Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 87193 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87193 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Nadia looked at the wolf, rough but unmistakable, carved from living stone. She felt something settle in her chest. “Wow,” she whispered softly. “That’s beautiful.”
Isaac turned to face her, still crouching. “So are you. I know I said I wanted a tall female, and Taryn fits that requirement, but I feel like I was too hasty with you. You have gumption, and I like that. I’d never force anyone to mate with me, but when I become the Alpha of the pack, would you consider allowing me to court you?”
“And Taryn?” Nadia drawled, her lips too cold to smile.
“Of course.” Isaac stood.
She liked the logical side of him. Heck. He was all logic. “I see.”
He cleared his throat. “However, just to be fair, I need a true Alpha female. One who can protect the pack, and I have doubts that you have the skills needed.”
Ouch. “I’m a great planner and organizer,” she murmured. Wait a second. Why was she trying to convince him of anything?
“I’m sure.” He nodded, his gaze serious. “Yet you don’t act like an Alpha. Taryn does. She knows her power.”
Was he talking himself out of courting her? Not that she wanted to be courted, but still. Did he have a point? “I wasn’t raised in the pack,” she murmured. Plus, she did lack fighting skills. Perhaps that mattered more than she realized. She’d have to think about it. Later. At home, in bed, once warm. Reluctantly, she turned back toward the rapidly swaying bridge. “Ugh. I guess we’d better—”
A massive black wolf lunged down from above, smashing into them both.
Nadia screamed, falling toward the edge.
“Nadia!” Isaac leaped toward her, yanking her back to the wall. He shoved her behind him just as the wolf hit him again, propelling him toward the edge. He went over, claws extending from his fingers as he started to shift.
Nadia reached for him, grasping his wrist as it turned into a paw. She pulled as hard as she could to help him reach safety.
The wolf smashed into her, pain exploded in her shoulders, and she rolled to the side, her head hanging over the edge. Scrambling, she reached for Isaac again, but he was falling. Eyes wide, snout up, he howled as he dropped far down to hit the water.
Nadia called out his name, searching for any sign of him in the churning current. Tears filled her eyes and she partially turned to see the wolf straighten into Bulwark’s human form. She crab walked to the side, eyeing the edge. “What are you doing?”
Bruises mottled the side of Bulwark’s face. “Dealing with two problems at once.”
She fought a whimper. He was so much bigger than her, and even standing nude in the swirling snow, looked dangerous. “I didn’t blow up the tunnels.”
“I know. My guess is that Caidrik did it.” Bulwark smiled, looking deadly. “It was a smart move, really. Kill me, save you, be a hero. The guy thinks I’m dead.”
She sucked in a breath. Was there any way Isaac survived that fall? “What now?”
Bulwark reached for her arms and dragged her up. “Now you follow that red-headed moron.”
She struggled in his grasp but couldn’t free herself. “Why? I thought you wanted to be the Alpha.”
“I do, but Taryn is a much better mate for me. Plus, killing you will destroy Caidrik. The guy has quite a hard-on for you. This’ll be such a nice flashback to when Carrie died.” With that, Bulwark threw her into the air.
Mist hit her face, cold and blinding—and then she was falling, the river rising to meet her.
Chapter 11
Caidrik reached the old bridge just in time to see Bulwark throw Nadia off the opposite ledge.
He bellowed her name as she dropped toward the violent river. The sound ripped out of him, raw and useless, already swallowed by the roar of the churning water below. There was no time to think. He leaped, shifting in the air, the change snapping through him so fast it hurt. Bones burned and reset, skin stretched, and his wolf strength slammed into place. He hit the water hard and went under. Pain spiked through his eyeballs.
He burst back up, fighting wildly.
The current took him immediately. It dragged him sideways, spun him, dunked his head under and yanked it back out. Water blasted up his snout and down his throat. He coughed out gallons, choking, his lungs screaming. His head bobbed and ducked and bobbed again, and nothing filled his vision but white water and spray. Trying to see was useless. Everything moved too fast.
“Nadia,” he tried to roar, but only a wolf’s growl came out, torn apart by the sound of the river. He shoved his head down, tried to swim under the top current, and smashed sideways into a sharp rock. Pain slashed across his rib cage, sharp enough to make him snarl as the water rolled him over it.