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pinned her hopes on, had been too much to bear.
Not that watching the woods was much better.
She kept seeing Cam streaking away from her, swallowed up by the forest. How could she have—for even one horrible minute—assumed the worst about him? She hadn’t even told him she loved him before he’d run off to chase down a killer.
What if he didn’t come back?
Somewhere in the distance, the lone crack of gunfire startled a flock of birds. JJ jolted in her seat.
Unable to think, she leaped from the vehicle and raced forward, then froze at the edge of the woods.
How would she find him? What if he were lying out there, wounded? How would she know where to look? Should she go for help? Oh God, what should she do?
The trees to her left rustled. Shadows shifted and green foliage parted.
Cam stepped into the clearing. His griffon tattoo was splattered with blood. Red smears stained his thigh and forearm. His right bicep poured a fresh wave of crimson. He staggered forward, his gaze locked on the Jeep, and he let out a low roar, “JJ?”
“Cam.” She rushed forward, relief coursed so thick through her veins, it was almost impossible to speak.
He whirled toward her, raced forward, and scooped her up into his arms, bruising her as he crushed her against him. Without warning, Cam sat down, right there in the grass, in the blazing glow of her burning home, and pulled her down onto his lap.
His hands swept over her, from the top of her head all the way to her feet. “Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere? Jesus, JJ, you’re bleeding!”
“No,” she pushed his hands away, “You’re bleeding. You’ve been shot, Cam. Your shoulder is bleeding.”
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Glancing down, he shrugged it off. “Just a nick.
You’re sure you’re all right?”
“I’m not hurt.” She trapped his face between her palms, forcing him to look her in the face rather than continue his fruitless search for wounds that didn’t exist. “I love you, Cameron Walker.” Cam stared at her for a long moment, then cupped the sides of her neck and pulled her in for a long, searing kiss. “I love you too, honey. God, I love you so much.”
Something clicked then. She’d only heard one shot. And Cam hadn’t gone into the woods with a gun. JJ tensed in his arms. “Cam…did he get away?
We need to—”
“No, he didn’t get away. Jarvis won’t ever hurt anyone else again.”
“But, there was only the one shot. Where is he?
How did you—”
“Sweetheart,” Cam insisted, forcing her to face him this time. His eyes bore into hers. “Trust me.
He’s dead.”
She thought to ask Cam how that was possible when he’d gone into those woods unarmed. Then she remembered he’d gone in as a wolf. It didn’t take a map and GPS to connect the dots. She didn’t need to ask any more questions, wasn’t sure she was ready to deal with the answers just yet. He’d come back to her alive, and they were both safe. That was all that mattered. He squeezed her tight against him, and she followed his gaze toward the loud pop and crackle as flames finally breached one of the upper story windows.
“Well, I guess that’s settled,” he murmured.
She peered at him, confused. The orange glow of her burning home glistened over his sweat-slicked, soot and blood-smeared skin. She was sure she didn’t look much better. “What’s settled?”
“Where we’re going to live.” He nudged his chin 342
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toward her house. “Looks like you’ll be moving in with me. Good thing I finished that extra bathroom.” Smiling, he smoothed her hair back from her face with his big hands and pressed a kiss to her lips. He trailed kisses from the corner of her mouth, nipped his way along her jaw, and dropped a long, slow kiss on the mark he’d placed behind her ear.
“I don’t know, Cam. You keep some pretty crazy hours,” JJ teased.
He eyed her speculatively, then his stare took on a serious bent. “I won’t take anything less than forever. You understand that, don’t you? Werewolves mate for life, JJ. There’s no going back now.”
“I like the sound of that.” She sighed, savoring the feel of his hot mouth on her skin. “So…will we have a special ceremony in The Circle like the ones you told me about?”
His grin slowly grew to one of his heart-stopping, mega-watt smiles, and he nodded.
The blare of sirens broke the crackling stillness around them. Frowning, JJ glanced toward the woods. “How will you explain about…?” The image those words alone conjured sent a ripple of apprehension snaking down her spine.
His hand soothed down her back, offering warmth and reassurance. “I’ll think of something.” She leaned back in his arms, a mischievous smile tugging at her lips. “While you’re coming up with explanations…”
He lifted an eyebrow, continued to stroke her back. Despite the approaching sirens, his smoldering stare caressed her lips, and his hands grew bolder.
“Maybe you better work on an explanation for your deputies and the fire department as to why you’re sitting in the middle of my yard while my house is burning…buck naked.”
Cam’s eyes rounded. A ripe string of curses tore from his lips. He dumped her on her butt in the 343
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grass and streaked into the woods.
JJ burst out laughing.
Life with her Werewolf was going to be anything but dull.
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A word about the author...
Always a voracious reader, Brenda Huber closed the cover on a book by one of her favorite authors, and said to herself…I can do this! Ever fascinated by all things mythical and mystical, Brenda decided to try her hand at Paranormal Romance and dove into her second great passion…writing. She lives in Iowa with her husband and two children.
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this Wild Rose Press publication.
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Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22