Reclaim the Wolf: BBW Paranormal Shape Shifter Romance (Wolf Valley Raiders Book 3) (2 page)

“You OK, Kira? You look pale. Is he dead?” Fara’s face creased up some more, if that was even possible. The old woman was worried and Kira wasn’t helping matters, but she didn’t know what had come over her.

“I’m fine. I just feel a little off. Maybe it’s the blood.”

“Or something else,” Fara said, her expression perceptive.

“What do you mean, something else?” Kira looked down at the guy in front of her. He was handsome, that was for sure, big muscles, just right for manual work, yet he had a look about him: he was intelligent too. She longed for him open his eyes so she could see what colour they were; she hoped they were the same colour as his hair, dark brown with amber flecks. “Oh!” She shook her head. “Oh no.”

Fara cackled, her mood lightening. “Well, if ever a man needed taming, this is him. You have your work cut out for you, lady.”

“No. Look, I’ll just take him and dump him somewhere.” She straightened up, not sure where those words had come from. She was one of the most compassionate people she knew, too compassionate. But she didn’t want him and didn’t want a mate. Not if that mate was bad news.

“And dump your heart right with it,” Fara said, her voice now kind, reassuring. “He just needs a good woman, and you are that, my lovely.”

“You can’t be sure he’s my mate.” Kira looked down at the unconscious figure. But
she
could, by the way her touch had caused electricity to crackle between them. Her mom had described the very same thing to her. Years ago, she told Kira of the first time she touched the hand of Kira’s father; there had been that strong pulse of static electricity.
Recognition
. That was how her mom had described it: two people fated to be together recognising each other on a different level. A place where their souls met and knew what they were to each other.

It sounded so romantic to a young and impressionable teenager, whose head was filled with all these notions of Prince Charming and happy-ever-afters. But this man took all those dreams away. He was no Prince Charming, he was a thief; and her happy-ever-after seemed to disappear like a morning mist.

Her life was going to be filled with keeping track of him and making sure he stayed out of trouble.

“Oh, nuts.”

Behind her Fara laughed, placing her hands on her knees as she took deep breaths to contain herself. “He couldn’t have picked a better woman if he’d tried.”

And I couldn’t have picked a worse man
. “OK. Now you have that out of your system, we still have to decide exactly what we are going to do with him,” Kira rounded on Fara, who was still wiping tears from her eyes. “You
did
shoot a man.”

“Oh, yeah. But now he’s yours, at least I won’t have to worry about him pressing charges or anything.” She stood up straight, seeing Kira’s anguished look. “OK, honey. You’re a good girl, I get that. So listen, if you really don’t want him, you could make yourself scarce. I’ll ring that no-good sheriff, and he can take us both into town. Guess he might arrest this mutt and then you won’t ever have to see him again.”

Kira looked down at the ground, her eyes straying to the long, shoulder-length hair of her mate. The fullness of his lips called to hers. She couldn’t do it. She had always been a soft touch—a kind heart, that was how Fara put it. A doormat would be a more appropriate description. If she had been harder, things might have gone differently.

But you couldn’t change your character just like that. Kira gave in to her need to help Fara. “Damn it. Help me get him in the truck.” She turned to Fara. “And I’m doing this for you. I know you wouldn’t last five minutes in a prison.”

Fara’s life had been hard enough. Taking over the family farm had been her dream, but she had always expected to have a man to help her. But no mate had ever shown up, and so she had toiled for long days on her own. When she had been younger, it hadn’t been too hard, but as she got older, the farm had slowly begun to slide into disrepair. The attacks she had endured by the raiders had just quickened the downturn. With the barn gone, it was impossible to see how she and her livestock would survive the winter.

However, nothing ever stopped her seeing the funny side of life. And her eyes still shone with amusement at Kira’s predicament.

“The wound isn’t life-threatening. I think you just grazed him,” Kira said, thinking she had better show some concern and check the guy over before they moved him. “I’m surprised he’s remained unconscious so long.”

“Might be the crack over the head I gave him,” Fara said.

Kira turned to look at Fara, appalled. “And you never thought to mention that before?”

“Didn’t seem too important. Fella’s got a hard-enough head.”

Kira knelt back down and steeled herself for the shock of touching her mate again. Thankfully, the current wasn’t so strong; maybe it wore off after a while, that was one blessing. She hated to think she would be plagued by this almost continuous assault on her senses. She just wanted to forget he was hers.

Probing his skull with gentle fingertips, she assessed the damage. There was no swelling, and only a little cut where Fara had hit him. The best thing would be to get him in the truck and take him home. There she could nurse his wounds properly. If there was one thing she wouldn’t find in Fara’s house, it was a decent first-aid kit.

And this was going to need more than a Band-Aid.

“I’ll take his upper body, you take his legs, OK?” Kira asked, putting her hands under his arms and lifting him. He was heavy, and she was grateful he was not carrying an ounce of extra fat on his body. If he had been, the two women would not have been able to lift him.

“Damn fine body on him,” Fara said approvingly. “You two are going to have some fun in the sack.”

She nearly dropped him to the floor at Fara’s words. “That is not happening.”

“You won’t have a choice, lady. Not once that mating drive gets to you. They say it’s more compelling than chocolate.”

Kira chuckled despite herself. “I can’t believe you said that.”

“Well. You might soon find out. I think he’s stirring.”

“Then let’s get him loaded in the back and I’ll knock him out again going over that rut on your driveway.” Kira shouldered the back of the truck down and together they lifted him.

“Well, maybe when you have him tamed, he can come back here and do some work around the place.” Fara looked mournfully at her house. “Goodness knows it needs it.”

“I will see what I can do. Although, no promises. Especially when he finds out you shot him.” Her arms ached, but the big bulk of a man was safely in the back of her truck. She closed the back up, kissed Fara on the cheek and then went to the driver's door. “Try not to shoot anyone else, Fara.”

“See you soon, honey. And good luck.” Fara waved. “And you’re welcome.”

“For what?” Kira asked, her hand on the key, ready to start the engine.

“For finding him for you.”

Kira shook her head. “I might be cursing you before the day is out. A damn raider. Do you know how much care I’ve taken to avoid town since all the good men left?” With that, the truck sparked into life and she drove away from Fara, who waved and then went back towards her house. Kira could tell from the rise and fall of her shoulders she was either laughing or crying.

Kira hoped it was the latter, even if it was at her own expense.
Damn fated mates.

Consciousness slowly returned. His shoulder hurt, but nothing compared to his head. That old battle-axe—she had wielded a shovel in her hands and hit him so hard he had blacked out. Wait until Riley heard about this one.

As he became aware of himself, he had a strange feeling. No. Two strange feelings. First, he was bumping along in the back of a truck, the driver having no regard for the cargo. The speed over this terrain was going to give him even more bruises. However, that realisation was totally obliterated next to the unwavering knowledge that the person driving the truck was his mate.

He had found her.
At last
. He sat up, taking in the back of the woman through the muddied window. Then he was hit by a terrifying thought. What if his mate was the old woman who had lumped him one with the shovel? Would fate be that wicked and cruel? Was this some kind of karma?

Seriously? He could not have waited all this time to be with his mate, only to discover she was too old to have his pups. That would be just … ice. Justice for all the things he had done to the people of Wolf Valley. Innocent people who probably wanted nothing more than to live their lives in peace and quiet.

Damn it.
“Damn it!” he cursed out loud.

What was he supposed to do? Run. He pulled himself up to a sitting position, his shoulder sending shooting pains throughout his whole body. Looking over the side, he knew it would hurt if he threw himself out. But that would be better than being mated to an old woman. Wouldn’t it?

Even as he thought the words, he knew he was wrong. The pull was too much. He wanted her, wanted her with every fibre of his being. Now he was fully conscious, the bond between them was incredibly strong. He
could
pull away from it. He
would
find the strength. But what about her? He would be sentencing his mate to a lifetime of loneliness.

Closing his eyes, he accepted his fate. If she was his mate, then so be it. He would make the most of it. It didn’t matter what anyone else thought; she was his mate and he would love her no matter what.

Settling back down, the pain in his shoulder became his main focus once more. It hurt like hell, and he could only assume she was taking him to the hospital. Somewhere he didn’t think he wanted to go. If she took him into town, with a gunshot wound, then the chances were she would be arrested. And he wouldn’t be able to bear that.

Getting up again, he crawled towards the front of the truck. He would have to bang on the window and get her attention; somehow he had to get her to turn the truck around and take him home. He was sure Riley would be able to deal with his torn shoulder.

The truck turned sharply, sending him scooting across the floor, banging his shoulder on the side. Winded, he put his hand to his wound. Blood. That wasn’t good; maybe he needed that hospital more than he thought. Yet when the vehicle slowed and he pushed himself up, to lean awkwardly on the side of the truck, he saw they weren’t anywhere near the town. Instead, they were in the middle of nowhere, the mountains rising up to the west, and the river in the distance telling him where Wolf Valley was.

A thought struck him. Maybe she had brought him out here to kill him. If she knew who he was, then maybe the shovel round the head had been her way of knocking him unconscious before bringing him here to bury him in the middle of nowhere.

The sound of the truck door opening made him fully aware of the danger he was in. Running would be useless. That gun would tear a hole in him before he got ten feet away. Problem was, he had no way to defend himself. He was at her mercy.

Footsteps, going away from the truck. He risked a look, and sure enough, there she was, going towards a gate that was blocking their way. Ducking down, he avoided her seeing him as she opened it. Maybe this was his chance: all he had to do was throw himself out of the truck, turn wolf, and limp home.

Bracing himself, he waited until she got back into the truck, relieved that she hadn’t checked on him. Or insulted. He was her mate; she should be taking care of him. Sweeping those thoughts away—
she was trying to kill him after all
—he got ready to throw himself off the truck as it started moving.

“Argh.” He landed with a sickening thud. The pain in his head was making him feel nauseous, and the blood from his shoulder flowed freely.
Not one of your best ideas
.

Worse was the sense of loss, as though a strand ran between him and the driver of the truck, one that was being stretched. If it was real, it would have plucked him up and dragged him along behind the disappearing vehicle. Instead, it belonged to another reality, the one that bound their souls together. The sense of loss hit him in the solar plexus and made him double over.

If he could have got his feet under him, he would have run after her as fast as he could. Instead, he lay on the ground, a shivering wreck.

He needed her. If she didn’t want him, then he should have let her kill him, because anything would be better than this.

A jolt passed through her body. She gripped the steering wheel and tried to keep the truck going straight, but she struggled for breath, as though someone had punched her hard in the gut.

Oh my goodness! He’d died. The man in the back of her truck, her mate, had died, and this was the awful feeling she would have to live with for the rest of her life.
She had killed her mate.

Kira cursed herself for not taking more care of him: for not taking him to the hospital or at least nursing his wounds before she took him on this bumpy ride. She was so stupid. Bringing the truck to a halt, she got out, rushing around to the side to see for her own eyes the man lying dead in the truck. It was empty.

“Son-of-a-bitch.” How could she have lost him? Had he bounced out? Looking wildly around, she spotted him, trying to rise to his knees and stagger away from her. “What the hell!”

So he didn’t want her. Fair enough, she could live with that.
No, she couldn’t
. Her wolf was howling, urging her to go to him. When she stood still, it tried to drag her over to him.
He was hurt.
He needed her.
But he had tried to run.

Looking at him trying to drag himself away from her, she could see it was hard for him too. Then why? Why desert her? Because he was a no-good piece of garbage. But he was
her
no-good piece of garbage.

Sighing heavily, she went back to the truck and climbed in. Putting it into reverse, she drove back to where he was crawling away. Running him over and ending both their miseries did cross her mind, but it was quickly replaced by the need to help him.
They were one
. She would have to learn to live with him being a no-good coward.