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MY WOUNDED SHIFTER MATCH

LOVE BITES DATING AGENCY

SKYE ALDER
 CONTENTS

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Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13

About the Author

Also by Skye Alder
Copyright © 2021 by Skye Alder

contact@skyealder.com
All Rights Reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including
information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book
review. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. All characters and
storylines are the property of the author and your support and respect are appreciated. The characters and events portrayed in this book
are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
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 *

Four best friends and ex-special forces shifters contact the Love Bites Dating Agency, each for
different reasons. One for love, one to forget, one on a dare, and one by mistake. This is Burke’s
story, the one looking to forget.

Burke Arbor just got discharged from the military after being wounded in battle. He’s been trying to
heal and come to terms with the fact that he may never be able to shift again. He’s also been hiding
from the world, and even from his three best friends, in his cabin in the woods.

There’s just one problem.

He’s tired of only having his wolf in his head for company.
When he finds out that Cliff went through with the Love Bites Dating Agency, an arranged
marriage agency specifically for shifters searching for their mate, and that Cliff found his fated mate,
he thinks it will be the perfect distraction.

One drunken night with his friends and he decides to sign up. I mean, what does he have to lose?
Besides his pride.

When the agency contacts him with his match, he’s shocked that they were able to find her and
worried that she wouldn’t like what she sees when they meet. One look into Haven’s big blue eyes,
though, and he knows that she’s it. She’s his fated mate, and he’ll do anything to keep her.

This alpha shifter might be wounded, but that doesn’t mean that he can’t claim his fated mate when the
time comes. Not if he has anything to say about it.
 ONE

Burke

I SCOWL out the window as the rain continues to pour down. It’s been raining all day, the sky a
depressing gray shade. My driveway looks more like a mud pit than anything else. Shame, too, since I
spent the last few weeks redoing the gravel and landscaping the place.
I sigh as I turn away from the window and start to pace around my living room. There’s nouse in
worrying about the driveway right now when there’s nothing I can do about it. Looking around my
cabin, I let out another sigh as I wipe a hand down my face. I’m restless. Agitated. And bored. So
goddamn bored.
I don’t want to watch TV or read, and I’ve already been out to my garage to work on the Ford that
I’m restoring. I’m waiting on a part before I can go any further with that project. My cabin is clean,
and I’ve already had lunch. What else is there to do? What do normal people do with their time?
My wolf rolls over inside of me. He’s just as bored as I am. Both of us have struggled with
acclimating to the civilian lifestyle. In the Rangers, we always had a project or a mission. My wolf
and I could burn off our energy while serving our country. It was a win-win. Now, though… I don’t
have a purpose. No goal to work toward.
If I could go back to being an Army Ranger, I would in a heartbeat. They don’t want me anymore,
though. Not after the accident that tore me up inside and out.
I pace toward the front door, my eyes snagging on my reflection in the mirror there. The scars look
worse today, the red lines raised and splotchy on my skin, making it look like my left side is covered
in some kind of messed up Rorschach test.
I don’t need to turn to see the lines traveling down the back of my arm. If I lifted my shirt, you
would see that they go down over my rib cage, ending in some nasty scars on my left hip.
I rub that spot now. The rain always makes the pain there worse, and I know my limp is more
noticeable today, which is another reason I’m hiding out in my house instead of running errands in
town. I hardly go out in public these days, but especially not when my wounds and weaknesses are so
pronounced.
My phone rings, jarring me out of my morose thoughts, and I know without looking that it’s one of
my friends or my brother. They’re calling to check in on me because we haven’t seen each other in a
day or two.
Archer is my brother by blood, and Rule, Wells, and Cliff are my brothers by fire. That’s what
Rule says anyway.
We all grew up in neighboring pack,s and we were thick as thieves when we were younger. Rule
was the oldest, and he was the first to join the military. The three of us followed him as soon as we
turned eighteen, and we all ended up in the Army Rangers together. We were lucky enough to be in the
same unit, which meant that we deployed together.
Seeing the scars always takes me back to the attack. It feels like a dream sometimes, or more like
a nightmare. I watch the incident play out on repeat, and even though I know it’s real, everything feels
like a warped movie, coming to me in flashes of images.
At first, all I see is the sand. It’s beige from horizon to horizon, so much so it’s disorienting.
Everything looks the same. Even when we were on base, the buildings were that same tan color.
Then my thoughts skip to my buddies laughing at me. We’re in the second Humvee in the caravan,
headed to town to do some scouting when it happens. The lead Humvee is thrown into the air, and
Gavin, the driver in our vehicle, slams on the brakes with a curse on his lips. But it’s too late.
We’re hit by something, maybe an RPG, and the window next to me shatters, the shards slicing at
my skin, leaving behind jagged marks.
The world spins after that, the Humvee rolling and rolling, coming to a stop on the roof. Gavin cut
me down, I think, and pulled me out. I remember lying there in the sand, blood staining my vision.
Wincing, I hear the pop, pop, pop of the bullets hitting just over my head.
I climbed to my feet, or maybe Gavin pulled me up. My world was thrown into a chaos of pain,
adrenaline, and the need to survive. That was when the bullet hit my hip. I went down, and I had
thought that I had taken Gavin down with me until I looked over and saw his eyes.
He was already gone, but that didn’t stop me from screaming for a medic and starting chest
compressions. Even as blood poured from my cuts and the hole in my side, I stayed with Gavin, trying
to grab onto his life and hold it for him. I was too late, and I knew it. His lifeless green eyes stared up
at me, and all I could do was hold the limp body of my friend.
Everything after that is a blur. There was another shot, this one hitting my helmet, and the world
went black. I woke up in a hospital in Germany four days later with my friends gathered around my
hospital bed, looking exhausted and worried.
I was being medically discharged, and the others were almost done with their current enlistments
and had decided not to reenlist. I think the accident scared them all. For me, it was a wake-up call.
I was tired of fighting. I looked around at my life and it didn’t seem like I had really done anything
with it. I have to remind myself of that fact on bad days like this. Yes, my choice to leave was taken
away by the fact that I’m damaged goods, but at the end of the day, I was at peace with going the
civilian route.
The four of us bought a nice piece of land outside of Forest Park, Colorado, and built our cabins.
Only, my life didn’t click into place like I thought it would. I’m tense and on edge most of the time,
like I’m waiting for something to happen. When I get into these moods, I start missing my Ranger
days. I thought I would feel more settled here, and part of me does, but there’s still something missing.
Our mate, my wolf growls. I ignore him.
I haven’t felt him, haven’t been able to shift since the accident and it’s starting to be a problem
between the two of us. All he does is grumble and complain. Honestly, I prefer that to his whimpering
and distressed groans. He’s in pain, too. Enough pain to not want to come out at all. I’ve tried. Drove
myself damn near crazy in my attempts to coax my wolf out. Each one was more miserable than the
last, so I stopped.
I push thoughts of my defective wolf out of my head and stare at my reflection, taking in my too
long black hair, my tired gray eyes. My friends have never talked about the accident. I think they were
waiting for me to bring it up but I never wanted to relive that day.
They mean well, I know that. But how can they understand? I used to stand tall and proud,
knowing I was using my unique set of skills as a shifter to defend my country and carry out important
missions. Now? I haven’t stood tall in months, thanks to my injuries and extensive surgeries
afterward. And being proud? I hardly remember what that feels like.
I turn away from the mirror, my hands balled into fists as I battle the old memories.
The flash of headlights catches my eye and I frown as I head to the front window, peeking out at
the unfamiliar car. It comes to a stop out front and turns off. I watch as a professional looking woman
steps out, her big black umbrella fading in with the weather.
She walks confidently up to my front door, and I wonder what she wants. She must be lost, except
who would travel all the way down my driveway if they were lost?
The woman knocks on the door, and I head over to answer it, my curiosity piqued.
“Mr. Arbor?” she asks, her black umbrella at her side. She has a big black briefcase hanging from
one arm and a polite smile on her face.
“Yes? Can I help you?”
“I’m Lucy, with the Love Bites Dating Agency. We received your submission and just need to ask
you a few more questions before we can find your fated mate.”
“Uh… what?” My mind is scrambling to think of when the hell I signed up for Love Bites. At first,
I think my brother must have done it for me, or maybe one of my friends, but then I remember the other
night, after Cliff and Honey’s wedding.
I had been a little tipsy, and a memory of me on my laptop on the Love Bites website floats
through my mind.
“Right,” I mumble, about to open my mouth and tell her to never mind, but she’s already pushing
past me.
The woman sets her umbrella down next to the couch, pulling a pen and clipboard out of her
briefcase as she takes a seat. She crosses her legs, looking at me expectantly and I close the door,
biting back a sigh as I move to take a seat in the chair across from her.
“This won’t take long,” she reassures me as she flips to the first page. “First question. What is
your full name?”
“Burke Adam Arbor.”
She nods, scribbling my answer down.
“Age?”
“29.”
“Occupation?”
“Ex-Army Ranger.”
“Current Occupation?”
“Don’t have one.”
She nods, not looking fazed by my answers.
“Favorite color?”
“I’m sorry?”
“Favorite color?”
Can that actually be a question?
 “How is that going to help you find my mate?” I ask, looking around for the cameras because this
has to be a joke.
“This is a very scientific process, Mr. Arbor. I assure you that it will help.”
“Blue,” I say, wondering how many more questions she could have.
“What pack are you from?”
My jaw locks as I remember my old pack. My dad was Alpha, and he passed it down to my older
brother, Luke.
That’s always been a bit of a sore subject.
My parents had three sons, but I’m not sure they ever really knew that. They put all of their time
and attention into Luke. They wanted him to be the best Alpha he could be, but all that attention
seemed to have spoiled him.
He was a weak Alpha. I was gone by the time that he was overthrown, and my parents, Luke, and
his mate were all kicked out.
I know that Archer got a kick out of that. My younger brother is a natural-born leader. He’s smart,
driven, and seems to enjoy making the hard choices. That’s how he started his own business and grew
it into what it is today. Now he’s a billionaire who runs his own pack, and I couldn’t be prouder of
him.
“Silver Firs Pack,” I say, clearing my throat so that I can get the words out.
“Is that your current pack?” she asks, still scribbling away on her paper.
“No, I’m not part of a pack right now.”
She nods, and I look out the window. The rain seems to be slowing.
“Last question, Mr. Arbor. What is your favorite number?”
I think I stare at her for a solid minute before I pick one at random.
“Um, seven?” I say, but it comes out more like a question.
She nods, no hint of a smile or light in her eyes that proves that she’s messing with me.
My wolf is grunting and pacing inside of me. It’s the most active he’s been in months, and I’m not
sure how I feel about that. Rubbing my hand over my chest, I try to calm the beast down. He wants to
know when our mate will be found, but I don’t have the guts to ask.
They may never find her. I’ve been all over the world and never caught her scent so it could take
Love Bites months, years even, and that’s if they ever find her at all. Even if they do, what’s to say
that she won’t take one look at my scars and turn right back around?
My wolf howls at the thought of our mate rejecting us and I swallow hard, clearing my throat.
“That’s all I need, Mr. Arbor. I’ll be in touch as soon as we’ve found her.”
She gives me that same smile that doesn’t reach her eyes as she gathers up her briefcase and
umbrella and heads for the door.
I show her out, watching as she climbs into her car and heads back down the drive.
I close the door, my feet starting my usual pacing path without me even thinking. My hand brushes
over the scars on my neck as I think about what this means.
Am I ready to put myself out there? Will my mate want me when she sees how banged up I am? I
switch directions, pacing in a new spot so I don’t wear out the newly polished wooden floors. Maybe
this was a bad idea. It would be better to not meet my mate at all than to have her look at me and run
away in fear or repulsion.
Once again, my wolf whines, not liking that thought at all. He insists that we meet her, though. I
know he’ll never shut up if I pass up this opportunity.
What if it works out? My wolf prods.
 “Right,” I grunt. “Because my life has been one big, shining example of everything working out,” I
say sarcastically.
My hip is killing me so I collapse back into the chair I was just sitting in and stare up at the
ceiling. I try to imagine what my mate might look like but give up when all I can see is a pair of
disgusted eyes looking at my scars.
I lean my head back, closing my eyes, as I wonder if I just made the worst decision of my life.
 TWO

Haven

I’M SO LATE.
I knew I shouldn’t have stayed up until two, but I couldn’t seem to help myself. I kept refreshing
the dating site, hoping to get a message that I had met my match.
Spoiler alert: I didn’t.
I rub my gritty eyes, swallowing my disappointment as I rush down the sidewalk and into the
community center. I’m studying to be a masseuse, and I only have a few days left before I’m officially
certified and can start working.
Sunny passes me in the hallway and I wave at her as I rush by. She’s the one who told me about
the Love Bites dating app. She comes to the community center for art classes, which is how we met.
Sunny was the first friend I made when I moved out here to Charleston. I grew up in Houston but
got out the first chance I had. I tried college, but it was too expensive. That was when I decided to
become a massage therapist. The community center offered a certification course for a reasonable
price, and the rest, as they say, is history. Hopefully. Once I pass my final exam.
I met Sunny when I was looking for an apartment. She had just moved to South Carolina too and
needed a roommate. We’ve been living together for the past two years, and even though we’re pretty
much opposites, we still get along great.
“Any bites?” Sunny calls. I roll my eyes at her joke, but give her a smile.
“Not yet!” I call back before I skid around the corner and into the classroom to sit through my last
lecture.
Love Bites is supposed to be online dating gold. They guarantee every one of their clients a
happily ever after. There’s been no divorces or even any breakups. Everyone wants to know how they
do it, but all the website says is that it’s a scientific process and can take time. The agency only takes
on a few new cases a year, so I was more than a little surprised when they called me back and set up
an account for me.
I’ve been on for close to two weeks now, hoping to meet my prince charming. I’m still dubious of
this whole situation, and I only get more despondent with each passing day I don’t find a match. I
think maybe I should just delete the whole app. It does nothing but get my hopes up only for them to
come crashing down every morning when I see that I have no new matches.
I take my seat, pulling out my laptop so I can take notes. It’s our last classroom session. I have one
more technique session where I will actually massage someone and then I’m done. I know it’s not a
master's degree or anything, but considering where I started a few years ago, I’m pretty proud of my
accomplishment.
I’ve been trying to line up a job, but I haven’t gotten any call backs yet. I’m sure the businesses
are just waiting to make sure I actually get certified. I hope that’s the reason that they haven’t called
me back, anyway.
The sting of rejection is familiar. I’ve been experiencing it my whole life. My parents didn’t want
to be together, but they got married when they learned that they were pregnant with me. They stayed
together too, hating every minute of it and by extension, hating me.
Maybe that should have turned me off to the idea of love or happily ever afters, but it just made
me want to find mine all the more. I’ve seen how not to do things in a marriage, now I want to figure
out how to have a happy, fulfilling marriage. With the right person, of course.
My parents resented me being born. They saw me as the reason they were forced to be together. It
didn’t matter that I didn’t ask to be born and it was their own choices that brought me into the world.
That was one of the reasons why I moved away from Houston as soon as I could. I couldn’t take
the constant hostility, the nasty remarks, and put downs. Eighteen years of either being neglected or
verbally abused was enough. I won’t lie, there were times growing up that I almost didn’t want to go
on. My parents were miserable and wanted everyone else to be miserable, too. I’m not sure they ever
loved me.
So, it’s no real surprise that we haven’t talked since I left two years ago.
I wonder if they’re divorced now. Maybe they are both married to one of their affair partners.
Yeah, neither one of them were subtle about their cheating. Somehow, though, it was always the other
person’s fault. How can they both be jealous and uncaring at the same time? It’s crazy-making, and I
had had enough. Maybe everyone is happier without me there.
I push that thought away and try to focus on my goals. That’s all that matters now.
All I want is to be settled. That’s one of the reasons why I signed up for the dating app in the first
place. I want the perfect husband, the kids, and white picket fence around our two story house. I want
a good job that I love. I just want to be happy and make those I love happy as well.
When I was younger, I never thought that finding all of that would be terribly hard. I thought if I
just wanted it bad enough, it would happen. Boy, do I want it bad, but it never happened. No one ever
caught my eye let alone treated me the way I would want a significant other to treat me. I’ve lost some
of the naiveté about true love just falling into my lap. It doesn’t stop me from trying to find it though.
“Thanks for an excellent course!” the instructor calls as everyone starts to pack up, and I realize I
daydreamed right through that class.
I hurry to gather my things and join the other students as they head down the hallway. Sunny is
probably already home, and I text her, asking if she wants me to pick up lunch on my way home.
She replies with the pizza emoji and I smile, tucking my phone into my bag as I unlock my beat up
Jeep and climb behind the wheel.
It’s a fifteen minute drive to our favorite pizza place, and I buzz the windows down. My old car
doesn’t have the best air conditioning unit, something that I wish I had fixed every time the weather is
over eighty.
I grab the pizza and head home. I need to study up before my final exam tomorrow and get a good
night’s rest. Sunny is on the couch when I walk in and she hops up, helping me with my bag and the
pizza box.
“Thanks for grabbing this,” she says, digging into her first slice.
I just nod, my mouth full with cheesy goodness.
My phone vibrates in my bag and I pull it out as Sunny takes her plate and heads back to the
couch. I’m expecting it to be a text or maybe an email. Instead, it’s a notification from Love Bites.

CONGRATULATIONS! You’ve been matched!

MY STOMACH DROPS and I set my slice of pizza back down to my plate as I stare at my screen. A
shiver runs down my spine, and I’m not sure if I’m excited or anxious. My finger hovers above the
Love Bites app, too nervous to click into it.
It’s happening? This is real?
My hand shakes and I draw in a deep, calming breath. This is what I hoped for, right? Now it’s
time to take the leap. In for a penny, in for a pound.
I give myself one last pep talk, then click open the app and check the message. There’s no picture
next to my match, just a name and age.
Burke Arbor.
29.
He’s older than me by close to a decade and I bite my lip. Why is that so hot? As soon as that
thought pops up, another, more depressing thought rises to the surface.
Will he think I’m too young? Too immature?
It would suck if I’m the only person who didn’t find their match using Love Bites. I think that
would say more about me than them.
Before I continue down that spiral, I click on the message icon. Chewing on my bottom lip, I
wonder what I should say. It would be too forward to ask to see him right away. Or maybe that’s his
job? I don’t know how any of this relationship stuff works. What the hell did I get myself into?
My thumbs fly over my phone screen, typing out a message before I chicken out and overthink
every little thing.

HAVEN: Hey there! I’ve got to be honest, I never expected to find a match and now that I have,
I’m not sure what to say. Is that lame?

I WONDER if he’ll reply right away. Maybe he’s busy and I won’t hear anything back for hours.
Maybe he’ll never message me back. I added a picture to my profile, so maybe he took one look at me
and decided to pass. My mom always said I was too plump to attract the male gaze. I’ve never
wanted the “male gaze” before, but if Burke turned me away, it would definitely hurt.
My mother’s voice rings out in my head as I replay the cruel things she used to say. That wild
rat’s nest hair of yours isn’t going to win you any beauty pageants. Freckles are a permanent
blemish, dear. You should really cover them up. And my favorite, You aren’t very pretty, but if you
lose some weight, you might find someone who likes your body.
I’m about to throw my phone into the toilet so I don’t have to deal with the anxiety of waiting for a
reply that might never come. Then, three dots appear on the screen. I suck in a breath, praying he at
least lets me down easy.

BURKE: Not lame. Adorable.

MY FACE FLUSHES, and I grin, the doubts melting away in a heartbeat as I rush to respond. I head
down the hallway to my bedroom, wanting some privacy.

HAVEN: I don’t think I’ve ever been called that before.

Burke: Then everyone around you is an idiot. You’re the most breathtaking thing I’ve ever
seen.

I CAN’T STOP the girlish giggle at his words, and I flop down on my bed. My cheeks hurt from
smiling already, and my stomach flutters with excitement and anticipation. I try to think of something
clever to say, but I don’t know what I’m doing.

HAVEN: I bet you’re handsome too.

Burke: I’m not so sure about that.

I FROWN AT HIS REPLY, wondering if he’s just being modest. Before I can ask, he sends another
message.

BURKE: Tell me about yourself.

Haven: Well, I’m twenty, and I’m about to graduate from my massage therapy school in a
few days. I still haven’t found a job, but I’m hoping that changes once I have my certificate.
Burke: I’m sure it will.
Burke: So, you’re an optimist then?
Haven: I try to be. It’s not always easy.
Burke: Keep going. Tell me more about you. What do you do in your free time?
 Haven: I love to read and watch movies.
Burke: What’s your favorite movie?
Haven: Pride and Prejudice. What about you?
Burke: I don’t think I’ve ever seen it. I’m more of an action movie guy.
Haven: Marvel or DC?
Burke: Marvel
Haven: Same!

WE TALK about our favorite seasons and holidays. His are winter and Christmas and mine are fall
and Christmas. He asks me about my childhood and I give him the cliff notes version. I don’t want to
bring down the light, flirty mood right away, though I’m sure we’ll eventually get into the heavier
details.
Talking to Burke is so natural. Normally when I have to speak to a guy, my face gets all red and
splotchy and I trip over my words. Not with Burke though. I wonder if it’s because we’re texting and
not face to face, or if there really is something here between us already.
My phone battery flashes at me and I’m shocked to see that it’s already close to ten pm.

HAVEN: I have to go to bed. It’s late here, and I have an exam tomorrow.
Burke: Goodnight, Baby. Good luck tomorrow. I’m sure you’re going to nail it. Let me know
how it goes.
Haven: I will. Goodnight!

I TRY NOT to blush too hard at him calling me Baby. No one has ever called me that. I’ve had
nicknames before, but none of them were very flattering. This, though, is something else. It’s a term of
endearment, and I can’t get enough. It makes me feel special and cared for in a way I’ve never felt.
And it’s just a freaking word. How amazing would it be to spend every day with Burke, soaking up
any attention and praise he gives me?
I close the app, plugging my phone into my charger, and sighing as I roll over onto my back and
stare up at the ceiling. My heart is still thudding inside my chest, and I’m warm and glowing all over.
I’ve never been in love, never even thought about any guy, or girl, in a romantic sense before. If this is
what it’s like… well, I just might be addicted. I just hope it doesn’t all come crashing down. I’m
already too attached to Burke.
I fall asleep with a smile on my face and when I dream, it’s of my mystery man.
 THREE

Burke

MY PHONE BUZZES in my pocket and I can’t help the cheesy grin spreading across my face. My
friends roll their eyes at me, but I don’t give a single fuck. The thing has been going off a lot in the last
half hour, and I know it’s my Haven finally responding to all of my messages.
I sent her one this morning, wishing her luck on her final exam. I wish she was here so I could
take her out to celebrate after. I would bring her flowers and chocolates, and hang on her every word
as she recapped the whole thing.
Instead, I have to talk to her over the phone.
I’ve never liked texting, but one night doing it with Haven, and I’m a convert. She was so
adorably flustered when she sent me that first message. I never believed I would find my mate either,
so I totally understood her feelings of shock, yet tentative hope.
My mate is perfect. Of course she is. I’ve looked at her profile picture a thousand times since
yesterday. She’s absolutely gorgeous from head to toe, yet I know the digital representation of her
will pale in comparison to seeing her in person.
That thought has my stomach twisting up and my heart sinking down to my boots. It’s one thing to
talk via text, and another for her to see the real me, the flesh, blood, and scars that compose my body.
Would she be as excited to get to know me if she saw my marred flesh?
My wolf whines, pacing back and forth inside of me. He’s been doing that all night and it’s a
miracle that he has any energy left. He doesn’t understand my hesitation. To him, it’s simple. Haven is
our mate, so we need to mark her and fill her with our cubs as soon as possible.
I know he’s ready for me to claim her, but I hold him back and try reasoning with him once again.
I tell him we need to take it slow, that we have to get her to fall in love with us before she gets a good
look at my scars. My wolf snarls and claws at me, not liking my plan one bit.
Logically, I know shifters would never really reject their fated mate. I mean, it’s happened before,
but it’s rare. Still…what would I do if she took one look at my wounded body and ugly scars and left?
It would kill me. Maybe literally. Shifters aren’t made to be alone. Everyone has a mate, and when
you find yours the pull is undeniable. To go without is unnatural. Mates who have completed the bond
are so entwined, body and soul, that if one dies the other typically follows shortly after.
 No, it’s safer to keep this to strictly messages. At least for now. I can convince my sweet Haven
that I’m everything she needs, and when she sees me, the scars won’t matter. Yes, that’s the best
course of action.
I nod my head in satisfaction, happy to have a plan in place. It’s a leftover from my Army days. I
like having marching orders, so to speak. I can construct a plan of attack and follow it to a T.
Everything makes more sense that way.
My wolf howls inside of me, causing me to wince. He’s letting me know how unhappy he is with
my stupid plan, but I shush him, going back to helping Wells out with his new truck. It needs a new
alternator. I know he could do it himself, but all my friends are over here to check up on me.
“Has anyone had any problems with our neighbors?” Rule asks, his eyes cutting to the distance
where the Black Forest Pack’s land is.
“No, haven’t seen them,” Wells says lazily as he twirls a wrench around his finger.
“Me either,” I say, taking the wrench from him as I tighten the bolts back into place. “But I could
swear that someone has been in here.”
“What do you mean?” Cliff asks, his eyes straying back to his cabin where his mate is waiting for
him.
“Just little stuff. Things being moved. I still can’t find that old gasoline can I had,” I say with a
frown as I wipe my dirty hands off on an old rag.
Rule growls and crosses his arms, his eyes hard and speculative.
“We should add more security around our cabins too then,” Wells says, and I nod.
“I already ordered some security cameras. They should be here in a few days,” I say, and Rule
grunts in acknowledgment.
“I’ll have to order some too. Was the store in town out?” he asks me and I shrug.
They know I don’t like going out in public. Not if I can help it anyway. When we first moved here
to Colorado, I went into town a few times to grab supplies. The first trip was horrible. Anxiety
crippled me and I was paranoid that everyone was staring at me. The second trip was even worse. I
didn’t make it out of my car. I had a panic attack in the parking lot, and then drove back home.
I don’t think my friends know about the panic attack, but they haven’t asked me to go into town
ever since. I still venture out every once in a while, but I wait until later in the evening when the
stores are mostly empty.
My phone buzzes again, dragging me away from my thoughts. Now that my hands aren’t buried
under the hood anymore, I pull it out. I smile as I see the new string of messages from my pretty mate.
“Who is it?” Wells asks, leaning over to try to see my phone screen.
“My mate,” I say, already clicking to open the Love Bites app.
It had taken me a few minutes to download it, and work up the courage to create an account after
the auditor had called to let me know they found her. I remember staring at her profile picture in awe
of her beauty, and then a message popped up from my mate herself, so cute and anxious. She’s perfect
for me. I just need to prove to her that I’m perfect for her, too.
“Your what?” Wells asks, sounding shocked, and I look up.
“What?”
“Did you just say your mate?” Rule asks, his own eyes wide.
“Oh, yeah,” I say with a shrug. “I found her last night. Or the Love Bites people did anyway.”
“When do we get to meet her?” Cliff asks excitedly. “I didn’t think you were going to go through
with it.”
I shrug again and look away, not really wanting to make a big deal out of it. I’m still not sure
she’ll want me, so I don’t want to get their hopes up. “I don’t know. I just started talking to her myself.
It might be a big ask to invite her out here to move in with me.”
“What kind of animal is she?” Rule asks, and I frown.
“I don’t know. I didn’t think to ask.”
“Maybe she’s human,” Cliff suggests and that thought hits me like a wave.
I never imagined that she would be human. What will that mean for our connection? It would be
difficult for another shifter to reject me, but if Haven is human… I don’t want to finish the thought, but
it’s already embedded in my brain. If Haven is human, it would be easier for her to walk away. Plus,
she probably doesn’t even know about shifters. Great. So not only do I have hideous scars, but I’ll
probably scare the shit out of her when I reveal what I am.
“You should invite her out here,” Cliff says again and I nod.
“I’ll think about it.”
My phone rings and for one second, I wish it was Haven.
Archer’s name flashes at me across the screen and I know he must have got the bill from Love
Bites. He offered to pay for all of us to try Love Bites. He found his mate, and even though they had a
rocky start, the two are more in love than ever.
“I should get this,” I say and the guys nod, waving as they all head back to their own cabins.
“Hey,” I greet my brother. I can already tell he’s pacing.
“Did they find her?” he asks and I can hear the excitement in his voice.
I’m lucky to have him as a baby brother. He’s always had my back, supported and encouraged me.
I know he would do anything for me and I hope he knows that I would do the same for him.
“Yeah, they called last night.”
“When do I get to meet her? I told Kiera when I got the bill last night and she’s already planning a
welcome party.”
“I haven’t met her in person yet,” I admit. “We’ve been talking through the dating app.”
“What?” he asks, making it sound like he has no idea what a dating app is.
“It’s this thing on your phone,” I start, giving him a hard time.
“I know what an app is,” he says drily. “Why isn’t she here in Colorado?”
“We met on the Love Bites app instead.”
“Oh,” he says and I can almost picture him frowning impatiently. “Well, then what are you waiting
for? Invite her out here already. I’ll book the ticket right now if you need.”
“What if she’s human?” I ask quietly, voicing the concern that has been buzzing in my head since
Cliff first mentioned it.
“Hmm,” Archer says and I imagine him pacing around that big office of his. “If she’s not, if she’s
a shifter, she might think you don’t like her. Other shifters would have already mated by now.”
“I know, but I don’t know a good way to ask her what she is. Now without freaking her out
anyway.”
“Ask her what her favorite animal is,” Archer suggests. “If she’s a shifter, she’ll probably know
what you’re asking.”
“Maybe,” I say as my phone buzzes with another message.
“Call me when she’s here.”
“Will do.”
We say goodbye a few minutes later, and I hang up, switching over to the Love Bites app
immediately.
HAVEN: It went well. I think I did really well but we won’t know until later tonight what the
official results are.
Burke: I’m sure you aced it, Baby.
Haven: Thanks. I wish I was as confident as you!

I SNORT AT THAT. I’m not confident at all. Not in myself anyway.

HAVEN: What did you do today?

Burke: I helped my friend fix his car and cleaned up around my place. Nothing too exciting.
Haven: It sounds like a nice day. My apartment is so messy after the last few weeks of
cramming for the test. I’m going to need to do a deep clean tomorrow.
Burke: Don’t work too hard.
Haven: I’ve got to go. Some of us are going out to celebrate the course being done tonight.
Burke: Will there be guys there?

MY FINGERS TIGHTEN around the phone until I can hear the plastic creaking. There better not be.
I don’t want anyone else around my mate. My wolf howls inside of me, agreeing with me.

HAVEN: I think some of the girls might bring their boyfriends, but I’m not sure. I’m just going
for the food. Italian! YUM!
Burke: Can I ask you a question?
Haven: Of course.
Burke: What’s your favorite animal?
Haven: Hmm… maybe a dog? Or I really like otters. They’re so cute.
Burke: Not as cute as you.
Burke: Be safe and have a good night, Baby. I’ll talk to you later.

SHE SENDS BACK a kiss emoji and I stare at it for ages. It’s adorable, just like her. But it also
makes me think of kissing my mate, tasting her sweetness, swallowing down her moans as I plunge
deep inside her for the first time.
Crap. I need to get it together. First, convince Haven we’re a perfect match. Second, get her naked
and bred. I better not get that mixed up, or I’ll risk losing her for good.
Haven saying her favorite animals are dog and otter could mean anything. If I asked one of my
friends that same question, I doubt that they would say wolf or bear. I’ll have to tell Archer how
stupid his plan was later.
 I drag my hands down my face, feeling off balance.
Maybe I should bite the bullet and ask her to come out and meet me, or offer to go to her. My
feelings for her are only going to grow stronger and I sigh as I think it over.
I head inside, looking around the dark fields that surround my cabin as I make my way up the front
porch steps. It’s quiet, but my hackles rise, my wolf on edge. I swear it feels like someone is watching
me. Scanning my land from horizon to horizon, I use my enhanced shifter vision to try and scope out
any intruders trying to hide in the dark.
Once I’m satisfied it was just me being crazy and on edge, I shake off the strange feeling and get
ready for bed. When I dream tonight, it’s of my mate staring at me in disgust.
I wake covered in sweat, my wolf howling in my head, and a bad feeling in my gut.
 FOUR

Haven

IT’S BEEN a week of messaging with Burke every day and I’ve never been happier. He was beyond
excited when I told him I passed my exam. It was adorable how worked up he was. Burke sounded
genuinely proud of me. I don’t think I’ve ever had anyone be proud of something I’ve accomplished.
Certainly not my parents.
We’ve talked about nearly everything, from favorite movies to favorite foods, our daily routines,
goals for the future, even the kind of toothpaste we both like. Crest, of course. I’m glad he agrees.
While neither of us has gone into great detail about growing up, I can sense it’s a sensitive subject
for him. Me as well, so that’s another thing we have in common. I can’t wait until we’re close enough
to share all of our secrets. I long to hold him while he tells me every single detail, however painful it
might be. And then I want him to do the same. I want to curl up on his lap and spill my heart out to
him, knowing he’ll keep it safe.
I was worried we wouldn’t click because of the nine-year age gap, but all of my anxiety was for
nothing, as it usually is. Burke and I have so much in common, and the things we disagree on are
simply fun little things we can tease each other about. I don’t know if it’s just that we’re writing to
each other, but he’s so easy to talk to.
So easy to love.
Can someone fall in love after only a week of chatting online?
I asked Sunny that, and she just shrugged and reminded me that the Love Bites reputation was that
they found your one true match. Easy for her to say since she’s not the one starting a brand new
relationship. It’s my first relationship, too, so I hope I’m not misreading the signs or messing it all up.
I must be doing okay, though. My cheeks hurt from smiling so much these last few days, and I
laugh as Burke’s next message comes through. He really does seem like the perfect man, but there’s
something missing.
I need to meet him in person.
I want to hold his hand. I want him to take me out to dinner or to a movie. I want to kiss him and
breathe him in, melt into his embrace as he holds me close. I want to feel his hands roam up and down
my body, and I want to do the same to him.
 All of those thoughts are bolder than I have ever been with anyone but I feel safe with Burke. I
don’t even know what he looks like since he doesn’t have a profile picture, but the more time passes,
the less I care. I’ve seen Burke’s heart this last week. He’s attentive, funny, and so caring. He’s truly
interested in every detail of my life, and he makes me feel precious, sexy, and completely safe.
My phone buzzes again and I pick it up, dying to see what Burke has sent now but to my surprise
it’s not from Burke.
“Hey, Honey!” I say as I answer the phone, and dry my hands off on the dish towel by the sink.
“Haven! How are you? It’s been too long,” she says, and I can picture her blonde hair in disarray
around her face as she smiles.
“I know. I’ve been swamped with classes,” I tell her.
I’ve known Honey since we were kids. We grew up next door to each other in Houston, but she
moved away after her mother died. We stayed in touch through letters, and then texts and phone calls.
I saw her before I left Houston, and she moved away too, but it’s been two years since I’ve seen her
in person. My heart hurts as I grow homesick. I don’t even really miss Houston or Texas. I just miss
feeling at peace.
“I know you just finished your course and I had an idea. What if you took a break and came out to
see me? You could stay at our cabin and finally meet Cliff.”
I bite my lip. I was so upset that I missed her wedding, but I couldn’t leave my course. Honey
understood, and she was so gracious about it, but I still felt horrible.
“I’d love to! I’ll have to look at flights or see how long of a drive it is.”
“Yay! I’ll let Cliff know that you’re coming then. Just let me know the dates. AH! I’m so excited
to see you.”
“Me too!” I say with a laugh, my mind already planning out the trip.
I listen to her tell me about her beehives and this farmer’s market in town that they’re going to be
selling their honey at as I grab my laptop and start checking for flights.
Everything is crazy expensive, and I sigh as I bring up the map app on my phone and enter her
address.
“Looks like I’ll be driving,” I tell her and she asks me when I’ll be leaving. “Maybe tomorrow? I
haven’t heard back from any of the places I put my resume into so now may just be my only free time
off for a while once I start working.”
“Okay, well we’re always ready for you!”
“Thanks, Honey. I’ll text you when I’m on the road.”
“Sounds good! Have a safe trip, Haven.”
“Thanks.”
I end the call and bite my lip. Maybe driving won’t be so bad. I could see if Sunny wants to go
with me, or maybe I could swing by Burke’s town and we could finally meet in person. He didn’t
leave his address on his profile, which I understand, but I know he lives in Colorado. Maybe he’s
within driving distance of Honey’s place.
Burke hasn’t mentioned coming to see me or me visiting him, but maybe he doesn’t want to
pressure me. Then again, I was the first one to reach out to him on the app, so maybe he’s waiting for
me to take the lead again.
I guess there’s no way of knowing until I talk to him about it. I bring up the Love Bites app and
open our messages, a shiver of anxiety running up and down my spine.
HAVEN: I’m going to be heading your way to visit an old friend soon.
Burke: An old female friend?

I ROLL my eyes at that. He’s always asking me if guys are going to be around me. It should bother
me, but truthfully, I love it. I like that he’s possessive of me. No one has ever been jealous over me, or
wanted me all to themselves. I can’t help but tease him a little, though.

HAVEN: Maybe…
Burke: Baby, you’re killing me. Tell me it’s a girl.
Haven: It’s a girl.
Burke: Good girl.

MY INSIDES MELT at his praise and I bite my lip, working up the courage to type out my next
message.

HAVEN: I want to meet you.

Haven: In person.

I NEED TO MEET HIM. I need to know if this is all in my head or if he really is this perfect for me.
Staring at the screen, my heart pumps in double time when it says he’s read my message. I’m
expecting him to respond right away like he does almost every time I text him. I bore a hole through
the plastic phone with my eyes, willing it to show me what I want. But I get nothing. No response. Not
even those three little bubbles.
I can’t sit here waiting for his answer otherwise, I’d go freaking crazy. Instead, I head to my
bedroom and grab my suitcase. I start to fold my clothes, laying everything neatly inside, trying not to
obsess over what Burke might say. I resist the urge to check my phone every two minutes, knowing
it’ll only make it worse if he hasn’t said anything.
By the time I’m all packed and my bags are sitting next to the front door, I’m a mess.
What if he says no? What if he doesn’t want to meet me? Could he be catfishing me? Does he
already have a wife? A whole family? Was this all a fun joke to him?
A million thoughts race through my head. Walking back to the bedroom feels like it takes forever
and also like it flies by in the blink of an eye. I feel like I’m floating around in a fog, my racing
thoughts and shallow breaths carrying me from one room to the next.
It’s been two hours since I sent that last text. Surely he’s said something by now. My anxiety is
through the roof, and I take a shuddering breath before grabbing my phone. My stomach hollows out
when I see he still hasn’t replied.
 It’s okay. Don’t panic. He could be busy with something else. Maybe his battery died or he’s
busy with work or his friends.
None of that works. Maybe he got tired of me. Lord knows it didn’t take much for me to get on my
parents’ nerves. They also ignored me when they thought I was too much, too needy, too much of a
burden. It would kill me if Burke thought the same thing.
My heart has sunk pitifully in my chest, and as I get ready for bed, I vow to push thoughts of Burke
out of my head for a few days. I’ll have some fun with Honey, see a bit of the country on my drive,
and then come home and find a kickass job.
As I slide between the sheets, I know it’s hopeless.
I’m never going to be able to get Burke out of my head.
 FIVE

Burke

I MUTTER under my breath as I lift the old battery out of Honey’s car and get ready to drop the new
one in.
This is getting ridiculous. I know Cliff can replace a car battery and yet he called me up first thing
this morning asking for my help. I groaned at him and tried giving him an excuse, but he called me out.
Of course he knows I have nothing better to do. Cliff being Cliff, he finally wore me down. I know
they’re just finding excuses to get me out of my cabin, but soon I’m going to be changing their
goddamn tires.
“Oh, so that’s where it goes,” Cliff says, passing me a water bottle, and I glare at him. He smirks,
making me roll my eyes.
“Uh huh,” I say, twisting off the cap and downing half of the water in one gulp.
A cool breeze blows past me, cooling the sweat on my temples and the back of my neck.
“Anything else go missing in your shop?” Cliff whispers, looking back to his cabin to make sure
Honey can’t hear him. His face is etched in worry and anger. Our land was being trashed by the Black
Forest Pack, and while it was annoying, it was ultimately harmless. But then they upped their game.
The fuckers tried to burn down Cliff’s cabin, starting with the beehives he set up for his mate. What
kind of cruel monsters want to kill bees just to get a point across?
Cliff nudges me, urging me to answer him.
“Yeah, I’m missing two screwdrivers and a wrench set,” I tell him carefully, not wanting him to
fly off the handle.
“Fuck,” Cliff hisses, leaning back against Honey’s old car.
“I’m putting the security cameras up today so hopefully we can get a look at who is doing it.”
“Do you need help with that?” he asks and I shake my head.
“It’s only three cameras. One at each entrance and one inside. I can manage that easy task. Unlike
some people,” I grumble, taking the opportunity to dig at him for pulling me out of bed to replace a
damn battery.
He just smirks and nods as Honey comes out onto the porch.
“Cliff? Can you give me a hand with the guest room?” she calls and he takes off toward her with a
smile.
One of Honey’s friends is coming to visit for a few days, and Honey is very excited about it
which means that Cliff is very excited about it.
I shake my head, finishing attaching the cables to the battery as a car turns into the drive. I don’t
bother lifting my head. I just need to finish up here and then I can go home and relax. Maybe I’ll finish
up that old Ford pickup now that I have the part.
The car comes to a stop behind me and the door opens. I close the hood of Honey’s car, turning to
grab my tool bag when I get a good look at who is behind the wheel of the new car.
“Shit,” I mutter, spinning back around quickly and ducking behind the car.
I recognize Haven instantly. I’ve been seeing her in my dreams for over a week. Red hair, clear
eyes, round cheeks flushed with youth and innocence. She’s all I think about, but what the hell is she
doing here?
My wolf lunges inside of me. He doesn’t care how she found me. He wants to mark her and mate
her. Flexing, I push my wolf back down, wrestling with him and my panic at the same time. How did
she find me? Why is she here? This isn’t part of the plan. I was supposed to make her fall head over
heels for me before showing her my face. That’s all fucked now. None of it matters.
Her shoes crunch on the gravel as she climbs out of her car, and I can feel the fear and anxiety
rising with every step she takes. My hands ball up into fists and my chest heaves with uneven breaths.
I can feel my throat starting to close, and I know a panic attack is just seconds away.
I can’t have her seeing me like this, though. I fight every instinct I have and stand up from my
hiding spot, spinning around as Haven stops on the other side of the car.
“What the hell are you doing here?” I half whisper, half hiss at her.
She seems taken aback, her blue eyes flaring wide in surprise. She takes a step away from me,
and I can see her heart racing like a bunny’s from here. My stunning mate looks confused and hurt, and
Jesus, my heart cracks at the thought of causing her pain. My wolf snarls at me and lunges for my
throat, needing to get to her and make it better.
I push him back with a growl, then stare at Haven’s deep blue eyes, sensing every single one of
her emotions. She tenses like she’s bracing herself against something. Then it clicks. She’s bracing
herself against me. I nearly topple over at the thought of her being afraid of me.
She doesn’t know who you are, I remind myself. And I’m doing a piss poor job of making her fall
in love with me.
Haven’s mouth opens and then closes, and I can see her mind racing, trying to figure out what’s
going on. Her eyes flick to the house number on Cliff’s cabin, and I see her frown.
“Haven!” Honey shouts as she races out of the cabin.
Cliff is on her heels, watching as she takes off running toward Haven.
This is Honey’s friend, I realize way too late. She had no idea I also lived here. I feel like an even
bigger asshole. I’ve already messed up this whole fated mate thing. As if my scars weren’t enough.
I watch as the girls wrap their arms around each other in a tight hug. Cliff is standing back, giving
them space, and I see him give me a weird look. He must have heard what I said to Haven.
I look back to my mate, taking in her wild red hair, her wide hips. My wolf is clawing at me,
desperate to get out and make her ours. I ignore him, needing to get out of here before I make things
even worse.
“All done,” I tell Cliff and he nods, still looking at me with concern in his eyes.
“Did you want to stay for lunch, Burke?” Honey asks and my eyes stray to Haven.
I can see the second she figures it out. Her eyes widen and she looks me up and down, hurt shining
in her eyes. God, that kills me, knowing I put it there.
There’s no trace of disgust as she looks over my scars. In fact, she barely glances at them before
meeting my gaze. I’ve royally fucked up. I’ve misjudged my mate, doubted her goodness and
sweetness. I want to apologize, to beg for her forgiveness but when I open my mouth, no words come
out.
It still feels strange to have someone new see my scars and every fiber of my being wants to head
home and adjust to this new feeling. My wolf snarls, not wanting our mate to be out of our sight but I
shake my head. I doubt she wants us around right now anyway.
“Thanks, but I can’t. I’ll see you guys later,” I say as I bend to grab my tool bag and head back to
my own cabin.
I can’t resist taking one last look at Haven. She’s staring at the ground, her cheeks red and her
eyes glistening.
I did that.
My heart sinks and I force myself to turn and head home. It’s obvious that she doesn’t want to see
me right now, and I need time to figure out how to fix this.
Each step away from her is torture. My wolf fights me the whole way home, and I bolt the door
behind me. I need to make it obvious to him that she’s not going to be ours tonight. Maybe not ever
after the way that I just acted.
What do I do now? At this point, she’s seen me; she knows where I live. I wonder if she’ll
deactivate her Love Bites account. I can’t stand the thought of never talking to her again, and my wolf
snarls inside of me, not liking that idea either.
My reflection in the mirror behind the door catches my eye and I pause. I wonder what she sees
when she looks at me. She didn’t seem disgusted by the scars. I run my fingers over them. They’ve
faded more to white lines now that I’ve spent so much time out in the sun but they’re still raised. I still
look like a freak, and that’s only the scars visible with clothes on. Underneath my shirt, my torso is
littered with a dozen more jagged marks, and my hip and thigh have skin grafts from the bullet wound.
We would look so strange next to each other. Her, the beautiful angel with the hair like flames, and
me, the grouchy scarred freak towering over her.
My wolf howls, pacing inside of me.
Her scent is still in my nose, and I breathe deep, addicted to it already. I didn’t have time to
appreciate it earlier. Haven is sugary-sweet and fruity, like cotton candy and strawberries. I know
she’d taste even better. She’s the best thing I’ve ever seen in my life. I suppose it doesn’t matter if
she’s human or not now. She’s pissed at me, rightfully so, and I’m going to need to apologize and beg
for a second chance.
I head into the bathroom, getting cleaned up and trying to come up with a plan to get Haven to
forgive me. It takes me most of the afternoon and I’m just washing the dishes when inspiration strikes.
I leave the dishes to soak and hurry into my living room, grabbing my cell phone and opening the
app. There are no new messages and while I’m not surprised, it still stings.
I click to open our chat and start typing.

BURKE: I’m so sorry, Baby. I shouldn’t have spoken to you like that. I was just caught off
guard and I reacted badly. Please forgive me.
I HIT send and chew on my thumbnail as I wait to see if she’ll respond. I start to pace, staring at the
screen and willing a response to come through.
Seconds stretch into minutes, which turn into hours. My wolf has been berating me the entire time,
scolding me for not marking her right away. Then all of this would be over. She’d be ours, and we
could make her love us after we’ve mated.
I remind the impatient beast that she has to want us. I’d never force her into anything. The thought
of scaring her again sends me into a tailspin, so I decide to go chop some wood, even though I already
have enough for weeks. I need to do something with this nervous energy.
After four hours, I know she’s not going to message me back. I’d like to think that she’s just busy
with her friend, but I walked past Cliff’s cabin half an hour ago and all of the lights were off.
I head back that way, needing to be close to her. Even though I was an idiot when we first met, I
have an overwhelming need to protect her from the whole damn world. The Colorado wilderness can
be dangerous. She might need me. The rational side of my brain knows she’s safe with Cliff and
Honey, but the animal in me doesn’t care. She’s my mate, and if she needs protecting, I’ll be the one to
do it.
With that settled, I circle around the cabin, searching for the room she’s staying in.
“What are you doing?” Cliff asks and I look over to see him standing on his back porch staring at
me with arms crossed.
“Which one is Haven in?” I ask, ignoring his question.
“Why?”
“Cause she’s my mate.”
“No shit?”
“Yeah. We’ve been chatting on the Love Bites app for a week now.”
“Then why did you freak out on her when she got here?” he asks, walking down the steps toward
me.
“Because she caught me off guard. I wasn’t expecting to see her. I wasn’t ready,” I whisper, my
hands brushing over the scars on my neck.
Cliff gets it without me voicing my anxieties and he nods.
“Well, for what it’s worth, she doesn’t seem like the type to care about all of that. She’s a
sweetheart.”
Jealousy spikes in me that Cliff has gotten to know her while I’ve been pacing my cabin alone but
I know that I caused this.
I just nod, staring up at his cabin.
He sighs and shakes his head. “That one,” he says, pointing to the ground floor bedroom a few
yards away. My wolf perks up inside of me, wanting to go closer. He wants to watch her sleep. He
wants to catch her scent again. He wants to take her home and breed her.
“Thanks,” I say and he nods, clapping me on the back as he turns to head back inside.
“See you tomorrow, Burke,” he says with a chuckle as he heads back inside and I nod, not looking
away from Haven’s window.
I know she’s mad at me, but I can fix this. I have to fix this because there’s no way I’m letting my
mate get away from me.
 SIX

Haven

I’VE BECOME a master at avoiding Burke over the last two days. Maybe I should give up massage
school and see about joining the CIA. With my new skills, I’m sure that I could be the next James
Bond or something.
Sure, most of my tactics revolve around feigning a headache or hiding in the bathroom, but hey,
whatever works, right? Honey and Cliff must think I’ve got some weird kind of stomach issues with
how often I’ve been in the bathroom, but even the best covert agent has to sacrifice pride sometimes
to get the job done.
Honestly, after the last couple of days, I’m sure they’ve both figured out exactly what’s going on.
Cliff has been giving me a knowing look, while Honey just smiles her beautiful smile, with a tiny hint
of worry hidden in her eyes.
Peeking my head out of the guest room door, I sigh a breath of relief when I see the hallway and
kitchen are quiet and empty. It’s not that I don’t want to see Honey, not at all. I just don’t want to have
the heart to heart I feel is coming my way. I tiptoe my way into the kitchen in search of a snack and a
glass of water.
Not only have I been avoiding Burke in person, but I’ve also been ignoring his messages on the
Love Bites app. He’s sent a few but gave up on that route after a day. Now he just keeps showing up.
He came over for dinner last night, and I lied and said that I had a headache so that I could escape to
my room. I ended up listening at the bedroom door, waiting until he left before I came out to eat.
I don’t know why I listened in on their conversation. I should have just read or actually taken a
nap. I definitely need one. I haven’t slept much since I’ve been here, despite all the times I’ve
claimed to take a nap.
Instead, I pressed my ear against the door and strained to hear what my friends and Burke were
discussing. Of course he asked about me. He even sounded worried at the mention that I wasn’t
feeling well. Burke wanted to bring me dinner in bed, but Honey and Cliff convinced him to leave me
be.
I’m not sure why the confusing jerk was concerned about me. After his reaction to my presence
when I first showed up, there’s no question that he doesn’t want me here, and never did. I knew he
was too good to be true.
I sigh as I grab a glass from the cupboard and fill it with water. Looking around the counter, I see
a box of cereal bars. I grab one and lean against the counter, quietly eating my midnight snack as I
contemplate how I got myself into this situation.
When Burke first asked me what I was doing here, I had no idea who he was or what he was
talking about. I had to double check that I was at the right house. Then Honey called him Burke and I
knew. Something clicked, something that told me this wasn’t some other Burke, this was my Burke.
The man who was so attentive in his texts, so caring and interested in my life. When my eyes locked
on his that first time, my skin sizzled and my heart flipped inside my chest.
And then he growled at me and all but kicked me off the land. My stomach dropped and it took all
of my strength not to burst into tears. A few slipped out toward the end, but I think I covered them up
okay.
When Burke snapped and asked what I was doing there, I had no idea why he was so upset to see
me. I’ve had a few days to think it over, and now I’m wondering if he’s already seeing someone, or
worse. God, what if he’s married?
Honey didn’t know that Burke and I had been talking for a few days on a dating app. The fact that
he hasn’t told his friends about me probably isn’t a great sign.
I shouldn’t be surprised that a man like Burke has several women lined up to be with him. He’s so
hot with his thick muscled arms and legs. His hair had been a little mussed the last time I got a
glimpse of him, like he had been running his fingers through it and it was sexy all tousled like that.
The scars on his neck and peeking out on his arm from under his t-shirt had caught my eye and I
was dying to trace my fingers over the lines, to kiss each one and ask how he got them.
It was obvious that he was self conscious of them. Burke kept turning, trying to hide them from my
view and even though he had been a jerk, I still wanted to reassure him. I wanted to show him the scar
on my back from when I fell off a swing at school and landed on a fallen tree branch.
I wanted to show him that his scars didn’t bother me.
Instead, he had turned and practically sprinted away from me.
He was over again tonight and I hid out in the guest room again. I feel bad ducking out on my
friend like this but I’m just not ready to face him yet.
Shaking my head, I look up, staring out the kitchen window at the beehives and dark forest. It’s too
dark for me to make out much of anything, but I still scan the trees before looking up at the sky and
trying to count all of the stars.
I pop the last piece of cereal bar into my mouth, washing it down with water before rinsing the
cup and loading it into the dishwasher. I’m about to turn away and head back to bed when my eyes
snag on the dark figure on the far side of the beehives. His eyes are locked on me and I almost scream
before I realize who it is.
What the hell is Burke doing outside at this time of night?
My heart is still racing in my chest and I take a deep breath, trying to slow it as I stare at him.
Even shrouded in darkness there’s no denying his beauty or raw masculinity. His eyes seem to
glow in the dark and I wonder if it’s a trick of the light or if I’m just overtired.
We stare at each other for a few minutes and I can see him debating if he should come closer or
not. The worst part is, I’m not sure which one I’m hoping for.
A sound on the stairs above me has me looking away from Burke, and I hurry back to my
bedroom. It sounds like Cliff is about to come downstairs, and I’m only in my pajamas.
I cross my arms over my breasts as I book it back to my room, closing the door behind me just as
he heads into the kitchen. I listen as he grabs a glass of water and then heads back upstairs.
I relax, more than ready for bed, when there’s a knock on the window next to me.
“Eek!” I squeak as I jump, spinning to face the figure outside.
“Haven, open up, Baby. Please,” he says, and he sounds so miserable that I can’t deny him.
I grunt as I try to push the window up, and then we’re face to face. He has dark circles under his
eyes and I can tell that he hasn’t been sleeping well. I should be glad. He deserves to lose some sleep
over being a jerk. There’s a tiny part of me, though, that wants to hold him. I have all these protective
feelings about Burke, whether I like it or not.
“Haven,” he breathes.
He says my name like it’s his salvation, and my heart starts to race again.
“What are you doing here?” I whisper and he leans closer to the window screen.
“I had to see you. I need to apologize, Baby.”
I would never tell him now, but I melt whenever he calls me Baby.
“No, you don’t. I get it. It was pretty obvious you didn’t want to meet. I mean you never
responded to my message and that’s okay. I’ll be out of here in a few days anyway and then we never
have to see each other again.”
My voice cracks and my heart breaks at the thought of never seeing him again. Strange, I know,
since I’ve been avoiding him for the last few days.
“Don’t go. You can’t leave,” he pleads, and I swallow hard. I don’t know what to say to that and
for a second, we both just stare, drinking in the sight of each other. “I’m sorry for not responding and
for the way that I acted when we first met.”
“It’s okay,” I say automatically, but he shakes his head, frowning.
“No, it’s not. I never should have talked to you that way, Baby.”
“Why did you react like that then?” I ask quietly, picking at my fingernails.
“I wasn’t expecting to see you. You caught me off guard and I guess I was just a little…”
He looks off, his hand coming up to hide his scars and I know what happened now.
“Raw,” I supply for him and he looks up at me, nodding.
I was the same way for years after I got my scar on my back. I would go swimming in t-shirts.
Changing in the girls locker room was like my own personal hell so I would wait as long as possible,
until everyone else had left before I rushed to change my shirt.
“I would never care about your scars. I wasn’t falling for you because of your looks,” I tell him
and he nods then freezes.
“You were falling for me?” he asks hesitantly, almost like he’s afraid to get his hopes up.
“Yeah,” I whisper, my face flushing so red that I’m sure that it matches my hair right now.
“Were… or are?” he asks, and I bite my lip.
“I don’t know,” I tell him honestly and his face falls.
He nods, looking off toward the bee hives and I study him.
“Have dinner with me tomorrow.”
“What?” I ask, rocking back on my heels.
“Let me take you out tomorrow. Let me apologize properly and we can see if it was were or are.”
His eyes are so heated and determined that I’m powerless to do anything but nod.
“Okay.”
He grins at me, his fingers brushing over mine through the screen. A shiver works its way down
my spine and he smiles wider.
“Tomorrow, Baby.”
 I just nod, reaching up and closing the window. He turns and heads back to the tree that he was at
before and I bite my lip as I turn back to the bed.
I fall asleep with a smile on my face and when I dream, it’s of Burke’s glowing eyes watching me
through the dark.
 SEVEN

Burke

I DON’T THINK I’ve ever been this nervous before. It feels like so much is hanging on tonight, and
it has my wolf and me on edge.
I spent the morning deep cleaning my entire cabin and getting everything ready for tonight. I
decided to cook for Haven here. I didn’t want to take her into town in case things went badly.
I was also trying to avoid my mate getting hit on by other men.
My wolf snarls at the thought, and I try to relax my fingers that have curled into fists. I don’t know
how my curvy mate hasn’t been snatched up before now, but I’m grateful for that fact. Her curves, her
blush, that wild red hair. Her lips, twinkling eyes, and the sweet sound of her voice. It’s all mine.
Once I get out of the hole I’ve dug for myself.
I check my watch, biting my lip. It’s early, but I’m too anxious to see her.
I’ll just walk slow, I promise myself as I head out the front door.
The sun is just starting to set behind the trees, and I take a deep breath, remembering why we
picked this spot to build our new lives. It’s beautiful here with the forest and the mountains in the
distance. I can just hear the river that runs behind my house and I let the sound calm my racing heart as
I head across the field toward Cliff’s cabin.
My steps falter when I hear some rustling off to my right and I pause, straining to make out the
sound. It’s coming from the Black Forest Pack’s side of the property and I have a feeling that it’s not
going to be something good.
The sound grows fainter, like they’re moving away from me and I frown but start walking again. I
installed the security cameras on my garage yesterday so if they head that way, at least I’ll be able to
get a look at who it is and what they take.
Cliff’s cabin comes into view and I take a deep breath. It feels like my heart is in my throat as I
step closer. I catch a glimpse of Haven as she steps out onto the back porch, and my breath stalls in
my lungs.
Jesus, she’s gorgeous.
My pace picks up, my wolf and I both desperate to be near her again.
“Hey,” she says shyly as I come to a stop at the bottom of the porch steps.
 “Wow,” I blurt out, and she giggles, her cheeks turning a shade of pink that should clash with her
hair but only makes her more beautiful to me.
“Thanks,” she says, taking my offered hand and heading down the steps.
“You look great,” I tell her and she smiles.
“You too.”
Her words remind me of the scars and I tense.
Does she really mean that?
I start to lead her back across the field toward my cabin, making sure to keep her on my right side
so that she can’t see the scars. I’m sure that she’s noticed the limp but there’s nothing I can do about
that.
“Are you hungry?” I ask her as we walk.
“Starving,” she says with a little moan, and my wolf and I both tense. We want to hear her make
that sound as we mark her, as we sink inside her snug warmth.
“What did you and Honey do today?” I ask, trying to change the subject and get myself under
control.
She tells me about their trip into town this morning and about helping Honey with the beehives
this afternoon.
“Are you going to start your own bee business now too?” I ask curiously and she shakes her head
no.
“No way. I was scared the whole time,” she admits with a laugh. “I’ll stick to massages.”
I’d like to massage her. I want her covered in oil, my hands stroking every inch of her porcelain
skin.
We reach my cabin and I lead her inside. I made a roast and the smell of the meat, potatoes, and
carrots greets us.
“It smells delicious,” she says as she toes off her shoes and looks around the place.
I wonder if she likes what she sees. It’s on the tip of my tongue to tell her that we can change
anything that she wants, but that might be moving too fast.
I’m supposed to be winning her forgiveness, I remind myself.
“I’ll give you the tour,” I say, and she smiles, following me through the living room.
“Bedrooms and bathrooms are down this way,” I say, leading her down the hallway.
My cabin is a single-story ranch situated on the south side of our land. I’m in between Cliff and
Wells’ places though there’s a few miles between our houses.
“I love the color of this room,” she says, stroking the dark green, and I vow to paint the rest of the
house the same color.
Her stomach growls, and I take her hand, leading her away from the master bedroom and back to
the kitchen.
I lit a few candles and tried to make the kitchen table a little romantic. I’ll admit that I had another
reason for the candles. I’m hoping she won’t be able to see my scars in the low light.
“This is really nice,” she says, heading over to the table. “But can we turn the lights on? I want to
be able to see you.”
“You do?” I blurt out and she gives me a sweet look.
“Of course. You’re so handsome. It should be a crime to hide that in the dark,” she says and I can
tell that she’s blushing again.
My wolf sits up inside of me, preening under her praise. I take a comforting breath, and flick the
kitchen lights on.
 I beeline it to the oven, turning it off and taking the roast out. I busy myself plating our food but I
can’t resist looking back at her a few times.
Can she really not mind my scars?
She could just be being nice, but as she takes a seat at the table, I realize that they really don’t
seem to bother her.
My shoulders straighten as I carry the food over to the table.
“What would you like to drink? Some wine? Water?”
“Water is fine, thanks. This looks incredible,” she says, licking her lips, and I bite back the moan
that threatens to slip out.
I grab us each a glass of water and then take the chair opposite her. She takes a small sip of her
water and I start piling her plate with food.
“Oh, that’s enough,” she says, her eyes wide as she takes in the mountain of food on her plate.
I fill my own plate then, and my wolf goes back to pacing inside of me. He’d rather be eating her
than this and I have to agree with him.
“So, tell me about yourself,” she says after a few bites and my mind scrambles to find something
to say.
“Uh, well I just got out of the Rangers a year ago. Cliff, Rule, and Wells did around the same time
too,” I say and she nods. I wasn’t sure if she had met the other guys yet but I’m not surprised that she
did.
“And you moved here?” she asks.
“Yeah, we bought the land and then each built our cabin on a chunk of it.”
“Impressive. I really like your place,” she says, smiling as she looks around the kitchen.
“Thanks.”
My wolf is licking his lips now, and I grit my teeth, reminding him that we’re not marking her
tonight.
“I’m really sorry about how I acted the other day,” I tell her, remembering why she’s here in the
first place.
“It’s okay. I’m not good at holding grudges. I was more worried that you had been catfishing me or
something,” she says with an embarrassed laugh and I rush to reassure her.
“I’d never do that. Shifters only mate once and it’s for life, so I wouldn’t waste my time looking at
other women who weren’t you.”
I realize my mistake as soon as her eyes lock with mine.
“Shit,” I mumble, and she lowers her fork, looking around in confusion.
“What?” she asks, and I know for sure now that she’s human.
“I’m sorry. I… this is not how I should be doing this. I thought that maybe you were a shifter too
or that maybe Honey had told you about them,” I rush to say.
“What is a shifter? And why would Honey know about them?”
“Because Cliff is her mate.”
“Mate?” she asks and I swallow hard.
“I’m really messing this up,” I say, dragging a hand down my face.
“Start at the beginning. What is a shifter?” she asks, and I’m grateful that she hasn’t sprinted out of
here by now.
“It’s a person who can shift from human to an animal. I’m a wolf, like Rule. Cliff and Wells are
both bears.”
She stares at me in a daze, and my wolf whines. He’s worried that she’s about to bolt too and I
wish that I could shift. I could do it for her and prove it to her.
“I can’t shift,” I say quietly. “I haven’t been able to since the accident.”
Her eyes soften and she takes a deep breath. Despite her wariness of me, Haven has a pure heart,
and I know she doesn’t like the idea of me suffering. God, I need to make this right so I can keep her
precious, kind heart for my own. When she looks at me like that, it makes me feel like I could tell her
anything.
“So, you can change from a wolf to human?” she asks, waving her hand at my body and I nod.
“And what are mates?”
“Shifters have fated mates. That’s what Love Bites Dating Agency is. Normally Love Bites only
matches royalty, but they’ve opened that up more in the last few years.”
“How do you know that I’m your mate?” she asks as she picks up her glass of water and downs
half of it.
“I can smell it. Your scent… it’s the best thing that I’ve ever smelled in my life. Like cotton candy
and fruit.” My wolf lunges, wanting me to mark her and I hold him back. Now is definitely not the
time. “Once a shifter finds their mate, they bite them. That marks them and shows other shifters that
they’re claimed.”
“And that’s for life?”
“Yes. You will be my only fated mate. I will never, and have never, loved another.”
She likes that. I can see it in her eyes, in the way that she bites her lips to keep them from tilting
up. I’ll remind her every damn day that she’s all mine; she’s perfect and adorable, and more loved
than she could ever know.
“What happens if I say no?” Haven asks, and my wolf and I both panic.
“Then I live alone forever.”
“And if I say yes?” she asks quietly.
My wolf perks up, as do I. “Then I do everything in my power to make you happy. It becomes my
job, my privilege, to make sure that you’re happy and safe. My wolf and I, we live to make you smile,
to make you love us.”
She stares at me for a beat, and then picks up her fork and resumes eating. I watch her, waiting for
any sign of how this is going to go but she doesn’t give me one.
I start eating too, keeping a close eye on her. We clear our plates and I clean the table, loading the
dishes into the dishwasher as she watches me.
“Have you thought about getting a massage?” she asks, and I whip around to face her so fast I
think I scare both of us.
“What do you mean?”
“You said that you haven’t shifted since the accident. Maybe a massage will help. It can soothe
sore muscles and relax you.”
“Are you offering?” I ask.
I never would have considered getting a massage before, but if Haven is offering to rub her hands
over my body then I am definitely in.
“Sure, come on.”
I follow her into the living room and then down the hallway and into my bedroom.
“I don’t have my table here. That would make it better, but if this helps then you could go to a spa
in town.”
“I’m not letting anyone but you touch me,” I tell her.
The thought that I would let another female rub me is laughable. Only my Haven gets to touch me.
 She blushes, heading into the bathroom and coming out with a bottle of lotion.
“Shirt off,” she tells me and I hurry to oblige her.
She has me lay face down on the bed, close to the edge, and I hold my breath as I hear her squirt
some lotion into her hands.
I hate having my back on display like this. She can see all of the scars and wounds now, but she
isn’t running for the door so that has to be a good sign.
“You know,” she says as she starts to run her hands over my shoulders and down my spine. “I
have a scar on my back too.”
“You do?” I ask, trying to lift my head but she pushes on my shoulders until I’m flat on the bed.
“Uh huh. Right here,” she says, running her finger down under my shoulder blade. “I fell off a
swing and landed on a fallen tree branch. Twenty- seven stitches,” she says as she goes back to the
massage.
“I hate thinking about you being in pain,” I admit, and she hums.
“It was a long time ago. Now it’s just part of me.”
Her words echo in my head as she runs her hands over me, easing out the aches. Her fingers
smooth over my scars, and I tense at first, expecting her to be disgusted or tentative around them but
she never falters.
She starts to hum and hearing her soft, melodic voice only relaxes me further. My eyes drift shut,
and I just focus on her hands on my skin.
I let out a breath and that’s when it happens.
I feel fur.
I suck in a sharp breath, straining to feel my wolf again. He brushes against me again and I laugh.
“Ticklish?” she asks, her hands running over the back of my neck.
“No, I can feel him. I can feel my wolf,” I tell her, twisting so that I can grin up at her.
She beams back at me, stepping back so that I can sit up.
“That’s great, Burke!”
She wraps her arms around my waist and I never want to let her go. We stay there for a few
perfect moments, wrapped up in each other’s arms. Haven lets me hold her, even lets me run my
fingers through her hair and trail them down her spine. She steps back, and I smile down at her,
forcing my hands to drop from her waist.
“I should get back to Honey and Cliff’s.”
I nod, even though I don’t want to let her go.
“I’ll walk you.”
She heads back to the living room, and we slip our shoes on. I take her hand as we head back
across the field.
 EIGHT

Haven

BURKE DIDN’T ASK me out again last night but somehow, I knew that he would be back today to
see me.
I can’t stop thinking about everything he said about shifters last night. I’ve been trying to get
Honey alone all morning for a few minutes so that I can ask her more about it. When Cliff heads
upstairs to take a shower, I know it’s my chance.
“What can you tell me about shifters?” I ask, cornering her in the kitchen, and she chokes on her
sip of water.
“What?” she asks, still coughing slightly.
“Burke told me that he’s a shifter along with Rule, Wells, and Cliff. He also told me I’m his
mate.”
“You two mated? That’s awesome!” Honey exclaims, wrapping her arms around me.
“He said that you and Cliff were mates too.”
“We are, but let’s get back to you two! Are you moving here? Should we start planning a
wedding?”
“What? No. I don’t even know what being a mate entails.”
“It’s the best,” Honey says with a dreamy sigh. I love seeing my friend so happy. “It’s like Cliff
lives to make me happy, and since they only mate once, I never have to worry about this not being
right. We’re literally fated to be together.”
My heart kicks in my chest.
I want that. I want to belong to someone and have them belong to me completely.
“And the shifter thing… it’s not weird?” I whisper.
Honey grins, shaking her head.
“No, you get used to it really fast. Cliff’s bear is so sweet. Just like him.”
A knock on the front door interrupts us and Honey goes to answer it, leaving me to think over
everything that we talked about.
I don’t have long to overthink anything, because Honey appears a minute later with a big smile on
her face.
 “Burke is here to see you,” she says with a wink, and I push past her, eager to see him again.
“Hey,” I greet him, and he grins at me.
He has a bouquet of wildflowers in one hand and a picnic basket in the other.
“Can I steal you away for a few hours?” he asks, passing me the flowers.
I look over my shoulder at Honey and she nods enthusiastically at me.
“Sure.”
Honey follows me back into the kitchen, passing me a vase so I can put the flowers in some water
before I go.
“Do I look alright?” I whisper, and she laughs.
“You look beautiful,” Burke says as he leans against the kitchen doorway.
I can see Honey melt out of the corner of my eye and I know that she’s freaking out with happiness
about how cute we are together.
“See you two later!” Honey calls as Burke leads me out the front door.
There’s an old-fashioned red Ford pickup in the drive, looking shiny and new. I know nothing
about cars so I can’t name the model, but it looks impressive.
“Is this yours?” I ask him as he leads me over to the passenger side.
“For now.”
When I raise my eyebrow and look at him questioningly, he elaborates.
“I restore old cars. I just finished this one, and I don’t have a buyer lined up yet but I suspect it
will go fast once I list it.”
“That’s so cool! I don’t know anything about cars but this one is really pretty.”
“Thanks,” he says with a laugh as he helps me inside.
He sets the picnic basket in the backseat and climbs behind the wheel. I’m happy to see him more
confident in his body today. Even his limp seems less pronounced and I grin as I lean back in my seat.
He backs out of his spot and we take off down the driveway.
“Where are we going?” I ask as I watch the sun set behind the tree line.
“I set up a projector. I thought we could eat and watch a movie tonight,” he says, and I grin at him.
“I’ve always wanted to go to one of those drive-in movie places,” I admit and he smiles, pleased
that he’s able to give me something I want.
He parks in the field on the side of his garage, backing the truck up so it’s facing the blank wall,
all ready for our movie. Burke shuts the truck off before hopping out and jogging around to my side.
He opens the door for me and lifts me out of my seat. I gasp at the unexpected move, then barely
suppress a moan as he slowly slides me down his body until my feet hit the ground.
I stare up at him, my hands resting on his chest. Burke closes his eyes and takes a deep breath,
almost like he’s savoring my scent. When he finally blinks them open, the hunger and awe I see there
makes my knees wobble. Burke tightens his hold on my hips, steadying me.
“Are you alright, mate?” he asks, his voice lower than I’ve ever heard it before. I swallow thickly
and nod my head. Burke trails one hand up my side before cupping my face so sweetly. He brushes his
thumb over my cheek, back and forth, soothing me with each tender touch.
“Mate,” I whisper, testing out the word. A jolt of pleasure and excitement zaps my nerves, causing
me to inhale sharply. “I think I like being called that.”
Burke growls, the rough sound emanating from deep in his chest. “Good,” he grunts. His tone is
gruff, but the look in his eyes is pure satisfaction. He leans down and places the most gentle kiss on
my forehead before stepping back. Burke reaches around me, grabbing the picnic basket and an iPad.
“You can pick which movie we watch,” he tells me, opening up an app with a few different movie
choices before handing it to me.
He gets the truck bed all ready while I scroll through the movie choices, finally landing on a
romantic comedy I haven’t seen yet. Burke helps me up into the truck, then hops up behind me, pulling
food out of the picnic basket. There are several blankets laid out, along with pillows, two thermoses,
fruit, crackers, sandwiches, and a myriad of candy, which I’m assuming are treats for the movie.
“Burke, this is amazing,” I tell him, smiling so wide my cheeks hurt.
“You’re amazing,” he instantly replies. God, the red blush staining his cheeks is too freaking cute.
“You, too,” I whisper. He furrows his brow for a second, I know he wants to disagree with me. I
don’t give him a chance, however.
I scoot closer to Burke, then cuddle up next to him, resting my head on his shoulder. My mate lifts
his arm, curling it around my shoulders and pulling me further against him. His lips brush against the
top of my head, and I smile as he presses a kiss there.
Tilting my head up, I gaze at this kind, incredible man. I misjudged him before. Yes, he was a jerk
when we first met, but I can understand how me showing up might startle him. It’s obvious that Burke
is ashamed of his scars. Not only that, he seems a bit skittish, like maybe he thinks I’m going to bolt at
any minute.
A few days ago, I was trying to avoid this man at all costs. Now? All I can think about is kissing
him.
I lick my lips, not really aware of the motion until Burke stares at my mouth. I’m not sure how to
ask for what I want, so I’m hoping Burke can read all the signs I’m giving him.
“Need something from me, Baby?” he practically purrs, his lips brushing against the shell of my
ear. I nod eagerly, squirming in my seat. An ache blooms in my lower belly, moving down between
my thighs as I clench them together. “Fuck, I can smell what you need,” he growls.
Again, I nod, leaning impossibly closer to him. Burke ghosts his lips down my neck, breathing me
in before placing a soft kiss over my pulse point.
“Gonna kiss you, mate,” he murmurs against my skin, scraping his teeth along the sensitive flesh.
“Yes, please,” I reply breathlessly.
With that, he growls and devours my mouth. It’s a wild kiss, full of passion and promise. Burke
trails his lips over my jaw and down my neck, licking and sucking on my skin as he goes. His teeth
rake across my collarbone, and I moan.
“Haven, Baby… Your taste, your soft skin…” he trails off as he rubs his nose down my chest.
Burke gently guides me to lay down on the soft blanket he has spread out over his truck bed. He lifts
up my shirt, ghosting his fingers up my stomach, ribs, and breasts. “This okay?” Burke asks quietly.
“I want whatever you do,” I answer honestly. I’ve never felt like this, never been so desperate, so
damn full of lust and restless energy. Burke grunts and then tugs the shirt all the way off, tossing it
aside.
His eyes go to my naked breasts before I feel his mouth close around one nipple, licking and
sucking. Burke moves to the other breast, giving it the same attention. Then, he trails kisses down my
center, getting to the waistband of my leggings. Hooking his fingers on the edge, Burke slowly pulls
them down, along with my panties. He reveals my hip bones and sucks on each one before inching the
material lower, lower, lower. I lift my bottom to help him remove them both completely.
I’m stretched out naked before Burke, while he’s still fully clothed. He sits back on his heels, still
kneeling before me. “Jesus, mate. You’re so beautiful. Perfect. Mine.”
Burke slides his hands up my thighs, parting them gently. He runs his nose up the inside of one leg
and down the other. Burke leans forward and nuzzles his nose against my pussy before spreading me
wide open and licking the sensitive skin where my legs meet my hips.
He lifts one leg over his shoulder and then the other, and then his tongue parts my folds as he licks
my core. I jerk my hips and feel him chuckle against my pussy, sending vibrations to the very center of
my being. His hands slide under my ass and he pulls me closer to him like he can’t get enough.
Burke spears his tongue into my entrance, licking every inch of me. Slowly, so slowly, he flattens
his tongue and drags it up my slit, finally lavishing attention to my aching clit. When he circles the
tight bundle of nerves with his tongue I cry out.
“Burke!”
He sucks the sensitive bud into his mouth and scrapes his teeth across it at the same time as he
spears a finger into my tight hole. The sensations pull a moan from my lips and I arch my back off the
bed of the truck.
Burke curls his finger in my pussy as his tongue continues tracing patterns over my clit. Then he
switches, darting his tongue in and out of my hole while rubbing my clit with his thumb.
“God, yes,” I groan, unable to stop the words falling from my lips.
He growls, and it sends a jolt of pleasure throughout my body. Burke leans back, his eyes never
leaving my pussy as he shoves two fingers into my entrance. The way he’s watching himself fuck me
with his fingers has me gushing even more for him.
“Goddamn, Haven. Just… goddamn,” he says before diving back in, licking and sucking the lips
of my pussy before nipping at my clit again.
My orgasm rips through me, and I fly up off the blanket. The only thing keeping me in place is
Burke’s arm across my hips.
He never stops. Burke keeps thrusting his fingers in and out, reaching up and curling them into that
special spot that drives me crazy. I feel another orgasm building quickly, and Burke doubles his
efforts, pumping his fingers in and out of me, hard and fast.
“Oh, Burke, I’m…”
“Let go, Baby. I’ve got you.”
I come all over his hand in messy waves of ecstacy. Burke removes his fingers and replaces them
with his tongue, lapping up my juices and sucking me down. He continues rubbing my clit with his
thumb until it’s almost too much. He’s wringing out my pleasure as my body shakes and convulses at
his touch.
“One more, mate. Give me one more.”
“I can’t…” I pant, even as I rock my hips towards him.
He lowers his mouth back to my pussy, now dripping with my cum. Burke removes his fingers and
places both hands on my hips, steadying me as he licks every part of my pussy. He alternates between
soft and slow, hard and fast until I'm out of my mind. A third orgasm shoots fire through my veins and
I scream out Burke's name.
“Good girl, that’s it. Come all over my face, I love tasting you.”
I keep chanting his name, unable to remember any other words.
When the last of my pleasure drips out of me, I collapse on the truck bed, limp and spent.
“God, Haven. You come like a goddess,” he growls, looking up at me from between my thighs.
“So gorgeous. So fucking sexy. I’ll never get enough of you.”
Burke crawls up my body, grabbing one of the many blankets scattered around, and wraps me up
before settling me in his lap. I sigh happily, tucking my head under his chin. “That was amazing,” I
whisper, snuggling ever closer.
“Yeah,” he agrees, kissing the top of my head. Just then, my stomach decides to growl loudly.
Burke chuckles, and reaches behind him to grab some fruit and crackers. “Let me feed you, mate.”
“Oh, that’s okay, I can do it,” I say with a giggle.
“I want to,” he insists. “I like taking care of you.”
Well, damn if that’s not the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard. “I like it, too.”
Burke feeds me, and tells me how beautiful and perfect I am. We end up not watching the movie,
but I’m not complaining. This is the happiest and safest I’ve ever been.
 NINE

Burke

I DIDN’T SLEEP a wink last night.

As soon as I dropped Haven off, I high-tailed it back to my cabin, where I bolted the door.
Otherwise, I would have chased after my mate and sunk my teeth into her neck. Christ, after getting a
taste of her sweetness, it took every ounce of self-control not to pounce on her. Especially since the
mating moon is tonight.
Groaning, I roll over in bed, the sheets twisted around my legs from all of my tossing and turning.
The clock on the bedside table reads seven in the morning. How early is too early to wake up Haven?
I want to spend every second with her, and hopefully, she’s ready to become my mate tonight.
I finally get out of bed, stretching the kinks out of my neck and shoulders. No sooner have I pulled
on a shirt and pants, than I hear knocking at my door.
“Coming,” I call out, not sure who is bothering me at this hour. If it’s one of the guys asking me to
do some stupid, mundane shit on their cars, I’m going to lose it.
Swinging the door open, my breath catches in my throat. It’s my gorgeous mate, wearing a cute
little sundress that hugs her frame.
“Hi,” Haven says, her voice tentative. She chews on her bottom lip, drawing my attention there. I
can smell her anxiety, and my wolf whines, wanting to know how we can make it better. I’m about to
ask her what’s wrong, but she blurts out, “Bite me.”
Her eyes go wide, as do mine. I cough and sputter, not expecting her to say that.
“I-I mean,” she stutters out. “I want you to bite me. Please,” Haven adds. It would be fucking
adorable if I weren’t going feral at her words.
“What are you asking me, Baby?” I say slowly, not wanting to scare her off.
She takes a step closer to me, placing her hands on my chest. I groan at the contact, my blood
rushing straight to my thick cock. Haven pushes me back inside the cabin, and I gladly let her, grinning
at her sudden wave of confidence.
“I want to be your mate,” she says once the door is closed.
“Are you sure?” I hate the thread of insecurity in my voice, but I need her to tell me again.
“I’m sure,” she says with more determination. “I want everything with you. I… I love you.”
Another random document with
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 “Pretty ⸺ bad!” snapped the old doctor. “Leg broke once—
mebbe twice. Head battered up. Lucky to be alive. Be lucky to live.
Don’t ask questions until I know something.”
“Hadn’t we better take him home?” asked Kelsey.
“Take him to my place,” said the doctor.
Joe mounted his horse and rode up beside Hozie.
“Somebody ought to tell Peggy,” he said.
Hozie nodded.
“You want to go, Joe?”
“You know I couldn’t, Hozie.”
“Sure. Lonnie, you go and tell her. Jist tell her—”
“A-a-a-aw, my ⸺!” snorted Lonnie.
“Me? Aw, I’d make a mess of it, Hozie.”
“Thasall right, Lonnie; it’s a mess already. Go ahead.”
Lonnie went, but Lonnie didn’t want to; and he didn’t mind telling
the world that his vocation was punching cows and not being a
messenger of bad news.
“Thasall right, Lonnie,” assured Hozie. “I won’t forget it.”
“’F yuh think I will, yo’re crazy,” said Lonnie.
Joe and Uncle Hozie rode back to Pinnacle City together. A crowd
gathered around the doctor’s house, waiting for a report on Jim’s
condition. But before such a report was forthcoming, Lonnie Myers
drove in with Peggy and Laura in a buggy from the HJ ranch.
And when the report did come, it shocked every one. Jim Wheeler
had died from concussion of the brain. The crowd moved silently
away. Jim Wheeler was one of the old-timers, and his death, as
Nebrasky Jones said, was “a ter’ble jolt to mankind of Tumblin’
River.”
Uncle Hozie took Peggy and Laura out to the Flying H, and Lonnie
Myers proceeded to drink more whisky than was good for him, in
order to forget.
“I was in there when the doctor told ’em,” said Lonnie. “Leave-
that-bottle-where-it-is! I’m the only person that knows when I’ve got
enough. Jist like a marble statue, that girl was. Didn’t say nothin’;
didn’t do nothin’. Say! Why don’tcha git some liquor that’s got
stren’th?”
“I betcha she feels bad, jist the same,” said “Slim” Coleman, of the
Lazy B. Slim wasn’t very bright.
Lonnie looked pityingly at Slim.
“Oh, I s’pose she does, Slim. If I was in yore place, I’d go away
before I tromp yuh to death.”
“Aw, you ain’t goin’ to tromp nobody, Lonnie; yo’re drunk.”
“I ain’t, but I will be,” solemnly. “And when I do git drunk, I’ll prob’ly
forget that yo’re jist plain ignorant, Slimmie. Now, you better go spin
yore rope where I can’t see nor hear yuh.”
Nebrasky Jones joined Lonnie, and within an hour Dan Leach
rode in from the Flying H. Uncle Hozie and the girls had reached the
ranch, and Dan said there was too much grief for him; so he came to
town.
And thus the Heavenly Triplets got together. Nebrasky and Lonnie
were far ahead of Dan, so far as drinks were concerned, and were
already given to short crying spells. Lonnie insisted on repeating the
story of how they found Joe Rich with Jim Wheeler. According to
Lonnie’s varying stories, they found Joe and Jim everywhere along
the road from the Tumbling River bridge to Pinnacle City.
Time after time he explained how he had broken the bad news to
Peggy and Laura. His diplomacy was wonderful to hear, and some of
his speeches left him breathless. When as a matter of fact he had
said to Peggy:
“Jim’s been dragged and they’re takin’ him to town. Dunno how
bad he’s hurt, but he shore looks dead to me.”
Dan had been with them about an hour when Kelsey came to the
Pinnacle bar. Lonnie looked upon him with great disfavor. Joe had
been a particular bunkie of the Flying H boys, and they were still
loyal. No matter if Joe had resigned voluntarily, they felt that Len
Kelsey was to blame.
Len walked back among the tables, where he talked to
“Handsome” Harry Clark, who owned the Pinnacle. Harry was not
handsome by any known standard of beauty, being a hard-faced,
sandy-haired individual, with a crooked nose and one sagging
eyebrow, caused by stopping a beer bottle in full flight.
“I don’ like ’m,” declared Lonnie owlishly. “Heza disgrash to—to
anythin’ what’ver.”
“My sen’ments to a i-ota,” said Nebrasky. “But what can yuh do,
Lonnie? Yo’re speakin’ of our sher’f, ain’tcha?”
“O-o-o-oh, u-nan-i-mushly!”
“Don’t be foolish,” advised Dan, who was half sober yet. “He’s the
sheriff, no matter if he should have been drowned in infancy.”
“H’lo, Misser Cold-Feet,” grinned Lonnie. “Dan’s slowin’ up on us,
Nebrasky.”
“Pos’tively,” nodded Nebrasky. “Old boy’s showin’ age.”
“Aw, yo’re crazy,” flared Dan. “But what can yuh do?”
“Flip ’m,” said Lonnie gleefully.
The gentle art of flipping a man consisted of two men getting one
on each side of the one to be flipped, grasping him by arms and
legs, and turning him completely over. It is a queer sensation, and
harmless, if done right. Kelsey was inches taller than either
Nebrasky or Lonnie.
The boys goggled wisely at each other and waited. Kelsey
finished his conversation with Clark and came back past the bar.
“That shore was awful bad about Jim Wheeler, wasn’t it?” said
Dan Leach.
The sheriff stopped beside the bar.
“It shore was,” he said emphatically. “That horse must ’a’ dragged
him quite a ways.”
“It was like thish,” explained Lonnie thickly.
He moved to the left side of Kelsey, while Nebrasky stepped back,
taking his position at Kelsey’s right.
“Me and Hozie Wheeler,” said Lonnie, “was ridin’—let ’er go,
Nebrasky!”
And before the unsuspecting sheriff knew what was happening he
had been grasped by arms and legs and was starting to imitate a
Ferris wheel.
Exerting all their strength, the two drunken cowboys managed to
swing Kelsey up to where his feet were almost pointing at the ceiling
—but there they stuck. Their leverage was gone. Kelsey’s six-
shooter fell from his holster, and his watch fell the full length of the
chain, striking Kelsey in the chin.
Overbalanced, the two cowboys started staggering backward,
stumbled into a card-table and went down with a crash, letting the
struggling Kelsey drop squarely on the top of his head.
The crash was terrific. Nebrasky went backward, almost to the
wall, working his feet frantically to try to catch up with his body, but
went flat on his back. Lonnie caromed off the card-table and landed
on his hands and knees, yelling for everybody to get out of his way.
But Kelsey suffered most. He had fallen about three feet on the
top of his head, and was still seeing stars. Leach, being of a
thoughtful turn of mind, kicked Kelsey’s six-shooter down toward the
middle of the room, where it came to rest under a card-table.
Several of the saloon employees, including Clark, the owner,
came to Kelsey’s assistance and sat him in a chair, where he
caressed his head and made funny noises.
“You boys better go before he wakes up,” advised Clark.
“Is that sho?” asked Lonnie thickly. “Shince when did the Flyin’ H
outfit learn t’ run, I’d crave to know?”
“Tha’s my cravin’, likewise,” said Nebrasky, trying to put his hat on
upside down. “Whazze-e got any right to git mad ’bout, in the firs’
place? Goo’ness, it was all in fun.”
Kelsey was rapidly recovering, and he knew what had happened.
His right hand felt his empty holster, and his eyes searched the floor.
He had heard the gun fall when he was upside down.
“It’s under that card-table up there,” said Clark.
Kelsey saw it. He got up slowly and went toward his gun, while the
Heavenly Triplets walked straight out through the front doorway.
Possibly they did not go straight, but they were out of the saloon
when Kelsey recovered his gun.
“I wouldn’t do anything, if I was you, Len,” said Clark. “They were
all drunk and didn’t realize.”
“Didn’t they?” cried Len flatly. “Don’t never think they didn’t. It was
all framed up to dump me on my head. I know that gang.”
“Better have a drink and forget it, Len.”
 “Yeah, that’s fine—for you. By ⸺, you never got a bump like that
—and forgot it.”
Kelsey walked straight to the street, but there was no sign of the
three men from the Flying H. Kelsey lingered for several moments,
then went on toward his office, while into the back door of the
Pinnacle Saloon came Nebrasky, Lonnie and Dan, as if nothing had
happened.
“Kelsey is lookin’ for you three,” said Clark.
“Kelsey?” Lonnie blinked seriously. “Kelsey? Oh, the sheriff?
Lookin’ for us?”
“Whazze want?” asked Nebrasky.
“You better wait and see, Nebrasky.”
“Now that’s what I call shound advice, Harry.”
“I betcha I know what he wants,” said Lonnie. “He wants us to turn
him the rest of the way over. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!”
This guess seemed so good to them that they sagged against the
bar and whooped merrily.
Joe Rich, following the announcement of Jim Wheeler’s death,
took his horse back to the stable and then went to the store where
he had purchased his house furnishings and told the storekeeper to
take them back, as there was little chance of their ever being paid
for.
When Joe came out he met Angus McLaren, the big grave-faced
Scotsman.
“Isn’t it too bad about poor Jim Wheeler!” exclaimed Angus. “I just
heard of it, Joe.”
Joe nodded. His nose and lips were still sore from the weight of
Jim Wheeler’s fist, and his right hand went involuntarily to his sore
spots. McLaren noticed this.
“Ye shouldn’t bear any grudge now, Joe,” he said softly.
“Grudge?”
“Over what he did to ye, Joe.”
Joe shook his head.
“I suppose he had plenty of cause, Mac.”
“No matter; he’s dead now. They say ye found him.”
 “Yeah, I did, Mac. I was on my way back from the HJ.”
“He wasn’t dead then?”
“No, not then. Hozie and Lonnie came along in a few minutes. He
was alive then, but I think he died on the way in.”
While they were talking Len Kelsey came from the Pinnacle
Saloon, rubbing his head, and went down to his office.
“Ye knew we appointed Len in your place, Joe?” asked McLaren.
“I hear yuh did, Mac. And Len appointed Ralston, eh?”
“That’s it. What do ye aim to do now?”
“I think I’ll leave here, Mac. There’s nothin’ in Tumblin’ River for
me any more.”
“Ye might get on with the Circle M. Merrick will be short one man,
now that Ralston is an officer.”
“No, Mac; I don’t think I’ll stay.”
“Mm-m-m-m,” McLaren considered Joe gravely.
“Joe, I’d have banked on ye. There’s a lot more folks in this
country that would have bet a million to one that ye wouldn’t do a
thing like ye done. Why did ye do it?”
Joe shook his head slowly.
“Mac, there’s things that I don’t even know; so I can’t tell yuh
anythin’.”
“Well, ye were drunk, weren’t ye?”
“Ask Honey Bee, Ed Merrick, Ben Collins or Limpy Nelson. They
all saw me, Mac. That should be evidence enough.”
“Ay,” McLaren sighed. “There seems to be plenty of evidence that
you played the fool. I dunno.” McLaren took a deep breath and
expelled it forcibly. “Well, I wish ye all the luck in the world, Joe Rich.
I think you are payin’ for yer own sins; but ye are a young man and
the world is wide.”
They shook hands gravely and Joe went back to his little cottage.
It seemed queer that he should be leaving Pinnacle City; almost as
queer as the fact that Jim Wheeler was lying dead at the doctor’s
office. Joe didn’t know where he was going, except that it would be
out through the south end of the valley; possibly down into Arizona.
He would travel light. His war-bag contained a change of clothes,
and that was all, except for a few trinkets.
 He tied it to his saddle, covering it with a black slicker, and rode
up to the county treasurer’s office, where he drew a warrant for his
remaining salary. Then he cashed it at the Pinnacle City bank, and
drew out the few remaining dollars he had on deposit there.
As he came from the bank he met Ed Merrick, who had just tied
his horse farther up the street.
“Hello, Joe,” greeted Merrick. “What’s all this talk about Jim
Wheeler gettin’ killed?”
“I reckon you heard right, Ed,” said Joe.
“Horse drug him to death?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, I’ll be ⸺!”
Merrick went on down the street, and Joe noticed that he walked
fast, as if he was in a big hurry. Joe heard some one call his name,
and he turned to see the Heavenly Triplets coming across the street
toward him from the Pinnacle Saloon. They were all very unsteady,
but also very earnest.
Lonnie sagged back on his heels and considered the roll behind
the cantle of Joe’s saddle. He sagged ahead and drew the slicker
aside enough to disclose the war-bag.
“Where you goin’, Joe?” he demanded. “All packed up, eh?”
“I’m pullin’ out, Lonnie,” said Joe gravely. “I’m shore glad I had a
chance to say good-by to you boys.”
“Na-a-awshir,” Nebrasky spoke with great deliberation. “Nobody
c’n go way like thish, Joseph. Nawshir. Gotta have big party. Misser
Rich,” gravely, “meet Misser Jones and Misser Leach.”
Dan and Nebrasky shook hands seriously with Joe.
“Pleased t’ meetcha,” said Nebrasky. “I used to know a sher’f that
looked like you, par’ner. Oh, ver’ mush like you! I slep’ in the same
bunk with him for two years. You jus’ passin’ through our fair city,
Misser Rich?”
“Just passin’ through,” said Joe slowly. He saw Merrick and
Kelsey leaving the sheriff’s office.
“Here comes Misser Kelsey,” grinned Lonnie. “’F he gits close
enough we’ll complete the swing on him, Nebrasky.”
 “He won’t never git close enough,” chuckled Dan. “That bird ain’t
never goin’ t’ light close to any of us.”
Joe held out his hand to Lonnie, who gripped it quickly.
“So-long, Lonnie,” said Joe. “Be good to yourself.”
“Aw-right, Joe.”
Joe shook hands with Dan and Nebrasky, who did it in a dumb
sort of a way. Perhaps they did not understand that Joe was leaving
Tumbling River. Joe turned to his horse and started to mount.
Merrick and Kelsey were close now, and Kelsey said to Joe—
“You ain’t leavin’ us, are yuh, Joe?”
Joe nodded.
“Yeah, I’m goin’, Len.”
“Uh-huh. Mebbe yuh better wait a little while, Joe. Somethin’ has
come up just lately. Better tie yore horse and wait till we get this
ironed out.”
“What do yuh mean, Len?”
“Has Hozie gone home?” Len spoke to Lonnie.
“Gone home? Of course he’s gone home. You seen him leave,
didn’t yuh?”
Kelsey nodded. Lonnie seemed belligerent.
“When yuh found Jim Wheeler, yuh—uh—didn’t look in his
pockets, didja, Lonnie?”
“Look in his pockets? What for, I’d crave to ask yuh?”
Kelsey turned to Merrick.
“Mebbe you better go down to the doctor’s place, Ed. Mebbe it’s
still there. I don’t reckon anybody looked.”
Merrick nodded shortly and hurried away. Joe looked curiously at
Kelsey, but the new sheriff was leaning against a porch post, rolling
a cigaret.
“Just why had I ought to wait?” asked Joe.
“Just for instance,” Kelsey lighted his cigaret.
“That’s the new sheriff,” said Lonnie. “Cool and collected, always
gets his man. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!”
Kelsey winced. Nebrasky looked him over thoroughly.
 “That’s him,” declared Nebrasky. “Yuh gotta look close at him to
tell. Kelsey is his name. Belonged to the Circle M before the county
bought him.”
“You think yo’re pretty ⸺ smart, don’t cha?” flared Kelsey.
“Don’t ’tagonize him,” begged Dan.
Joe stepped from his horse and faced Kelsey.
“What’s the idea of askin’ me to wait, Len?”
“Can’t tell yuh yet, Joe.”
“Suppose I decided to go ahead?”
“No, I don’t think yuh will.”
“I’m not under arrest, am I?”
“Not yet.”
“Not yet, eh?” Joe laughed recklessly. “Well, I reckon I’ll be goin’
then.”
Joe turned back to his horse.
“Yo’re not goin’!” snapped Kelsey.
Joe whirled quickly. Kelsey had half-drawn his gun. It was a
foolish move on Kelsey’s part; he should have covered Joe, if he
wanted to hold him badly enough to resort to a gun-play. Joe did not
hesitate. His right hand jerked upward and he fired from his waist.
Kelsey’s gun was out of the holster, but his hand flipped open and
the gun fell to the sidewalk. He staggered backward, clutching his
right forearm, while Joe swung into his saddle and rode swiftly out of
town, heading south.
The revolver shot attracted plenty of attention, and it also served
to sober the Heavenly Triplets. Kelsey swore bitterly as he clawed
away his shirt sleeve. The heavy bullet had plowed its way through
the muscles of his forearm, but did not touch the bone. The shock of
it had caused Kelsey’s hand to jerk open, releasing his gun.
Folks were crowding in from every direction, trying to find out what
it was all about.
“You better pack that arm to the doctor,” advised Lonnie.
Kelsey nodded and bit off more profanity. Ed Merrick came
through the crowd and quickly got the story of what had happened.
 “Go and get it dressed, Kelsey,” he said, after examining the
wound. “No bones broke. Is Jack at the office?”
“Here,” said Ralston, shoving his way through.
“Better get on Joe’s trail, Jack,” said Merrick quickly. “He—you
don’t need a warrant. Bring him back!”
Ralston ran down the street, while the crowd demanded that
Merrick tell them what it was all about. But Merrick merely shut his
lips and went to the court-house, followed by Angus McLaren, who
was as much at sea as any of the crowd.
Once inside their office McLaren asked Merrick what the trouble
was all about.
“I’m not accusin’ Joe Rich,” said Merrick. “But he was the one who
found Jim Wheeler. Today I drew five thousand from the Pinnacle
bank and loaned it to Jim Wheeler on his note. He had that money
on him when he left town. There is no money in his pockets now, and
no one has found any money on him since he came back, or during
the time of the first examination. The money is gone, Mac.”
“And Joe was the first man to find him,” muttered McLaren. “Five
thousand dollars! Merrick, that’s enough to tempt a man.”
“Yo’re ⸺ right it is! And Joe shot Kelsey in the arm.”
“Kelsey was drawin’,” reminded McLaren. “The boys say that
Kelsey reached for his gun first. Joe wasn’t under arrest.”
“No, that’s true, Mac. But if Joe wasn’t guilty, why didn’t he stay
until it could be cleared up? Ah! there’s Ralston!”
Through the window they saw the deputy ride up in front of the
court-house, where he talked with several men. Merrick and
McLaren went out to him. It seemed as if all the cowboys had
disappeared. Ralston spurred over in front of the Pinnacle and went
into the saloon, but came out again.
McLaren smothered a grin. The cowboys knew that Ralston would
deputize them to ride with him, and they would be obliged to obey
his orders; but if he couldn’t find them—that was a different matter.
“By ⸺, they all ducked!” snorted Ralston angrily.
“Looks like it,” agreed Merrick. “Well, I’ll go with yuh, Jack. If we
can’t do any better, we might find some of the boys at my ranch. By
⸺, they won’t sneak out on yuh!”
 Merrick crossed the street to the Pinnacle hitch-rack and mounted
his horse. Ralston went back to the office and got an extra
Winchester for Merrick, and they rode away at a swift gallop.
They had barely disappeared when the Heavenly Triplets showed
up. They had rolled under the sidewalk near where Joe had shot
Kelsey. From the depths of an empty wagon-box farther up the street
came Abe Liston, of the 3W3. Slim Coleman, of the Lazy B,
sauntered out of the narrow alley between the Pinnacle Saloon and
a feed-store.
The Heavenly Triplets were fairly sober now—too sober to think of
anything funny to do; so they headed for the Pinnacle Saloon.
“Hey, you snake-hunters!” yelled Slim Coleman. “Didn’t yuh ride
away with the posse?”
“We shore did!” replied Lonnie. “Couldn’t find a thing. C’mon and
have a drink, you man-hunter.”
“Sheriffin’ does make a feller kinda dry,” admitted Slim. “I’ll go yuh
once, if I lose all m’hair. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha! I’ll betcha Ralston is mad
enough to gnaw a nail.”
“Well, he can go plumb to ⸺, as far as we’re concerned,”
declared Nebrasky. “Any old time we go huntin’ criminals, it’ll be
when there ain’t nothin’ else to do. Anyway, I don’t look upon the
shootin’ of Kelsey as a crime.”
They lined up at the bar and offered to sing a song for the drinks.
But the bartender was a bit skeptical about the intrinsic value of
anything they might sing.
“It’s all right with me, yuh understand,” explained the bartender.
“But when Handsome starts checkin’ up the till at night—you know
what I mean.”
“Oh, shore,” nodded Lonnie. “Some folks never appreciate talent.
Howja like to have a free song?”
“Oh, I can absorb anythin’ that don’t hurt the rest of yuh. All I ask
is that yuh don’t require my opinion. I’m honest.”
Angus McLaren came in and Lonnie invited him to share their
hospitality. McLaren rarely drank anything, but no one had ever
known him to refuse an invitation.
 “We just got back from ridin’ with the deputy,” explained Nebrasky.
“Ridin’ allus makes me dry.”
McLaren laughed and poured out a drink.
“Well, here’s hopin’ they never even catch sight of Joe’s dust,”
said Leach.
“I dunno,” said McLaren. “Ye see, boys, it’s a serious charge
they’ve put against Joe Rich.”
“Serious!” snorted Lonnie. “To shoot Kelsey? Why, Kelsey was
reachin’ for—”
“I know that, Lonnie. But that’s not the charge. Today Ed Merrick
loaned Jim Wheeler five thousand in cash and took Jim’s note for it.
Jim rode away with the money. There’s not a cent on poor Jim—and
Joe was the one who found him.”
“A-a-a-a-aw, ⸺!” Lonnie dropped his glass on the floor.
“Yuh mean to say that Joe got away with it?” asked Nebrasky.
“I’m not sayin’ anythin’, Nebr-r-rasky. It was told to me. I went to
the bank, and they tell me Merrick drew the money.”
“Well, for ⸺’s sake!” snorted Lonnie. “That’s awful!”
“Aye, it is. Well, here’s luck, boys!”
McLaren drained his glass alone. The Heavenly Triplets and Slim
had no taste for liquor now. They went outside and sat down on the
edge of the sidewalk, humped over like four crows on a fence-rail.
For possibly five minutes they said nothing. Then Lonnie broke
the silence with—
“Joe’s turnin’ out to be a humdinger.”
Nebrasky spat dryly and expounded—“Yuh never can tell which
way a dill-pickle will squirt.”
“Five ’r no five—I hope he gits away,” said Leach.
“I thought there was somethin’ funny about him bein’ in such a
hurry to git away,” said Slim.
“And you know yo’re a ⸺ liar, Slim,” said Lonnie.
“Yeah, I know it,” agreed Slim.
“Might as well go home, I s’pose,” observed Nebrasky.
“Yeah, and right here and now I want to proclaim,” said Lonnie,
“there ain’t goin’ to be no drawin’ straws and all that kinda stuff;
sabe? I don’t care a ⸺ which one of you two pelicans decide to
break the news at the Flyin’ H, but I want yuh to know it ain’t goin’ to
be little Lonnie. By ⸺, I’ve broke all the news I’m goin’ to today!”
“I guess we better not say anythin’ to ’em a-tall,” decided
Nebrasky. “It ain’t no settled fact.”
“Shore—jist let it kinda drift,” agreed Leach.
“There goes Kelsey, wearin’ his arm in a sling,” said Slim. “He’s
lucky it ain’t his head.”
“Come dang near bein’,” laughed Lonnie, and he headed for the
hitch-rack.
Kelsey swore inwardly at the three punchers and wondered why
Ralston didn’t deputize some of them to go with him. He met
Handsome Clark at the door of a Chinese restaurant, and Clark told
him that the cowboys had all disappeared when Jack Ralston
showed up, and that Merrick had been the only one to ride with him.
Clark did not know about the missing money until Kelsey told him
about it.
“No wonder he plugged you,” said Clark. “He probably had all that
money on him.”
“Probably. It was all in currency—big bills, mostly.”
“How’s the arm?”
“Don’t hurt much. Won’t be usin’ it for a while. I never looked for
Joe to shoot. He’s awful fast with a gun.”
Clark nodded.
“You drew first, didn’t you, Len?”
“Mebbe I did. He said he was goin’. Yuh see, I didn’t want to arrest
him. There wasn’t any sure thing that the money wasn’t in Wheeler’s
pockets. I just asked Joe to wait, and when he insisted on goin’ I
didn’t know just what to do. If I’d had any sense, I’d have poked a
gun in his ribs and made him wait. Live and learn, I reckon.”
“I suppose they’ll get him.”
“Mebbe. Joe knows this country and he must ’a’ been set for a
getaway. Yuh can’t tell which way he’ll go. Headed out south, but
he’s just as liable to be ridin’ north now. He’s no fool. And two men
might not be able to find him. We can’t expect much help from the
punchers.”
 “No, it seems that you can’t, Len. Being a sheriff in Tumbling River
has its drawbacks.”
Len left McLaren and went to the depot, where he sent wires to
Kelo and Ransome, notifying the marshals of each place to watch for
Joe Rich. And then he went back to his office to nurse his aching
arm and swear at himself for half-drawing a six-shooter on a man
like Joe Rich.
 CHAPTER IV: RANGE FUNERAL
Bad news travels swiftly in the range country, and the following
morning there was quite a gathering of the clan at the Flying H.
People came to extend their sympathy to Peggy Wheeler and to the
rest of the Wheeler family. Even the Reverend Henry Lake and his
slow-moving old buggy horse showed up at the ranch, the minister
dressed in his ancient best.
Aunt Emma Wheeler, Aunt Annie Bellew, Grandma Owens and
Mrs. Buck West gathered together and talked in whispers of the
white-faced girl upstairs who did not want to talk with anybody, while
the men stood around at the rear of the house in the shade of the big
cottonwood and drank up the rest of Uncle Hozie’s wedding liquor.
Honey Bee was there, longing for a chance to talk with Laura
Hatton. A little later on Len Kelsey, his arm in a sling, rode out. The
Heavenly Triplets were sober, but that did not prevent them from
making a few caustic remarks about the sheriff when they saw him
coming.
“You let him alone,” ordered Uncle Hozie. “My ⸺, ain’t there
trouble enough, without you startin’ a debate with the law? Lonnie,
you haul in yore horns; sabe?”
“Aw, he gives me a itch,” growled Lonnie.
“Go scratch yourself,” advised Uncle Hozie.
Kelsey brought no news of Joe Rich. He said that Ralston and
Merrick had ridden through to Kelo, but found no trace of the fugitive.
Ralston had come back to Pinnacle City at midnight.
“Yuh didn’t expect to catch him, didja?” asked Nebrasky.
“Sure we’ll get him,” confidently. “May take a little while.”
“Aw, ⸺!” snorted Lonnie. “You and Jack Ralston couldn’t foller a
load of hay through a fresh snow.”
“Lonnie, I told yuh—” began Uncle Hozie.
 “Yeah, I heard yuh,” interrupted Lonnie. “I’m not ridin’ him.”
Len smiled thinly.
“Thasall right, Hozie. You folks have kinda got the wrong idea of
all this. I’m not an enemy of Joe Rich. My ⸺, I worked with him,
didn’t I? In my business yuh don’t have to hate a man to arrest him.
There ain’t nothin’ personal about me huntin’ for Joe. If he’s
innocent, he ought to stay and prove it. Yuh can’t jist sneeze a
couple of times and forget that five thousand dollars are missin’, can
yuh?”
“No, yuh shore can’t, Len,” agreed Uncle Hozie.
Len didn’t stay long. His speech impressed all, except the three
Flying H cowpunchers. They had no real reason for disliking Len
Kelsey, except that he represented the law, and that he had
succeeded Joe Rich. And they were loyal to Joe, even if he was
guilty as charged. Theirs was not a fickle friendship; not something
that merely endured in fair weather.
Uncle Hozie talked long and earnestly with the minister over the
funeral arrangements, and together they went up the stairs to talk
with Peggy. Laura left them and came down to the veranda, where
Honey Bee beamed with delight.
“I was scared I wasn’t goin’ to see yuh,” he said softly. “How’s
Peggy standin’ it?”
Laura sighed and shook her pretty head. “Peggy would be all
right, if all those women wouldn’t sit around and talk about corpses
they have seen. They all talk about successful funerals! As though
any funeral could be a success! And they all gabble about Joe Rich.
Honey, I actually think that some of them believe Joe Rich killed
Uncle Jim.”
“Eh?” Honey jerked back, staring at her.
“Ex-cuse my language, but that’s a ⸺ of an idea! Who started
that?”
“Oh, I don’t know. They talked about Uncle Jim being a good rider
and a sober man and that the saddle did not turn. And he had all that
money with him.”
“Well, I’ll be darned!” snorted Honey. “Did Peggy know Jim
Wheeler was borrowin’ that money from Merrick?”
 “Yes. She didn’t know how much. Now she says she can’t go.
They talk about Uncle Jim having a big mortgage at the bank, and
with this five thousand from Merrick—”
“Lotta money,” mused Honey Bee. “Huh-how soon do yuh aim to
leave, Laura?”
“I don’t know. Not until after things are straightened up for Peggy. I
sent Dad a wire, telling him that our plans had been changed.”
“Then yuh won’t be goin’ for a while, eh?” Honey sighed with
relief. “That’s shore fine. Yuh won’t go back to the HJ, will yuh?”
“I think so. Wong Lee is still there and Uncle Hozie said one of his
boys could go down there and help run the place.”
“Yea-a-a-ah? Uh-huh. Which one, I wonder?”
“I don’t know. Uncle Hozie spoke about Lonnie Myers.”
“Oh, yeah—Lonnie. Ain’t settled yet, eh?”
“No; he just spoke about it a while ago.”
Uncle Hozie and the minister came out, talking softly; so Laura
hurried back upstairs to Peggy. Honey rubbed his chin thoughtfully
and waited for Uncle Hozie and the minister to end their
conversation.
And then Honey lost no time in backing Uncle Hozie against the
wall.
“Laura tells me that Peggy is goin’ back to the HJ, after the
funeral, Hozie.”
Uncle Hozie nodded slowly.
“She says she is, Honey.”
“Yo’re a pretty good friend of mine, aint’cha, Hozie?”
“Well—” Hozie pursed his lips and blinked at Honey—“I never
throwed any rocks at yuh when yuh wasn’t lookin’.”
Honey leaned forward and whispered rapidly in Hozie’s ear.
“Huh? O-o-oh!” Hozie understood.
A few minutes later Hozie met Curt Bellew near the kitchen door.
“I jist wanted to ask yuh somethin’, Curt,” said Uncle Hozie. “I—uh
—I been talkin’ to Peggy. Yuh see, Curt, she’s goin’ to stay at the HJ,
at least a while. Won’t be nobody there but her and Laura and Wong
Lee.”
 “Uh-huh.”
“Well, I been talkin’ to her, yuh understand, Curt. She’s goin’ to
need one man to help run things. I—uh—she said she’d like to have
Honey Bee to run the place.”
“Oh, yea-a-a-ah!”
Curt lifted his eyebrows thoughtfully and hooked his thumbs over
his cartridge-belt. He nodded slowly.
“Well, mebbe I can git along without that boy for a while, Hozie.
He prob’ly won’t want to do it. Honey’s funny thataway. But you tell
him I said he had to do it. If he kicks about makin’ the change—you
tell him to come to me.”
“Yeah, I’ll do that, Curt,” solemnly.
They looked at each other seriously for several moments.
“And that ain’t the funniest part of it,” said Uncle Hozie. “Laura told
Honey that I was goin’ to loan ’em Lonnie Myers to run the HJ—and
there ain’t never been any mention of me loanin’ anybody.”
“She made it all up, Hozie?”
“’Course she did. Her father’s a broker in Philadelphia, and I
s’pose Laura inherited her ability to tell p’lite lies from him. But it’s all
right, ain’t it, Curt?”
“Fine! Ma will be glad. She has to watch Honey like a hawk to
keep him from cuttin’ L.H. on all the furniture.”
They chuckled together for several moments. Then—
“Hozie, what’s this talk about mebbe Jim’s death wasn’t an
accident?”
“Wimmin,” said Hozie quickly. “Old wimmin talkin’.”
“Uh-huh. Yeah, I s’pose it is. I don’t like it, Hozie. But a while ago I
got to thinkin’ about Jim. Where’s that note? Ed Merrick must ’a’
signed a copy for Jim. Merrick’s got his copy, signed by Jim.”
“Whoever got the money must ’a’ took the note, Curt.”
“I s’pose. The money was all in big bills. By golly, I hope they find
Joe Rich.”
Uncle Hozie sighed deeply. He loved Joe Rich like a son, and it
was difficult for him to believe Joe guilty.
“It hurts Peggy,” he said slowly. “It hurts her as much as the death
of her father. Yuh see, she loved Joe a lot.”
 “I reckon we all did, Hozie—up to the day he was to be married.”
“Joe Rich of yesterday,” muttered Uncle Hozie.
“Whatcha say, Hozie?”
“Jist thinkin’ out loud, Curt. I’ll find Honey, and break the bad news
to him.”
“Yeah; he’ll prob’ly be sore as ⸺.”
 CHAPTER V: HASHKNIFE AND SLEEPY
It was several days after the funeral of Jim Wheeler, and things in
the Tumbling River range seemed back on an even keel again. Joe
Rich was still at large. The sheriff had broadcast Joe’s description,
and the county had offered a thousand dollars reward.
Kelsey and Ralston still searched the Tumbling River hills, hoping
that Joe had not left the valley. Even the Heavenly Triplets were too
busy to annoy the sheriff, but were looking forward to payday.
Honey Bee was firmly established at the HJ, much to the
amusement of every one. Uncle Hozie had never told him that Laura
had fibbed about Lonnie Myers’ going to run the ranch; so Honey
believed Hozie had done him a great favor.
Peggy took little interest in anything. The shock had taken the
spirit all out of her, and she realized that it would only be a question
of time until the Pinnacle bank and Ed Merrick would own the HJ.
Twelve thousand is a lot of money.
Aunt Emma did not like the arrangement at the HJ.
“Them two girls livin’ alone with one man.”
“Nothin’ of the kind,” denied Uncle Hozie. “Honey’s in love, and a
man in love ain’t more’n half a man. Anyway, there’s Wong Lee.”
“A heathen Chinee!”
“He’s a Chinaman, but I’ll betcha he’s as much of a Christian as
any of us.”
“Anyway,” declared Aunt Emma, “I’m goin’ to spend all the time I
can with the girls.”
Aunt Emma was one of those who believed that Jim Wheeler had
not died from an accident. She talked with the old doctor about the
bruises on Wheeler’s skull, and he told her that they were caused by
Jim Wheeler’s head striking the rocks.