Page 19 of Scent of Home

Bray leans in close and seals our lips together in another searing and unexpected kiss. By the time I’ve recovered my senses, he’s pulled back and is gone.

“Why does he keep doing that!” Locke snaps. “And where’s my kiss?”

I snicker.

Finn grumbles but hugs me gently and kisses my cheek. “Goodnight, Erin, thank you for inviting me to dinner. Sleep well, and if you need anything, call.”

Locke snickers, and to my surprise, Finn grins back. The two of them seem to be hitting it off real well. No words were spoken. It’s as if by body language alone they’ve somehow called a truce and started a friendship all over dinner.

I shake my head at the oddness of it all and turn back to the big alpha.

Woof.

I whip my head around and see a giant yellow lab bound over and dance around Finn. The beta kneels, scratching the dog, and I swear, Locke gets heart eyes.

“Who is this?”

Finn glances up at me. “This is my best friend, Karma.”

“Karma?”

The dog looks at me and woofs. I’ve never been around dogs, but she seems like a pretty and nice dog. I guess.

Shane grunts and starts moving, so I wave goodbye and jog to keep up with the massive alpha. I trip, the ground rising faster than I can imagine. I don’t know how he moves so fast, but I’m suddenly in his arms, staring up at him. Pine steals across my senses, drugging me with it. Shane packs a punch.

“Thanks,” I whisper.

This silent alpha undoes me. I feel small and feminine in his arms, and that is unnerving. He stands me up and sets me on my feet before dragging his gaze away and resuming the walk.

I exhale the breath I’ve been holding. His eyes are hypnotizing.

Locke puts a hand on my back and keeps his smile even as he stares straight ahead. He doesn’t say the words, but I can hear them loud and clear.

“What?” I hiss.

“Nothing, just nicely played.”

I flush and throw his arm off me, but he just laughs and gets closer, pulling me in.

“I’m just making sure you don’t fall and hurt yourself,” Locke teases. “Let me rescue you.”

I laugh but notice the alpha in front has slowed. He spins around and walks back to us.

He gets right up in Locke’s face and tilts his chin up so they are staring eye to eye. Locke is completely frozen, caught in the alpha’s powerful aura.

“Hello,” Locke says gently. Breathlessly. I can feel him tremble against me.

What designation is Locke? He’s acting like…but no.

Shane growls, the sound is almost inaudible, it’s felt rather than heard. I almost reach out, but Shane nods his head slightly, lets go of Locke, and stalks away.

“Okay, what was that about?”

“I don’t fucking know, I don’t speak mountain man,” Locke whispers to me. “But, damn, I’d like to learn.”

“Me, too!” I snipe back.

Locke grumbles but follows me as I attempt to keep up with Shane. When we get to our cabin, he doesn’t turn and disappear. He opens the door and goes straight to the fireplace, where he lights a fire. I hadn’t noticed how cold it was, but perhaps that was because I was living off my pussy heat.

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