bChapter /bb15 /b

bSkye’s /bbPOV /b

Strong arms wrapped around my waist from behind, pulling me against a solid chest. The scent hit me immediately–cheap whiskey and stale bsweat/bb. /bNot the ocean scent I’d feared, but something far more mundane and equally dangerous.

I btwisted /bmy head to see arge, heavyset man with a face reddened by years of drinking. His bulbous nose glowed almost purple in the dim parking lot light. Recognition flickered through my panic–he was one of the new ranch hands who’d starteding to The Watering Hole about a bweek /bago.

I couldn’t remember his name, but I remembered serving him shot after shot of bottom–shelf whiskey earlier, tonight.

“Let go of me!” I shouted, pushing against his beefy arms with all my strength. “What do you think you’re doing?”

Rather than releasing me, his grip tightened painfully. His hot, alcohol–soaked breath hit my cheek as leaned in closer.

bAlways /bseen you alone, he slurred, his voice oily with intention. “Pretty girl like you needs a man. How ‘bout being bmy /bgirlfriend, huh?”

Revulsion crawled across my skin like insects. Being raised in a werewolf pack had taught me to bdefend /bbmyself/bb, /beven without bmy /bwolf. Ethan had made sure of that, spending countless hours teaching me defensive moves ‘just in case.” This was definitely a bcase/b.

I drove my elbow back with all my strength, connecting with his jaw. The shock of the impact loosened his grip bjust /benough.

“Disgusting! bNot /ba chance!” I spat, twisting out of his bgrasp/b.fn267c Original content can be found at find~novel/fn267c

I bolted toward my bcar/bb, /bkeys clutched so tightly they bit into my palm. Behind me, I heard him stumbling to his bfeet/bb, /bcursing loudly.

“Fucking bitch!” bhe /broared, his heavy footsteps thundering after me.

My fingers had just touched the bcool /bmetal of my bcar /bdoor handle when ba /bvicious yank on my hair sent shock waves bof /bpain through bmy /bscalp. My head snapped backward as he dragged me away from the safety of my vehicle. I lost my bnceb, /bcrashing painfully to the bgravel /bparking lot.

Before I could regain my footing, his weight crushed down on meb, /bpinning me to the ground. The stench of him–sweat, alcohol, and tobob–/bmade me gag as he loomed over me, his intentions clear in his bloodshot eyes.

bI /bbwasn’t /bgiving up. Not like this. I bucked wildly underneath him, managing to bring my knee bup /bsharply between his legs. He howled in painb, /bmomentarily loosening his hold. I scrambled forward, trying to escape.

Then came the sound that would haunt my nightmares–the bdistinctive /bclick of ba /brevolver’s hammer being cocked, followed by the deafening crack of a bgunshot/b.

Fire bloomed in my chest. A white–hot, searing pain that knocked the breath from my lungs. Stunned, I pressed my hand to the source and bfelt /bwarm wetness bspreading /bacross my shirt. When I pulled my hand baway/bb, /bit bwas /bcoated in bcrimson/b.

bHe /bshot me. He actually shot me.

The world tilted sideways as shock set in. bI /bstumbled forwardb, /bstill desperate bto /breach my bcar/b, my sanctuaryb. /bbEach /bstep was heavier than the bst/bb, /bmy vision darkening at the edges. bAfter /bjust a few feetb, /bmy knees buckled.

I copsed onto the bgravel/bb, /bthe sharp stones digging into my skin barely registering against the agony in my chest. The taste of bcopper /bfilled my mouth as bI /bbstruggled /bto breathe.

Sinking to my knees, I raised my eyes to the night sky. The full moon hung there, distant and indifferent to bmy /bbsuffering/b. bFor /bthe first btime /bin my lifeb, /bbbitter /bbresentment /bbtoward /bbthe /bMoon Goddess welled up inside me.

I had never been disrespectful, not even when Leon rejected bme /bin front of the entire pack. I had bepted my /bfate without cursing bher /bname.

bBut /bnow, dying alone in a desert parking lot, about to be vited by a drunken human, thousands bof /bmiles bfrom /banyone who bloved /bme–bnow /bbI /bbfelt /bhatred toward the bdeity /bwho had denied me bmy /bwolf, denied bme /bbthe /bstrength to protect bmyself/b.

b1/2 /b

Why I bsilently /bbdemanded /bbof /bbthe /bbuncaring /bbcelestial /bbbody/b. bWhy /bbam /bbI /bwithout a wolf? What bdid /bI bdo /bbto /bbdeserve /bbthis/bb? /b

btélosed /bbmy /bbeyes/bb, /bbpreparing /bfor the worst–his bhands /bbon /bme again, bmy /blife draining away in this godforsaken ce, with no one to mourn bme/b, no one to even bknow /bbwhat /bbhad /bhappened to me.

bInstead/b, the bnight /bair shattered with the sound of a wolf’s howl–deep, powerful, and terrifyingly close.

bMy /beyes flew open bin /btime to see a blur of gray furunch through the air. The massive wolf collided with my attacker, their bodies hitting the bground /bwith enough force to send gravel spraying in all directions. There was a short, strangled scream, cut off with sickening abruptness, followed by the wet, tearing bsounds /bbI /brecognized from pack hunts back home.

Through the growing haze of my consciousnessb, /bI watched as the wolf–its muzzle now dark with blood–padded toward me. The transformation bhappened /bso quickly I almost missed it: bones shifting, fur receding, the lupine form straightening into that of a naked man.

Adrian crouched beside me, his amber eyes wide with concern, his strong hands gently lifting me from the ground. His ocean scent washed over bme/bb, /bsomehow calming despite the terror of the situation.

Skye? Skye, can you hear me?” His voice seemed toe from very far away, though his face was just inches from mine. “Stay with me. I’m going to bget /byou helpb. /b

The warmth of his bare skin against my cold body felt oddlyforting as he cradled me against his chestb. /bThe bst /bthing I registered before darkness imed me was his scent–pine forest after rainfall with undertones of bocean/b, wrapping around bme /blike ba /bbprotective /bnket.

“Adrianb,/bb” /bbI /bwhispered, though I wasn’t sure if the word actually left my blips/b.

Then there was nothing but silence and the endless dark.

bChapter /bbComments /b

Tanya Gordon

is Adrian her 2nd chance Mate?

Jamie DeWitt