Page 49 of The Strongest Wolf

I shift a little closer to her and press my lips against her hair, holding her close. What she’ll be like tomorrow, or even if she’ll sleep tonight, I don’t know.

But whatever happens, it won’t be good. I feel it in my bones.

It won’t be the fear that will devastate her—it will be her response to it. She doesn’t like to show weakness or fear. To anyone. And this is going to set her back.

Why the fuck did I leave her to answer the call? Why didn’t I just ignore it?

As the cabin gets darker, eventually her tension eases. But that’s not a relief to me, because a tremble shakes her body. Soon, her teeth are chattering as shock takes over.

I hold her closer, wishing I could take all her fear and stuff it inside me. But I can’t. All I can do is let her know she’s not alone. That I’m here.

This couldn’t have happened at a worse possible time.

With Dom’s talk of a hunt going wrong, it’s time to go home and deal with these strangers. Now more than ever, I know what will happen if I tell Sierra that. One of two things. She’ll refuse, or she’ll run.

11

SIERRA

Galen’s emerald gaze locks on me the moment I emerge from the bathroom, dressed in sweats and rubbing my wet hair with a towel. “I’m done. Knock yourself out.”

But he doesn’t move from the bed.

He tried to talk to me when I woke, no doubt about last night, but I just smiled and told him I needed a shower. If he’d known I’d be in there for the better part of an hour, he probably would have tried a little harder to pin me down.

A frown creases his brow. “Sierra, about last night. I—”

“It’s in the past,” I interrupt, flashing him a quick grin. One of my most convincing ones. “The far, distant past.”

His penetrating stare doesn’t move from my face as he rises, and I curse his ability to see right through me. “Sierra…?”

A knock saves me from having to hunt out a lie that will convince Galen everything is okay. I toss my towel on the bed and head for the door, relieved I’m not scenting Eden on the other side of it, because if those two ever decided to gang up on me…

Between Eden sharing what she did last night and Galen’s watchfulness, they know me too well.

The door swings open easily under my hand, which is a surprise considering I still have a sore head from crashing into it. Guess they just make doors better in Hardin than they do in Dexter.

Nathan, dressed in a pair of sweats and a rumpled gray t-shirt, is missing his customary wide grin. When I take in Dayne’s stony expression as he stands just behind him, it’s clear that Nathan has had a morning full of being chewed out.

Might as well nip this in the bud.

I return my focus to Nathan. “Hi. There’s no need to apologize.”

He stuffs his hands in his pocket and lowers his head a little. “There is. I shouldn’t have—”

I smile. “You were just having fun. It’s no big deal. I’m good.”

Galen’s presence looms behind me. When Nathan’s eyes flicker over my shoulder and he pales, I take a step back inside and grip the door. “So, thanks, but you don’t have to be sorry for anything.”

A pressure on my right shoulder has me jerking around, heart in my throat, struggling to draw enough air into my lungs.

And I realize what it was. Galen’s hand. It was just him putting his hand on my shoulder.

Yet I reacted like someone had stabbed me.

In the silence, I feel the intensity of Galen, Nathan, and Dayne’s concerned stares.

I jump when someone puts a hand on my shoulder, yet I’m supposed tolead?

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