Bunyan jokes. No flannel until wintertime when it’s colder than ice up in these mountains. I do have an ax in the bed of my pickup along with a bunch of other tools I randomly need, and no blue bull, though there is a little pygmy goat named Bo up where I live that follows me around and head-butts me in the shins whenever I’m not paying attention. He’s a bit of an asshole.”
    “Aw, just a little goat against a big old mountain man,” she crooned with a pouty lip he suddenly wanted to bite. “Maybe you’re the asshole, and he is just reminding you.” Her stifled smile and dancing eyes told him she wasn’t serious.
    She sure was a sassy little thing. And a beautiful distraction.
    Hiding his amused grin, he went back to unscrewing the lug nuts on the rim of the ruined tire. “You know, I heard you say ‘Karma’s a bitch’ earlier. Was that you saying my flat tire happened because I didn’t offer you a ride?”
    “Maybe. And how did you hear that? I was way over there.”
    Crap. “Uh, your voice carries out here. Are you a city slicker?”
    “Yes, I am. I think this is the first time I’ve seen a pine tree besides the ones you can buy at a tree lot during the holidays.”
    “You like the views out here?” Why did her answer matter so much? He wanted her to like his territory. Distraction, she is a distraction.
    “This country is the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen. Even the air smells clean.”
    The honest notes in her voice made him look at her again to see if her eyes had taken on the same dreamy quality her words had. To his disappointment, she was looking down at her duffle bag in her lap, though, hiding that gorgeous eye color from him.
    “Riley? What are you doin’ out here?”
    With a slow inhalation of breath, she looked at him, leveling him with those beautiful eyes. “Running.”
    “From what?”
    Sadness washed over her face as she shook her head.
    “Okay, then what are you running to?”
    Riley licked her full lips and shook her head again.
    Frustrated at the pile of secrets she was obviously protecting, he tried a