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)
So beautiful. She was so damn beautiful that it almost hurt Nick to look at her. Despite not being small, she was petite and almost pixie-like with her heart-shaped face, small nose, clear skin, and clusters of adorable freckles that he wanted to trace with his tongue. His wolf was pacing—content yet also restless, and more alive around Shaya than in any other situation. Nick was feeling much the same.
He’d found her. He’d finally found her.
A fierce longing—both emotional and physical—pounded through him, making his body roar to life. He raked his gaze over her, reacquainting himself with every line and curve. “Hello, Shay.”
Shaya almost jumped as that goddamn masterful voice snapped her out of her stupor. He had the most authoritative voice she had ever heard. It didn’t demand compliance, it expected it. And it called to the submissive side of her nature. “What are you doing here?” He looked as he always did—dangerous, alluring, and deceptively relaxed. Nick Axton was never totally at ease.
Nick shrugged. “You’re my mate. You’re here. Where else would I be?”
He’d said it like it was a mathematical equation. Shaya’s irritation was overshadowed, however, by the lust creeping over her. His appraisal of her was so thorough and intense that she felt as if he’d touched her. It reminded her of the night they had first met—he had barely taken his eyes from her, had watched her like a hawk. The difference was that there was now a determination in his gaze, a promise that she didn’t understand.
Shaya inwardly groaned. Why didn’t the universe like her? She didn’t think she was bad, as people went. She recycled, and she donated to charity, and she didn’t use products that had been tested on animals. Why, why, why couldn’t fate have kept her hidden from him?
As Nick stared into those shock-filled bluish-gray eyes that were usually twinkling with an impish benevolence, he raised his brows. “You look surprised. Did you honestly think I wouldn’t find you? Did you really think I wouldn’t come for you?”
At those words, a surge of anger shot through Shaya. He had no right to be here, no right to seek her out when he didn’t want her. She didn’t need to have him watching over her and meddling in her life. That wouldn’t be a life. He would never allow her to find someone else and be happy, regardless of the fact that he didn’t want her for himself. He’d proven that by trying to scare off Dominic when he’d mistakenly thought they were a couple.
She knew that even if he mated with another female—a shaft of agony speared through her at just the thought of it—he’d never let Shaya have her own life. He’d left her no choice but to leave, and now the bastard wanted to mess up the life that she’d managed to make for herself here. Unfortunately, her wolf wasn’t moved by those details. Now that the shock had worn off, her wolf’s primary instinct at that second was to go to her mate, to touch him and take him inside her; to allow him to claim her, and to claim him in return. Great.
What Shaya wanted to do was snatch the nearest heavy object and hurl it at Nick’s head. But she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of seeing her lose it. No. He’d made it clear through his past indifference that he didn’t want her. She’d give him that same indifference now. She spoke in a crisp, cool voice. “Well you’ve found me. You’ve seen me. You know that I’m fine. Now you can leave.” Before he could respond, she headed for the oak kitchen and quickly switched on the coffee machine. She sensed that he had followed her into the room, felt his power almost burning her back, but she paid him no attention as she fixed her drink.
“I didn’t come here to check on you,” he said. “I came here to take you back.”
She chuckled humorlessly. “I’m not going back to the Phoenix Pack just so you can always know where I am and be in my business, scaring guys away. If you think I’m going to live life as a spinster, you’re about as bright as Alaska in December.”
The very idea of her with someone else always made Nick see red. His wolf, who was still pacing predatorily and eager to get to his mate, growled at the idea. Nick’s voice was quiet but dangerous. “Is there a guy, Shaya? You better hope there isn’t, or he’s dead. And don’t think I don’t mean that.”
She knew he meant it, the interfering bastard. Cup in hand, she pivoted to face him. Although he hadn’t taken more than two steps into the room, his large, powerful build practically dominated her kitchen, making Shaya feel cornered. Like a prey by a predator. Involuntarily, her eyes briefly darted to the door. Nick, still staring at her with an intensity that would unnerve any female, stepped in front of it as though to block her avenue of retreat. Wow, did he actually suspect she’d run like a frightened little fawn? He should. She was seriously considering it. “Who I’m with and what I do is none of your business.”