Page 11 of A Bear's Mercy

He and Kade tended to sleep a lot more during the winter.

“What about that stew my mom brought over a couple weeks ago?” Kade asked. He hadn’t moved a muscle from his stance in front of the fireplace. “Is it still in the freezer?”

“I think so,” said Daniel, grateful for the task of making dinner for the three of them. “Is there enough?”

“Has my mom ever cooked a meal that could feed less than a dozen people?” Kade asked.

He had a point.

Kade walked to the kitchen, going right past Charlie without even looking down at her. Daniel could see her eyes tracking him, her head moving slightly, a fresh look of pain coming over her.

As he passed Daniel, Kade gave the other man a hard, grim look, his jaw set. Daniel nodded. Since neither of them was very good at conversation, half their communication went something like that.

That particular look meant, this isn’t over.

Kade went into the kitchen, and Daniel heard the freezer open.

“Daniel?” said Charlie’s voice. She sounded a little weak, but in her circumstances, who wouldn’t?

He walked to her and crouched down so that he was at her eye level, careful to keep his distance. Being close to her did something to him, and he couldn’t trust that it was entirely good.

After all, Daniel knew better than anyone that his instincts were mostly wrong.

Her eyes searched his. They were warm and brown, a single gold fleck in her left eye. Her light brown hair was damp with sweat, and he had to fight the urge to smooth it back, run his hands down her shoulders and arm. The urge to hold her close and tell her that she was going to safe, with them, forever.

“Can you help me up?” she asked. She sounded almost defeated, and Daniel got the sense that she didn’t ask for help much.

“Hunter said to wait a little while,” he said, feeling dubious.

That prompted a small smile from Charlie, and her cheeks went the tiniest bit pink — a welcome change from the near-white she’d been most of the day.

“I’m really uncomfortable,” she said. “And I already got blood all over your table. I don’t want to make it worse.”

Daniel almost smiled, then stood, considering the problem.

Charlie put her hands under her shoulders and tried to push herself up, the muscles tensing, but she sucked air in between her teeth and collapsed back onto the table, a sheen of fresh sweat blossoming across her face.

“I can’t do anything,” she said, speaking between her teeth, frustrated. “Maybe if you could — I don’t know, grab my legs and sit me up?”

Daniel narrowed his eyes.

“Daniel?”

“Sorry,” he said. Sometimes I forget to talk, he thought.

No, say that out loud.

“Sometimes I forget to talk,” he said, out loud this time. “Try rolling onto your right side just a little, and I’ll slide my arms under you and just lift you off.”

“I’m pretty heavy,” she said, sounding worried, even as she looked at his arms.

Daniel grinned.

“Trust me,” he said, feeling confident for the first time all day.

Charlie took a deep breath, gritting her teeth again. Daniel felt that deep down twinge again, and the urge to smash something — the wolves who had messed her up, even the pain itself. He hated feeling so helpless.

Slowly, she managed to roll onto her side, slightly, exposing her entire body to him. Any other time Daniel would have been nearly knocked over, he knew. She was one of the most gorgeous, stunning women he’d ever seen, mind-blowing curves and all, and here she was, naked on his table.

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