Total pages in book: 139
Estimated words: 131137 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 656(@200wpm)___ 525(@250wpm)___ 437(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 131137 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 656(@200wpm)___ 525(@250wpm)___ 437(@300wpm)
“Shay—”
“I’m just as angry as you are about that preserve. Those bastards did things they deserve to die slow, agonizing deaths for. On top of that, one of them tried over and over to rape you in juvie. Then there’s the little fact that he wrecked the salon and had someone shoot at us. I’m not letting that slide.” To her surprise, he wasn’t scowling, he was smiling. “What?”
“You should hear how righteous and very Alpha-female-like you sound.”
She blushed. “Females feeling vengeful on their mate’s behalf can sound a lot like that.”
“It’s not just me who has a problem with this. Your wolf doesn’t like it either, does she? She’s nervous at just the idea of it.”
Her wolf was, indeed, pacing anxiously. “Granted, she’s not keen on the idea of being in a situation that violent. But she’s also reassured”—okay, slightly reassured—“by the fact that I have no intention of shifting and expecting her to deal with it.”
He frowned, confused. “You don’t intend to shift?”
“It’ll be kind of hard to use my rifle with paws and claws.”
“Rifle?” he echoed disbelievingly.
“Thanks to my dad and our hunting trips, I’m a really good shot. I deserve to be a part of this just as much as the others do. The other males haven’t asked their mates to stay behind—it’s unfair to expect me to stay behind just because I’m submissive and—”
He silenced her with a look. “This has nothing to do with your submissive status, so don’t even go there.” He was becoming increasingly offended by her repeated accusations of him thinking less of her due to her submissive status. “Trey and Dante aren’t asking their mates to stay behind because the situation isn’t personal for them. My wolf has wanted to get a grip on Logan for a long time for a long list of reasons, and he’s none too happy with the shifter who created the preserve either. During the attack, his sole focus will be on getting to them. You’re the only thing that could distract him, the only thing that would matter more to him than ripping those fuckers apart.”
“You’re saying I’ll place you in danger.”
He cupped her chin. “You’re my only weak spot, Shay. Logan will know that. On that battlefield, it’ll be you who he’s looking for. If you’re there, my wolf will be distracted and anxious and won’t be able to focus on getting to Logan or the shifter—and that will make it easier for them to get to one of us.”
Well, when he put it like that…“What if I promise not to enter the battlefield? What if I promise to stay on a spot out of sight? It’s not like I need to get close to use my rifle.”
That placated him and his wolf slightly, but the idea of her being anywhere near Logan still turned his stomach.
“You can even help me choose which spot.”
He scrubbed a hand down his face. “I don’t like it, Shay.”
“Of course you don’t. Just the same, I don’t like the idea of you playing a part in the battle, but I haven’t asked you to stay out of it, have I?”
Twisting the situation to get what she wanted? “Baby, that’s sneaky.” Because she made a very good point.
“This is my fight too, Nick.” He was silent for a long time, and she thought he was going to object again, but he instead released a sigh of resignation.
“I can’t deny that your skills will be needed.”
Knowing that was Nick’s version of an “oh, all right,” she kissed him hard. “I appreciate you not being an overprotective caveman. Dante used to do it to Jaime a lot in the beginning—God, they argued like cats and dogs about it.” Although Nick was even more overprotective than Dante, he didn’t play the “I’m a male, I have a dick, and therefore I will make all the decisions” role like the Beta male had.
“This doesn’t mean I’m happy about it. My wolf’s pretty pissed with you too.”
She petted his chest patronizingly. “Don’t worry; when we go down for dinner later you can tell your best friend, Jaime, all about it and she’ll—”
“You keep that woman away from me. She’s chatty and does that sympathy thing.”
“And that’s bad?” chuckled Shaya. Although Jaime genuinely did sympathize with Nick and liked being around someone who could sort of relate to her predicament with her wolf, Jaime also found it hilarious just how uncomfortable it made him.
Nick moved Shaya so that she lay on top of him, fitting her body to his. “I don’t want sympathy, and I don’t like to chat unless it’s with you.”
“Why? What’s so different about me that my company is okay?”
He smoothed his hand up and down her back. “You’re perfect to me. They’re not. You’re important. They’re not. You’re mine. They’re not.”