Lone Wolf (First in Lone Wolf Series)

Chapter Four

“Did I not tell you to keep your distance?!” Grange snarled after he had changed back into a man. Trig grinned sheepishly, he too had changed back, and rubbed at his bleeding, swollen arm.

“Sorry.” he mumbled. “I think you nearly bit my arm off.”

“Better than your head!” Grange warned and Trig nodded with whole hearted agreement. “She is mortal and could have been killed when she fell off that horse.” Grange reminded him. Grange knelt beside Dawn and prayed she wouldn’t wake up too soon. It would be hard to explain why he was standing over her naked in the woods.

He flared his nostrils and took in her scent. She would be okay. A mixture of fear and the bump to her head had caused her to fall unconscious. What had she been doing out in the middle of the woods at night?

“Go back to town, Trig. You could have caused worse to happen to her and I would have killed you for it.” Trig lowered his head.

“I was just trying to play with her.” he said guiltily. “I get carried away sometimes.”

Grange just shook his head and pointed toward town and Trig nodded, before changing back into a wolf and loping off.

Grange picked Dawn up into his arms, pulling her soft, full body against his and relishing in the way she felt against him. There was no raging desire from the wolf at this point, only an urge to care for the mate and hold her close to his body. She was sick and the wolf wanted to make her better.

Grange found himself kissing her reddish/gold hair and then his heart did a slow roll in his chest when she moaned and snuggled closer to him, wrapping her arms around his neck. She was so small, so fragile, so weak… Too soft for the life he was so desperately beginning to yearn to bring her into.

Grange had no choice but to take her back to his cabin. His wolf would not allow him to be anywhere but by her side while she was unconscious and he couldn’t very well drop her off in town while he was stark naked. They were a good half mile from his cabin so Grange held her tighter and got started on the walk.

***

Dawn snuggled deeper into the warm fur blanket she was wrapped in and stretched out her legs. She didn’t remember her bed at the bakery being so large or so warm.

Then she took a deep breath and breathed in the scent of eggs and ham. She certainly didn’t remember being able to smell the diner from her bedroom. Had she left the window open?

She rolled onto her back and the let out a cry of pain and sat up quickly when the back of her head rubbed against the pillow. She touched the large welt that was beneath her hair and frowned as she looked around the tidy, unfamiliar cabin she was in.

She was in a small bedroom but she could see through the open door into another room that seemed to serve as both living room and kitchen. Where was she and how had she gotten here?

Memories of the night before came flooding back. She’d been going to talk to Grange and that monster wolf had appeared and chased her… Then another wolf had come and she’d been thrown to the ground. The big black wolf had been stalking toward her and she had known he was going to kill her…..

So why was she still alive?

She nearly cried out again when Grange suddenly appeared in the doorway holding a plate full of more eggs, ham and potatoes than she could ever hope to eat, wearing his tunic and dark buckskin pants.

“Grange?” she asked hesitantly as she raised her hands and tried to smooth out her messy hair. “What am I doing here?”

“I found you on the road last night.” he replied as he entered the room and sat the plate on the nightstand beside the bed. Dawn suddenly had trouble breathing. He seemed to fill the entire room with his heat and power. It became apparent to her that she was sitting in a bed, his bed, and they were seemingly alone in his home……