“We do?”
“Yes, we do.” From her pocket, she withdrew a small, tissue-wrapped parcel. She’d conspired with her friend Brynna, who ran the Shady Heart boutique and craft shop, to commission a special order of miniatures from the wolf who held her heart and soul. Unwrapping the package, she placed a tiny kit and little cub on the mantel between the larger figures. “How do you think it looks now?” she murmured.
Brick stared at his carvings, back at her, back at the mantel. He swayed on his feet, the color draining from his stunned face. Not quite the joyous reaction she’d been hoping for. Alarm gripped her heart.
“Brick?”
“Does this mean what I think it means?” His words emerged low and raspy, as if he’d been overcome by his inner beast and it took all his human energy and will to force them from his mouth.
“Afraid so, Papa. Lone wolf no more.”
His wolf’s howl and human whoop shook the rafters of the cabin and threatened to shatter her eardrums. He seized her around the waist, lifting her off her feet and whirling her around. Her head spun. His arms closed around her again, and he held her so tightly against his chest she felt and heard the thunder of his pounding pulse.
“My heart, my soul, my beautiful mate,” he murmured. “I love you, my raven, my sweet Aura Lee. I never thought I’d have a mate. And now I have one. I never thought I’d have a family. And now…I have one. I’d be broken without you, Summer. And now…I’m whole.”
Tears streamed down her eyes and she swallowed past the enormous lump in her throat. He seemed pleased, proud, elated even. But her male remained jumpy and disquieted in large groups. And she wasn’t quite sure how he’d take to young disrupting his home.
“So…the mantel,” she said again. “You think it looks okay then?”
“Okay?” he repeated, shaking his head. “I’m not a wolf of words, but ‘okay’s’ not exactly the one I’d pick.”
“No?” she prompted. “And yours would be?”
An enormous wolfy smile split his lips, giving her a glimpse of gleaming teeth. “Amazing.” His grin broadened. “Totally, completely amazing.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
At a young age, Taryn Kincaid was groomed to be the next Disney princess. When it was discovered that she couldn’t really carry a tune, preferred flip-flops to glass slippers, and had a head shape unsuited to bejeweled tiaras, she explored new career opportunities. One day she hopes to terraform her own private island, bring about world peace and discover cures for whatever ails everyone else. In the meantime, she can be found hanging on line or delving into scenic, historical, mystical Sleepy Hollow.
Visit Taryn Kincaid at:
http://tarynkincaid.com
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Claiming His Mate by M. Limoges
Chapter One
Jace Matthews’ eyes followed the rhythmic sway of his mate’s heart-shaped ass as she walked up the aisle to the sales counter. Damn, he couldn’t wait to strip her bare and sink his teeth into that tender flesh. Suddenly, those tempting globes stopped. He blinked and his gaze shot up to find Michelle frowning over her shoulder at him.
Shit.
Embarrassed she’d caught him staring, he snatched the closest book on the shelf beside him, waving it in the air like a kid who’d won a life-sized stuffed animal at the county fair. “Got it. Thought it might be out of stock.”
Real smooth, jackass.
She arched a delicate brow over the rim of her glasses. “Are you ready to check out, Jace?”
“Yep, I think this’ll do it.” He soaked up the sound of her sweet voice and followed her to the register.
Two months ago, when he’d come to check out the new owner of a large parcel of land adjoining his pack’s hunting territory, he damn sure hadn’t expected to find Michelle Sanders. Once he’d stepped inside the small, quaint bookstore she’d owned in Collins, he’d caught a scent that had eluded him for thirty-two years.
His mate.
The first time he laid eyes on her, his wolf had fought tooth and nail, urging Jace to stake his claim in the primitive way of his people. Hunt her down, mark her, and claim her as his own. That wouldn’t have worked with Michelle. He had to proceed with caution. She was human after all.