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Her Christmas Wolf (Sawtooth Shifters Book 4)

Page 10

by Kristen Strassel


  Connie handed Emma to Lyssie. Her phone call didn’t last long, she asked Trina a few questions, but hung up smiling. “She’ll be here as soon as she can. She said bandage him up for now, make him comfortable. Give him water and food if he wants it. He’ll heal, but he probably stay wolf until the next moon.”

  Kiera helped Trina bandage X. Neither of them seemed fazed by the carnage in front of them. X whimpered a few times, but let them work.

  “He’ll be okay. He’s a fighter.” Shea kissed my forehead when he approached me, his hands sliding around my waist. “I’m so glad to see you.”

  I didn’t need words to tell him the same thing.

  Cass and the Channings shifted back, and everything was almost normal. X seemed to heal a bit, eating and drinking but staying so still. The guys brought his mattress downstairs, and he rested with his head on his pillow, blanket on top of him.

  “We’ll stay down here with him tonight,” Major said, grasping Cass’ hand like he never intended to let her go. He nodded to Shea. “Get some rest. This isn’t over. By a long shot.”

  Shea kissed me as soon as he closed the bedroom door.

  “What a fucking night,” he sighed. “Don’t count X out, angel. It looks bad, but it’s not a fatal blow. He needs us to believe in him.”

  I nodded and sat on the bed. Shea joined me, nuzzling my neck. I tapped his arm and he stopped. This morning I’d written him a note, but I wasn’t sure if this was the right time to give it to him.

  X’s bloody and bandaged body flashed in my mind. No, there’d never be a better time to do this.

  Shea opened my dream book when I handed it to him without saying a word. I wrote the message on the title page of the book. It belonged to both of us now.

  This was the first thing that ever belonged to me. The only thing, actually, before you. This Christmas, you gave me all of you, and I fell even more in love with you.

  I spend a lot of time dreaming, even when I’m awake. I never understood it all until I looked up what it meant to dream of you. All the pieces of you come together to complete me.

  Dream with me.

  You’re my angel. I love you,

  Delaney

  Christmas 2015

  “Holy fuck. Yes.” Shea pulled me in to his body and we fell on the bed, the book still open above our heads. He kissed me, long, hot and slow. Everything I needed on this stormy night. “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me. Because you taught me how to say I love you in sign language.”

  THANK YOU!

  I hope you loved Shea and Delaney’s story as much as I loved writing it. The next couple to get their happily ever after is Lyssie and Dallas in Her Spellbound Wolf. Dallas has Full Moon Fever, and Lyssie is the only one who can cure him. But one of those Montana wolves thinks he’s her mate. Keep reading for an excerpt!

  One-click Her Spellbound Wolf Now!

  Sign up for my newsletter to find out about new books: http://www.kristenstrassel.com/shifterlist

  If you love Shea and Delaney’s story, make sure to check out Running Wild, the first book in The Real Werewives of Alaska Series.

  The Real Werewives of Alaska is the hottest new reality show on TV.

  Each week, a shapeshifting football player finds his forever mate.

  Wolf shifter Sebastian is putting it all on the line by becoming the Alaska Bloodhounds’ running back. He’s been kicked out of his pack and threatened with death if he sets foot in the state again. Getting involved with a reality dating show? Out of the question. Until he meets his forever mate at the Real Werewives welcome party.

  Naomi’s a commitment-phobe, but when her mom signs her up for The Real Werewives of Alaska, she’s game. Forever mates? Nope. She's on the show to get exposure for her travel blog. But when a smokin’ hot wolf with amber eyes wants to take her on a date, suddenly forever doesn’t seem so bad.

  When his old pack comes for him, can Sebastian keep Naomi safe or will she run?

  Thank you so much for reading! If you loved Her Christmas Wolf, please tell a friend. Reviews help readers find books. Please take a moment to leave a review on your favorite review site.

  Keep reading for an excerpt from Her Spellbound Wolf...

  Her Spellbound Wolf

  Lyssie

  “Oh, hell no.” Kiera, my best friend and roommate, stood in the middle of the living room with her arms crossed against her glittery chest. “You are not sitting home in your pajamas like you don’t have plans on New Years’ Eve.”

  “I do have plans. Every New Years’ Eve, I watch the Twilight Zone marathon, eat popcorn, and drink champagne. It’s called tradition.” I smiled sweetly at her and raised my red plastic cup. I’d broken with tradition already. The champagne cork was meant to be popped at midnight. This year I needed an IV hookup.

  Kiera rolled her eyes, seeing right through my bullshit. “That’s because you never had plans with a bunch of hot wolves before.”

  “You have plans with a hot wolf. I do not.” My next sip was more like a gulp. Anything to erase the pain of the invite that didn’t come. Ever since our alpha-ordered werewolf protective custody courtesy of the Channing brothers ended, I hadn’t seen as much of Dallas as I would’ve liked.

  Kiera sat next to me on the couch, pulling the blanket away from my lap and folding it neatly. “Yes, you do. So what? Dallas didn’t hand you an engraved invite—“

  “Exactly.” I snatched the blanket back.

  “Let me finish. Do you have any idea how he looks at you? No, you don’t, because you’re not giving him a chance. I actually felt bad for him on Christmas. He seemed frustrated, and so sad.”

  Now I couldn’t look at Kiera, either. The black and white images on the TV blurred in front of me. “I won’t chase him. I’m sure he has a date.”

  “You don’t know that. And so what if he does. Get out of your pajamas, doll yourself up, and come to The Redheaded Stepchild with us. Dallas will forget anyone else is in the room as soon as he sees you. If he doesn’t, make him forget. Let him chase you. Have a little fun with it.”

  My heart raced, lungs constricted. The Redheaded Stepchild was the seventh ring of my own personal Hell. Loud, crowded, and I’d be like the fifth wheel if I actually went. Watching everyone kiss at midnight, standing alone, all awkward and shit. Nope, not going. Me and the aliens on TV were going to be a thing tonight and that’s all there was to it.

  “No one will leave you by yourself. We’ll all be there. Together. Don’t think of it like a date. Think of it as having fun with your friends.” That was real easy for Kiera to say, since she had a date.

  “Maybe another night.”

  Kiera got up without saying anything, but I knew she wasn’t giving up. I didn’t know her before we were roommates, but she said she was feeling a lot more like her old self. The person she was before she wound up at CAST, the Center for Anxiety and Stress Therapy. The one who disabled bombs in the army and worked for the Secret Service. Problem was, I was feeling like the girl I was before I went to CAST, too. The one who never left the house and went days without talking to anyone. Worse, that was what I wanted. I was slipping, and it scared the hell out of me. Everyone around me was getting better, and I should’ve been, too. Tonight would magnify my failure. I wished I could’ve told her.

  She placed a plastic mailing bag on my lap when she returned. “I planned to give it to you on Christmas, but it came late. I saw it when I ordered this sweater. It’ll look so pretty with your eyes.”

  I pulled an aqua top of the bag. It was gorgeous, just the type of thing I would love to wear on New Year’s Eve. If I were going to leave the house. “I love it. Thank you.”

  “Try it on. For me. Put some of that sparkly eyeshadow on, you do such a nice job on your makeup. I promise you’ll feel more like going when you’re all dressed up. Then come out with me and let’s show Granger Falls what’s up. If Dallas doesn’t want to kiss you when the ball drops, or whatever happens, I’ll make out with you. A
nd if that doesn’t get the attention of every wolf in the room, then that’s their problem, not ours.”

  I laughed. Kiera had a way of making it impossible to say no. It was exactly what I needed. I could get drunk on her enthusiasm if the bubbly hadn’t gone straight to my head. I already alienated Dallas, and the self-destructive devil on my shoulder smirked in victory. I hated that little bitch. But I couldn’t lose Kiera. And it was happening. She was so excited about the house Baron was building for the two of them. I needed to dig my fingernails in and hold on to her with everything I had, or that little devil would take everything.

  So I got ready to go out, ignoring the voice inside that taunted me, the one that told me I’d be the only one there alone, that my friends weren’t really my friends, and they’d abandon me, just like everyone else did. The mascara wand shook in my hand, and I was thankful I’d bought the waterproof kind.

  “You look hot.” Kiera wolf-whistled when I came in the room. The irony wasn’t lost on me.

  “I feel kinda hot.” I really did. The shirt had a draped neckline, loose sleeves, and it came down to my hips. The one pair of jeans I had that I didn’t wear to the shelter fit perfectly underneath it, and I pulled my boots out of the back of my closet. My feet would be killing me by the end of the night, so it was a pretty good thing I planned to keep drinking.

  Kiera grinned. “You should feel smokin’ hot. I’m psyched you’re coming. I would’ve dragged you though, just so you know. I couldn’t bear the thought of New Year’s Eve without you.”

  And that’s why she was my best friend. She loved me even at my worst. “I know. This year’s been pretty incredible, and we need to send it off in style.”

  “There she is! My girl is back,” Kiera said with a little jump. “I knew the shirt would make you feel better.”

  I giggled. “It does, but I’m not gonna lie. The champagne is definitely helping.”

  Baron, Kiera’s date, knocked on the door before letting himself in. I pushed down the disappointment that he was alone. Dallas was his brother. And I’d chased him away.

  Kiera pulled Baron into a kiss, then turned back to me. “I don’t care what does the trick. You know what they say about New Year’s Eve. What you do at midnight is how you’ll spend the rest of the year. Let’s set the night on fire.”

  I downed the rest of my champagne in my cup. Liquid courage, keep it coming. “Let’s do it.”

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